What to drink???

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

I'm having a real hard time finding things to drink. First of all, I hate water and have never been a water drinker. I've tried drinking it for many months now and it makes me pee more, and I swear it irritates my bladder sometimes more than other things. But I do need fluid or my pee hurts more.

I've been doing the almond milk and that's ok I suppose. Though I can't imagine drinking it all day. I've done rice milk but I have to find one that doesn't hurt my bladder. Some do for unknown reasons. I bought the Roastaroma and that seems to be ok, but I'm a little suspicious because tonight I'm burning for some reason and I just drank a cup of that tea. I just want to guzzle something that will quench my thirst. However, there is nothing that is completely bladder friendly to me. Before I hardly drank anything at all (I know...it's unbelievable) and that's probably why I've had four kidney stones.

So then I'm thinking I might try the Crystal Geyser some of you have mentioned. Perhaps I have to drink better filtered water. I have a top of the line filter at the place I live (landlords bought it) and it is supposed to filter everything. And it seems all water is the same for me. I drink it and out it comes, however.

At this point I just want to have something to quench thirst because some meds I take make my mouth so dry.

I want to add that I've drank so much chamomile that I cannot even stomach it. It makes me queasy just to smell it.

[nineteenwinters No longer active Find all posts View Profile Close nineteenwinters]

Yeah water and chamomile tea (both warm and cold) aren't the easiest for my bladder which some people say is strange. I still drink the water though because the last thing I want to do is get dehydrated on top of things. I drink milk sometimes but it's not really a drink drink to me. I still feel thirsty when I drink it. I am trying pure blueberry juice right now. Its 'OK'. It kind of reminds me of a mix between grape and pomegranate juice. I hate it though because it stains everything. I tried the pear juice and it tasted like it was made for babies. I am going to try Gatorade when I reach my 3rd month diet goal since it's in the 'try it category'. I actually drank Gatorade before IC so I look forward to something I like to drink down the road.

For water I have tried adding pears and watermelon but the flavor is just kind of 'blah' and the food in water grosses me out in general. It reminds me of backwash.

I noticed in the 'try it' there's also citrus peels. I might try that later too to mimic the taste of water with lemon.

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

Andrea...you made me laugh.

I wanted to try the pear juice but now that I'm thinking of it as a baby drink, perhaps I'll pass. LOL... Though maybe 1/2 water and 1/2 pear juice might be better. Sometimes I think water is too thin and just runs through the bladder too quickly. If that even makes sense.

I've never seen blueberry juice in the store. Though I never had reason to look for it. I suppose it's worth a shot. (today I bought blueberry breakfast bars...they are good...the problem is that I could eat the whole box...)

Of course the backwash thing turned me off... ha ha. Yeah...fruits floating in water is not a good thing. I also noticed the citrus peel thing. I might try it for a variety. I do drink an orange herbal tea made with citrus peel (Lipton herbals). It's really good. But right now I can maybe stomach one a day.

[nineteenwinters No longer active Find all posts View Profile Close nineteenwinters]

Haha! I am sorry.

Yes, watered down was more tolerable for me (with the pear juice). But who knows you might like it. I could just be weird. It's probably to do with the fact that the only kind I could find was in the baby isle.

I am freak about backwash. I never finish a full drink of anything because I think there's backwash in it. I know they did a medical study and it wasn't true. I can't stop thinking about it though. It's just one of my OCD thing. I found if I made a pitcher and threw the fruit in there and just 'filtered' the water when I would get a glass it wouldn't gross me out as much.

I am looking for blueberry breakfast bars! I can't find them anywhere. I think I am just going to order them online. They sound yummy.

I got my blueberry juice from Trader Joes if you have one near you. Anytime I crave soda I have a little glass of that. It does work some because it tastes like we aren't supposed to be allowed to have it. Like 'adult' juice hehe.

[ICNDonna ICN Staff Find all posts View Profile Close ICNDonna]

I like to have lots of ice in my drinking water, especially if the weather is warm. I find that if I take small drinks throughout the day it's better for me. There are many different flavors of herbal tea --- I usually drink that more in winter than when the weather is warm.

Do you live in an area with clorinated water? I know I can't stand to drink that. I'm fortunate that I live in the country with water from a deep well.

I do agree it's important to get at least six cups of water daily.

Sending encouraging hugs,
Donna

[Kitty920 ICN Member Find all posts View Profile Close Kitty920]

Hi All;

I am not sure why but I have been ok drinking Apple & Eve Organic apple juice. I do water it down and drink it real cold (or else it taste like something else I won't mention) but it sure is tasty when the other option is water... Also, marshmellow root tea (although I haven't seen any medicinal benefits from it) taste real good with honey, warm or cold.

I have tried Annie's fruit bars and they seem to be ok and have no preservatives and are yummy..but I know what you mean they taste so good you could eat the whole box in one sitting. Their peanut butter bars are tasty too.

My question is I know that soy is considered a big no no, but what about soy lechtin (I may have spelled it wrong)? It is found in most all baked goodies like the vanilla oreo double stuff cookies that I drool over in my cabinet...I am afraid to try them because of that last darn ingredient on the list...
I bought some Bryers Almond butter ice cream last night and barely got out of my car and I was opening it to eat...it was so yummy!! Milk is on the safe list for most people I guess...but I don't know if it helps me or hurts me at this point...it will be the very last thing I will give up because I love it so.

Have a good day!!
Nancy

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

Thank you all for the replies.

Andrea, I get Blueberry Bars from Whole Foods and the brand is 365. But check the ingredients. There might be questionable preservatives that might not be good. I think I'm ok with them, but we'll see. I hope so. I see on the label citric acid. But I don't know how much is in there. And I'm still new at reading labels and checking for preservatives.

I like to have a piece of toast with natural blueberry preserves. If you can have butter it's really delicious for breakfast or a snack.

Donna, I do believe we have chlorinated water. I sometimes use the tap at the gym and now I'm thinking it's bad idea. I hadn't thought about it much until now.

Nancy, I didn't know Breyers had an Almond Butter Ice Cream. That sounds great. And I'm going to check out the peanut butter bars too. I too am wondering about soy and did notice that soy lecithin also. I think it is something that holds things together...like some sort of binder. Whether or not it's IC friendly, I have no clue. Maybe someone here will know.

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

I recently got the ph strips from the IC store and tested the water from my tap and it was off the charts acidic. Then I did a test of the water coming through the PUR filter I have on my faucet and it was neutral! I couldn't believe there would be so much difference. Just an interesting fact....

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

Drink

The best thing for the bladder is water...which actually dilutes the acid in our food. Do not drink coffee, tea, or any kind of citris juice. I hated water but...I have no choice now with my bladder...I would rather drink water than my bladder be set afire

Good luck

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

Certain flavors of Hint water are something to try to break the monotony of drinking water (I was never a big water drinker, either). I've noticed that Starbucks has started carrying the blackberry flavor, and I've also found watermelon. I'm not as big of a fan of the pear flavor. I've also been able to find a brand called Ayala's Herb Water. It's flavored with herbs - my favorites are Lavender Mint and Vanilla Lemongrass.

It's not to everyone's taste; my five year old son was thirsty, so one day he grabbed my bottle of herb water out of my hands and started chugging. After he finished, he made a disgusted face and said, "Ugh, mommy? Why would you drink water that tastes like that?" At least he doesn't go grabbing my drinks from my hand anymore.

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

I never heard of herb water. Sounds interesting and I just might look for that!

Pennyjo, I am taking what you wrote very seriously. In fact, this weekend I only drank Crystal Geyser water and noticed a BIG change in how often I used the restroom. So weird. I was drinking teas that seem to be safe, however, I am very sensitive to most of them it seems. I wouldn't have actually known that if I hadn't spent a couple days only drinking the water I mentioned. I'm really bummed. Almost milk is not so bad I think and I'll experiment with that later this week if I feel well enough.