Yes, doing a wee after sex has benefits
Ladies (and gentleman to be fair)…..it is in fact true that weeing after sex has its benefits.
UTI’s are every woman’s nightmare (Urinary Tract Infections), and unfortunately, penetrative sex can be a causing factor, whether a condom is used or not. It is said that going for a wee AFTER sex, or apparently just before, can help you to avoid contracting one.
This is something that has made considerable difference for myself, and I never knew this until my mum shared her knowledge with me; so to save that conversation with your mum, let me tell you instead.
I’ve only experienced a urine infection a handful of times in my life, but when I was a teen and sleeping with my first boyfriend (ahh the days of pain free sex) I wasn’t aware of this and since beginning to pee afterwards, I’ve rarely experienced the problem.
So why can a wee after sex help you?
A woman’s urethra (the tube where we wee) is much shorter than a mans. Therefore, bacteria only has a very short distance to travel before it reaches our bladder/kidneys etc. During sex, bacteria can be forced up the tube (or from wiping back to front) and therefore by urinating afterwards, it helps to encourage the bacteria to be flushed out.
There have literally been many a time of me sitting on the toilet praying for even one drop of pee to come out (and drinking water on the loo….unhygienic?).
What does a UTI feel like?
For me, the symptoms of a UTI come around pretty quick post sex. It could be the next morning, or it could be a couple of days later. The very first symptom for me is a heavy ache in the bladder.
Painful bladder: It’s hard to describe in words but it feels like an almost pressure on the bladder which at the same time is like an uncomfortable twinge. It is a very distinctive type of pain so you’ll soon learn to recognise the sensation, Picture holding your wee in for far too long until you get to that painful uncomfortable level but x 10.
The frequent need to urinate: You can’t stop needing a wee. It’s honestly a very horrible torture trial your body puts you through. It makes you constantly needing to wee but half the time no wee comes out, and instead is a searing burning pain. It’s TRICKERY and it’s EVIL. Sometimes you feel only have a slight trickle when it honestly feels like a huge pee is coming, and sometimes it will just be nothing.
Burning/stinging pain whilst peeing: Your wee wee hole will be burning. At least it feels this way. Again, this is felt more whilst you’re actually trying to go to the toilet but you can experience this pain constantly. It is a horrible feeling and for me is usually felt post wee, however I know for some girls it can be so painful whilst weeing that they can be reduced to weeing in the bath.
Smelly or cloudy urine: You might notice a change in the odour of your wee, as well as a change in colour. It’s important to monitor this to see how it changes as you recover but will also start to get back to normal as you undergo treatment.
Blood in your urine: I’m lucky that I have not had this symptom before, but it is SO important to go and get medical treatment before it gets to this stage. If you are already at this stage do not ignore it. Blood in your urine is not a good sign in any situation (if you are on your period you will see blood in the toilet but this hasn’t come from your urethra). Ignoring this symptom could lead to more serious conditions like kidney disease.
What do you do if you think you have a UTI?
First steps:
My personal advice would be to see how you are after a day of self treatment BEFORE reaching for the phone to your doctor as sometimes you can literally flush the bacteria out yourself by drinking a shit ton of water. There is bacteria in your urinary tract and sometimes by drinking so much and peeing so much, you can clear it yourself (usually when it’s not a very bad case). If you are still in just as much pain the next day or even worse, then ring your GP and follow the medical steps below.
Do not drink cranberry juice. If you’re just picking up a cheap cranberry juice carton from Tesco, it will be mostly sugar/additives. The high levels of sugar and the acidity in the drink will make your symptoms ten times worse and drinking cranberry juice is a myth (cranberries are not a myth however - keep reading to learn why). Stick to water and clear fluids!
Run a bath. Both the heat and sitting submerged in water will help to alleviate the pain. Sometimes girls can be in so much pain that it hurts far too much to attempt to pee on the toilet and have therefore had to urinate in the bathwater. This may sound vile but girl, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. It can also help if you….
Try to pour water over your urethra as you wee. May get a little messy but it is less painful to have water running or around the wee hole as you wee.
The trusty wholly grail hot water bottle. Get that baby on your tummy, your lower back, your kidneys - anywhere.
Do not eat or drink anything acidic. Stay away from spicy food, artificial sweetners, acidic fruits/drinks, alcohol, caffeine and high sugar.
Stop getting drunk it won’t help. I noticed my UTI symptoms would return every time I had been out drinking which implies when I am dehydrated that symptoms creep back. Try and limit your drinking or be more sensible and drink a lot more water at the same time.
Do not hold in your wee. Go to the toilet as soon as you feel like you need a wee. Again, I am guilty for being so bad at this. Just. Go.
If you want to treat yourself using natural remedies I would still advise calling your GP to confirm that you definitely have a UTI and not something else.
Medical steps to take:
If you think you tick the boxes above and feel like you have a UTI, call your GP. You usually do not need an appointment to do a wee in a pot however my surgery has updated their rules in that you do need a doctor to sign this off. You literally just have to describe your symptoms to them and they will 9 times out of 10 ask you to provide a urine sample so that they can check.
They never seem to give you a bag to put the pot in and can expect you to do the sample at the surgery - so come prepared. Bring a pen to write your details on your pot and bring a bag to put the sample in for your discretion.
It should only take a couple of days for your results to come back, and if positive you will likely be prescribed antibiotics. I have in the past been given Nitrofurantoin or Trimethoprim and would say I didn’t notice any huge side effects. Some antibiotics can darken your urine and give you a metallic/unpleasant taste in your mouth.
For girls who experience recurrent UTI’s I do believe there is a medication that you have to take regularly in order to keep the UTI at bay. You may also be given a longer course of antibiotics.
What’s the deal with cranberries?
I’m not a medical professional so i can’t tell you WHY cranberries supposedly help UTI symptoms or how they came into the UTI realm altogether, however. The difference is if you are taken pure cranberry tablets, you may actually find that they help you. It is the cheap sugar and additive riddled cranberry products in supermarkets etc. which will NOT help you. You do not want to give your body any further acidity as you are already peeing out flames.
There is a natural sugar molecule found in cranberries called D-mannose. You can find D-mannose tablets in places like Holland and Barretts, and it’s actually these capsules that I took the last time I had a horrific UTI. You can also get D-Mannose as a powder, almost like a tea to drink. You can buy the tablets that I took here.
I don’t know if it was just a pure coincidence but on two or three separate occasions now I noticed my symptoms disappeared after taking these. Again, I cannot vouch for everyone but they definitely seemed to make a difference for me. The tablets are bloody huge and I suck at swallowing tablets so I literally chewed mine (again would not advise that but it’s just a sugar molecule so didn’t taste that bad). I sound like a maniac please don’t follow every single word I say but you are probably not silly like me & therefore will be able to swallow the tablets fine.
With ANYTHING check with a medical professional FIRST.