The Continence Foundation of Australia states that urinary incontinence affects 10% of all Australian men, with more than a third (36%) under the age of 50.

Prostate problems, bladder infections, prior pelvic surgeries and conditions such as obesity and diabetes are some of the most common causes of male incontinence.

Debunking the myth that incontinence is only a female issue may be one of the keys to getting men to talk about bladder problems.

There is a lot of promotion around woman’s incontinence as females are more likely to be incontinent from younger to mid-aged than men. Not only that but as women, you are generally the ones buying the continence products for your male family members.

I recall being in my late 20s and my sister-in-law and myself (both Nurses) walked into a conversation between our husbands and their dad. They were discussing my fathers-in-law’s prostate and light urinary leakage. We started to give some suggestions on management, but my very proud father-in-law got up said ”I didn’t ask for you to join this conversation” and proceeded to leave the room.

He didn’t do this because of any other reason than it was uncomfortable for this 60-year-old man to discuss to discuss his incontinence problems with women. Times have changed, but we still have a long way to go.

It is also harder mentally for men to wear a pad. Women are more comfortable due to menstruating since being teens. Thankfully there are now several options of different “cricket Box” shaped pads for men’s protection.

Men with incontinence face additional challenges when it comes to disposal of used pads. Unlike women, men don’t tend to have bins in their toilets big enough for pads. The Continence Foundation of Australia have an awareness campaign called “Bins for Blokes” to address this situation.

Despite the fact that 1.34 million Australian men live with incontinence, there are very few bins in male public toilets across the country. Moreover, adding disposal bins in male public toilets would decrease the amount of incontinence items flushed or improperly disposed.

Visit www.bins4blokes.org.au to pledge your support, propose a location for a BIN4Blokes, and learn about additional ways to get involved.

The value of pelvic floor exercises* is often overlooked by men. It’s important to stress that like the ladies, men should seek some professional guidance on how to train the pelvic floor. These exercises flex muscles that are required to control flow of urine. They're beneficial not just for treating incontinence in the early stages, but also for tightening the pelvic floor following surgery.

Some men may also experience Post Micturition incontinence, often known as After Dribble. After Dribble can be caused by a weak pelvic floor, or by urine remaining in the urethra. Pelvic floor exercises or training can help in both the treatment and prevention of After Dribble.

So during World Continence Week, we urge you to start the conversation with your loved male family members. They very well may be “suffering” in silence, and you could be the catalyst for change.

*Information in this post is not medical advice. Incontinence can be caused by many reasons, and each case should be discussed with your doctor before commencing a pelvic floor muscle exercises.