Aunt Vadge: yeast infection won’t go away

Dear Aunt Vadge,

I have a yeast infection that started last Wednesday, today is Sunday. I treated it with OTC Monistat One day treatment but it is not healing. I still have itching, burning when I pee, soreness when I wipe and now have a nice tear on my inside left lip.

The last time I had a yeast infection over a year ago (I’ve only had three my entire life and I’m 29) the doctor told me to just get OTC treatments. How long does it take for a yeast infection to heal, or should I be treating it with a longer OTC medication?

Yours,
Yeasty

__________

Dear Yeasty, It is always advisable to take a high-quality probiotic capsule specially formulated for Candida infections when vaginal thrush hits. This is because it is usually a symptom of an overgrowth of Candida in your gut, which remains even when you treat the local infection with OTC products.

Your local health food store should have a good quality refrigerated brand that they could recommend. Take the recommended dose or double, in separated doses – it won’t hurt you, though you may get some extra gas or belly discomfort as the bacteria or yeasts have a little war.

You can also add in some fermented foods that you can easily make at home, though if your yeast infection persists, you may want to just nail it with the probiotics, and then use the foods as maintenance for a healthy gut and healthy vagina.

It usually helps to cut out carbs and starches while trying to heal from a yeast infection and it can help right away. This means ditching bread, pasta, white rice, potatoes and anything white and delicious usually.

Get rid of any processed sugars, fizzy drinks, chocolate, cakes, sweets, junk food – it all feeds the bad microbes. You’ll notice quickly, within a day or so, the improvements from these things.

If you don’t, perhaps you need to visit your health practitioner for further advice, as it may be a deeper issue. Give it a couple of days with no carbs and sugars, and on a good probiotic (don’t get the cheapest – you want high dose) and see if it starts to clear up. 

Yeast infections generally clear up pretty fast once you remove the cause. If you need any more help, or are confused by these concepts, let us know.

Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge