r/OveractiveBladder

Just wanted to share my experience because I was really nervous before I got it done but it’s a little over 1 week since the procedure and it’s already changed my life.

My OAB felt like it was ruining me, I couldn’t drink a cup of tea or have a beer without going to the bathroom so many times, I had incontinence so bad I’d wear pads 24/7 to not pee my pants, refused to go to a music festival or anywhere with bathrooms not readily accessible, never getting a full night’s sleep bc of waking up 3+ times to pee, have had to pee outside on multiple occasions and has just overall been so embarrassing.

I was taking Mybetriq 50 every day for 5 years which seemed to help some but gradually it kept getting worse and worse.

Finally pulled the trigger on a trip back to Egypt where my dad is from (mostly due to lower cost). I found a fabulous urologist who reassured me that the risk of self cat (my biggest worry) is so rare and hasn’t happened in his experience doing the procedure.

After discussing it more with him we decided because of my lifestyle of traveling and the severity of my symptoms that we would start out with 200 units of botox instead of 100 that people usually do for the first time, because more often than not people end up having to get more and I won’t be able to come back to Egypt that often. The entire cost was 40k EGP = $800 and, get this, it included general anesthesia!!

So I can’t comment on the pain of the procedure because I didn’t experience it, but post op was totally fine just slight burning and a bit of blood in urine that resolved in a few hours.

Already I can drink tea/alcohol again, go out with my friends, and haven’t had any accidents!! Seriously life changing. If you’re considering bladder botox, DO IT!!

My partner has OAB and mobility issues due to severe arthritis. She can get to the bathroom during the day at home, though she goes every 2 hours or so. At night, she wakes up every 2 hours to go. She is a bariatric patient and I found pullups in her size that fit her well. But she still won't pee in them and getting 2 hours of sleep at a time all night long is wearing on her. One of her concerns is that it is difficult due to her mobility to change every time she wets in them, and they are very expensive in her size. Does anyone have the same concerns and do you have any suggestions for her? Thank you so much.

I was wondering if anyone has had any luck with the Medtronic Interstim, for underactive bladder.

I'm in my 20s, F and have an underactive bladder, resulting in incomplete emptying and having to strain to void because the stream is incredibly weak. I wake up 4-8 times a night to use the toilet, and haven't experienced a night of good quality sleep in a few years. And lately the fatigue has been making me so miserable.

After trying some possible solutions and all of them failing, my urologist suggested getting the Medtronic Interstim. I've seen a lot of success stories on reddit for overactive bladder but I'm curious if it's been successful for anyone else suffering from underactive bladder.

Hope someone can share some insight.

Had successful prostatectomy June 2024. Completed 25 radiation treatments in April 2026. Started Orgovyx right before treatments and have been on it since. Until the last month I needed only 1 pad for incontinence mostly "just in case". I could do yard work, housework, go to store etc. without a pad. I mostly wore it to golf, bowl and when I work part-time at a golf course and am on my feet all day.

A month ago, I started leaking horrendously and going through 2 pads just while working. My Medical Oncologist referred me to my urologist who thinks it's an overactive bladder and wants me to "trial a medication called Myrbetriq or mirabegron that can help with overactive bladder or urinary leakage." I'm a bit concerned about the side effects - " This medication would require you to monitor your blood pressure at home as one of the side effects is the potential to increase blood pressure. Other side effects can be GI upset, headaches, however it is usually generally well tolerated. If you experience urinary retention (unable to urinate) on the medication you would want to stop the medication. If you are unable to urinate at all and developed bladder pressure/pain, it is recommended to proceed to the ER for further evaluation"

I know when I always sat on the toilet I would drip was told this was normal because there is nothing there to stop the pee. When this sudden onset of incontinence started, I thought perhaps because now that my penis has shrunk so much because of Orgovyx that is just hangs there in my underwear and leaks just like it does when it hangs on the toilet.

Has anyone else experienced a sudden onset of incontinence after such long time after treatment or was diagnosed with an overactive bladder this long after radiation?

Thanks

I don't even know where to start here

Around 2012 I suddenly developed a strong frequent urgency to pee it came seemingly out of the blue and carried on for around 7 months. Then gradually got better and went away

It came back off and on a few times since

Once in 2017 for a few weeks and again in 2023 for 5 months

Each time we have ruled out UTI and other things via bladder scans etc

It's come back again and has been here for 5 weeks and I'm demented with it. Last time after seeing a urologist he suggested it was related to ibs + constipation + after that I just seemed to get to a point where I just decided to just get on with it + it gradually went away again but I can't seem to get myself into that head space again.

My doctor and I are starting from scratch working through things and I'm just feeling more and more hopeless. Currently getting on top of constipation with Laxido but all it's done has given me diarrhoea twice and today all I've done is pee large amounts every 20 mins. I'm at a loss of where to go from here. I get married next year and all I can think of is being like this forever :(

Help.

Do you ever have a long pee and then a few minutes later do another long pee.

So I have OAB, I go about 40 times a day and about 10 times a night.

I currently have a chest infection, so I’m coughing quite a lot….. which is causing me to…. Leak.
I was out to actually get medicine, and I had a coughing fit and I was soaked through with urine, I left the pharmacy because it was busy and I was embarrassed.
I understand coughing can cause pressure which can cause this to happen.
It also happened last night in bed, I got up and sat on the edge of the bed, coughed and the bed and me were wet. My husband woke and helped me clean.
I’m afraid to cough now. Is this normal? What can I do to help this? Could this be a long thing now that will keep going or could it just be due to my chest infection and the cough?

I’ve been counting mine because I feel like my bladder may be overactive. It’s 6:42 p.m. and I’m already at #8 for the day. 😭 I’m counting from midnight to midnight.
Now I’m curious… how many times do y’all typically pee in a 24 hour period? I’m trying to see if I should actually be concerned lol. Drink wise, today I’ve had one 16.9 fl oz bottle of water, a venti Starbucks matcha, and a medium Coke from McDonald’s.

Thank you for any insight :)

I barely get any sleep these days because I wake about every 2 hours. I try not to drink much before bed but nothing seems to make much of a difference. Ive been on 3 different bladder meds and none of them do anything besides make my mouth so dry that im just peeing even more from all the water im drinking

Hi everyone!

I’m a male pelvic floor physiotherapist, and I thought I’d do an AMA (Ask Me Anything) here.

If you have questions about male pelvic health, pelvic floor physiotherapy, symptoms, treatment approaches, or anything related to pelvic floor function, feel free to ask.
I’ll do my best to answer your questions based on my clinical experience and the available evidence.

Of course, I can’t diagnose or provide individualized medical advice online, but I’m happy to share general information and perspective.

Looking forward to your questions!

To give you some background of what happened to me and how I got it.

I attended my college class and 30 mins in I desperately needed to use the bathroom but the doctor wouldn't give me permission (there were 1 hour and 30 mins left in class) and I had to hold it in the entire time

Needless to say that was one of the worst experiences I have ever had and after that I decided to go to the bathroom after every lecture and eventually after every tutorial (tutorials last one hour) and because I did that I started thinking about going to the bathroom more until I started having the urge to pee every 5 mins. This was all back in October 2025 and it lasted all the way till the end of December. In January I luckily healed but 2 weeks ago right before college I remembered that awful event and the need to go to the bathroom came back

I now couldn't sleep at all due to that urge (literally, one time I spent 48 hours with only 6 hours of sleep, it was that bad) and I constantly tried to remember what I did last time in order to heal and this is the part you guys are probably waiting for and luckily I remembered it.

The key is holding it out, sounds simple but many people overlook it. Once u feel the urge, hold it in and make a timer for urself, if u feel like u can't hold it in for 5 mins? Hold it for 10. If you feel like you can't hold it in for 30 mins? Hold it for an hour and ect. I know it's easier said than done and it's incredibly painful but it's the fastest method and overtime u get used to it

I started out holding it in for an hour then going to the bathroom, eventually it was 2 hours, then 3, then 4 and so on and so forth and now I like to think I am 98% healed (I only went to the bathroom 2 times today)

I also want to comfort the people here who have the same problem and just say don't worry, it won't take months or years for u to heal. I am saying this because when looking for a solution myself I found some very demotivating messages with people saying they are still going through it after months or years. Trust me, it ain't as big of a deal as u guys think (it's important to have that mindset and not treat it like it's an incredibly big deal like I did)

I also started using a medicine called Sofenacin plus (I was told to take it right before I went to bed by my doctor and people tend to take it for 3 months and if u healed earlier then u can stop) btw make sure to look it up before taking it just in case

Ik everyone's journey is different but make sure to do ur best and results will eventually come. Also if u guys have any questions u guys can ask me here or in dms

Hey all. Starting last year, I recently started having issues sleeping, due to what appears to be some sort of neurological issue in relation with my bladder. This has developed into full fledged nocturia. I've seen 4 different specialists so far, tried a myriad of prescriptions, breath-work, cutting caffeine and alcohol completely, even tried nerve stimulation. I am continuing to explore medical options. I am currently trying to schedule a sleep study.

Before this happened I was pretty much sober. I smoked weed maybe once in a blue moon, drank about as often, and my only physical vice, if you can even call that was caffeine, and even then my consumption was the normal ~90 mg dose a day. Prior to this condition I was in shape, lifting 5-6 days a week, never pushing myself too far. On paper, I was healthy. So I have no idea what triggered this.

I'm just curious if anyone has gone through anything similar and if they discovered anything that meaningfully changed their condition. At this point I'm willing to try almost anything to sleep normally again.

I've had worsening PMD lately. I'm not sure if it's a side effect of the botox causing the bladder to squeeze less strongly, or just a segue into worsening bladder issues. I decided to give Depend Shields a go after chatting with my wife. Not something I've really noticed before the first procedures and I'm about 3 months in now.

My first impression is that these these are thin, but they aren't for more than light leaks and it reminds me of a panty liner. I'm not a huge fan of stick-ins when everything shifts, but it's more from a comfort standpoint, not that I'm likely to have a leak at this point in time.

If you have PMD, what do you use, if anything?