Sick? Not Sick? The IC Cycle of Hell

Some medical conditions come on and then are cured for good. Other medical conditions may make someone incapacitated every single day. IC falls into a group of conditions where you can have good days and bad days. There is no one steady IC cycle. IC is an unpredictable beast. Although many patients do have SOME IC symptoms every single day, most patients go through flares and that is when they feel the sickest.


When a patient is not flaring the person may be pain free or just experiencing minor symptoms or low level pain. During times like this it can be easy for a person to complete normal tasks: working, shopping, socializing etc. When a flare strikes however that same person may find herself living in the bathroom or the bedroom. Flares can make urination frequency out of control and put bladder and pelvic pain at a 12 on a scale of 1 to 10. It can be really hard for an IC patient to know just when a flare will happen. While some people know what their triggers are (certain foods, stress etc.) there is no solid way to avoid or predict a flare. Many times it can seem like a flare comes on for no reason.

How long does a flare last? Unfortunately, there is no way to tell. Flares sometimes last hours and other times last days. Some people are in so much pain and agony during a flare that they can barely walk from the living room to the bathroom, let alone do anything else.

This is the most confusing part of IC for many family members and friends of an IC patient. It can be REALLY hard for a person to understand how his or her loved one seemed perky on Monday and by Wednesday is in so much pain that the IC-er is considering going to the ER. 

It is important to remember that even when an IC-er is not flaring and seems happy it doesn't necessarily mean the person is completely comfortable. Some people can get their pain at a zero and frequency under control when they are not flaring and other patients can not. Some IC-ers have to develop a new normal. If a person can never get his or her pain below a 3, then that person adapts and finds ways to complete activities when his or her pain is at a 3. But everyone has a limit. When pain starts to creep up to a higher level, typically 8 or above for many, there is just no way for normal activities to be completed.


IC is still such a mysterious illness. No one hates the mystery more than us IC patients. Before IC I was a planner. Everything always had to be planned way in advance and executed just right or I couldn't take it. IC has taken that away from me. I still try to plan things, but sometimes they don't always work out as planned due to the IC cycle of hell. I never know when a flare will hit so hard that I simply can't get out of bed.


If you have a friend with IC please show compassion. I know it can be frustrating if he or she bails on something at the last minute, but your friend can not help it.

I realize it can be hard to accept that your loved one is sick especially since he or she likely looks fine from the outside. The most important thing to remember is that IC-ers are still people, people with feelings and we just want acceptance and understanding until the medical world catches up with us and finds a cure. So if we are sick one day and fine the next we are not faking, we are stuck in the IC cycle of hell.