THRUSH AFTER SEX. but only without condoms. .. is there a doctor in the house??

[schmu]

i've had thrush 3 times within 6 months, each time it has started within 24 hours of having sex without a condom (we usually use condoms). last time this happened,it occurred to me that dh might be infecting me, so dh and i both took an oral capsule for thrush.

now, 6 weeks later, its happened again and i'm feeling pretty fed up. i'm also confused as i dont know why i'm suddenly getting thrush having had it only once in my entire life prior to these recent episodes.

also, we obv never used condoms whilst PG of TCC, and no thrush then, ever.

by the way, dh seems to have a huge candida- type problem and is really addicted to bread. could this be relevant ( am thinking yeast, here, incase anyone thinks i've gone mad!)

any advice greatly appreciated.

YES thrush can be contagious - you need to treat him with the canestan tablet as well as yourself!!!!

And it's not life long - he may not have had it when you were TTCing.

your mans manky!get him to his doctor quick!

It's contagious, and he needs to go asap.

He needs to do lots of things- oral trush treatment-possibly from dr - Nystatin by mouth from Dr-thrush cream for local bits, and clean up his diet. There are pletny of anti-thrush diets but it will mean giving up most sugars, foods with yeast in them ( including bread and pizza base) and bears/lager.
Not for ever- but til he's clear- and meanwhile you will have to use condoms.

I get this. I've ALWAYS got it. Something about sex triggers it but DP has been treated and it made no difference.

I asked my GP why I keep getting getting it and his answer was "Some people are just covered in the fungus that causes it". NICE.

I eat a lot of live yoghurt and that helps.

Also, ask to see a female GP. I did once and she was a lot more sympathetic. She didn't actually find out why I get it so much but she did bother to do some blood tests and examine me. I find that male GP's just give you treatment and that's it, it's back again in a few weeks.

She said that your more likely to get it if you have low iron levels, or if your feeling run down. Also, don't have baths (shower instead) and don't use soaps down there.

It was her who treated DP.

Does giving up yeast really work? It sound extreme but I'm desperate!

We get it too from time to time - suspect it is because semen is so sugary that the thrush stuff really gets feeding on it and then starts nibbling you too ( technical eh!) We have noticed it is late night or afternoon sex followed by sleep that sets it off - and early morning romp followed by shower or bath is fine.

I don't think giving up yeast in your food could work because the yeast that causes thrush is a different species from the stuff that's used in bread or beer, and that's dead anyway by the time you eat it.

However, a healthy diet might make you generally feel better, so that might be why people think it does work.

I found things like washing my undies and towels on a hot wash and/or tumble drying them have really helped.

Yeast in food is a key trigger for thrush - or candida overgrowth, and it's one of the (many) things you're recommended to avoid.

Along with:

fermented foods/drinks (alcohol, soy sauce, vinegar)
sugar (including fruit)
wheat (rice, pasta, bread)
mushrooms
smoked foods

It sounds as if you're both infecting each other, so you need to be treated. In addition, female hormone changes can trigger an outbreak of thrush. I used to always get it just before my period.

You both need to see the doctor and be treated together.

Here's a really interesting article about thrush and diet

I've found that my thrush which often used to happen when I used the pill seems to have stopped now I have a coil.

I did find I needed a pessary to get rid of it when I did have it.

We had this problem for a while, the Dr gave me a prescription for the oral treatment and cream for both of us. Initially it didn't work and then dh confessed that he hadn't been using the cream that much. Funnily enough once he realised that it was use the cream or no sex he remembered to use it and we haven't had any thrush for a while - fingers crossed.

you can get the cream over the counter too if you can't get to the doc for a bit

but you must persuade him to use it. Seems to affect them less (men) but it CAN make them v itchy too! So tell him that!

Mushrooms?

Check with your GP - it might be something called bacterial vaginosis (sorry if the spelling is wrong) or bv, which looks/feels a lot like thrush - but isn't. This would explain why you only get it when you don't use condoms, as it's a reaction to your partner's sperm.

A friend of mine had this, and some antibiotics cleared it up I think.

It's unusual for men to have persistent thrush as the fungus likes warm moist places (eh vaginas) and most penises aren't generally that moist. Also most men with chronic thrush have symptoms, such as a red, tender or sore penis and possibly a rash or discharge.

Are you sure it's thrush? There are other things that could be causing your symptoms. It might be worth asking your GP or practice nurse for a swab when you next have it to confirm that it is candida.

Also diet can exacerbate fungal infections - when you say your DH has a candida type problem what do you mean?

Like MummyDragon says, it could also be BV. Is there an offensive odour? I get BV all the time. My doctor thinks I'm allergic to semen. I take AB's for it every 4 or so months.

Its probably worth both of you going to the local sexual health clinic and being checked out. Agree with trellism about the undies - are you wearing cotton underwear and one of the drs I used to work with was convinced that thongs could cause BV!

pinkteddy Now you mention it, I haven't really worn thongs since ds2 was born (6m ago) and I've not had much problems.....interesting

Ah, someone mentioned BV. I had concurrent BV and thrush a while ago.

After the BV was nuked with antibiotics, the thrush came under control. It was a wise GP indeed who decided to test me for both.