Have you ever noticed when you’ve finished peeing, stand up, and immediately feel like you could go again? Or you find yourself sitting there trying to squeeze out those last few drops? And holding your breath?
Toileting posture, yes, how you sit and what you do while urinating can make a difference. Your bladder and pelvic floor are designed to work as a team, as your bladder empties, your pelvic floor muscles need to relax.
Keep these 5 tips in mind to help you empty your bladder efficiently.
Sit ALL The Way Down
No hovering!
When you hover over the toilet, your legs, glutes, core, and pelvic floor have to stay active to hold you up. That can make it harder for the pelvic floor to fully relax.
Sit down, support your body, and let those muscles relax.
Keep Your Feet Supported
Your feet should be flat on the floor or supported on a small stool if they don’t comfortably reach. A squatty potty is recommended whenever possible.
A stable base allows your hips and pelvic floor to relax instead of your body working to maintain balance.
Breathe! Don’t Push
You shouldn’t have to strain or bear down to make urine come out.
Take a slow breath into your belly and rib cage, then gently exhale. Let your bladder do the work. Constantly pushing to pee can interfere with normal pelvic floor coordination.
Give It a Few Extra Seconds
When the stream stops, don’t immediately jump up.
Stay relaxed for a few seconds and allow your bladder time to finish. You can gently shift your body forward, backward, or side to side to see if changing position helps release any remaining urine.
Try a Double Void If You Still Feel Full
If you still feel like there’s more. Try going again. No this isn’t the same as just in case (JIC) peeing.
Stand up, move around for a few seconds, then sit back down and relax again. Sometimes this change in position is enough to encourage a little more urine to pass.
If you regularly feel like you can’t fully empty your bladder, have to strain to urinate, experience a weak or stop-and-start stream, or need to return to the bathroom shortly after going, it’s worth discussing with your healthcare provider.
A pelvic floor physical therapist can also assess whether pelvic floor tension, coordination, breathing, posture, or other factors may be contributing to your symptoms.
Your bladder knows how to empty. Sometimes we just need to stop getting in its way.