Solutions for Women with Recurrent Bladder Infections

If you are among the small percentage of women in the world who are dealing with the very complex and frustrating problem of recurrent bladder infections, do not feel like you are hopeless or alone. I myself have been a suffererer for years, and have repeatedly turned to emergency visits to urgent care clinics where I have been put on a round of antibiotics repeatedly but offered no real solutions. My bladder infections - intense, painful, and a major disruption to my everyday life - have been a constant source of anxiety and have damaged my health (for the most part due to the repeated rounds of antibiotics that seemed to have been my only cure). After five years, I was fed up. There had to be a solution to this problem.

I personally found that my infections started when I began to engage in intercourse for the first time with my new husband. Within a month, after our honeymoon, I ran to the local urgent care and was diagnosed with my very first bladder infection. The first one I had ever had in my entire life. Little did I know then that the next five years would be littered with the same urgent trips to the doctor to get relief from the painful, burning, sometimes slightly bloody, urination. That coupled with fever, chills, headache, and general feeling of being ill. I was miserable. My days were spent counting down to when the next bladder infection would pop up - sometimes at the most inconvenient times including when funds were gone and I had no car. I felt bad asking people to help me out, and I felt even worse when I was missing out on my own life.

I did all the things every other woman in my situation does - I did all the research I could do, coupled with all the preventative things I could do including general cleanliness (wipe front to back, etc.), urinating before and after sex, and I even took cranberry pills and drank lots and lots of water. But they kept coming back. I was sick and tired of websites trying to promote products that didn't really work - didn't really solve the deep-down problem that loomed inside my bladder. I needed help. Here is what I did, and I hope it can help you out as well.

First off, I scheduled an appointment with my gynecologist and I planned the appointment for one thing - to discuss this problem. I planned on not letting her rush me, because I needed help. I also knew funds were an issue for me, so I started saving my money for that special appointment.

I had all my previous records forwarded to my gynecologist - all those records that showed my frequent trips to the urgent care. I needed her to see that I was not making this up or exagerating - I had a serious problem that needed to be resolved. You, too, make sure to have all your records that are proof of your problem forwarded to the one doctor you want to entrust your care to. You need to get this issue resolved, and you need one single doctor to care for you and understand your situation. The ER and Urgent Care clinic is not personal, and they will simply send you on your way with another round of antibiotics if you let them. You need someone that you can call up when and if another infection presents itself - someone who knows you and your situation.

Once I was at my appointment, I made it clear to my doctor that I was suffering and that this issue was ruling my life. She listened. And for me, we came to the conclusion, I needed to be on a 3-month course of antibiotics to get rid of this bacteria that was living in my bladder full-time and reappearing whenever it wanted. And so that is what I did - 3 months worth of antibiotics seemed to work for me. I was infection-free, finally! It can, however, be a scary thought of being on an antibiotic for that long. But sometimes, that is just what you have to do. The human body is very imperfect, and sometimes we need the help of man-made products to really heal.

But what can be done even after you are off of the antibiotics? You don't want to do down the same path again. One thing you can do is start a regimen of apple cider vinegar. You probably read about it online before, and if used properly it really can do wonders for your body. But you have to be regular with it. A good plan is, once you have finished your antibiotics so as to be sure the vinegar does not interfere with the antibiotics in your body, to drink a tablespoon of it mixed with a cup of water and a little bit of honey every day - preferably at night if you are struggling with UTI's due to sexual activity or urine left in your bladder overnight. Try and use honey and not sugar because honey has a better effect on the bladder than sugar does - in fact, bacteria feeds on cane sugar so you don't want to give it anything to work with!

Once you have cleared your system of the bacteria, it's easy to get relaxed in your routine again and feel pretty good. But don't let yourself get relaxed! Do all the necessary steps to be sure you don't get this problem again - including proper hygeine, emptying your bladder immediately after sex and even before, drinking healthy things including cranberry juice, and all the other good things you are learning to do to care for your urinary tract.

You may, also, want to consider incorporating D-Mannose - a natural sugar that is assimilated directly into your bladder and which bacteria clings to and is flushed out naturally - into your diet. Mix a half a teaspoon into your favorite drink every day and this can help keep your urinary tract clear. It's around $15 to $30 a bottle and can last you a month or two and is an excellent supplement since you know you suffer with this problem. You can find it on many online websites, and in some nutrition stores.

You can get control of your recurrent UTI's/bladder infections with these tips!