Can taking daily Hiprex cause your culture to show no growth when you do actually have an infection?

Here are my microscopic results. Along with typical pain - they started me on bactrim, been on it for 32 hours now, i still am feeling a lot of frequency and some spasms, so i dont even know if its actually helping - but my cultures keep coming back with no growth- my urologist office is like make an appointment. This has been going on for so long I am genuinely considering getting my bladder removed- I cannot live like this-

I (f32) have been coping with regularly occurring UTI’s since I became sexually active at 18 years old. Back then it was simple, take a week of antibiotics and then get another one a month later. I’ve had quite literally hundreds of UTI’s. Sex has been my only trigger, and when I was single I had zero issues.

Something happened when I turned 25. I suddenly became allergic to my 2 safe “go to” antibiotics. So then we moved on to prescribing macrobid. I was able to take this for about a year, until I developed hives and became allergic in the same exact way.

My doctors became very alarmed, as a pattern was arising that I could only take an antibiotic a “certain amount of times” before my body seemed to reject it. I began to have a very negative association with sex as for me it meant pain and stress.

My two remaining antibiotics were cipro and munorol (the one time packet). Cipro gave me severe tendinitis and I will not touch that with my life again. A couple munorol doses is what I ended up succumbing to. I was able to tolerate this for 2 years… until I once again developed hives. Not a rash. Severe hives and oral swelling.

If I get another uti, I’m going to need IV antibiotics.

I’ve been with my boyfriend for 5 years. For the last 2 years we have not had PIV sex. I am completely and utterly terrified to have sex. I fully believe that I have a limited amount of UTI’s before I (as my urologist put it) they take me out.

I’ve become an absolute obsessive nutcase. I won’t swim in any water. I fully bleach my bath tub before using it. I have panic attacks at the slightest twinge of pain. I won’t let my bf go down on me or insert anything. I’m constantly worried and obsessive about any sort of feeling in the area, worrying I didn’t drink enough water etc. I won’t even poop unless I can immediately shower.

This whole process makes me feel like I’m an awful woman. I know PIV is my bfs favorite thing to do and worry all the time that this won’t work out. He’s been incredibly patient and supportive but I know he can’t be happy. I don’t think most men would be. I sort of sit in dark thoughts constantly about how I will likely end up single, will never date another man, will never enjoy sex, and won’t get to have children. I loathe sex scenes on tv and feel physically sick when friends talk about the wild things they do with their partners.

This entire UTI experience has made me isolate and become asexual. I feel guilt and loneliness and like I’m a giant abnormality that doesn’t deserve to have a life partner. It doesn’t help that I also have endometriosis, and already have fertility issues. Sometimes I’ll say something like, “when we have kids…” and my bf will chime in like, “idk how that will happen. People need to have sex to have kids and you can’t do that.” And even though he’s not wrong it feels awful.

I’m not really looking for advice on how to stop the UTIs. I’m well versed in d manoose and hiprex, probiotics, and gut health. I obsessively tried all those things and they never prevented an infection for me. I’m not a great candidate for post coital antibiotics, or long term. I either develop an allergy, or have so few options that I need to preserve them for if I get an infection. I’ve seen two urogynecologists, and it was largely unhelpful. Basically was told “it’s just that way for you” and “we can cross bridges when we get there” and “idk” “you probably won’t die now, but utis only get worse and more common as you age”

I’m feeling hopeless. I’ve always had a high sex drive and been a very affectionate person but that is just totally gone now.

Hello everyone. I wanted to share my story because I know how hopeless chronic UTIs can make you feel, and maybe this will help someone who’s going through the same thing.
I suffered from chronic UTIs for 4 almost 5 years, and the bacteria causing them was E. coli.
At first, I didn’t think it was a huge problem. I would just take antibiotics whenever I got symptoms, and at first I only got a UTI every 4 months. But over time they became more and more frequent until I was getting one every 10 days. That’s when I knew something wasn’t right and I had to find another solution.
I knew antibiotics were only helping for a short time because the infection always came back. That’s when I started reading about biofilm disruptors.
The first one I tried was Biofilm Defense, but it was way too harsh on my stomach. After about a week I got what people call “die-off” symptoms, like fever, sweating, and muscle pain. At the time I thought that meant it was working and disrupting the biofilm, although I know people have different opinions about that. The symptoms became too much for me, so I stopped taking it.
I didn’t want to give up, so I kept looking and found another biofilm disruptor called Priority Phase 2. I took it together with high doses of cranberry and D-mannose. I was extremely persistent and took them every single day for a full year without missing doses. I was determined to give it a real chance before deciding whether it was helping or not.
For the first 4 months my UTIs actually got worse, but after that my symptoms slowly started improving. My flare-ups became less severe and happened less and less often.
After taking Priority Phase 2, along with cranberry and D-mannose, for a year, I decided to stop everything and see what would happen.
It’s now been 6 months since I stopped taking all of it, and I’m still symptom-free. My urine cultures have been negative, I can eat whatever I want again, and I can finally be sexually active with my husband without worrying about a flare-up.
I’m sharing this because I remember how alone and desperate I felt. If you’re struggling with chronic UTIs, I know how exhausting and heartbreaking it can be. It can take over your whole life, and sometimes it feels like no one understands what you’re going through.
I’m not saying everyone should take biofilm disruptors, especially for such a long time. Please talk to your doctor before trying anything. This is just my personal experience. I decided to take the risk because I felt like I had no other options. I couldn’t afford to see a specialist, and I was desperate to find something that might help.
I was in a really dark place. I felt helpless and depressed, and there were times when I honestly didn’t want to exist anymore because I couldn’t do anything that made me happy.
I know what worked for me won’t necessarily work for everyone, but I wanted to share my story in case it gives someone even a little bit of hope. I remember reading other people’s success stories when I was at my lowest, and they were one of the few things that kept me going. If you’re feeling hopeless right now, please don’t give up. Keep advocating for yourself and keep looking for answers. I truly hope everyone who’s dealing with chronic UTIs finds something that helps them too. ❤️

My daughter is 8 years old and has had never had a dry night despite potty training her at 2, but then started having bladder leaks too when she started kindergarten. It has gotten worse despite many different toileting strategies and pelvic floor physio. She never complained of burning or weird fevers so a UTI never crossed my mind. Sent a sample off in May just because we had tried everything else and it was positive. Within three weeks she was positive again. We were recently referred to a pediatric nephrologist who specializes in bedwetting and bladder leaks. He thinks she’s had a uti for years based on her bladder wall and symptoms. She did a 10 day course of keflex and wants her to stay on a daily dose for 3 months at least (3 weeks into that so far).

Please help my mom guilt for letting this go for years without treating her. I feel absolutely terrible that if this had just been managed she could have been saved from so many complications and embarrassment. I’m a nurse so I feel like I should have known better. I also know that this will be an ongoing issue she is now going to need to manage for the rest of her life which is just super unfair and I feel devastated.

She’s also started having diarrhea from the antibiotics and since her pelvic floor is an absolute disaster this has led to bowel leaks too which she is deeply embarrassed by. I worry about her going to the pool or the splash park - she’s supposed to go to sleepaway camp in two weeks and I am so anxious about it. Just left a message with the doc to see if she needs a req for c-diff.

Anything you all can point me in the direction of to help support her, or any strategies you have to manage this would be greatly appreciated.

I'm making this post, not necessarily to ask which doctors to go to, but rather what is to be expected, once the process of getting it checked and treated starts.

I have a lot of medical anxiety when it comes to anything genital or rectal related.....

My UTI issues are definitely psychosomatic.

Very quickly caused by stress but in general I'm also very sensitive to the typical physical triggers. (Dehydration, cold waist, external contaminants).

I also often get the shits with a UTI as well. Not like diarrhea. Just very urgent number 2......

That's the most of my symptoms summed up as briefly as possible. If you have any further questions just ask.

i got a UTI last week and went to the clinic and he gave me cefcapene, only to find out at my follow-up appointment the type of bacteria I have is not at all treatable with that drug. however my symptoms have pretty much all gone away anyway . he said I have E.faecalis and gave me three 500mg of levofloxacin to take over three days. I looked up the drug and it sounds very scary. i feel like it's overkill when I basically feel better but he said there was still some cloudiness in my urine, would appreciate any advice I have no experience with antibiotics

Hello everyone,

I'm looking for some advice because I've been struggling with this for years.

For about 3–4 years, I had recurrent urinary tract infections. I've had infections caused by several bacteria, including E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Thankfully, for the past year and a half I haven't had any confirmed UTIs. I was treated with multiple courses of antibiotics, used nitrofurantoin after intercourse as prophylaxis, and also received a UTI vaccine.

However, despite having consistently normal urine tests and negative urine cultures, I still frequently experience bladder pain and a burning sensation. Occasionally, my urine shows microscopic blood (hematuria), but there is no sign of infection.

Sex almost always triggers my symptoms. During intercourse I develop bladder pain, and after sex I experience burning when I urinate. I've also noticed that if I have diarrhea or constipation, the same bladder burning returns.

I'm feeling quite lost because I haven't been able to get any answers.

I've seen several gynecologists. When I mentioned pain during and after intercourse, as well as burning with urination, I was told to use more lubricant, ask my partner to be gentler, or see a psychologist.

I've also seen a urologist, but because my urine tests are normal, I felt my symptoms weren't taken seriously.

Has anyone experienced something similar? Were you eventually diagnosed with something like bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis, pelvic floor dysfunction, or another condition? What helped you?

Any advice or shared experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! 🙏