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**Teri** · 05-03-2001, 10:13 AM

Hi Tura
I have the interstim and yes, I think it's way too early in your treatment to even think about. I had exhausted ALL medical treatments and was using the bathroom every 20 minutes. I couldn't leave my house unless the place I was going to was within that 20 minutes and there was a VISABLE bathroom to use. The implant has worked for me and I am so grateful that something finally did help~BUT, I still have IC, always will. I pray that there will be a new treatment that will work for me someday and I can have this metal taken outa my fanny....it is a foreign object and anything could go wrong with it at any given moment.
You could find that the elmiron DOES work for you and I would much rather take a pill for the rest of my life that live with this device in my fanny.
Hope this helps some teri

**Sandy** · 05-05-2001, 06:07 PM

Hi Tura

I also have Interstim and have had it in almost a year now. I also had exhausted all treatments (3Years) I took Elmiron for a year and it helped with the burning but as for the urg/frq I found it did not work for me. I had to cath alot and also spent alot of time with a foley cath inso I could get rest. Interstim is a big step, but I know the urg frq is horrible. Have they tried any other drugs? I am sorry to say but everything they tried on me for urg/frq did not work
The interstim has work well for me although I still have my days with urg/frq bladder bloat and stillhave to self cath at times. More right now and I am going in for a urodynamics as I just cannot seem to get that last bit out to the point where I feel like I have finished peeing. I am hoping that will show some good results. I think it would be good to talk to a uro about the interstim or see another uro. I saw five and went thru hydros cystos drugs Dmso cystistat. Dmso for me was horrible. I was in terrible pain and terrible urg frg when I had the cysistat and also had a lot of stress and I think it and being in the hospital for four days help with that(I was on Holidays, 3000 miles from home so that was stressing me as well cause I was too sick to get on the plane)After about four days they released me and I rented a car and just spent some time alone and then flew home. So I think it was a combination of calming down and some of the installations that helped, but still had to cath alot, but the urg/frg calmed down. Not to the point it is now.
The only think I can honestly say is that I hope you don't have to try drug after drug and installlation after installation and everything else for the length of time that some of us on here did. I am sure Teri can vouch for that one. But I do agree with her Interstim is a big step, but it is one I am glad I made. I would read the postings on the good and bad points that people have expressed. Elmiron took about 8 months before I noticed the burning stopped (flares) but I still did get flares especially around my period time
Hope this is of some info to you

Sandy

**Tura** · 05-05-2001, 07:36 PM

Hi Sandy,
Thanks for your advice. Ive been on ditropan wich didnt help alot then the imipramine wich im on now. that helps but not compleately. I still get urgency frequency and have to watch what i eat cause its worse if i eat the wrong foods. Some days i can go almost 1hr-45 minutes other days only 1 hour and some 30 and on abad flare day maybe more, but in general i can go 1 hour between bathroom visits. Much better than before i was diagnosed with ic. Im gonan ask my doc if i can stay in the imipramine while i take the elmiron. elmiron looks to me to have helped others so i want to give it achance before i take drastic measures and do this interstim. Ive been reading about it on the net and i dont think i should do it until ive exhausted all other ideas. Thanks for your advice. Tura

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InterStim Therapy? Is it right for me?

InterStim Therapy? Is it right for me?

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