For 20 years I had a UTI (urinary tract infection) and taking ciprofloxacin didn't work, but taking Bactrim did. After doing so, I noticed many things in my body are starting to change for the better. I think the infection had spread to other parts of my body. That was when I was certain I needed the best urology specialist in Singapore.
See, I also have had kidney reflux, which makes me susceptible to urinary tract infections (UTIs) and kidney infections, since I was a little girl. I only found out that I had an antibiotic-resistant infection when the drug they normally gave me stopped working. I was a teenager when my urine was first sent off to be tested something I learned should have happened much sooner. The results came back saying there was resistance.
There, I eventually learned I have painful bladder syndrome. Which means that many times I thought my pain was caused by an ordinary UTI, and I was given antibiotics to treat it but what I had was something worse than just UTI. I was exposed to a hospital during investigations, but it was probably the misuse of antibiotics that caused the resistance.
The first time I was sent to the hospital with a resistant infection
When the urine sample came back and it said I had a superbug, I didn’t know what that meant. I thought I had a kidney infection, which was common throughout my childhood. However, when I got there, I was put into a side room and several doctors came in, all wearing masks and gloves. That was when it hit me. My mum and I looked at each other and realised this wasn’t just a normal kidney infection.
They had to give me a last-resort antibiotic. It managed to clear the infection and my urinary incontinence. The urologists and doctors have compared it to having MRSA, in terms of how resistant it is to antibiotics. So, I’ve had to use a carbapenem several times.
How I was treated each time
It used to be more often, but now it’s every three to four months. I try to avoid taking antibiotics as much as I can and keep my regular visits to a UTI specialist in Singapore. Every time I do have an infection, doctors examine it to determine what bacteria is causing it and which antibiotics need to be used. It’s hard, because you have to wait three days for the results to come back, and at that time I can get ill. So a lot of time while I’m waiting for the results, I have to be treated like it’s a superbug.
My life since then
Because the bacteria are in my bladder, my doctor reassured me that I am not likely to pass them on to my son or my fiancé, Ben. So, it’s not that if I kiss Ben, he’d get it. Initially, I did worry about exposing family and friends. The main way it affects my family life is that when I have an attack, it completely wipes me out. When Emerson was a baby, or even now, if he wants to play and I’m unwell, it’s just heart-breaking. It feels like a disability.
I try not to think like that, but I’m only 28, and if you look at how many antibiotics I’ve gone through, I’m already coming close to the end ones. By the time I’m 40, I still want to have antibiotics left. However, if they don’t find new urinary stones treatment and solutions, inevitably, one day I will run out.
It’s horrible, because when you go to the doctor, you see all these mums complaining, saying, “You need to give them something, they’re poorly”, even though the doctors explain that it’s viral, and you can’t treat a viral infection with antibiotics. It’s hard to watch other mums that don’t understand what the misuse of antibiotics can do. When they tell me my son’s illness is viral, I think, okay good.
Sharing my story so that I could help
I’ve made it a really big goal to make people aware of this. I used to have so little awareness myself. People may have heard of UTI conditions from antibiotic resistance, but you just shrug it off. But it is expected to kill more people than cancer by 2050. I want people to know the severity of it. I also want to share my story because I know that I am one of the lucky ones. If other people are going through it, I want them to know that not everyone dies. I want to give them hope.
If you are having even the slightest symptoms of a UTI, visit my urology specialist in Singapore immediately. Dr Shirley Bang helped me from the start to recovery.
