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Solutions to your tough problems: some women's health issues are difficult to treat. We found the natural answers you've been waiting for - Annual Women's Health Guide
Natural Health, Dec, 2002 by Julia Tolliver Maranan
Squeeze to Stop Stress Incontinence. Kegel exercises, in which you strengthen your pelvic floor muscles by contracting them, are the best treatment for stress incontinence, says Hudson, a naturopath. First, learn how to isolate your pelvic floor muscles. You can do this by inserting one finger into your vagina and contracting around it. Or you can buy vaginal cones (weighted plastic devices shaped like tampons); when you insert a cone, if you are not properly contracting your pelvic floor muscles, it will fall out. You can order vaginal cones at Home Delivery of Incontinence Supplies (800-269-4663; www.hdis.com). Once you have learned to isolate those muscles, perform Kegel exercises (contracting the muscles) in five sets of 10 per day to strengthen them. Done daily, Kegels can stop or drastically reduce stress incontinence in two to three months, says Hudson.
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Tame the Urge with Biofeedback. Women who have urge incontinence often contract their abdominal muscles when trying to avoid urination. But this puts pressure on their bladders and worsens the problem. To treat urge incontinence, you need to train yourself to relax your abdominal muscles while contracting your pelvic floor muscles. Biofeedback can help you learn this skill. This therapy uses sensors hooked to a computer to measure muscle movements in your body; watching the readouts on a computer screen helps you become aware of, and ultimately control, the appropriate muscles. Biofeedback can work after a single session, but you may need to take multiple sessions to reinforce your skills. (To locate a biofeedback practitioner, check with your local hospital or clinic, or contact the Biofeedback Certification Institute of America at 303-420-2902.)
Amend Your Drinking Habits. You can improve stress and urge incontinence by not drinking excessive amounts. Most people need to drink only about a quart, or four 8-ounce glasses of fluids, a day, says Hudson. Drinks like coffee or soda commonly trigger incontinence. If you notice a specific beverage causes a problem for you, Hudson suggests eliminating or drinking less of it. If you have urge incontinence, don't wait until your bladder fills to urinate. Set a small alarm to remind yourself to use the bathroom every few hours. Also, if you tend to wake in the middle of the night to urinate, don't drink anything after 7 p.m.
Infertility
Several factors can hamper fertility in women, including an imbalance of reproductive hormones, pelvic infections, and endometriosis. In about 1 in 10 cases, medical tests cannot determine the cause. No single treatment will be successful for everyone, but research has shown that the following simple, inexpensive treatments can help women conceive. Work with your doctor as you try them.
Do Away with Certain Substances. You can significantly increase fertility, according to several clinical studies, by eliminating caffeine, alcohol, and cigarettes, which may interfere with reproduction. Also stop taking herbs, in supplement form or as teas, and over-the-counter and prescription medications, except under a doctor's supervision, because they may hamper fertility, says Alice D. Domar, Ph.D., psychologist and director of the Mind/Body Center for Women's Health at Boston IVF and author of Conquering Infertility (Viking, 2002).
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