my sister, who I think has lyme but won't test for it, has now lost total bladder control.
now i wear a pad and have some leakage but she says she just goess all thetime, alot. she is soaking through a pad, her panties and wetting her clothes. she says those pads must weigh 3 pounds.
any reason for this? could it be lyme?
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :
- First, she should consider any Rx she is taking, especially anything that sedates or irritates. If it sedates the body / muscles, it very likely could cause the bladder to loose muscle control.
If it irritates the delicate lining of the bladder, that can stimulate the bladder to just let go. Beyond some Rx, certain foods, drinks & caffeine can do this, too.
On the flip side of sedatives not letting bladder muscles keep their strength, stimulants can cause it to just let go, too.
Food additives that are excitatory to the nervous system can do this, too, especially aspartame.
Still, yes, lyme could be connected, with or without any Rx interference.
It could also be a prolapse situation, in whole or in part.
She needs to see a urologist to examine the physiology who should also look at some basic chemistry, blood glucose issues, etc.
Her gynecologist: hormone issues.
A physical therapist trained in bladder issues can offer certain help, too.
Bladder loss can also be a certain kind of seizure. But, many seizure drugs are so sedating that can actually make this part worse.
However, as seizures can be caused by lyme - better to look for the cause . . .
and, of course, if she has other symptoms that could point to lyme, it's up to her at this point to become educated about lyme / TBD and find a good LLMD, if possible. If not, still, learn what she would need to know to do at least the best she can.
All above are just off the top of my head. There could be other causes / issues but she really needs to first see the doctors who specialize in this area for the basic assessment and examine for any degree of prolapse.
This is a lot more common that we might think, actually. And there are some new techniques that might help her. -
Posted by randibear (Member # 11290) on :
she is not on any meds not even bp. she's the healthiest of the four of us.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
She needs to see her doctor.
Posted by jlcd1 (Member # 18138) on :
a lady in my support group said her first sign was loss of bladder control. She had a pacemaker placed. Didn't find the lyme till she had a stroke. I hope she will be ok.
Posted by hiker53 (Member # 6046) on :
Not every symptom is Lyme. Sometimes I think we become so Lyme focused that we forget there are other reasons for certain symptoms and other diseases out there.
Randibear--hope your sister seeks help and gets the medical attention and correct diagnosis.
Posted by lpkayak (Member # 5230) on :
I was told by doc that can happen if there is enough inflam in lower back. There is a nerve that can control tht and if it is pinched you lose both urge and control.
Posted by beaches (Member # 38251) on :
Your sister should see a urogynecologist. These docs assess/diagnose/fix prolapse problems.
Prolapse of the bladder is common. The colon/rectum and uterus can prolapse as well.
The good news is that all of this can be fixed surgically.
Posted by SacredHeart (Member # 44733) on :
Randibear all for of you got it here in Texas? I believe I got bit in the woods in Arlington.
Posted by Brussels (Member # 13480) on :
Randi, during lyme, one of my symptoms was loss of bladder control. Not that bad as your sister, but I went specifically to see a local MD, for this reason.
I don't know what caused that, exactly, but I never had that before (except during bladder infections).
After lyme, the symptoms NEVER returned. In my case, it was clearly something related to lyme.