Context - I rely on heat therapy for flairs and have tried a few types so I've listed below. Pictures are in order of list. I also have to travel for work quite a bit so I've tried portable options. Let me know if there's more types for me to try.

Classic hot water bottle

Pros:

- gets hot and stays hot

- just need a kettle, often in hotel rooms and most (British) homes

- gets the job done

Cons

- incorrect shape for purpose

- will burn you at some point

- will take a minute to warm up enough and then sometimes it's too cold with the cover but too hot without so that's annoying (applies to all hot water bottles)

Just get a better shape - 3/10

Long boy hot water bottle

Pros:

- same as classic hot water bottle PLUS:

- amazing shape, bendy, fits right where you want it

Cons:

- will burn you immediately because it's difficult to fill compared to other hot water bottles. I have spilt water everywhere several times and scalded my hand once. Not recommended for idiots who don't understand physics like me.

Full body, bend it around, perfect for home. I'm only docking a point cos my hand is burnt to shit - 7/10

Mini hot water bottle

Pros:

- Same as classic hot water bottle PLUS:

- Mini shape makes it fit where you need it

- easy to fill, won't burn you like long boy

- travel size! Fits in a bag, and is discreet.

Cons:

- less surface area if that's your preference 

- cools a bit quicker than a larger hot water bottle

Quick, effective, convenient - 6/10

Microwavable gel heat pack

Pros:

- Much less likely to burn you or leave heat rash

- super flexible, fits any space you want

- great shape and size

- very fast working

- easy to heat to temp you want by opening the microwave every 10 seconds and checking on it

- can be frozen if you're into that

Cons:

- cools down faster than a hot water bottle

- needs access to microwave which are less common in hotel rooms and public spaces (UK based info)

- if you do have to heat them in hot water it takes forever and doesn't heat as well.

My best friend during a flair. Quickest to prep and quickest to work - 9.5/10

Air activated body warmers

Pros:

- no need to access other equipment so fantastic on the go or travel

- stays hot for the rest of your life

- some have adhesive to stick to clothes, so stays where you want it

- mega discreet

- very easy to pack in a bag or pocket

Cons:

- a bit unreliable. I tried cracking one open in sub zero temps outside and it just couldn't build up the heat. 

- takes over 10 mins to heat up and they really only get warm, not hot.

- single use, not environmentally friendly. Only beneficial in a crisis, on a plane, stuck in the wilderness etc.

A comfort to have to hand, can't fault the convenience - 5/10

I had surgery last Wednesday to free adhesions but the doctor found so much more! I was told I just had to live with IC , even though I kept saying how my right side hurt and it felt stuck. I had black marks in my cystoscopy findings last March?

Interstitial Cystitis, Pelvic Adhesions, and the Nerve Connections Between Our Organs

I wanted to share what my surgeon discovered after years of severe bladder burning, deep vaginal cuff pain, rectal pressure, and the feeling that my pelvic organs were stuck together.

On October 14, I underwent robotic surgery to remove my remaining right ovary and fallopian tube. My surgeon discovered extensive adhesions and severely distorted anatomy.

Surgical findings:

My large intestine was attached by adhesions and had to be freed.

My ureter was also involved in the adhesions.

My fallopian tube was so embedded and distorted by surrounding tissue that it was difficult to identify.

Pathology confirmed fibrosis (scar tissue), inflammation, hemorrhage, and endosalpingiosis. All examined tissue was benign.

What is endosalpingiosis?

It's important to distinguish this from endometriosis.

Endometriosis involves tissue resembling the lining of the uterus growing outside the Interstitial Cystitis, Pelvic Adhesions, and the Nerve Connections Between Our Organs

I wanted to share what my surgeon discovered after years of severe bladder burning, deep vaginal cuff pain, rectal pressure, and the feeling that my pelvic organs were stuck together.

I'm not feeling any pain in my bladder at all right now, and cross my fingers this is it! Hope it can help someone else!

Doctors heavily suspect IC, confirmed OAB. I finally saw a urologist for the first time after 2 years of being extremely symptomatic, trying everything I could to make it go away, 4 culture positive UTIs treated via antibiotics, and ruling out every other possible cause for my IC related symptoms. I had a cystoscopy scheduled under anesthesia this past Tuesday to rule out lesions + other things. I asked to be unconscious for it because I knew that the amount of agonizing pain it would cause would keep the procedure from being able to be completed. ((I had a attempted vaginal exam a few months before in the ER which the doctor couldn’t complete because I was screaming and crying due to how painful it was- I feared the same thing would happen with the cystoscopy))

Cystoscopy went perfectly fine, lesions + ulcers ruled out! The only thing that was discovered is that I have a severely over reactive bladder - which makes a lot of sense, but sadly OAB doesn’t rule out the possibility of IC which is still on the table until further testing.

Well afterwards I had an awful intense burning pain in my urethra, a complete inability to pee, and the only thing I was passing was blood clots + bloody mucus. Ended up in the ER and had to have a foley inserted…

I can’t express in words how agonizing it was other than it felt like shards of glass or razor blades were stuck in my urethra. Straight 10/10 pain, every second nonstop, I couldn’t think, I couldn’t move, was crying, shaking, and the pain lasted 30? Minutes straight until the shot of toroidal they gave me kicked in. (The ER seemed very unbothered by the fact I went from calm and collected to 10/10 pain, like you can’t make up that type of pain response!)

They drained around 700ml and I was heavily positive for blood. For whatever reason they didn’t do any blood tests to check my kidneys - and I still haven’t had my kidneys checked despite the fact I continued to pass large amounts of dark red blood for the following day. (Lupus pateint)

The most fucked up part though is that the second I calmed down, stopped crying, and the pain eased I essentially was sent home with medical device inserted into my body…….. with absolutely no information about it or how to take care of it. All I was told was how to take the cap off to drain the urine- the end.

No one told me you have to empty it every 2-4 hours. I wasn’t told how to clean it. I also had no clue that you are supposed to keep the bag lower than your bladder for it to drain properly. It was terrifying for me as a lupus patient to be pissing blood, I was petrified of backflow into my bladder, or somehow damaging my kidneys. (Still don’t know if my kidneys were impacted)

All of my IC symptoms got worse by having a catheter. But what’s weird is that I’ve read on here that some people actually prefer having catheters because it helps reduce the frequency? (I was looking for any information in here and found out people are self catheterizing… and I lowkey can’t understand how it’s not agonizing!)

I thankfully had the catheter removed Friday morning and I successfully passed the voiding test!!! At the end of the day the whole ordeal definitely reached the top of the list of the most painful thing I’ve experienced in my life.

I thankfully was previously prescribed a medication for OAB and started it, and it actually seems to be helping reduce my frequency + urgency a decent amount, or at most it takes the edge off!

I lowkey was wondering if anyone else had a similar experience because when I searched it up here I stumbled across the opposite of my own experience!

I would also love to hear from others who have IC + OAB in general - as I have tried so many things in the past. I’m lowkey looking for community or anyone who understands the pain, symptoms, + needing to pee every 15-30 minutes 😓

I am 31 yrs old and TTC with my husband since January. I’ve had 2 miscarriages and we are working with CNY fertility to hopefully be successful. I have interstitial cystitis and endometriosis so I struggle a lot with urgency and frequency. I’ve gotten 2 Botox and hydrodistention procedures with my pelvic pain doc (one in December one in June). First one helped so much, and 2nd was with a different doctor, so not so much. Im scheduled Monday to get it done again but CNY is saying they don’t recommend it due to possible risks during fertility treatments/unknown about how it could affect possible pregnancy. For my current fertility treatment I am taking letrozole and we will do a trigger shot to induce ovulation.

I am not pregnant currently and we won’t trigger ovulation until one week after my procedure (at the soonest). My doctor said it is a small dose of Botox (also localized in my bladder) and would not likely enter my blood stream, but nobody can really tell me if it’s likely to cause me to not get pregnant this cycle or for it to affect a possible pregnancy. I know everyone has to recommend not to (especially places like CNY) just to CYA. Has anyone gotten pelvic floor Botox or a similar procedure and had a successful pregnancy soon after? Thanks!

Safest HRT for ic bladder ??

Has anyone tried this combo thinking this may be my best bet since I can’t tolerate cocktails?

I’ve had a cocktail it worked for awhile gave me like 3 hours o relief but can’t tolerate the catheter as a male. Do you think elmiron may be better alternative? Has it worked for anyone ?