Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks

A couple of years ago Dair's biggest medical complaint was that she had to urinate frequently. Also, if she coughed or sneezed, she'd wet her pants. We talked to her doctor about it and he suggested limiting beverages and cutting out chocolate in the evening, but Dair would still have to get up several times during the night to go to the bathroom. On another visit to the doctor we asked about medication that might help the problem, but it would diminish the benefits of Dair's memory medication, so that wasn't an option. Finally the doctor scheduled a visit with the continence specialist at the VA. She was a delightful young Navy veteran who truly admired Dair's spunk. This doctor suggested certain exercises, Kegels,to tighten the muscles in the area. She held up a mannequin of a female torso in cross section and pointed out the muscles involved. Dair stretched out a finger and gingerly touched the mannequin, withdrawing her finger quickly and giggling a bit. Then the doctor gave Dair instructions for the exercise, and asked her to try it. Dair inhaled deeply, counted to 10, then exhaled. It was clear that she didn't have a clue what to do, however, we went home and tried to work on them. Dair would attempt the exercises, giggling the entire time, but never accomplishing the goal. We finally gave up and bought Depends.