Early symptoms of bladder issues

Hi, !

While you are waiting to hear from other community members, I wanted to share some links from our site. I thought you might find this article on bladder issues helpful, though it doesn't focus on initial symptoms -- https://multiplesclerosis.net/living-with-ms/pardon-excuse-ive-really-got-go-now. Also, there are quite a few member comments at the end of the article, so you can read those and see what others have experienced. I know for some individuals, the first symptom seems to be urgency. As in, I need to go RIGHT NOW. And, sometimes that symptom progresses to leakage or incontinence. Others will find that they have trouble fully voiding their bladders and then have leaks or dribbles after using the restroom. Some individuals experience confusing signals; i.e., they feel the need to urinate, but nothing comes out when they go to the bathroom. Some people notice an uptick in UTIs and/or bladder infections. The symptoms can vary widely and come on quickly or just kind of sneak up on you. It really seems to depend on the person. Here's another piece written by one of our health leaders about his experience with bladder issues (there are dozens of comments following the article from community members) -- https://multiplesclerosis.net/living-with-ms/bladder-problems-urologist. And here's one last piece, also with tons of comments at the end -- https://multiplesclerosis.net/living-with-ms/loss-bladder-control. You might say this is a pretty common topic of conversation within this community, as it happens to many individuals and it can be hard to find a safe place to talk about what can be an embarrassing issue. I will say this. If you have a niggling suspicion that you are having bladder issues, I would talk to your doctor as soon as possible. Often, our gut feelings turn out to be right and we know our bodies best.

I hope you get some helpful feedback from other community members, too!

Best, Erin, Team Member.