Cystitis Relief??

I keep getting cystitis with really bad back ache. my doctor tested my urine and I had signs of infection. I have been on antibiotics, drank more cranberry juice than i thought possible but it keeps coming back. Any tips..

Get yourself a reasonable sized dish, fill with warm water and a little salt, and then literally dunk yourself into it, particularly after peeing - this will not only help ease off pain but will also help clear up the infection. A warm bath with plain bath salts would be a good option too, maybe with a little tea tree oil as well to kill off bacteria, or other essential oils such as lavender, cypress, rosemary, bergamot, thyme or fennel.

Cranberry juice is an obvious drink to go for, but be sure it is unsweetened so avoiding cranberry juice containing sucrose or corn syrup; this is because the sugars can make the problem worse. A good alternative to cranberry is blueberry juice, again unsweetened. This also goes for sugars from other sources, so be sure to cut out foods or beverages high in sugar, also avoid alcohol for a while.

I'd also recommend you try drinking [unsweetened] apple juice with a teaspoon of backing soda, then drink two or three times a day, it tastes a lot nicer than cranberry juice or water with baking soda. This makes your urine more alkaline which helps to irradiate the germs and makes peeing less painful.

Herbal tea is another good idea; I'd particularly recommend chamomile as this is a urinary disinfectant and an anti-inflammatory, as well as also being relaxing so helps with pain. Some other useful herbs;

-Urinary Disinfectants: echinacea, calendula, thyme, meadowsweet, horsetail, plantain, chamomile, rosemary.
-Anti-Inflammatory and soothing demulcents: corn silk, meadowsweet, chamomile, borage, plantain.
-Diuretics to flush the system: raspberry leaves, corn silk, dandelion leaves, horsetail, meadowsweet, cleavers.
-Relaxants and painkillers: pulsatilla, chamomile, lemon balm, passionflower, skullcap, vervain, lavender

Food wise avoid anything acidic to avoid more acidic urine. Yogurt with live pro-biotic cultures will help balance out the good to bad bacteria within your system that will help the vagina/vulva sort itself out, and garlic is another well known treatment. Increase your intake of vitamin C, also I'd recommend taking Echinacea in some form or another.

If it keeps coming back then I would be looking at possible reasons why, if you are sexually active you make sure that your partner is not also affected because men are often carriers without showing symptoms so you both could be passing it back and forth. Always pee after sex to flush out bacteria from the urethra as well as keep an eye out for bad reactions from certain lubricants. This for me was the cause of constant cystitis, far too much sex as well as passing it back and forth between on another resulted in my having cystitis so bad I could hardly walk and started peeing blood 鈥?needless to say if you get that bad then get yourself to the hospital.

The usual vaginal hygiene is also something to look out for, keeping yourself very clean with plain water and nothing else as soap or washes will affect normal vaginal pH, dry well and with a lot of care, also remember that over washing can be as harmful as under washing. Bear in mind also menstrual options such as commercial pads will contain chemicals that may lead to infections and irritation. Wear white cotton panties, avoid synthetics and tight clothing, also keep an eye on what laundry detergents you use, anything that can affect normal vaginal health can also affect reoccurring cystitis.

Just the usual.

Drink plenty of water. Avoid acidic drinks/food. Be careful which detergents you use. Wear cotton underwear. Always rinse that area with plain water. Natural yoghurt applied directly can sometimes helps with the discomfort (also useful for clamidia)

If this keeps occuring you might want to go back to the Dr or seek a second opinion. Kidney infections can be dangerous.

have you tried light cranberry juice (no sugar) seems to work better. make sure you drink plenty of water even when you think its gone!

Yoghurt does nothing for chlamydia! - it's CANDIDA that it helps - that's thrush. My advice is to stop having sex, and to drink loads of water/cranberry all the time as a preventative measure.

I want to first tell you that if your on the same antibiotics for to long they stop working here's somethings that may help but i think you might need further testing but check out these sites they seems pretty informative..I hope it all gets better..


There are a few simple things you can do to help reduce the chances of getting cystitis:

* Drink lots of water, ideally 1.5 litres, every day
* Go to the toilet to urinate as soon as you need to
* Each time you pass water, try to empty your bladder completely
* After going to the toilet, always wipe from front to back
* If you tend to get cystitis after sex, it might help to go to the toilet before and after sex
* Some women find that drinking cranberry juice every day helps

Although cystitis is very common, most women will only get one or two bouts in their lifetime2. However, recurring bouts of cystitis occur in some women. This most commonly occurs in women in their late 20s and those over 552.

Why do some women have recurring cystitis?
Some women have recurring bouts of cystitis and there may be no apparent cause. However for some women, the following may contribute:

* In some women, recurring bouts of cystitis only occur after the menopause
* This is because the menopause may cause changes to the lining of the urethra and vagina. Also, less mucus is produced in the vagina which means the defence against infection is weaker
* Bladder or kidney problems may lead to infections being more likely. For example, kidney stones or conditions which cause urine to 鈥減ool鈥?and not drain properly
* Having sex increases the chance of cystitis in some women

Cranberry won't help stop E.coli based cystitis. Fortunately, there is a substance that E.coli can't become immune to, because it doesn't kill the weaker bacteria and leave the tough ones alive. It doesn't kill any of the bacteria - it just stops them from attaching, so that you pee them out when you urinate... It's a completely natural substance called d-mannose, and it works in a totally different way to antibiotics.

http://www.cystitis-cystitis.com/underst...

you can buy tablets t the chemist to get rid of it

I always heard that you drink plenty of barley water to flush the kidneys out ,wear cotton underclothe's at all time's .

do not use any perfumed products IE talc powder soap etc that just makes it worse use UN perfumed products keep taking the antibiotics and drink plenty of fluids none with acid in lemon barley is good to drink but that's all you can do really until it goes good luck .avoid anything to do with sex as well .(sorry you didn't state an age )

Always have a wee after having sex. I get it sometimes but only if I don't have a wee after sex...best advice I've ever received!

Firstly unless you love cranberry juice, it has been shown to be no better than water in acute UTI, so any fluid will do.

What do you mean keeps coming back? Do you mean over months or just over the past week or so? If it is short term get another MSSU in to your GP and a second antibiotic would be reasonable while waiting for the result. If you are talking about long term recurrence you need an MSSU just now, but a urology referral might be prudent.

apart from drinking plenty of water to flush your kidneys out, make sure when you wipe yourself from the loo you wipe front to back, infection can get spread the reverse way

You can buy sachets of powder from the chemist that you mix with water. Don't taste very nice, but seem to work ok. Also try and pour a bottle of water between your legs when you pee and this will 'dilute' your urine a bit.

I know this sounds silly but if you have a partner and you are having regular intercourse, I would have that person checked also because they could be the cause of your recurring cystitis. I have heard that in some clinics they insist on having the partner checked. I am no expert, but it's worth asking your clinician about this. The penis can and does carry a lot of bacteria which might be responsible for infections if the penis is not cleaned properly. As I said I am no expert.

potassium citrate - you can buy it from independent chemists