Hello!

[Matthar]

Hello,
I would Like to to take an oppurtunity and say "hi" to everyone on the board. I am a newly diagnosed 23 year old male with IC and I look forward to getting and sharing some useful information from everyone. Have a great day. :)
--Matthew

[lalarainbow]

Hi Matthew,
Welcome to the boards and you sure will find lots of info here! It is place to share and ask any questions.
Take care
~~Pam~~

[ICNDonna]

:welcome: to the IC Network. You'll indeed find a lot of information and support here.

I suggest you spend some time reviewing the IC Network site, including the Patient Handbook at http://www.ic-network.com/handbook You'll find a lot of helpful information there, including the IC diet, which I suggest all new ICers try to see if it eases symptoms.

And feel free to post any questions you have. We aren't physicians and don't give medical advice, but are happy to share our own personal experiences.

Warm welcoming hugs,
Donna

[aantol73]

WELCOME MATTHEW....
Glad you found us and we are here to help each other!!!!

[sleepyangel30]

Welcome Matthew. Glad you joined the club.

[Sarojini]

:welcome: to the ICN!! :)

Glad you found us and can't wait to get to know you more...

[Dixiefireball]

i wanted to add my :welcome: to you and ask you to please look at the website Donna gave you above its very helpful. www.ic-network.com/handbook.
we are here for you.
sending you hugs and prayers
Rhonda

[Babs RN]

Welcome, Matt!

Are you in the Army? I saw Fort Drum as your location. I was prior Army and my husband is still active duty. We are out at Fort Irwin and he will be deploying to Iraq with 11 ACR. You have come to an awesome site for information and support. We are all here for you.

Hugs,
Barb

[Matthar]

Thank you all for the warm welcome! Babs RN, yes I am in the 10th Mountain Division and I will be medically discharged (retired) on Sep 5th.
--Matthew

[Babs RN]

Matt,
Congrats on being a double digit midget. I was medically retired also--so if you have any questions about medical retirement or even the VA let me know. I would be glad to share my experiences with you. Take care.

Hugs,
Barb

[Katrina]

:welcome: :welcome: :welcome: :welcome:
I would just like to add my welcome to the family! I would also like to thank you and Barb for your service to our country. Let me know if there is anything I can do for you.

Take Care

[SharonA]

I, also, want to add my welcome and to say "thank you" for your service to our country. I am an Air Force Brat. There will always be a soft spot in my heart for all things military. All of you are my heros. :)

[Iris]

Hi and welcome to the ICN Matthew, you have come to a great place with lots of information, and support, and lots of caring people who know what living everyday with IC is all about. I am married to a retired military man, so know all about being a military wife. I am very grateful for all the troops who are supporting and defending our country, have a lot of respect for all of them. Once again a big welcome to our IC family, let us know how you are doing, take care Iris. :hi: :welcome: :grouphug: :flower:

[Amyinagony]

:butterfly Hell0,
My name is Amy,and yes Im in agony suffering with this aweful desease IC!!!. I hate every thing about it.I cant seem to find a good URo that knows how to treat this desease.I was adviced to go to one that is over 7hrs away,I cant even thinkof traveling THAT far.Why in this world are there not many docs that know about this desease and how to treat it?The medications Im on are Elmiron,Levsin,Zyrtec and live on pain pills.Im starting to learm more about different treatments,now all I need is a doctor to help me out.I can relate to the one who posted about the DEEP depression part of this desease,the lack of good sleep,hard to workat a job,not a good intimate relation with the BF,I just learned that I cant eat my favorite foods,one being PIZZA and of course a Pepsi with it!!Why did God take that away from me?Plus, Im an italian food lover,so much for that too.I love fruit and juices too, cant do that anymore either.This is all WAY TOO depressing.I have melt downs too,I have already been toa pschiatric unit,I have a psch doc,but you still cant voice your true true feelings,cuz they will throw me back in the psch unit.But so glad to have found this message board and support team.(Thanks to Debbie)This is my first time on this message board.I need to learn to navigate around this board,so please bare with me.I may not be able to find my way back...lol.I just wanted to show my support to all of you and pray for all of you.Im reading alot now and beginning to learn more about IC.Stuff I never knew about.Im sorry that there are so many of you with this samething.I also have endo,but suffer more with IC(Ithink).Im 31yrs old and feel like I dont have much of a life.Its been really aweful for me.I went threw years of being called a baby,or all in my head,just as I read about how others have been treated,until I finally got the right answer.Some day I wll tell my story,if I can ever sit here long enough.God bless you all.
Amy :butterfly

[SheriG]

Hello, Matt, and welcome! I am sorry that you have had this disease bestowed on you. Around here, we all stick together, and try to help, try to understand, and try to make each other laugh once in awhile. So, again, welcome, and we hope to see ya round, lettin us know how you are doing...All the best to you, Sheri G

[theclownster]

Hi there Matthew! I just wanted to add my warm welcome. IC can be challenging, so I'm glad you found us. This is a great place for unconditional support. We all look forward to reading your posts and hopefully you will be finding relief for your symptoms very soon!

Take Care!
Jennifer

[crystilclear]

:welcome: :welcome: Matt and Amy :) There a lot of info here and tons of nice people here! Amy really sorry you are feeling so bad right now. I used to suffer from severe depression but had some counsiling,a wonderful hubby, and mom and sisters to help me through this. I have my bouts of it but it's so much better. I know it's hard because my hubby thought boy do I have to hear about this again? But you've gotta talk some things out over and over again if need be until you start to feel a little better. Glad you both found your way here. Take care - Chris

[icnmgrjill]

Welcome! We actually have a lot of guys with IC in our boards... but they tend to be "readers" rather than "posters." I'm sure you'll find them and, hopefully, strike up some friendships!

Jill :)

[Kiyoka]

Hey Amy, Yeah I know how you feel about missing the food you love. have you tried prelief? If you email me I can give you an address for ic dr's in your state. my email address is kiyokafett@yahoo.com. please feel free to contact me for anything. I"m 21 and I"m going to college.

Matt, welcome to the board, I surely can't wait to get to know you. If you need anything we are all here for you. if you need any help with anything and you want to email me, your welcome to do so..my email is above. What treatments have you tried or on.

[KatyG]

Welcome Matthew. You'll get more info here than in any doctor's office.

[~*~Christine~*~]

Welcome to the IC board Matt and Amy :hi:

[Amyinagony]

Hi Kiyoka and Christine,:flower:
Thank you for the welcome and replying.

Kiyoka: (I have emailed you) I would love the names of doctors in my area.

:headbang:I am having a horrible time.I go to the bathroom :toilet: (by the way,this is a PERFECT picture for me) and not even 5mins later have such a horrible urge and so much pain and pressure like I have to go again,I know that I dont have to go,but there is such an urge.I end up giving in within a half hour because I can't stand the pressure.It hurts in my lower stomach and also like in my 'female area'. :( (DOES anyone else have THAT kind of pain?) :( My doctor keeps doing urine tests to see if I have an infection,he says its not an infection and to take Levsin.It doesnt do much at all.Im still in alot of pain and still have to go all of the time.I know I am going to be in trouble with my job because I have had to call in so much,I dont like having to call in so much but I can not work with all of this pain and having to run to the bathroom so much.I cant even make the short drive without being in agony.I already got in trouble when I was off alot when I was running from doctor to doctor to get help before getting diagnosed.They were really rotten to me.I almost lost my job then.They stillare pretty rotten to me.Like I aske to be sick.I cant sleep,I cant sit long or lay down long.Im so depressed again(maybe still,I dont know).

I tried to type out my story yesterdayand couldnt finish it.I can say that I relate to many of the other stories that I have read on here.Its like I typed them out myself.
Take care everyone.:pray:ing for all of you.
Amy-in Agony

[rumbat]

Hi,

I am a 24 yr. old female - newly diagnosed myself. I have found a lot of solace here. It helps to know you are not alone & others can understand your situation. Sometimes its hard for friends & family to really understand what IC is like - so its great to talk to other IC folks.

Hope things are going okay for you
:)

[Matthar]

I want to thank everyone again for the kind words and support. I would also like to tell everyone a little about my story, my symptoms and the treatments I have tried.
I was healthy all my life basically, I was very physicaly fit and took pride in my health.
I have been in the Army since I was 17 Years old, and Have had the privelage to be in the most deployed unit in the army, the 10th Mountain Division. Since I have been in the Army (1997), my unit has deployed to
South America (Colombia) in 1998, Egypt in 1999, Kosovo in 2000 and Afghanastan in October of 2001 (we were the first American combat unit in Afghanastan). I loved my job and did it to the best of my abilities. Around January of 2002 I started getting real bad pains around my bladder area and started to have urges to go to the bathroom all the time. The Army Doctors kept telling me that there was nothing wrong with me and to get back to work. The doctors would not help me and I guess what they thaught was that I was trying to get out of the deployment so I could go home. That was clearly not the case. It took a year of bad pain, begging everyday for help and a Congressmans support before they decided to take me seriously. My government and the Army loved me while I was healthy and could do my job and then they both turned there back on me when I needed help the most. To this day it's like pulling teeth even to see a doctor. The Army has me stationed in a place were the only Urologist I can see is an 8 hour drive so getting help is slim to none. The times when I have made the 8 hour trek for help I have been on several medications that did not seem to work. I have also done several biopsies (sp?). I have gotten the scope everytime I've been down there (8 times), and am making another journey tomorrow. My symptoms seem to be the same exact as Amys and they never let up. Well, thanks for listening and wish everyone the best.

Amy, I am truly sorry you are going through all the pain and discomfort. My heart goes out to you.
--Matthew

[lindy lou]

Matthew,

First of all, thank you for all you have given for this country. I am always in awe of any military person. I am a newbie so I don't have much experience to share with you yet but I sense that there is a lot of support here on ICN. It must be especially difficult to be so far from medical professionals who can help you. I can't imagine being 8 hours from my uro and dealing with military stuff too. Hope your appointment goes well tomorrow. I go back too, first since my dx. Hopefully, he can help me with the pain. I start teaching next week and don't know how I will manage. At least we have some support here. I'll be thinking and praying for you. Linda

[~*~Christine~*~]

Welcome rumbat (or is it Shan?) :hi:
IC is hard to understand if you don't have it just like any disease
And Matt, I think that's horrible that someone who is helping to protect their country isn't looked after enough. 8 hours away! Crazy :shake:

[lindy lou]

Matt,

How did your trip to the uro go? Haven't seen you post lately.

Linda

[Hangin' Tough]

I am noticing more and more males are finding this site. I am a 38yo male with IC. Diagnosed 1.5 years ago and struggling with symptoms. This is a wonderful place for info and support. The ladies here treat us very well. I served 8 years in the Air Force. Keep your head up, this disease can be very frustrating. If you ever have questions just ask and someone will point you in the right direction. Have a great day.

Steve