Should Fluconazole have worked by now?

[Pinkwhale]

Phoned Doctors on Friday and was told to try fluconazole. Symptoms are very swollen and burning vagina. I took the tablet on Friday evening and feeling super miserable to wake up yet again and the pain is still there. Should the medicine have worked by now? I’ve never had thrush so slightly sceptical that’s what it is but no symptoms of BV either (and it’s definitely not sti/ sex related due to not having had sex in many months!)

Hello i have a very similar problem to you apart from mine is oral thrush and apparently a very rare form of thrush thats normally only seen in people with HIV which i dont have the doctors tested when the swab results came back saying what kind of thrush and ive had 2 weeks of nystatin and nothing then 2 weeks of 50mg fluconazole with nystatin nothing and now im on my second week of 150mg of fluconazole every day and still hasn't made a difference so i think maybe it depends on how bad the thrush is i had ten days of antibiotics then ended up with it and doctors didn't think it was thrush at first so i didn't start medication when i should have. Did you get the fluconazole quite quickly after you noticed the symptoms? I think sometimes you may need more than one treatment for it but not sure how far apart 🤔 i cant remember but i would definitely get to the doctors and get swabbed im not sure if maybe a pessary would help more have you tried any cream? Sorry i feel like im not helping at all but i completely understand how you feel its such a horrible thing to have especially down there.

If your thrush test is negative then it could just be vulvovaginitis.

I was told by gynae to wash with dermol 500 only (not plain water as it’s drying as are soaps) and moisturise as needed with diprobase ointment, it’s fine to put inside.

wash knickers separately with a non scented detergent, no knickers as often as possible.

@Emma1908 oh that also sounds awful. They went with oral as I was so sore I couldn’t even imagine managing a pessay. Would say I’d had the tablet within 2 days of noticing the burning. Was so hoping to avoid a trip to the doctor and what I imaging will be extremely painful swabbing given I couldn’t even do the self test properly. @HardWorkToWatch thanks that’s useful to know if they can’t find anything will be my next attempt

If you’re too sore for a pessary you can buy the internal cream and external cream pack from Amazon which is much more gentle and soothing (I use this regularly as I have Sjögren’s and it makes me very prone to thrush). You can even use it alongside the Fluconazole.

It can take up to 4/5 days to thoroughly kick in. Take painkillers in the meantime, I find that reduces the swelling and in turn, the pain.

@Pigeonqueen thank you I have the cream so will keep on with that. Not attempting the internal cream with the tampon style applicator as it’s so sore. @littlemisssunshine247 ok thanks i have been taking the odd painkiller but don’t feel like they are even touching it. It was just a guess at thrush diagnosis over the phone so I’m wondering if it’s something else. Argh.

I once had a UTI that presented this way, I didn't have the usual burning pain while urinating or the constant urge to urinate so I hadn't suspected UTI at all but lo and behold the gp was right and a course of antibiotics cleared it up..
I hope you feel better soon

Can take 7-10 days for fluconazole to fully clear the symptoms (if it is indeed thrush) but if it’s not even touched the sides it could be something else.

Wash only with emollients, nothing scented or soapy at all, wear cotton knickers and a skirt/dress if you can.

If you walked into my GUM clinic tomorrow and asked to be seen, I’d happily help you even though it’s not STI related. Most of the symptomatic women I see don’t have an STI!

@1wilma1 @WetBandits thanks so much. I called this morning as not seeing much improvement so I have an appointment on Wednesday to get it checked. Was so hoping things would just take the easy path for once and the tablet would have cleared it 😖

It works slowly unfortunately.. at least 3 days minimum...