Hi. Just a short message to give forthcoming Mums to be a tip on what you might feel "down below" if you end up being catheterized. Basically, I've put up with a UTI for the past 4 months (since my Son was born), thinking it was a normal sensation after giving birth through a forceps delivery and having a catheter. It hurt when I went for a wee and I was up in the night about 3 times most nights, needing to pee (never mind how many times you get up in the night to see to the baby!) I just thought this was what could happen after giving birth!
I had asked about it at my six week check up with my GP and she did a dipstick test on a urine sample, but said there was no infection there and that it was normal to have strange sensations after having had a catheter. So I put up with it. Eventually, I decided to take ibuprofen day & night for about 2 weeks, and then when that didn't clear it up, I decided to see my doctor. At 4 months post partum, finally the GP agreed it can't be right to still have pain down below when going for a wee. I asked her to send a urine sample away for a lab test. It came back positive, and I ended up on antibiotics. I'm now clear of a urine infection and feel totally normal again! Can't believe I had to ask for a lab test for signs of infection and not get that suggestion at my 6 week check up! I've been in pain for months now for no good reason.
I just wanted to warn expectant Mums that you should insist upon getting a lab test done on a urine sample to check for a UTI, if you have any pain in your bladder / urethra. Don't let your GP fob you off that its a normal part of having been catheterized! Or that childbirth can affect your waterworks etc. Make sure you rule out a UTI first and make sure its done via a lab test not in the GP surgery, as their dipstick tests are unreliable!