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Hello, I am a physical therapist and have specialized in womens health issues. Your symptoms are most likely a common condition called urinary stress incontinence. Many woment (and some men) struggle with this issue. For most women it is related to weakness of the pelvic floor muscles. Your bladder and your baby are supported by this muscle which can result in weakness of this muscle which in turn makes it harder for your body to control urine flow under stressfull conditions (runing, coughing, sneazing or squatting. Fortunately, many women can completely eliminate or at least substantially reduce this issue through strengthening of the pelvic floor muscles. Pelvic floor strengthening (commonly called Kegels) can be diffucult to perform correctly. You can test your ability to tighten your pelvic floor muscles by seeing if your can stop uring flow when your go to the bathroom. You should sense the insides of your pelvis pulling up as if you are trying not to pass gas. Avoid squeezing your butt or abs. For a detailed program designed for runners I recommend "Confidence" an eBook for $10 at stoptheleak.net. Some women will not be able to overcome this issue on their own. The American physical therapy assoc has a website that allows you to find specialist in womens health issues.http://www.womenshealthapta.org/find-a-physical-therapist/index.cfm Occasionally surgery is needed and you will need to be evaluated by an urologist. My recommendation is to try the self help approach first and then if after 4 weeks you are still struggling then contact a pt or urologist. Please tell your friends that their is help for this - it can be embarassing to admit but many women get better with proper guidance and care.
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