Hi Sharon,
it's possible that your kiddo has a bladder stone. Antibiotics are no
use solving this problem either, except strictly temporarily.
It's also possible she has something called interstitial cystitis, I
think that's unlikely in a kid, but you might check out Dr. Stanley
Jacob's site on DMSO at the university of Oregon; he is tops in that area.
And close too! What do you know! But i guess everthing in the world is now
close on the web!
Back to the first possibility, which I actually know something about from
personal experience. The. Most. Important. Thing you can do, is get
her to drink lots of water; Think of it as starvation for the bugs and
maybe a little dissolving action for any stones.
A couple of suggestions that have worked for me are to buy plain old
steam distilled water in gallons; it may turn out to be easier for her
to drink a lot of it - and you too, try it and see, I also drink a lot
of Gatorade, the clear ones called 'ice' seem the best. This is a
balanced electrolyte solution, similar to 'pedialyte', the balanced
electrolytes are easier to take in quantity. Hibiscus tea like Celestial
seasonings Raspberry Zinger is also high in C and pleasant tasting.
Anything else you do for her, from cranberry to vitamin C to "Magic Fairy
Dust" will only work if you can keep the water intake up. Speaking of
cranberries, the active principle makes the mucous layer on the inside
of the bladder wall more impervious to bacteria, The juice you get in the
stores is so full of sugar it's criminal.
Which is why we didn't have her on the juice. We tried unsweetened
cranberry juice with stevia for sweetening, but by the time I got enough
Stevia in it to mask the cranberry even I couldn't choke it down, it had
too much stevia aftertaste to it.
I had to drink so much straight cranberry juice when I was in the VA
hospital for my Spinal Cord Injury it made me sick; I told the nurses, but
they kept forcing it on me every six hours, then I threw up on one of
them. Desperate times, desperate measures; couldn't help it!
I forgot to mention one other aid in dissolving possible bladder calculi,
magnesium citrate. Citric acid is used in a solution buffered with
magnesium oxide and sodium carbonate as an irrigant to dissolve bladder
stones, more active than Vitamin C in dissolving-power and well tolerated;
("citrus" and other fruits.) You might also ask your health care pro what
they think about using pH strips to check your daughter's urine acidity. I
know there is enough controversy to confuse the p out of me regarding
acidity-alkalinity, but I also know that when I'm acidic I'll stay
infection free and when I'm alkaline I'm susceptible, and so it is with
every other SCI vet in the place, without exception.
As I said I was breaking open the pills and she was taking the powder.
Thanks for the suggestions. We will try not to obsess about the sugar.
It's hard not to obsess when your kid's ill, it comes with the hope that
something will finally work! You're actively looking and you've got your
head on straight; you'll find what works for her.
Vitamin C is wonderful for UTI's, . . . . a little sugar and a Lot of
water intake is better than no sugar and mediocre water intake IMNSHO,
and I been there, and done that.)
About the Magic Fairy Dust; well, -- No, I have NOT lost my marbles!!
the first D is always considered context sensitive ; -). It should
have been capitialized though.
Oh, Definitely!<g>
The naturopath seemed to think that meant she never really rid herself
of it, it just "went into hiding".
My daughter just turned six, and we have been battling this since she
was three. I have caught a lot of flak from her "regular pediatrician"
for not subjecting her to all the standard testing.To the point where i
don't take her to see that Dr. anymore.
Yes, absolutely! Look for another doc, and take someone with you,
preferably a woman friend who is friendly and also assertive. Talk about
your concerns with her ahead of time and write them down
ultrasound and the radioactive dye tests, I have recently been
considering taking her back in for the testing.
The radioactive dye one I have had - I call it the sparkle test -
addresses mainly kidney flow functions, takes a long time lying still on
a cold flat hard table after being catheterized and shot up with a large
syringe full of radioactive isotope and drinking lots of water to chase
it through the system. Over time a number of little points appear on a
computer screen representing emissions from the isotope. A 'picture' is
taken every few minutes to determine the progression of fluid
excretion. A responsible doctor might well be concerned that if your
child only had one functional kidney it would be critical to take very
good care of it, including 'heroic' measures. OTOH, why not address the
immediate problem first, get the infection!? This is necessary anyway, right?
Ultrasound is truly amazing, non-invasive, by comparison at least and
I've had a few, and gives all sorts of good info on the kidneys, the
ureters, bladder and urethra; including size, formation, abnormal growth,
arterial and venous blood flow through each kidney which is fairly
indicative of function, it often spots calculi which the sparkle test is
incompetent to do, - but it does tickle
Sorry of that was TMI everyone!
YOU should worry! . . . . .
I am so hoping that she grows out of this soon.
Some ideas; do you know her blood type? Consider modifying her diet in
accordance; check out "Eat Right for your Type" by Dr. D'Adamso. Also has
a website, I think. Also consider allergies, such as to soy, wheat,
dairy, other foods that you - or she - find attractive; I know it sounds
weird, but people are often allergic to what they crave. Increase
protein and more concentrated forms of food in preference to the usual
high bulk - fiber advice that's de-rigeur these days; makes sense, and
can't hurt to try it for a while, but first get an idea of what might be
appropriate from "Eat Right ... ".
We'd been opening up the pill and giving it to her in some cod liver oil,
Urk! Try butter, or almond oil, or . . . . Magic Fairy Dust!
Sharon
Take care, Malcolm
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