i too have the same problem. I am 46, and have been experiencing this for a few years now off and on....i wake up at around 5am or so (or perhaps am woken up by the pain)...this pain is on my right side in the middle back area. After getting up and walking around it starts to go away. If I continue trying to sleep, I can't because its so uncomfortable. If however, I get out of bed and urinate, I can go back to bed as the pain subsides and I can get a few more hours of sleep.
I have been googling this all morning...can't seem to find an answer...anybody?
Overall solution: alkaline diet
Hi guys! Same problem that you’re all experiencing too. For the past 3-4 years I wake up with a pain in my right kidney area in the morning when I wake up. When I get up, it hurts even more with every deep breath, but I feel the pain diminish as I urinate, to the point of being practically gone. If I stay awake and up, it goes away completely within seconds, and if I lay back down, it lingers a little bit but manageable.
To summarize everyone’s diet experiences (no caffeine, taking aka seltzer, caused by accutane, drinking enough water, no animal protein, etc), I found that eating an alkaline diet helps HUGE! Google it but some guidelines: no coffee, plenty of fruits and veggies, sprouted grains, basically vegan, a swig of apple cider vinegar helps, etc!
I also noticed a HUGE factor to whether or not I wake up in pain (it’s to the point that it’s managable based on what I consume the day prior) is if I’ve used any supplements or medications during the day. Even the smallest little vitamin makes a difference. Without supplements (plus diet - but the supps are the biggest factor for me... but I eat healthy regardless..), I wake up pain-free.
All of this said and after at least four doctors being of no help whatsoever, I’ve really considered the urethra/kidney reflux concept of the urine backing up, kidneys having to extrete too much calcium from a high acidic diet, and the urine being too concentrated (ie from pills, caffeine/dehydration, too acidic diet) thus “burning” the kidney while it’s stagnant in the urethra until you stand up to pee.
All in all, I really strive to eat a mostly alkaline diet without the use of supplements or oral medications and it has helped tons.
Another thing that cured me is acupuncture!! I started going for acne (in addition to the alkaline diet), and the combo of the two happened to cure my kidney! Their acne intention was to “clear damp and stagnant heat” and this somehow helped the kidney too! My diet has been off lately (meat, acne meds, some coffee) and I haven’t gone to acupuncture for a couple weeks and the pain is back!
So to summarize, try omitting any pills in addition to following an alkaline diet (google it) and that will help you big time!! Next step, can consider acupuncture too :)
Been reading through every comments while scrolling to the bottom.. Every post seems to be mentioning similar things like getting flank pains or pain in the kidneys every morning but urination is normal, not drinking enough water, mostly are through physical activities and frequent movements that helps to improve or subside the pain.. I myself personally experience all of these as well and most of us here are also in our 20s ~
What if we tried to adopt a healthy lifestyle, with healthy sleeping habits and keeping ourselves hydrated everyday instead of being constantly dehydrated.. Will that help to solve the problem?
Maybe u guys could also give it a try to these natural treatments to kidney pain? Not sure how reliable it is but I think I personally would give it a try and hope that it would help to improve the condition ...
I am so grateful for this forum. Thank you to everyone who has posted with their contributions as to what they are experiencing and the focused detective work each and every one of you have done to advance towards solutions. My discomfort started about a year and a half ago which was about 2 years after I had begun drinking green smoothies with lots of dark green leafy veggies, spirulina and barley juice powder. I'd wake up every morning around 3am in enough pain that I'd have to sleep elevated on the sofa for the rest of the night. Maybe I'd fall back to sleep, maybe I wouldn't which, over time equated to incredible sleep deprivation. I went to see my primary doc and requested kidney tests prior to my appointment which showed zero impairment. The UTI I had developed was only marginally improved by antibiotics he prescribed. It was at that point that I started researching online. This is what I found worked for me, and I am hopeful that it can help some of you too:
*Follow a kidney disease protocol diet which means removing any green fruits and veggies like spinach, kale, collard greens, green grapes, kiwi, green apples, etc.
*Zero alcohol or coffee (black tea is ok).
*Remove excess vitamin C as it is difficult for the kidneys to process. (Thank you, JIM)
*1 Tablespoon psyllium husk in 8oz warm water at 10am every day to improve elimination.
*Increase water intake to five, 32oz. glasses per day
*Low protein intake (maybe 2 oz per day)
*Eat nothing after 6pm
In three days after starting this routine I was sleeping from 9pm to 5am straight through the night.
It's called CYSTINURIA you can google it. Make your urine alkaline by taking baking soda and water daily or a potassium citrate tablet. The cystine stones don't show up on ultrasound or ct scan because they are not calcium based. They can look like grit or sand in an ultrasound but they see usually no larger stones. Can be diagnosed by taking a 24hr urine test. Also genetic diagnosis as there is a specified gene for the condition. I also find taking a small shot/mixture of half real lemon juice and half olive oil can ease the pain quickly in the morning when symptoms are at their worth. Drink lots and keep your urine alkaline, these are the only treatments recommended.