1. Things You Can Try at Home
Drink, drink, drink. Increasing your water intake will encourage frequent voiding, helping to flush out your system and carry the infection away. Sugary foods can feed bacteria and strengthen symptoms of bladder infections so you'll want to avoid those as well. Cranberry juice can be helpful in eliminating the infection, as long as it's not sweetened because the extra sugar of sweetened juice will feed the infection. Vitamin C is known to raise the acidity of urine, stopping the growth of bacteria inside the urinary tract; taking it before bed may help. Always consult your health care provider before taking anything, including vitamins and herbs as they can interfere with medications you may already be taking. Be aware if the pain is also in your back because it may mean your infection has traveled to your kidneys. Also, blood in your urine, fever, or continuing pain despite your attempts to handle the infection at home means a trip to your health care provider.
2. Relief With Oral Antibiotics
Most bladder infections, also called urinary tract infections or UTIs, can be treated with oral antibiotics from your health care provider. A course of antibiotics for a bladder infection usually lasts three to five days and will be easily tolerated. Continuing with drinking water, voiding often, avoiding sugary foods and drinking unsweetened cranberry juice should help you feel better quickly. Be sure to take the entire course of antibiotics prescribed to you as directed. If you experience unpleasant side effects, contact your provider before stopping the medication. Stopping the antibiotics before they're gone can allow the infection to come back, usually stronger. Also, not completing a course of antibiotics can add to the universal problem of drug resistant antibiotics
3. When Oral Antibiotics Don't Work
A urinary tract infection is an infection of the urinary tract system including the bladder and kidneys. Bacteria are not normally present in the urine, so when bacteria find its way into the bladder or kidneys, they're able to multiply and an infection is likely. Normally, a bladder infection will be easily treated with oral antibiotics. If the infection persists, worsens or begins to involve the kidney, it may mean the infection is much more serious and intravenous antibiotics and possibly hospitalization are needed. Pyelonephritis is a urinary tract infection that has settled in the pelvis of the kidney that often begins with a bladder infection. This type of infection will need intravenous antibiotics to be taken care of. Intravenous antibiotics will reach the site of the infection quicker and at greater strength than oral antibiotics will, leading to a quicker end to the infection. Hospitalization may be needed to increase fluids due to fever, decreased intake and to boost urine (in attempt to help flush the bacteria from the urinary tract). Once your urinary tract infection has been treated with intravenous antibiotics, you will continue to take oral antibiotics for a period of time as follow up treatment.
