Recurrent enterococcus UTI or IC?

So IC can come as a result of cystitis?

Just wondering because mine is only ever from sex this past year and so very depressed at the thought this might have caused IC!

I'm curious where u fill your antibiotics? Is it walgreen's by chance?

Winifred, dud they do a urine culture to rule put bacteria bcs thats what seems to be Belle's problem?

also, I'm interested to know what meds were your instills, ?

Hi Lynne & Belle , l think I C & cystisis are not linked they just both effect the bladder but its worse for a lC sufferer if she gets cystisis because of the effect on the lining of the bladder . I agree with Lynne that there is a link with the immune system , l have lichen scelerousis , a nasty skin disease that causes the skin down below to become raw . l also have an underactive thyroid , a lot of women on the LS forum have also talked about this link . The problem is that there is very little research going on in this area . Its good we have these forums to exchange our ideas for making our lives better and also its good to know your not alone . I have a strict diet , no sugar , a limit of only one cup of tea a day ( bliss ! ) the only fruit l eat are pears and blue berries , all the others set off the IC . I dont eat wheat ,salt , spicy food or any processed food . I can eat roast dinners and have the odd glass of champagne , wine does not agree with me anymore sadly . This may all sound extreme but l feel better and the nagging pain l always had in the right side of my stomach as gone and l can pee without being in tears , l,ve also lost weight which is a great bonus . I think with the right medication and some life style changes plus care when having sex eg always wash after ,no soap down there , l use aqaeous cream and make sure your partner washes without soap , plus plenty of lubrication all has a very good chance of being well . Try not to stress to much as stress always makes this kind of thing worse , l know its not easy as stress is so great for us all . Take care girls x

Elizabeth, what probiotics? thanks.xx

Hi Sue, any luck getting rid of the enterococcus uti? I experience urgency and frequency. I was diagnosed about 3 months ago when they did a urine culture. I was on 3 rounds of different antibiotics: macrobid, amoxicillin and septra or bactrin based on sensitivity test but it didn't clear up. I tried absolutely everything. All natural treatments: uva ursi, colloidal silver, garlic, cranberry, juniper, oregano oil plus probiotics. I eat healthy and I drink lots of water. I am desperate and frustrated, this is impacting my life terribly, I postponed 2 vacation, no sexual life, I don't know what else to do. Please, please let me know if you managed to treat it and how did you do it.

Hi Tina,  Sympathise with your condition.  The antibiotic I was given, once the urine culture showed it was enterococcus bacteria,  was Nitrofurantine (sp??).  It was like a sledge hammer. I reacted badly to it and went to A&E.  But it cleared it.  Since then I have been clear of blood in urine and UTIs.   I bought a PH testing kit.  This shows the PH of urine.  Whenever I get symptoms I test my urine and if the PH is above 6 I immediately start taking bicarbonate of soda or one of the over-the-counter products for cystitis.  It sometimes reads 7 which is high.   I take a PH test every day until the PH reduces which is accompanied by a reduction in symptoms.   The bacteria thrives in high PH conditions so when you change the PH the bacteria die off.  I could be wrong about why this works but it does!   I haven’t needed anti biotics for 18 months now.  I would say I have had symptoms about 4 times during that time and each time I’ve managed to nip it in the bud.  Good luck.

I didn't enter this forum in a while but I just wanted to reply to fern question. I battled the infection for a long time. I might have had it for many years before being diagnosed through the culture. As you probably read my post above it was enterococcus and I tried all types of antibiotics given by my doctor. After each treatment the enteroccocus culture count went lower at around 40% but antibiotics did not work at eradicating it. After a few weeks it would go right back up to 100%. I started reading all studies done so far on this bacteria and possible alternative treatments. I learned that enterococcus is responsible for all " interstitial cystitis " and that the condition doesn't actually exist but is the bacteria creating the symptoms.

I also learned that enterococcus has the ability to form biofilm around itself for protection. Biofilm it is very hard to kill and eliminate and I also learned that antibiotic alone can't destroy biofilm. By the way, biofilm can't be tested but when an infection is present for a long time there is always biofilm. I started searching for biofilm disruptors and I found some. The best one I researched is "interface". I ordered it on line, pricey but I had no choice. I started taking it together with natural antibacterials. The idea is to take the interfase to eliminate the biofilm but at the same time to kill the bacteria. I chose apple cider, horseradish, garlic, onion, ginger, cayenne pepper. So I started making my own cocktails with the above ingredients and I would drink it daily several times a day while taking the interfase. I also made some drastic changes with my diet where I gave up lots of animal products including red meat and dairy and replaced it with a mostly plant based diet and whole foods composed of beans, grains, greens, fruits , nuts and seeds. Absolutely no sweets, actually for sweets cravings I would eat cranberries and dark chocolate only. It was the hardest thing I ever done but I was desperate to get better and that's all I had in mind. I did this for almost a year while I continued taking the interfase and the antibacterials, I went through several bottles of interfase. After about a year I went for another test. Enterococcus count was down at 5%. Not completely gone but that was the lowest so far so a great achievement considering previous treatment with antibiotics failed.. My doctor said that I should continue doing what I'm doing. So I stopped the interfase because it can drain the body of minerals but I assumed that biofilm was already destroyed so I just continue taking antibacterial supplements as I described, and recently added herbal teas , juniper and bearberry which I read are very good at fighting enteroccocus. I am also taking turmeric, oregano oil, cranberry, bee pollen and goldenseal supplements. Overtime I discovered that all natural antibacterials work best when taken together. Besides the interfase formula what also helped me the most was the apple cider. It has amazing results at fighting any type of bacteria or viruses. I am now free of symptoms so I am procrastinating having the culture checked again since nothing bothers me anymore but once I will I'll post an update of the results. I hope all of you find a way to get better and while I am not giving medical advice I am happy to answer any questions.

I am posting an update to my original post above that today I received my culture test result and it's no longer positive for enteroccocus. However, just a few days back I started experiencing some urgency so I thought I was having a flare (months after feeling ok), that's what prompted me to go and have the the test done. So the urgency I think it's related to the irritation of the bladder as a result of all the antibacterials that I am still taking. I will continue taking them for a while just to make sure that this horrible bacteria doesn't return. I read that it has the ability to " hide" deep into the bladder tissue waiting for when the environment is favorable to start attacking again. I will start adding herbs that help reconstruct the bladder wall like marshmallow root, etc.

TINA- How is your progress? Were you able to fully kick the bacteria to the curb? I'm in the early stages..

Did you ever rid yourself of Enterococcus faecalis ? I need help.

I too am still struggling after having enteroccucus faecalis... took 3 antibiotics. Tests shows negative results but im left with urgency and burning. Im taking marshmallow tea, monolaurin (from coconut), and lots of water. After i go to the bathroom I get an immediate urge like I need to go again. Sounds like TINA'S approach might have worked and we have to be patient... its hard. Im going to start oil of oregano again. Hoping its not IC - but I've read people can heal from it. You just have to be more cautious. Thoughts?

you might want to try good old fashioned penecillin. macrobid and penecillin are the only things that work for me. amoxicillin has never worked for me and doctors have told "its the same thing from the same family" and I say "I don't care if amoxicillin gave birth to penecillin...it doesn't work.

what is interface? could you please sent me a picture of it?

hi tina,

hope you are well.

I was diagnosed 4 months ago with enterococcus spp. uti. did you manage to treat it, as I was on 3 course of antibiotics already.

thanks!!