When I was little, I had kidney reflux quite badly. I was constantly sick, feverish, and on antibiotics. I had frequent infections and was finally told that surgery was required. Oddly enough a few months before the surgery was scheduled, a few tests confirmed that my kidney reflux had corrected itself and would no longer be a problem. And it wasn't.

Now, however, I am worried that it may have returned. I am having frequent bladder infections and often find myself needing to go to the bathroom very badly and am unable to. When this happens my lower sides/back hurt horribly and nearly make me sick. I often feel that I cannot empty my bladder completely, though I've never experienced any burning or fevers as of late. At first, I figured that perhaps having sex for the first few times was the cause. Now, I'm getting nervous. Could my kidney reflux could have come back? Or are these just symptoms of your average bladder infection caused by sex, or something of the sort? I just don't know, but I need to be sure that this is not a problem that I need to go to the doctor for...again.

Please help me. When my sides hurt after being unable to release urine when I really need to, I wonder if damage is being done to my kidneys. Thanks for the help!

~Arie