If you want to know how to prevent UTI during pregnancy, use these methods below. I have been UTI free for a couple years now, including during my pregnancy and postpartum journey, by using these tips!
Have you ever had a UTI before? If not, you’re a lucky duck, because they are far from fun. If you are a woman, I can almost guarantee that you will get at least one in your life. But hey, I’ve had enough for the both of us, so let’s hope I took one for the team!
I used to get countless UTIs between the ages of 19-22. It was maddening! There was even a time when I had three (yes, three!) UTIs in ONE month.
I wanted to pull my hair out! Well, I’m pretty sure I did a little haha!
This post is all about how to prevent UTI during pregnancy.
How to Prevent UTI During Pregnancy
What is a UTI?
A UTI is when “bacteria from somewhere outside of a woman’s body gets inside her urethra (basically the urinary tract) and causes an infection.”
The bacteria can be transferred many different ways. The most common causes are bacteria transferred through sexual activity or bacteria transferred from the anus to the urethra.
What are the symptoms of a UTI during pregnancy?
Whether you are pregnant or not, the symptoms are the same.
For me, my first symptom is usually peeing A LOT. The urgency is unreal haha but I mean more in frequency, not necessarily in quantity. It starts to feel like I’m going to pee out a gallon of liquid if I don’t make it to the bathroom that very second, so I rush to the toilet, and out comes an itty bitty tablespoon.
Then comes the burning sensation as I pee, and the burn is unforgiving. I am usually gripping the counter with one hand and holding my core with the other, sitting on the toilet yet on my tippy toes. Sadly, my technique for painful urination postpartum doesn’t work in this situation.
Then I start to get drops of blood in my pee, and by this point, I know it’s usually past the point of no return and I most likely need antibiotics.
Sometimes you can have cloudy urine, foul smelling urine, and pain in the lower abdomen. If you are vomiting, have a high fever, or experiencing lower back pain, the infection could have spread into your kidneys. I didn’t usually have these symptoms.
*If your UTI is left untreated, the bacteria can get up into your kidneys, causing a kidney infection. You do not want to get to this point, especially when you have a little baby in your belly!
How are UTIs diagnosed?
During those unpleasant UTI years, I would head to the doctor for a diagnosis. I would tell him my symptoms, pee in a cup, and be given a prescription.
My pee sample would be “checked in a laboratory under the microscope for bacteria.” There are different antibiotics for each type of bacteria, so once the bacteria was identified, sometimes I would be given a new prescription that would target that specific bacteria.
With as many infections as I got, it became extremely annoying to have to skip work every month to visit the doctor. Plus, I dislike taking as many antibiotics as I did, as often as I did. I wanted a more natural approach.
So, I was determined to figure out how to keep those infections at bay!
How I prevent UTI’s with these not-so-secret weapons
Now, when I have an active UTI that is too far gone and I can’t get rid of it naturally, these little Urinary Pain Relief Tablets are awesome to see me through until I can get an appointment with my doctor. They contain phenazopyridine hydrochloride, which helps relieve the burning (while also turning my pee orange haha). I loved taking these until I was able to get a prescription!
If you choose to use these too, just be cautious- these tablets help relieve your symptoms, but they don’t make your UTI go away. It’s a temporary fix to get you through the pain, so be sure to still see your doctor for treatment!
Now, when I don’t have an active UTI, these things help me prevent them. These are preventative measures that you have probably heard of before, and maybe you currently do them as well.
- I empty my bladder whenever I feel the need to go.
- I make sure to pee immediately after sex.
- I wear cotton underwear to allow air flow.
- I ditch the panties at bedtime.
- I completely avoid any vaginal products that throw off my natural pH, like douches, perfumes, sprays, scented soaps, etc.
- I use a gentle, non-scented soap to clean my lady bits (just the outside, NOT the inside. The inside cleans itself).
- I drink plenty of water to stay hydrated.
- I wipe from front to back.
how i prevent UTI’s: Two of my actual secret weapons
I have always made sure to do all of the things above, but I really started to see results when I incorporated these two things.
My first secret weapon is a product called D’Mannose.
This is a type of sugar that you ingest that comes in the form of a powder that you mix with your water. Basically, once it makes it to your bladder, the sugars bond to the bacteria in your urinary tract, and you pee it out. You can drink it daily as a preventative method, or you can drink it a couple times a day as soon as you notice any symptoms.
I think it comes in the form of capsules as well, however, I have only ever used the powder.
My second secret weapon is using a bidet.
My husband and I ordered this bidet from Amazon for $60, (I think we paid a little less than $60, but prices may have increased since then- I don’t remember) and I’ve been using it for a little over two years now. You can get one that’s cheaper or more expensive if you want to, that comes with more or less features, but we just wanted something fairly basic. And for me, the $60 is worth it! I’ve used it multiple times a day for two years and counting, so I’ve basically spent only 8 cents a day on that thing. It’s kept my area waaay cleaner than ever before and has seriously made the biggest difference!
No more doctor visits. No more pills.
I’m not even joking. I swear by these products!
What I Do When I Feel a UTI Coming On
Okay. I did have symptoms of a UTI a few months ago. I had a baby in March of 2023, successfully giving birth to my baby naturally in our home (P.S. my midwife is amazing!).
It felt like I started to get a UTI a few weeks postpartum (my first UTI since buying and using the bidet). I reached out to my midwife and described my symptoms.
She told me to take cranberry pills or drink 100% cranberry juice. She also told me to drink lots of lemon water with a pinch of Redmond salt. This did not taste the best, but my UTI never progressed any further!
If you are looking for a natural remedy for a UTI, this is one you should try!
If you have any questions or are unsure about how to prevent uti during pregnancy, talk to your midwife or doctor. They can help you decide what is best for you!
UTIs are very uncomfortable, and I hope you don’t have to experience them as often as I did. But, in case you get unlucky like me, the bidet and the D’Mannose, combined with the other things I mentioned above, have kept me UTI free for a couple of years now! Give them a try! I hope they help you like they’ve helped me.
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