Dumb Question

[andrea1]

Maybe this is a dumb question, but I really don't understand what IC actually is... Can someone explain it to me in simple terms? All I know is that I'm being supplied with these pills and I really don't understand what's actually going on in my body.

[soccermom32]

The way I understand it is that the mucous layer that protects your bladder is broken down. When the layer is broken down, urine irritates your bladder which causes pain/burning etc....

The Elmiron & the instills are to restore the lining. Some meds are allergy meds b/c your body produces histamines when this is happening. Other meds are for blocking nerve pain which is a result of this too.

Your doctor should really be explaining this to you though. Does he not take the time with you? What meds are you on?

[meme]

One of my doctors descibed it as having an "arthritis" in your bladder. Meaning that it cramps up and has pain like arthritis does in your joints. My current uro told me pretty much what soccermom said, that the lining of the bladder has ulcers that cause pain and spasming. I have pictures of mine-pretty scarey. There's all these bright red spots all over in the lining of my bladder.
I too would make sure your uro talks more with you. I know that if yours is like mine they're always in a rush, but you have to be stern with them sometimes. Its your body and you deserve to know what's going on with it.
Good Luck

[Stacey65]

Interstitial Cystitis an inflammatory disease of the bladder. Inside the bladder, there is a layer that lines the wall of your bladder. This layer is damaged and allows irritating substances in the urine to aggravate and inflame the bladder wall, causing urinary urgency, frequency and pain. These 2 sites tell more about it.
http://www.ichelp.org/whatisic/AnIntroductionToIC.html
http://www.ic-network.com/handbook/basics.html

[ICNDonna]

The Patient Handbook at http://www.ic-network.com/handbook has a very good description.

Donna

[andrea1]

Thanks you all for the information. Here's what my experience has been with my urologist and IC:

I saw my GYN three weeks ago to schedule my laparoscopy when, upon an examination, he told me that he suspected that I had Interstitial Cystitis... he didn't explain it, didn't even really tell me what it was, but he called the urologist and told him what he thought it was. That afternoon, I was sent to a urologist in the neighboring city where I sat in a waiting room for an hour only to be brought into an examination room to wait another 45 minutes. He came in and asked me about my symptoms, gave me the IC questionnaire thing, which I filled out and got a low score. He told me he didn't think I had IC, but he'd treat me for it anyway and see if it made a difference. That was pretty much it.

[Berkshire Road]

Andrea -- The only dumb question is the one you don't ask. :)

[L. Thomas]

??? I'm not sure if I can explain it the way my urogyn explained it compeltey...BUT basically it sounded like a heart attack of the bladder...where instead of contracting normally the bladder just sort of shakes and never quite gets the rhythm.. this in turn caused some urine to "sit" in the bladder which in turn "burned" the bladder lining. So he prefers treatment that calms the bladder to allow it to "rest" so it will return to the natural rhythm. ?????

[PickPink]

The way it has been explained to me is like this - my bladder has 'craters', or open wounds, along the lining.. which is why the urine is like acid. The scar tissue from the wounds can cause your bladder to be able to hold less and less urine at a time. Also, the acid-effect causes the pain and urgency sensation that so many of us feel. The meds are suppose to put a layer of protection over the wounds so they are able to heal and hopefully reduce all of the symptoms that you experience.

That's the best way I have been explained it. If you go to wikipedia.com, they have a pretty good description also.