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Dear Aunt Vadge,
I’ve had a yeast infection since last Wednesday – it’s now Sunday. I treated it with an over-the-counter Monistat one-day treatment, but it isn’t healing. I still have itching, burning when I pee, soreness when I wipe, and now a tear on the inside of my left lip.
The last time I had one, over a year ago, my doctor just told me to use over-the-counter treatments. I’ve only had three in my whole life and I’m 29. How long should a yeast infection take to heal, and should I be using a longer course?
Yours,
Yeasty
Dear Yeasty,
A one-day over-the-counter treatment often knocks down the local infection without touching the reason it keeps flaring: an overgrowth of Candida further up, in your gut. That’s why the itch and soreness hang around even after you’ve treated the vaginal end of things. The fix is to go after the whole picture – a good probiotic, some fermented food, and a few days off the carbs and sugars that feed the yeast. Most yeast infections clear quickly once you remove the cause, so give it a couple of days of that and you should feel the difference. If you don’t, it’s worth getting checked properly, because something deeper may be going on.
Start a Candida-specific probiotic
Take a high-quality probiotic capsule formulated for Candida infections. This kind of thrush is usually a symptom of Candida overgrowth in your gut, which stays put even when you treat the local infection with over-the-counter products.
Your local health food store should have a good refrigerated brand they can recommend. Take the recommended dose, or double it, in separated doses through the day – it won’t hurt you, though you might get a bit of extra gas or belly grumbling while the bacteria and yeasts have their little war.
Don’t buy the cheapest one. You want a high dose.
Add some fermented foods
You can also add in fermented foods that are easy to make at home. If the infection is being stubborn, nail it with the probiotics first, then keep the fermented foods going as maintenance for a healthy gut and a healthy vagina.
Cut the carbs and sugars while you heal
It really helps to cut out carbs and starches while you’re clearing a yeast infection, and it can work fast. That means ditching bread, pasta, white rice, potatoes – anything white and delicious, basically.
Get rid of processed sugars too: fizzy drinks, chocolate, cakes, sweets, junk food. They all feed the microbes you’re trying to starve. You’ll usually notice the improvement within a day or so.
The tear and the stinging wee
That tear on your inner lip and the sting when you pee are the raw skin talking – acidic urine running over a small split stings like anything. It should settle as the infection clears, and you can help it along with the advice in our guide to healing vaginal fissures.
If the tear won’t heal, or the burning on urination keeps going once the yeast is gone, don’t assume it’s still just candida. A persistent split or ongoing sting can mean the microbiome needs a proper look, or that there’s a second thing going on. That’s when a comprehensive vaginal microbiome test earns its keep, or you can come and see us.
Yeast infections generally clear up fast once the cause is gone. Write again if any of this is confusing.
Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.
