A sensible and engaged partner can make people suffering from bladder problems more able to deal with their condition, concludes a recent study.
Simple things such as reading or talking to the person that is suffering from painful bladder conditions may make their pain more bearable by shifting focus to something else.
The study was conducted on women diagnosed with painful bladder syndrome (interstitial cystitis) which frequently produces symptoms similar to urinary tract infections. Other than the need to urinate very often, sometimes 60 times in a day, the condition can also cause severe pain in the pubic area and lower abdomen.
As the cause of interstitial cystitis is unknown, there are few low-effectiveness treatments available, most of them focusing on the symptoms.
The study was conducted on 96 women and they were asked to give accounts of their pain episodes, depression, effects of the condition on their quality of life and the support they receive from their spouse. The study subjects were from Canada and the US and have been diagnosed with interstitial cystitis for approximately six years.
The study revealed that, while still present, the pain had a less drastic impact on their sense of well-being for the women that received moral support and distraction from their spouses. At the opposite end, negative attitudes such as anger, irritation or ignoring the woman during her pain episodes did not appear to make things worse, but it is yet unclear if such responses should be avoided.
The condition affects approximately 1.3 million people in the US alone, and women are more likely to get it, as they account for roughly 1 million of these cases.
