So here I am after what seems like an age of not blogging! (terrible I know but at least the info is out here for anyone to read if they search for info on IC, which makes me feel a little less guilty).

So whats changed since I last posted? Well...
I have bags more energy, I don't have to keep napping anymore! I actually think I could hold down a full time job now too which was unheard of before.
I have travelled a bit and managed to avoid any flares during that time!
I exercise more.
My diet has changed a bit to include tomato, aubergine and peppers without any problem.
My bladder FEELS normal, most days I am not aware of it at all, theres no sensation of pressure or disomfort.
I've had a coule of flares since I last posted, 2 of which have been in the last 5months, but I've handled them well and I think that my bladder is so much more stable and has been given a chance to heal that I don't actually suffer for too long, also if I do come into contact with any flare foods it is only in the tinyest amount. My flares seem to go like this - I begin feeling dicomfort but like I can't pee, then  I have several hours of agony (buring, a swollen feeling you know the drill) and constant peeing and exhaustion along with feeling freezing cold followed by more exhaustion but warmer temperatures and less pain and much less frequency. By day 2 I'm nearly back to normal. Day 3 I'm fine again.

I still take probiotics, I still follow pretty much the same diet (maybe a bit more sugar in it now), I barely ever drink alcohol but if I do I stick to rum (made with sugar cane) and orange juice or wine. I don't use condoms or the pill. I am still using all natural body products. I use Uva Ursi (Vogals brand tincture) if I get a UTI, but its been months since the last time I had to do that.

I am still achieving all of this without the help of a urologist or doctor, I don't take any medical drugs, I've never had a cystoscopy and I remain positive that things can only get better. Having said that I do not rule out the possibility of seeking help from a uro again in the future should my IC symptoms become very much worse and none of the things I have done in the past or continue to do make any improvements.

Thats all from me now folks,

little_ducks xx

Hello,

Here I am after many months of not bothering to post! It's very bad of me but it just turned into a cycle of doom really as I didn't have the time or the energy to post due to studies and illness of a close family relative. Then I felt it had been such a long time that I wasn't sure where to begin....So I am back and I am going to continue writing as I always wanted to put my story out there to try and help others.

The reason I am on here now is because I recieved an email from another girl of a similar age and her email inspired me to get back on here and write! (If you are reading this then please email me to isabel.dolman@yahoo.com and I will get back to you personally, currently it says you have emailed from an anoymous email address so I can't reply).


So anyway the other day was my 23rd birthday and I had a wonderful time, I even ate cake and drank acohol! These things dont sound like something that someone on a restricted diet should be doing! But I am very careful, all of my cake recipes are from this website http://www.elanaspantry.com/ and I only drink rum and orange juice/soda water (rum is made from sugar cane and does not have any weird additives or a grain base like most other spirits). Having said that I rarely eat a diet high in sweet things and I only drink very occasionally. I did spend a good 9months being very very careful! I am still mainlining the probiotics (natren megadophilus dairy powder 1 tsp in water before bed). Despite the above I am still very careful with my diet and lifestyle and I do take these things very seriously.

There are lots of things I still do...

• I have bowen therapy when I feel I need it
• I see a pelvic floor physiotherapist
• I do not use any chemicals on my skin, all of my body products are 100% natural and I make sure they don't contain soy or gluten (I highly recomend green people, faith in nature and natura care, then just plain coconut oil is amazing as a moisturiser)
• I drink plenty of water, coconut water, peppermint tea, nettle tea and lemon in warm water.
• I make sure that my diet consists of plenty of variety but do not eat any potato, wheat, barley, oats, rye or soy, all of the above give me terrible bladder symptoms (a book by Wendy Cohan called 'The Better Bladder Book' outlines the link between gluten intolerance and bladder problems)
• I avoid as many additives as possible and had a completely additive free diet for at least 6months. When being totally gluten and soya free it is really important to check and double check packages for things, dextrose is a major culprit and used to cause me alot of problems before I realised it was a sugar derived from wheat (often on the outside of cured meats like ham and salami). E numbers are often derived from soy, so are lecithines (found in chocolate and chewing gum among other things). 
• I avoid coffee and tea (unless its herbal tea), I only eat goat and sheeps cheese/milk. I get plenty of rice, green veggies, carrots, sweet potato, fruit and lots of meat. Without many carbs or much sugar in my diet I started eating alot of meat, not something I'd ever really done as I was pretty much nearly a veggi. I had also been advised that plenty of meat with my condition was actually a very good idea because the animals fats can heal the gut lining.

All of these things have made the world of difference to my quality of life. I can go out now without needing to pee every 5mins, I'm not in agonising pain, I can jog, I can eat out in a restaurant so long as I make it really clear what I can and can't eat. I can have sex with my boyfriend without feeling like my bladder is being pummled. I can sleep in a normal position. I can go on a bus without my whole lower belly feeling like its about to burst. I work part time, I cycle, I enjoy a fairly relaxed pace of life and I try to keep stress levels low. I do find the stress thing hard though, I think I am a fairly anxious type (especially since I got ill), although I don't think that defines who I am. Sleep is a majorly important part of healing and I think sometimes I don't give my body the rest it really needs. I still have plenty to work on and I still don't count myself and fully healed, but I don't think that place is too far off! And if I could live the rest of my life at the stage of health I am at right now I would be happy.

I really want other people to benefit from my experiences. I really want to answer a wealth of questions, to give a positive example of how much you can change your own life when you've been told you have no other choice but to take pain killers, antibiotics and antidepressants to try and cope. I always felt there must be something else I could do and I managed to find that path, mostly alone, but also with help from friends, family, other IC patients and various holistic healers. No one out there could give me an answer and no one could tell me exactly what I needed to do, it was by sheer perseverance that I managed to get to where I am now, I wouldn't give up and neither should you.