chronic bladder infections and vaginal pain

[megcam]

I have had 6 bladder infections over the course of a year.  I am now on Macrodatin on 100mg which I am to take one hour before I have sex.  I am not sure why I keep getting bladder infections the first time it was due to poor sex habits (vaginal to anal) this resulted in an infection that went all the way to my Kidney.  I have since then had 2 majorly painful bladder infections, with blood in the urine and I don’t know why.  I am extremely careful during sex I will even shower when we are done.  Even now that I am on the low dose antibiotic I get sensations throughout the day of urgency to urinate.  Should I be tested for a bladder infection again?  The last time I was treated was a month ago and I was given Cipro which did not work and then a dose of Keflex.  I thought that took care of the problem but I am not sure.  I am drinking as much Cranberry juice as I can but I am still freaked out about getting another infection.

I have also had vaginal discomfort for over a year off and on, mostly on.  Almost every time after sex I have slight bleeding right in the entrance of the vagina.  I have been check for this many times and have been told that it is just trama due to lack of lubrication.  I have been diagnosed with Bacterial Vaginitis 3 or 4 times, had a biopsy done on a spot in my vagina that came back clear-it was just irritated skin and have had a herpes outbreak.  I was recently treated for BV with Flagyl and then when that was not working I was prescribed a cream that I had to insert for 7 days.  After I was done with that I still had buring and itching pain in my vulva area so I went back to my doctor.  I thought it may have been a yeast infection because I know that antibiotics can cause them so my doctor did a culture and said she didn’t find any infection and she said she thought it was a herpes outbreak (maybe) so she prescribed Acyclovir and four days later I got a call saying that it was not herpes and that they did find trace of yeast….arg!  So I had to finish my Acyclovir and then was given a Diflucan to treat the yeast infection.  

Due to all of the problems I have been having in my lower regions I have not been having sex with my very new husband of 2 months.  So finaly yesterday we did when we hadn’t in a month.  I used pleanty of lube but as soon as we were finished I had burning pain right at the entrance of the vagina.  My husband has some hairs that grow on the shaft of his penis about an 1nch from the base.  He like to shave it but then there is stubble and I am wondering if that is what causes me the vaginal discomfort?  He is willing to have laser hair removal but I don’t want him to be injured from it, is this a reasonable possibility?  It is the worst thing ever to have pain caused by sex and it is really taking a toll on my emotions and I am worried that I will never be able to have sex without pain again.  Someone please help!!

[peekawho]

Has your doctor considered vulvodynia?  http://www.womenshealth.org/a/vulvodynia_vulvar_pain.htm

Also, have all the bladder infections been culture proven?  If you have symptoms of a frequent bladder infection yet nothing grows on culture, you may have interstitial cystis.

Good luck.  Sounds very frustrating to have to deal with these issues.  Wish I had some good ideas to share beyond those two.  

[TheNewMrs]

I don't know about all of your issues, but in the case of the bladder issues, I'm having the same thing. Low level symptoms constantly, and they flare up every 4-6 weeks with intense pain. It seems to have calmed down recently. Obviously, you should consult a urologist, but in the mean time, here are some ideas: Be sure to try urinating before and after intercourse so any bacteria that enters doesn't have a chance to stay. Also, forget the cranberry juice. You have to drink a lot of it to get a good effect (and if you are anything like me, it tastes NASTY!) With cranberry supplements, you can get a much, much higher dose without drinking so much juice that you feel bloated (plus, pure cranberry juice gets pricey.) I read a medical study recently about the effects of cranberry supplements. I can't remember the exact details, but the final result was- women who had been having chronic bladder infections had significantly less infections (usually none at all) when they took a high dose of cranberry daily. Other tips- avoid citrus juice that can irritate your bladder and  get enough vitamin C and zinc to boost your immune system. Get a thorough STD check because things like Chlamydia can mimic bladder infections sometimes. Also, consider kidney stones, they can cause many of the same symptoms as UTIs and they can cause UTIs.

I recently got married and became sexually active for the first time (yes, I'm an old fashioned girl=) and have had not stop vaginal issues similar to yours for months now. It is pretty normal to have some issues when you begin having sex or change partners, but it shouldn't last that long.

[free spirit]

Also look into cystitis.   You should really get checked out by a gyn who knows about pelvic pain problems, pelvic floor muscle dysfunction, chronic cystitis, vulvar vestibulitus.  Basically someone who is up on current diagnosis and treatments.

Don't continue to try and have sex until all of this is sorted out. I know it sucks, but you will be better off if you don't.  You need  knowledgable help to treat this now.  You don't want it to become a life long problem.

check out  
vulvodynia.com
Berman and Berman
yahoo groups:  vulvar disorders


I seriously doubt the stubble your husband has is the problem. You are stuck in a viscous pain cycle.  Start calling around different gyn or urologist offices and see if you can find someone who know knows about chronic pain problems.