pain and discomfort in urethra, but no UTI

I had a UTI for a few weeks last month. This was only my second UTI in my life. The first one was 20 years ago and it was horribly painful. The one I just had was a lot different so I did not think it was a UTI and lived with it for a few weeks until I noticed a little blood and smell. So I went in and I did have a UTI. I was prescribed a 3 day antibiotic. At day 3 I still had a slight feeling that everything was not normal but the smell, discomfort and blood were gone. One week later I still did not feel totally normal but the bad symptoms were still gone. I went to the store and purchased cranberry pills and juice and started taking them. The next few days things got worse. I decided to stop the cranberry and now I seem to be improving again. I believe that the cranberry can irritate if you are not totally healed. Since I had this infection for a few weeks I believe that there is irritation that needs to heal and the cranberry was irritating. So, if anyone is having similar symptoms and taking the cranberry take a few days off and see if that makes a difference. I noticed a big difference one day after not taking the juice and was much more comfortable. Yesterday and today I barely notice any symptoms. I did buy the azo strips and tested to be sure and both came up negative. Hope this helps someone I know how tiring it can be to feel badly! I never should have waited so long in the first place!!

Hi,
This is in response to everyone but especially to 21 year old female. Since your post was over a year ago, did the problem go away? I am experiencing the exact same situation. No infection, I had one uti in January and since then have had burning pain in the urethra. What can solve this? It has been really frustrating and debilitating. Any answers?
Thanks.

Hi ladies,

I feel your pain as I too have similar symptoms. Luckily for me I have come from a family where natural remedies have cured or releaved symptoms where modern medicine fails. I found that drinking 'horlicks' (a drink with a high concentration of barley) reduces symptoms greatly. If you want greater relief, try boilyng barley and drinking the water you boil it in. Also try boiling the barley to the point it begins to disintegrate as then pule it and drnk it. I hope you ladies all the best. Its a great remedy to mange the symptoms you ladies appear to have.

Do give this for a week and you'll see the difference. You only need to drink (for example horlicks) 2-3 times a day at the begining and as your symptoms begin to relieve you can reduce it to bedtime and eventually stop it and drink only when symptoms begin to show again.

I hope you all the best and I hope this helps you all.

I have been having the same problems ever since I was diagnosed with a uti months ago. I also have a painful bladder and I have gotten tests done for stds, I've gotten internal and external ultrasounds and pelvic exams. I'm 19 and do not want to live with this the rest of my life but no doctor can figure out what is wrong with me and they just keep blowing me off. Its frustrating to live with this feeling everday.

Hi,
I'm female,18 years old, and since my most recent UTI on March 27th I have been suffering with ongoing symptoms. I generally feel uncomfortable and unwell, as well as frequent and irritating urination. I wanted to post this thread because I feel there aren't enough positive outcomes to be found when searching online forums. Although my health is not how it was, my condition has improved dramatically. I used to suffer almost unbearable pain with a burning sensation constantly in my urethra. It is now the 26th of August and the pain has gone, I have mild discomfort in my urethra and urinary frequency. I managed to control the pain by drinking LOTS (and I mean pint after pint) of water and holding my wee until I could no longer, in order to re-train my bladder. Fortunately, I had broken up from college whilst my condition was at it's most severe, so a had the time to stay home, rest and contineously drink. If I don't drink, within 1-2 hours I feel the symptoms returning, yet as soon as I drink a pint of water the discomfort subsides. I'm still seeing a Ureologist because I'm determined to feel 100% myself again, and I feel too young to be suffering with such problems. Now, I take a big bottle of water everywhere I go because i'd rather need to frequently urinate than suffer from chronic urethral pain. Hope this gives someone out there the will to carry on!!

I agree with the above post that endometriosis could be a cause or contributing factor to the urethral pain and other symptoms that would normaly be associated with a UTI (but are occuring in you ladies w/out the presence of bacteria). Another possibility is that kidney stones are being passed and depending on the composition of the stones some act like glass shards effectively shredding the urethra and potentialy the lining of the bladder (this is where low acid intake and high fluid intake is your best friend. Hang in there and be a tireless advocate for your own health you each deserve to live a pain free life.

Hi Ladies,

I have a very similar problem to you all and it has been hell...My basic story is that I get a uti every time I have sex. I had a really bad one 10 months ago and took three weeks of two different antibiotics. After finishing the antibiotics, I felt like I still had the infection...but it felt a little different. The dr. said there was not any bacteria in my urine. I couldn't understand why I have pain in my urethra...not really much frequency or urgency...just a steady uncomfortable burning/sore/open wound kind of feeling in the tube that I pee from. It has lasted 10 months so far. I'm negative for all std's and yeast...no explanation and no cure. I am depressed about it and I am ready to devote my entire life to finding a cure for this. I've been doing extensive research online and have tried many, many possible solutions. Overall, the two things that I am focused on now, that really make sense to me, but I don't see mentioned too much online:

1. most of us have had at least one or more uti's and were prescribed antibiotics. This is where our problem initiated. I'm very anti-anti-biotic to begin with, so I have reason to believe this is a major source of the problem. As of now, doctors do not know the cure for uti, so all they do is prescribe antibiotics...they say it is important to avoid kidney infections at all costs. Well, I see antibiotic use as one of our major underlying factors that we all share. This leads me to believe it is part of the problem...So, I've been researching probiotics extensively (to replace all of the good bacteria in our bodies that were depleted with the use of antibiotics), and decided to try some....guess what?!?!?! They actually work!!!! Not 100% but I'd say it takes away the urethral burning feeling about 85% within a few hours of taking them. When I go even 12 hours without taking one probiotic, the burning discomfort returns! For whatever reason, they are difficult to come by...they are also expensive when using one or two a day... I bought RePhresh Pro-b capsules. They contain two different strains of good bacteria that help women's health (and in my case, this helped ease the pain). I highly advise giving this a try and am curious to know how others make out after using these. I have not heard anything regarding side effects of long-term probiotic use, but I'm sure as hell gonna take these as long as I have the pain! Also, if anyone tries any other brands, can you let me know how they work? I think they have different brands at Whole Foods stores.

2. another factor that I think might come into play would be frequency of sexual intercourse. If you ladies are like me, I dread the idea of having sex...especially soon after a nasty uti. Well, first I researched the reason behind the nickname "honeymoon cystitis" and it gave me an idea that also makes sense. Many women have intercourse for the very first time with their husbands on their honeymoon...or they have a lot of sex in a short period. When a woman's body is not used to having sex that much, or hasn't had sex in a while, the motion involved in sex can cause irritation to the urethra. It is almost like the penis is lightly punching the "pee-tube" while it is thrusting during sex. It causes the urethra to become irritated and swell up...my theory is that the swelling after sex, traps the bad bacteria inside of the urethra and the bacteria then multiplies over and over until it ends up in the bladder...I think this is true because I tried the whole showering before and after sex, and urinating before and after, and it still didn't work for me...I'd ultimately end up with a uti within two days following sex. With that being said, how often to you ladies have sex? After experiencing this hell, I rarely have sex anymore (btw - I'm married and have been with the same man for 7 years now, and only started having uti's in the 5th year, which coincidentally happened to be when our sex life decreased due to a change in his work schedule.) After a bad uti, I won't have sex for MONTHS sometimes...I know this is crazy, but I'm terrified of these infections...do any other women wait long intervals between having sex? This theory also makes sense to me because they say that pregnant women are also more prone to uti's. This could be because they have sex less often with more time in between??? Does this make sense to anyone else? Also, my best friend has frequent uti's and her boyfriend of 8 years is in the army, so she rarely sees him, but when she does, a uti is almost guaranteed to happen...this adds to the validity of this theory. My solution is to try and have frequent sex no matter what, in order to lessen the blow to my urethra during the thrusting...I think a kind of tolerance is built if you continue to have sex frequently. I'm going to try at least 3x per week no matter what...also, it is advised to use lubricant, so the thrusting will not be so harsh on the urethra. Please let me know if anyone has any information to disprove this theory. I'm very curious.

And last bt not least, I wanted to see if any of you have relief from the pain when you immediately wake up in the morning? I'm talking within 2 muinutes of opening your eyes and while you are still lying flat on the bed? For some reason, this is the ONLY time I do not feel the pain...but the minute I really wake up, and start walking around, it returns for the entire day. I don't know if it has something to do with lying flat for a long time, which decreases pressure on the urethra, or maybe it has something to do with my mind. Maybe all day, I am subconsciously tightening the muscle or loosening the muscle and I'm not even aware that I'm doing it? And then the first minute I wke up, I'm still so relaxed from just coming out of a deep sleep that I don't feel the pain? I don't know what to think about this.....but as a side note, my father drives a truck for a living and he would always hold hi urine while he was on long trips. He always used to get bad uti's from this and saw numerous urologists. He said he had the symptoms and pain of one, but the dr. told him there wasn't bacteria in his urine culture. He finally saw a great urologist who told him it has everything to do wtih pelvic floor muscles. The dr. said some people just naturally have weak muscles...and it is cured by KEGEL exercises! Google these if unfamiliar. My dad tried it and he said th pain went away within a few days. He hasn't had another infection or pain in years!!! It's funny tht my father had to tell me about Kegels LOL, bt I'm glad he did, bc now I'm doing them to see if they help. So far, it's been a few days and I can definitely notice a change in these muscles and realize how weak mine must have been before starting the excercises. Please let me know if anyone else has heard of or tried these? Any results?

That is my input for today...I hope some of my info might hel some of you or give you hope, or an alternative to things that you've been trying and have been failing. I hope we can overcome this problem, and I'll continue to post if I learn any new tactics. Please feel free to respond, I'd LOVE to hear opinions, ideas, and thoughts on this post! Take care ladies!

Hi lcl10,
I found your post really insightful so thank you. It's always a comfort to read posts that you can actually relate to, seeing as how most doctors haven't got a clue what I'm on about when describing my symptoms! I definitely agree with sexual abstinence playing a part in the urethral pain once sex is resumed. As much as I dread the aftermath of sex, I find the pain/discomfort is much less with regular sex. I was abstinent for a good 4-5 months (my boyfriend is very understanding!) and when we did have sex, I suffered the most chronic pain, but I haven't suffered this since my sex life has been regular again.
I might have to give probiotics a go, it's an option that's never been suggested until now, and with your success rate (and that fact that it seems left upto the patient to cure themselves of this condition) it's worth a try!
I also agree with what you wrote about waking up and feeling no pain; what is with that?! I'm very tempted to just stay in bed all day, but unfortunately things have to be done... I think it has to have something to do with the state of relaxation; in bed, i'm less stressed consequently I can't imagine I subconciously tense as much.
But seriously, I think i'm going to go insane if I hear one more doctor say 'Have you tried drinking cranberry juice?' - as if it's some newfound miracle solution! :-)
I heard something in the news recently about the over use of antibiotics in animals with water infections (cystitis) The meat from such animals is then eaten by us and that is partly why, apparantly, we have grown resistant to many of the drugs used to treat humans for these infections. I'm not sure how accurate the report is, but it makes sense.
I'm sure you are, but make sure you drink A LOT of water as it will become less concentrated and should become less painful. I wish you all the best and I will post any progress made onto the site asap. x

Hi, sounds like I am part of an enormous club. My problem seems to be exacerbated by being on my feet for too long. If I go walking or a big day of housework, I wake in the middle of the night with full on Bladder infection symptoms, difficulty passing urine, bladder spasm and then constant urethra pain that is only relieved by massive doses of urinary alkalizers and heaps of water. My urine then gets cloudy and sometimes a definite odour. Luckily I get relief after a couple of weeks from anti-biotics (even though quite often no bacteria is found) but as soon as I start doing what my body deems to be too much (which is very little at all), wham the symptoms start again. Originally my flare ups would be every six months, then three months, now if I do more than a couple of hours on my feet, the flare ups are constant with hardly a break in between. I have seen a urigynecologist, who did a urodynamics procedure on me, but because I had good bladder capacity told me I couldn't have IC, but advised me I needed a sacral colpopexy, which did absolutely nothing for my symptoms (still have stress incontinence and a prolapse). I am at my wits end and am struggling with depression brought on by waking each day to pain. Has anyone found any sort of solution to their problems

I didn't read through the entire thread. But I wanted to point out something my dr said I could have from having so many UTIs and some that came back with no bacteria.

Interstitial cystitis - https://health.google.com/health/ref/Interstitial+cystitis

Arrrgh! Same as most others on here: got first UTI with stupid Ex Bf about 4 or 5 years ago. Since then, recurrent UTIs, including one that sent me to emergency room while on vacation (they think i passed a stone, but no evidence of one). I go through spurts of having painful urethra without UTIs. Have had some bouts that I was sure was a UTI, but for which labs come back negative. Also been told I may have Interstitial Cystitis. Went and saw a specialist who was so unpleasant I failed to return for what I've heard is a very painful test.
I already have issue with hydration, but if I don't drink at least 1.2 gallons (yes, GALLONS!) a day of water, I end up with this painful urethra. SUCKS! I also notice an increase in pain with consumption of acidic foods, but not always. Alcohol generally leads to the feeling, too.

I'm wonder if wheat could exacerbate it for me, as I quit wheat for the most part over past year, and had much less problem with the pain. Just started eating wheat again, and too much of it (making up for lost time!), and now I get this. Been two days now. Usually goes away sooner with lots of water and care in eating.

HELP!
I have read a bit on the interstitial cystitis, and it's not good. Doesn't appear to have any real cure.

i am having the same problem. I first got cystitis at 15, no known cause. I was treated with bothbiotics and it cleared up. Didn't have another one until i became sexually active at 20, us ladies get it after sex because we have a shorter urethra than men and because of it's proximity to the anus. Anyway, i was treated with antibiotics again and it cleared. From then on i would get one or two bouts of either cystitis or urethritis every year, usually but not always due to sex, always treated and cleared with antibiotics. That was up until the beginning of last year when i got a bad bout of cystitis. I had it for about 8 weeks and it took 3 courses of antibiotics to shift it. Over the course of last year i had 6 uti's and so far this year i have had 4. Ever since that first bad bout last year i have found that even in between uti's i will experience burning on urination even though there is no infection. I'm pretty sure it's not that i still have a uti because as long as i keep my fluid intake up i'm fine but as soon as i have gone a couple of hours without a drink i know that my next pee is gonna sting in fact sometimes i feel the burning coming on before i go. I also don't believe i have an infection because i know that when you do the burning pain is not intermittent like this, it is constant and unrelenting until some antibiotics have been taken (if they're gonna work that is) now i am the worlds worst at drinking enough, and i once asked a nurse if dehydration would cause your pee to sting, the answer was yes because of the waste products you are passing making your urine acidic. This makes perfect sense and for a while i have excepted that maybe this is something that has come on as i've got older and my body has changed. But all through my twenties i didn't drink much and would be dehydrated and it didn't make my pee sting, so i'm begining to wonder if it has less to do with my age and more to do with that bad bout at the begining of last year. I got sick of my doc not really doing anything but give me antibiotics when i have a bout especially as i have told him that sex is a trigger and knowing that they could give me antibiotics to take, just 1 after sex to stop an infection developing, when i asked about this i was told that that is not ideal and is for women who have infections once a month (i didn't bother to remind him that i had one every other month last year and tell him that they were all after sex and that if i had let my partner near me more often than every couple of months then i would be one of those women!) so i asked to be refered to a urologist. I saw him and he doesn't think he needs to do a cystoscopy, i also see him again in 3 months to discuss, i think, any infections i may have had by then. I failed to tell him about this problem though so i will be sure to bring it up. My partner and i both went to the std clinic to rule anything out, our results were negative so alas i still do not have an answer. As for my infections, i was able to have sex without getting an infection recently, by drinkin lots of water over the course of the following couple of hours. Doesn't always work, especially if you go to sleep shortly after as you are not going to flush the bugs out. But worth a try...

I also have all of these similar symptoms and it's been driving me CRAZY. It makes me miserable at times, and it only gets better when I'm drinking a lot of water. I have been searching the internet for an answer and the only things that make sense so far are interstitial cystitis or even a prolapsed bladder. I have been treated for UTIs on many occasions but last time they told me I do not have one yet I'm miserable and have similar symptoms. I haven't gone to the doctors after they told me I do not have a UTI because I know this is going to be something hard for them to figure out and I don't have health care so I'm looking up all possible answers before I actually go.

I think these symptoms are very similar to a pelvic floor dysfunction, so do KEGEL EXERCISES and ask your doctor to take an extra good look next time you have a pap to make sure everything is in place.

Believe it or not IC is actually painful and hard to diagnose...BUT....there is so much information on it, they have diets and herbs and lots of information on the types of flare ups and what causes them.

i would be confident in saying that even if you haven't been diagnosed with IC (like myself) chances are that is probably what you have. Why spend 100's of $$$ on a diagnosis when you can start taking control yourself, start a bladder diary, record food and drink that causes flare ups and stay away from them.

do your symptoms seem to get worse the days leading up to a menstrual cycle and during the couple of days of ovulation? this is also a symptom of IC it's hormonal which means that stress doesn't help you either. Another thing that i have found has helped A LOT is Chinese medicine. we know from the 100's of people that see urologists and other specialists that there is no cure for their symptoms, Chinese medicine has been around a lot longer than western medicine and has helped me greatly. find a good herbalist/Chinese practitioner and get some formula and an acupuncturist that will rebuild the lining of your bladder. the symptoms will not go away completely but i definitely have frequent runs of 10 days of NO PAIN AT ALL. it comes back during hormonal periods but we are now working on that too. i wish everyone the best of luck, i have been suffering 16months with mine but am determined to fix it THIS YEAR!!!

:-D :-D :-D