Girlfriend's reoccuring infections.... (nsfw)

Clipped

hello.

my girlfriend of 11 months and i have recently begun to have sexual intercourse. both being virgins, we were each others firsts. We have sex regularly, probably about 2-3 times per week, and i use protection every time. i have never ejaculated whilst inside of her (with a condom on), and yeah. Well, a month or so after we've begun to have sex, she got a lot of weird shit happening to herself ~down there~. Anyways, she went to get it checked out, it was a yeast infection. She got vagisil, cleared up within 5 days. It should also be noted that her friend ALSO got a yeast infection. She initially started blaming this on me, saying it's my uncut (meaning unclean riteee guise?) penis' fault, because that could be a cause for her getting a yeast infection (or so she says), despite how clean i try to keep it down there (half the time in the shower is spent scrubbing the fucking thing). She could've also gotten it from an unclean toilet (which would explain where her friend got it too, because she is not sexually active). Well, it cleared up everything is good. We have had sex without protection, but only for maybe 30 seconds when I'm inside her, just because it feels good, so that contributes to her little theory about my non-jew donger infecting her with bread.

she got ANOTHER yeast infection (or so she says, has yet to go to doctor) today. we've had sex a bit without protection, but only for a very short period of time. and yeah, this is sort of looking bad on me, but i know i don't have anything going on down there on my part; i have no visible smegma, i scrub tons in the shower and try to keep it clean and sanitary down there as much as i can. how the fuck can i give her a yeast infection twice, i don't know.

basically, i want to know where she keeps getting these damn things. the doctor said its perhaps caused by her not cleaning herself up after sex down there, leading to bacteria and all that good stuff.

should i be worried that my uncircumcised donger is giving her yeast infections? or is it her fault and shes being very stupid and a "jumping-to-conclusions" (you know, a girl)-type? thanks.

Specularity

Is she on any antibiotics? Women are very prone to yeast infections after/during a course of antibiotics.

Does she wash the inside of her vagina, or use a douche or feminine cleansing product? These are, generally, bad They throw off the vagina's pH and make you more prone to infections. A healthy vagina is a self-sustaining system and doesn't like foreign stuff being put in.

She should absolutely be cleaning herself off after sex (and after exercise, bathing: anything that will leave the area warm and wet [more so than usual, that is]). Does she wear underwear and clothes that can breathe? Some nice cotton panties can really help with that.

There's also the chance that she got her first infection from something like wearing a wet bathing suit for too long and then gave it to you, and you've passed it back to her.

Read this link and/or give it to your girlfriend; it has everything you'd ever possibly want to know about yeast infections.

http://vaginapagina.com/index.php?title=Yeast_Infection

Also, a toilet is one of the least probable ways for her to have gotten a yeast infection. How much do you think our vulvas touch the toilet? Hint: preferably never.

Specularity

Also -- and I might be wrong here -- I don't think Vagisil is actually a yeast infection treatment (it just treats the itching), so the fungi may very well still be present. She needs to try Monistat or get a prescription for an anti-fungal treatment.

Clipped

oh, i'm pretty sure she was on monistat, not vagisil. i don't know why that came to mind; probably because the fucking commercial for it plays nonstop on the channel i'm watching. also, is it possible i could have a yeast infection? nothing at all has changed down there, nothing. o_O

HorizonXP

One thing I remember when I was looking into this stuff a while ago was to make sure that your GF pees after intercourse, or any activity. It's not going to work wonders, but apparently, the acidity and the actual fluid should wash away anything in and around her urinary tract, thus helping prevent UTIs, which are not fun.

I think Specularity is on the money with his/her advice. I just wanted to pipe in by saying that you being uncut has little chance of being the problem. Personally, (because I don't have hard evidence backing it up), I think that unless you habitually neglect showering for days on end, and don't pull back your foreskin to clean it, it can't be that dirty down there. And don't let her diss your foreskin, it's a beautiful thing and I feel bad for those men without it. You can Google it if you like, but having it there has a lot of benefits. The cleanliness question is kinda mute nowadays, especially with Western culture's easy access to clean water and better hygiene.

But dude, how the heck do you scrub it? Mine's so sensitive, I only just started being able to rub my fingers over it gently with warm water. I soap it up, run hot water for about 15 seconds, and I'm done.

Clipped

i don't know man, it's probably just not as sensitive as other's. i mean yes sex feels incredibly buttfucking awesome, but i can whack it around with a sponge to my heart's content. maybe i'm *hard*core (lololol)

Specularity

If you don't have any symptoms you probably don't have a yeast infection, but there's a chance that the fungus can still be living in your nooks and crannies, especially since you're uncut. If her YIs persist after this, you might think about soaking your penis in some yogurt (yes, it works!) or even using some Monistat yourself! Check out the vaginapagina link that I posted above, it's got some information on male YIs.

However, I wouldn't worry about it unless it continues to be a problem. Make sure she's not giving HERSELF infections, first! Plus, the idea that uncircumcised penises are unclean is not a cool idea!

MC Mystery

Want to ask,

Does she urinate after having sex? Like, women who are prone to yeast infections (which she clearly is) should always remember to pee after any sexual activity down there, to avoid infections. Seriously. Remembering to do this can prevent infection 90% of the time.

EDIT: Misread the topic entirely, I don't know crap about yeast infections, an ex-girlfriend had one once, but I can't recall the cause/solution sorry bro!

Trowizilla

MC Mystery wrote: »

Want to ask,

Does she urinate after having sex? Like, women who are prone to yeast infections (which she clearly is) should always remember to pee after any sexual activity down there, to avoid infections. Seriously. Remembering to do this can prevent infection 90% of the time.

This is for UTIs and not yeast infections, by the way.

OP, the problem may be the condoms or the spermicidal lube that often comes in condoms, or even regular lube that contains glycerine (which yeast loves). First of all, switch to non-lubed condoms and get some lube that isn't spermicidal and doesn't contain glyderine. I've been using Wet Naturals Beautifully Bare lube lately after a run of Astroglide-induced yeast infections, and I haven't had one since.

It has nothing to do with you being uncircumsized, by the way.

For her part, she needs to NEVER, EVER douche or clean the inside of her vagina with soap, and if she's going to use soap on her vulva (as in, the outer parts), it needs to be very mild. Cotton panties and not wearing tight pants will also help; her junk needs to breathe. Sleeping bottomless will also let her air herself out, too.

If she does get another yeast infection, it's better to avoid the over-the-counter treatments if possible, as those will make the next one worse. An easy at-home treatment I've found very effective is (I know this sounds weird, but bear with me) take a clove of garlic, poke holes it it with a knife, and then tie a thread around it like a tampon before inserting it into the vagina and changing it every 8 hours or so. I smelled like Italian food for awhile, but it stopped the itching and cleared up the infection very promptly.

burntheladle

Wow, your girlfriend is just like me. :P

Just after the first few times I had sex, I got a yeast infection. I had no idea what it was (I knew yeast infections existed, but not speficially that it would lead to constantly feeling like your vagina and vulva was on fire). I went to the doctor, got told to do a cream treatment. Did the cream treatment and it cleared up in a few days, and then BAM, two weeks later, it was back again. Cream is over the counter, so I just went back and got another treatment, which cleared it up.

I honestly just put it down to the new experiences my vagina was having, and once it got used to it, it went away. I'm not sure how scientific that is, though.

I really doubt that you're the cause of the YI - and if you are, you're probably only the cause of the second. Washing won't make a YI go away, so if you are harbouring it, you'll need to do a treatment - although I'm fairly sure you'd be feeling it if you were. YI aren't caused by being "dirty", they're caused by the balance of bacteria in the vagina getting out of whack - there are lots of reasons this can happen.

I can empathise with your girlfriend's frustration - I honestly wanted to shove a metal bar up my vagina, just for the soothing touch of cold metal. Tell her to make sure she treats it (and not with a one day cream - go three or five days, a one day won't always clear it up completely), and if it keeps reoccuring she should see her doctor. Some women are just unfortunately prone to YI, and a doctor (or gyno, if she has one), is the best person to talk to about how to avoid them.

Edit: Also, a YI isn't anybody's "fault". This shit just happens. And the fact that her friend also got a YI should be totally discounted, unless they're in the habit of swapping vaginal fluids (was the friend properly diagnosed? Women often misdiagnose themselves with YI when it could actually be something else). If your girlfriend is sure she has a YI, she may not need to go back to the doctor unless the treatment she used before fails again.

Cauld

I know you didn't ask for advice on this part, but the whole sex without a condom thing, even for 30 seconds, might not be a great idea unless you're prepared for children... I know the odds aren't that high, but why risk it? Get her on the pill, or patch, or the shot if you want to go to town without a condom (and let's be honest, who doesn't?).

Caelum Militis

burntheladle wrote: »

(was the friend properly diagnosed? Women often misdiagnose themselves with YI when it could actually be something else)..

Along these lines, your girlfriend could be allergic to latex, or as someone else mentioned, the spermicide. The symptoms are very similar.

ihmmy

the nonoxynol 9 used for most spermicides (which in turn are used on most condoms) can cause yeast infections

using anything scented near the puss can cause yeast infections (scented soap, body wash, etc)

douching can cause yeast infections

being on antibiotics can cause yeast infections

wearing non-cotton undies can cause yeast infections

triphasic pills can cause yeast infections in some women (pills of different doses each week, ie tricyclen. if the pills are 3 or 4different colours instead of 1 or 2, probably triphasic)

hell, even exercising/getting sweaty with clothes that don't breath well (near the crotchal region) can cause yeast infections



basically... it could be darned near anything. You -should- however get yourself tested for a YI, as male partners can get it, show (nearly) no symptoms, and pass it back to their female partner and thus keep reinfecting them. And if y'all do oral sex, it can lead to oral thrush, which just doesn't sound like a bucketload of fun

I should add that I have never ever ever ever heard of a woman actually getting a YI from a toilet. Basically two women, one infected first, would have to grind themselves against the toilet - not something most sane women do. It's more likely either a hygiene thing (sweating without breathable fabrics like cotton) or a chemical thing (spermicide or the pill). Stupid triphasic pills resulted in me having 4 yeast infections in a 6 month period, a few of which were so bad I contemplated taking a wire brush to get rid of the itching *just realized the OP didn't say she was on the pill, but still, it's good for future reference*

and yes, monistat and canesten are typically the branded products you use. Of those two, I prefer Canesten, but the house brands are often just as good if not better

MC Mystery

All this talk of how EVERYTHING seems to be capable of giving you a yeast infection, makes me glad I don't have a vagina.

musanman

If you're on antibiotics you can sometimes increase your chances of having a yeast infection. One common way to avoid this is to eat yogurt, or probably easier, take an acidophilus supplement.

Not the point of the thread, but stop having sex without protection unless you're prepared to take care of a baby, period.