Am I Peeing Too Much?

Do you ever wonder if you are going to the bathroom too much? How much is too much? And are you emptying your bladder enough? Do you pee then have to go again 10 minutes later? So many questions!

Of course how much you go to the bathroom will depend on how much water you drink, so first let’s clear up how much water you should be drinking. You should be drinking half your bodyweight in ounces. So, if you weigh 150 lbs, then you should drink 70 oz water/day.

Now that we know how much water is appropriate, let’s break down how much you should be going to the bathroom: 

• Frequency: You should be urinating 5-8 times in a 24 hour period. If you are going less than that, you may be dehydrated and/or holding it for too long. If you are going more than that, something might be going on with your pelvic floor! Also, if you are going more than 2 times during the night, then this can indicate pelvic floor dysfunction. 

• Duration: You should urinate for 8-12 “mississippi” counts. Often we get an initial urge to go when our bladder starts to fill up and we ignore this until we get the second urge to go as the bladder fills even more. If you are peeing for less than 8 seconds you may be paying too much attention to your first urge. This can happen when the muscles of the pelvic floor and the bladder are irritated. 

Diet can also influence how much you go to the bathroom. Drinking things like coffee and soda can increase your urgency and make you have to go to the bathroom more. This is because caffeine, alcohol, artificial sweetener, and carbonation irritate the bladder and increase urgency/frequency. You should also not be leaking on your way to the bathroom.

In Closing

If you are ready to solve your problem, reach out to us and speak with one of our Maryland pelvic floor specialists today by clicking below!