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Bladder Health and Sex

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Urinary incontinence
Bowel health
Pelvic floor
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URINARY INCONTINENCE
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Understanding what is normal during sex and what is unusual can be challenging. After all, sex is a very private experience and differs for every person. Generally speaking, there is no reason for your bladder to empty during sex or for you to feel extreme discomfort or experience pain during sex.

As you can guess, the health of your bladder can directly affect your sex life.

Two common reasons individuals experience pain or discomfort with their bladder during or after sex are: bladder pain syndrome and stress urinary incontinence.

Interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS)

Bladder pain syndrome is the continual sensation of pressure or pain on the bladder. This syndrome typically affects women and leaves individuals feeling as if they have to urinate when they don’t have any urine to pass.

Consider making dietary changes and practicing bladder retraining so your bladder begins to hold more urine before experiencing the urge to go.

Relax before engaging in sex to ensure as little stress as possible. Stress can cause flare-ups and trigger discomfort.

Stress Urinary Incontinence

Stress Urinary Incontinence or SUI occurs because of weak pelvic floor muscles and/or a deficient urethral sphincter. This weakness can cause the bladder to leak during exercise, coughing, sneezing, laughing, or any body movement that puts pressure on the bladder. If sex is particular jarring, SUI can be affected.

Consider exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor and limit caffeine intake. Always empty your bladder before sex.

We hope this peek into how your bladder health can impact sex was helpful. If you have experienced any of the symptoms noted above and haven’t talked to your doctor, it’s time to schedule an appointment. Additionally, we feel it’s important to share your health with your partner if you continue to have sex while experiencing some of these bladder health concerns.

Join us on our forum to talk more and learn how others have dealt with issues like these.

Comments

5 Responses

  1. I had sex which was painful and created a tear in my vaginal wall. Since then I have experienced bad urinary incontinece which is causing unpleasant leakage. Could there be a connection here?

  2. I usually have to stop at least 4 or 5 times to go pee while having sex. And the urgency to pee is always stronger if I’m laying on my rug side. It also feels like there’s an organ or organs that aren’t in the right spot and makes sex very uncomfortable. I mean on top of having to stop and start over 4 or 5 times lol. The urgency is almost nonexistent if I’m laying on my left side.

  3. After several rounds of antibiotic, I believe I have cured a UTI. However, I still experience some burning when urinating. These are all new symptoms for me since beginning to date a man six months ago. Does the continuing of the burning sensation indicate a larger infection?

  4. For several days after sex I suffer from urethral syndrome. This condition causes bladder urgency snd incontinence. The only remedy I have found is a mixture of lidocaine and triple antibiotic cream. It dulls the nerves and relaxes the sphincter a bit. I have no cure so far but am on a quest to find one. This condition has put a damper on our sex life. Bev from Texas

  5. What do you do after sex and your bladder goes into spasms. Lots of presure,pain and back aches, I’ve tried retaining of bladder, stimulation therapy, azo, elmeron for IC and cystoscopy that resulted with no visible signs of IC. I’m at a loss in information would be helpful

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