I had sex for the first time about 9 months ago. A few days after the first time, I got a UTI. At the time I had no idea what it was, as I've never had one before. My symptoms were just constant urge to pee and the awkward pressure feeling "down there" that I cant I explain. When I found out what it was I went straight to the chemist and picked up some "Ural". Since my symptoms would pass about an hour or two after taking Ural, I never bothered going on any antibiotics cause at the time I didn't know much about it and thought that it was gone once i could no longer feel it.
Without a doubt everytime I had sex I would get a UTI the following morning so I was drinking plenty of cranberry juice and taking cranberry supplements, but nothing seemed to be helping. A few months later I finally decided to go do a urine sample. Came back saying I had no signs of a UTI.. So next step, I got my boyfriend and I both tested for STDs. Both came back fine. Another month passed and it was still happening so I went to a different doctor and did another urine test. Turns out I did have a UTI.
Went on antibiotics, was gone for a few weeks, waited until I was in the clear, had sex and it came back. Since then started taking "ethical nutrients, Urinary Tract Support tablets" 3 four times daily to prevent. Worked well for a few weeks, my UTI cleared up and I didn't have sex for around 3 - 4 weeks to make sure it was gone. Had sex yesterday and here I am again. Sitting in the bathroom crying over yet another UTI.
I've told my doctor all this and all he's said is keep taking supplements there's not much else you can do..
I've googled everything possible to prevent it and nothing seems to help.
I pee before and after sex.
Wipe front to back.
drink plenty of water.
Take cranberry supplants.
Take the UTI prevention tablets.
My boyfriend and I make sure we are always very clean.
Pretty much everything I can do. I do and nothing is helping!
Someone please help me! I can't take this any longer, it's driving me insane and it's not looking good for my realationship, although my boyfriend is very helpful and understanding. I can't keep putting myself through this.
UPDATE
Thank you to everyone who has replied, very much appreciated.
I ordered "Waterfall D-Mannose" and "OptiBac Probiotics For Women". I have been taking both of these products for about a month now and all I can say is that they are bloody amazing! I haven't had a UTI since, which is the longest I've been without one since the start of my UTI situation.
I have also taken alot of other suggestions you have all given me into consideration:
I now have a cup in my bathroom for when I go to the toilet I fill the cup up with water and poor it "down there" to try flush away any bad bacteria.
I have also been making sure that sex is being spread throughout the week and not constant or jam packed into the weekend so that it doesn't irritate anything.
We've been making sure to shower prior to sex and use the appropriate body washes, also making sure sex is well lubricated definalty has made a difference.
I am so greatful that I now have a solution to my UTI problem and I hope this post can be useful to any others that have suffered the same.
️Xoxo 😊😄
Written by
Nicklaus
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
I also suffer from IBS, which is very frustrating to have with a UTI as the Ural upsets my stomach and I end up having a minor version of diarrhoea every time I have the UTI..
Have a look on the sweet cures website they do a product called waterfall and this is a natural treatment for uti they say that often the reason that the uti keeps coming back is that they haven't gone in the first place and often these days antibiotics don't work so it might help you.
Thank you Ive never heard of it before, had a quick look at website and looks pretty good, think I might read up on it and give it ago. Pretty much whiling to try anything at this point.
If you go to the karhryn marsden website she has a lot of good advice for treating uti's she is a big fan of probiotics too that's where I heard about waterfall.i really hope you find some relief soon as I had about 4 one after another last year and it's no fun.
When you get a uti maybe try only drinking water, no soft drinks or coffee etc. that seems to help me minimise the pain. Although I have interstitial cystitis which is a never ending uti so worth a try.
I'm a pretty healthy eater and I don't like to drink soft drink/ coffee or anything but I can see where that would come into play with making things worse :/
But thank you for your advise
I'm sorry to hear you have interstitial cystitis, UTIs are awful!
Do you think theres a chance that, that's what I could have? I'm so terrified that these UTIs will never come to an end.
Maybe, they need to have a look inside with a cystoscopy to check that there aren't any problems with the bladder wall. And the pain has to be there for at least 6 months. There are treatments they can give you if you are diagnosed. I have endometriosis as well and only discovered it due to my bladder problems. So they don't know if that caused it too. I hope you find some relief! It's awful.
Oh okay, I'll have to look into it, I really hope its nothing too serious :/
Thank you for all your help! x
Hi sorry you are suffering with this, must be frustrating for you both, and painful for you. Have you both tried non perfumed soap,and non perfumed bath products. Try washing with Emulsifying ointment instead of soap, and maybe try to use KY gel or another aid to stop friction during sex, it may help. If you are getting an infection each time then both of you need to be treated, as you will pass it to eachother. If it continues you should ask to see a gynaecologist your uterus may be low, this happens somtimes with us women it can drop, even at a early age. Best to get it checked out for peace of mind. I hope things get better soon. Take care.
I use fragrance free plain dove soap, do you think that would be alright? my boyfriend just uses any soaps so I might have to talk to him about that and see if it helps.
We use a water based lube to help prevent friction, I think that does play a big part in helping to prevent it from happening.
I asked my doctor a few weeks ago if maybe my boyfriend could have an infection that we keep passing back and forth and all he said was that you can't catch UTIs from eachother the only thing we could be passing is Chlamydia which we both got tested for and don't have so it can't be that.
I was considering getting him tested for any bacterial infections anyway, because I still think that if he had any sort of bad bacteria that's coming near me and maybe not giving me a UTI but giving me the bacteria to start one. Could that be possible..
Although we do use condoms so I'm not sure that, that could be it :/
I'm going for an ultrasound tomorrow, would that show the same thing? Not to sure what a gynaecologist is..
Hi, it looks like you are very sensitive and dove is still a soap, emulsifying ointment is a plain no additive soap. It takes a bit of getting use to as its in a tub and you have to basically rub your hands together with water to make it into a soap. Have you thought you may be allergic to latex in the condoms, also your boyfriend, would need to use the emulsifying as well, but as you are using condoms ,it shouldn't matter for him. Ask for a test and see if it is the latex. You can get latex free condoms, maybe try them. Hope all goes well at with scan. A Gynaecologist is a person who will know all about our internal woman's bits , you would have an internal and they usually can tell if things are not right, your scan should show if you have any scar tissue due to soreness. There is so many things it could be, and Inreally hope you get the answers tomorrow. Let me know how you get on. You can pm me if you like. Take care.xx
Oh okay, I'll have to get some of that and see if it helps
I thought it could have been a reaction to latex so I googled the ones we use which is "skyns" and it says they arnt latex. We don't use any other brands so I don't think that could be it.
Oh okay, I'll try a Gynaecologist if this scan doesn't show anything.
Thank you so much for all your help! I'll let you know how I go x
Sounds weird but UTIs are much more common in people with sensitivity to grains. May be worth tapering off grains to see if it helps. Also good to take probiotics after antibiotics.
Hey, I'm so sorry to hear about this, UTIs suck! I had the same problem, got one everytime I had sex.
What really helped me was taking probiotics! Specifically designed for 'down there'. It's quite a new discovery, but as UTIs are caused by a bacteria imbalance, obviously antibiotics wipe out all the good bacteria too.
I took a course of the probiotics and since then I've only had one in the past 6 months! But managed to self medicate with sachets.
What really helped for me as well was making my bf full on wash with soap before sex, if didt kill the moment too much lol.
The brand is optibac probiotics for women- it's s bit pricey but I think worth it!
It's such a pain getting them so often isn't it :/
I think I'm going to have to start doing that too, were already so careful about when we have sex; making sure were not sweaty and try to be as clean as possible. It's frustrating but whatever it takes to prevent it, I'll do.
All the things you are doing are right. Also have an empty plastic water bottle by the loo and when you've had your wee pour warm/cool water inbetween your legs. I take one Trimethoprim antibiotic after sex also which works for me but I think maybe I am much older than you and sex is not so frequent. However, if you are suffering so much then you are not going to want to or be able to do it anyway.
Thank you for your reply that's a good idea, I'll try doing that.
I was considering getting some sort of antibiotic to take after sex, Ive heard they work quite well.
Yeah it has been quite a struggle with the constant UTIs, sex has defiantly not been a very regular event at all. So maybe taking some antibiotics might work well for me.
Sorry you are having such a bad time , as its been said earlier your boyfriend needs to make sure he hasnt an infection , women have a shorter passage to the bladder than men so its far easier to get a uti , you say you have taken anti biotics , did your partner ?? he needs to too , men dont get symptoms like us ladies so he will be convinced he hasnt got one , but its highly likely he has becauses as soon as you have sex its passed back and forth , both get a course of anti biotics and then try to get some pro biotic supplements easily available online very high strength , and are easier to take than messing with drinks and yoghurts , abstain for a while and then try again , good luck xxx
He's never been tested when I have or taken any antibiotics..
I thought about this aswell so I asked my doctor a few weeks ago if maybe my boyfriend could have an infection that we keep passing back and forth and all he said was that you can't catch UTIs from eachother the only thing we could be passing is Chlamydia which we both got tested for and don't have so it can't be that.
I was considering getting him tested for any bacterial infections anyway, because I still think that if he had any sort of bad bacteria that's coming near me and maybe not giving me a UTI but giving me the bacteria to start one. Could that be possible?
What would I ask the doctor to test him for??
and we also use condoms so could I still be getting something from him if he had an infection?
If he is wearing a condom every time then maybe you are allergic to them ? i wouldnt use any soap ! i would buy the feminine soap in a bottle ! vagisil ?? i think thats what its called , i cant use Dove soap at all even on my body it makes me itch terribly !!! dont be tempted to douch either has this will wash away your natural balance down there ,
We've tried both with and without a Condom and it happens either way so I'm starting to think it's not a reaction to those things :/
I tried changing to an actual femine product once and ended up getting thursh when I used it! Not fun. I had never had thrush before so I immidiatly stopped using it and went back to dove.
i wouldnt have thought the fem soap would cause thrush hun as its a yeast infection ! im at a loss as to what you can do !! but your partner needs checking out !! maybe you are hyper allergic to anything down there due to an inbalance , maybe it may be worth asking your doctor for a hormone replacement for a while to see how it goes , you can get it in a vaginal cream ?? its worth asking i think ? , also maybe a plain pro biotic application ! xxx
I've had this problem. The doctor explained it was called "honeymoon cystitiis." I took antibiotics right away, but it came back months later. My boyfriend was not supportive and we broke up (there were other issues as well). Just a few other small things I learned. The type and frequency of sex might have an effect. The doctor told me that both you and your boyfriend should:
I had this problem. The doc called it "honeymoon cystitis" and advised the following:
shower before and after sex
wear underwear after sex
anal sex and then regular sex (one right after another) (going from back to front during the same sexual episode can trigger UTI's
space the sex out throughout the week. Having sex intensely, in one time period, like the weekend,
can make you more vulnerable.
See a urologist, maybe the antibiotic is not strong enough or a change in medication is at hand.
I am not a doctor, so I don't know whether this will help you. My UTI's went away, but so did my boyfriend. (There were other issues.) So I don't now whether it was the precautions I took at the time worked or the lack of sex. This happened last year and I have not been with another man.
I'm sorry to hear that, it's not fair on you at all. I'm very grateful that my boyfriend is so supportive, it's such a horrible feeling when there's not much we can do about it when UTIs come about it isn't always our fault when it happens.
Thank you for your reply. Now that I think about it, i may need to start spacing sex out a little better, as I do usually find it happens more often after we spend the weekend together, it might be a bit much in such a short time.
I dont think its the sex causing it,my daughter had it when she was 4 years old and also had blood with it,was linked to her Kidneys,maybe you could ask if you could be seen by someone who specialises in your problem and have your kidneys checked just to rule out anything else as you seem to be doing so much and its so far not helping you. x
Drink water before and after sex. Urinate immediately after sex. Are you using a condom? You may be sensitive to it. If you're not using condoms, you may be sensitive to your boyfriends body fluid. Strange but it happened to me a long time ago. Recently I was diagnosed with a urethral diverticulum and had it removed, well most of it, but I haven't had a UTI since. Hope all works out for you.
We use Skyns Condoms, Ive done some research on reactions to condoms and it mainly says you can get UTIs from the spermicide in condoms but there isn't any in the ones I use so I didn't think it could be that. We have also tried without and I still get UTIs so it could be a reaction to him although i did Google that and I don't seem to have any signs of a sensitivity to him other then getting a UTI. How would I find out if I was?
If you don't mind me asking, how did you find out you had urethral diverticulum? Could that be a possibly do you think?
I was diagnosed with Vulvodynia in 2005 and have been in constant pain and frequent UTI's since then. After seeing doctor after doctor I was finally referred to a Vulvodynia specialist in 2015 and he saw the diverticulum immediately upon examining me. He then sent me to the Urodynamic department. Those doctors specialized in urology and gynecology. That could definitely be the cause because I haven't had one since the surgery in September. I'm not sure how to find out if you're having a reaction to your boyfriends semen but maybe see if it's something he's eating. Sounds weird but my ex was into protein drinks and it may have been good for him but horrible for me. I also have allergy to most condoms latex and others.
You've had lots of good advice there. Here's a bit more which might help. For these episodes when you think ' is it an infection or not?' - Amazon sells urine tests strips just like the doctor (usually the nurse) uses to diagnose a urine infection. Whether after a positive they go on to send it to the lab for bug analyses depends on the surgery protocol.
The strips cost about £9 for 100 and are easy to use. There's a colour change on the pads of the strip when an infection is present in the urine. This for me was 100% the same as the surgery's findings.
No colour change -unlikely to be an infection which is an immediate relief. You can ask your doctor for a standby course of anti-biotics in case you get a weekend infection. if you explain that you're self-testing he shouldn't object. A six month preventitive course is also an option.
Intercourse is definitely a piece of the UTI puzzle but not all of it.
Hygiene - we're now told we're all being too clean and confusing our immune system!
Have your thyroid levels checked. Mine was underactive and since this was treated I've not had a single UTI (fingers and everything else crossed!)
Glad you found this useful. Your GP can give you a blood test to check if you're thyroid is underactive. You don't have to have symptoms. If this is not the answer the long term night time preventative anti-biotic will certainly give you your life back.
Apparently after a set number of UTIs the NHS might (perhaps should) consider you for getting a low-dose anti-biotic daily. My wife now has to take Cefalexin 250mg/daily after 6 successive UTIs in not much more than a year.
avoid any toiletries with scents perfumes, no long baths .talk again with doctor or nurse.my ex used plain yougurt in that area of your body. make a game of yougurt with your man.take turns with the yougurt use your imagination!
I have been following the conversations around UTI. This is a problem I have been suffering with for over 2 years now definitely associated with sex and also more recently swimming so now I think chlorine could be causing problems. I wash with a product called Lactacyd feminist which you can buy in boots priced 4.99 and this definitely helps! I have just recently been placed on antibiotics to get rid of the infection and then being put on a 3 month trial of Trimethoprim 100mg one a day and then seemly after 3 months they put me on another antibiotic for a further 3 months. Although I don't want to go on these tablets my doctor provides me with no alternative. I do take Chinese herbs and have accupunture however this doesn't seem to help th bladder only the IBS. I am hoping that the long term antibiotic will work however time will tell. I will definitely start taking probiotics although not sure if this will help as I will be on the prescribed tablets for over 6 months.
The herbs I use are prescribed specifically for me however if you wish to go and see my Chinese Doctor who I may say is fantastic then she is called Doctor Jeing and has a clinic in Sheffield opposite the hospital on Glossop road she also has a clinic in Harley Street London. Her number is 0114 2662051. The clinic operates Wednesday and Saturday. She is currently on holiday and back next Wed. She isn't to expensive she charges me around 62 to 68 pound for accupunture and herbs that normally last 2 weeks. Sometimes at the beginning she will ask you to go every week for maybe 4 weeks until she gets it under control. Because she is a doctor she has a dispenser who makes the herbs up for you or if she gives you dry herbs then they are in a pill form. I swear by this lady I have gone to her for over 10 years now. I first went to visit her back in 2003 when I was diagnosed by her with ME. I spent 2 years off work however she gave me light at the end of the tunnel and got me back to work. If you have anymore questions just let me know more than happy to help!
Hi, I am really sorry that you are going through this, as something similar happened to me. I got a UTI, but it was super painful. It felt like I was peeing razor blades. I also had a sharp pain in my bladder. Anyway, to cut a very long story short. I had the darn bladder infection for 7 months. I'd go on antibiotics, come off them and the infection was still there. I was convinced I had some dreaded disease. I never could imagine being 'normal again'. Seven months is such a long time.
I was on so many antibiotics that my hair started to fall out and my toenails went black. ugh, it was horrid.
Finally, it went. I reckon an extra long dose of the usual stuff they give you plus amoxicillin finally cleared it.
I am not sure what will stop yours, but you can try what I do, and I have been free of infection for over a year.
shower before sex, using a soap free alternative
pee before sex
then shower and pee after sex within 15 minutes of sex.
I also use an LOT of lube as I suspect it might irritate the area if I don't.
I use coconut oil, but can't recommend it since it can break condoms. SILK or Yes is also good.
I wear cotton undies, no tight trousers.
I wash well down there after a bowel movement always.
I obviously tell my boyfriend to wash too before sex
I don't drink tons of water nor do I use cranberry but I hear that is a good idea?
I'm so relieved that I don't have to worry about it anymore but, I do feel traumatized after such a long infection and I have an anxious attitude towards sex now.
I'm so sorry to hear that, it's such a horrible thing to go through im glad you've got it all sorted now though!
Thank you for your reply I think I might start definalty showering before and after sex. I've always made sure we're both clean but maybe showering more close to the event might help. x
Thank you for links there always very helpful,, It's interesting you talk about intolerance tests however I have looked into this and they say there isn't such a thing as an accurate test the only way you can do it is have a strict diet. I have removed wheat, diary, gluten and keep sugar to a minimum, not really got a sweet tooth. I drink lots of cranberry and not much tea the most ever being 1 a day sometimes I can go all week without one. I must admit I don't drink a lot maybe 4 to 5 glasses a day. This is down to the fact I work in Sales and travel and spend hours in the car. My bladder is so weak that the minute I have a few mouthfuls of water I need to go to the toilet so it switches me off to drinking. When I'm at home I try and increase my intake as it doesn't matter how many times I go the toilet is next to me. If you know of any reliable companies that do food intolerance tests then please let me know. Although my Chinese doctor reckons that this is linked to being pre menopausal due to many factors one of them being that your body is changing through this process, cells etc and sometimes it attacks the weakness in the body and can reactive old problems. This makes some sense as I had IBS when I was 30 for 2 years then it disappeared and then two years ago it came back at the age of 52 and since the. Has got worse and now get bladder problems and reflux. It's great being a women!!!!! NOT
Hi there thank you for the links and I am definitely going to have an intolerance test if you recommend this is a good site. I know that hormones could be effecting my body and causing some of my problems. My Chinese doctor has said that when you are premenapopausal then it can most definitely trigger some if not all the symptoms I am experiencing. I'm now coming up to 54 therefore I'm at the right age for this all to be happening! I give up with doctors they drive me mad! I will keep you posted whenI have the test and then maybe I can start eating a more varied diet. 😃
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
I'll defiantly look into it! 
x 
I just don’t understand 
IBS flaring since antibiotics 
Weird symtoms suddenly, don't know if connected with IBS or not
Reducing amitriptyline problems 
