[_Michelle_]

Approximately one month ago, I started having symptoms of a UTI. I have had them before, usually once a year or so - normally I go visit the urgent treatment clinic or my gynecologist, get antibiotics, and feel better in a couple of days. This time, I went to the urgent treatment clinic, they told me based on my urine sample that I likely had a UTI and put me on ammoxicillin for 5 days. I'd never been given ammoxicillin for a UTI before, but I assumed they knew what they were doing. I took the medicine for 5 days and did not feel better. I gave it a couple more days and then was in severe pain, so I went back to the urgent treatment clinic. They said the previous culture didn't grow anything. They did another urine sample and said it looked like I still had an infection. This time she perscribed Cipro. I took Cipro for 4 days and still was not feeling better. Then they called and switched me to ammoxicillin again based on the new culture which showed Strep B. I continued with the ammoxicillin for another four days until I felt like I was getting worse than when I originally went to the UTC. I went back and the doctor I saw this time went overboard, in my opinion. She did a pregnancy test, STD tests (neither of which I needed), a pelvic exam, and scheduled me for a vaginal ultrasound. She prescribed Macrobid (even though she didn't think I had a UTI), oxybutnin, and a yeast infection drug (even though she said I did not have a yeast infection). The combination of drugs seemed to be doing the trick - I was taking these three drugs along with Cystex and Ibuprofen for the pain. But I was still having some lingering problems and started to wonder if the drugs were just covering up the issue. Today I went for my vaginal ultrasound and also went back to the UTC because they said they had my test results. After waiting 45 minutes, they called me back to let me know that I didn't have any STDs, which I already knew. She asked me if I was feeling better, and I started tearing up and said no. I asked about my urine culture and she went to check on it. She came back with the doctor who said he was going to put me on Bactrim. He said that this would kill the infection (which is exactly what the doctor said one week ago about the amoxicillin and the Strep B).

I think I am losing my mind - has anyone ever taken so many antibiotics for a UTI and not felt better? For the past month I've had maybe a handful of days where I wasn't in constant pain from this. Walking around hurts, it's hard to focus at work because I have to pee every 15 minutes, and the medicines that haven't been doing anything for my UTI have still been making me nauseous and dizzy. I'm fearful that the Bactrim isn't going to work. The doctor couldn't understand why I was so upset today even though I explained that I had been to the office 4 times, been put on 4 different antibiotics, and had a host of tests I didn't think I needed. For an urgent treatment clinic, they don't seem to have a sense of urgency about anything!

The part that makes me the angriest is that they weren't even going to tell me about the latest urine culture. They were going to let me continue taking Macrobid even though it was not going to kill the bacteria that they grew. They were just going to make me sit in the waiting room for 45 minutes, give me my STD test results, and send me on my way. I thought I might feel better if I could vent, and maybe get some opinions from others that have been through something similar.

[chaya]

I'm diabetic, I've had many UTI's, I used to take Bactrim, it always cured them fast. Luckily I haven't had one in a while.

I've heard that the UTI bugs have become resistant to Bactrim and even the penicillin antibiotics. If you have a resistant strain, you might need to be treated with one of the newer antibiotics, maybe by IV. That would mean a stay in the hospital.

I suggest you see a Urologist to ensure proper treatment. Untreated UTI's can lead to bladder and/or kidney infection.

[_Michelle_]

I think I have figured out part of my problem today - carbonated water. I realized that during the day I am not feeling too terrible, but for some reason after dinner the pain is almost unbearable. The reason seems to be that I've been drinking a lot of sparking water - I assumed since it's not caffeinated and there's no sugar that it wouldn't be a problem. I've been knocking 2-3 of them back a night. When I was in more pain, I would actually drink more because I thought it would help by getting more fluids into me to flush out the bacteria. <<smacks head>> I am hoping that if I stick to regular water I'll start to feel better. If not, I guess I will go see a urologist.

[_Michelle_]

Still not feeling better - called my regular gynecologist's office today and they made me an appointment for tommorrow, but it's with a nurse practitioner, not my usual doctor. Also the UTC is making me an appointment with a urologist. Still not feeling better and had to stay home from work today. I've been taking azo, but it only helps a little bit with the pain. I can't stop crying. I just want to know what's wrong so that I can get better. I feel like I've missed out on a month of my life already with whatever this is and it makes me so sad. I'm also scared because I don't know what's wrong and I worry that it won't go away.

[stariana]

: ( sorry you are so upset over all of this... hopefully they will find an antibiotic that will take care of it for you. I just got a Rx of Bactrim myself, so I feel your pain. Try to stay calm, because becoming stressed out over will only make your symptoms worse....

[_Michelle_]

I went to my gynecologist's office this morning. She doesn't think that it is a UTI based on the cultures that they have done and the fact that the antibiotics are not doing anything, but suggested I keep taking the Bactrim until it is gone. She did a quick pelvic exam and found nothing abnormal. My appointment with the urologist isn't until the 11th - that was the earliest they could get me in. In the meantime, she's written me a prescription for Uribel. I'm hoping that helps with the pain/urgency enough that I can feel normal again. She also told me to take Motrin around the clock until my appointment with the urologist, try drinking alka seltzer, and to keep a journal of what makes my symptoms worse and what makes them better. I'm worried that it could be interstital cystitis - reading about it, it looks like a lot of the symptoms are the same between UTIs and IC. I really hope that isn't it since it sounds like people are in so much pain from it and it never seems to go away.

[claremay]

Essential Info For Women That Suffer from UTI's

I am a 28 year old woman that suffered from very frequent UTI's (sometimes as many as once a month) for as long as I've been sexually active. For a long time, it made me not want to have sex at all, because I was so terrified of getting another UTI. When I was in my early 20's, Cipro worked for me and was often prescribed, but there reached a point where it no longer worked for me. After that I used Macrobid exclusively, as I found it to be the only antibiotic that worked for my infections. I, too, had an experience similar to Michelle where I was prescribed a series of antibiotics that were supposed to work, but in the end taking Macrobid for the full ten 10 course always took care of the problem.

However, a couple of years ago I went through a period of sifting through every online forum I could find in search of something that would help me keep UTI's at bay. I tried everything, including all the various ways suggested to pee, peeing before and after sex, not mixing oral and sex etc. etc. Then I happened on a comment made by one woman that mentioned that she has not had any UTI's since she started using a "bidet." For those of you that are unfamiliar with a bidet, its the European answer to bottom hygiene. After doing your business you squat over the toilet shaped bidet next to the toilet in most European washrooms and get your bum clean with a spray of water. The woman in the forum had also suffered from frequent UTIs and noted that this had solved her problem. While I didn't have a bidet at my disposal, I decided to start washing my bottom EVERY TIME I went to the bathroom (#2), religiously. From a purely hygienic standpoint this makes complete and utter sense. UTI's are caused by BACTERIA, and if you poo'd on your hands, would you wipe them with toilet paper and call them clean? Of course not. So why wipe our bums with paper and call them clean? Bacteria spreads easily, and sometime it spreads from your bum across your perineum, and into your lady parts, where it is quite easy for it to get pushed up into your urethra during sex and cause a UTI. The point being, the lady in the little forum thread (bless her soul) was right. For the past 2 years and running I have had ZERO UTIs since employing this very simple, yet very effective way of keeping bacteria away from the danger zone and staying infection-free. Its an immeasurable gift of common sense.

So here's to paying it forward. Still a good idea to pee before and after sex, flushing bacteria from the urethra, but I do hope that the simple act of washing you bum after you go #2 helps other women prevent some of the pain and suffering that I once experienced.

Approximately one month ago, I started having symptoms of a UTI. I have had them before, usually once a year or so - normally I go visit the urgent treatment clinic or my gynecologist, get antibiotics, and feel better in a couple of days. This time, I went to the urgent treatment clinic, they told me based on my urine sample that I likely had a UTI and put me on ammoxicillin for 5 days. I'd never been given ammoxicillin for a UTI before, but I assumed they knew what they were doing. I took the medicine for 5 days and did not feel better. I gave it a couple more days and then was in severe pain, so I went back to the urgent treatment clinic. They said the previous culture didn't grow anything. They did another urine sample and said it looked like I still had an infection. This time she perscribed Cipro. I took Cipro for 4 days and still was not feeling better. Then they called and switched me to ammoxicillin again based on the new culture which showed Strep B. I continued with the ammoxicillin for another four days until I felt like I was getting worse than when I originally went to the UTC. I went back and the doctor I saw this time went overboard, in my opinion. She did a pregnancy test, STD tests (neither of which I needed), a pelvic exam, and scheduled me for a vaginal ultrasound. She prescribed Macrobid (even though she didn't think I had a UTI), oxybutnin, and a yeast infection drug (even though she said I did not have a yeast infection). The combination of drugs seemed to be doing the trick - I was taking these three drugs along with Cystex and Ibuprofen for the pain. But I was still having some lingering problems and started to wonder if the drugs were just covering up the issue. Today I went for my vaginal ultrasound and also went back to the UTC because they said they had my test results. After waiting 45 minutes, they called me back to let me know that I didn't have any STDs, which I already knew. She asked me if I was feeling better, and I started tearing up and said no. I asked about my urine culture and she went to check on it. She came back with the doctor who said he was going to put me on Bactrim. He said that this would kill the infection (which is exactly what the doctor said one week ago about the amoxicillin and the Strep B).

I think I am losing my mind - has anyone ever taken so many antibiotics for a UTI and not felt better? For the past month I've had maybe a handful of days where I wasn't in constant pain from this. Walking around hurts, it's hard to focus at work because I have to pee every 15 minutes, and the medicines that haven't been doing anything for my UTI have still been making me nauseous and dizzy. I'm fearful that the Bactrim isn't going to work. The doctor couldn't understand why I was so upset today even though I explained that I had been to the office 4 times, been put on 4 different antibiotics, and had a host of tests I didn't think I needed. For an urgent treatment clinic, they don't seem to have a sense of urgency about anything!

The part that makes me the angriest is that they weren't even going to tell me about the latest urine culture. They were going to let me continue taking Macrobid even though it was not going to kill the bacteria that they grew. They were just going to make me sit in the waiting room for 45 minutes, give me my STD test results, and send me on my way. I thought I might feel better if I could vent, and maybe get some opinions from others that have been through something similar.

[_Michelle_]

That's a good tip claremay. Typically in the past I've gotten UTIs only after sex, but this one didn't start that way. I also have found that taking cystex and cranberry pills before sex has kept me from having as many UTIs. As an update, the Uribel is helping a TON. I feel almost 90-95% normal now whereas when taking Azo I was still always in pain. So, at least while waiting for the visit to the urologist I will be able to function normally. I also purchased some D-Mannose and plan to try that - it is supposed to be a sugar substance that binds the bacteria to it and helps get flush out a UTI. Supposed to only work for E-coli, which I don't think was the bacteria that they cultured, but I figure I might as well try it and see if it does anything.

[_Michelle_]

As an update - I took the d-mannose for three days and it did not help. Also finished the course of Bactrim and it did not seem to do anything either. I have been taking Uribel and it has helped tremendously to calm my symptoms. I typically only have pain in the morning along with some back pain throughout the day. Today I went to the urologist - she did a urine sample and will do another culture, but didn't find white blood cells in my urine although she did find blood. Also, my urine was brown and cloudy today, which doesn't seem like a good sign. Also, when I was at the urologist I was running a fever - 100.4 even though I've been taking ibuprofen around the clock for two weeks at the suggestion of the previous doctor visit. The urologist thinks that I do not have an infection, but that my bladder is just very angry at the moment. She said it's definitely possible for my bladder to be reacting as if there is a UTI even if there is no infection. She was very nice and I feel like by seeing her, I may eventually get some answers. She totally gets that I am at my breaking point and didn't look at me like a crazy person when I broke down into tears (more than once). She's given me Vesicare to take along with the Uribel and a muscle relaxer Baclofen. She also said she's not ruling out interstital cystitis at this point, but that I do not have all of the classic symptoms. I'm also supposed to do a bladder diary for a day and pay attention to things that I eat that may be triggering any pain then go back to see her again in two weeks. I'm at least in a better state mentally since taking the Uribel has enabled me to at least lead a normal life these past couple of weeks, and it helps to feel like I'm at least seeing a doctor that can help instead of the doctors at the UTC who just kept prescribing antibiotics over and over again. But it is definitely still frustrating to not know what is wrong or if it will go away.

[ginagia]

Fever, back pain? (KIDNEYS!)...you sound like you have kidney stones!! They can only be diagnosed through a scan, not blood or urine tests!