6 Remedies for Instant UTI Relief or IC Flare Relief.
I’ve been there, sitting on the toilet for hours upon hours in agonizing pain, searching the internet for instant relief remedies. I’m here to tell you, I’ve tried it ALL. If you are sitting there wondering what you can do RIGHT THIS SECOND to find some relief for UTI pain or an IC flare, you have come to the right place.
Does this explain your symptoms?
· Feeling the need to pee frequently
· Peeing tiny amounts
· Burning or pain when peeing
· Pee has a strong odor
· Pee may appear dark or cloudy
· Pelvic pain or abdominal pain
In this blog post, I cover my top 10 remedies for Instant UTI / IC Flare relief. We will go over what works and what things I recommend having on hand if you are someone that is experiencing their first UTI or your 500th UTI/ IC Flare.
UTI Test
First things first, you probably want to find out if you have a UTI. You may be experiencing symptoms of a UTI, but believe it or not, many different health issues could be causing burning, urgency, bloating, and abdominal pain. Anything from vaginal irritation, yeast infections, bacterial vaginosis (BV), interstitial cystitis, or a straight-up urinary tract infection. The best thing you can do for yourself is test yourself with an at-home test. This does not replace going to the doctor for these symptoms, but those with IC/PBS know that our first line of defense is determining if it’s a UTI, a flare, or something else. I recommend using these test strips from amazon.
Click here to get your UTI test.
Next, you are going to want to find some relief. Now there are a couple of different things that you can do from here. I’m going to give you several options that work for me. There is no order in which I do these. Sometimes I do them all; sometimes, I do a few and find relief.
Baking Soda is your friend.
Baking soda is my best friend. Usually, when you are experiencing some urinary tract issues, it’s because your urine is too acidic. One sure-fire way to help combat that is with a mixture of baking soda and water. Be aware that drinking baking soda can cause kidney stones, so you want to do about a tablespoon of baking soda in 16 oz water. The taste isn’t the best, but it helps. Another way to find relief is to take a cup or so of baking soda, mix it in a lukewarm bath, and soak for no longer than 20 minutes. The pH of the baking soda should help you combat the burning sensation. As someone that is a veteran of the burning sensation, I keep a large bag of baking soda on hand at all times.
Click here to get your baking soda.
Sitz Bath
Another option is you are not able to get in the bath or don’t have a bath but would instead try that than drinking baking soda; you can get what is called a sitz bath. This is something that you can use on your toilet or in the shower. It’s a bowl that you fill up with warm water and add medicine or a small amount of baking soda to bring the pH down.
Here is an excellent option for a sitz bath.
Alkaline Water
Again, I cannot stress enough the importance of bringing your pH balance down to try and have less of the burning urgency sensation. Whenever I am experiencing a flare, I will only drink alkaline water and stay away from acid foods. Drinking plenty of water also helps flush your system and helps you have a more normal pee. My favorite alkaline water is Essentia; you can also purchase an alkaline water filter.
Click here for the alkaline water.
Click here for the alkaline water filter.
Over the Counter Meds
Another line of defense is through over-the-counter medicine; two types of medication are used for urinary tract infections and symptom relief. One is AZO, and one is Cystex. Different things work for different people. For me personally, AZO isn’t my first choice. I lean towards Cystex because it works better for me. However, many people prefer AZO. They both provide urinary pain relief but pick one. Please don’t take them both at the same time.
Heating Pad
Once you keep to the point where you no longer need to sit on the toilet and rest, I always use a heating pad to try and help with the pain. Sitting with a warm heating pad on my pelvic area or seating on the heating pad helps relax your pelvic floor and surrounding muscles.
Click here for the heating pad I use.
Alka Seltzer
When I first started having frequent UTIs, my secret hack was Alka Seltzer. I believe part of this is because UTIs typically are from inflammation in your urinary tract from too much acid. I would take an Alka Seltzer when I was in a lot of pain, and this would help me almost cure my ailment. I have read somewhere that Alka Seltzer was developed to help with UTIs, but the marketing never took off. I’m not sure if that’s accurate or not, but it’s helped me in a pinch because our house always has Alka Seltzer on hand. PS it also helps a hangover as well.
You may be thinking to yourself, is this woman insane? She hasn’t said anything about cranberry juice or cranberry supplements. I have seen many urologists for my UTIs and IC/PBS, and all of them have told me to stay away from cranberry juice. As I’ve mentioned many times in this post, a UTI is painful because your urine is too acidic. Cranberry is an acid. I don’t drink cranberry juice or take cranberry supplements, but I used to. I used to think that would help not have recurrent UTIs, but when I got off the supplements and stopped drinking an ample amount of cranberry juice, my UTIs went down.
Many other posts on the internet will tell you to drink apple cider vinegar and other acidic products to combat UTI symptoms. That only makes my symptoms worse. However, if this is something that works for you, by all means, please continue! Everyone’s bodies are different and react differently to treatments, so do what works for you.
These tips and products are what works for me in an IC flare or during a UTI. I hope you get the relief you need and can get into a doctor quickly!
Feel better!
Related posts:
What to expect with an Endosee Office Hysteroscopy
Could your recurrent UTI’s be PBS/IC?
The best soap for your Vagina
