• If you experience leakage more in the night, try to cut out fluids for at least two hours before bedtime. Empty the bladder just before you go to bed.

• If you experience more leakage in the day, avoid coffee, caffeine, fizzy drinks and spicy foods as they can irritate the bladder. Only drink clean water.

• When you have finished urinating, take your time to get the last few drops of urine out , so that these drops don’t dribble out after you have already left the toilet.

• Constipation can cause or contribute to bladder problems. Avoid it at all costs.  Adding fiber and water to your diet helps to bulk the stools and soften them to pass it easier. Daily exercise improves colon motility.

• A healthy bladder cycles between full and empty, not between half full and half empty. You need to urinate when the bladder gives you the urge to go, and never avoid the urge to go. Also never urinate “just in case”. If the pelvic floor muscles do not control a full bladder, they will get weaker. Drinking water ensures that the bladder does it work.

• Some patients stop drinking water to prevent leakage. This is unfortunately not helpful. If your bladder does not learn to handle volume, it will lose the ability to handle a normal capacity. Drink enough fluid. Urine that is too concentrated will irritate the bladder, causing you to urinate even more frequently.

• The position you sit in on the toilet can affect your pelvic floor muscles. Sitting in the correct position will ease the passing of both urine and stools and prevent incomplete emptying.