370 Problems of the Urine System
growths, 380
diabetes, 174
This young woman’s
husband was
embarrassed by the
smell of her leaking
urine. He made her
leave his house.
Need to pass urine often
This may happen because:
• the muscles around your bladder and womb have become
weak. The ‘squeezing exercise’ (page 371) may help
strengthen these muscles.
• a growth (like a fibroid) in your abdomen is pushing against
the bladder so it cannot hold much urine.
• you have a bladder infection.
• you have diabetes.
Leaking urine
Poor control of urine (incontinence)
This is caused by weak or damaged muscles around the bladder.
It happens mainly to older women or to women after childbirth.
The urine leaks out when a woman puts pressure on the weak
muscles in her lower belly during sex, or by laughing, coughing,
sneezing, or lifting. The ‘squeezing exercise’ (page 371) may help.
Urine leaking from the vagina (fistula)
When a woman leaks urine all the time from the vagina, she may
have a hole between her vagina and bladder. (Sometimes the hole
is between the rectum and the vagina, and stool leaks out.)
This serious problem happens as a result of an obstructed
childbirth, when the baby has difficulty getting out. It can happen
to women of all ages. The baby’s head presses on the skin between
the bladder and the vagina (or the rectum and vagina). This causes
an opening (fistula) to form between the bladder and the vagina (or
the rectum and vagina). The baby is almost always born dead.
After the birth, the fistula does not heal on its own and urine or
stool leaks out through the vagina all the time. The girl or woman
has to clean herself continuously, and if she has extra cloth or a pad,
she can wear this to stay dry.
If she cannot get help (see the next page), fistulas can cause
serious problems for a girl or woman in her daily life. Her husband,
family, and friends may avoid her because she smells of urine all the
time. It may be difficult for her to earn money if she no longer can
work, and she may feel extremely embarrassed and ashamed.
Some girls and women get “traumatic fistula” because of rape or
other violent sexual actions such as a weapon being pushed into a
vagina. This can cause tears inside the woman that also cause her to
leak urine or stool. Girls and women with traumatic fistula will need
support and counseling about the sexual violence, as well as surgery
to repair the fistula and other damage to their genitals.
Where Women Have No Doctor 2012