www.incontinentsupport.org

A lot of people seem to resort to only diapers, but there's always different solutions (I guess more is better in this case) worth trying out

Right now I'm taking detrol for urge icon and it's working well. Ditropan's side effects were definately too hard.

For night problems (bedwetting) I'm currently trying imipramine. Not helping a lot, but perhaps a higher dose might help? I'm currently using attends w/ waistband at night, and the bed is basically never wet.

As the detrol still leaves me with some occasionnal urge episodes (it's ok for home/work where a washroom is always handy, but not for outtings) and that the imipramine isn't doing much, I'm considering trying leg bags for those times (not circumcized, some people say it's not a good idea...)

I'm still seeing my uro every month or so. Hopefully he comes up with something that works. I'd much rather be using a leg bag than be using diapers at least.

You could certainly try an external catheter and leg bag. You can even get samples from www.coloplast.com The question of circumcised or noty is not an issue here. They would be great for the outings and places where changing is hard but you would be restricted to trousers (oops, sorry, pants) and the bag as it gets heavy restircts movement a bit.

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Paraplegic T6 from Transverse Myelitis

I prefer diapers myself. They give me freedom of movement; I don't feel I'm tied to anything. I am quite active, both on the job and off. I climb ladders and crawl under desks as facility manager where I work.

By using a high absorbancy diaper (Molicare Super Plus, Abena, Eurobrief, etc.), I can keep changes to a minimum, and usually manage to avoid changing at work. I also use size 6 baby diapers as inserts on workdays, to extend time between changes. They are small enough to carry in my pocket to the restroom. When the baby diaper is full, I just go into a stall, loosen a tape on one side and slip the wet baby diaper out. Then slide a dry one in, and retape. I dispose of the baby diaper in the trash bin, and go back to work. This keeps changing hassles and the chance of being "caught" to a minimum

One other thing I do helps extend the useful life of a diaper a lot. I wear cotton boxer-briefs over my disposable, with a nylon and lycra elastic sports brief over that. The sports brief keeps the disposable well supported, preventing sagging, bunching, and breakup of the padding. The cotton brief muffles plastic diaper noise, and catches minor leaks, which the non-absorbant sports brief then allows to evaporate without showing on the outside (I did say MINOR, now).

I understand that for some people, diapers are a better solution because of x reasons. After all, we're not all alike... Since I have not tried leg bags yet, I can't really speak about how it restricts (or doesn't) your movement/activities (yet). I'm just hoping to find something else that will work, because imho - anything beats being stuck in diapers.

Again, we are also in different contexts. Daytime, I have no need for high absorbency like that since I take detrol. (And I don't quite have this kind of mobility either) The only time I'll use diapers is for long outings where they may be no bathroom nearby for extended time (a leg bad could work well for those occasions, I think, like shopping). As for night time, I don't think I really move this much, and I tend to adapt fairly easily, so I doubt that would be a problem.

Anyways, I'm willing to give leg bags a try (once I see my new uro hopefully). If it doesn't work out (as well as other alternatives), then I guess I won't have too many other choices. I just want to exhaust other possibilities before resorting to wearing diapers, which I doubt I'll never manage to accept completely.

Thanks for the input, I'll see if this leg bag stuff works out, otherwise I just may have to use some of those suggestions...

@Wheelz, thanks. I did not know one could just order samples like that, I thought one had to go thru a uro to get the necessary stuff. I never had to change in public, but the idea of that alone really scares me. As for wearing pants, it's not like I even attempt wearing something else on top of diapers anyways...

Because I must occasionally deal with a bowel accident, I am pretty much limited to diapers and plastic or rubber pants. I keep a gym bag, loaded with spare diapers, lotion, plastic bags and twist ties for the disposal of used diapers, powder, baby wipes, and, on a hangar, a spare pair of trousers in the car with me. I keep track of my location; I know all the handicapped restrooms on my usual haunts, and keep a good running estimate of time of arrival to the nearest one at all times. Detrol and Ditropan gave me overwhelming dry mouth, making me drink far more than necessary, which greatly aggravated my incontinence and were therefore stopped. I'm glad if others find them useful; they made things worse for me.
My biggest challenges are diaper rash, which is a continual concern, and Meniere's Disease, which degrades my hearing, makes me nauseous, gives me an overwhelming vertigo, and makes walking nearly impossible. It can make me faint and collapse without warning. When that happens, I almost invariably must clean up a bowel accident, and I need at least eight to ten hours in bed to recover. Trying to change my diaper when my world is spinning out of control and I've just vomited my fourth meal is about as much challenge as I care to face.

Hello Carltwo

Welcome to our forum.

I too know the feeling about having to deal with bowel incon.
I am totaly incon, both bowel and bladder.

Ive found that prevention is the best for it.
I use the Pampers baby wipes with aloe.
Aloe is great for your skin. You can even get aloe jell in the stores and use it on a regular schedule.

For the diapers, if you use disposables make sure that they have the extra bands on the inside that help contain the fecal matter.
If you use cloth, make sure that you wash them real good and use a little bleach to help kill the bacteria in them.
In either case, make sure that you change as soon as you can after you have a bowel accident.

Fecal matter will break down the skin faster than urine will and will cause more rashes.

Schoppy

An external or condom catheter, if used properly, offers great protection and simplicity. The newer silicone catheters are clear, self-adhesive types which fit well and are comfortable if your penis has sensation (I do not, so "comfort" is not an issue. Finding the correct size is important.

Short extension tubing and a "sport" leg bag allows one to wear shorts on hot days. Otherwise, longer tubing and wearing the bag on the lower leg is my preference. A fabric leg bag holder (UroCare) keeps the bag in place during even strenuous activity and a Dale catheter holder secures the tubing to the thigh to prevent kinks.

I don't use drugs of any kind. I just watch what I drink and how much I drink. it's not easy and i still need to urinate. but i don't want to use drugs to manage my incontinence, nor do i want to stick a catheter up my penis. sounds painful. I'd prefer just to wear a diaper and use it for its intended purposes.

Hi All don't know if anyone is still looking at this post.I do agree with Jason I don't want to use drugs or the catheter as for reasons above,I just use diapers for my type of life active going to gym and travel.This gives me more peice of mind and security.thanks