Looking for some UTI info and advice!

[Shellfishblastard]

Hi all,

I woke on Monday with a horrible feeling down below. I thought it was coming from my coil - checked the strings though and all seems ok there.

As the day progressed I felt it was coming from my urethra and I was having to pee more than usual. No stinging when I pee but very stingy in that region constantly.

Spoke to a nurse at the clinic where my IUD was inserted and she said UTI, go to pharmacy. Which I did.

I have now completed a 3 day course of antibiotics - took the last one about an hour ago.

I have two issues - still going to the loo a lot and still have that urge. And lower back is still sore.

Feel so incredibly sick - this started within a couple of hours of starting the antibiotics. This is the worst part at the moment.

I don’t think I have a temp - no way of telling but don’t feel hot to touch etc. No abdominal pain really.

Do I give the antibiotics a little more time or should they have worked already?

To complicate matters we are glamping away from home.

Ah sorry to resurrect an old thread.

I am the OP but name changed.

The antibiotics I received the second time seemed to do the trick except I still had some burning down below and some niggles around my kidney area and lower back.

I started to take D Mannose and have had some symptom free days but intermittent burning after I pee or shower.

Handed a sample into the GP last week and it was clear.

Today I’ve got proper symptoms again - the jagging around my urethra and a need to pee. Lower back pain there a little but not severe.

I’m drinking lots and lots and have taken a couple of the cystitis sachets. Handed another sample into my GP.

Should I have had a longer course of antibiotics to properly clear it up? So annoyed about this

And was it a mistake to take the D Mannose?!

I’ve ordered tripe cranberry tablets from Amazon to see if they help

As far as I know, both D mannose & cranberry work by stopping E.Coli sticking to the bladder walls. D mannose especially is very effective, but only if the UTI is caused by E.Coli. If your GP has a urine sample they should be able to tell you which bacteria is causing the infection. Hope you feel better soon.

They’ve said it’s a clear sample and sent it away to the lab

Haven't quite RTFT, but as a fellow UTI sufferer (fairly frequently) all my adult life, you have my sincere sympathies OP.

But (as others have suggested) you need to have a sample tested to check which antiobiotic you need. I only respond to cefalexin for UTIs. And also, this 'you only need 3 days' worth' isn't always true. I need at least 5 days, if not the full 7 (one dr who I'd never seen before, even supercilliously got his medical book down from the shelf in the surgery to show me, 'there, it says 3 days'... that dr nearly put me in hospital with a kidney infection and my usual GP was flabbergasted he'd not read my notes to see I always need a full course)

I usually settle at about 5 days, so now my GP prescribes me the full 7, but advises me to keep the spares back so I can take one as soon as I know I'm getting one the next time (I always do a sample before I take the antibiotic though, just in case they want to see me f2f to check it, although these days they just give me the nod over the phone!).

There's no rhyme or reason to when I get a UTI. My bladder has the bacteria in it that reacts badly to UTIs (so none of the OTC stuff works at all - not even to make me feel less 'sting-y' ) and I've learned to act fast and head it off at the pass with my spare antibiotics, and then get a fresh course of them.

But oh, the nights I've sat on the loo at 3am with a glass and a huge jug of water because that's the only place I feel comfy while I wait for the antiboiotic to take effect! But every dribble that comes out (slowly!) from the pints of water I'm drinking while I'm sat there (often reading MN on my ipad!) feels a little less burn-y once the medication starts kicking in.

UTIs are miserable things. Good luck OP. You shouldn't still be feeling this bad at this stage. The right antibiotic and only a day later you feel so much better you almost forget you need them! That's the stage you need to get to.

You shouldnt take the sachets before sending the sample as it can affect results.
I found with me the only thing that helped was getting rid of the coil

I got my coil removed yesterday but still have burning and also discomfort. I am
Sick of it. Urine samples are clear though

Hi Bagelsandbrie (and others with UTIs that need multiple drugs to treat it)
I hope you don't mind me messaging you. I'm a medical researcher at University College London and I'm looking at peoples' experiences of using antibiotics and having infections that are resistant.So many people suffer with UTIs -it's important we understand more about how to treat them.

It might be that the infection eventually finds a treatment that works but to get there the patient has had to go through numerous different drugs - and pain and worry. I saw your story about having a recurrent UTI and that you now take a daily antibiotic as prevention.

I am trying to understand the real picture -ie beyond what the doctors' say - what do the patients and people who experience this sort of thing think? How distressing and inconvenient it is. Is it worrying to think drugs don't work? Does the infection worsen? Does it shift to kidneys etc..

Is there any chance that you would share your story with me please? I already have one lady who has shared her story (she recorded it on What's App - about 3 min recording and I can send if you are interested). It is a university research project (not market research at all and all ethics approved) but I can offer a token of thanks if you have an interesting story to tell and are happy to share on an audio recording on What's app or similar say. Also if anyone else wants to send me their experience of antibiotic resistance I am keen to hear! My email is [email protected] Many thanks for reading Becky