Frequent Urination and How to Treat it

Having to excuse yourself to the bathroom frequently can grow into an embarrassing habit. But worse than being embarrassing, frequent urination could mean that you have an underlying health issue. Understanding your own symptoms, potential causes, when to seek help and how to treat frequent urination should protect both your physical health and well-being when it comes to social situations.

Understanding Your Urination Symptoms

More frequent urination often occurs when you are consuming more fluids than normal and when you are pregnant, but there are other situations in which more frequent urination could be a concern. Think about how often you urinate, the colour of your urine, if you are able to keep from urinating when you feel the urge and if you often feel the urge to urinate but are unable to produce urine. Also note if you have blood in your urine, if your urine is frequently cloudy, if you experience sudden weight loss around the time you begin to urinate more frequently, if you find yourself more thirsty when you begin to urinate more frequently and if you experience fever, back or side pain, or chills in association with more frequent urination. When you urinate, for example having to get up in the night to urinate when you never did so before, could also be notable.

Potential Causes of Frequent Urination

There are a variety of health issues which could cause more frequent urination. Possible causes include urinary tract infections (UTIs), diabetes and prostate problems. Urinary incontinence, bladder problems, neurological problems and prostatitis could also cause more frequent urination. Certain medicines such as diuretics might cause an increase in the frequency in urination as well.

Seeking Help for Frequent Urination

When frequent urination begins to impact your lifestyle it is time to seek help. This means that if you begin to be embarrassed by your need to urinate often, or you feel ashamed of your inability to make it through events without urinating, then you should contact your GP. You should also contact your GP immediately if you begin to experience alarming symptoms like blood in the urine, fever, pain, chills, fatigue or sudden weight loss.

Treating Frequent Urination

The treatment for frequent urination will depend upon what is causing this urge, which in turn will be discovered from the symptoms you tell your doctor about. A detailed symptom list will be invaluable in helping to narrow down potential causes of frequent urination. Tests such as urinalysis, urine cultures and ultrasounds of the abdomen and/or pelvis can also be useful in coming up with a diagnosis. Most often treatments include antibiotics and other medicines, as well as lifestyle changes such as avoiding alcohol, caffeinated drinks and drinking fluids prior to going to bed. If frequent urination is caused by more serious conditions then the treatment of these conditions will likely alleviate the need to urinate frequently.

Frequent urination can become embarrassing and uncomfortable, and sometimes it can be a symptom of a more serious underlying health concern. Understanding your urinary symptoms and potential causes of frequent urination, as well as knowing when to seek help and how to treat frequent urination are all important to steps towards ending frequent urination once and for all.