Many of the topics I write about are just fun and carefree. It is my life and I try to make it light and give an opportunity for others to peek into my silly life. I have been avoiding this topic because to be honest it makes me sad. I get frustrated because no matter how hard I try or how careful I am, I still seem to get bladder infections. Besides the discomfort they are a reminder that I am frail. It is not how I like to see myself. Forget my Pollyanna posts. Having a bladder infection sucks and they crimp my style. Not only do they hurt but I can feel them all over. My husband told me about an article he read about women becoming crazy because of bladder infections. I wonder if he was trying to hint that I needed an attitude check. Last week I could feel one brewing. My problem is I can’t take too many antibiotics. I try to drink lots of water, ingest d-mannose. I keep myself clean…….but no matter how hard I try, they just sometimes happen!
I still get really mad when I think about my first urologist. His thought was that having bladder infections are normal for people in my condition. He refused to test my urine, since I cath he thought that there is forign bacteria in my urine, so why bother. After I changed urologists I had three bladder infections in a row. Because she wanted a urine sample, before I took the antibiotics we found out that I had a staph infection. She then had me take a low dose antibiotic for twenty days. That regiment did the trick. I was given relief from that discomfort and distraction. What would have happened if I had the former urologist? First of all he would not have me test a urine sample. I would never had known I was fighting a staph infection. But my question to my former uroligist could have been, WHAT KIND OF BACTERIA? His idea was to white knuckle the pain and in the meantime blow my kidneys out.
My last bladder infection brought me to my knees. I am finally giving sacral nerve stimulation, consideration.
Diary of last bladder infection;
SATURDAY- Went out with friends. Perhaps I got food poisoning because I threw up that night and had diarrhea the next few days. I was far from home. RODEO FOOD!!
SUNDAY- Felt the tightness and urgency of a bladder infection but did not worry about it because my urine was not cloudy.
MONDAY-Drank water all day.
TUESDAY- Took cloudy urine sample into the lab. They told me the preliminary report would be 24 hours and another day for the final report.
WEDNESDAY-THURSDAY- I patiently waited for the lab results. My urine did not seem cloudy yet I did not feel so great. I flew back home and called my doctor’s office to see if the lab results were in. They were not.
FRIDAY- I was up early 4:30 am. I needed to wait until 8:00 for the doctor’s office to open. I now have a raging bladder infection with cloudy stinky urine. I needed to bring out the guns. I called the doctor’s office two times to see if they had the test results. They did not even have the preliminary report that I was told would be done in 24 hours. I called the lab myself and begged them to send the report. (I wanted them to feel my pain so they would hurry up.)I was heading out of town for a romantic ocean get away with my husband. I prayed, God help me I do not feel so romantic with this bladder infection. Finally at twelve noon I was in the drug store waiting for my relief. What a week! Not easy. I wonder if Michelle Obama would have had to wait so long!
NEXT WEEK-Took Bacterium for 7 days, sure hope it does the trick. I need to go out of town. I will never leave town again without some emergency antibiotics.
I am now strongly considering Interstim Therapy. I feel great now but I am afraid to repeat last week!
More later..