Postpartum bladder leaks are common. A review of 24 studies found that, on average, 31% of women leak urine between 6 weeks and 1 year after giving birth, and about 32% still do at one year. The Office on Women’s Health advises seeing a provider if leaks last beyond 6 weeks, and supervised pelvic floor muscle training is the usual first step.
How Common Are Bladder Leaks After Having a Baby?
Very common. Leaks often start before the baby arrives: according to the Office on Women’s Health (OWH), up to 4 in 10 women develop urinary incontinence during pregnancy. For most, it goes away after birth.
For many others, it lingers. A 2021 meta-analysis pooling 24 studies and more than 35,000 women found an average leakage rate of 31% between 6 weeks and 1 year after birth. Rates dipped around 3 months, then rose again to about 32% at one year. Just over half of cases (54%) were stress incontinence, the kind set off by a cough, sneeze, laugh or exercise.
The table lines up those findings over the first year. They are averages, not a forecast for you.
| Time since birth | What the research shows | A sensible next step |
|---|---|---|
| During pregnancy | Up to 4 in 10 women develop leakage (OWH) | Mention it at your prenatal visits |
| Birth to 6 weeks | For most women, leakage that began in pregnancy goes away after birth (OWH) | Rest, recover, and ask your provider when to start pelvic floor exercises |
| Beyond 6 weeks | OWH advises seeing a provider if leakage continues | Book a check with your OB-GYN or primary care provider |
| Around 3 months | Average leakage rates dip | Keep up pelvic floor training, ideally with supervision |
| At 1 year | About 32% of women still report leakage | If exercises have not helped enough, ask about pelvic floor physical therapy and other options |
Why Pregnancy and Birth Can Cause Leaks
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles at the base of the pelvis that supports the bladder and helps keep urine in. Pregnancy and vaginal birth can both weaken that support, according to OWH. When it is weaker, a sudden push of pressure from a cough, sneeze, laugh or workout can let a little urine escape. That is stress urinary incontinence, the most common type after birth.
Some women instead notice a sudden, strong urge that is hard to hold (urge incontinence), or a mix of both. The first treatment differs by type, so it helps to know how stress incontinence differs from urge incontinence.
Leaks are nothing to be embarrassed about, but they can take a toll. They can make you skip exercise, avoid social plans or feel less confident with intimacy. On average, women wait more than six years before seeking help for leakage, according to the National Association For Continence. You do not have to wait that long.
When to See a Doctor
If leaks continue beyond 6 weeks after birth, see your OB-GYN or primary care provider. Get checked promptly if you notice blood in your urine, pain or burning when you urinate, a fever, sudden new symptoms, trouble emptying your bladder, or leakage that started after a new medicine. These can point to a problem that needs its own care.
What Helps: Pelvic Floor Training and Physical Therapy
The first options for postpartum leaks focus on the pelvic floor itself. For the full range, from lifestyle changes to surgery, see the guide to bladder leakage treatment options.
Pelvic floor muscle training
For stress leakage, the NICE guideline recommends supervised pelvic floor muscle training for at least three months, with at least 8 contractions three times a day. Ask your OB-GYN or midwife when it is right for you to begin, especially after a difficult birth. MedlinePlus describes the basic Kegel this way:
- Find the right muscles: they are the ones you use to stop urine midstream or hold in gas.
- Squeeze for 3 to 5 seconds, then relax for 3 to 5 seconds.
- Repeat 10 times, three times a day.
- Keep your stomach, thighs and buttocks relaxed, and breathe normally.
- Do not do them while urinating. Stopping the flow is only a way to find the muscles.
If you have been doing Kegels for weeks and nothing has changed, find out why Kegels may not be working and what to try next.
Postpartum pelvic floor physical therapy
A pelvic floor physical therapist can check your technique, build a program around your recovery and add tools such as biofeedback, which helps you see whether you are using the right muscles. NICE suggests biofeedback or electrical stimulation for women who cannot actively contract their pelvic floor.
What timeline to expect
There is no set schedule for recovery. MedlinePlus notes that people who do Kegels regularly may have fewer symptoms after 4 to 6 weeks, and it can take a few months. Since about a third of women are still leaking at one year, it makes sense to get checked if leaks last beyond 6 weeks, rather than wait and hope.
Is Pelvic Floor Chair Therapy an Option After Pregnancy?
Some women look for another option when exercises have not helped enough, or when it is hard to feel the right muscles after birth. Pelvic floor chair therapy at Elume is provided by Restore Innovations, an independent practice located within Elume Medspa. You sit fully clothed on the Pelvic Wave chair while an electromagnetic field in the seat, reaching up to 4 inches deep, causes involuntary pelvic floor muscle contractions: more than 5,600 in a 20 minute session, according to the manufacturer. Nothing is inserted and there is no internal exam.
It is a post-birth option only. Chair therapy is not suitable for anyone who is pregnant or may be pregnant. It is also not suitable for people with an implanted pacemaker or defibrillator, or a history of cardiac arrhythmia or atrial fibrillation, and anyone with metal or electronic implants should raise them at the consultation. If you are breastfeeding or still recovering from birth, talk to your OB-GYN first and bring their advice with you.
According to the manufacturer, the chair’s technology is FDA-cleared for the treatment of urinary incontinence in women. The research on magnetic chairs is still limited. A 2021 meta-analysis of six small sham-controlled trials found magnetic stimulation reduced stress leakage in women compared with a placebo treatment, although the authors flagged study-quality problems. A 2025 systematic review of five small studies (about 219 women) found chair-based magnetic stimulation was associated with less leakage, but rated that evidence low certainty. None of these studies used the Pelvic Wave chair; they tested other magnetic devices.
Magnetic chairs are not part of the NIH or NICE treatment ladders, and some insurers, including Aetna, classify magnetic pelvic floor stimulation as experimental, so chair therapy is usually self-pay. It is one option to consider alongside, not instead of, care from your own provider.
A full program is 24 sessions over 8 weeks, about three a week, with no downtime, followed by 3 maintenance sessions every 6 months. What to expect from pelvic floor chair therapy walks through a first session step by step, and the pelvic floor therapy page covers the program in full.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it normal to leak urine after giving birth?
It is common. A large review found that, on average, 31% of women leak urine between 6 weeks and 1 year after birth. Common is not the same as something you must accept, and the Office on Women’s Health advises seeing a provider if leaks last beyond 6 weeks.
How long does bladder leakage last after pregnancy?
It varies. For most women, leakage that began in pregnancy goes away after birth, and average leakage rates dip around 3 months. Even so, about 32% of women still report leaks at one year, so it is worth getting checked if leaks last beyond 6 weeks.
Can I use a pelvic floor chair while pregnant or breastfeeding?
Not while pregnant. Pelvic floor chair therapy is not suitable for anyone who is pregnant or may be pregnant, so it is a post-birth option only. If you are breastfeeding or still recovering, check with your OB-GYN first and mention it at the consultation.
Do they do an internal exam during pelvic floor chair therapy?
No. You sit fully clothed on the chair, and there are no probes, wires or electrodes. Nothing is inserted, nothing touches your skin, and there is no internal exam as part of the therapy.
Talk It Through With Restore Innovations
If leaks are still with you after having a baby, a first conversation is free. Restore Innovations sees people by appointment only. You can book a free 15 minute phone consultation (they call you) or a free 30 minute consultation in person at the suite inside Elume Medspa, 3925 Blenheim Blvd, Suite 53-D, Fairfax, VA 22030. You can also call (571) 299-8780. If a plan is recommended, the full cost is explained before your first session.
Sources
- Urinary incontinence 6 weeks to 1 year after birth: a meta-analysis (Moossdorff-Steinhauser et al.), International Urogynecology Journal (2021)
- Urinary Incontinence, Office on Women’s Health (accessed 2026)
- Urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse in women: management (NG123), NICE (2019)
- Kegel exercises: self-care, MedlinePlus (accessed 2026)
- Efficacy of magnetic stimulation for female stress urinary incontinence: a meta-analysis, Therapeutic Advances in Urology (2021)
- Systematic review of chair-based magnetic pelvic floor stimulation in women with urinary incontinence (Sacarin et al.), Journal of Clinical Medicine (2025)
- Clinical Policy Bulletin 0223 on urinary incontinence treatments, Aetna (accessed 2026)
- We Count, National Association For Continence (accessed 2026)