Cystitis – What is it & Who Gets It?

Cystitis is an infection of the bladder, and the most common type of urinary tract infection (UTI).  It occurs four times more frequently in women than men. In fact,  60% of women have an infection at some point in their life. And more than half of sufferers get a recurrence within a year. Symptoms differ from person to person, but include frequent, painful urination, a strong and painful urge to pass urine, and cloudy, dark or smelly urine, sometimes with blood in, and in some cases fever.

Though often the symptoms indicate a bacterial infection, on testing, bacteria are not always present. In many cases, the body will deal with the infection in a few days, without help – homeopathic or otherwise. In others not. And it is always wise to go to the doctor for a test, as a small percentage can develop into a kidney infection, if left untreated.

Basic Do’s and Don’ts for Cystitis

  • Do drink plenty of water to flush out the urinary system
  • Do avoid /reduce acidic foods e.g. anything sweet – soft drinks, even fruit for some is a problem; also tea, coffee, wheat, dairy and processed foods, alcohol, citrus, tomatoes, vinegar, and yeasts
  • Do eat lots of alkaline foods e.g. vegetables, vegetable juices, brown rice, miso soup, homemade pearl barley water
  • Don’t ever hold it – always empty your bladder whenever you feel the urge
  • Do empty your bladder before any activity, which involves urethral pressure e.g. cycling, intercourse, diaphragms.
  • Do wipe from front to back after a stool
  • Don’t drink the usual, off-the-shelf cranberry juice, thinking cranberries are good for cystitis. Firstly, the jury is out in terms of scientific evidence for cranberries for UTI’s. Secondly, these supermarket juices contain large quantities of sugar: A big no-no for cystitis.

Homeopathy for Cystitis

Although we don’t use the term “pissed off” for nothing, of course suppressed anger is not the only underlying cause of cystitis. And where humiliation for one person may trigger the symptoms, it will not for another. There can be many other underlying causes – physical and emotional. For example, childbirth can trigger cystitis, especially where there has been medical intervention e.g. an episiotomy, a forceps delivery etc. And homeopathy is just as effective in this situation.

There are 150+ homeopathic remedies for cystitis. Prescribing the right one depends on the interplay of many elements, not least matching the remedy to the person’s exact symptoms. So if you go to see a homeopath, s/he will want to know:

  • What the pain feels like – burning, shooting, aching, cramping etc
  • When it comes – before, at the beginning, middle, at the end of, or after the flow
  • The colour and smell of the urine.

Another client, Mary had not come for treatment of cystitis specifically, but it was in her history. Before being in homeopathic treatment, she would take antibiotics for the regular outbreaks. When her next attack came she was in an intense amount of pain, which the remedy Cantharis sorted out within a few hours.

Other  examples of remedies and their application to cystitis:

  • Where there is extreme pain and blood in the urine, Cantharis may be indicated
  • Where the flow is very slow to start – Lycopodium
  • Where symptoms come on suddenly as result of getting chilled – Aconite
  • Where the trigger is sex or surgery – Staphysagria etc.

If you suffer from cystitis and would like to talk to me about whether I think homeopathy could help your case, just click on the Free Consult button.

References

Nicolle, L.E (2008). “Uncomplicated urinary tract infection in adults including uncomplicated pyelonephritis”. Urol Clin North Am 35 (1): 1–12.

Salvatore, S., Salvatore, S., Cattoni, E., Siesto, G., Serati, M., Sorice, P., Torella, M. (June 2011) “Urinary tract infections in women”. European journal of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology 156 (2): 131–6.

Morrison, R. 1998. “Desktop Companion to Physical Pathology”. California, Hahnemann Clinic Publishing.

Murphy, R., 2005. Homeopathic Clinical Repertory. 3rd ed. Virginia. Lotus Health Institute.

 

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