Thrush (vaginal candidiasis) is a common infection caused by yeast-like fungi. Main symptoms of the condition include itching, burning and discharge.  
-- Bayer Australia Limited.

When one has a thrush infection the whole of one's world seems to be centred on one's vulva. The itching can and does become intolerable. The burning is not as bad as the terrible itch, but most unpleasant on its own.

When you have thrush....

You smell.

You can't share sex.

You can't even masturbate without setting the itches off again.

Thrush is a Very Bad Thing.

There are many things that make you more vulnerable to a thrush infection.
Some of these are:

Some hints for dealing with thrush

  1. Wear light, cotton knickers.
    Candida likes a warm, damp, dark home, so keep it light and dry and breezy.
  2. Change your knickers more often than normal.
    Take two extra pairs to work with you in one of those snap-lock sandwich bags. Every time your underwear becomes even slightly damp, change it. If practicable, wear none at all.
  3. Don't scratch.
    Every time you give in to the urge to scratch, you make the time to total recovery that little bit longer. Resistance is not futile in this case.
  4. Don't masturbate.
    See: Don't scratch, above
  5. Don't, please don't,  share sex.
    Sharing sex will not only be painful, make the itching worse, make healing time longer and be a generally bad idea, it will also give your partner a good chance of being infected. Many men who become infected with Candida don't even have any symptoms (although some do, and a thrush- affected glans is not a pretty sight), so once you are all better and jump gleefully back into bed with your partner you can merrily reinfect yourself and have to begin all over again.

Home Remedies

Since the organism which causes thrush (Candida Albicans) loves an alkaline environment, there are several home remedies which can be effective. 

Covering the vulva with plain yoghurt

Messy, but soothing. Don't use flavoured yoghurts, including vanilla, as the added sugar feeds the infection even as the acidity in the yoghurt fights it. (Eating yoghurt is also recommended, thanks masukomi, but probably not after application......)

Drinking huge amounts of orange, grapefruit (but not if you are taking an oral contraceptive, thanks Demeter), cranberry (thanks masukomi) or pineapple juice

This simply raises the body's general acidity level. And juice is yummy.

Swabbing the vulva with a diluted solution of vinegar.

As I keep saying, Candida doesn't like acidity, so pouring a one in ten solution of vinegar on it's home makes it want to leave. Of course, the site of infection is usually deep inside the vagina, rather than only in the tissues of the vulva (even though it is rare to experience itching right inside the vagina), so this method, while effective, tends to take a long time to effect a solution

Splashing the vulva with straight vinegar.

This last treatment, although extremely effective, is also quite painful, especially if you have scratched at the affected area severely enough to cause even very minor tissue damage. Vinegar is not pleasant in even the tiniest of open wounds. Expect to yell SHIT or some equivalent vulgarity at a high volume on application.
However, I have found that if you are overcome by intolerable itching and choose this method the discomfort overwhelms the itch.

 Commercial Remedies

If you have tried the home remedies and failed to recover, or if you simply would prefer to go straight to a more regular treatment, you need not go to a doctor to receive a commercial remedy for thrush.

Chemists stock several different treatments on the shelf, and are able to dispense them without prescription.

The three treatments of which I am aware are all manufactured by the same company, Bayer Australia, and are different strengths and applications of a product called Canesten.

Canesten is available in a cream, dispensed with 5 disposable applicators which deliver the cream deeply into the vagina where the infection is strongest, in pessary form, again for a five day treatment, or in a one dose, high strength pessary with a small amount of cream to soothe vulval symptoms.

 

Mouth thrush, or oropharyngeal candidiasis, appears often in persons infected with HIV. Thrush, being a fungal infection, easily finds a home due to the lowered resistance. Otherwise healthy people can develop mouth thrush if they injure their mouth and have lowered resistence due to lack of sleep or nutrition. For mild infections, topical agents such as clotrimazole can be used, or systematic agents such as Diflucan.

Things you should never ever eat if you have mouth thrush:

  • Citrus, fruits and juice
  • Beer - found this out the hard way
  • Mustard
  • Hot peppers
  • Thrush (?), n. [OE. þrusche, AS. þrysce; akin to OHG. drosca, droscea, droscela, and E. throstle. Cf. Throstle.]

    1. Zool.

    Any one of numerous species of singing birds belonging to Turdus and allied genera. They are noted for the sweetness of their songs.

    ⇒ Among the best-known European species are the song thrush or throstle (Turdus musicus), the missel thrush (see under Missel), the European redwing, and the blackbird. The most important American species are the wood thrush (Turdus mustelinus), Wilson's thrush (T. fuscescens), the hermit thrush (see under Hermit), Swainson's thrush (T. Aliciae), and the migratory thrush, or American robin (see Robin).

    2. Zool.

    Any one of numerous species of singing birds more or less resembling the true thrushes in appearance or habits; as the thunderbird and the American brown thrush (or thrasher). See Brown thrush.

    Ant thrush. See Ant thrush, Breve, and Pitta. -- Babbling thrush, any one of numerous species of Asiatic timaline birds; -- called also babbler. -- Fruit thrush, any species of bulbul. -- Shrike thrush. See under Shrike. -- Stone thrush, the missel thrush; -- said to be so called from its marbled breast. -- Thrush nightingale. See Nightingale, 2. -- Thrush tit, any one of several species of Asiatic singing birds of the genus Cochoa. They are beautifully colored birds allied to the tits, but resembling thrushes in size and habits. -- Water thrush. (a) The European dipper. (b) An American warbler (Seiurus Noveboracensis).

     

    © Webster 1913.


    Thrush (?), n. [Akin to Dan. troske, Sw. trosk; cf. Dan. tor dry, Sw. torr, Icel. urr, AS. yrr, OE. thrust thrist, E. thrist.]

    1. Med.

    An affection of the mouth, fauces, etc., common in newly born children, characterized by minute ulcers called aphthae. See Aphthae.

    2. Far.

    An inflammatory and suppurative affection of the feet in certain animals. In the horse it is in the frog.

     

    © Webster 1913.

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