Nearing the 4 year mark. I’ve been reflecting a lot about how normal diapers and incontinence has become for me. What’s it like to have bladder control?

[Enthusi]

Hi friends. I don’t remember the exact date I committed to full 247 but it was around this time 4 years ago. All I know is that I’m never ever going to re-potty train. I don’t want to and even if I did, I’m not sure I could re-potty train.  I really don’t think my brain will let me stay dry even if I could strengthen the bladder muscles. 
 

A few months ago I realized that incontinence from unpotty training is just as legitimate as incontinence due to any other reason, and since then my bladder control has plummeted.  As I mentioned above my brain will not let me.  Trust me, you wouldn’t want me in your home without a diaper on.   And I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve woken up dry in the past 6 months  

Recently I seem to be forgetting what it’s like to be able to hold it in for long stretches of time minutes to hours. Has that happened to anyone else?  
 

Growing up, I had great bladder control. I clearly remember going on school field trips and assemblies.  Heck, I was in band and we would practice for 4 hours at a time.  Competitions were all day events. Granted we got brakes, but they were short and infrequent. 

My point is that even though I clearly was able to stay dry, I can't for the life of me remember how I managed it.    These days my bladder has a mind of its own.  It's quite common for me to feel no urge to go one minute, and then bladder is exploding a minute later.  And it I do feel the way urge to go, I usually will automatically wet second I stop actively trying to hold it.  And if I do hold it, the muscles get fatigued to the point where they just give up. 

To put it another way, a few weeks ago,  I asked my brother (who is not an ABDL but knows and supportive of me) on any given day, how confident is he that he won't pee his pants or the bed that night. And I was a bit shocked that he said between 99.999% and 100 percent.  To me that's like super human.   And then I have to remember that I'm the odd one out! ?

 

 

[Little Sherri]

21 minutes ago, Enthusi said:

Hi friends. I don’t remember the exact date I committed to full 247 but it was around this time 4 years ago. All I know is that I’m never ever going to re-potty train. I don’t want to and even if I did, I’m not sure I could re-potty train.

Congratulations, @Enthusi - that length of time 24/7 is quite the accomplishment, at least from my perspective. I just past the 2-year mark 24/7. I know that I am still able to hold it, although I don't very often anymore - the last time was when I had to have an ultrasound examination of "the equipment" that obviously could not be conducted through a diaper, and, it would have been bad form to dribble all over the place, so I flew without a parachute on for about 30 to 45 minutes. It worked, but barely. One thing that has definitely slipped away from me is the ability to stop a flow that has commenced - I can't. So, if I had started leaking there in that examination room, I would have had to trail droplets over to the washroom, or, just pulled my diaper out of my pants and hold it over the area until the flow stopped. Like you, right now, I am committed to never going back!

[Enthusi]

49 minutes ago, Little Sherri said:

Congratulations, @Enthusi - that length of time 24/7 is quite the accomplishment, at least from my perspective. I just past the 2-year mark 24/7. I know that I am still able to hold it, although I don't very often anymore - the last time was when I had to have an ultrasound examination of "the equipment" that obviously could not be conducted through a diaper, and, it would have been bad form to dribble all over the place, so I flew without a parachute on for about 30 to 45 minutes. It worked, but barely. One thing that has definitely slipped away from me is the ability to stop a flow that has commenced - I can't. So, if I had started leaking there in that examination room, I would have had to trail droplets over to the washroom, or, just pulled my diaper out of my pants and hold it over the area until the flow stopped. Like you, right now, I am committed to never going back!

That's great! Can I ask if you have incontinence added to your medical chart?  I asked my doc to add it. I'm so glad I did. One less thing to worry about it I have an emergency medical problem.  

Also isn't it great knowing that you don't plan to go back or re-potty train?   Like I said in the above post, incontinence due to untraining or psychological reasons is just as legit a reason to be in diapers as incontinence due to other causes.  

[Dprczyone]

I too congratulate you on your success! For me, going on 68 years old and having excellent bladder control, I was wondering if when you are in a recliner or chair do you still dribble or are you like me and have to move around in the seat a bit to be able to wet? I'm fine standing up but it seems when I'm seated I'm blocking the urethra. Some chairs in the house are easier to wet in than others. Thanks in advance for your input.

[Little Sherri]

4 hours ago, Enthusi said:

Can I ask if you have incontinence added to your medical chart?  

Interesting question, @Enthusi. This is something that I've flirted with but not dived right into. I actually was considering this question a week or so ago in a chiropractor's office - the intake form had a box you could check for incontinence. But, in the end, I thought it might result in an awkward conversation, and distract from the reason I was there, so I elected not to tick that box. 

My family doctor has been my physician since I was a teen, so I have decided that I'm not going to broach it with him, because there would be a lot of questions, and also possibly a referral to a urologist and/or psychiatrist, and I have no desire to tie up medical resources in the name of a question that I already know the answer to. I have resolved, however, that when my doctor retires, I will tell my new doctor that I have urge incontinence, or something similar, and that it's already been explored and try and just make it part of my medical history at that point. 

I have also worn diapers to medical appointments a number of times now, although I've never had to be open about it - either the situation involved no looking below the belt, or, too much looking - IE, I had to have whatever I was wearing off in any case, so why advertise that over on that chair, tucked into my trousers, is a diaper, underwear, scuba gear, whatever. I have an MRI at a big downtown hospital in a couple of weeks that I know will involve walking around in a gown for about 90 minutes, between the intake area, main waiting room, other pre-scan waiting room, then over to the machines, then back to the first waiting room where I left my stuff in a locker. I have done that before with a diaper on and I plan to do so again. It's unlikely that anyone would notice or care in any case - the only thing I was at all subconscious about, last time round, was a bit of a crinkling noise when I was walking around the waiting room or down hallways. Once you're in the room with the machine, there's enough background noise that it's not an issue. There is the slight danger of providing an "upskirt" view to the hapless technician getting loaded, but they've tended to give the patient a blanket or sheet to pull over themselves in any case, because the machines are kept quite cool, so, it's easy to be discreet about it. 

[Enthusi]

8 hours ago, Dprczyone said:

I too congratulate you on your success! For me, going on 68 years old and having excellent bladder control, I was wondering if when you are in a recliner or chair do you still dribble or are you like me and have to move around in the seat a bit to be able to wet? I'm fine standing up but it seems when I'm seated I'm blocking the urethra. Some chairs in the house are easier to wet in than others. Thanks in advance for your input.

Thanks! 

The short answer is I am able to wet in any position. 

The longer, more accurate answer is that it doesn't really matter and I don't really think about it.  My bladder does its own thing, which is fine by me. When it's full, it empties. When it's not full it doesn't empty.  The rest is moot.  Sometimes I can tell I have to go, but it's not actionable information so I mostly don't pay attention.  That's not to say position doesn't matter.  Quite often I will shift position or stand up and bam! I feel a sudden intense urge immediately followed by warmth in my diaper.  But most of the time I don't really think about it.