Bathroom Breaks Breaking Your Sleep? (Part 2)
Pregnant women and mothers will testify that the quality of sleep in the third trimester is unbearable. Along with the normal discomforts of pregnancy such as heartburn, leg cramps, restless leg syndrome, and snoring, the bladder is under pressure. Like it was during the first trimester when the bathroom was a second home, the baby is positioned right on top of the mother’s pelvis. Pregnant women can reduce their nighttime potty breaks by limiting fluid intake in late afternoon and evening and also completely emptying the bladder every time they visit the toilet. You can cut down on nighttime trips to the bathroom by drinking plenty of fluids during the day but limiting your intake in the hours before you go to bed. Stay away from coffee and tea late in the day.
An overactive bladder may make you feel like you have to get to a bathroom immediately because the bladder muscles act inappropriately and contract involuntarily. You may be experiencing symptoms of an overactive bladder if you get up 8 or more times in a 24-hour period to go to the restroom, if you get up two or more times at night, if you have sudden urges to urinate, and/or if you have wetting accidents. You can try cutting back on liquids, and wear pads or liners to protect your clothing but there are other ways to deal with this condition and get back to a normal night’s sleep. Consult with your physician about medical treatment. In the meantime, try some Behavioral therapy such as Kegel exercises to help strengthen your pelvic muscles. Try to retrain your bladder by lengthening the time between visits to the bathroom. Add fifteen minutes to the time between the times you would normally go to the bathroom. If you go every two hours, wait two hours and fifteen minutes the next time and slowly get your bladder trained to make less visits to the bathroom.
