Leaking after swimming

Another sign of pelvic floor weakness or a stretched vaginal wall can be water leaking from the vagina when you get out of the swimming pool
Sometimes water can get trapped inside the vagina while you are swimming or exercising in the water. This is quite common after having a baby, but it is not normal, i.e. it shouldn't continue long term.

Continuing with pelvic floor exercises can help to tone the vaginal wall and assist it to return to its normal size. It has been stretched during the birth, so it does take some time, even months, to stop happening. Sometimes however the vagina will remain stretched after having children, but you can still improve the tone of your pelvic floor muscles by exercising them, which can help to give more firmness inside.

Urine can also leak out if your pelvic floor muscles are not yet back to normal after the birth. If you are unsure whether or not it is urine or water, the approach is the same for both anyway.

You should do your pelvic floor muscle exercises if you are not already doing them, or continue to do them to help to strengthen your muscles to relieve the problem.

Check in As Your Shape Changes that you are doing your pelvic floor exercises correctly if you are unsure. Monitor your pelvic floor muscle fitness to try to get it back to your recorded measure taken during pregnancy. If you have not done this during pregnancy, check your muscle fitness, and monitor whether or not you are improving over the next month or so.

If the leakage does not go away, or you have been doing your exercises and it is still occurring, please seek advice from a Physiotherapist working in the area of Women's Health. There is more specific advice and treatment available that can help you to get back to normal, so that this problem does not continue.