Itchy bits driving me insane

[newmannewday]

The top bit. The mon pubis. Not the actual
labia etc

I can't live like this anymore. Feels so horrific, it's so itchy all the time, like I'm crawling alive with ants down there!

GP said it must be fungal but canesten hasn't worked

Any advice for some soothing relief? I'm desperate

Have you been tested for Diabetes?

@User963 it's only been going on about 8 weeks. My laser was completed 3 years ago

No, I haven't actually

@princesssparklepants no swab or referral. I have been back twice and he just kept giving different anti fungal creams

Could it be your hair growing back under the skin? Could be worth contacting the laser hair removal clinic to ask if it’s possible that the itching is linked to it, if only to strike it off the list!

If there’s no rash it’s not likely fungal but it’s good to keep that in the back of the mind if nothing else works.

I would try going totally fragrance fee for two weeks and if it hasn’t settled by the end of week one I would also apply a mild topical steroid to soothe the itch. If that works I would remain fragrance free for another two weeks then reintroduce fragranced products one at a time to see if/when the itching returns…

@Northby it's been going on for 8 weeks now so isn't hair regrow. No sign of any stubble etc

I will begin to use fragrance free now though. I don't really use anything fragrant anyway in general but will be very careful moving forward and I hope it helps

Dermol lotion is amazing and used instead of soap etc. certainly worth trying.

OP if you look at the ingredients, pretty much any bathing product or soap has fragrance/parfum in it. The only ones that are properly fragrance free are Simple, Surcare, and own brand imitations of those (Tesco and Waitrose sometimes do completely fragrance free soaps). And of those, I only use the white moisturising Simple products (not the clear ones - some of these have tea tree in).

If you use sanitary towels you need to go fragrance free for those too - plain “cotton” ones are best, try to avoid the ones with gel crystals inside. I found thin maternity towels were actually best for avoiding chemical skin irritants. Lots of sanitary towels are fragranced now which is like instant dermatitis.

Cotton only brief style knickers washed at a high temp with Surcare or similar fragrance free laundry liquid. Avoid lace or artificial fibres or thongs.

Good luck!

I was just about to say this! I had the exact same itch

Sounds awful! Switch your laundry detergent and fabric softener to fragrance free to rule that out first!

I use the Australian bodycare intimate wash - it’s not cheap but has tea tree in it. I used to scratch until I bled, no issues at all since I started using it and everything now healed! Really recommend it!

Hows your blood sugar? I experienced this when I was pre diabetic. Once my blood sugar was sorted the itching stopped.

Another possibility could be candida. Caprylic acid would help.

I have this. One small patch about an inch square. It drives me nuts. Thankfully I can control it now with steroid cream (betnovate) about twice a week. Can't link it to product or cycle and no sign of dryness

Tea tree cream. Cooling and very useful for sore or itchy bits!

Numbing cream with lidocain in it is really good for itching. I do wonder if there is some activity in the hair follicles again. Have you had any medical changes since you finished the laser?

I had something similar several years ago, but on my legs. No rash, nothing visible, but unbelievably intense itching on my legs, it was driving me insane. We tried all kinds of creams and antihistamines and nothing worked. Finally, my doctor decided to try scabies cream even though I didn't have any signs and my only risk factor was having travelled quite a bit about a month before it started--totally cleared it up, so maybe worth a try?

Hope you solve it. I know how miserable it is.

I was going to say tea tree as well

Ask for a swab for group B strep - I had it there and it took ages to diagnose. Drove me up the wall but cleared up almost instantly with the correct antibiotic.

Definitely try switching washing powder and shampoo/body wash. I had to try several different brands before my itch stopped. I settled on Aldi's Almat washing powder. I changed shampoo a few weeks ago and the itch came.back, so I went back to my usual shampoo and it went away again.

I had this recently, although it was on my head and hands. I was going mental with it.

I used Benadryl one a day (the yellow pack) and also if you Google the 8 foods that cause itching and see if you are eating a lot of any of them, that will help. Sea salt was one of the things causing my itching as it contains fragments of fish which is one of the itchy foods.

Ask GP for Betnovate cream.