Something nobody has mentioned yet is that you can end up with a kidney infection if you have an untreated UTI.
I’ve only had one UTI, and after three days of gradually worsening pain, I went in to see the doc and after testing my urine he said that I was on the verge of a kidney infection. Which is a much bigger problem than a UTI.
That was four years ago, btw, and shortly after I moved in with my boyfriend…:rolleyes: And the funny thing is, I didn’t know then that it was most likely frequent sex that had caused it. I assumed it was just me not drinking enough cranberry, or something.
Haven’t had a UTI since; since I bartend now, I make a point of always drinking my (now slightly famous what-is-Audrey-drinking) 1/2 water, 1/2 cranberry juice cocktail. Plenty of water and plenty of cranberry. I have at least two/three a day.
Not exactly- Ural is a urinary alkaliser, along the lines of drinking Bicarb of Soda.
If you self medicate with it for too long, you may get pyelonephritis (a kidney infection), as others have mentioned. This is not fun and may lead to you being banned from alcohol for life sulking
I had UTI’s almost once a month the first year I was married. Most of them were followed by yeast infections. You can imagine the joy, I’m sure. Over the years I’ve developed the following program:
Cranberry juice every morning. Just to keep things moving.
Before sex, a glass of water and a pee. After sex, another glass of water or so, the mandatory pee, and three cranberry pills.
12 hours later, another couple of cranberry pills.
12 hours after that, another couple of cranberry pills.
If a UTI occurs, I get into my stash of Pyridium (the presecription-strength Uristat) and start drinking water and downing cranberry pills like there’s no tomorrow. This actually seems to take care of things without antibiotics–I’ve taken enough of those to be personally responsible for super-bacteria, so I try not to go get them. Of course, if it gets worse instead of better, I’d go to the pharmacy, but this seems to do the job within a day or so.
Blueberries are also supposed to help. And plain yogurt is always good. Cranberry pills are my best friend.
Acidophilus. That’s the “live culture” in yogurt. You can take it orally or
POSSIBLE TMI
put it where the infection is. Yep, right up the vagina. Did it once, haven’t had a YI since (except for that one inspired by nonoxynol-9, nasty stuff).
Revtim: just FYI - it’s considered run of the mill for women to get UTIs, but for guys, it is a Really Big Deal. As in - straight to the doctor - big deal. A man’s urethra is a little TINY bit longer than a lady’s You can check on this yourself if you want, but any guy who gets a burning sensation when he pees should skip all the self help here and go straight to a doctor.
Yet Another UTI sufferer.
(P.S. I haven’t suffered since I started sleeping with a guy, my hubby, who’s circumsized. Last boyfriend (and source of frequent UTIs) was not. Coincidence? Maybe.)
THANK YOU! That’s been driving me bonkers for three days now. I could not remember the name of that stuff - even went through my medicine cabinet to see if maybe there was an old, empty bottle hiding in the way back. On the upside, I now have a nice tidy medicine cabinet.
Some of the ladies who have UTI sypmtoms after sex, may not in fact have UTIs.
Vigorous sex can irritate the urethra through friction, without any bacteria being involved. Although unpleasant, the symptoms should fade within 2 days.
But it’s best to play safe and cranberry juice/bicarb of soda/painkiller it in the meantime.
Like i said, pyelo-nephritis is not a nice thing to have.
Just another UTI-plagued chick checking in (I’ve had probably a couple dozen in the last few years). If they’re not too bad (and I don’t notice any of that kidney infection signifying back pain), I tend to let them go a few days. They usually go away, and if they don’t I head to the doc. I use Uristat, which is fantastic but seems to lose its effectiveness after 2 days. I’d tried Cystex, but it didn’t do a thing for me.
Note: Don’t drink too much water when you’re going in for a culture. I’ve diluted my samples so much they can’t find anything in 'em and I get sent back for more lab work. Not fun!
With the last one I had, I did some online research. It seems there’s a nastly little bacterium called Ureaplasma that doesn’t show up in a lot of cultures and just loves our cute little bladders. If you keep getting UTI’s, have them do a special check for it.
The pain of course awful, but I always think the worst part is just feeling so…dirty. My mother (and sometimes even the doctors!) can make me feel like such a little whore when I get 'em. The only upside is that you can get your partner to do anything for you while you’re afflicted. Good luck!
Ugh. I’ve been suffering with a UTI for several weeks now – since I’m pregnant, the doctor can’t give me the really good antibiotics, so I’m downing cranberry juice like there’s no tomorrow in hopes it will help the Macrobid along. Can’t take pyridium either, according to the research I’ve done. Poor me.
Another UTI plagued woman. I have GOT to check and see if they sell Uristat in Canada. Usually I have to suffer until I can get into see the doctor before I can get my blessed prescrip of Pyridium.
Btw - twice my infection has been so bad that it spread to my kidneys. Not a fun place to be.
I find that if I:
*“double-empty” my bladder when I pee (pee, wait half a minute, then try again)
*urinate immediately after sex
*drink obscene amounts of water EVERY DAY WITHOUT FAIL
then my UTIs are greatly reduced. Usually, if for some reason I go one day without drinking at least 2 litres of water, I get a UTI the next day.
You can check on this yourself if you want, but any guy who gets a burning sensation when he pees should skip all the self help here and go straight to a doctor.