Today I have been the ultimate NON-picture of health: I talked on my cell phone while driving, I didn't eat until 9pm at night cause I ran out of time, I cut short social situations, I parked as close as possible to buildings to save time and my heels.......(but on second thought I did get in a 3 mile run and 2 hours doing yard and house work....)
....however the other day I was pretty darn proud of my health treatment choice. Now this is probably TMI (Too Much Information), but I am incredibly prone to UTIs (urinary tract infections). Really UTIs have been pretty regular friends of mine throughout my entire life aka I'm oh so fortunate to have a visit from a UTI every year or so. Individuals that are predisposed to UTIs have to be even more careful about getting regular fluids to flush the system, not sitting in sweaty or wet clothes after working out/swimming, monitoring hygiene and potential negative exposures in the lower region, using caution and cleanliness about sex, etc. UTIs tend to be bacterial, which the good news for that means they can readily be treated with antibiotics.....however I swear to you that antibiotics are not necessary.....
Now a few interesting facts of note: 1) when I was a vegan I never had issues with UTIs at all 2) I'm so in tune to my fabulous friend that I can usually feel it coming on before it gets too incredibly painful and 3) even with my regular visitation, the last time I went to the doctor to be diagnosed/treated for a UTI was almost 15 years ago.
How do I get rid of it you might be wondering? Well its a combo of:
Image from here.
AND
Image from here.
And one more thing, but it's even more TMI and I'll explain in a bit.
Who needs antibiotics when all I have to do is drink a full bottle of pure cranberry juice and a TON of water? Works much faster in my case, as I'm almost always fully recovered within 8-12 hours. (The extra trick is to, uh, rinse the general "exit" area with water, so that you're flushing the system internally via increased fluid intake and also "flushing" away from the urethra. I know, you really wanted to know that, but I swear it helps and it makes you pee even more.) ;)
This all came up because I woke up on Tuesday having to urinate constantly and with general discomfort. Sometimes if it's just starting I can ward it off by seriously increasing my water intake, but 5 large glasses of water later I hadn't felt much improvement. Hub, always the trooper in these situations, headed to the store for some cranberry juice and some back up Gatorade (although it has lots of sugar in it, which you want to decrease sugar with infections). By 1pm the bottle of cranberry juice, 5 more glasses of water, and half a Gatorade had been consumed......and by 2pm I was back to regular. Over the last few days I've continued to monitor fluid intake to keep the system flushed out and have been more mindful of my preventative behaviors.
But I always prefer a situation where I can avoid the antibiotic, especially when an easier fix is so readily available. I can't guarantee it'd work for you, but if find yourself with a UTI coming on, it's at least worth a shot.....
....however the other day I was pretty darn proud of my health treatment choice. Now this is probably TMI (Too Much Information), but I am incredibly prone to UTIs (urinary tract infections). Really UTIs have been pretty regular friends of mine throughout my entire life aka I'm oh so fortunate to have a visit from a UTI every year or so. Individuals that are predisposed to UTIs have to be even more careful about getting regular fluids to flush the system, not sitting in sweaty or wet clothes after working out/swimming, monitoring hygiene and potential negative exposures in the lower region, using caution and cleanliness about sex, etc. UTIs tend to be bacterial, which the good news for that means they can readily be treated with antibiotics.....however I swear to you that antibiotics are not necessary.....
Now a few interesting facts of note: 1) when I was a vegan I never had issues with UTIs at all 2) I'm so in tune to my fabulous friend that I can usually feel it coming on before it gets too incredibly painful and 3) even with my regular visitation, the last time I went to the doctor to be diagnosed/treated for a UTI was almost 15 years ago.
How do I get rid of it you might be wondering? Well its a combo of:
AND
And one more thing, but it's even more TMI and I'll explain in a bit.
Who needs antibiotics when all I have to do is drink a full bottle of pure cranberry juice and a TON of water? Works much faster in my case, as I'm almost always fully recovered within 8-12 hours. (The extra trick is to, uh, rinse the general "exit" area with water, so that you're flushing the system internally via increased fluid intake and also "flushing" away from the urethra. I know, you really wanted to know that, but I swear it helps and it makes you pee even more.) ;)
This all came up because I woke up on Tuesday having to urinate constantly and with general discomfort. Sometimes if it's just starting I can ward it off by seriously increasing my water intake, but 5 large glasses of water later I hadn't felt much improvement. Hub, always the trooper in these situations, headed to the store for some cranberry juice and some back up Gatorade (although it has lots of sugar in it, which you want to decrease sugar with infections). By 1pm the bottle of cranberry juice, 5 more glasses of water, and half a Gatorade had been consumed......and by 2pm I was back to regular. Over the last few days I've continued to monitor fluid intake to keep the system flushed out and have been more mindful of my preventative behaviors.
But I always prefer a situation where I can avoid the antibiotic, especially when an easier fix is so readily available. I can't guarantee it'd work for you, but if find yourself with a UTI coming on, it's at least worth a shot.....
1 comment:
I love natural cures!! This is a good one and I will keep it in mind if I get one of those things (ugh makes me think of childhood lol). To join in your TMI-ness, my favorite solution for gunkiness (when you are clogged up) is to drink only water and eat only carrots until you feel better. Works like a charm every time and clears things (that and Granny Smith apples work too!). Yay for natural cures!!
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