Does anyone have constant bladder spasums?

[stacyY ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close stacyY]

Hi everyone,
I just came from my ob/gyn. I have been haveing really bad cramps, I thought it was to do with just being a female,even though i never have periods i still get PMS,spotting, and lattly horrible cramps.
But i have noticed they come a lot after i go to the bathroom. like sometimes, before i can even wipe, or just a few mins after. She said it sounds more like bladder spasums.
If they are do anyone know how to get ride of them? Just when walking around I get cramps. It feel like all day long they last. Which is why i thought it was like mestral cramps even though i do not bleed. But thought the minor spotting was the problem.
Today I am also going to my urologist. I will also ask her. But some times i get better advice here then at the doctors.
Any thoguhts???

thanks stacy

[Roxie2007 ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close Roxie2007]

HI! I used to get those all the time too......but they have pretty much stopped since I started Elavil again. I think the Freeze dried Aloe Vera helps too. Hope you get helpful advice from your URO......Roxie

[KristiV ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close KristiV]

My gynecologist thinks that I might have bladder spasms. He is not for sure. I was telling him the other day and I have been wearing the adhesive heating pads on my panties at night. I keep it on for eight hours and normally the next couple of days I feel pretty good. If I just use a regular heating pad that shuts off I do not get the same effect. I told him I thought that it had to be calming my bladder. I suggested to him that I thought I might have PFD, he said I didn't have that but that I might have bladder spasms. So.....you might want to try adhesive heating pads at night. Hope you find something that works for you.

Kristi

[stacyY ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close stacyY]

thanks for the advice!
I saw my urologist today also. Boy what trip that was. OF course i get there and cant pee for some reason. Got just a little out, enough for them to think it could be an infection, but i am on an antibiotic, so i am not sure how can be an infection.
I told her that i was haveing these horrible cramps. She thinks it might be also cos i cant empty out my bladder and it sits there and bothers my bladder.
I had to get a cathider done, which forme is pure torture. Before that she said to me again to learn how to do it. I said i cant. It hurts so bad when your nurse does it, I cant do it.
So this time the Doc acculy did it this time. With in like 10 seconds of the cathider in there, i just start crying and shakeing.I was just trying to breathout the pain, but it jsut got worse, and when they took it out, my god it felt like somone was draging their nails inside of me ripping it out.
After that she said now ic an see why for y ou you do not want to do it.
But then she said also she never had anyone respond that way with a cathider. She has no idea what is going on. When i went there it wasa a follow up from my cystoscop. She said there was no bleeding in side at all and my bladder capasity is large. which in Feb 2006, it was small only 900cc and there was bleeding. So she now deffinatly has no idea what is really going on.
None of it makes since. She has no idea how to treat me. She said to take pryidium for the spasms. Hopefuly it will work.
So thats whats going on there. Never ending thing.
thanks for all the suport and help!
take care
stacy

[littlemyrn ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close littlemyrn]

Have you had a urodynamics test done? I have constant spasms, from that my bladder has shrunk and I fear as it goes on I will someday not have one. I take 5 mg. Valium at night, and I am calling her tomorrow to ask for any suggestions for the day time. Any physical activity just sets me off.

The Cath, kills me to. Did they put lidocaine on it? that helps. I do home instills, and I have to really pych myself up to do them. She wants me to do them 3 times a week, but I can't, I try for one. It isn't hard to do, I use a mirror to be sure going in the right place and then I take my Valium and that helps.

[stacyY ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close stacyY]

No i never had that test done. But i think I will mention it to the dcotor. I have no idea how you manage to do the Instilations. I couldnt do it. Back a year ago she did 4 of them and every time i went back, my pain was worse. She stopped doing it and then the pain stopped.

My bladder is not responding to tipical treatments. Since yesterday, my urethera is paining me so much. She thinks it will help to keep doing it but it hurts so much.

My doctors thinks i need to get off all my medician, she thinks its whats causing the urine retention. She said to get off my anti-depressiant, even my Elavil, and Flexeril. She wil not give me any pain pills. She just said to take the pyridium. and only the very necessity thins for my thyroid and ulcer. Everything else needs to stop. Even my Vicodin, she has me not takeing that at all. And now i jsut found i have Ulcers last week, and cant even take motrin for it. Does takeing Pyridium halp you at all for spasms?
take care
stacy

Have you had a urodynamics test done? I have constant spasms, from that my bladder has shrunk and I fear as it goes on I will someday not have one. I take 5 mg. Valium at night, and I am calling her tomorrow to ask for any suggestions for the day time. Any physical activity just sets me off.

The Cath, kills me to. Did they put lidocaine on it? that helps. I do home instills, and I have to really pych myself up to do them. She wants me to do them 3 times a week, but I can't, I try for one. It isn't hard to do, I use a mirror to be sure going in the right place and then I take my Valium and that helps.

[Roxie2007 ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close Roxie2007]

HI! Pyridium helps with spasms......it calms the bladder. It's an anesthesia for the bladder.
If you have been taking Motrin that might be what's causing the bladder problem. I can't take any Ibuprofen products because it causes urethra pain and spasms.
It sounds like you need to see a Urologist who specializes in IC. Good luck! Roxie

[pj77 ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close pj77]

I had bladder spasms- they did not start immediately after my symptoms of IC started. They started after I lived with the IC pain for sometime, while I was being diagnosed and before treatment.

My urologist said he wasn't surprised I started to have them after living with the pain for awhile. After I started treatment and started to feel better they went away.

You poor thing! You are not weird or crazy! If you have IC and/or your bladder/pelvic area is already in pain and having spasms , I'm not surprised the catheter hurt ! It can be very painful for some people with problems in that area.
-ask for two things, numbing cream on the outside
-and a pediatric catheter which is smaller


The catheter goes in and bumps against the sides of you bladder, where you nerves are flaring. OUCH! Once I had one put in at the hospital ( before I knew I had IC ) when my bladder was already hurting and I thought I was going to die. I had to leave it in for a test and I was crying and it hurt the whole time, like broken glass inside of me!

Even if you are feeling good a catheter can set my IC pain off. If they are familiar with IC or pelvic pain at your urologists they will be sympathetic to this and and should have no problem. Except with some tests, they might have to use the regular size one, but they can still use the numbing cream. If they don't understand this, I might look for another doctor. I try to stay away from catheters at all costs unless absolutely necessary.

Oh and the PFD, did they ever test you for this? They can do an exam/test, it's like a pelvic exam where they press inside on certain muscle pressure points and see how you react, pain levels etc. If they did not check I would ask them to check for this.

And your bladder could be flaring right now, even though your bladder did not look that bad at last cystoscopy.

I hope things calm down for you soon, the pyridium should help and hopefully you and the doctor will get to the bottom of your cramping and spasms!

Good luck!

[pj77 ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close pj77]

oops posted twice sorry

[stacyY ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close stacyY]

Thanks for the good advice. Its been over a month now, and I am doing better cramp wise. So i am thinking that the spasms have calmed down. Every now and then i feel it and then i get some cramping, but not like steady like before. I did use the pyridem and it helped so much.
I have not have an official exam for PFD, as to my knowledge,lol then again i been poked and proded so offten, i have no idea whats been done and when.
The docotrs trying to get me to go back to the University of Michigan Hospital, I am not looking forword to it, My last exam, sent me in a 2 week flare up, god only knows what they will do to me there.
I will deffinaly write down the info you gave me about the numbing cream and smaller cathider. You right it feels like glass ripping threw you.
One time in the Er they left a huge one in me and i cried non stop for over 20 mins, was so bad!I wanted to rip it out my self and when he said to leave in all night i thought he was insain!
Thanks again for your thoughts and ideas, i will deffinatly use it.
best wishs for you also
stacy

[Charisse ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close Charisse]

Stacy did they ever give you a firm diagnosis? My main symptom is cramping like you describe. Like bad period cramps all the time. I had a PST and the catheter hurt so bad going in I thought I would die. I have no burning and only minor urgency/frequency. Our symptoms sound a lot alike so I'm just wondering if it's truly IC. I am getting Heparin instills now and they are irritating my urethra although much less painful now that they use the lidocaine. Also I asked them not to use the Betadine this time cause I think that causes additional burning. I've only had the PST and this one instill so I don't know but everyone says I'm supposed to get immediate relief and if anything I feel a little worse. I am going to ask my GYN about possible endometriosis, bladder spasms or hormonal imbalance? I just don't want to be missing anything.

[stacyY ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close stacyY]

Hi Charisse
Well I found the cramping is acculy bladder spasms. I take the Pyridium, and it works great to stop it, but when they start i keep it in my system even if it starts to feel better. ALso I was usuaing a heating pad and it seemed to help. Usualy the heat made the IC worse, but with these cramps, it really helped.
I have been threw it all the Ob/gyn, acculy just saw her a few days back. She has incresed my flexeril to 2 times a day morining and night. I have had the laporoscopys done they suspect the Endo also but when they did surgery didnt see it but the doctor still thinks i have it.
In april I have the Cystoscope done again, and when i saw her a few weeks back she is more puzzeled. But thinks the Elmiron has possibly healed the lesions. But the reactions i have to the cathider she said is very abnormal. So in July, I am going to Univerity of Michigan hospital to try to get more answers. I have 3 doctors now who just do not have any real answers. I was hopeing to avoid it by haveing the surgery in april, but left the doctor more confused.
So between the ob/gyn and my urologist, no solid answeres.
Ohh yeah i cant do the instalations, it made my condition much worse, i went for 4 weeks, and when we decided not to do it since the pain seem to be worse while doing them, she said lets not do it and see what happends, and with in a few days the pain acculy stopped.
But lattly a major issue is not being able to compleatly empty out my bladder. She isnt sure whats causing it, could be my medications she said. But i think its i get so enflamed, and swelled up, and i can feel the muscles become more hard, So its i belive whats causing that issue.
But in april i also had a endoscopy done, and i have ulcers, and told i cant ever have mortin. Well about 2 weeks back i couldnt pee again., took the mortin and with in 1 hr i finnaly was able to go to the bathroom. so weird.
WEll I wish you good luck. I hope things work out better for you then it has for me. I deffinaly next time you got the cramps, take the pyrdium, its really helped me. I always thought it was for when you have infections. BUt its for pain also. works really well.
GOod luck.
stacy

[Charisse ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close Charisse]

Stacy thanks so much for replying. The Pyridium does usually help me but I can only take half the dose otherwise I get weird stomach pains. It sounds like our cases are very similar. How did they determine you were having spasms? Is that what they do after they rule everything else out? They told me years ago I was having spasms but then they kind of went away on their own and then came back with the cramping which I didn't have before. I am afraid to continue on with these Heparin instills since they are bothering my urethra but if the GYN thinks it will help then I guess I should try them. I also will get the occasional problem of feeling like I have to pee and yet nothing will come out. I've also had a feeling like knives in my urethra before. Have you ever had that? It sounds like your drs are being real thorough with you which I'm glad to hear. Please keep in touch!!