Wellness

[SilleeMee]

I don't have IC but in the past I was experiencing what I thought was an overactive bladder thing or an infection. So I went to my doctor and had things checked out and nothing turned up. So I decided to do my own investigating and it turned out that I was having these terrible urges to pee all the time because of a sensitively to the artificial sweeteners, for instance, Nutrasweet and Equal. Once I eliminated all of it from my diet then my urgencies totally went away! I was relieved it was that simple to solve. No serious medical problem but a diet problem that was easily taken care of and apparently many people have the same problem as me with aspartame sweetener.

[hckynut]

@marip 

A Male now, I had this problem several years ago. My Urologist first tried 2 different Prescription meds, which did nothing but dry me and my mouth out.

He then ordered a Uro Dynamics Test, along with a Cystoscopy. Those 2, different procedures, showed that I have a small and overactive bladder, and I still do. Not the most comfortable of procedures of the many I have had done, but far from the worst. Since prescriptions did/do not help, I just deal with it.

hckynut

[grandma r]

I have had IC for decades.  Not every urologist believes it is real!!!!!  I had one tell me that my symptoms were all in my head!!!  Anyway, it is an autoimmune disease.  When it rages, you wish your bladder was removed.  I don't have constant pain, however, the frequency never ends.  I'm up at night at least once an hour.  There are a few treatments and specific diets, but, no cure.  DMSO can be effective, but, the side effects are hard to deal with.  There are some doctors who recommend bladder washes.  Yes, they are helpful for about a week or so;  unfortunately, most insurances won't cover them.  Medicare will not cover the medication or the instillation.  In my case, the doc called in the rx, pharmacy had to order, I had to pay out of pocket then call for an appt with the nurse for the instillation.  As I said, it helps for a week or so, and, to me, it's worth it.

I have suffered for a long time and sympathize with what you're feeling.  I wish you the best of luck!

[LilacTree]

@marip 

I have the same thing and no matter how much water I drink, I never seem to have a normal evacuation.  But I also have no pain.  I’ve read about IC and I think that’s what I have, and you have too.  Did you go to a urologist? I plan to.

[riley1]

Why would you see a neurologist instead of a urologist. Sounds like an overactive bladder.

[Toppers3]

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@gabstoomuch wrote:

If it was IC you would know it. That is the most painful condition. It is like having a UTI constantly, but they can tell it is not a UTI because there is no bacteria in a urine culture.

You need a urologist not a neurologist.

They would probably do a cystoscopy, which is done in an office setting most times. It is uncomfortable but not painful. That way they can look right into the bladder to see the condition of it, look for inflammation and stuff.

I have IC, autoimmune caused, and it does flare and settle down, then flares. A lot of food can make it flare, acidic foods mostly. Fruits like oranges or strawberries, spicy food, even foods that have citric acid in it as an ingredient.

As @Scooby Doo said, there are so many reasons, you really need to have the right doctor look into it. Nothing more annoying than a bladder problem.

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I also think that if someone had Interstitial Cystitis, that they would also be aware of it because of the pain, too.

I had a horrible bout of it many years ago, and had my bladder scoped that indicated that I was in a flare-up. 

It's such a horribly miserable and painful condition. You definitely know that something is really wrong with your bladder.

My bladder finally calmed down when I started taking medications to help other health conditions that I had. The medications also started to inadvertently help my bladder, too.

I became allergic to some of the bladder medications that are out there, but when I started to see a Urologist for kidney stones, he helped to find another medication that I could take to help my bladder.

These days, it's much better but it's still not normal. I don't have the kind of pain and inflammation like I had. 

The Urologist that I currently see is calling it an "Overactive Bladder."

I have the urgency and frequency associated with it, and also the "urge incontinence," too. 

However, I don't have the kind of pain that I used to have, and when he has looked at my bladder by scope, he said that it looks pretty good.