to ask if you have some secret weapon against cystitis after sex?

[stingyburnyfuck]

i mean this nicely but please please don’t come here just to tell me to wee after sex or drink cranberry juice. We are way past that.

I am absolutely desperate. Feel like I’ve tried EVERYTHING. I’ve posted in the past under another name I think and received some good advice but I’m back again. Is there ANYTHING you do to fight cystitis that I haven’t tried?? Anything? Please!

I have suffered my entire adult life, 25 years since I started having sex, with recurrent cystitis after sex. It starts 3-5 days after the sex and nothing gets rid of it until I take a full course of antibiotics.

I’ve seen specialists and am currently under the care of the private Malone-Lee urology clinic in London. Their treatment is long term antibiotics. I’ve been under them three years and spent an absolute fortune that I cannot sustain. It was life changing to be able to have a normal sex life with DH without being in agony days later. But they recently took me off the ABs to see how it goes - we’ve had sex twice - both times I have got cystitis and ended up on a course of ABs anyway. So I just don’t think it’s the long term solution and I can’t stay on ABs forever, can I?!

I’ve tried:
*Thrush and BV treatment
*One antibiotic every time I have sex (worked 90% of the time but again is that a long term solution?)
*D-mannose and cranberry - do nothing
*Urethral stretch and had camera up there
*Always wash and wee directly before and after sex
*No perfumed products or soap near vulva
*Drink shit load of water daily and limited caffeine
*Probiotics

Dipstick and lab tests nearly always clear (I know theory of these being unreliable) and I’ve had every swab imaginable and they’re always clear too so I don’t think it’s thrush or an infection.

the only thing I haven’t really done is change my diet because it’s only ever sex that triggers it - if I go months without sex I don’t have a twinge, no matter what I eat/drink.

feel fucking miserable and like I either give up sex or suffer forever.

Are there any other specialists other than Malone-Lee people would recommend?

Someone should invent some sort of urethra protection cover you could put on before sex. I'm really sorry you have to deal with this it sounds so difficult and you've tried a lot already.

In light of the above comment do female condoms (femidoms?) still exist and do they cover the urinary region?

I feel for you, im the same but thankfully the 1 antibiotic after sex works, although sometimes i need to take another one 4hrs after to completely clear. Its ridiculous how annoying it is.

D-mannose, taken daily, you can purchase from Amazon. Having suffered with this my entire life you have my sympathy, honestly life changing. Independent studies have shown it to be as effective as nitrofurantoin to treat and prevent UTIs but so few people seem to know about it!

My sister had this. she had some kind of bladder wash under general which I believe was life changing for - not sure what it was called so not sure if it’s on your list. She was also on low level AB for years and had to delay having a second child because of it.

Apologies if this is really unhelpful! I had terrible recurring cystitis as a teenager, was in hospital more than once as it spread to my kidneys. I had it every month like clockwork.
I was lucky that mine did go away on its own eventually, but one thing I did find was that sex without a condom would pretty much guarantee a flare up. Would that make a difference for you at all?

Whoops sorry! Should have read your full post. I’m so sorry it’s not worked for you, that was my only useful advice

How do you wash? What worked for me was a sports bottle filled with water and sitting on the toilet squirting the water around the nether regions 🙂 or an absolutely soaking flannel squeezed over the area, gain over the toilet and done 2-3 times.

cystitis is pure hell. I went through years of holiday custitis before I realised the cause wasn’t sex- it was the baby powder I had used to epilate my bikini line before i went! It was so obvious once I realised I couldn’t believe all of that pain had been avoidable! Could it be something like this triggering it? I hope you find a solution.

Does your DH wash before sex too? I insist on it now, not very sexy or spontaneous but seems to have reduced my suffering!

Do different positions help? I pretty much cannot do any kind of position from behind anymore as it seems to hit my urethra and set off cystitis, if I stick to missionary and make DH wash before, I'm usually okay

You could try using lube pre sex, large blobs of it all around the urethra (not just lower down) to protect it a bit as it could be friction partially causing problems.
Alternatively different positions? There are also wearable "cushions " that can be worn around him to prevent such deep penetration, they may alter the angle and reduce pressure on your urethra. They are called "ohnut wearables", worth a try.

I had recurrent cystitis for years

I changed my diet, went keto and I’ve never had it since (5 years now)

The keto diet is marketed as a big weight loss tool, but it is also an inflammation reduction diet

I suspect reducing inflammation in my body included my urethra and has stopped the hideousness of cystitis.

I too had tried everything

You’re all so nice to reply. Could weep 😭

@Aworldofmyown yep good old Angela Kilmartin method!

@Dryshampoofordays I’ve tried and eliminated so many products, nothing seems to make it a difference. It’s just sex! Glad you found something to work for you though!

@polkadotpixie he does - we’ve had no spontaneity for years 😞

@westthroughthewhitleywood condoms or no condoms, it’s always the same.

thanks so much everyone

I'm in the same situation. I even had surgery to stretch my urethra, not successful. I'm on permanent antibiotics and never get cystitis now. Not ideal, but it works.

Thanks @minipin tried loads of different lubes to no avail.

@hamstersarse glad it worked for you, honestly. Was your cystitis triggered by sex?

@Runmybathforme this is what I’m wondering will be my situation. Please can I ask how long you’ve been on them? I just worry so much about AB resistance

Topical oestrogen? Maybe your tissue in that area is a bit fragile which makes you vulnerable?

@Therupaxim i had such high hopes for it, was gutted it did nothing! I’m happy it helped you tho

Major sympathy. Its fkn awful.

@colouringindoors going to ask for this from my GP I think just in case… but surely it wouldn’t have been an issue in my teens, when this whole thing started? Ugh it’s stressful

It's horrible you have my sympathies OP. I have suffered from UTIs since my teenage years. It has blighted my life.

There is a new treatment called Hiprex
Might be worth finding out about?

Hiprex, 1 twice a day. An extra at the time of sex.
Nitrofuratonin, 100mg a day for 3 days after sex
Shower before as well as wee and shower after.

This was me.... until I read somewhere about HRT and cystitis. I showed it to my GP, started on HRT and it's been life changing- not had cystitis since (coming up to a year. Had had crippling monthly bouts previously).