Irritation during pregnancy (warning: might be too much info)

[LadyNoor]

Thank you all so much for replies & inputs!

I feel relief already knowing it's common amongst pregnant women. As grub17 nicely put it, "oh the joys!"

I will hunt different brand of liners and try them until I find the one that's not irritating. I've been using the same brand for years and it's non-perfumed, so it didn't cross my mind this could be the problem but maybe being pregnant making me more sensitive this time.

I have been knickers-less in the past few weeks, as much as I could when I'm at home. So the liners probably the main problem. My 'pregnant undies' are bigger than what normally I use when not pregnant, so should be enough room there. Although I'm keen to try and see what wearing undies with a 'ball space' feels like! Sounds comfortable!

[HollyC]

I had thrush a while ago and saw a gp who said just to use canesten. I used the three day cream, and it improved, but still wasn't back to normal. I told my OB the next time I saw him and he said that pregnant women really need to use the 6 day pessary. After I used that things improved.

[BellyBelly]

Thrush During Pregnancy - Why You Are More Prone To Thrush

J&J are the WORST products for mother or baby... anyone really. They are petroleum/petroleum by-product products and if you google a site (I think it's called not too pretty) they have a toxic meter for all the major beauty brands and J&J rates very high especially for baby products. I would steer clear of it as well as douches, they all can affect the vagina's pH and natural flora.

It could be an irritation like Alan said, but if you have thrush then definitely get onto the probiotics asap, especially the good ones.

[Curly]

Yes I have this. I use Femfresh and roomy cotton undies and I also keep myself...ahem...nicely trimmed.

I had also read you aren't supposed to use pessaries or Canesten during pregnancy and to try natural yoghurt, but I found that once I was doing the above the irritation went away and I never needed to try the yoghurt, so it wasn't thrush, my skin was just extra sensitive.

[kawazuki]

i have this as well.. its annoying isnt there all the time, i find if i dont shave and keep hair to a minimum its worse. but bepanthen helpes me, soothed and stopped any infection, start at about 30 weeks and im now 40 weeks today.. so i can sympathise, and i find hot days or cold days dont affect it when i use bepanthen

[LadyNoor]

Thanks for more replies ladies.

I took another dose of Canesten, 6 days cream (thanks HollyC for sharing your doctor advice, though I can't use pessary as they seem to slide back out of me!). It improved for about 2 weeks then I noticed the thrush is trying to get back again (itchiness is the first thing I noticed). I haven't used soap since the first episode but have bought today the Femfresh, haven't tried it though.

Kelly, I'm sold. I've bought Fast-track priobiotics which I've started today after a long waiting delivery that got somehow mixed up, and perhaps the xmas rush had got the delivery delayed. Finally it arrived!

I start with 25ml dose twice a day and will see in 3-4 days if things improved. If not I think I'll up it to 3 times a day, if things improved I'll reduce it to once a day until birth (I know it benefits your body even when you're not pregnant but to me $70 per bottle + delivery is quite pricey!).

[studymum]

I have found thrush to be so persistent while I am pregnant, I dont get the full symptons or full blown thrush everytime but an itch that can hang around externally like you have described. If I left it untreated it would just get worse and it also caused my swelling to increase badly.

I found inserting the creme for the full 6 days would solve it for awhile and it would come back, so I have just resorted to applying it externally to where the itch exists and only going the full treatment when it is full thrush. I also used ice packs to reduce the swelling, and eat a heap of acidophilus yoghurt. Heard about some people actually using the yoghurt down there but I dont think I would be to keen to try that one.

My ob recommended laying down with no knickers on and letting everything have a good 'dry' out once a day, as the extra moisture and temp during pregnancy makes it heaven for the bacteria, no warm baths and only loose cotton nickers.

My first pregnancy I just treated it each time with canestan and it was alot worse, this time I seem to control it better by doing other things.