🔗 Work With Dr. Sonal: https://drsonalbarad.com/

There is one thing women with IC do every single time a flare hits, and it is making the next one more likely. You run to the bathroom. It feels like the only option, and every doctor you have ever seen told you to do it. But here is what nobody ever explained: every time you run, you are teaching that nervous system to fire the alarm louder.

The flare is not starting in the bladder. It is starting in the nervous system. And the way your body responds in that moment, the breath you hold, the muscles you tense, the panic you move with, is either calming that alarm or turning it up.

In this episode, I'm going to walk you through why that response is wiring the cycle to repeat, and teach you the exact five-step HEART Reset I use with every single patient to interrupt the panic the moment it starts.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS 
0:00 The First Thing You Should Do During a Bladder Flare (It's Not What You Think)
1:03 Why Running to the Bathroom Teaches the Nervous System to Panic Louder 
1:34 Why the Bladder Signal Is Wrong More Often Than Not 
2:29 Why Holding It Through Clenched Teeth Is Not the Answer Either 
4:15 Why IC Flares Start in the Nervous System, Not the Bladder 
5:57 How Your Body Posture and Breath Are Escalating Every Flare 
7:14 Three Questions to Ask Yourself the Moment a Flare Hits 
8:48 The HEART Reset: What to Do Instead of Running 
10:41 All Five Steps of the HEART Reset, Step by Step 
15:12 How Each Repetition Makes the Panic Pathway Quieter

❓ QUESTIONS ANSWERED

Why does running to the bathroom during a bladder flare make the next one worse? 
Running reinforces the nervous system panic loop. Each time you respond to the urgency alarm by sprinting to the bathroom, you are training the brain-bladder signal to fire louder and faster the next time a flare hits.

What is the HEART Reset for IC flares? 
The HEART Reset is a five-step physical sequence that interrupts the nervous system panic cycle in real time. It uses body positioning, tissue support, seated grounding, and back-rib diaphragmatic breathing to send the nervous system evidence that the urgency is not a real emergency.

Can you reduce bladder urgency without emptying the bladder? 
Yes. Most IC flares are driven by a nervous system stuck on high alert, not a truly full bladder. Calming the nervous system in the moment can reduce urgency without rushing to the bathroom.

📱 RESOURCES
Website: https://drsonalbarad.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsonalbarad/
Masterclass: https://drsonalbarad.com/register

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ABOUT DR. SONAL BARAD 
Dr. Sonal Barad is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and board-certified pelvic rehab specialist with 22 years of clinical experience and over 40,000 clinical hours treating bladder pain. She has personally lived with IC, researched it for over two decades, and helped more than 10,000 women reclaim their lives. Her approach looks at the whole system, including the nervous system, gut, hormones, and pelvic floor, rather than treating the bladder in isolation. She is known for helping women find lasting relief after years of dismissal and failed treatments.

#InterstitialCystitis #BladderPain #PelvicFloor #ICTreatment #BladderHealth