Author| Dr. Maureen O’Keefe, DPT pelvic health physical therapist specializing in bladder, bowel, pelvic pain and intimacy concerns for men and women
Physical Therapy for Male Incontinence in Grand Rapids!
If you are looking for solutions to your male incontinence, post-void dribbling problems or male urgency and frequency issues here in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, you’ve found the right place. We are Purple Mountain Physical Therapy, a team of pelvic health specialist physical therapists who treat men experiencing incontinence, overactive bladder, bladder pain syndrome (interstitial cystitis), chronic prostatitis pain syndrome, testicular pain and after prostatectomy or prostate cancer radiation therapy that cause urinary incontinence. If you would like to learn more about our treatment for male incontinence, offered in-person in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, call our office today at 616-516-4334 to speak with one of our staff members or contact us here.
You are not alone! Male incontinence is also happening with many of your peers. Prevalence for male urinary incontinence ranges from 16-47% of men!
Male urinary incontinence rates in the literature range from 16%-47%! Our pelvic PTs routinely treat young and middle aged men who experience urinary incontinence. They may be having:
- Urinary dribbling after they urinate (post micturition incontinence)
- Urge urinary incontinence (bladder spasms causing rushing to the bathroom and loss of urine)
- Insensible incontinence (they don’t feel it, but notice dampness or continual small amounts of leakage throughout the day)
- Stress incontinence (they lose urine with certain movements or with coughing, for example).
- Nocturnal enuresis (loss of urine while sleeping)
It is also worth noting that some of our male physical therapy patients with incontinence also experience other bladder related symptoms, including
- A constant urge that they need to pee
- Urinary frequency & needing to pee again, shortly after peeing; but there isn’t much urine there to pee.
- Difficulty starting their urinary stream
- Incomplete emptying when they pee and needing to push their pee out
- “Shy bladder”; difficulty urinating at a urinal
- Pain including Bladder pain, pain when peeing, urethra pain, tip of penis pain, perineal pain or abdominal pain
Many of our male patients who have urinary incontinence do not have any of the published risk factors.
What are the risk factors for male urinary incontinence?
Health conditions including stroke, prostate removal (due to prostate cancer), diabetes and poor general health are high on the list. And, the older you get, the more likely a man is to experience urinary incontinence.
Our male patients who have incontinence tend to not have these risk factors; they are fairly healthy, young and active men and are really frustrated by having this embarrassing problem.
If you are younger or middle aged and consider yourself otherwise healthy and want a solution to your urinary incontinence, our pelvic PT program is here to help you. We provide you with comprehensive treatment to resolve incontinence, pain and other problems you experience with your back, hips or abdomen. Call our office today to speak with a knowledgeable staff member who can answer your questions, 616-516-4334 or contact us here.
Our physical therapy for male incontinence is offered in-person in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, for those who qualify. Getting started is as easy as calling to speak with one of our knowledgeable staff at 616-516-4334.
What is causing the men to have urinary incontinence?
Pelvic floor dysfunction.
In the men with incontinence whom we treat here at our clinic in Grand Rapids, their bladder control muscles are not functioning properly.
Also, things associated with pelvic floor dysfunction, like poor bladder habits, constipation, non-optimal posture, tightness in the hips, low back pain, abdominal surgery adhesions, chronic prostatitis, pelvic pain or hernias.
The primary driver we find for male urinary incontinence, in our young or middle aged men, is pelvic floor dysfunction. Essentially, the muscles that control your bladder and bowel are not working effectively. Additionally, we find other issues, such as back pain, tension in the abdominals, constipation or fascia restrictions that are contributing to incontinence. Our comprehensive treatment methods address all of the issues causing you to have urinary incontinence, pelvic pain, urinary frequency and urgency, constipation or other issue. Call our office today to speak with a knowledgeable staff member who can answer your questions, 616-516-4334 or contact us here.
If you have urinary incontinence then your pelvic floor muscles may be tight, tense, short, overactive, weak, stretched out or contracting at the wrong time.
Our pelvic PTs specialize in bladder control and will help figure out what’s going on with your pelvic floor muscles and customize a treatment program for you. These treatments do vary person to person, so it is important that you know that doing something like Kegels may worsen your problem.
Our PTs work to create an effective exercise-based & manual therapy rehabilitation program treating all aspects of bladder control, including your thoracic spine, rib cage, lower back, hips, abdomen and pelvic floor.
If interested in getting a solution to your incontinence problem, call our office today at 616-516-4334 or submit your questions here and we can determine if you are a candidate for our in-person or telehealth physical therapy for bladder control, pelvic floor dysfunction, lower back pain or pelvic pain.
Prostate cancer considerations with regard to urinary incontinence.
Pelvic PT can accelerate your recovery of bladder control after prostatectomy
Prostatectomy surgery, even with nerve sparing, causes urinary incontinence. Training the pelvic floor muscles to improve bladder control has been found in research to accelerate your return of continence. Our pelvic PTs have post-graduate training specific to prostate cancer rehabilitation and implement specific techniques to teach you how to get your pelvic floor muscles functioning again. Research has found that beginning pelvic PT before surgery is helpful and continuing it for 12 weeks after surgery, as well. If interested in learning more about our treatment for male incontinence and post-prostatectomy rehabilitation, offered in-person in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, call our office today at 616-516-4334 to speak with one of our staff members or contact us here.
What to expect with physical therapy to help urinary incontinence.
Our licensed physical therapists have experience working with men just like you. Call 616-516-4334 to learn more:
- Every appointment is upto 55 minutes in length with your physical therapist.
- We never leave you alone to exercise by yourself.
- We also never have you work with a lesser trained staff member.
- You will be one-on-one with your doctor of physical therapy at every visit.
- The first visit is an evaluation and includes history taking and discussing bladder, bowel and pain issues.
- We conduct an exam of your back, hips, abdomen and pelvis.
- We treat the numerous contributing factors to your urinary incontinence, which includes pelvic floor dysfunction, posture, core muscle issues, lower back pain, fascial restrictions, scar tissue or other issues.
Our treatment methods include manual therapy & exercises to improve male urinary incontinence and other pelvic issues, including pain.
Purple Mountain PT is the only Grand Rapids pelvic health specialty physical therapy clinic exclusively devoted to pelvic health and TMJ disorders. Our PTs have advanced training to help male incontinence using a variety of methods, including manual therapy techniques & exercise. These manual therapy methods include:
Myofascial release, trigger point release, joint mobilization, spine and hip treatments and visceral mobilization. These are directed to anywhere along your back, abdomen, hips and pelvis where you have problems, fascial restrictions, pinched nerves, stiff joints, scar tissue or muscular trigger points.
Everything we do to help men with incontinence or pelvic pain is discrete and in a comfortable, private treatment room or private exercise gym area; you are welcome to bring your spouse or partner. Our clinic in Grand Rapids specializes in pelvic health and TMJ physical therapy; we have created a healing space for you to receive care.
We’ve been providing pelvic rehabilitation physical therapy for many years now, rest assured we will work within what works best for you. Sometimes treatment directly to the pelvic floor muscles is helpful and this is done rectally, if you agree. But, if this isn’t something you consent to, then we work external only. We also use exercise based methods including stretching, fascial movements, balance exercises, postural correction, core muscle training and intensive pelvic floor muscle training. If interested in learning more about our treatment for prostate cancer rehabilitation, including urinary incontinence, offered in-person in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, call our office today at 616-516-4334 to speak with one of our staff members or contact us here.
Physical Therapy for Male Incontinence here in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, is designed to meet your needs.
At Purple Mountain PT, we have been dedicated to treating men who have incontinence, pelvic pain, prostate cancer or bladder urgency and frequency. Our physical therapists all have experience and post-doctoral training specifically in the field of treating men who have pelvic floor dysfunction, urinary incontinence and pelvic pain. We have designed our clinic and rehabilitation methods placing you at the center of care. Our clinic is welcoming and offers both private treatment rooms and a private gym space for exercise. Appointments are one-on-one with your physical therapist for up to 55 minutes. Each visit builds on the last visit’s progress and it is our goal to help you fully resolve urinary incontinence, pelvic pain, overactive bladder or other bothersome pelvic issues. If you are interested in physical therapy with one of our doctors of physical therapy to help your pelvic, bladder or pain condition, call us at 616-516-4334 and get your questions answered or contact us here.
Peace,
Dr. Maureen O’Keefe, DPT physical therapist specializing in pelvic health, back pain, neck pain and TM joint disorders. Founder of Purple Mountain Physical Therapy. You can reach me here.
All of our physical therapists at Purple Mountain Physical Therapy treat men who experience incontinence. We all have advanced training specific to male pelvic health and bladder control. We love this work and are here to help you regain control.
Because you’re interested in learning about physical therapy for male incontinence, that we offer in Grand Rapids or via telehealth, you may appreciate the following articles, regarding pelvic physical therapy:
Physical Therapy after Prostatectomy
Pelvic PT for Testicular Pain (Orchialgia) in Grand Rapids
How do I retrain my bladder after prostate removal?
Is There A Connection Between Diabetes and Incontinence?
What’s holding you back from getting Pelvic Floor PT? All of your concerns addressed here!
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References regarding physical therapy for male incontinence in Grand Rapids:
Centemero A, Rigatti L, Giraudi D, Lazzeri M, Lughhezzeni G, Zugna D, Montorsi F, Rigatti P, Guazzoni G. Preoperative pelvic floor muscle exercise for early incontinence after radical prostatectomy: a randomised controlled study. Eur Urol. 2010;57:1039–43.
Christen WG, Gaziano JM, Hennekens CH. Design of Physicians’ Health Study II: A randomized trial of beta-carotene, vitamins E and C, and multivitamins, in prevention of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and eye disease, and review of results of completed trials. Ann Epidemiol. 2000;10:125–134.
Milios, J.E., Ackland, T.R. & Green, D.J. Pelvic floor muscle training in radical prostatectomy: a randomized controlled trial of the impacts on pelvic floor muscle function and urinary incontinence. BMC Urol 19, 116 (2019).
Scott KM, Gosai E, Bradley MH, et al. Individualized pelvic physical therapy for the treatment of post-prostatectomy stress urinary incontinence and pelvic pain. [published online December 5, 2019]. Int Urol Nephrol. doi: 10.1007/s11255-019-02343-7.
Shamliyan TA, Wyman JF, Ping R, Wilt TJ, Kane RL. Male urinary incontinence: prevalence, risk factors, and preventive interventions. Rev Urol. 2009 Summer;11(3):145-65. PMID: 19918340; PMCID: PMC2777062.
Shikanov SA. A prospective report of changes in prostate cancer related quality of life after robotic prostatectomy. J Psych Oncol. 2011;29:1157–67.
Stark JR, Perner S, Stampfer MJ, Sinnott JA, Finn S, Eisenstein AS, Ma J, Fiorentino M, Kurth T, Loda M, Giovannucci EL, Rubin MA, Mucci LA. Gleason score and lethal prostate cancer: does 3 + 4 = 4 + 3? J Clin Oncol. 2009 Jul 20;27(21):3459-64.
Weber BA, Roberts BL, Mills TL. Physical and emotional predictors of depression after radical prostatectomy. Amer J Mens Health. 2008;2(2):165–71.
