5 Urinary Incontinence Treatments at Home

Urinary incontinence is when you can't hold urine or are leaking urine because you’re unable to control your bladder. This common condition is estimated to impact around 13 million Americans and 423 million people worldwide.

Some urinary incontinence treatments include medication or surgery, but some at-home remedies—like bladder or pelvic floor training—can also provide relief from incontinence symptoms. If you're wondering how to stop bladder spasms naturally, read on to learn about a few of those evidence-based remedies.

Types of Urinary Incontinence

There are quite a few types of incontinence, each with different causes:

• Urge incontinence: Urge incontinence happens when you have a strong, sudden need to pee that causes involuntary urination at inappropriate times.
• Stress urinary incontinence: This is a type of incontinence caused by a combination of increased pressure in the abdomen and weak muscles in the pelvis and/or urethra—the tube that drains urine from your bladder.
• Overflow incontinence: This type of incontinence occurs when the muscles of the bladder are not able to squeeze properly to empty the bladder. 
• Mixed incontinence: This is a combination of both urge and stress incontinence.
• Functional urinary incontinence: With this type of incontinence, the bladder is functioning normally, but you're unable to get to the toilet in time to urinate or don’t realize you need to urinate.

At-Home Remedies

There are many effective treatments for incontinence, but the right treatment approach depends on the cause of incontinence and your individual needs.

Healthcare providers usually start with the least invasive and natural methods like behavioral therapy, weight loss (urinary incontinence is more common in people who are overweight), and pelvic floor exercises before moving on to interventions like medication or surgery.

Fluid Management

One of the first treatments a healthcare provider may recommend for urinary incontinence is behavioral therapy. This therapy often includes controlling your fluid intake, but this doesn’t always mean drinking less.

Drinking enough fluids like water throughout the day helps keep you hydrated, which is necessary for overall health. Limiting your fluid intake too severely can lead to dehydration and strong-smelling urine, and can even lead to bladder irritation, making urinary incontinence worse. 

Instead of cutting yourself off from fluids, or drinking a ton all at once, experts suggest spreading out your beverage intake throughout the day. Most people need around 2 to 3 liters or 8.5 to 12.5 cups of water per day. 

You don't want to drink too much or too little. Consider also limiting beverages in the hours leading up to bedtime if nighttime incontinence is an issue.

Diet Management

Certain beverages like coffee, caffeinated tea, and cola, can worsen incontinence. Other drinks like carbonated beverages and alcohol could irritate the bladder and may also have to be avoided. 

Some foods could be problematic for people with urinary incontinence, too. For example, chocolate, other caffeine-containing foods, and spicy or acidic foods could stimulate the bladder and worsen leaks.

Some studies have suggested that a low-fat diet high in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains could help reduce urinary incontinence symptoms in females. More research is still needed to understand how dietary changes impact this condition.  

Another helpful dietary recommendation for urinary incontinence is upping your fiber intake. Constipation can worsen urinary incontinence by putting pressure on the bladder. Following a high-fiber diet by eating plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and staying hydrated by drinking water regularly throughout the day can help prevent and treat constipation.  

Bladder Training

Instead of going when you feel the urge to pee, moving towards a more regular urination schedule may be helpful for people with urge incontinence. This is known as bladder training.

To “train” your bladder so you can urinate less frequently, experts recommend keeping a bladder diary to keep track of your urination schedule. If you’re urinating frequently, try adding 15 minutes between bathroom visits to start, urinating each time even if you don’t feel a strong urge to go. 

Little by little, increase the time between bathroom visits. This will help your bladder learn to hold more urine so you can go to the bathroom at set times throughout the day.

Healthy Weight Maintenance

Overweight or obesity can play a role in urinary incontinence. Extra body fat in the abdomen puts pressure on the bladder, which can worsen or cause urinary incontinence. 

Changing your diet, increasing daily physical activity, getting enough sleep, and managing stress levels are all important for weight loss. If you need help developing a healthy, sustainable weight loss plan, consider making an appointment with a healthcare provider like a registered dietitian. 

Pelvic Floor Training

Strengthening the pelvic floor can help if you have urge or stress incontinence. Pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) involves performing exercises that help strengthen muscles around the bladder. It is often used on its own or in combination with other treatments like electrical stimulation as a treatment for urinary incontinence. 

Strengthening the pelvic muscles could help you hold in your urine longer and reduce the number of leaks you experience.  A physical therapist trained in pelvic floor therapy can help you develop a safe and appropriate PFMT routine. Keep in mind that you shouldn’t perform pelvic floor exercises while urinating.

Other Treatment Options

When home remedies don't work for urinary incontinence, medical treatments may be necessary. Those treatments can include:

• Bulking agents: Are used as injections to thicken bladder and urethra tissue to lessen bladder leaks
• Electrical nerve stimulation: Involves using pulses of electricity that affect bladder reflexes
• Medical devices: Can include devices such as tubes called catheters or tampon-like devices
• Medications: Vary in purpose, from relaxing bladder muscles to blocking nerve signals for urgent or frequent urine flow
• Surgery: Helps support normal bladder position

When to See a Healthcare Provider

If you’re experiencing symptoms like leaking urine, frequent urination, or loss of bladder control that aren’t getting better with home remedies, visit a healthcare provider.

A primary care doctor or a specialist like a urologist or a gynecologist can work with you to find the most effective treatment for your condition and can share tips that may help improve your quality of life. 

Depending on the type and severity of urinary incontinence, a healthcare provider may prescribe behavioral modification, weight loss, or physical therapy or recommend medication or surgical management. 

A Quick Review

Depending on the type, urinary incontinence can sometimes be treated with natural and at-home remedies like bladder training, pelvic floor exercises, weight loss, and dietary supplements. However, these methods aren’t always appropriate or effective. It's important to visit a trusted healthcare provider if you’re experiencing incontinence symptoms so that you can get the best care.