When you think of “urgency” as it applies to the need for washroom facilities you may assume we are talking about little kids needing to take a pee on the side of the road. As the parent is standing behind him the 5 year old boy is encourage to let go into the tall grass as the sister may be crunch into position by another parent safely behind the open car door acting as a shield. Everybody chuckles and assumes no damage done and quickly passes by on with their day. You are supposed to outgrow the need for this type of roadside break and hold it for a while till it is convenient to find a washroom. For most of us we did just that … but it’s back!
Now suppose the circumstances are much different. You are no longer 5 but 65, your hair is longer and unkept, haven’t shaved for a day or three. You have a stumble in your walk, tilting to the left a little. You have a bit of struggle in getting out the words “Do you have a washroom for customers?” due to slurred speech and the added pressure of finding a place to go or you will have an accident where no real damage will be done but to your pride and your new pants? This is the life of someone with Parkinson’s Disease who has one on the common symptoms of bladder incontinence.
All of the other conditions listed above are caused by this disease or as side effects of the medication. It complicates our lives even in regular times when we constantly are on the look out for public facilities in case the urge hits us. Trips are planned to be in a way never be too far from a washroom. When that is not possible we are searching for other options to step into a dark alley or even a bush to get relief. Now imagine all of the regular washrooms closed due to Covid-19 and you are an errand run with 2 things left to do and the cold wind or a cool breeze from air conditioning or whatever, the urge comes on with little or no time to spare. You panic, your doing a Michael Jackson on your package and feel the need to ask for directions to a washroom in the best voice you can muster. The reacts are not pleasant and normally unfavourable even though they recognize the stress you seem to be in. The next few minutes will decide if we will finish the errands or require a trip home to change first.
So why is this happening? its called bladder incontinence of which their are three types (Urge, Stress, and Noctural). With the bladder or colon not fully draining on your last urination or bowel movement, you’re always primed for another event without a lot of notice. Sometimes within a short time period from the last.
My approach is to limit how long I plan to be out and always have a location in mind along my route. Also limit the number of tasks and look out for those dead zones where no options are available!
(Medical information taken from Every Victory Counts, Davis Phinney Foundation. p 147)