How to handle Incontinence with MS

[dale32]

I was diagnosed with epilepsy a few years ago, so I was given an MRI to assess the problem. It turned out that  brain lesions were the culprit of the seizures. Soon after I was diagnosed with MS. Since then I have developed incontinence. Currently, I am 24 and am living on my own. I would have occasional accidents, but I am now completely incontinent, with my bowls and bladder. I managed to finish school a year ago, graduating a year late due to my conditions. I have had a difficult time finding work, so my parents have been providing me with financial support. I live by myself, so I have to take care of my medical problems on my own. I have had a hard time managing the incontinence, so I was wondering if I was doing something wrong. I am currently wearing diapers, usually I change like 6 times a day. The diapers leak when I am in bed, and changing is a pain. I can walk, but I usually do not have that much energy. Whenever I have a BM, it is almost impossible to clean myself without getting into the shower. I wanted to know how other adults with MS deal with this problem. Are you supposed to have someone assist you with changing in order to get completely clean. If that is the case, I wanted to know if their were any alternatives to wearing diapers.

[HVAC]

For the bladder you can go to a gynourologist. I would question why your neurologist has done so little.
Alex

[supermum_ms]

Hi and welcome to our little MS community,

The first thing you need to do is get in contact with your neurologist or find a new one!

I have a million questions going through my head as to why a 24yr old would be wearing adult diapers within a few years of being diagnosed....you don't mention going through any other incontinence options prior to getting to this point, so if you haven't had the incontinence and bladder issues assessed yet and or this solution is the only one you know to do, then please contact your neurologist! There are different solutions for different issues, so knowing what the problem is makes a huge difference...

What country are you from? Depending on where you are changes the amount of MS support and financial assistance that is available to you eg in Australia you would be eligible for a full disability pension with medical, meal and home assistance from MS Australia and we have incontinence support organisations that will provide supplies and advice.

Knowing exactly what is going on is important information to have, without knowing it's difficult to know which options you could trial, you need medical assistance before your inadvertently end up causing your self even more issues through an infection. If you bowel movements are more in line with diarrhea, maybe medication, dietary changes or a bulking agent is needed which your doctor will need to be involved in working out what will help you most.

I would recommend you contact your countries MS society and ask for immediate assistance, contact your neurologist and set up the earliest  appointment you can and if the wait is long please contact you GP and ask for help. In the mean time cleaning your self can be difficult sometimes, showers or baths are a good way to clean thoroughly but generally filling the sink with a warm soapy water and cleaning your self with a wash cloth should be enough to get clean, if you have balance issues you can sit on the toilet as you normally would but use the wash cloth for a fuller clean.

I hope that helps....JJ