...to ask if anyone has experienced these kind of agonising UTI symptoms?

[GeneralistNotASpecialist]

Firstly, sorry for the very mundane thread. Secondly, let me just start by saying of course I'm not using Mumsnet for a diagnosis and I have sought medical advice. It would just be helpful to understand if any other women on here have experienced such symptoms.

About a month ago I got mild UTI symptoms, I have had one UTI in my whole adult life (30 now) so I thought it would go on its own. It kept coming back so I went to see a doctor as was feeling really ropey with it. I have just finished taking a 9-day course of antibiotics as Urgent Care Doctor thought it sounded like a UTI possibly spreading towards kidneys. Also, there is zero chance of an STD or pregnancy, just to clarify.

I suspect the infection has gone but during the last few days and I'm not exaggerating here, my urethra pain has been excruciating, first it was just after urinating but now it's pretty much there 24/7 in various degrees, obviously worst after just passing urine. Has anyone had symptoms like this with a UTI? When I sought advice from another GP via telephone they said it doesn't sound like a UTI as I have pain after not during urine stream. It has me worried that it's something more sinister. I've barely been drinking anything because I'm so scared to pass fluids.😰

I used to have all sorts of problems around this and chronic utis (needed a couple of surgeries to fix). Could be loads of things.

try putting a hot (but covered) hot water bottle between your legs. Lots of direct heat used to help me with any pain and allowed everything to relax a bit.

You do need to drink though. I drank a mix of things but balance acidic drinks with alkaline.

Nip back to the doctor. A full urine test/analysis can tell you more then just whether you have a uti.

consider a private urologist if you don’t get anywhere. I found the nhs just tapped out with treating me eventually and said they couldn’t do anything. Urologist fixed it completely no recurrence.

I have experienced uti all my adult life.
I had kidney infections a lot when I was a child.
The temptation to avoid water/liquids is strong,
but in my experience, the more water (not tea) I drink, the more it dilutes the strength of the urine.
what concerns me about your experience, is that the pain only comes after releasing urine.
my experience is that it stings whilst trying to release, and a feeling that my bladder is pulsating strongly… and like it’s trying to bear down to get out of my vagina. Then my bladder feels like it’s throbbing for ages after using the toilet.
I know that sounds stupid, but it’s the best way I can find to describe the feeling.
if I might offer you some useful reading & videos, it would be Markus Rothkranz…. His free download “Heal Yourself 101” I have found to be so helpful in all body matters.
Good luck, and if what I’ve said is not good for you, then I hope another poster comes along and gives you what you need to find relief.

When I have had severe uti the pain has been agonising and yes constant. It sounds like you need a stronger dose of antibiotics.

Sorry you've had to have multiple surgeries to resolve this, I imagine that must've been very scary. To be honest until all this happened a month ago I was quite ignorant to just how many women are affected by chronic UTIs and how much it affects someone's quality of life but from all that I've read recently, it sounds horrendous to go through this for a prolonged period.

Yes, I will call my NHS GP today I think but to be honest, last time I felt very fobbed off by them and was basically told it didn't sound like a UTI and they won't give me any more antibiotics and to call back in a week. 😟

No, it doesn't sound stupid at all. I think I'm experiencing something similar, when I lie down a few occasions in the last week I have had what I would call 'bladder spasms' if that's a thing, especially when the urethra pain has been at its worst.

And thanks for the recommendation, I will look him up and download that book, from a quick search it seems it has helped a lot of people.

You poor thing. You need to drink as much as you can. If you don’t drink it will get worse.

drink only clear fluids. No coffee or tea

good luck 🤞

Can I ask where you usually experience the pain? When I have Googled this to see what's typical of UTIs, most women seem to get abdominal pain rather than urethra pain and that is what's puzzling me a bit why I have so much pain concentrated there (or at least what I'm perceiving to be in that region).

That’s where I get pain with UTIs and always have. A constant burning. I always get asked whether I have pain on urination / frequent urination etc which I do sometimes - but the overriding symptom to me is the constant burning / nerve like pain.

Yes this sounds exactly how I am with a UTI, constant pain and the only thing I find that helps it is to sit sort of upright with a hot water bottle wedged between my legs (wrapped in a towel). I've had issues with a course of antibiotics not clearing it too for around 3 weeks, I'd ask your GP if you can drop a sample for testing? It may take a few days as they send to a lab. They can give you something in the meantime then when results are back give the correct antibiotic to fully clear it up. I feel for you, I find it the most agonising of all illnesses/infections and am often in tears with it! Remember to avoid alcohol, caffeine and anything citrus, hope you feel better soon!

Same here I know what you’re talking about it. You have to force yourself a ton of water, like a ton. I set a timer and every hour drink 16oz of water. It flushes it out. The less you drink the more it will hurt. It’s excruciating isn’t it? Like I would have tears running down my face.

This is exactly the uti pain I have.

You must, Must! drink as much as possible. Not a pint at a time, but a decent swig every few minutes.

Also, call your nearest boots/big pharmacy, and ask the pharmacy if they sell uti/ cystitis testing kits. They do at boots, but also they sell these products. I've not tried the mannose, but lots of people swear by it. I've used the sodium citrate for years, and it's great for keeping the symptoms at bay whilst you wait for a sodding appointment.

Btw, they should've taken a test sample and sent it off. Lots of common infections are not responding to first line drugs, and you need to know which infection it is, and treat more specifically.

Is your GP male? I've literally never heard of anyone not have pain after/ between weeks. Unless they're male 😒

Sorry, here are the otc ideas that should help.

You could also have thrush after taking the antibiotics. That makes me burn when weeing after a course of antibiotics. I’d talk to your pharmacist.

Drink lots of water - the more concentrated your urine is, the more it will hurt. You need to dilute it.

I’ve had many UTIs and as well as the bladder cramps/spasms afterwards, the urethral pain after finishing urinating is classic for me - a sort of drawing up feeling. It’ll be worse if your urine is very concentrated as it’ll be burning the urethra.

I hope your GP takes you seriously when you go back. For what it’s worth, I’d never leave a UTI completely untreated in the hope it’ll go away on its own - I’m not suggesting you’d always need antibiotics the moment you feel one coming on, but sometimes you can flush them out with over-the-counter remedies and lots of water. Don’t just ignore and hope for the best.

Finally you can get a short course of antibiotics from Lloyds pharmacy for a UTI, prescribed from an online GP via their website. It’s not cheap (£25ish) and I wouldn’t recommend it this time, but for future reference.

D-mannose would probably be worth a try OP, you can get it from Holland and Barrett or online from Sweet Cures. I get the sort of pain you describe with uti and it works for me.

I have had recurrent UTIs in the past - it's awful, so painful, and you have my full sympathy.

Taking several courses of antibiotics and then the maximum recommended dose of D-Mannose tablets a day for several months really helped me to get it under control (so much so that I don't take D-Mannose daily any more, but I do have some spare tubs handy!).

These days I keep it under control by drinking water before sex and by weeing and taking a single Trimethoprim tablet straight after sex (as unfortunately getting a UTI seems to be triggered by sex sometimes for me).

I also always have a back-up packet of antibiotics (Nitrofurantoin) at home that I take with me e.g. on holiday in case I do start to get UTI symptoms without ready access to a doctor and pharmacy.

To get to this point did require a referral from my GP to a urogynaecologist and quite a lot of months of waiting to be seen by the specialist. In my experience GPs will just test to check if you currently have an infection and if so will prescribe antibiotics, but they won't necessarily know how to help you with long-term UTI prevention.

Best of luck and don't lose hope - you will get it under control. In the meantime, if you're in a lot of pain keep going back to your GP and insisting on further investigation.

I went through a bout of chronic UTIs so I was on a low dose of antibiotics for a year, which they’d increase if I’d get an acute one. I asked the doctor to come off them because I was really worried about antibiotic resistance.

You need to drink loads. I bought a cup like this and drink 2 or 3 filled with water. I like sparkling water better than still. I, also take UTI care from Holland and Barrett. I’ve tried lots of other types of D-Mannose but this one works best for me. A probiotic for women is important too.

I am sorry for you OP. It’s absolutely awful.

This is brilliant and scientifically proven to be effective

I'm another who has suffered from UTIs all my life. I ended up having an operation too. I personally found cranberry tablets not the drink most effective. Agree with the others who say fill yourself with water.
I know it's obviously just me, but D Mannose absolutely didn't work for me, plus it gave me the most horrendous stinking wind, my DH had to sleep in another room because I was polluting the bedroom so much 😬

Could you have passed a bladder/kidney stone that has cut you, hence the discomfort?

@GeneralistNotASpecialist How are you now?

Could easily be tge antibiotic you had wasn't effective. GP needs to try a different one, I have this regularly. Please monitor other symptoms as UTIs/kidney infections can become sepsis quite quickly.

Yes i’ve had this, although i was also passing a lot of blood and had a high temperature. But the pain was the worst pain i’ve ever had.

Tests revealed a bladder infection.

Definitely seek urgent care, you need more or different antibiotics.