Bladder problems

I'm 22 years old and started having bladder issues when I was 17. It felt like a UTI (frequency, urgency, general pelvic discomfort.. No burning though) and I was treated for one but the culture came back negative for bacteria. It then seemed to clean on its own but months later I had issues with frequency - my bladder would just seem to fill up when I hadn't had much liquid and I'd randomly need to go at inconvenient times.

Cut to now - I'm still having these issues but they come and go in 'flares.' I've just had a 'UTI' (wasn't.. No bacteria) so the worry had resurfaced. I've had bladder pressure for the past couple of days but that's gone now. On Friday, I ate a little bit of spicy food and had to urinate 4 times in an hour.

Sometimes I get 'UTI' symptoms but the dipstick shows clear. Other times (like my most recent one) it's positive for white blood cells so they give me antibiotics. I've never had a culture test positive for bacteria and I've had a couple of these over the years.

My doctor seems to think it's OAB but I don't have problems all of the time. I've been referred to a urologist but I still have another 9 or 10 weeks to wait.

I've been worried about bladder cancer for the past year and that worry gets worse whenever I have a flare.. I'm convinced it's a tumour causing the symptoms. I had a pelvic ultrasound for a cyst back in Dec 2018 and Jan 2019.. Could this have spotted a tumour?

I'm really worried as my symptoms massively affect my life when they come on and I have no idea what the cause could be. Has anyone experienced similar or have any ideas as to what the issue could be?

Hi there

I've had a weak bladder all my life and am over twice your age. Sure it's a pain in the butt but there's not a lot can be done about it. I think I just urinated for 4th time in an hour after a string cup of coffee. That's normal.

About 20 years I went for physiotherapy for it (no urologist) but didn't help. It can be anxiety related. Another theory is that somehow your bladder is being "pinched" inside the body.

These days they can stick up a camera up there and get a better idea.

You most definitely don't have cancer. You just pee a lot

Hi

i need to pee a lot too & for me is 100% anxiety , when I had my ultrasound done many years ago I almost wished they would find something physical to explained this, but there was nothing there.
Not sure if this will put your mind in rest a bit or not, but I thought I share.

It could be IC (interstitial cystitis) which is inflammation of the bladder, not infection. The only way to really know is to have a cystoscopy, with bladder distention, under general anesthetic. If it's IC there is a great new treatment available http://www.ialuril.co.uk/about-ialuril/ I've had your symptoms and have IC, which in hindsight I would have had for 25 years.

It's good to avoid all acidic food and drink lots of water. I find this is very helpful for all bladder issues https://www.ichelp.org/wp-content/up.../food-list.pdf Also, marshmallow capsules and slipper elm powder are great for bladder pain and frequency. There is a product called Prelief, which alkalizes food and drink, which is very helpful too. Take care.