Under The Angsana Tree: Nocturia: Excessive Urination at Night

08/09/2023

Nocturia: Excessive Urination at Night

Nocturia

Nocturia is a condition that causes you to wake up during the night to pee. This condition is also called nocturnal urinary frequency — having to pee more often at night. Nocturia becomes more common as people age (usually older than 60) and occurs in all genders and sexes, sometimes for different reasons. It can be common for people to wake up once during the night to pee, but peeing more frequently may be a sign of an underlying condition or problem.

When a person pees too much during the daytime, but can limit the amount of trips to the bathroom at night, it’s referred to as frequent urination. Nocturia is strictly using the bathroom multiple times after bedtime and before you wake up in the morning. Whether it’s happening due to an underlying medical condition or something else, it can leave you feeling tired because your regular sleep cycle is disrupted.

How common is nocturia? Nocturia is a common condition affecting more than 50% of adults after age 50. It’s more common in men and people assigned male at birth (AMAB) after age 50. Before 50, nocturia is more common in women and people assigned female at birth (AFAB). It affects up to 1 in 3 people over the age of 30.

Excessive Urination at Night (Nocturia)

Nocturia, or nocturnal polyuria, is the medical term for excessive urination at night. Nighttime urination is likely excessive if you get up to use the bathroom twice a night or more.

During sleep time, your body produces less urine that is more concentrated. This means that most people don’t need to wake up during the night to urinate and can sleep uninterrupted for 6 to 8 hours. However, some people may need to urinate more often during nighttime hours. Nighttime urination may be distressing and require treatment if you wake up to urinate 2 to 3 times a night or more.

While it is more common among older adults, nocturia can occur at any age. Read on to learn more about nocturia, its causes, symptoms, treatment, and prevention strategies.

Nocturia

Nocturia is where you frequently wake up in the night and need to pass urine. It often increases with age. It is common with elderly people who may be getting up twice a night, but more frequent visits to the toilet may indicate a problem that can be treated. If you start needing to make several trips to the toilet at night you may find this distressing or your sleep may be disturbed.

What causes nocturia?

Hormonal changes: You produce less anti-diuretic hormone as you age. This is a chemical that your body makes to help hold on to fluid at night, so you make less urine. Lower levels of this hormone mean that more urine is produced at night.
Prostate problems: Men’s prostate glands often start growing with age. This gland surrounds the urethra (the tube that urine passes through before exiting the body). An enlarged prostate can press on your urethra and prevent your bladder from emptying properly, so you need to pass urine more often.
Bladder problems: Urge incontinence (also known as an overactive bladder). This is where you have a sudden need to pass urine and may leak before you are able to reach a toilet. Bladder infections. These are usually caused by bacteria entering your bladder. Symptoms include dark, cloudy and smelly urine; a burning feeling or pain when passing urine; and not being able to empty your bladder completely.

6 Ways to Stop Waking Up At Night to Pee

You’re snoozing away soundly when you suddenly awaken—with the urge that you have to pee right now. So you shuffle off to the bathroom to do your business before climbing back into bed. If you’re lucky, you’ll fall right back asleep, and stay in dreamland until your alarm rings. But if you’re not, you’ll either end up tossing or turning—or falling back asleep, only to waken with the must-pee-now urge a couple hours later (Here are the 7 worst things you do when you can't sleep).

“It’s bothersome waking up at night to urinate,” says Daniel Shoskes M.D., urologist at the Cleveland Clinic. Not only does it directly harm your sleep, but it can be signaling something more serious, too. The medical term for excessive urination at night is nocturia. It’s generally defined as the consistent need to wake up to pee once or more each night.

There are two basic reasons why you wake up at night to pee: The first is that you’re making too much urine. If that’s the case, you’ll usually urinate a full amount each time you go, says Dr. Shoskes. This can be due to drinking too much fluids, drug side effects, or even from serious conditions like heart failure, kidney injury, or liver failure. The second for waking up to pee is that your bladder just thinks you need to go, even if it’s not full. In this case, you’d be peeing a lower volume. This can be due to things irritating your bladder, like inflammation from an infection or an enlarged prostate, he says. Only your doctor can know for sure what’s causing your nocturia, so if you’re bothered by your nightly habit, make an appointment to have him or her check things out. But here are some things you can try to stop waking up so much to pee.

9 Ways on how to stop frequent urination naturally at night

It will be normal to urinate 4 to 6 times per day; however, if it is more than this number, you can be suffering from the frequent urination problem, especially when you urinate more than eight times per day. This problem can be caused by diabetes, anxiety, pregnancy, bladder stones, urinary tract infection, prostate problem, and kidney infections. If you do not drink excess water or drink it too close to the bedtime and still must urinate more than eight times per day or wake up frequently at night, you have to visit your doctor for causes of frequent urination. This will become crucial if your problem is accompanied by chills and fever. If there is nothing too serious about this problem, you may use either of these ways to get rid of frequent urination.

In this writing, VKool.com will show to you top 29 ways on how to stop frequent urination naturally at night without any side effect. This article listed the best methods to treat this problem from reliable sources. However, it is not intended to give medical advice and it is solely for the informational purpose. Continue reading this article to understand more!

Top 9 Ways On How To Stop Frequent Urination Naturally At Night

Pomegranate
Fenugreek Seeds
Do Kegel Exercises
Amla, Banana, And Honey
Sesame Seeds Along With Other Seeds, And Milk
Cranberries
Plain Yogurt
Abdominal Massage
Diet Plan

Peeing a Lot at Night May Be a Sign of These 8 Medical Conditions

You wake up in the middle of the night and the "pee or not to pee" question comes up. You're comfortable and you're tired. But your bladder really isn't going to let you stay. So you get up and deal with it. Rinse and repeat. Nearly everyone wakes up in the middle of the night to urinate at some point. But sometimes frequent urination can be a sign of health problems.

Frequent nighttime urination, or nocturia, is generally defined as getting up at least once a night to pee. Nocturia tends to happen for one of three possible reasons: your bladder is having a hard time holding urine, you’re producing more urine than usual during the day, or you’re producing more urine during the night. Sometimes, nighttime peeing is just a function of growing older, says Matthew Rutman, M.D., associate professor of urology at Columbia University Medical Center. But if it’s happening consistently more than once a night or interfering with your ability to function the next day, the problem goes beyond normal aging. There could be an underlying reason that can and should be dealt with. And sometimes, when you deal with the underlying problem, the nighttime need to pee goes away, too. (If you think you're peeing too much during the day, check out the reasons that could be behind that.) Technically, getting up even once a night can be considered nocturia. It's generally considered more bothersome to your quality of life when your nighttime bathroom breaks reach two or more times, according to Reviews in Urology.

If you get up to pee at night occasionally—most people do—it’s no big deal. But if it's mostly nightly and it bothers you, it's worth bringing up to a doc. Still, how much it bothers you is individual. Frequent urination at night becomes a problem when you experience daytime fatigue as a result of interrupted sleep, says Dr. Rutman. It's worth exploring some common reasons nocturia could be getting you up at night, especially so you know what to do about them.

How To Stop Frequent Urination at Night

You finally get tucked into bed and then it hits you. You have to get up and pee. So, you drag yourself to the bathroom one last time before settling in for the evening. But then hours later, it happens again. And again. And again. If frequent urination is keeping you up late at night and disrupting your ability to sleep, you may be wondering how to stop it from happening.

The good news is that if your bladder is waking you up at any hour of the night to urinate, what doctors call nocturia, there are small but effective changes you can make for better sleep. But it’s also important to talk to your doctor because frequent urination can be more than just a nuisance — it could also be a sign of an underlying medical condition, says urologist Emily Slopnick, MD.

Why do you pee so much at night? In many cases, frequent urination is a simple side effect of getting older. As we age, our bodies make less of the hormone that allows us to retain fluids. Because of this, our bladders fill more rapidly and are unable to hold a lot of urine as we get older. You’re also more likely to urinate more often if you’re pregnant. But frequent urination can be a symptom of more serious conditions, too, like:

Diabetes.
Overactive bladder syndrome.
Urinary tract infections (UTIs).
Prostate problems.

Everything You Need to Know About Nighttime Urination

Frequent urination at night can be caused by UTIs, excessive drinking, medications, pregnancy, and diseases like diabetes or kidney failure.

A good night’s sleep helps you feel rested and refreshed in the morning. However, when you have the frequent urge to use the restroom at night, a good night’s sleep can be hard to achieve. If you find yourself waking up to urinate more than twice each night, you may have a condition called nocturia. This is most common in people over the age of 60.

Nighttime urination isn’t the same as a related condition called enuresis (bed-wetting). Enuresis is when you can’t control your need to urinate at night. While nighttime urination typically results in sleep loss, it can be a symptom of an underlying condition.

Why You’re Always Waking Up to Pee—and How to Make It Stop

Getting a good night’s sleep is hard enough without getting up to pee every hour.

Called “nocturia,” having to go during the night is actually incredibly common—and according to research in The Journal of Urology it happens more often to women than men. In fact, the research found that up to 44 percent of women ages 20 to 40 get up to pee at least once a night, while up to 18 percent pee at least twice a night.

“But just because something is common doesn’t mean it’s normal,” says Lauren Streicher, M.D., a clinical associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and author of Sex Rx. That’s because not only is having to pee during the night super annoying, but by interfering with the quality of your sleep, it can zap your energy levels, smarts, and overall health. Plus, it could be a symptom of an underlying health problem.

How Normal Is Peeing In The Middle Of The Night?

If you are peeing more than once during the night, it might be because of one of these reasons

If your bladder acts as a middle-of-the-night alarm clock, you might be curious whether it’s a cause for concern. Turns out you’re in good company if you’re wondering. “Is it normal to pee in the middle of the night?” is one of the most common questions that Marcelino Rivera, a urologist with Indiana University Health, said he gets asked in his practice.

In general, if you are waking up to pee once during the night, it’s likely that is normal for you, Rivera said. The kidneys’ main function is to filter out toxins from the bloodstream and concentrate those toxins into urine. According to Rivera, this is done continuously ― “during the day we are typically [going] every two to four hours depending on hydration status and fluid consumption” ― but at night, the body releases hormones to concentrate the urine more than during the daytime. Hence why we don’t typically wake up as much at night to urinate.

But if you are peeing more than once during the night or running to the bathroom is disrupting your sleep, you might need to examine other areas of your waking life. Here are a few of the most common reasons you may be getting up to pee, whether they’re considered normal and expert advice on what to do about them:

You’re drinking too much H2O, especially close to bedtime

It could be your medication
You’ve had some alcohol or caffeine
You’re dealing with a sleep disorder
You’re pregnant
Aging could be a factor
You have swollen legs
You have a UTI or prostate issue
You have another medical disorder

Going to the bathroom at night?

Stay cozy in your warm bed at night & Avoid going with these tips

Nothing is more annoying than having to get out of bed to pee at night. We’ve all experienced it: you’re sleeping beautifully in your warm bed, but you wake up because you have to go to the bathroom. It’s extremely annoying, but you can do something about it! There are a few things that cause this problem. You might already be trying out everything you can to avoid peeing at night, like not drinking much in the evening. Not working for you? Then you can try using some of the following tips.

Overactive bladder - You normally produce around 1 to 2 liters of urine per day, and only 25% of that being during the night. So you should be able to make it through the whole night without having to pee. Do you find yourself getting up multiple times a night to go to the bathroom? Then you probably have an overactive bladder, also referred to as nocturia. This means you have an increased urine production at night. This disorder is seen more often in women than men, and age also plays a role.

If you’ve noticed you experience this as well, you’re probably curious to find out what the cause could be. An increased urine production could have numerous causes, and some are less harmless than others. Possible causes are:

Eating or drinking too much before bed
Disruption of the antidiuretic hormone (ADH), the hormone that ensures you produce less urine at night
Impaired kidney function
Bladder disorders
For men: prostate problems
Edema formation, better known as fluid accumulation
Certain medication
Underlying illness

Why you keep waking up in the middle of the night

The importance of sleep has been proven time and time again by the scientific community. There is no substitute for a good night's sleep, so if our sleep is disturbed, we should look into it and try to fix it. One common occurrence is waking up in the middle of the night. This can happen for a number of reasons, including an urge to pee or feeling restless, among others.

In this gallery, we look at the many possibilities as to why you keep waking up in the middle of the night:

You’re stressed out or feeling anxious
It might be your gut bacteria
Your blood sugar levels might be to blame
Drinking
Smoking
Good ol’ caffeine
It might be due to a nutrient deficiency
Your hormones might be to blame
You might suffer from sleep apnea
The reason might be nocturia
Prediabetes might be to blame
Your liver function might be off
Your thyroid might be the culprit
A change to your circadian rhythm

Hematochezia: Blood in Stool

Advice About Bright Red Blood in Stool

Blood is supposed to stay in your body. Seeing blood in your bowel movement is very frightening. It is an indication that something is not working right, but it is not always a herald of colon cancer. Rectal bleeding has many causes, but only one of them is colon cancer.

When You Note Blood in the Stool - The best action you can take now, to advocate for yourself, is to pay attention to this symptom and be prepared to discuss it with your doctor. Ask yourself these questions:

Was the blood in the stool, toilet bowl or on the toilet paper?
Was the blood bright red or dark red?
Approximately how much blood did you see? (Keep in mind, a drop of blood in a toilet bowl will turn all of the water red.)
Did you have to strain to pass the bowel movement?
How frequently do you have bowel movements?
Do you have other symptoms?
When was your last colon screening exam or colonoscopy?
Do you have a history of polyps or a family history of polyps?

Causes of Blood in the Stool:

Hemorrhoids
Inflammatory Conditions
Colon Polyps
Constipation
Bowel Infections
Colon Cancer

Hematuria: Blood in urine

Hematuria is the presence of red blood cells in the urine. If there are enough red cells, the urine can become bright red, pink or cola colored. Often, however, the urine appears completely normal because there is not enough blood to cause a color change. In this case, the condition is called "microscopic" hematuria. There are many possible causes of hematuria, including:

Urinary tract infection — Hematuria can be caused by an infection in any part of the urinary tract, most commonly the bladder (cystitis) or the kidney (pyelonephritis).
Kidney stones
Tumors in the kidney or bladder
Exercise — Exercise hematuria is a harmless condition that produces blood in the urine after strenuous exercise. It is more common in males than females.
Trauma — Traumatic injury to any part of the urinary tract — from the kidneys to the urethral opening (the connection between the bladder and the outside world) — can cause hematuria.
Drugs — Hematuria can be caused by medications, such as blood thinners, including heparin, warfarin (Coumadin) or aspirin-type medications, penicillins, sulfa-containing drugs and cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan).
Glomerulonephritis — Glomerulonephritis is a family of illnesses that are characterized by inflammation of the glomeruli, the filtering units of the kidneys. Glomerulonephritis is a rare complication of certain viral and bacterial infections (including strep throat). It can also occur in people with certain auto-immune diseases, systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus or SLE) and vasculitis. Sometimes there is no identifiable cause.
Bleeding disorders — This includes conditions such as hemophilia and von Willebrand's disease.

Pneumaturia: Gas in urine

What Is Pneumaturia? Having small bubbles in your urine is called pneumaturia. It isn’t a diagnosis on its own but can be a symptom of certain health conditions. Common source causes for pneumaturia include urinary tract infections (UTIs) and passageways between the colon and the bladder (called fistula) that don’t belong.

If you have pneumaturia, you’ll feel gas or a bubbling sensation interrupting your urine stream. Your urine may appear to be full of small air bubbles. This is different than urine that looks foamy, which is usually an indicator of too much protein in your urine. Since pneumaturia is a symptom of other conditions and not a condition all by itself, you may want to look out for other symptoms that sometimes come along with it, such as:

burning sensation while urinating
difficulty urinating
feeling the need to “go” all the time
discolored urine

All of these symptoms could indicate an infection in your urinary tract. Common causes:

One common cause of pneumaturia is infectious bacteria. Pneumaturia can indicate a UTI, as the bacteria create bubbles in your urine stream.
Another common cause is a fistula. This is a passage between organs in your body that doesn’t belong there. A fistula between your bowel and your bladder can bring bubbles into your urine stream. This fistula can be an outcome of diverticulitis.
Less often, deep sea divers will have pneumaturia after a period of time underwater.
Sometimes pneumaturia is a symptom of Crohn’s disease.

Diabetes: Early Signs & Symptoms

Diabetes mellitus refers to a group of diseases that affect how the body uses blood sugar (glucose). Glucose is an important source of energy for the cells that make up the muscles and tissues. It's also the brain's main source of fuel. The main cause of diabetes varies by type. But no matter what type of diabetes you have, it can lead to excess sugar in the blood. Too much sugar in the blood can lead to serious health problems.

Chronic diabetes conditions include type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Potentially reversible diabetes conditions include prediabetes and gestational diabetes. Prediabetes happens when blood sugar levels are higher than normal. But the blood sugar levels aren't high enough to be called diabetes. And prediabetes can lead to diabetes unless steps are taken to prevent it. Gestational diabetes happens during pregnancy. But it may go away after the baby is born. Diabetes symptoms depend on how high your blood sugar is. Some people, especially if they have prediabetes, gestational diabetes or type 2 diabetes, may not have symptoms. In type 1 diabetes, symptoms tend to come on quickly and be more severe.

Some of the symptoms of type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes are:

Feeling more thirsty than usual.
Urinating often.
Losing weight without trying.
Presence of ketones in the urine. Ketones are a byproduct of the breakdown of muscle and fat that happens when there's not enough available insulin.
Feeling tired and weak.
Feeling irritable or having other mood changes.
Having blurry vision.
Having slow-healing sores.
Getting a lot of infections, such as gum, skin and vaginal infections.

Constipation and Urinary Incontinence

Bloating and cramps are two common symptoms of constipation

Being constipated means your bowel movements are tough or happen less often than normal. You might be constipated if you have less than three bowel movements per week.

Constipation is very common. Around 2.5 million people visit their doctor each year in the U.S. because they are constipated. It's usually not serious, and home remedies can get you back on track. How often should you poop? The normal length of time between bowel movements varies from person to person. Some people have them three times a day. Others have them just a few times a week.

But going longer than 3 days without one is usually too long. After 3 days, your stool gets harder and more difficult to pass. Constipation Symptoms You may have:

Few or no bowel movements
Trouble having a bowel movement (straining to go)
Hard or small stools
A feeling that everything didn’t come out
Belly bloating
A feeling like your rectum is blocked
A stomachache or cramps

Acupressure Points for Constipation

Acupressure can help in relieving constipation symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating and gas by applying pressure to specific points on the body. The following are the commonly used acupressure points to relieve constipation that you can do on your own. Instead of pressing with your fingers, you can also use acupressure stick:

Tianshu (ST25) - Tianshu can improve digestion. You can place three fingers parallel and alongside the centre of the belly button. Tianshu is located at the edge of the last finger, away from the belly button. Use your thumb or forefinger and apply pressure or you can do circular motion with finger.
Guanyuan (CV4) - Guanyuan is used for relieving abdominal pain and diarrhea. It is located at 3 inches below your belly button. Use your thumb or forefinger and apply pressure or you can do circular motion with finger.

Zhigou (TE6) - Zhigou is an effective pressure point for relieving chronic constipation. It is located at 3 inches up the back of your arm from the crease of your wrist. Use your thumb and apply pressure or you can do circular motion with thumb. This procedure should have been repeated for the other wrist.
Zusanli (ST36) - Zusanli can strengthen the digestive system. It is located on the outer calf, about four finger widths under the knee bone. Use your thumb or forefinger and apply pressure. This procedure should have been repeated for the other foot.

15 signs your stomach is functioning badly

A queasy feeling in the pit of your stomach, dreading even the idea of food, and having to constantly run to the washroom; these are all unpleasant symptoms of stomach issues. There are all sorts of reasons why you may have a poorly functioning stomach. Sometimes, it’s from food poisoning or a gastro bug going around; however, if your stomach is chronically upset, it might be a sign of a bigger problem. If you are experiencing any of these 15 signs that your stomach is functioning badly, be sure to make an appointment with your healthcare provider:

Frequent and chronic diarrhea
Blood in your stool
Severe cramps after eating
Chronic constipation
Frequent heartburn
Difficulty swallowing
Loss of appetite
Unexplained weight loss
Sudden intense abdominal pain
Feeling full after eating a small portion
Swollen abdomen
Anemia
Fatigue and weakness
Frequent vomiting
Skin issues

What your poop tells you about your health

5 Things Your Poop Can Tell You About Your Health

Having a bowel movement is a critical part of digesting the food we eat. Stool formed by the large intestine is the body's way of getting rid of waste.

While you should talk to your doctor about any concerns, changes in poop color and consistency could show what is happening inside your digestive system:

Rocks and Pebbles - Poop that is hard and shaped like tiny rocks or pebbles is likely just a sign of constipation. You can still be considered constipated even if you are able to pass a small amount of stool. The large intestine helps to concentrate waste by absorbing water. If muscle contractions in the large intestine are not working properly, waste left in the colon becomes even more concentrated, resulting in harder stool.
Color Changes - A change in stool color is one of the most common concerns patients ask about. The foods you eat and the kind of bacteria living in your colon can both cause such changes, and added food colorings are frequent culprits. This is one reason why patients preparing for a colonoscopy are instructed to avoid food and beverages with certain added colors the day before. Doctors note that when they perform a colonoscopy, they can actually tell what color the beverage was that the patient drank during their preparation for the procedure. Most changes in the color of stool are not cause for concern. The exception is poop that appears black or bloody, which could signal other problems with the digestive system.
Black and Tarry - The most common cause of black and tarry poop is taking iron supplements or a medication containing bismuth, such as Pepto-Bismol. However, it could mean you're losing blood somewhere in your gastrointestinal tract, such as in the stomach or small intestine.
Oily or Greasy Stools - If you have poop that appears oily, has a greasy consistency and is difficult to flush, it could be a signal that your body is not able to properly digest fat. The consistency changes could be caused by an infection, nutrients not being digested due to celiac disease or a problem with the pancreas, such as pancreatic cancer or pancreatitis.
Pencil Thin - Stool that is only occasionally very thin is not a cause for concern. It is likely due to muscle contractions in the large intestine as it helps to concentrate waste. If there is a sudden and consistent change in your stool always being thin, it could mean there is a blockage in your colon, and you should see your doctor.