cystitis help needed..

bean-bags · 10-05-2009 10:24PM #1

anyone any magic solutions/ things that have worked for them?

I know all the usual advice (i think), for example:

Drinking lots of water
Drinking cranberry juice/taking a cranberry supplement
Peeing after intercourse
Wiping front to back - duh!

I am not looking for medical advice, ive been to a urologist after taking antibiotics many times, ive had all the tests and a precautionary MRI, nothing abnormal to speak of.

Just wondering if anyone has experience of anything alternative which had for them?
Thanks in advance

Stheno · 10-05-2009 10:55PM

Homeopathic remedies worked for me with recurrent cystitis that plagued me for about five years, I get the odd bout now but nothing like the ongoing attacks I used have.

bean-bags · 10-05-2009 11:13PM

What are these remedies? would my local health shop be able to give them to me or is it a specialist you went to?
Thanks for advice.

lil'bluestar · 10-05-2009 11:20PM

I get cystitis pretty regularly and it's awful, peeing blood and in absolute agony for a few days.
Peeing after intercourse sometimes just isn't enough so I try to have a quick wash with some antibacterial shower gel I know it's not always possibly but it seems to help and the bouts are less frequent since I've started doing it, saying that I am on antibiotics now for the same but I think I was a bit lazy recently!
Other than that If you do get another case of it, I'm finding paracetamol great for the pain!

banquo · 10-05-2009 11:31PM

Banquo's gf posting here. Taking bread soda mixed into water gets rid of that so fast, had it so bad one time, couldn't sit it was that sore and my mom said that that used be the cure for it in the olden days

Also, my sister used be prone to it and she stopped eating any dairy products, mainly milk and she hasn't had it since...

Toots · 10-05-2009 11:41PM

Have a few baths a week with just water and bread soda, it'll help. Also very erm, vigorous intercourse is practically a cystitis guarantee, even if you pee afterwards, so that's something to be aware of. I carry a sachet of Cystopurin in my handbag, I'd be very prone to it too and this stuff is good at giving relief fairly quickly. I've also heard that barley drinks are good for keeping cystitis at bay, like lemon barley etc.

watna · 11-05-2009 04:32AM

Are you by any chance on the contraceptive patch? It's a little known side effect of that. I had bad cystitis for months until I happened to read the leaflet that came with the patch. Once I stopped taking it my cyctitis stopped. I'm so paranoid about getting it again because it was horrible.

i just had a lot of baths and took cranberry tablets (eaasier than drinking loads of juice). Running to the loo straight after sex helped too. Although, not very romantic!

Sinall · 11-05-2009 05:43PM

There is a herbal supplement you can take. They are drops made by Bioforce and they are called Uva Ursi and they really help. They help with relieving the discomfort/pain and also as a preventative, according to the information that comes with them.

About €10 a bottle from a healthfood store/chemist.

She Devil · 11-05-2009 06:42PM

Hey i went to a specialist for this ...

More advice i was given was to just wear cotton underwear and don't use coloured toilet paper!

I found sitting down with a waterbottle between my legs helps also

bean-bags · 11-05-2009 07:18PM

Yeah i read that about the cotton underwear also, but i also read no tights, no jeans, and no thongs! not very practical:(
The main symptoms when i get it. like the burning and the discomfort, only usually last a few days if i drink loads of water and take cytipurin, but i find that i have increased frequency for weeks after, like am up at least one every night to use the loo, its really very annoying. Had a cystoscopy and it only showed inflammation of the bladder, which the specialist said was as a result of recurrent infection. Does any one else suffer from this frequency problem? Might try the herbal drops, thanks for the tip. Also, is the bread soda in water a preventitive measure and if so, do you drink it after sex or once/twice a day? how much bread soda is recommended?
thanks for all the tips girls, its reassuring to know im not the only one out there with this ongoing problem

Chocoholic84 · 12-05-2009 04:25PM

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.

Thumpette · 12-05-2009 04:46PM

It's nice to hear about other people who are plagued with this as well. Deffo gonna check out some of the ideas suggested.

I go with the cranberry juice- peeing after sex thing myself and I definately havent been as bad lately- but sometimes it just seems to come from no-where.

It really knocks me for 6 when it happens, even tho its not so much pain exactly for me just a horrible discomfort- I always feel really down and depressed, all i want to do is curl up in bed near an always-available loo!

*Hugs to anyone with one at the mo...*

mollybird · 13-05-2009 03:43PM

god ya cystopurin was my best friend at one point. thank god i had a packet of it when i was on hols for my OH's bro's wedding. it came back the morning and had my OH's father driving around our village in spain looking for a chemist. i had to go on anti biotics for 3 months to get rid of it. as all other anti biotics didn't work. demanded from my parents to get me an apt with a specialist. everyting came back clear. (as i'm writing this i'm touching wood) not had it in nearly 2 years.

JackReacher1980 · 17-12-2009 10:48PM

I've had at least 4 a year for the past 2 years. One turned into an incredibly bad kidney infection, which led to an a and e visit. Anyway, went to see a specialist, had every test imaginable done, and all that was found was slight inflammation, which was evidence of a recent infection. TBH, after going through all that, I might have been happier if they had found something small, and very curable.
Anyway, now on antibiotics for 3 months, as a preventative measure. Also had this for 3 months last year, and they still came back, so not actually holding out much hope. My sister had the same problem a few years ago, again, onothing physical was found, so they told her it was down to stress? Not entirely sure how scientific an answer that was, but she was going through stuff at the time, and since the issues have been resolved, she hasnt had one infection!

kylith · 29-11-2010 05:35PM

Toots* wrote: »

Have a few baths a week with just water and bread soda, it'll help. Also very erm, vigorous intercourse is practically a cystitis guarantee, even if you pee afterwards, so that's something to be aware of. I carry a sachet of Cystopurin in my handbag, I'd be very prone to it too and this stuff is good at giving relief fairly quickly. I've also heard that barley drinks are good for keeping cystitis at bay, like lemon barley etc.

Would baking soda be the same as bread soda? How much would you use to a bath of water?

squeakyduck · 29-11-2010 07:25PM

When I got with my boyfriend I was plagued with them, I used to cry on the toilet when I felt that burning sensation both out of pain and frustration. One summer I spent a small fortune from meds, going to see the doctor and all that stuff. Now I never get them, I can understand the annoyance and the pain, you poor thing.

This is all the stuff I do to prevent it:

Drink LOADS of water, I used to drink and drink and drink to flush my bladder and kidneys out,
Drink cranberry juice - a glass a day (it tastes YUCK at first but now I love it!) (sometimes if I drink loads it burns when I pee)
Pee after sex.
give "down there" a chance to breathe sleep naked from the waist down.
Try not to stress, I find I get an attack when I get stressed, REST TOO!
If you do get an attack cistopurin is your best friend.
For the dull pain the canesten cream is soothing. It takes that sting away.
Try not to drink alcoholic drinks while you have an attack.
Lower belly rubs and back rubs are amazing. My boyfriend was very supportive when I had them, all I'd want to do during them was curl up in a ball.

Maple · 30-11-2010 10:18AM

Great advice, however given the age of the thread I'm locking it.

Maple.

cystitis help needed..

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