too many UTI's at my wits end

Hi Paisleygirl, sorry to hear your so down . I too suffered symptons similar to yours .l am 65 and have had problems for a long time . My docter gave me just about every antibiotic you can get for cystitis all to no lasting good , eventually l demanded or l should say l begged to see a urologist , l had various tests and finally found out l have in fact got painful bladder syndrome or lC as it is still sometimes called , the symptons are the same as cystitis which is why its so hard to diagnose . They also said that l did occasionally get cystitis for real . I have had treatment which included drugs and bladder installations which have worked well for me , l also changed my diet . You can check out diet and more imformation .online , l have only had one real attack in the last 11 months which was sorted by antibiotics , the PBS wouldn,t have been touched by antibiotics . There isn,t a cure but you can get it under control and feel normal again . Dont be afraid of the tests involved , they dont hurt and the nurses and docters in the urology dept l went to were so kind and do everything they can to spare your blushes.

Do go to your GP and ask for a referral to a urologist you won,t regret it , good luck and don,t worry your not alone .

Hi I really feel for you as I keep suffering these awful infections myself. I am 71 and my problems started about 4 years ago, and since then I have been on and off regular antibiotics to try and kill the germs. I have recently come out of hospital after having my second dialation of the ureatha in a 12 month period and not been good this time since the procedure. This morning I woke up with the awful pain as you described and burning so another trip to the GP with a specimin which tested positive for infection. I am now on another course of ciprofloxacin pills which are the only ones which seem to kill the infection. I am at a loss now as I had hoped this would solve my problems but obviously not. The consultant did tell me that many ladies have to go in annually to have the dialation as it shrinks back after a while. I now believe that the next move for me with be a stent so I can catheterise myself. I hope you manage to get your problems sorted out but one thing I would recommend as long as your not on blood thinners like myself is D Manose which is obtainable from a health food store. It is very good apparently but as like many of the over the counter remedies it contains cranberry so I myself cannot take it.

Hi. I've had something very similar in 56 and 10 years menopausal (due to hysterectomy). Two things you could consider- you have thrush from the antibiotics- I had this recently and had the exact symptoms you describe. Get a canesten pesary and see if that helps (it did me) - or you could have vaginal atrophy which can also result in similar symptoms. Your GP can give you treatment for this but it is an on-going condition unfortunately. I would try the thrush route first (it can't do any harm). Good luck with it.

Catrin

Hi paisleygirl,

I do sympathise as I too suffer from recurrent cystitis and know how awful it can make you feel.  In fact I am just recovering from a bout of it .  It started on Wednesday, I was up and down most of the night and it was very debiliating and painful.  I tried the folowing self help methods and today Saturday , touch wood I am more or less compelety recovered without resorting to antibiotics.

Early Thursday morning

( 1) I took two paracetamol, and two D Manoose tablets.

(2)  then I drank 500 mls water every 20 minutes for three hours,  Sounds strange but its amazingly effective.

 (3)Every hour on the hour I mixed in a lttle sachet of sodium citrate that I got in Tesco for cystitis.  Think soda bicarb will do same job.

(4) I took two ipbroprofen an hour after the Paracetamol as these help with inmflamation and a further two D Manoose.  The Manoose coats the bladder wall and the bugs stick to it, then get flushed away when you pee !  Try and leave an hour after taking the DM before going to loo, if thats at all possible, just to give them time to do their work!  I should add, they are really only effective in infection thought to be as a result of ecoli, but as this seems to be the most common cause anyway they are worth a try.  Not cheap but worth it .

(5) Hot water bottle over pelvic area and one at my back.  I continued drinking water throughout the day though not as much

.  I genuinely found this regime worked really well for me.  If you are intending to leave a sample to the GP do this first before starting the water otherwise it will make the urine too dilute . 

I use Sylk lubricant on a daily basis and also use Vagifem as I suffer from Vaginal Atrophy.  This I contribute to the cause of my frequent bouts of cystitis.  Post menopause the bladder and vaginal walls become very thin and prone to bacteria.  No lubricant will provide the natural Oestrogen we are lacking at this stage in our lives , other than something like Vagifem.  Its recommended on the Nice guidelines which are worth reading , just look up VA , and a years application works out at approx one dose of HRT tablets so quite safe in that respect.

I hope you get your symptoms under control, its not the end of the world when we have this horrible thing, but believe me , it can make you feel very low.

My name is Michelle 53 just got through a UTI and took macrobid 100mg the UTI is gone but my clitoris is inflamed and I master bated and made it worse. My UTI came from having sex with my boyfriend and when he gives me oral the same discomfort/pain happens. I've been to gyno who don't care. I live in North Hollywood Ca and so far the gyno I've seen are jerks. Sorry I couldn't help you. If you no anyone with my issue please respond. God bless. Michelle

Hi Have just joined site and as a 60 yr old female I too have all your symptoms. My lovely female go fast forwarded me to a urologist and after cystoscope last week and biopsy looks like got IC so now looking for treatment good luck with your doctor.