Hi,
I would appreciate any advice anyone can offer. I have had somewhat recurrent UTIs since last September (two in the month of September 2009; one in December 2009; one in July 2010; one, at present, in September 2010). sexua| intercourse is obviously the impetus for these infections. We have both been tested for STIs.
I had eaten a high raw vegan diet (juiced vegetables daily; ate mostly salad, fruit, nuts, and small portions of cooked grains) before my boyfriend and I got together. Through no fault of his own, I found myself reverting back to a diet comprised mostly of processed sugars and starches. I had also recently moved, started a new graduate program, and ended an eight year long relationship last September. Basically, a lot of things changed in my life, and I found myself bombarded by stress. I am wondering if anyone else has suspected lifestyle and dietary changes to be possible causes of a urinary tract infection (perhaps along with other issues, such as candida).
I currently have an infection, and am trying to go the non-antibiotic route. All of my urine cultures have shown that there is no pathogen in my urine (only Lactobacillus, which I do not think can cause an infection, but perhaps I am wrong). I took five rounds of antibiotics this past year, and I am not doing it again!
Currently, I am taking D-Mannose, Apple Cider Vinegar in water, plenty of water, Calcium Citrate, probiotics, raw garlic, baking soda, and fresh vegetable juice. I am trying to eating small amounts of food and am trying to stick to alkalizing foods. I gave up cranberry juice; it caused me a lot of pain upon urination, and my urine was extremely concentrated.
Honestly, I am just at my wit's end. It has been one week since I noticed symptoms, and I don't know what to do or try. I don't even know what is wrong with me, which is perhaps the scariest part. As soon as I think I am getting better, one or two symptoms return. Urinating is painful; I often feel a constant need to urinate; etc. I also currently have a yeast infection, which led me to think perhaps the UTI is fungal.
Anyone have advice to offer? Deep down, I feel like I traded a pretty healthy lifestyle (which included daily yoga) in for an unhealthy, sedentary lifestyle. Perhaps the shift was too sudden. I have more anxiety and stress in my life and have gotten sick more this year than in previous years combined. I also exhibit many symptoms of adrenal fatigue, which I had experienced and been treated for in the past. Okay, I know I wrote a lot (I hope someone reads it)! Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you!
I can see one real mistake right of the bat. The baking soda. This is going to alkalinize the urine too much allowing for infections to flourish in the urinary tract. Most pathogens, especially fungi, thrive in alkalinity. But people keep buying in to the acidity myth and work overtime trying to alkalinize their systems, which just ends up putting more stress on their system as their system now has to work harder trying to restore its own pH:
Therefore the first suggestion is to stop alkalinizing your urine, which is just going to promote pathogen growth.
Drinking plenty of water and urinating frequently will also help. Women have a shorter urethra than men, which is why they are more prone to urinary tract infections. Pathogens have a shorter distance to travel. So urinating frequently is essential to keep the urethra flushed. This is especially important immediately after intercourse as intercourse pushes bacteria up in to the urethra.
Here is an old post on treating urinary tract infections:
UTI's....
well, when I've had them in the past, if I catch it soon, cantharis (homeopathic) or berberis works well...but homeopathics are very specific--not that you would know it these days to see the combo. formulas.
some would say UTI's signify being "pissed off"--to be blunt. "Deep down, I feel like I traded a pretty healthy lifestyle (which included daily yoga) in for an unhealthy, sedentary lifestyle."
maybe "deep down" is "down there"
??
just a thought.
this is where I'd be doing some EFT--and taking a break from the boyfriend. As you say, it's no fault of his, but maybe there is a subtle way you are allowing him to change you, so that you doen't have to take responsibility for some unresolved feelings...
In addition to what you've listed, I've used uva ursi extract to successfully treat UTIs, and acupuncture and Chinese herbs (my acupuncturist gave me a formula, unfortunately I don't remember the name of it).
As for whether the sudden lifestyle and diet shift caused it, that seems reasonable. Throwing the body off-balance like that is bound to have repercussions.
One final piece of advice... I have more experience with UTIs than I care to remember. Through diet and lifestyle changes I was able to virtually eliminate them, with the exception of once a year. For some reason, I would still get one in the middle of every summer. This year, I did a candida cleanse during the summer. I ate lots of raw, vegan and low-to-no sugar. And bam! No UTI this year. I suspect that it was the low sugar diet that did it, so you may be right about it being candida-related. In any case, try going on a low or no-sugar diet and see what happens.
When I was in my early twenties I started quite suddenly experimenting with fasting, juicing, and eventually was a raw vegan for over 2 years. Now 10 years later I am still barely recovering from the shock it caused my system. Are there aspects of these diets that are healthy. Of course. But at the same time there is much evidence that used unwisely they can cause much more damage than the "SAD" diets they are trying to replace. Now keep in mind that I was already eating macrobiotic at times and was not an overnight vegan.
Look at a package of cat food. Many of them say to gradually introduce their product into the cat's diet. Why? Because most organisms (including us) like to approach change gradually. Our digestive system has loads of neurons which are very sensitive to everything we think and do.
My advice? RELAX. Don't be hard on yourself. and don't worry. Just try to normalize your diet to one that you are comfortable with. Try to be happy. Rent a comedy as often as you can. And don't believe the worry warts that there are all these loops you have to jump through to heal yourself. Your body will usually heal itself if we just get out of the way and stop pushing weird routines on it.
And over the next few years try to move towards a healthier diet. But be gentle and don't sweat it if you backslide.
While I learned a lot, it has taken me 10 years to recover from a raw vegan diet (2 years 100percent raw).
YES YES YES A drastic switch can hurt your health. Don't listen to the money makers/authors. They want to sell you the idea that their book will heal you instantly.
Look at cat food. It says on most labels that changing a cat's food too quickly to their product is bad for the cat.
Home
Could a sudden shift in diet and lifestyle "shock" my system and cause r... 
