About the Website
"Mind Over Matter: Healthy Bowels, Healthy Bladder" (MOM)
Can't watch the video?
Read the transcript document:
This website is based on an in-person program developed by researchers, medical professionals, and community organizations in Wisconsin.
The program helps women learn about:
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How the bladder, bowels, and pelvic floor muscles work together
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How to do pelvic floor muscle exercises
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How to adjust fiber and fluid intake to improve symptoms
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How to have effective conversations with healthcare providers
Why was Mind Over Matter (MOM) developed?
While more than half of women over the age of 65 have bladder or bowel leakage, most do not get help for these symptoms.
There are solutions that can improve bladder and bowel leakage without medicine or surgery. These include doing low-impact exercises and making simple changes to what we eat and drink.
This website is based on an in-person workshop also called "Mind Over Matter: Healthy Bowels, Healthy Bladder" (MOM for short). The in-person MOM program is for a small group of 8-12 women, led by a trained facilitator (sort of like a teacher). The group meets for 2 hours every other week, for three sessions (a total of 6 hours).
How do we know this program works?
We know that the in-person version of Mind Over Matter: Healthy Bowels, Healthy Bladder (MOM) works because we conducted a study with 122 women from 6 communities in Wisconsin. We found that MOM improved bladder leakage in 71% of the women who attended the workshops and improved bowel leakage in 55% of the women who attended. Importantly, only 5% of women experienced worsening bladder or bowel symptoms during the study (versus 20% of women in the control group!).
If an in-person workshop exists, why the website?
This website should not take the place of a medical provider.
If information here is different from what you are told by your provider, you should not make changes without talking to your doctor first.
