Let’s talk about Incontinence, Incontinence, Incontinence ……!!!!!!

Hello Carol here……um..Incontinence, I want to talk about incontinence, that embarrassing subject. …..um…..I think I have a little bit of incontinence…. not a medical issue but I think it is caused by my dementia. ……. um….. I think what happens is I get the signal that I need to go the toilet…….. um…… It will probably come when I am actually busy doing something else. So I’ll think to myself, I’ll just finish doing this little job and then I’ll go. But… by the time I have finished that little job, I’ve forgotten that I need to go. So I just carry on doing what I need to do. Then a few minutes later, I might get that signal again…. Again, I might be involved in doing something and again I think, I’ll just finish this and then I’ll go. And this goes on and on and sometimes the inevitable happens.

So I think it’s all to do with how we are brought up. Um..during my childhood when I needed to go the toilet, um.. like many others I, was told …um.., you’ll have to wait a minute. Um.. If we are out, it’ll be we’ll find a toilet when we find a toilet, etc, etc. All the little reasons why you have to hold on and I think it is installed in your brain that you’ll go to the toilet when you can go to the toilet not when you need to go. So I kind of um.. think it’s a lot to do with your training in your early childhood. But of course with my dementia and the forgetfulness, this, this um.. doesn’t help any.

So what I’ve been trying to do is, I’ve been trying to do this for about a year now, is when I get that first signal, is to make a real effort to go there and then no matter what I am doing. Um…but so far it hasn’t happened (chuckle) I always tend to finish the job I’m doing, you know, be it washing up or making a sandwich or whatever, and then think I’ll go when I’ve finished that. But, by then of course, my brain’s forgotten.

So yes, I think I do suffer from mild incontinence. As I say, not for medical reasons, ..um.. I think it is to do with my dementia. And I know there are quite a few people out there, who, who, who have the same problem.

So that’s it, that embarrassing issue of incontinence. If we keep saying it…Incontinence..Incontinence…Incontinence, then you know, maybe the message to get out there. Um I know some people have done a Dementia Diary on it already and I promised I would do one on my situation and so there it is, that’s my situation.

Thank you
Bye