How to conceive when I'm so prone to cystitis it puts me off sex?!

[Moggin]

As the title says really, just grin and bear it? I get it almost after every time t the moment.

Do you drink a glass of cranberry juice a day?

Cranberry tablets. You can buy them at Boots. My gp recommended them and thy did help!

Moggin, don't wear tight trousers or jeans and if possible have a bath after you have sex.

If it makes you feel better I had 9 glorious UTI free months when I was pregnant!!

Drink lots of water, use lube but be careful which one. Try not to be too vigorous, friction can bring it on. Hygiene before and after is important and make sure you have a wee straight after.

Maybe take a bicarbonate solution sachet from boots straight after if you are constantly suffering everytime.

I heard the cranberry thing was a myth but I'll give it a go! I do all the normal things you're advised... Toilet & wash before and after sex, drink lots of water.

It is so frustrating, especially when people make comments like 'the sex must have been good though' argh!

God, no, the cranberry thing is absolutely NOT a myth. I used to be quite prone to cystitis in my 20s and always kept cranberry juice in the house. A glass when I felt it coming on would cure it straightaway 90% of the time. 'Tis an absolute miracle cure.

I was very prone for a while and i think I found a correllation between the occurrences and being dehydrated so as well as the cranberry juice make sure you're well hydrated at all times.

Also, without tmi, make sure your partners hygiene is impeccable. If he is quite large, you may have to be more gentle than usual.

I was prone to it for over 10 years - sometimes having it 4-5 times a month! Doctors couldn't find any infection/thing wrong so concluded it was 'physiological' so I resigned myself to it.
It was awful and I ended up being given antibiotics by the GP which I took each time I had sex.

Not very romantic but here's the good news: since getting pregnant with DC1 (am pregnant with DC3 now) I have only had one urine infection. This is in nearly 5 years.
I can't promise it'll be the same for you but it was another benefit to having my lovely children and well worth grinning and bearing it for!

Thanks for the advice everyone, I don't think it's because of rough sex as we have tried to do it while practically not touching each other and it made no difference! I worry I'm heading the same way you were Pochemuchka but annoyingly before I had ds I used to get it but much less frequently than now (every few years or once a year at most). Fingers crossed another pregnancy will sort me out again!

I had a mc a few weeks ago so think that and now having cystitis again after 1st sex since then has got me down.

I would second the use of prophylactic (sp?) antibiotics.

I would get it every single time I had sex, without fail. Now I take one tab straight after sex and never ever getit. It used to come on 24 hours afterwards. I used to dread that wee.....

Now weeing is a pleasure

I'm like this. I always go for a wee straight after, and if it takes hold I take neurofen. All the other cures have never worked, except antibiotics. But neurone prob takes the swelling down and stops me thinking about it. It is a PITA, and sorry for your MC Moggin. I've had 2 they are shit!

Arf @ you trying to have sex while practically not touching each another!

*other

I used to get it all the time too. Haven't done though for about 2 years now.

My top tips are:
Make sure you have a bath rather than a shower at least once a week.
Cranberry juice DOES work but only Ocean Spray as all other brands have too low a percentage of actual juice.
Wee sitting upright rather than leaning forward. Also, sit on loos rather than hover.

I get cystitis a lot and have done since childhood. Like a lot of women who have it often, when I have it it's not an infection so antibiotics do no good (and just give me thrush!). It's caused by irritation rather than infection, which might be true for you too if sex always brings it on nearly immediately. Hot weather, not drinking enough, tight clothes are all also triggers for me. Drinking lots of water is good because it dilutes your pee but even better is drinking lots of something that makes your pee alkali rather than acidic, so that it won't sting. Robinson's lemon barley water works, so does bicarbonate of soda in water (though tastes disgusting), both of which are cheaper than the sachets you can get in the chemist which do the same thing. I just drink a big glass of the barley water pretty much every day, and more often if it's hot/I feel it's coming on/I've been wearing tight clothes etc. It's nice diluted with cold sparkling water.

I have never had any joy with the cranberry juice/tablets thing. Maybe that works better for people who have repeat infections.

kalidasa that's interesting, the last purple of times I've been to gp with it they've found no infection in urine but given me antibiotics anyway (which I'd work) - I'll give barley water a go too

Last couple not purple obviously!

And *did not I'd.... Grrrrr at auto correct!

So sorry it's been so rough for you :( I remember it being a vicious circle and I'd spend the half the time I didn't have it worrying that I'd get it!
I didn't find cranberry juice helped much either but a large jug of water poured over my bits when I went to the toilet cooled things down!
Another mumsnetter sent me a pm ages ago with something that really helped her - I'll check my inbox and if I still have it I'll forward it.

I've heard that Barley water works too, not tried it though.

Moggin I think recurrent cystitis with no actual infection is called interstitial cystitis. Something like that anyway. I looked into it properly once when I was really fed up and the description fitted me but I find it very manageable with lifestyle stuff as described so didn't really follow it up. Worth a google though.

Also, forgot to say - it is v. stress related for me, as well as the other triggers. Bit pointless to say you should try and relax about it when obviously you are ttc which is stressful in itself, but maybe worth giving yourself a month 'off' while you try all the dietary/lifestyle stuff? I also forgot to mention fruit juice I think - v. acidic and a bad trigger alongside coffee, alcohol, Coke etc.