Exploration of Bladder and Bowel Anxieties and the Role of Socio-Cognitive Processes

To date, research into paruresis and parcopresis (the difficulty or inability to initiate or sustain urination or defecation respectively), and bladder and bowel incontinence anxiety (overwhelming fear of incontinence) has been limited. This research made substantial contributions to the understanding of these conditions by investigating the prevalence of paruresis and its comorbidities, development of a validated symptom severity scale for incontinence anxiety, and investigation of the socio-cognitive processes associated with paruresis, parcopresis, and incontinence anxiety. Empirically based, clinical resources were also developed for medical practitioners to assist in the identification and psychological management of bladder and bowel anxieties.