Tens Machine to contract bladder

[squeeek]

Hi all.

Has anyone tried a tens machine to simulate incontinence? 

Basically a friend who is a girl obviously cant use stents because of basic anatomy.  

Rather than risk a uti from an open catheter I though perhaps a tens machine might work?

Placing the pads ether side of the bladder area and turn on different settings to see if it forces her to pee with zero control?

I presume if it did work you could also use on a bloke too?

 

[DAQ]

So I just recently bought a TENS/EMS. I guess in theory you could get it to contract the bladder but hopelessly impractical. It would require surgical precision, literally. The leads would have to be implanted. I have tried with a lead on my perineum and another near the tail bone, and another time over the pubic mound. This didn't cause incontinence, but the message settings made relaxing my pelvic floor MUCH easier for a time. 

[BrownBobby]

I agree with @DAQ - unless you're implanting electrodes or attaching them directly to nerves, you probably won't be able to get them to affect the bladder this way.  The muscles are just too deep under the skin to have that strong of an effect.

Now - if you're willing to accept a significant level of risk, there is an alternative way.  When muscles get overworked, they stop being able to contract, and default to relaxed.  For the pelvic floor, this would severely limit someone's ability to hold their urine.  I experimented with some possibilities and had some promising results before finding much less fun side effects and stopping.  

Now, if you're looking to make someone mess themselves...that's easier with TENS.  😛

[Hannah YMS]

7 hours ago, DAQ said:

So I just recently bought a TENS/EMS. I guess in theory you could get it to contract the bladder but hopelessly impractical. It would require surgical precision, literally. The leads would have to be implanted. I have tried with a lead on my perineum and another near the tail bone, and another time over the pubic mound. This didn't cause incontinence, but the message settings made relaxing my pelvic floor MUCH easier for a time. 

So the TENS/EMS unit really did help you with relaxing your pelvic floor? Which unit did you buy (link please?) and how are you positioning the leads to relax your pelvic floor?

1 hour ago, BrownBobby said:

I experimented with some possibilities and had some promising results before finding much less fun side effects and stopping.

Would you mind elaborating on the much less fun side effects?

1 hour ago, BrownBobby said:

Now, if you're looking to make someone mess themselves...that's easier with TENS.  😛

Can you also elaborate on this more?

Thanks to the both of you!

[DAQ]

7 hours ago, Hannah YMS said:

So the TENS/EMS unit really did help you with relaxing your pelvic floor? Which unit did you buy (link please?) and how are you positioning the leads to relax your pelvic floor?

To answer your question. Yes it has helped, but I don't want to sell it as some sort of silver bullet or panacea. I have been doing so many other things in the last 6 weeks that it is hard to tell which one is helping where. At worst I think that applying electro-stimulation to the various muscle groups in and around the pelvic floor and bladder has helped me create a stronger mind/muscle connection. Which leads into the body mindfulness exercises I have been doing lately. I will sit and meditate on the sensations of my body while keeping everything as relaxed as possible and try to feel every muscle and nerve. It sounds ironic to want that but, it has helped me be able to relax better. Conversely at best the TENS/EMS feels like a deep tissue message in and around muscles that I don't think you would want someone poking at or completely unable because of how deep they are. But the message I think has actually loosened up the muscles. As to the unit, I ended up with the following:

Base setup

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q32KX3J?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

Pelvic floor specific probe

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0768VFV5D?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

And required adapter

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0759B5339?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

And shocky shocky gel for better contact and less pain for pads and probe

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0837LN9X9?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

 

The probe placement is self explanatory I hope. I did, and still use the external pads either separately or in conjunction for different spots. I have used them on my lower back and hips to loosen up tension and stress that I store there and other times directly to areas in and around the pelvic floor. Some experimentation is probably best. I don't know how far they will travel but everything in between and usually the shallower muscles get stimulated the most.

[foreverdl]

I have the 40 yr old tens and a few yrs ago I got one of the big tens type unit they used to use at the chiropractors,,, from  eBay. I got it cheap about $40.   I had to do repairs on it , it wasn't working when I bought it. But anyhow this unit is soo much more powerful that the little ones they sell, the small ones have to be safe enough for the public to use. Anyhow ,I  made a 2 ft mat ( from a static Mat) so to speak with the real duct tape metal tape and I took an old metal butt vibrator that died a long time ago. I attached the big tens wires to the back pad and then to the metal butt insert, Now I haven't used it more than a few times, but I think it will work since laying on the back pad covers the whole back. This is reusable without paying for the stick pads over and over. Just be careful because the big 30 yr old unit is made to be used by a Dr so they don't have the limits built in like the pocket sized ones. I did do some experiments with putting a pad on the front above the crotch where you push on the bladder to make you pee. But I think it's better back and butt. I only have about the price of the nice butt probe in my setup . But I do think the list of parts that DAQ listed is a really good idea . If you don't want to take a chance on getting a non working large unit that needs repair, I had to replace a relay and do some soldering in mine.

[Hannah YMS]

@DAQ and @foreverdl

Thank you both!

[dlmolicares]

Have tried this, probably overly cautiously. Put the pads on either side of my bladder and took it up to 2-4 (fairly low) and had it do waves / pulses. Main thing I noticed was that if my bladder was already full, the agitation would make it contract more. Similar to tapping your bladder when it's full