Why record your leakage?

A simple tick chart can give you a handy overview of when you leak. This can be useful:

• When discusing your bowel leakage with your health care professional

• During treatment to assess changes in number and times of incontinent episodes and stool consistency

• To predict when leaks are likely to occur and use the toilet beforehand

• To identify when and in what circumstances you need containment products.

How to use a tick chart

• Place a tick in the shaded column each time you pass stool in the toilet. Place a cross in the clear column each time you have a bowel leak.

• Keep a tick chart for 3 to 7 days to get an idea of frequency and leakage patterns. However, remember that it is not always possible to see any obvious regularity to leakage and individual experiences can vary widely.

• You can repeat the chart if your leakage changes e.g. if you have been ill.

• You can record bladder and bowel patterns on a single chart but if there is too much information on the chart it can be harder to see leakage patterns.

Other things it can be useful to record

• Date / time – this will allow you to think about the frequency of your leakage and if there is any pattern to it

• Estimation of amount – here you can record the amount you leak. This is harder to do accurately than with bladder leakage. Try describing the leakage as 'a little', 'a lot'; alternatively you could use symbols, for example, + or ++ or +++.

• What you drink and when

• What you were doing when you leaked (such as coughing or standing up)

• How well your product contained the leakage

• If there were soiled patches on your underwear.