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Hi Everyone,
My name is Maia. I am 28 and live in Portland, Oregon.
For the past few months I have been dealing with what I thought were UTI infections. I would treat it with cranberry pills and it seemed go away, only to return a few weeks to a month later.
Two weeks ago it hit pretty hard- urinating sometimes every fifteen minutes, ache in pelvic area, ache in lower back and thighs, and that constant pressure in the bladder. I do not have pain when I urinate, and I would not describe the pain as "sharp" or "stinging." Rather, the pain I have is a really uncomfortable ache in pelvic area, lower back, and thighs.
On January 18th, I did a UA and was told it tested positive for a UTI. I was put on an antibiotic (Bactrim) for five days. I took it for five days and it did not do anything. I ended up going into urgent care a week ago (Jan. 22), as the pain in lower back and legs was feeling worse and I was still urinating frequently. They ran some blood tests, took a urine sample, and even did a pelvic exam. Everything came back perfectly normal. The nurse told me that I appeared perfectly healthy, but the symptoms I am having worry her. She ended up referring me to a urologist, which I will see next Friday. I was sent home with Oxybutynin (5mg tablet, twice a day) and an OTC medication PHENAZOPYRIDINE 95 MG TABLET, that provides urinary relief and helps with frequent urination.
I have been taking the Oxybutynin for a week now, but I was supposed to only take the other OTC medication for the first two days. Yesterday I started to feel symptoms again and I am back to urinating every 20 minutes or so, and that dreaded ache in my lower back, thighs, and pelvic region has returned. The only difference (after feeling better for a few days earlier in the week) is that I drank coffee (which I don't do that often) and I am about to start my period.
I ended up taking the urinary relief medication yesterday and will be taking it again soon. It seems to help with the constant pressure in the bladder feeling.
I am really scared, because I have had both a nurse and my naturopathic doctor tell me that there may be a chance that I have IC. I don't want a painful lifelong disease like this. The thought alone of being in chronic pain is causing me a lot of anxiety. I have printed off the IC diet guide and I am going to follow this for the next week until I see the urologist and hopefully get some answers. If it is IC, I will work with my naturopath to manage the symptoms as well (I prefer holistic medicine when I can use it).
I once had a friend (she was a lot older than me, in her early 50's, and she had IC. In fact, she may have once been a member here, which is how I remembered to find this support group. I remember staying at her house and she would be in so much pain. I felt so bad for her and I thought to myself, "I hope I never get that." Here I am 12 years later and may have IC.
Perhaps I am jumping the gun, but so many of my symptoms point to IC. I would like to be proven wrong next week, but I want to be prepared to get the bad news.
I feel so overwhelmed and upset. I don't want to live this kind of life. I work in mental health as a residential counselor and I am very passionate about my career, going back to school in a year for a graduate degree in counseling, and getting involved in an alternative, body based counseling program (Hakomi) in the fall. I do not want this to shatter these dreams.
Thanks for listening,
Maia
P.S. I deal with PTSD and anxiety, so I do take medications for this. I wonder, has there every been a connection between long-term psychotropic medications and IC?
My name is Maia. I am 28 and live in Portland, Oregon.
For the past few months I have been dealing with what I thought were UTI infections. I would treat it with cranberry pills and it seemed go away, only to return a few weeks to a month later.
Two weeks ago it hit pretty hard- urinating sometimes every fifteen minutes, ache in pelvic area, ache in lower back and thighs, and that constant pressure in the bladder. I do not have pain when I urinate, and I would not describe the pain as "sharp" or "stinging." Rather, the pain I have is a really uncomfortable ache in pelvic area, lower back, and thighs.
On January 18th, I did a UA and was told it tested positive for a UTI. I was put on an antibiotic (Bactrim) for five days. I took it for five days and it did not do anything. I ended up going into urgent care a week ago (Jan. 22), as the pain in lower back and legs was feeling worse and I was still urinating frequently. They ran some blood tests, took a urine sample, and even did a pelvic exam. Everything came back perfectly normal. The nurse told me that I appeared perfectly healthy, but the symptoms I am having worry her. She ended up referring me to a urologist, which I will see next Friday. I was sent home with Oxybutynin (5mg tablet, twice a day) and an OTC medication PHENAZOPYRIDINE 95 MG TABLET, that provides urinary relief and helps with frequent urination.
I have been taking the Oxybutynin for a week now, but I was supposed to only take the other OTC medication for the first two days. Yesterday I started to feel symptoms again and I am back to urinating every 20 minutes or so, and that dreaded ache in my lower back, thighs, and pelvic region has returned. The only difference (after feeling better for a few days earlier in the week) is that I drank coffee (which I don't do that often) and I am about to start my period.
I ended up taking the urinary relief medication yesterday and will be taking it again soon. It seems to help with the constant pressure in the bladder feeling.
I am really scared, because I have had both a nurse and my naturopathic doctor tell me that there may be a chance that I have IC. I don't want a painful lifelong disease like this. The thought alone of being in chronic pain is causing me a lot of anxiety. I have printed off the IC diet guide and I am going to follow this for the next week until I see the urologist and hopefully get some answers. If it is IC, I will work with my naturopath to manage the symptoms as well (I prefer holistic medicine when I can use it).
I once had a friend (she was a lot older than me, in her early 50's, and she had IC. In fact, she may have once been a member here, which is how I remembered to find this support group. I remember staying at her house and she would be in so much pain. I felt so bad for her and I thought to myself, "I hope I never get that." Here I am 12 years later and may have IC.
Perhaps I am jumping the gun, but so many of my symptoms point to IC. I would like to be proven wrong next week, but I want to be prepared to get the bad news.
I feel so overwhelmed and upset. I don't want to live this kind of life. I work in mental health as a residential counselor and I am very passionate about my career, going back to school in a year for a graduate degree in counseling, and getting involved in an alternative, body based counseling program (Hakomi) in the fall. I do not want this to shatter these dreams.
Thanks for listening,
Maia
P.S. I deal with PTSD and anxiety, so I do take medications for this. I wonder, has there every been a connection between long-term psychotropic medications and IC?
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