Difficulty Urinating - 17 weeks

[AKM89]

Hi all

Sorry for the rather grim subject, but I wanted to reach out and see if anyone else had experience / is experienced this.

I am 17 weeks + 1, and since just before 16 weeks I have been having difficulty when urinating, especially first thing in the morning. I find it difficulty to start, my stream is very light, and it never feels like I have fully emptied my bladder.

Two urine tests at the GP this week have turned out normal / not shown any infections (though the GP did put me on pre-emptive antibiotics in case it was a UTI). I have been referred to my MFAU tomorrow to investigate further given that it doesn't seem to be a UTI, but I wanted to reach out in the interim to see if anyone had been through this at this stage of pregnancy. It feels too early to me to have these symptoms, but this is my first pregnancy so I am finding it difficult to work out what is "normal". I also have a retroverted uterus and am worried it may be something to do with that.

Thanks all.

[LittleTiger007]

This is interesting as I too have a retroverted uterus and have been struggling with the same. I am currently taking antibiotics for a kidney infection. I’m just finishing the tablets today and fear the infection is coming back 😖. I’m only 14 weeks but with twins. They are doing a scan on Thursday to see where the babies (and their sacks of fluid) are lying.
It’s my first pregnancy too... and I agree this seems early. Let’s hope they get to the bottom of it for us both!

[Mallowmarshmallow]

Sorry ladies, I had this in both of my pregnancies. I also have a reverted uterus although nobody mentioned that being why. I also wondered if it was caused by hormones as it started so early, before the pregnancy should result have been having an impact on my bladder.

It continued until my babies were born but didn't get any worse. I can vividly remember my first post baby wees each time being the most satisfying wees of my life!!

[Flowerbudd]

Very interesting! Literally today I was thinking that having a wee felt harder and different? Anyway, saw the post on here and I also have a reverted uterus but Im only 8 weeks!! Maybe it is a thing? Thank you for posting as I generally wondered this today. Best of luck in the pregnancies ladies :) xx

[AKM89]

Hi everyone - thanks so much for your replies. Sorry you are all suffering / have suffered with this, but sounds like it's more common than I thought. Hopefully I will get some answers soon!

[mamababy1955555]

Same thing happened to me in my first pregnancy around the same time. I also have a retroverted uterus. It did go away after a few weeks.

[GlowingOrb]

I wonder if the peri bottle trick would help. Basically fill a bottle with warm water and then spray it in the right spot as you start to go. It helps with irritation and relaxes the muscles a bit. It might not help since the core of the problem is deeper. I highly recommend having a peri bottle available after the birth so it wouldn’t hurt to buy one early.

[KylieKangaroo]

I had this too and also have a tilted uterus. I have been drinking lots of orange juice and cranberry juice and eventually it has got better. I actually found I was going about 10 times a night at one point, it was awful so you have my sympathy!

[LittleTiger007]

This is so interesting and reassuring to read! My kidneys really throb today. I have been drinking lots of cranberry juice too but the doctor told me this week to switch to cranberry tablets because of all the sugar in cranberry juice. This is what they recommend in pregnancy

[AKM89]

Thanks everyone for the further replies. It's reassuring to hear that it is more common than I thought, even if it is horrible for all of us. Definitely going to investigate the peri bottle tip. Finding it particularly tough to deal with because I don't know the cause.

LittleTiger007, hope your scan on Thursday goes okay.

[ashley69ly]

I had this with DD2 and also have a retroverted uterus. At about 14 weeks, I had a couple of days where I felt like I couldn't empty my bladder properly and then woke in the night bursting to go but couldn't pass anything. 111 sent me to A & E and I had to be catheterised. I was told that it was due to having a retroverted uterus and that as the baby grows, your uterus tilts as it rises above your pelvis and traps your urethra. I was told to make sure that I didn't go to long between wees and it would stop as the pregnancy progressed and my uterus moved position. I was fine for the rest of the pregnancy and it hadn't happened with my first. It was a bit scary at the time and quite uncomfortable but easily sorted. Still cant believe that they emptied 2 litres from my bladder that night- no wonder I was uncomfortable.

[AKM89]

Thanks, ashley, useful to know it happens to others too.

I went to the MFAU yesterday, and they decided to put in a catheter until I have been seen by a urologist. They're not sure what is causing it, but think it might be my retroverted uterus partially trapping my urethra. I am hopefully seeing the urologist this week, but for anyone still experiencing it, it is worth getting checked out as the doctor's main worry was that it could lead to a UTI.

[KylieKangaroo]

@AKM89 hope you are okay, as if pregnancy isn't hard enough as it is!

[AKM89]

@KylieKangaroo aww, thanks very much, yeah it's definitely not needed - just relieved to be working from home atm!