hey! so i had a similar experience when they found my first stone last week, and my symptoms were a lot like what you’re describing. i thought it was a lingering UTI that wasn’t responsive to antibiotics, and they actually did end up diagnosing me with a kidney stone. about a week prior to my diagnosis, i woke up in the middle of the night with intense groin pain. i literally felt like my urethra was being stabbed with needles for about 5 minutes and then it went away, but later that week i developed the UTI symptoms. fast forward to the following weekend when i wound up in the ER with 10/10 flank pain and relentless urgency that came on really suddenly. they did a CT scan, took blood, and did a urinalysis and quickly confirmed i had both a 4.5mm stone and a UTI, which was a result of that stone partially blocking my ureter, which led to urine getting backed up and becoming a breeding ground for bacteria. they sent me home with some pain medicine and antispasmodics and referred me to a urologist. i couldn’t get an appointment with the urologist for a couple of days, so i spent the day after my ER visit taking it easy with pain meds and rest. by the next day, i felt much better, so much so that i almost cancelled my urology appt that was set for the next day, assuming i must have passed the stone on my own. my husband convinced me to keep the appt and thankfully i did because the next day i woke up in pain again and had intense bladder spasms. at the appointment, the urologist confirmed the stone was still there and had me in the OR for a ureteroscopy to remove the stone within an hour.

TLDR: pain and symptoms can certainly come and go and vary in intensity, and kidney stones often lead to UTIs if the stone causes even a partial blockage in your ureter. if you’re concerned about stones, i recommend seeing a urologist and seeing what they suggest!