Oh man.. I am so sorry you had this so long.. UTI can be very painful, and left to their own can be dangerous. My sweet MIL had a dropped uterus which caused her to have urinary problems, which led to reoccuring UTI's.. She generally spent a couple weeks in the hospital with heavy IV antibiotics... This last time she went in was the same as all the other times it appeared.. but the infection somehow slipped out of the urinary track and got into her blood. She died a day and a half later... There was no stopping it once it got in her blood. So don't mess with UTI's or take them lightly.. they can be deadly.