Honeymoon Cystitis - Anyone else?

face2face

Hi there, I have recently (since birth of 3rd baby) begun to suffer from cystitis. Have had about 3 bouts this year and about 5 last year. Seems like if I have sex more than once a week, or two nights in a row, (seldom but wonderful) I get the dreaded tingle. If you get it you will know the total misery. It is on my mind all the time now and always have to have antibiotics on stand-by. My mother has suffered from this for 40 years and her attitude is that is is something I will just have to put up with. I am in my late thirties and hope to continue to have a sex life long into the future, . Am not looking for medical advice, but wonder how other people manage. I already do the standard things, like empty bladder before and after sex, and shower beforehand. I did not have this problem for the first 20 years of my sex life. I feel pretty depressed about this today, almost considering shutting up shop! Is it just me?

Have you tried drinking cranberry juice?

sam34

ive had this in the past.

cranberry juice works wonders when you have symptoms.

a friend of mine swears by drinking it daily as a preventative measure - i dont do this but then im not getting action regularly enough to warrant it!

Oryx

Make sure theres not too much sugar in whatever juice youre drinking or its counter productive.

I found barley water great too, thats an old cure.

Paracetamol was good when it was really painful.

Avoid 'vigourous' banging sex too. Be gentle on your bits.

I suffered chronically for a few years, and what I realised was that I had to clear my system of it fully, (based on nothing more than my own instinct about it). I cut down on tea, coffee and alcohol, drank lots of water, fed my system 'good' bacteria, and did all the other things you already mentioned. I kept rigidly to this even when I was symptom free, for months. It worked for me, never looked back.

face2face

Have tried cranberry juice, have just started taking a daily supplement, I drink one cup of instant coffee and maybe 2 cups of tea per day. Loads of water, a couple of glasses of wine per week. Don't eat processed food etc. I will try cutting out the wine and see whether it makes a difference. Thanks for taking the time to reply.

kittenkiller

An over the counter soolution to dissolve in water called Cystopurtin (or something very similar) is great for clearing it.
You take 3 sachets a day for two days and it should clear up.
Failing that it recommends that you visit a doctor for anti-biotics.

I also recommend that any time you're suffering that you blame your partner for not being careful enough with you and demand loads of attention and offerings of ice-cream!

monsoonish78

+1 for the cranberry juice

When I became sexually active I got a UTI and it was horrible - constant urge to pee but not actually having to, waking up in the middle of the night, etc etc < shudders at the thought > Cranberry juice definitely helps matters!!

Pherekydes

kittenkiller wrote: »

I also recommend that any time you're suffering that you blame your partner for not being careful enough with you and demand loads of attention and offerings of ice-cream!

Absolutely. Frequent recurrences might point the finger at the male partner. Make sure he's not lax about his own sexual hygiene.

Pythia

For some people cranberry juice just doesn't work. I've never had it but my friend does often and she takes this concentrated form of cranberry juice in tablets which are much stronger. If you keep getting cystitis, I'd ask the GP for a referral to a urologist.

MJOR

barley water works for me.... wear cotton undies as well and avoid thongs too.. it's a killer but it can be controlled

Faith

kittenkiller wrote: »

An over the counter soolution to dissolve in water called Cystopurtin (or something very similar) is great for clearing it.
You take 3 sachets a day for two days and it should clear up.
Failing that it recommends that you visit a doctor for anti-biotics.

It's called Cystopurin and I swear by it! Clears it up completely when you catch it early.

monsoonish78 wrote: »

When I became sexually active I got a UTI and it was horrible - constant urge to pee but not actually having to, waking up in the middle of the night, etc etc < shudders at the thought > Cranberry juice definitely helps matters!!

That's what I was like too. My brain thought I needed to pee, and wouldn't believe me that I didn't.

I make a point of peeing after I have sex every time. It can be annoying but helps stop UTIs. I'm in an LDR, so we tend to have lots of sex a night when we're together, and sometimes I wonder if my boyfriend thinks I have bladder problems!

spinandscribble

peeing straight after sex really helps. latex condoms can irritate it also.

Lobelia Overhill

a pinch of bread soda (bicarb of soda?) in a drink of juice or water is supposed to help too ...

Hagar

I'm not a doctor but is there any chance your OH is re-infecting you?
Perhaps he should get checked out.

Eviledna

I'm really surprised no-one else has mentioned this:
In all likelihood there has been a change in your fluids down there,so slight perhaps u didn't notice it. I strongly suggest you try using lubricant during sex, and recommend durex play for it's nice feel and condom-friendliness! It solved this problem for me, haven't had cystitis since!

claiva

Eviledna wrote: »

I'm really surprised no-one else has mentioned this:
In all likelihood there has been a change in your fluids down there,so slight perhaps u didn't notice it. I strongly suggest you try using lubricant during sex, and recommend durex play for it's nice feel and condom-friendliness! It solved this problem for me, haven't had cystitis since!

Hi, do you use the lube every time now ?
Or, do your fluids go back to normal after a time ?

Eviledna

claiva wrote: »

Hi, do you use the lube every time now ?
Or, do your fluids go back to normal after a time ?

For me, it was the pill that affected my "water table" so yes, every time keeps it at bay. It's worth it though to get rid of the cystitis, and though u may feel like you don't need it (I didn't think I did!) it really can work long term. Best of luck

Chocoholic84

I have been abolutely PLAGUED by UTI's ever since I was a child.

They went away when I was about 11 and soon as I became sexually active when I was 19, they started coming back

I was sooo sick of being on antio-biotics. Then just before Christmas, my doc decided to put me on them for a month, I think it was trimethorprin, which is more of a preventative method rather than curing them.

So I came off them in January, and I haven't had one since

tbh, I'm not sure how effective the whole peeing after sex, etc thing actually is - I'm sure it helps, but sadly, when you're "prone" to them, a lot of the preventative measures don't work.

So OP, I would ask my GP to go a course of trimethorprin for a month - it worked for me! (so far anyway, touch wood!)

I also drink something called Uva Ursi complex - it was actually recommended by someone on here, and it seems to work! It's a herb-based drink - you just mix drops into water a couple of times a day and drink it.

Good Luck - I truly know how annoying and painful UTi's are.