Self-monitoring. The ability to self-monitor is a
critical component of all self-management strategies.
Broadly defined, self-monitoring is an “awareness
of symptoms or bodily sensations that is enhanced
through periodic measurements, recordings, and
observations.”14
Before initiating self-management, patients must
become attuned to their symptoms and bodily sensations.
Through regular observation and measurement,
patients learn to recognize whether a particular intervention
or behavioral change produces a positive
or negative outcome. For example, patients with urinary
incontinence might record the quantity and types
of fluids they consume, while tracking the number
of times they void daily or the number of “accidents”
they have in a week. Patients with fecal incontinence
might keep a food diary and record associated fecal
leakage so as to identify and limit problem foods in
their diet.15, 16
Bodily sensations associated with incontinence include
bladder or bowel fullness and urgency. Awareness
of these sensations can trigger behaviors that
address them, and if the behaviors are successful in reducing
the associated signs and symptoms, the sensations
are more easily recognized the next time they
occur