Stress and urgency incontinence

Hi, @astabenno1990 -- welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Thank you for the information on your incontinence and doctor's suggestion of a urethral sling, in addition to your concerns about side effects of medication for urgency. It's wise to talk to not only your doctor and pharmacist, but also other patients who have faced similar issues.

Here's more information from Mayo Clinic on urge and stress incontinence: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/urinary-incontinence/symptoms-causes/syc-20352808. Hope this is helpful.

I'd like you to meet @pammettee @msd @cara1336 @sidsegreen @gailg @gangiwellman @letsgo @pizon @upartist and @zargul. Hoping they can provide some input from their experiences that may shed some light on your questions.

@hopeful and @windwalker may also have some thoughts.

@astabenno1990 — is this problem affecting you frequently at this point? By when are you hoping to make some decisions about your direction on this issue?

I think I have exhausted all venues. There is no medication for stress incontinence, the pills for urge cause constipation and that is difficult to deal with. I have done a million Kegel exercises. I understand there can be problems after a sling operation, but there are also successful cases. People just don’t talk about them. Always negative experiences. We like to travel and these issues have curtailed movements. I am 78 years old and otherwise very healthy. ANY POSITIVE CASES?????????

Hi, @astabenno1990 -- sounds like you've been very diligent with trying a variety of remedies for the stress and urgency incontinence you've experienced. It also sounds like perhaps it's been a frustrating road.

Though some of it may be familiar to you at this juncture, I thought you might be interested in this information from Mayo Clinic on urinary incontinence: https://mayocl.in/2l9fZ2x.

I'm inviting some others who've talked about slings or other surgical procedures for incontinence, like @fromwoundedness and @galah11, to share about their experiences and insights on your questions. @smot73 @goldentretriever65 @sueb123 @amazon411 @nativefloridian @keri @sweetgrannie8 @mellynntelusnet @AlwaysHopeful @smartchick43 @noreenf @predictable @hopeful33250 and @pma58may also have some thoughts for you.

@astabenno1990 -- have you found any tricks or strategies for dealing with these symptoms that have helped at all?

Has anyone had experience with a silicone injection at the area where the urethra and bladder connect? A friend has had good success with hers but painful to get it.

Does anyone have any personal info about surgery?? I would like a permanent solution, have tried about 5 or 6 different pills and don't want the side effects.

I've never heard of that.

I had surgery 12 months ago. There were a few blips n bumps afterward but I would recommend this. Pills and depends we’re not for me. Also had the side benefit of identifying another issue.

Does anyone know about the "Mona Lisa" procedure? What is it and what is it for?

I am 63 and had a prolapsed bladder for many years and some incontinence at first. I tried a number of pills and finally found that Vesicare worked for me for a while. Problem was that as my prolapse got worse, it masked the incontinence. This is basically due to gravity. The bladder drops so low that the urine doesn't flow as easily because it would have to flow upward. Finally the prolapse got so bad that I had difficulty urinating and a few times had to go to the doctor to get a catheter to help me. I ended up having a type of sling to hold the bladder in place. My doctor did a urodynamics test prior to surgery to see if after fixing the prolapse I was likely to have incontinence once again and he determined I would. Based upon this, while in surgery he did some type of adjustment to eliminate the incontinence. I do not recall exactly what it was but something was shortened a bit I think. You need a good urogynecologist who knows about the urology part but also about the gynecology part since everything is so close together. I spent two nights in the hospital after my surgery mainly because I live alone and would have no help at home. I came home with a catheter but it wasn't really that bad (it was removed after a week and I was not sorry to see it go). I have had absolutely zero problems and am more than 6 months out from surgery. The sling is a mesh type material but not the type that you hear about in all the lawsuits. It is more of a thin material that looks and feels almost like nylon stockings but it is much thinner and stronger. Millions of surgeries on hernias have been done with this material. I wish I had done this surgery sooner but I just had to find the right doctor. Once I did, and he explained everything in a way I could understand, I felt comfortable. This is my experience. Not exactly what you are experiencing but as you can see, there are a lot of issues that can cause other issues. Good to have someone who can check it all out and only have one surgery rather than multiple ones. Sorry you are dealing with this issue. I know how limiting it can be but you can get it taken care of and have your life back.

I had a mesh sling put in at least 20 years ago. I am now 83 years old. The sling worked well for a long time, but gradually quit working. I am not sorry that I had it done.