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[cjmca]

Hi all,

I could do with some advice on a few things.  I've been using Vagifem on and off for years, and have never had this issue before.  When I use it in the last few months, I can get a wicked dose of thrush within a day or two and this has now happened 4 times.  Like super painful, and it spreads so quickly.  What's made it even worse is being put on antibiotics recently for a UTI, and altho I didn't have an episode of thrush when I was taking the antibiotics, it's once again kicking off after just one dose of Vagifem 2 nights ago.  Plus I don't think the UTI has gone either. 

I know that my gut is in a mess microbiome-wise - with the thrush episodes, my eczema flares up at the same time.  To me it's all rooted in the gut, and gut testing has showed quite a high number of the likes of candida etc.  I've gone through periods of being a complete sugar-fiend, which I'm sure has only made this worse.   I've just started taking probiotics & Sac. Boulardii, but in the meantime while this gets to work internally, I'd really like to try and get both the thrush and UTI taken care of as they're both fierce unpleasant.  I'm sending off both swab and urine samples for PCR testing which will at least tell me exactly what's going on. 

Can i ask has anyone any advice for tackling repeat thrush episodes in the short-term? I'm desperate to be able to go back to using vagifem 4/5x a week (any less and I get atrophy symptoms), but I daren't even use any at the moment.  A once off dose of diflucan seems to help, but I don't think one dose does the job.  Is there an oral medication / cream that's available to take more than once?

Arrrrrgh this is so uncomfortable...!! 

[CLKD]

A Member has had long-term problems so do a search as I can't remember her name 

ABs may strip the gut lining of good bacteria, so eat lots of LIVE yoghurt.  I found after being rushed into hospital that 'thrush' was a problem - so applying LIVE yoghurt into the vagina as well as eating several times a day.  [obviously keeping the pots apart].  It was very soothing if nowt else!  When my dog had chemo therapy she got heartburn, LIVE yoghurt helped a lot.

Candida thrives on sugars.  MayB over-haul your diet by adding more veg. and if possible, add oats at breakfast as it lines the stomach and helps cholesterol.

Is there a dietician attached to your Surgery?

[Dierdre]

One dose of thrush treatment doesn't always work.
NHS guidance for recurring thrush is  one fluconazole 150mg oral tablet every 72 hours for 3 doses.
This worked for me finally after having thrush every month for 6 months just using one dose and it just came back.
As you swallow the tablet it doesn't interfere or stop you using Vagifem.
Search for Midnight Shadows thread on thrush, she had problems with a rare strain.

[CLKD]

Tnx Dierdre - Midnight Shadow, that's the member I was trying to think of.

[Northerngirl]

Forgive my naivety but how do you tell the difference between a uti and thrush?
I'd never even had a uti until last October aged 55.
I know this is VA but I've had to stop everything due to this cancer scare

[Dierdre]

The best way is having tests, urine and swabs to confirm then it can be treated properly.

[CLKD]

4 me it's obvious.  Thrush itches like fury high up in the vagina, too far for me to get into scratch.  My first attack was in 1980 3 weeks after stopping The Pill, the Gynae Registrar gave me a pessary - no idea what it was - and told me not to scratch!  The next attack was after emergency surgery in the mid-1990s.  Sometimes it presents with a thick, cheese discharge but I've never had that symptoms.

Urinary tract infection-type symptoms are the repeated necessity to pee every few moments with burning and smelly urine.  Vaginal atrophy mimics this really really well which is why medics rarely think of VA as causation.  A fresh urine sample should be sent to a Lab for testing and if it grows a 'bug', the appropriate anti-biotic can be prescribed.  If the sample is returned 'no growth', it is likely to be lack of oestrogen causing dryness in the body, including the vagina and vulva. 

[cjmca]

A Member has had long-term problems so do a search as I can't remember her name 

ABs may strip the gut lining of good bacteria, so eat lots of LIVE yoghurt.  I found after being rushed into hospital that 'thrush' was a problem - so applying LIVE yoghurt into the vagina as well as eating several times a day.  [obviously keeping the pots apart].  It was very soothing if nowt else!  When my dog had chemo therapy she got heartburn, LIVE yoghurt helped a lot.

Candida thrives on sugars.  MayB over-haul your diet by adding more veg. and if possible, add oats at breakfast as it lines the stomach and helps cholesterol.

Is there a dietician attached to your Surgery?

Thanks v much - I'm taking Sac Boulardii which is like a probiotic, except not a bacteria but rather a friendly yeast.  It smacks candida in the face, but can take a while to work.  My diet is... a difficult thing for me to navigate, the irony is I'm a Nutrition & Health Coach, but neurodivergent - which means I tend to eat "safe" foods, particularly in times of stress.  These foods are not particularly good for the microbiome.. usually I get on fine, but I think a cascade of things happening has resulted in thrush having a party.  Antibiotics just ruin my gut altogether, every time I take them.  But I've never had repeat bouts of thrush before, and certainly never as a result of using vagifem.  Desperately trying to get appt with doc, I literally woke up this morning and thought I'd wet myself with the volume of watery stuff.. horrid!  It got so bad this afternoon that it went through to my leggings, absolutely horrible.  The most frustrating thing is you can't even get one dose of diflucan over the counter to tide you over, can only be got thru GP.  Well that's great, if GP is available.. in the meantime I'm walking around like John Wayne in a western 

[CLKD]

Why would 1 feed a yeast with another yeast  . Thrush thrives on sugars. 


Have a lookC at Midnight's thread which I bumped.  Make notes ;-).

I have 'safe' foods when stressed due to my long-term gut problems.  In between I'm fine, eating foods that I wouldn't have touched even as recently as 5 years ago  .  My go to safe are: grilled chicken on a bed of plain rice; bananas in small bites; mixed dried fruits and nuts to graze; if I can't face chocolate then I know I'm in real trouble 

[cjmca]

It’s not feeding it, but killing it - Sac Boulardii is a good yeast that can knock out bad yeast, much like a probiotic is good bacteria that can knock out bad bacteria.  I think it must also support good bacterial growth too - it can prevent the likes of Bali belly if taken in the run up to going abroad.   A hidden gem!

When I say safe foods, I mean foods that aren’t a sensory problem - it’s a right pain TBH, quite limiting. 

Thanks v much for bumping thread, will have a look. 

[CLKD]

Let us know how you get on.

Many of us with eating problems have different ways of coping.  Some keep colours separate on the plate, others don't let foods touch each other to the point of having them on small saucers.  Whilst is not 'usual', for us it's 'normal' ;-).  Me I gobble ......... which brings its own problems