Hi Vin 43
First off - I thought I was taking a huge leap of faith by getting on a plane and flying two states away.  I am always so impressed when someone contemplates coming from another country.  When I got into LA the night before my appt. - I made my boyfriend drive by Dr. B's office - I wanted to make sure the address wasn't a burned out gas station!  So, rest assured, you will find a nice office with even nicer people there to help you.
I too have spent alot of time wondering where the original people on this site have gone.  My sense has been that the vast majority are incredibly better.  I do know a couple that haven't been as lucky.  I think it would be somewhat naive to think that there won't be some people that aren't helped as much as others - for whatever reasons.  How many are 100% cured?  I don't know.  I do know that I've heard of some.  What I can tell you, is that after 18 months, while my health is not perfect - not 100% cured - it is SO much better than before I started.  I have absolutely no regrets, and only complete gratitude, that I find myself where I am today.
Oh, for myself, I too was the constant flurry of writing. I think that it often stems from the anxiety that can be caused by all of the die off - some worse than others.  For myself, I was an irrational crazy person.  However, it should be noted that I have a long history of this - well into my childhood.  So, for me, how well I am now, is more measured by my mental stablity than my bladder/urethra - that has been fairly stable for quite awhile.  The tremendous anxiety has been harder to get a grip on.  Thank goodness it is so much better.
Take Care

I emailed 4 people that I had read old posts from. 3 of them raved and raved and filled me with hope. 1 had dropped from Dr B's care and was trying other things. Of course that freaked me out but when i went back and searched more old threads it seemed like she couldn't stick to the diet Not blaming her- maybe it just wasn't for her. Anyway- I still worry of course because that is my nature. I SHOLD look at the fact that of the 4- 3 were GLOWING with improvement and all within the first year. That is 75%- albeit a VERY small sample.
 
ANyway- Try not to focus on other people. We are all so incredibly unique. Try to focus on yourself.
 
There was a post a few months back from an alum is now pregnant. That was a great and heartwarming post. She is doing perfectly! I'll try to find that post and bump it.

Interesting that you and your sister got IC after taking the pill.  That is what did it for me too.  I first got a UTI when I took hormone pills at age 16 to treat irregular periods.  Then when I got married when I was 21, I took the pill for a year.  I had nothing but infections that entire year and many years after that.  Then I would go to the urologist with what I thought was an infection, and he wouldn't find any bacteria.  My IC went undiagnosed for many years. I'm sure the hormone/birth control pills were what tipped me over the edge and into this nightmare.

Hi Deir,
When i saw your comment, it made me wonder how i would react if i ran into my gyno of 30 years. Would I be able to look at him in the eye for hurting me so deeply? Say something synical, how he treated me like a folder on his desk, not warning me about recurrent UTI's i was getting, educating me, or even telling me how bad it was i was on antibiotics all the time for it. He would just tell me i was ok, this was all so common, tap on the shoulder and send home. Maybe when i was younger, i found it comforting. He'd tell me how i worry about things too much. Finally, when i stopped worrying about getting another UTI, I my IC symptoms surfaced, which have been building up all these years, under his nose, his very close care. 
Last time i saw him, he scolded me for making my pain a big deal, and for searching the internet for answers. He told me not to play doctor and if all i wanted was antibiotics, he'd just write it. I burst into tears and left his office, embarrassed, confused and in so much pain that nothing was helping.
I now know that i don't empty completely, which freaks me out about future. Matia said this will improve, i really hope so. I can't understand why doctors of so many years never mention the connection of latex condoms, use of Birth control to recurrent UTI's. Is this really new knowledge????
Anyhow, it's a sensitive subject for me how all of this is taken so lightly. So wrong!

 
I came on this site for the first time in a long time to research a herb and could not help but noticed this post.   
There are many reasons old timers do not come on this site anymore, and I will tell you why I left Matia: 
1st: I cheated on the diet about every 3 months for a few days and then I would get back on. I had a very serious sugar addiction.  I was abused as a child and suffered with an eating disorder, so the strict diet was very hard for me.  I saw Matia for a year. 
On my own I came to realize that all grains including potatoes cause my arthritis to flare big time and also my "IBS" was bad with all grains.  Matias diet without grains is very hard to do. So, one of the reasons I quit with her is that I was cheating every few months and the diet was unmanageable on list 1 and 2 without grains for me.  
The 2nd reason:  I wanted more answers on paper. I went to a new doctor in my area that did many tests. I found out I am dealing with a chronic strep infection (body wide) caused  by leaky gut syndrome.  Leaky gut is similar to what Matia describes in Chinese medicine terms in her dissertation with the small intestines.  I was tested and also had many nutritional deficiencies found as well. I have been taking B12 shots now for 5 months and supplementing what my body needed and this has helped my energy and mood majorly.
I also found out I am allergic to many foods, including some vegetables.  I know Matia says that with time these allergies will disappear, but for me…eating these foods (cauliflower, green beans, avocado, are a few) caused extreme tiredness and anxiety. These were all symptoms I thought were die off while seeing Matia, but when I did an elimination diet after finding out my allergies though testing, I started to feel much better in my joint pain and moods.  
The 3rd reason: Natren Probiotics and most herbs cause me pain in my urethra. I do much better without these types of supplements. I have come to realize on my own that I do well with some other brands of pros but not natren. SO, when I was with Matia I was suicidal often because the pain from the supplements.  I found this made it hard to trust the process so I was still searching..pain does that to a person!   I did not understand this at the time. I realized after I left her and stopped the supplements that I was feeling a lot better and my bladder was manageable without the supplements.  What I realize now is this: I should have gone a lot slower and talked with her to see if I could try other brands. I always told Matia I could “push through” when I was in pain..when in fact I should have went a whole lot slower to lessen the pain.  I also still do not know if the pain from the pros is indeed die off, or if it is just irritating my bladder for another reason. I have a hard time believing die off could go on for years and years that creates the same kind of pain in my bladder, but I am not saying it’s not possible.
The 4th reason: Matias office staff and shipping costs.  I had some incidents with them that showed me they were not out for my welfare, and I will not discuss the rest. I have forgiven them but I can say this affected me in trusting them.  I also felted rushed on the phone calls with Matia when the 20 minutes came around, even though I was supposed to get 30 minutes.
So, where am I today with seeing a different doctor:  I have clear skin, sleep through the night (a full 7 hours), no bloating, no arthritis, no joint pain = AS LONG AS I follow my no grains, dairy, and refined sugar diet.  I am no longer depressed, I have normal BM’s every day. All of this is from staying away from my allergy foods and taking a probiotic that I can tolerate.  My current doctor had me on a lot of natural antibiotics, but again these flares are killer on this stuff so I have to go so slow.
My IC: I still have major frequency…having the urge to pee every 30 minutes during the day after I have eaten. And water is still my number 1 flare causer.  My bladder is worse when I eat healthy (veges). Pain is on and off depending on the time of the month and food.  I have realized if I eat nothing but eggs and meat I have no IC symptoms, but this is neither healthy nor possible.  I am better in all my body symptoms than 1 year ago when I left , but I am not as well as I want to be, especially in my bladder. I realized if I were able to follow the only meat and some veges diet for long term that my bladder would feel even better, but I have a hard time mentally accetting I could have to eat like this for life to live symptom free..since I do know some women who are like this. 
My advice: If you are not ready to do the diet, do not beat yourself up.  You may not be ready for this kind of treatment. That does not mean you will not be ready later on.  Also, even if something is “allowed” on a food list does not mean you can tolerate it nor that it is beneficial for you to get well, that is for you to decide based on your own symptoms body wide.
The point is we are our own advocate. We also can learn to listen to our bodies and we need to communicate what we are learning and trust ourselves.  No doctor knows your body 100%.
Will I ever go back to Matia?  Maybe but I would make sure I was really ready to give it 110% and Never cheat.  I would have to mentally be ready to realize I can only eat a few veges and meat for a long time. I would have to make adjustments in her diet due to my arthritis and food allergies. I would be more verbal in communicating to her when I was in a flare and not “push through” all the time when the supps are hurting me..
Do people get well? Of course!  Does everyone get well even when sticking to diet all the time? No they do not. This is not Matias fault, nor the patients. Nor does it mean the person will never get well.  This is not the only way, but it is a way to get well for many who try. 
Never give up…You will beat this!  
 
I do not come on this site often, so if you want to talk you will have to PM me.  Much love to ALL.
 

Hi Mel, nice to hear from you.
I would like to ask you more about testing for hidden allergies. I noticed that with time, I tolerate fewer foods rather than more. I suspect that I should get tested; however, conventional medicine does not offer that. I also feel wonderful on meat and veggies, but the list of tolerable foods is shrinking for some reason. 
I am glad you are doing better.
 

 
I hope you read my whole story!  This post was just asking where all the old people went so I thought it was beneficial to hear my story.  I was simply telling you why I did not get better with hopes to help you!!!!!! I never post on here because I do not want to create fear, I was hoping after seeing this post that I could shed some truth on why someone would not improve during treatment.  Please do not take any fear from this!  I was only trying to tell you not to make my mistakes.  Like I said, PEOPLE DO GET WELL!!!  There are many people who have!  Ask Matia for a list and she can give you numbers to call.  There were reasons why I was not improving and I just wanted to clarify those.  The diet is a very large part of this and you have to be able to commit fully to this.  Because of many emotional reasons I had to work through in my past, I was not able to stay on with a few months without cheating.  This was wasting Matias time and mine.  And did you read that I am a lot better now?!  I was in a bad bad place..And now I am fully functioning with many of my body symptoms better.  The bladder is sometimes the last thing to improve and I FULLY expect to recover from this now that I am sticking to the diet.  Matia is WONDERFUL and she KNOWS the bladder!  You are in good hands.
 

I agree with Deir on this one.  I understand that you were only trying to help but this really has me depressed/scared/anxious.  I would hate to think that this does NOT have a positive result, especially with the amount of energy that I spend thinking about my personal illness on a daily basis, let alone thinking and praying that those here pushing through this horrid illness are in it for nothing.  The actual timing of reading this is just making me sick to my stomach.  I’m at a loss for words, I don’t want to get depressed during this holiday but I can tell you this will keep me up at night.  Not placing blame nor trying to make you feel bad, it’s just the reality of my feelings right now.
 
Don’t get me wrong, I have total faith in Dr. B, more so that anyone else that I will allow to treat me medically at this point.  However, being that I’m still new here, this is hard to bear.
 
Vin 43 – I would love to see some emails of prior patients of Dr. B, I need some hope.  I don’t have your email address though.  Please send through.  If you keep in touch with them, perhaps they would be inclined to post their stories?  I don’t know… 

I honestly don't understand how someone else experience would apply to the whole population of this forum. 
I don't find any logic in thinking that all experiences of all patients from the past will apply to you. When 'me' posted last week, it was noted that everyone has their own path to recovery. This is one of them.
I found Mel's post informative. She described HER OWN story replying to Vin's question about where some of the old patients went. Mel was clear and honest about the reasons why the program did not work FOR HER. I am glad Mel posted. Information is power. 
btw, I am not losing my own hope in this treatment because it didn't work for Mel. That would make no sense. I knew Mel's story from reading her publicly available old posts BEFORE committing to the treatment, didn't you?
 
 
 

Deir, I feel empathy for you. I wish we all never knew what IC means. And btw, I do have plenty of my own fears at times.
Mel did not advocate other treatments. Contrary, Mel wrote that she may consult with Matia in the future. 
Also, I do not see Mel's experience as negative. I re-read her post, and I don't find anything negative, only personal story with interesting facts.
 

I think I might be needing to take a break from the forum.
I never thought I'd be a quick recovery but if anyone has followed my story- I was actually better before I started. I guess I knew that there couldn't be a 100% recovery but that was ok back when I thought I'd be quick- (so did Matia BTW.)but now that I am struggling- that reality is super freaky scary.  I guess I am super sensitive and many other people aren't.Is it only me and Adriane who thinks it is scary to read that another doctor has helped someone more than Matia?Maybe.
I think I might be going nuts and here I thought I was this happy successful woman and mom. IC sucks. I think maybe I am just not mentally stable right now sometimes. If you knew me in real life- you'd think I was doing great!! It is only here (and with my husband every few weeks) that I really lose it!
i wish i had everyone's calm reactions but I don't so I wish everyone the best- i don't want to add to any stress!
 
 

Just wanted to post this to help calm  the doubts from previous  & inspire you all. 
I made the journey from UK 14 months ago.. I was in GREAT pain, it was a terrifying, ardous & lonely journey but the best decision ive ever made. 
Before id been with a uk herbalist who was dreadful & her herbal formula made meworse but one thing i noticed was her strict no carbs diet did definately help, i did this for 4 months before visiting matia .
The herbs matia gave me made an
INSTANT difference and even though she said i could have carbs on list 1 decided to stay off for another few weeks so i could judge effect of herbs & probiotics..  I felt better & better , then towards christmas i started to try bread, potatoes .. It wasnt too good for me, i then slipped up by eating some bacon with sugar in it & this set me off for weeks.. It was awful , so depressing , set me back months.. I finally got back on track about march 11 , and started to introduce foods of list 2 & 3 ..
THE DIET :
 I still struggled with bread so gave it up, and pure potato isnt good either, but can do fries in small amounts.. I cant do chicken or duck for some reason.. I have been rigouress with this diet , treated matias lists as a guideline rather than absolute.. We are all indiviuals and there are so many conflicting components , with matia i think of it as working together with her to crack this thing not that she has all the answers... For me finding a carb that works is trial & error .. Quinoa & rice cakes are good for now  but others are different, its not an exact science. 
THE HERBS:
Ive been on more or less the same regime from start gradually trying to up the probiotics alongside.. Its been push & pull back , up & down etc but everytime i manage to tolerate a higher dose other wonderous things happen & i take another big step forward. 
SYMPTOMS:
Orinally had very inflammed bladder, pressure, frequency ( every 1/2 hour or so) very bad lower back pain & sciatica.. Flares of full cysttis like pain, .. This gradually subsided & was replaced with vaginal buring, mainly around cervix( felt like sunburn) & bit of frequency & night pressure . Now 14 months my days are completely symptom free, and i can go upto 4 hours sometimes without peeing, even after drinking tea & coffee!!!! I still can get a bit of night buring & pressure & need to pee a couple of times but i know that will just get better like everything else has. 
DIE OFF :
I like everyone else am still confused about this one.. Ive had very little  except chronic constipation in early days & last few months loads of colds they last 24 -48 hours, i sneeze like a mad woman none stop for 2 days & then it goes.. Strangest only just last week such a heavy cold, couldnt breathe, tongue swelling, throat odd .. very scary but weirdly when cleared bladder felt even better?? Slept 2 nights right through , no waking needing to pee etc, so maybe was big die off ?? 
LIFE: 
My life is completely different now, i started a business just before i came down with ic that i had to forget about .. But in april i felt strong enough to pick up again..  And now it along side with myself are thriving going from strength to strength  , i have so much stamina, ,  my hair shines , my skins great ,  i have color back in cheeks, and my mental & emotional strength is a side benefit i hadnt predicted & is as amazing as the physical progress. 
DR BRITZMAN
Matia is not a mindreader or clairvoyant, she can only work with what we give her, she doesnt have all the answers but I believe has more knowledge & experience in treating this bizarre condition than anyone else will in our lifetime.. We need to take full responsibility for keeping records , noting reactions, charting progress, set backs .. We are our first best chance , she is our second.
admin / office may not   be as organised as it could be, but i dont think that is a reflection on them not caring. Think yes probably conversation does get a bit more rushed at 20mins but imagine as both aware need to get as much information over as only 10 mins left? 
I hope this post gives hope & light to all that need it, i did post in early days, but then a lot of the US  ladies set up facebook forum we joined, but that fell  apart as people started to improve.. And now i mainly keep in touch with uk patients but less so as YES SO BUSY living my life. !! :-) xxx
Wishing everyone a positive & healthy new year.
GREAT TIP  ( from lovely nadia)
Only look back at progress every 3-4 months.. Do not think about it daily , weekly ( it works, youlll be amazed at difference you notice then) 
 

Thanks for the post Jumper, I think a lot of people on here need to see posts like this. Glad you are doing so much better!

Mel,
Glad to hear you are feeling so much better.  Thank you for posting your experience.  I wish you the best!

Hey Deir,
I'm sorry that I never replied to your last post on Friday of last week.  I was just not in the right place to think clearly, then the holidays came about.  I hope you enjoyed it with your family? My family and I were actually supposed to take a mini getaway vacation, drove up to LA on Christmas day, then supposed to head up to Santa Barbara and visit with more family, only to drive back home Sunday night as our son just another cold.  I was also stressed since I hadnt seen some members of my family in close to 3 years after a major family fallout.  Driving 4 hours with IC is no good (but happy to have done OK with it).  So, I'm home and have been trying to stay as stress free as possible  this week as I know that my stress triggers this IC.  That being said, its given me time to reflect on the posts since our last ones late last week.  I wanted to make sure you are OK and let you know that I sincerely would hate to see you not post.  Why?  Cause I know that this is a safe haven for us and you need to be able to reach out, when you are feeling crappy or good.  I also really enjoy hearing from you and it would really suck not to see your posts.  Lastly, I know how lonely and depressing it can be to feel so alone with this illness, that part worries me if you dont partcipate.  So hopefully, you will reconsider?  You have alot of support here.
In terms of relationships and how this illness impacts marriage, I know exactly where you are coming from based on re-reading your comment above.  My husband and I have been together for 22 years as well.  So I know what you are going through and the added stress it carries on a daily basis. If you feel like emailing me, do let me know and I will send you my email address.  Hang in there, I'm thinking of you and hoping you are OK. Big Hug!