I have IC that is relatively under control now (not even any preventatives..hooray!) ...again, have done lots of cleanses and see an herbalist and continue to do cleanses to help.

In the meantime, to the person who mentioned that they were flaring pretty badly...watch your diet. I don't really believe in the IC diet because there are some serious things missing from it, but go on it immediately to get yourself some relief and to feel relatively normal for a bit (if you haven't done so already)....also, try desert harvest aloe vera. It's cold pressed and does not use ascorbic acid in it, which most do (or some type of acid)..which makes it perfect for IC (i think it was actually designed with us in mind)...anyways, it takes a while to work (you may notice you're better in a few days to a week and much better results over a month) but it's a lot better than elmiron and such. Tens units will do very little....can you find someone in town who does scenar therapy? the unit gives some people more pain relief than most opiates, and it helps your immune system. feel free to write me if you want more info...

after that, I would find a good herbalist in town..someone who does saliva samples also. Not all believe in them but i do...i say, do your research and decide for yourself...and get thee some therapy :) (something like be set free fast or www.bsff.com is excellent and it's something you can learn to do at home without having to spend a fortune with a therapist)....everyone i know with IC has a type A personality...over stressed, high anxiety, depression, etc....every pain has an emotional aspect and you have to deal with that as well.

also, while i don't advocate many drugs, i find pyridium (the 100mg tablets) to be quite soothing when i have burning, which rarely happens anymore. Something you may want to consider if you already haven't. Worked better than opiates for me, but we're all different.

I'd also be interested in seeing what the starter of this thread came up with for herself, to see if it's something i hadn't thought of yet. I've done a lot of research into my IC and my adjoining health concerns, but I love to be pleasantly surprised!

tg

I am so sorry I haven't looked at this posting in a while. My heart goes out to everyone that is struggling with this damn disease. I am happy to say that I no longer have days when I feel IC symptoms - I have nearly forgotten that it was ever a part of me. This is an incredible change considering the nights I spent crying myself to sleep.

I will explain the protocol quickly and refer you to a website. I did not treat myself - I stumbled upon www.icaroadtorecovery.com a year and a half ago. I read up on the philosophy and followed the diet suggestions to a "T" for a few months before contacting Dr. Brizman. There was also a Yahoo group of patients treating under Dr. Brizman that I lurked on for a good while. I finally got up the courage to call and begin treatment and that is the one thing in my life that I am most happy I did.

My understanding is that IC is aggravated by acidic foods - stop these at once. (tomoatoes, citrus, seeds of any kind). Candida is often the underlying cause of IC - so stop ALL sweets amd starcjes at once and anything with vinegar. (ketchup, mustard, etc). In other words, you may eat any fresh meats and any fresh green vegetables. Within a few days my symptoms had decreased.
At some point, your body goes through candida die off (flu, cold mucus etc). Your body must repeat this to fully cleanse.

It was not until 6 months into treatment that I could tell there was any difference. I have been eating the same diet for more than 1/5 years now - and frankly, I don't miss the crap that I used to put in my body. At this point, I can eat lemon or tomatoes and anything acidic.

I hope this helps somewhat.

Cista-Q and Flowmax worked for me. Bakin Soda when I am really bad.