Did you know Epilepsy can cause urinary incontinence?
Epileptic seizures occur due to a disruption to electrical activity in the brain. This causes a change in person’s movement, behavior, level of awareness and/or feelings.
There are many types of seizures that present in different ways and people with epilepsy experience seizures differently.
“Studies show that approximately 39% of people with epilepsy have at least one urinary symptom. Seizures are caused by abnormal electrical impulses in the brain and often happen without any warning signs. This disruption to the brain’s electrical activity can affect your ability to remain continent.”
https://www.independenceaustralia.com
Epilepsy did not always cause incontinence in our life, why?
https://www.independenceaustralia.com explains that:
- Different types of seizures cause incontinence in different ways. For example, Tonic-Clonic (aka Grand Mal) seizures typically involve muscle rigidity, shallow breathing and jerking movements followed by a period of unconsciousness. These seizures cause pelvic muscles to tense, putting the bladder under stress. During this time, it’s common for people to lose control of their bladders.
- Atonic seizures induce muscle relaxation which can cause the bladder muscles to relax, allowing urine to flow.
- Absence seizures affect incontinence a little differently. During these the signals to the brain to retain urine may get mixed up which can lead to a total loss of control.
Hannah did not start having Tonic-Clonic and Atonic seizures until around age 5. Many of her seizures were Myoclonic and Partial Complex earlier on. Needless to say, we have had and continue to have quite a few incontinent moments as a result of having an average of 20 Tonic-Clonic and Atonic seizures a month.
Incontinence can happen at inopportune times resulting in stressful oftentimes embarrassing moments.
Stress look and sound familiar?!
So how do we avoid those embarrassing moments of overflow / accidents? Well, it took awhile to find our perfect solution.
I found it! The best quality Incontinence Mat!
As a mom of a child who experiences incontinence I was very tired of the boring white, ineffective, and frustrating heavy pads (aka incontinence mats or incontinence pads) that insurance may or may not pay for.
What are my concerns with the “hospital” incontinence mats?
- The white is boring. I believe strongly in the importance of color for children dealing with serious medical challenges and children with developmental delays. Must take away that medically sterile look and feel!
- The pads are small. It takes two, sometimes three, to cover the bed or couch.
- They bunch. They don’t stay put! It’s a real issue when this happens because what was supposed to go on the heavy pad ends up on the bed sheets, the couch, or whatever my child has been sitting on. Which defeats the whole purpose!
As part of my “I need to do something about this issue”, I went searching for a better incontinence mat.
And what I found far surpassed what I thought was possible. I LOVE THESE MATS! Which is the reason we carry them at Hannahtopia. So you can discover and love them also! I wash them every single day. The quality if fantastic and no odor lingers!
These pad are especially fantastic when you have company or are visiting family or friends. They are available in 3 different sizes which makes them easy to fold up and pack in your “go bag”.
I don’t know about you, but we have personally experienced visiting a relative and had the unfortunate “accident” on a couch or chair and the oh so dreaded stares when you pull out the medically sterile looking white pad with the turquoise or blue backing.
How do these mats help?
- They are 100% leakproof!
- They bring color to your child’s life! No more boring white heavy pads. Instead you can infuse your child’s space with cheerful color!
- A 3-ply mat construction designed to protect the bed from all sorts of fluids.
- They STAY PUT! Their innovative design means they don’t bunch and they stay in place. No more accidents on your furniture. No more wet sheets!
- Oversized!
- Three sizes to accommodate use on beds, couches, wheelchairs, and more!
- Machine washable – so easy to care for!
- No more embarrassing moments!
We never leave home without our PeaPod Incontinence Mats
These pads have certainly made our life easier which is why I choose to make them available in our store. We never leave home without our:
- 3 x 3 PeaPod Incontinence Mat for the car
- 1.5 x 1.5 PeaPod Incontinence Mat for Hannah’s wheelchair (and an extra in our “go bag”)
- 3 x 5 PeaPod Incontinence Mat for visiting friends and family
Hannah and I live it, so we get it! We hope you find your solution to help you through these challenges! Consider giving the PeaPod Incontinence Mat a try, you will not be disappointed.
Always sending our thoughts our to our warrior friends for seizure-free!
