I have been suffering from Interstitial Cystitis for as long as I can remember. Even as a child I had to urinate a lot. I thought this was normal because my mother and sister frequently use the restroom. At fifteen I was diagnosed with Mononucleosis and recurrent Strep infections and was prescribed antibiotics. From this point on I took antibiotics almost constantly for about 3 years. This led to many yeast infections and other problems. At this point the urgency and frequency of my urinating became worse.
s was very difficult in high school where people are apt to make fun of you for much less. I was tested for bladder infections, which occasionally came back positive, and so I took more antibiotics.Each year my bladder became worse. Nonetheless, I thought this was normal, or I just had a small bladder. I went to quite a few urologists who either thought the condition was in my head or wanted to follow up with many invasive tests. I was finally diagnosed at 26 years old with IC after having a cystosocopy performed in 1996. My bladder was perforated during the procedure and I was catheterized for the following two weeks. I believe this procedure may have made me worse because prior to this I didn't have pain with IC and afterwards I did.
In addition to IC I have had problems with headaches and digestion. Both problems were so bad that I basically survived by taking Tylenol, various other pain medications, Tums, and Pepcid. For a while I could not eat a meal without following it with some form of antacid.
I was also trying every possible procedure and medication that Western medicine had to offer for IC, including the old favorites DMSO, Elavil, Detrol, Elmiron and many others. I was basically living off antibiotics and these medicines. I also had yeast infections all of the time. To further complicate matters I had been taking birth control pills on and off for about 15 years.
All of these medications just seemed to be making me worse. So at the end of 2000 I began searching for alternatives. I tried quite a few things including herbs and aloe. However, I was trying everything on my own and didn't really know what herbs worked and which ones may be harmful. I also decided to get off of the birth controls pills, as I wanted to avoid contaminating my body any further.
I searched the Internet constantly for information regarding alternative treatments for IC. This is when I found a message by Jane Peters regarding Matia. I called Matia a few days later. I was skeptical, and felt that I needed to do some more research. I also spoke to Jane a few more times and she persuaded me to give this a try. After coming to the conclusion that I'd tried everything I could do on my own, I began working with Matia in January 2001.
Matia is one of the kindest, most understanding people I have ever met. She seems to have the patience of a saint, which is definitely needed with this condition. She has spent countless hours discussing my symptoms with me. It was so nice to finally have a doctor who would talk to me. I have been taking Matia's herbs and following her recommended diet for about a year now. I did cheat on the diet for the first few months, but do follow it correctly now.
Today, I am better in many ways, but I have a long way to go. I rarely, if ever have a headache or stomachache and my digestion is so much better. I still have urgency and frequent urination, however, the abdominal pain I began having after the cystoscopy in 1996 has almost completely gone away. I also, have more energy and look physically better than I used to. There are other things that have gotten better too, but I will not bore you with the graphic details. I believe that I have a long way to go. However, this is the first time in my life that I have hope, and the belief, that I will continue to improve. I am looking forward to the day that I don't have to sit on the aisle at a movie theater, travel without worrying where the next restroom stop is located, and eat some of the foods I love again.
