We can imagine the embarrassment and inconvenience that incontinence can cause in women, dealing with some of the embarrassing symptoms is only half of the battle.

Incontinence can also have psychological impacts on women. Reports suggest some women suffering from stress incontinence have put their social life on hold and refuse to go out of the house or go away on holiday.

NHS Direct estimates that one in five UK women over 40 suffer from stress incontinence, which is often caused by childbirth or menopause, and that incontinence can affect women of all ages.

Fortunately there are many solutions available to help women get over incontinence and live a normal life. One of these solutions is a revolutionary product that was launched late last year called IncoStress.(available to buy here in our shop)

IncoStress British female inventor Gaynor Morgan is so aware of the problems and inconvenience caused by incontinence she is issuing a challenge to all British women with any degree of stress incontinence or bladder weakness symptoms.

The Five Step IncoStress Laugh & Leak Challenge

1. If you suffer any degree of stress incontinence – bladder weakness do something about it this week

2. Talk to your doctor to check for underlying problems

3. Research and buy a stress incontinence alleviation product

4. Take up an activity you have avoided because of incontinence

5. Talk to your friends and encourage them to do something about it

According to an Italian study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, incontinence keeps many women from taking part in sports.

In a survey of 679 Italian young and middle-aged women, researchers found that 1 in 7 were bothered by urinary stress incontinence.

Dr. Stefano Salvatore from the University of Insubria found that being overweight or having children boosted the likelihood of having urinary stress incontinence.

One in 10 women said the problem led them to give up their favorite sport, while one in 5 women said they limited the way they engaged in the sport in a bid to reduce leaking.

Sports with repetitive bouncing, such as tennis and squash, were associated with the highest incidence of incontinence episodes.

Researchers of this study say it shows that urinary incontinence, even when mild, can have a harmful impact on the quality of women’s lives by limiting their participation in sporting activities. Despite this, few women seek help.

Salvatore adds: Women ‘should be given information and offered diagnostic and conservative therapeutic options,’ including pelvic floor exercises, which have proven to be very effective in alleviating urinary incontinence.

Allanda can provide you with all the right incontinence products to help you live a healthy and happy lifestyle, for information please click here.

A new research conducted in Italy revealed one in the ten women gave up recreational activities due to urinary incontinence.

Italian researchers interviewed 700 women, one in seven revealed they suffered from incontinence; this is backed up by another research from the British Journal of Sports Medicine who says that one in two women suffered from urinary incontinence at some point in their lives.

Researchers believe figures would be higher if women going through menopause were included in the research.

The study concluded that urinary incontinence affects women’s quality of life in many aspects, but what concerns the researchers is the fact that only few women search for treatment.

Researchers suggested women should be given more information on urinary incontinence and offered remedial support and treatment.

Louise Price, from south Wales, talks openly about her incontinence, which is caused by multiple sclerosis.

She is 1 of 14m people in the UK who have some kind of bladder control problem.

Louise Price said she was in so much pain she sought help quickly and was lucky to have a supportive husband and friends she could confide in. She was equally as open with her work colleagues which allowed her to continue in her job.

But the stigma that comes with condition can result in some people with incontinence being silent about it for years.

National Continence Awareness Week, from 15 - 19 September, aims to raise awareness of bowel and bladder problems and let people know that help is available.

Karen Logan, a nurse consultant and head of continence services, said some people refused to tell their closest friends, let alone seek medical help:

‘The biggest frustration for us is that people don’t come forward and suffer in silence.’

‘It’s normal for people to suffer for 5 to 10 years with an overactive bladder or stress incontinence, triggered by sneezing or coughing for example.’

Problems can range in severity from a mildly overactive bladder, to neurological conditions or impairments, such as MS and extreme diabetes, which can cause incontinence.

In more extreme cases like Mrs Price’s, a disposable catheter can be inserted after urination to help empty the bladder.

Louise Price said her life had been transformed and urged anybody with bladder or bowel problems to seek help:

‘You will not be the first case anyone has heard about and you won’t be the last. It’s about getting your quality of life back.’

Here at Allanda we can provide you with all the incontinence care needed, to live a comfortable lifestyle.

Then why not try out the Allanda Product Finder.

Whether you’re experiencing urge incontinence or stress incontinence, the product finder can help you learn what kind of pads or pants are suitable for you and your lifestyle.

So how does it work??

- Well firstly you need to go to the page, to do this you can click here.

- Then you simply choose the correct answers from the options provided.

- Once you’ve done this click find products and Allanda will automatically select the right incontinence wear for you.

Clever hey!

Discovering you have incontinence can be a daunting experience and it’s also a subject people find they know little about.

So having some guidance about what products are best to use can be a great help. 

The inventor of IncoStress that helps women with stress incontinence was inspired by Mother’s experience of the condition.

Gaynor Morgan invented the IncoStress device after her Mother’s confidence and quality of life was shattered by stress incontinence.

Ms Morgan had noticed her mother’s confidence gradually deteriorate.

‘My mum was always a very young, active woman – she was only 18 years older than me but when I came back to visit, she was a changed woman. She had become very withdrawn and one day when we went shopping she had a panic attack and had to go home. It was the last time she would go out shopping in Swansea.’

‘She eventually told me that every time she coughed or sneezed she would leak.’

Ms Kendall, who died five years ago aged 58, had surgery known as a tension vaginal tape operation to resolve the problem.

Although initially it was successful, a year later the stress incontinence came back and her confidence deteriorated and was eventually prescribed antidepressants.

When Ms Kendall’s GP told her that nothing could be done, her daughter decided to research stress incontinence products.

Ms Morgan said: ‘we tried various things but with no success. My mother said she had noticed that she didn’t suffer these leaks when using a tampon and so I said we would have to make something.’

IncoStress is a latex-free device which is inserted into the vagina and supports the urethra in its natural position. The device also helps to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, after six months Ms Kendall’s stress incontinence had disappeared.

Ms Morgan said: ‘IncoStress gives women total freedom and choice about what they want to do with their bodies.’

Allanda retails this revolutionary device, to shop for IncoStress click here.

The pelvic floor muscles are a group of muscles inside the pelvis that forms a floor in the body. They surround the urethra, vagina and rectum and should, along with the sphincter muscles, maintain control over these openings.

If the pelvic floor muscles are weak the urethra can fall during exertion, resulting in leaking.

To strengthen the pelvic floor it is important to do appropriate exercises, which are especially good for stress incontinence and can reduce the effects of this condition considerably.

Pelvic floor exercises can be done pretty much anytime or anywhere. Once you have learnt to tighten your pelvic floor muscles, you can squeeze them and hold when you sneeze, lift or jump to prevent leakage.

It is important to do pelvic floor exercises for a few months before any improvement can be noticed.

In order to find your pelvic floor muscles try interrupting the flow when you urinate and feel which muscles you are using to do this.

The right contraction of the pelvic floor muscles feels like a small lift under the pelvis up into the body. There should be no accompanying movement of other parts of the body, e.g. the buttocks, stomach or the inner thighs.

If you have a problem identifying the correct muscles or if you are not sure that you are training correctly contact your doctor or physiotherapist.

For examples of pelvic floor exercises please click here.

In as little as 10 minutes, two balloons implanted into the bladder may be a new solution for stress incontinence.

Research shows 7 out of 10 women with stress incontinence were helped by this therapy.

After 6 months, nearly 70% of the women implanted with the devices, were dry with no leakages.

Stress incontinence occurs as a result of weakened pelvic floor muscles. Most common causes include childbearing, which puts pressure on these muscles and the menopause.

This new incontinence treatment focuses on boosting the urethra sphincter muscles that control the flow of urine.

When these muscles are weak and receive extra pressure it can cause urine to leak out.

The new technique, called adjustable-continence therapy, reinforces these muscles with two balloons, made from a synthetic material, to prevent unwanted leakage.

The balloons are implanted, while deflated, under local anaesthetic. During the short procedure, they are surgically placed under the skin next to the bladder.

Each of the devices has tubing that allows them to be filled with liquid once in place.

The balloons effectively push the bladder neck up and make it smaller, so that the muscles have less work to do keeping it closed.

The device can last for up to 10 years, but can be removed easily if the treatment is not successful.

Research has shown that the double balloon treatment can be very effective.