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UTI or Candida? What is it??
Sorry for the length of this, but it's been a long two months...
In late May I noticed some bladder discomfort after sex, slight vaginal burning and a full belly. It subsided until intercourse a few days later with the same symptoms. The next morning, the symptoms were persistent, so I figured I had a UTI. Not having insurance at the time, I tried unsweetened cran, kefir, probiotics, blueberries, lots of water but the symptoms remained.
By day 4 I went to the clinic and the nurse and doc were divided on whether or not it was a UTI based on the dip stick, so they gave me a 4 day course of general abx and tested for chlamydia and gonorrhea. No relief of symptoms, std's were negative. Went back to clinic and they tested again, this time the dipstick showed no bacteria. The doc tested for vaginal yeast but there was none so she sent the urine to be cultured and gave me a 7 day scrip of Macrobid.
By day 3, the symptoms were 75% gone but then by day 4 they were back. She called on day 5 to say the culture was clear but that it may be a yeast infection that had gotten into the urethra. I took 3 day Monistat and the symptoms went from urgency/frequency of urination to just urethral burning. I then became convinced I had an overgrowth of candida in my system (I have had yeast infections countless times since my teens, not to mention BV, my tongue is always white and furry, I cough up small white chunks sometimes and often have a bad taste in my mouth) so I convinced the clinic doc to give me Diflucan. She gave me one pill which helped, but it wasn't enough.
Symptoms were back in full force. I got insurance and saw a new GYN. She looked under the microscope at a sample and saw clue cells indicating bacterial infection, so she prescribed me with a 7 day course of Flagyl (metronidazole) for BV. By day 3, symptoms were 95% gone and I had a normal day. By the evening, symptoms were back and persisted until I finished the scrip. At this point I was taking homeopathic anti-inflammatories which decreased the urgency, but allowed me to feel some very intense lower back pain and soreness. I also then noticed low grade sore throats and fatigue at this time.
I next saw a new GP who did a full physical and sent me to a urologist. She said IC was unlikely and thought it was still BV based on discharge and symptoms. Prescribed 10 more days of Flagyl and cultured urine and vaginal sample. Day 2 of abx, no symptoms. By nightfall, symptoms were back. I did some research on BV and started doing the hydrogen peroxide douche followed by probiotic suppositories and finally felt like I was getting better. Much less frequency and urgency. I could go for long walks, go swim, smile once in a while because my bladder didn't feel like it was going to explode or burn off.
Well, both cultures it turns out were clear for the usual suspects (e. coli, gardnerella, etc). Went back to GYN who is running a test for Group B Strep now. She also found yeast in my vagina and prescribed me 2 days of diflucan. After 4 days off abx (flagyl), 3 of them were hopeful as symptoms were negligent if there at all. Now on day 4/5 they are back. My tongue is as white and furry as ever and I did a simple saliva test, which resulted in long hairlike particles as well as lots of snowy white bits that sunk to the bottom of the water glass. I believe I have a candida overgrowth in my system.
Has anyone here dealt with this before? Has anyone had similar problems/symptoms as mine? I have read about broth culturing for bacteria and yeast in urine and want to send a sample to the United Medical Labs in Virginia. Any success with that? I'm desperate for insight.
Thanks.
In late May I noticed some bladder discomfort after sex, slight vaginal burning and a full belly. It subsided until intercourse a few days later with the same symptoms. The next morning, the symptoms were persistent, so I figured I had a UTI. Not having insurance at the time, I tried unsweetened cran, kefir, probiotics, blueberries, lots of water but the symptoms remained.
By day 4 I went to the clinic and the nurse and doc were divided on whether or not it was a UTI based on the dip stick, so they gave me a 4 day course of general abx and tested for chlamydia and gonorrhea. No relief of symptoms, std's were negative. Went back to clinic and they tested again, this time the dipstick showed no bacteria. The doc tested for vaginal yeast but there was none so she sent the urine to be cultured and gave me a 7 day scrip of Macrobid.
By day 3, the symptoms were 75% gone but then by day 4 they were back. She called on day 5 to say the culture was clear but that it may be a yeast infection that had gotten into the urethra. I took 3 day Monistat and the symptoms went from urgency/frequency of urination to just urethral burning. I then became convinced I had an overgrowth of candida in my system (I have had yeast infections countless times since my teens, not to mention BV, my tongue is always white and furry, I cough up small white chunks sometimes and often have a bad taste in my mouth) so I convinced the clinic doc to give me Diflucan. She gave me one pill which helped, but it wasn't enough.
Symptoms were back in full force. I got insurance and saw a new GYN. She looked under the microscope at a sample and saw clue cells indicating bacterial infection, so she prescribed me with a 7 day course of Flagyl (metronidazole) for BV. By day 3, symptoms were 95% gone and I had a normal day. By the evening, symptoms were back and persisted until I finished the scrip. At this point I was taking homeopathic anti-inflammatories which decreased the urgency, but allowed me to feel some very intense lower back pain and soreness. I also then noticed low grade sore throats and fatigue at this time.
I next saw a new GP who did a full physical and sent me to a urologist. She said IC was unlikely and thought it was still BV based on discharge and symptoms. Prescribed 10 more days of Flagyl and cultured urine and vaginal sample. Day 2 of abx, no symptoms. By nightfall, symptoms were back. I did some research on BV and started doing the hydrogen peroxide douche followed by probiotic suppositories and finally felt like I was getting better. Much less frequency and urgency. I could go for long walks, go swim, smile once in a while because my bladder didn't feel like it was going to explode or burn off.
Well, both cultures it turns out were clear for the usual suspects (e. coli, gardnerella, etc). Went back to GYN who is running a test for Group B Strep now. She also found yeast in my vagina and prescribed me 2 days of diflucan. After 4 days off abx (flagyl), 3 of them were hopeful as symptoms were negligent if there at all. Now on day 4/5 they are back. My tongue is as white and furry as ever and I did a simple saliva test, which resulted in long hairlike particles as well as lots of snowy white bits that sunk to the bottom of the water glass. I believe I have a candida overgrowth in my system.
Has anyone here dealt with this before? Has anyone had similar problems/symptoms as mine? I have read about broth culturing for bacteria and yeast in urine and want to send a sample to the United Medical Labs in Virginia. Any success with that? I'm desperate for insight.
Thanks.
It sounds like you have Candida overgrowth which means your gut flora is out of balance and causing all these problems. Taking the antibiotics has stripped the good bacteria from the gut (or GI tract) even more. But there is hope! You can replace the good bacteria and kill off the candida with 3 amazing products which I have been taking. its been a game changer for me and my health.
Im experiencing the same symptoms . Burning while urinating with a some blood wen i wipe . I've takin Metronidazole && i havent see a difference. Now in takin Nitrofuratoin Macrobids , i pray it works. If not then what... PLEASE HELP =(
yeah i went the doctor and they said my urine cultures were clean, it seemed like as soon as i started taking huge doses of d-mannose, the symptoms went away. i hope you find a cure soon.
1 Comments
hi, i am experiencing similar symptoms and wondering if you ever got better? thank you
Thanks for your reply. I am definitely not pregnant and not diabetic. I have been doing the anti-yeast diet for two weeks and I'm seeing improvements, but I'm definitely not healed. This is incredibly frustrating!!
Thanks so much for your response. This has been such a weird thing. Did you have urine cultures done? Did they come back negative for bacteria? I tried d-mannose early on in this process but I don't think whatever bacteria I had/have was e. coli.
I've been doing a candida anti-yeast diet for 2 weeks and though it's caused me to lose some weight, it has been helping the symptoms. I hope hope hope this is yeast but I'm still waiting to hear back from the urologist on the fungal culture of my urine.
Did your symptoms just go away on their own or was it the d-mannose that cured it? How did it end for you?
I've been doing a candida anti-yeast diet for 2 weeks and though it's caused me to lose some weight, it has been helping the symptoms. I hope hope hope this is yeast but I'm still waiting to hear back from the urologist on the fungal culture of my urine.
Did your symptoms just go away on their own or was it the d-mannose that cured it? How did it end for you?
Um.. Has anyone checked for pregnancy? This may sound like a strange question, but are you diabetic? If you have an overgrowth of yeast in your system, grab some garlic pills (or if you can stand it, fresh garlic), stop drinking coffee, and cut out any bread or sugar for a little while. That should help immensely. This will help prevent those antibiotics from giving you a yeast infection, too.
Honestly though, with the symptoms you're describing, you might be a little dry where it counts, which can cause some major irritation. Adding something like renew, which is designed as a feminine moisturizer that replicates the correct PH balance, might also help. If dryness is the problem, something like that can help prevent yeast infections and urethral irritation.
Honestly though, with the symptoms you're describing, you might be a little dry where it counts, which can cause some major irritation. Adding something like renew, which is designed as a feminine moisturizer that replicates the correct PH balance, might also help. If dryness is the problem, something like that can help prevent yeast infections and urethral irritation.
i have had this exact problem, i thought it would never end. i kept having chronic uti/bladder and yeast infection symptoms, this all started from getting one bladder infection after sex, its like the infection never went away for about six months. the antibiotics caused the yeast infections and i think bacteria kept growing in my bladder causing the infection to reoccur, i couldn't even tell what kind of infection i had yeast or bladder? I tried this stuff called d-mannose, in the powder form, its a simple sugar found in nature, it worked very well, it flushes out bad bacteria that might of stuck to the walls of the bladder, it flushes your system out without any bad side effects, i always take it before and after sex, it only works for very minor infections or preventing. d-mannose has gotten very good reviews on amazon from lots of people. my system has been very normal since i started taking this stuff. also i have found certain sex positions make it easy for bacteria to get into the urethra, doggy style is the best position for preventing uti/bladder infections.
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