Thread: chronic bacterial vaginosis

well I have always wanted to join one of the thousands of Bv forums.. But I was so discouraged and lost. I am 25 years old andI have been suffering from BV since 2002- Yes 2002 Chronic Bv.Ihave lived in Alabama, Lousianna, Georgia, and I am now residng in Deagu South Korea. All but my doctor in Korea has told me the same thing"your PH this your Ph that. Dont douche. No tampons. Dove soap. Boil you under wear. Eat yougurt. Peroxide Douche. Take Acidoldopulus whatever. Take Folic acid. Tea bag this and that. " Yeah and the list goes on. My first time going tothe doctor in Korea he did a culture and it came back that I had ureaplasma urealyticum.the dcotors have been diagnosing me incorrectly ALL OF THESE YEARS. It tends to have the same sympton of Bv and they are somewhat connected but it is hared to treat. I said that to day this. When you go and get a culture donw next time ask your doctor to test u for it. SERIOUSLY. Trying all these perioxide douches and teas bag remedies and yogurt inserts is only making things worse.Yeah it temporary releives the symptons but it come right back huh? That's becuase it may be something else and this ureaplasma urealyticum is serious.I urge everyone to at least look into it. It's a shame i had to come all the over for a check up to find out that our American doctors have been failing us. PLEASE at least look it up! PLeASE!. ASK you Doctor .The procedure is the same for bv testing and std testing..They just DONT test u for it.It's more convienient for them to give u FLagyl. If u want to know more SKYPE me or leave me a message.GOD BLESS

well I have always wanted to join one of the thousands of Bv forums.. But I was so discouraged and lost. I am 25 years old andI have been suffering from BV since 2002- Yes 2002 Chronic Bv.Ihave lived in Alabama, Lousianna, Georgia, and I am now residng in Deagu South Korea. All but my doctor in Korea has told me the same thing"your PH this your Ph that. Dont douche. No tampons. Dove soap. Boil you under wear. Eat yougurt. Peroxide Douche. Take Acidoldopulus whatever. Take Folic acid. Tea bag this and that. " Yeah and the list goes on. My first time going tothe doctor in Korea he did a culture and it came back that I had ureaplasma urealyticum.the dcotors have been diagnosing me incorrectly ALL OF THESE YEARS. It tends to have the same sympton of Bv and they are somewhat connected but it is hared to treat. I said that to day this. When you go and get a culture donw next time ask your doctor to test u for it. SERIOUSLY. Trying all these perioxide douches and teas bag remedies and yogurt inserts is only making things worse.Yeah it temporary releives the symptons but it come right back huh? That's becuase it may be something else and this ureaplasma urealyticum is serious.I urge everyone to at least look into it. It's a shame i had to come all the over for a check up to find out that our American doctors have been failing us. PLEASE at least look it up! PLeASE!. ASK you Doctor .The procedure is the same for bv testing and std testing..They just DONT test u for it.It's more convienient for them to give u FLagyl. If u want to know more SKYPE me or leave me a message.GOD BLESS

Sometimes I really do despair... My remedy of choice for BV is RePHresh, which I find does sort it out (particularly after my period). However, I also have issues with thrush, and I have thought for some time that the RePHresh aggravates that.

Anyway, I am a member of the Candida Society in the UK, and have just received their latest bulletin. In it they report on some testing that has been carried out on vaginal gels (including RePHresh and Balance Activ, which I used for a while), against common beneficial bacteria found in the vagina, and candida. Basically, RePHresh was the worst of the lot, in that it rapidly killed the beneficial bacteria and also boosted the candida!

If anyone needs any further info on this let me know. In the mean time, I'll have to have a think about where to go from here... I need something that will help both.

My bv was completely gone after a week of douching at night with yogert. Well two days before my period it came back with avengence! I use the rephresh that you insert vaginally and it helped some, but still a faint smell. Sara why would it woorsen your thrush; are you talking about the probiotic or the one you insert vaginally. When I take the fem D probiotic I notice a coating on my tongue in the morning.
The smell continued to woorsen with my period and i have been trying the vinegar water twice a day. It seems to be working, no smell. I am shocked and wondering how long I have to keep this up. sometimes I just take a teaspoon without water. Who ever posted the vinegar suggestion I want to thank you and God I hope it continues to work. I will let you all know with time.

Apologies for any confusion. This is what we call things in the UK; vaginal fungal infection = thrush. Mouth fungal infection = oral thrush.

I am 20 and have had bv since Nov 2007. However I am with my girlfriend of 2 years who has absolutely no symptoms of BV at all and has never had it. I am not sure what is causing it but I have read almost all of things on this forum and I am going to try some of them. Along with BV, I have had chronic Urinary tract infections since I was 14. Do any of you get a uti when you get BV even though I had the uti first?

Hello, all. Like everyone here I have suffered with bv for years. It was only very recently that I discovered what it was, and that was through internet research. I had the same disturbing smells that followed me everywhere I went and I had only one sexual partner, my husband, at the time. I suppose I might have been too self-conscious about it why I never saw my gynae about it but in the past year it's been not just the smells but the discharge as well.

I recently got a new gynae and I told her about it and she recommended the Metrogel, which, as everyone has said, has a very short-term effect. To be fair, after my first MG regimen there was no sign of a cure but I was patient about it, then my period arrived and I waited some more. A few days after my period, I seemed cured. So, I was relieved that I had waited. However shortly after I had to have minor surgery at the dentist and against my own better judgment (since I hate taking antibiotics under any circumstances), I took a course of antibiotics which not only caused a yeast infection but the return of my bv as well. At this time I was not sexually active and hadn't been for at about 4 years since my separation from my husband. I know his sounds familiar to many of you. We have all been through this horror in one way or the other and are constantly fighting it.

I recently had become involved with someone new just at the time that the bv returned and I was looking for a home remedy to help me through this, especially with my new partner. I had another course of Metrogel but that was going to be my last resort because I absolutely abhor taking prescription medicine. I tried the hydrogen peroxide douche which eliminated the odour but changed the composition of my discharge from filmy to somewhat gelid, but never stopped it. I had pondered trying this for a long time because I, too, was skeptical about putting it up there, but I believe it to be safe, and I totally understand the rationale behind using it. These bacteria are anaerobic, which basically means they thrive without oxygen; hydrogen peroxide contains oxygen which is the exact opposite. For some women this has seemed to work but for me it's not a cure. However I had used it as a douche twice a day, especially when I've been sexually active, because it makes me feel fresh and clean and more confident that I'm not passing on anything harmful to my partner. I hope I've been right about that.

Well, since this didn't work, I decided to finish the Metrogel and after I had taken the full course, I developed a yeast infection. Surprise! Not. My cure for a VYI over the years has always been a vinegar/water douche in the morning and evening and it has been 100% effective. I've also noticed that I am always susceptible to outbreaks (of herpes blisters) at the time of my period. I was infected with this virus when I became involved with my husband. He wasn't even aware that he had it at that time and he was seldom affected by it during the course of our marriage. Me, on the other hand, blisters every month at the time of my period, unless I take my Red Marine Algae tablets for a few days before. It works. I have also been strict about condom use with my partner for my safety and his.

You read all sorts of things from different people when you're looking for info/help/compassion, and all my reading is leading me to conclusions (logical ones, I hope) on how to deal with this problem. Thanks but I don't want another drug in my body. They only exacerbate your problems; cure one thing; create another, so if I can totally avoid a drug I will.

I have garnered some info from this site today which gives me a lot of hope. I honestly believe recurrent BV is an intestinal/PH problem which had be treated from the mouth down in order to have long-lasting results. I had a similar problem with yeast affections many years ago (creams never worked) and Diflucan actually did, but I realized that it was after I took Diflucan that I began experiencing BV. What a vicious cycle.

Contrary to what many preach and others believe, I do not accept that occasional douching can so deplete valuable flora in the vagina as to propagate these problems. I believe that if there is a correct population of healthy bacteria in our intestines that it will replenish what is removed by douching. I am in no way suggesting that habitual douching is sensible or safe.

This is why probiotics are so highly recommended in the treatment of BV; to re-establish important organisms in our bodies. So, I figured my best bet was a good probiotic, but as one poster suggested, it might be necessary to take an antibiotic (and I believe an oral antibiotic is more effective) to immediately rid your body of the existing problem, while the probiotics will subsequently be introduced to maintain that environment our body needs to keep infections like this at bay. I would still prefer a solution without the antibiotic, tho.

Then I read Jasmine's post and I was reminded of something I knew all along and this is something I truly believe will benefit me. Apple Cider Vinegar. I have used it before for sore throats, colds, etc and it's amazing. I had known everything she said but I had totally forgotten about the properties of this product; especially where it concerns balancing out your body PH which is probably the most important part of fighting bacterial infections and especially these foul-smelling and embarrassing vaginal infections. I give Jasmine a thumbs up and recommend to all of us here that we, at least, research on the internet, the properties of ACV. I have just taken my first cup because I believe it in. In fact I've always used APV for my yeast infections but never had any success for BV. However I was using it vaginally, which many have attested, doesn't work. And I believe it's because the problem is intestinal and not so much vaginal. How unfortunate that such an important part of our bodies should be the channel for such a distasteful occurrence. Please research this immediately.

In the meantime I intend to drink APV (mixed with water) daily, and while I wait for these changes to take place intestinally, I will continue to use hydrogen peroxide to cleanse myself and keep that odour at bay, as well as taking other supplements recommended here, like primadophilus reuteri and folic acid. I know this will not happen overnight but I have experienced the frustration and stress that others here have expressed. Sometimes it's the stress from this frustration of fighting bv day in and day out that helps it grow!

But thank you. Thank you all for sharing your experiences because we all know how it feels to realize that we're not the only ones. When I think of all the things I'm being told to cut out of my diet, I wonder what'll be left. I strictly do not eat processed foods. I make my own bread and use organic flours. I do use sugar and diary but I never drink sodas, nor eat sweets. So I'm thinking if I cut out the little that I do have I may as well be dead because there'd be nothing left! So I'm looking for another way. I intend to cut down on my use of sugar and anything that I may deem unnecessary but I don't want to be miserable either, so this is it for me.

I'm trying this approach in the hope that it's the right one. And we must never give up. Men may be sympathetic but they can not know the burden this is for us to bear. And let's be wise, ladies, let us not in our desperation for relief allow ourselves to be taken for a ride. Enough of that has been done. Doctors are recommending ten different drugs to one patient and are still not realizing they're useless? Come on! Or telling us we're fine when we know we're not! Let's keep informing ourselves so we can help each other.

I was quite pleased with drchristian's site which I found to be quite informative, but let's not give up hope just yet. We deserve to be BV free.

Hi im 19 yrs old and im really not sure about whats going on with my body right now. so maybe i could share what ive been going through. hope some could help me solve this.

• when i was 18, i had my 1st bf that time and he was the 1st one who ive ever had sex with. i didnt really feel good about doing it with him, until it just hurts and i end up feeling like i have a swollen vagina everytime. when i was 18, i experienced something what they called UTI. in my case it was pretty upsetting bec. it was such a pain to urinate and i had that tinge of blood everytime and it just felt downright awful. I went to a doctor and she prescribed me this medication called inuflux and vitamin c, which helped a lot! it was gone after a few days though came back again so i just had to take that medication and it was finally gone. (well, just when i stopped having sex with my bf and totally broke off with him)

• Now, being single i didnt have any sexual activity, i noticed this very foul odor and unusual discharge. no itching or swelling or any of that whatsoever. thinking that it was just normal i let it be through the whole year. (so stupid of me)

• so this year 2009, i met someone, a new guy who i could say i fell in love with. thats when i started to feel disturbed about the discharge and odor.
  so i visited an ob gyne (June 2009), she did a gram stain test on me and prescribed Biofemme doxycycline (twice a day), and metronidazole vaginal suppository (at night) for 7 days.

• this definitely cleared up the smell and the discharge. i never felt better. I went back to the dr. she told me to take 3 sets more. which i stupidly wasnt able to do.
  Months have passed, Everything was fine, just after my last period which was this month october 2009. I was having this intimate time with my bf, when he penetrated me, this foul odor surfaced and i was kind of embarrassed (1st time after the medication), though he did not really say anything but acted normally, like nothing was different.

• so here i am, very much worried being able to read all the cases posted here im not really sure what this is and i havent visited my doctor yet
  
  im not sure if i should continue her prescribed medication which i neglected to take 3 sets more?
  
  or probably the 1st mos were fine bec. we (my bf and i) always used a condom, but just late sept. /october we didnt? that probably triggered it to go back.
  
  or is it just that what she prescribed accdg. to this forum might just be a "band aid" and not a real cure?

Im not even sure what this is exactly, coz my doctor wasnt kind enough to explain thoroughly. right now im not so sure what regimen to follow.

all i know is, its just that discharge with foul odor, no itching or anything else. please help..

i havent talked to my bf about this either. dont know how to talk to him about it.. huhu