Reoccurring yeast infections

[Mr. Truelove 81]

Mrs. Truelove has had for the past six months had more frequent yeast infections than we can ever remember before. Seems like at least once a month now.

 

Thought we had it narrowed down to soap, went back to what we had been using for years, no change.

 

Thought it was maybe an allergy to lube. It wasn't.

 

We have been abstaining (for other reasons) and she is getting another one after a week of abstinence.

 

We've spoken to the doctor and they did the usual advice. Wipe properly, pee after sex, etc. So sick of hearing those words and still having problems. And they aren't really offering any new advice.

 

Only medicine she is on is the same birth control she has been using for 6 years. No change in laundry detergents or soaps.

 

Any thoughts?

[DigginIt 1,132]

Wow, so this is interesting. Mrs. Diggs used to never get yeast infections and as of late it seems like she has gotten a whole string of them.

 

The only thing we changed in our routine is more toy play and we thought it could be the lube (Silk). We clean the toys very well. Our doctor recommended taking things that help keep her pH in check. It seems like every 5 or 6 weeks now. He just said our bodies change as we get older...like we needed to hear that.

 

She feels like she needs to invest in whichever pharmaceutical company that makes Diflucan.

[TNT 1,155]

I had never had a yeast infection in my life until we started playing. Talk about being freaked out the first time I got one

 

A lot of women report getting yeast infections right before their period and alcohol consumption also contributes to them. Different partners can also cause them.

 

One thing to remember is that most men don't think they can get them, but they can. When treating a yeast infection both partners should be treated or you're just going to pass it back and forth.

 

The Monistat cream (or any of the OTC yeast meds) applied to the penis works well and should be used the full time an infection is being treated on the woman.

 

I also started taking AZO yeast (OTC) a few days before we're planning on playing, if I know I'm going to be drinking a lot and/or spending a lot of time in a pool. Of course, eating the old stand-by of yogurt never hurts.

 

I haven't had one in well over two years.

 

Teresa

[ALilOEverything 901]

I had one this fall after antibiotics and my doctor said that the OTC creams are only 90% effective. That would leave behind 10% which would lead to more reoccurence. She said the oral Diflucan is much more effective and even though I had no symptoms after the cream she still wanted me to take the oral to make sure I didn't run into persistent problems later on. It was in two doses, not just a one time pill, 7 days apart. I haven't had another one since.

[JustAskJulie 2,595]

TnT is right about the guys picking it up and passing it back without knowing it. I went through a phase years ago where I kept getting them.

 

Some things I changed (and I have rarely gotten them in the last many years)

 

- ALWAYS pee after sex

- sleep with panties on (for some reason I get really moist down there without them)

- minimize toys. I can't/won't use any toys that are made out of that rubbery feeling stuff, I prefer hard plastic or metal toys (or even glass). There's nothing porous to hold germs.

- RePHresh is a an awesome product. I try to keep it on hand and use it after playing now

- Never re-use towels. If you use a re-usable sponge or scrubby thing throw it away and get a new one after any infection.

 

I would definitely say have the Dr treat you (Mr. Truelove) and make sure you aren't passing it back and forth.

[Mr. Truelove 81]

Thanks for the advice. She has had doses of Diflucan, which clears them up for a few weeks.

 

Julie, We've hit your entire list as it is. With the exception of RePHresh, I'd never heard of that, might be something to look into.

 

I also never heard of passing it back and forth. I am circumcised, which I am sure lessens the risk, but we'll keep that in mind too. Right now we're not getting jiggy anyway, so that eliminates that.

 

She did have an abnormal pap, which resulted in a colposcopy a week ago, and the biopsy came back benign. I didn't think that would affect anything, and it didn't seem like the doctor correlated the two either.

 

The very first one she had last fall was antibiotics. Then she got sick again and the antibiotics did it again. But the last 3-4 go unexplained.

[Pretty Blue Eye 15]

I would suggest using antibacterial hand gel between partners during play. For example, If a woman has a symptomless yeast infection (either early in the infection and she doesn't yet have symptoms, or she has treated her yeast infection and experiences no symptoms) and is fingered by someone who then fingers someone else, a yeast infection can be transferred from one woman to another.

 

Also, another consideration, frequent yeast infections can be caused by certain medical conditions, such as diabetes or immune system disorders. If you experience frequent yeast infections, please consult your physician, and request testing.

[PB&J 1,086]

I would suggest using antibacterial hand gel between partners during play.

 

Antibacterial gel won't kill a yeast infection. Yeast is not bacteria. In fact, as we all know, taking antibiotics is one of the most "reliable" ways to end up with a yeast infection, because killing the "Good" bacteria can pull the yeast growth way out of whack. Washing hands is a good idea, but don't count on a gel like that. Good old soap and water would work better.

[Guest erotichugs]

Do you guys use condoms? if so what kind?

 

Mrs. started getting those as well, figured out that she had developed a sensitivity to LATEX condoms and was getting Yeast Infections constantly... (especially due to frequent use) the doctors gave us the same recommendations as you guys have been given.

 

The doc never asked us how many time we were having sex. :-)

 

In short, moved to NON-LATEX and the infections went away.

[PB&J 1,086]

About lube, by the way... I switched to a formulation without glycerin and that has helped me a lot.

[JustAskJulie 2,595]

do you guys use condoms? if so what kind?

...

 

moved to NON-LATEX and the infections went away...

 

 

This is what I was trying to remember when I mentioned the toys I avoid. I can't use latex toys at all (condoms don't bother me as much). That said if you mix latex and spermicide together, kill me NOW and don't even think about touching me.

 

The RePHresh product I posted about is something one of my Gyno's told me about. You get a yeast infection or a bacterial infection depending on which direction your PH level gets imbalanced. RePHresh helps to keep your PH level balanced. I'd swear by it, it did wonders for me.

[Fundamental Law 2,885]

A note from a physician...

 

Yeast infections are common. Common treatments such as Diflucan® (generic name is fluconazole) treat most but not all yeast infections. There are strains of Candida that are resistant to this common drug.

 

If your infection does not respond to the typical treatments, see a physician who deals with such things commonly and be sure to get your partner treated at the same time. The "ping-pong" thing --trading the infection back and forth--is real.

[MsGoneWild 182]

Seconding the AZO yeast pills.

 

I generally take one the day we play, and the day after.

 

I had some health problems going on AND switched BC pills last year that caused me to get like 3 yeast infections in a row. I wanted to kill everything in site. After getting checked out by my doctor, grabbing some meds and figuring out what the culprit was, I've been using the AZO as part of my routine. I have also started taking a probiotic to help keep everything in check until I'm all done my meds and they are out of my system. (After getting the yeast infections out of the way I got BV and then needed to solve that. Treated that and then got oral thrush. Treated THAT and am now on probiotics and the AZO. Jesus Christ, body please). Sorry to go into my medical history. What sucks is that this is happens when your body gets out of whack :/

 

Yeast infections are lame, and BV sucks and womans vaginas should LOVE THEM ALWAYS.

[Chicup 41]

Are you actively swinging?

 

While we were the Mrs. kept getting frequent yeast infections. We take a break for a year and a half and guess how many she had? Zero.

 

I've read/heard this from others as well. I think the problem is we get competing bugs between the women, which throws it out of balance and let yeast infections develop.

[bjersr 49]

The wife use to get them semi-regularly. She did two things and I can't remember when she has had one. The first was to shave her pubic area, which doesn't seem to be much of an issue with most Lifestylers. Everyone we have encountered has been "clean" down below. The Second, and Julie not to discount what you posted, wear no panties to bed. She started do this after hearing about a study done in Japan that found fewer Yeast Infection in women that slept with no panties. You might already be doing all of this so I don't know if this will help, but I know it worked for us.

[Mr. Truelove 81]

We haven't played in well over a month. And we haven't even been with each other for a couple weeks. (ugh)

 

One more week to go. We're hoping everything is healed up from biopsies and infections.

 

She also has unimaginably high blood pressure right now. (was 210/130) (actually lower now with medication) Which we are in the process of getting looked at and treated. But I doubt that is linked.

 

The biopsy was because of an abnormal pap and that came back benign.

 

I doubt this is us passing it back and forth. We're just not having the frequency of sex that we usually do, and we've never had that as an issue before. (been together for 16 years) We don't have sex while she has an infection. I could understand maybe passing it back and forth a couple times on accident, but this many times seems... unlikely. I suppose it's possible though.

[Cpl2share 147]

Has the doctor actually confirmed by a test that this is a yeast infection? Most women are sensitive to semen. Over time they become insensitive to it due to exposure. But when they "quit" being exposed, the sensitivity comes back. If you have been using condoms a lot and not going bareback, it could actually be an allergic reaction to semen. Even yours. The symptoms of semen allergy can be identical to a yeast infection and a doctor will often diagnose simply based on description and/or visual exam.

I know that is convoluted, but hopefully it made sense to someone other than me.

[Guest just4fun986532]

There is a really convenient prevention to yeast infections, although, it definitely takes time to get use to the taste. Take 2 Tablespoons or 1/8 cup of Bragg's apple cider vinegar a day. Tastes nasty, but works miracles (for all kinds of health problems). You can find it at pretty much any heath food store or in the organic section of the grocery store.

[FriskyChestnuts 15]

Ms Frisky kept getting recurring yeast infections and then Cunning Minx suggested that we shift from a glycerin-based lube to a water-based lube. Now a year later and no more infections.

[JustAskJulie 2,595]

I've been dealing with this of late myself. It started a few months ago when during a routine check at the gyno she said I had a yeast infection (based on appearance only). However, after sending in the sample it showed nothing. Same thing a couple of months later. During both of these occasions I noticed no symptoms.

 

Then about a month ago (the morning after a party where I did nothing except get fingered a bit by another lady) I woke up with full symptoms. That was Sunday, I went to the gyno on Tues and saw the nurse. She didn't see signs of yeast but sent in the test. She also didn't give me any meds initially. Since she didn't give me anything I tried to go the holistic route (at least until their test came back) and literally tried every home remedy I found online (except eating yogurt because I can't) - nothing helped. A week later when i still hadn't heard back from the gyno's office I called them and they said that the test had shown some yeast and called me in a 3 day script for Diflucan. It did NOT do the trick either. Over that weekend I did an OTC 1 day monistat and still 3 days later it wasn't totally cleared up. So I called again and that time they called me in a 7 day Diflucan. It seemed to clear it up, but 2 weeks later it seems to be coming back.

 

What I've learned in the process is that a vaginal yeast infection isn't always just a vaginal yeast infection. Often it starts in your stomach and you don't know it's there until it shows up in your coochie. I still don't have an answer for getting rid of it short of a 0 Carb Candida diet plus massive doses of probiotics. However, I will say that apple cider vinegar does help (both ingesting it and using it on the symptomatic areas. I also found that coconut oil and teatree oil are the best things I've found for making the pain go away (even if they don't get rid of the infection).