www.incontinentsupport.org

It appears that most of the people who post regularly here have full incontinence, so I don't know if anyone can answer my questions, but I'm giving it a try. Thanks for any feedback.

I am female. I have frequent partial bladder incontinence(ranging from small leaks to sudden gushing) and occasional partial bowel incontinence as side effects to other medical conditions. I have been fairly happy with Abena Abriflex pullons for some time, but would like to be able to change more efficiently, given individual physical limitations. Ideally, I'd also like to cut down on the bulk, which is sometimes uncomfortable, and also is inconvenient when needing to carry several days' supply for travel and finding places to dispose discreetly in someone's else's home, etc. As I'm currently in a phase where the incon is not as bad as it once was, I decided to try out some heavy duty liners,thinking I could save a bit of the expense of pull ons on good days, and also use the liners as easily changed boosters on bad days. (Yes, I know liners have backing and boosters don't. I specifically want liners, so they can be used as both.)

I purchased some fixing pants and some samples of Abena Abrisan in different sizes, as well as another brand specific to a different vendor. The smallest Abrisan in the sample pack is a 5 (Midi) I'm using it now with size medium unisex brief style fixing pants (not the boxers) and the edges are hanging out the sides of the pants.Are the pads going to leak/fall out when the fixing pants are less new and not as tight or I attempt this with regular full cut women's underwear? The other Abrisan sizes and the other brand are bigger, and I'm just realizing now they'll probably be way too big to wear alone, not as booster. Women's menstrual pads have routinely had adhesive for decades, so I'm not sure why incon pads often don't. The Abrisan doesn't have it. The other product does, but even its smallest size is larger that the Abrisan 5. It also is a brand specific to the vendor, and I would really prefer to use something that is available in more than one place, so I don't get stuck if something happens with the one vendor.

Any thoughts here? As usual, no product is without its advantages and disadvantages. Ideally I'd like something with as much absorbency as possible while still being compact, will stay in place, is readily available and somewhat less costly than full time use of the pull ons.

I have used the Abrisan pads, size 7 and 11 and fixing pants occasionally. The size 11 pads are just about as bulky as a full brief but have good absorbance. The size 7 have good capacity and have taken a full flood. I have not bothered with the size 5. I am not a regular pad and pant user, but occasionally like/need the discreetness of the size 7's and they are easy to change without removing pants.

I have also used the Abri-fix pants. They have a spandex feel to them. They are cut to fit over pads and briefs and are an excellent product. I have a 38 waist but like the med size with the size 7 pads because they seem to keep the pad in place better. For a little extra protection I wear a light plastic pant over the fixing pants. It doesn't add much bulk and catches any small wet spots that might appear around the edge of the fixing pants.

I've also used the size large and extra large fixing pants to support heavier briefs or cloth diapers. The pants have been washed many times and have held up well. I tried regular underwear once with bad results. I have purchased both from XP Medical and have gotten good service from them. Hope this helps. Good luck sorting out what works best for you.

Thank you, Steve. I will report back later on how things go, in case my experience is helpful to anyone else.

From Kakapo:
Hi I am new here and have just begun to experience mild incontinence. i use tena pads at the moment and have found them to be okay for me. I joined recently just to hear from other people that have this problem and to find out how they deal with it.
I used to enjoy running distances, but now fear to do so, because of wetting myself, so therefore i gave up something I enjoyed doing.
perhaps this was the wrong thing to do, but now i hope to get back into it. i suppose i shouldn't let my incontinence rule my life. I look forward to hearing from others with the same problem, and perhaps we can help each other out.
Thank you for listening.

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Welcome here, Kakapo. Yes we do listen, as you've discovered by now, I'm sure.

We will underscore the fact that incontinence should NOT rule your life! Look at the broad range of activities that so many of us enjoy. Please do
get back to running and learn that you can enjoy it as before. It takes time, but you'll get there.

I've been dealing with this for 20 years...so often one can be tempted to say that it is easy for me to say. Well, not totally, but time does have a way
of helping us deal with this, and that includes the time spend coming here even for occasional posters / readers like me.

I still enjoy riding a Harley, continuing a long-lived hobby of tours and travel on a two wheeler. And as to my daily activity being limited or impacted
by my bladder issues, well I always say that "few are the wiser." Of course, here on this forum, we ALL are the wiser...as we should be.

Yes, we like to be helpful along with just being here as a sounding board. Keep us posted from time to time, please. What you say helps us, too.


John.

The Tena Maxi Slip is a full brief that is pretty thin and has good capacity. I does get thicker as it absorbs wetness. I will easily out absorb any pad option, and it does not need the fixing pants to hold them in place. They don't sag when wet and can last for over 4 hours, or 2 good floods, depending on how much you drink. If you are leery about using a full brief during the day it also makes a pretty good night brief. They are available from several US vendors, but are most common in the UK and Europe.

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When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade.

I'm not sure if my solution will be acceptable to you or not, but I ride my bike ten to twenty miles at a time, and since I insist on keeping myself well hydrated there's no way I'm getting through a ride without wetting my pants. So I buy black bicycle shorts and just let it leak. It hardly shows on the black material and it dries quickly. I try to let it out when nobody's behind me. In the winter I wear a diaper and black sweatpants. You'd have to be really close to see that I was wet.

I know it sounds strange, but I've gotten used to being wet a good bit of the day and night and it just doesn't bother me any more. I will not allow my issue to keep me from staying in shape and doing what I want to do.

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Fred