I am not sure anyone could have prepared me – or that I would have believed anyone if they told me – for the seemingly inevitable bit of urine leakage that now happens when I sneeze, cough, laugh, or blow my nose too hard. What in the world?? I guess it happens to best of us. Mine was rather late onset because I did not have children, so it really took me by surprise. Turns out many of my friends with children had been dealing with this for quite a while. Stress urinary incontinence – or SUI – is the medical term. The non-medical term is “this sucks”.
And SUI or leakage is not uncommon – up to 50% of women suffer from it. Just watch a Hallmark movie and count the number of ads for pads and essentially diaper like underwear that supposedly looks good even in your yoga tights – yeah right, very sexy indeed! (You really don’t see these ads watching Sunday afternoon football) Having children, getting older, being active athletically, menopause are all risk factors for SUI. SUI can be mild like a minor inconvenience to severe where clothing is soiled. It tends to continue to worsen with age because the muscles and tissues in the lower vaginal and urethral area continue to weaken and thin and do not offer the support and control they once did back when you were in your 20’s.
Another fact of aging for many women – vaginal dryness. Just like our skin ages, the lining of our vaginal walls ages in a similar fashion – becoming thinner, flatter, less resilient and weaker. These physical changes can lead to loss of libido as well as uncomfortable sex and ungratifying sex.
Viveve is a radiofrequency in-office treatment that can address both the urine leakage as well as the sexual issues. It is quick, easy, and painless, and, for most patients, only one treatment is needed.
How is it done? A very small probe is inserted into the entrance of the vagina. The flat tip of the probe delivers radiofrequency energy in pulses in a very controlled and painless manner. The probe is turned as if moving around a clock to treat the entire area. A slightly deeper insertion is used to treat the vaginal walls. The tip delivers radiofrequency energy for heating of the tissue causing tissue tightening. The treatment takes about 1.5-2 hours start to finish, and best of all, it is PAIN FREE! You will start to notice results in about 30 days but can take up to 90 days to see full results.
I had the treatment several years ago and my SUI stopped immediately. Yes that is right – no more leakage – period. The effect lasted about 9-12 months and I am due another treatment but I keep forgetting because my SUI has been so reduced that is very minor and rare – but it was completely and absolutely absent for almost a year.
Call our office for a phone or virtual consult to see if you are a candidate for Viveve!
