You may recall the article in last month’s issue explaining why I started a heartfelt business called Dr Jennifer Meyer, helping women overcome health issues and social taboos.

In the UK & the US, November has been named Bladder Health Awareness Month.

In honour of that, this article is aimed at promoting bladder awareness, and my newly released bladder book that was published on 15th November 2019, called Piss to Bliss has been out for 99p only, now increasing to £4.44 before settling at its RRP of £9.99 to really help spread the message.

Please grab your copy and share the link to help promote Bladder November, as many people suffer in silence with cystitis and other urinary issues.

Thank you.

Living with cystitis is at best, frustrating and at worst, a death-wish. Bladder ills are unendurable agonies that ripple effect at many levels. Depending on the type of cystitis and its severity, the pain could range from just a bit of burning pee that goes away quickly, to relentless bladder cramps but sadly, in most cases it is way more than that. Here are a few potential agonies caused by living with cystitis (either UTI, chronic, or bladder cancer):

Physical Pain

• Electrical charges clawing up the urethra into the bladder like having a dentist drill your tooth and hit a nerve.
• A dead butt imprinted with the toilet seat, after being stuck to it for an insufferable amount of time.
• Undeniable bladder cramps and erratic spasms that feels as if it is trying to give birth to itself.
• From a few drops of blood to frightening bleeding when you pee.
• The devastating need to go to the toilet all the time, only to squeeze out a few acid drops that burn.

Emotional & Mental Pain

• The anguish the first sensation brings and the frustration as it develops: nothing else causes the irritability that cystitis does.
• Dealing with taboos and misunderstandings around cystitis, especially the one that cystitis is a sexually transmitted disease and dirty: it is not.

Relationship & Sexual Pain

• Friction caused by not wanting your partner coming near you.
• The agony of sex whilst having cystitis.
• Maybe you are reluctantly single, as your partner had enough of your ‘women troubles’.
• The thought of never wanting sex again, in case it makes you ill.
• Your sexual health and romantic life take a head-nose dive as cystitis leads the way again to despair.
• Your self-confidence and self-love forever decrease.
• Feeling like a bad mother when you are unable to look after your children or snap at them as a result of chronic pain.
• Resentment of the ‘you’ that cystitis creates.

Medical Incompetence Frustration

• Paying good money to seek medical help and not getting satisfactory results.
• Knowing there is something wrong with you but the doctors can’t find out what or able to help you.

Financial Pain

• Finding the money to pay the huge bills for the urology tests.
• Shelling out for monthly antibiotics, cystitis sachets, painkillers, cranberry juice, that most of the time do not work.
• Nobody pays you sick-leave if you are self-employed.
• Lost income for not being able to show up to work because you are, once again, sobbing on the toilet. How many hours have we spent off work with cystitis or bladder issues?
• If you are employed, then the stress of providing endless doctors’ notes that you are indeed suffering just about puts you over the edge.
• How about the loss of promotions or work travel due to your women health issues?
• What about that taboo that cystitis isn’t really a big deal, making you feel you are ‘pulling a sickie,’ attention-seeking, or being a bit of a drama queen.

Victimhood Pain

• ‘Why me? Not cystitis again! What am I doing wrong? Life isn’t fair.’
• Fear of not knowing what to do to avoid cystitis.
• Loss of hope turning into chaos and desperation. If you reach that stage, it can permeate every part of your life, the pain of living with cystitis or the fear of getting it again becomes all-encompassing.
• Depression of your aura and energy frequency, dampening the real you and sucking you into a negative spiral, attracting people who do not understand, who may abuse you because you are weakened.
• Not defending yourself because of loss of self-esteem and self-confidence.
• Saying yes when you want to say no.
• Being too nice to make up for feeling so vulnerable inside.
• Cystitis has claimed its victim.

In the book, I describe 25 types of cystitis and how to overcome them. Here, we focus on one type that affects many people without their knowledge.

If you have recurring cystitis but the doctors confirm that you do not have an infection (UTI), then you may have Candida Cystitis.

Candida Cystitis

Candida is also known as thrush, fungus, yeast, or the ‘bad gut bacteria’. Usually, Candida lives in our intestines hopefully in balance with our ‘good gut bacteria’. It forms part of our microbiome (our internal floral ecosystem).

If we have too much acid-forming food and drink that feed the yeast, it may overflourish and spread, killing off the good flora and potentially migrating outside of the gut walls, called a ‘leaky gut’.

There are two ways candida can get into the bladder, internally via the ureters, or externally via the urethra.

Internally

So, yes we can absolutely get candida in our bladder by over-consuming certain foods or from a leaky gut.

If we have candida issues in our gut or mouth, the likelihood is we also have it in the bladder.

A bladder is moist, dark, and cramped when empty, providing a thriving environment for candida. Getting rid of it takes some effort, but it is necessary.

When I approached my urologist with this idea, he poo-pooed it mumbling: ‘No such thing as candida’.

It was a taboo, something not accepted in medical terms. Now, luckily it is omewhat more mainstream, but still not discussed enough.

If you take away one thing from this article, it is that this type of cystitis does exist.

You can have candida or thrush inside your bladder.

This type does not show up in a urine or blood test. The only way to know for sure if you have it in the bladder is with a camera procedure (cystoscopy), or to do the anti-candida diet (detailed in the book) and notice if your symptoms lessen.

The good news is that once the candida has died and been peed out, the symptoms will go away and it will have to grow again to be problematic.

Externally

The other way to get thrush in your bladder is from the outside.

If you have thrush in your vagina or anus, a burning itchy sensation, there is a high risk that some of that fungus will transfer into the urethra.

This is common, especially in women with precious holes that are closer together.

The risk increases by wearing strings/thongs or tight trousers.

You don’t have to have vaginal thrush to get it in your bladder as it can also be transferred sexually.

What I term as dirty sex can be very problematic for bladder health.

Avoid candida cystitis by implementing the sexual, toilet, daily hygiene, hydration and nutritional protocols that are detailed in the book.

For now, here are 3 nutritional ways to avoid it:
1 – Consume plenty of anti-fungal or antiinflammatory foods and drink, such as aloe vera gel, lemon, garlic, onion, ginger, turmeric, spring water with 1 teaspoon of organic food-grade bicarbonate of soda.

2 – Drink at least 2 litres of still mineral or spring water daily.

3 – Avoid sugar, gluten and other acidforming foods and drink, such as fruit, sweets, cakes, pasta, dairy, sweeteners and alcohol.

Look out for those who can’t explain their bladder pain

Cystitis can affect both men and women of all ages.

Babies and children get it, as do teenagers, women, men and the elderly, even our pets.

It is harder to detect any type of cystitis in animals, babies, toddlers and in the elderly with dementia as they are not able to communicate their pain to us effectively.

If you feel your toddler is often cranky or complains of a weird stomach ache (as I did as a child), but nothing is showing up, have them checked for a UTI or consider they may have candida cystitis or another type of chronic cystitis.
It is crucial to keep an eye on the elderly’s bladder health because UTIs symptoms may differ somewhat with people suffering from dementia. It is imperative to look out for increased signs of confusion, agitation, withdrawal, and delusions, as these may be signs of an untreated bladder infection.

UTI’s can intensify dementia symptoms and can also speed up its progression.

Be aware that in any age group, untreated bladder infections can lead to sepsis or bladder cancer.

My top 10 bladder health tips:

1 – Drink a high-quality aloe vera gel each morning and/or before bed

2 – Keep hydrated with at least 2 litres of still mineral/spring water per day

3 – Wipe from front to back and clean your anus after each poo

4 – If sexually active ensure to have hygienic sex (both partners clean) and go for a gentle pee straight after intercourse to push out anything that penetrated the urethra

5 – Be authentic in all areas of your life, especially to yourself

6 – Avoid inflammatory/acid-forming foods

7 – Know your fulcrum (your limits in all actions related to the bladder)

8 – Value yourself, know your worth & ditch any poverty belief systems

9 – Deal with any lingering issues of sexual abuse, bullying or being too nice

10 – Talk about any urinary incontinence or cystitis issues so that you can get the knowledge and help that you need

Let’s talk openly about cystitis and other ills affecting women regularly so that we work out how to avoid them and break the stigma.

Even as a young adult, I assumed all women had regular cystitis. I thought it was just what we had, like having periods.

It is not normal.

Remember that women’s health issues are not dirty, shameful, embarrassing nor taboo: please speak out. You are not alone.

If you enjoyed last month’s and this article, or are just fed up with chronic, acute or inconvenient bladder pain and suffering relentlessly from cystitis…

If you feel that now is the time to empower your womanhood and thrive instead of shrinking to fit in…

If you are looking for some surprising solutions to overcoming irritating urinary and bladder problems…

If you wish to experience the vibrant, healthy and confident life that bladder pain stole from you…

If yes then do equip yourself with the keys to unlocking bladder secrets, finding relief and building hope, all whilst embarking on a personal transformational journey. Join me, for it’s time to put the Yip back in Pee!

I invite you on this fabulous road-trip. Coming?

If so, I’ll see you in the book.
PISS TO BLISS is a movement: join the flow!

Break free from women’s taboos & all types of cystitis.

Be in the driver’s seat of your bladder & sexual health.

Reconnect to your body’s wisdom.

Find Jennifer’s book at: amazon.co.uk/dp/B081B5H1KM