Fort Worth UrogynecologyUrogynecology & Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery
Before your visit

Bladder diary

Three days of simple notes about what you drink, when you go, and any leaking. It sounds tedious, and it's the single most useful thing you can bring us — because it shows what your bladder actually does across ordinary days, which no one can reconstruct accurately from memory.

Contact the office

What you'll need

  • A measuring container. A plastic measuring cup from the kitchen works perfectly. You'll use it to catch and measure your urine, so keep it in the bathroom.
  • This chart and a pen, kept somewhere you'll actually see them — next to the toilet is best.
  • Three days. They don't have to be in a row. Pick days that are typical for you rather than unusually busy or unusually quiet ones. Many women find a weekend easiest.
Record around the clock, including overnight. If you get up at night, write it down. Nighttime trips are one of the most useful things the diary tells us.

How to fill it in

  • 1Every time you drink something, write down the time, what it was, and roughly how much. Coffee, water, soda, wine — all of it counts, and the type matters as much as the amount.
  • 2Every time you pass urine, measure it in your container and write down the amount. Ounces or milliliters are both fine, whichever your cup shows — just stay consistent.
  • 3Rate how urgent it felt using the 0 to 3 scale below. This is the part people skip, and it's often the most revealing column on the page.
  • 4If you leaked, mark which kind it was — leaking that came with a sudden urge, or leaking that happened with coughing, laughing, lifting, or exercise. These are different problems, and telling them apart is one of the main things we're looking for.
  • 5Note any pad changes, so we can see how much protection you're using in a normal day.

The urgency scale

0
No urge at all — you went because it seemed like a good time
1
A mild urge, easy to put off
2
A strong urge, but you could hold it
3
Had to rush — couldn't put it off at all
Don't change your habits for the diary. It's tempting to drink less or go less often so the numbers look better. Please don't — an ordinary day is exactly what we need to see. There are no wrong answers here.

What a filled-in row looks like

Time What you dranktype and amount Urine passedoz or mL Urgency0–3 Leak with urge Leak with activity Pad change
7:00 amCoffee, 10 oz9 oz1
8:20 am2 oz0yes — coughing✓
10:45 amWater, 12 oz6 oz3yes
2:10 am7 oz2
Leave a box blank if nothing happened — you don't need to write "none." A row can have a drink and no urine, or urine and no drink. Whatever actually happened.

Your three days

Day 1

Time What you dranktype and amount Urine passedoz or mL Urgency0–3 Leak with urge Leak with activity Pad change
Anything else worth noting:

Day 2

Time What you dranktype and amount Urine passedoz or mL Urgency0–3 Leak with urge Leak with activity Pad change
Anything else worth noting:

Day 3

Time What you dranktype and amount Urine passedoz or mL Urgency0–3 Leak with urge Leak with activity Pad change
Anything else worth noting:
Bring it with you. Don't worry if a day is incomplete or a little messy — a partly filled diary is far more useful than none at all.

Questions about any of this?

If something here isn't clear, or you're not sure whether a day counts, just call the office at (817) 923‑5559. It's a common question and we're glad to walk you through it.