Just started vagifem and have thrush - anyone else experience this?

Organic coconut oil is what really soothed the problem. For me. Not crazy about estrogen. Vagifem I'm assuming is an estrogen also.

Yes, totallytiffy1, vagifem is an oestrogen.  There are warnings plastered all over the manufacturers site about not using it more than necessary when there is an intact uterus and being aware of the risk, but my GP just kept telling me it was safe.  It IS difficult to prove it was the vagifem that caused it, but it certainly left me biased against it.  I'm glad the coconut worked for you too.  The only problem I found with it was that I tended to be a bit lavish with it to the point I needed to use a pad because it went through knickers to jeans, but restricting the amount would sort that out.  It's easy to get hold of too!

I have been applying coconut oil inside and out for a few years - it soaks my knickers too! - because it soothed my vulvodynia and is supposed to have anti fungal properties, so I hoped it would help with the thrush. My hubby and I have been using coconut oil as a lube. I take many supplements that are supposed to be anti candida: garlic, cinnamon, thyme, rosemary, oregano oil, caprilic acid (in coconut oil). I also take omega 7 (sea buckthorn oil that is supposed to help with natural moisurisation down there). And I apply Yes oil based lube which contains vitamin E. But nothing stopped the progression of the dryness. When I get a bout of thrush, oral fluconazole seems to sort it out. I can't use the cream - any products other than natural oils on that area sting me ... Pessaries burn. I took a fluconazole tablet and the thrush was cleared up by the end of the next day (yesterday) but I have continued with the vagifem and the thrush seems to be back today. Don't want to get into that repeated thrush thing again that caused my vulvodynia back in 2013.

There certainly do seem to be some women who have tried so many things but do end up with vagifem because it's working, where nothing else does. But don't GP's say that vagifem can only be used for a minimum period, so what do they suggest after that?  We see women on here having repeated prescriptions of antibiotics too and while coconut oil worked for me it doesn't work for everyone (my actual problem was irritation around the vulva and for a couple of years I was using vagisil cream until I looked at the ingredients and tried to find something more natural and the coconut oil worked a treat but that's the only problem I ever had).  A month or two after I came off the vagifem I started with horrific night sweats (this is last autumn and I'm 65 so well over menopause and I'd never had any symptoms with menopause) but put that down to stopping the estrogen in the vagifem suddenly because my doctor had me using it 6 nights out of 7 every week for 16 months.  It was a couple of months before the hysterectomy, so nothing to do with that, and thankfully did stop around the end of January this year. 

I was thinking about all this earlier today - it might sound as though it's not linked at all, but just wondering if there could be a link - does anyone with severe problems with atrophy also get dry eyes - this means a gritty feeling and they tend to water a lot if it's cold or slightly windy etc.?  You've actually answered one of the questions I was thinking about - would taking coconut oil orally help with atrophy, but you're taking it every day, I assume Suki, so we can rule that out.  I take Krill oil - just one capsule, daily and that seems to be responsible for putting an end to my dry eye problems.  It was fluke, but that's what I saw someone recommended recently for that and suddenly realised I didn't have the problem anymore!  I wonder if Krill oil would help atrophy.  I am going way off the normal suggestions here because the normal suggestions aren't dealing with the problem for some women!  I wondered if the Yes water based over an oil based moisturiser would improve things if used on a daily basis.  Has anyone tried that?  Of course, it may simply be that there isn't an answer, but I wonder if there is an answer that we just haven't picked up on yet.  The hyalaronic acid pessaries are the only thing other than estrogen that are shown to actually improve atrophy (not just help symptoms)  but for those who can't use them like you Suki, we're stuck.  I'm even wondering if other conditions are being put down to atrophy when it's something else entirely.  I'm wondering if a doctor sees atrophy they link the other problems to it, automatically.  This is a hard nut to crack!

I take the coconut oil orally and apply it topically. Krill oil contains the omegas yeah? I take omega 3, 6, 7 and 9. All of these are found in sea buckthorn oil, as it palmitic acid. Omega 7 and palmitic avid are supposed to help with vaginal dryness. See http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378512214002394

for a study showing the benefits of sea buckthorn for vaginal dryness.

Thank you for that link Suki!  I suspect a lot are like me - we see something mentioned once, or maybe twice, that we've never heard of and it doesn't filter through to the brain, but I had thought to myself earlier that I'd look into that and you putting the link has reminded me!

I've  been talking to someone privately on messages about the hyalaronic acid thing and didn't know we could put links on here, but when she looked up the links of some of the studies done, she was surprised how effective it is compared with hormonal treatments, so I KNOW I keep mentioning it but if anyone does want to look up the links for it, it's easy to find loads of studies that have been done and it's the ONLY thing that will improve atrophy and not just help symptoms.  I promise I'm not going to mention it again for a while now LOL!  Unless someone asks me about it LOL!

Just started reading that link  - it DOES improve atrophy, rather than just the symptoms!  This could help so many!  Good on you for telling us!

Coming late to this thread so not sure if anyone has mentioned Sjogren's Syndrome here yet but this autoimmune disease is a major cause of dryness in eyes, mouth, vagina and GI tract - also can rarely cause Lymphoma so needs diagnosing and treating where possible.

I do find I feel like this after I've had sex and then find my partner has thrush and I haven't yet seen the signs. I've treated myself and not treated him, he needs to use the cream for a few days too.

I can get away with a bit of cream in this case to calm it down before an attack. I think you may of said you can't use the cream I believe natural yogurt on a tampon does the same thing. Otherwise in the past we have both used the oral Fluconazole together to make sure we were both clear.

Unfortunately its hard to get to the bottom of things with so much going on at once

Despite being on it for so long, I had a lot of soreness with it.  I put it down to the applicator, but when I told the GP she just upped the dosage saying it was the atrophy LOL!  But the applicator always felt scratchy and in the end I took it out of the applicator and put it on the end of my finger.  The type of pessary ring I had at the time caused some discharge, which again, the GP thought vagifem would sort, but the discharge got so much worse with the vagifem.  It just didn't work for me at all.  I'm saying that, but to be fair - would I have worse atrophy now if she hadn't overdosed me on it.  I don't know.  I did get a lot of vulval irritation with it though, which felt as though it was from the discharge.  I feel as though I'd sort of fumbled my way through, using different products to find what worked, but I guess that's what we've all done!  Women have got to have been going through these problems for so long yet it amazes me that it's still going on in this day and age.   My gynie now has recommended water based lubricant and I'm on my second day of doing that.  Still stlightly anxious that there's no oil going there but wondering about doing a once a week dose of coconut...... 

Tracy, I think you've hit the nail on the head - there is more than one thing going on.  It may well be that one thing makes another more likely to happen, but I wonder if we're seeing the whole picture.  Before I had my children I had repeated cystitus but having those seemed to alter the anatomy and I never had it again apart from once, about 40 years later LOL!  But I wonder if some women's anatomy is adding towards this problem but it's all bunched together under atrophy.

I think that too, as I've had none stop urine infections since about 47 and never suffered previously. I do feel when I visit the Dr as if they have never come across another women suffering from any of these symptoms. When this site shows that there are plenty of us suffering similarly. Why treatment hasn't moved on is beyond me as it's not just come to light. It's definitely an area they could do with more training.

Have you asked to be referred to a specialist Tracy?  I imagine it's going to be more of a struggle to get referred for anything now because GP's are being told not to refer people, but I think when their treatment is failing over and over again, they should admit they aren't sorting the problem out and refer.  It's just not fair to women to let them go on with these things wrecking their lives, year after year!  I think we all need to stand up for ourselves more!

Not yet but I am fast approaching that option as the treatments are barely keeping the symptoms at bay. They say it's trial and error and every women is different and to some degree that is true. But like you say Dr's are treating the symptoms to avoid referrals but it never seems to solve anything really. A specialist maybe able get to the bottom of things and possibly make another diagnosis possibly other than just atrophy.

Yes, that's my thoughts.  I think it's fair to go with GP's suggestions initially but when it becomes obvious that what they're coming up with isn't working that's the time we need to be referred.  I think that's only fair. 

I think so too, it's so difficult to put it across how debilitating it is when others have serious illnesses to treat.You do feel you should just soldier on quietly and hence find yourself here :-)

Women are too good at soldiering on quietly!  I wonder if this atrophy business would be so unchanged for so long if it was happening to men!  Having said that, when I was looking the other day there had been a lot more on hyalaronic acid studies than when I first started using it, so perhaps things are moving on a bit.

Hi Chris and Tracy, I agree there is so much going on. I don't know if my symptoms are due to finally reaching menopause, or the vagifem or thrush. I was seeing a consultant for my vulvodynia and she continued to advise me about v dryness. The problem is we are all different and what works for one person may not work for another or may even make things worse for another.  Each time I made a suggestion for something I might try e.g. Trying sea buckthorn oil (orally), she said that it can help some women. Basically she said to try everything an see what works for me. Many women get on with hyalofemme gel, for example - that just stings me like mad. I tried the balance active moisture pessaries, containing hyaloronic acid and, while they didn't sting they seemed to make me swell up inside. This may be what the vagifem is doing! The idea of me trying all these moisturising methods is to make it easier and more comfortable to get my hubby in, but if I swell up inside there is not way he is getting in there! I can barely fit a finger in! The fact that my hubby got thrush too tells me that must be what I have. I feel like I need to be some kind of sleuth to work out what is going on!

That does sound like an allergic reaction?  Are you allergic to any products elsewhere on your body?  Yes, it's so difficult to fathom, that's for sure!

Hi it's very frustrating I know trying to guess what's happening. I've had my ovaries removed but had the start of atrophy before then. I've felt the full force of menopause in one hit and noone prepared me for the possibility of ongoing problems. I'm on a high dose of Vagifem which worries me longterm but keeps the symptoms to a degree at bay. But I am going to have to go back and be referred as any attempt to reduce the dose ends in a very quick return of the symptoms. What are the benefits of the buckhorn oil you were taking?

Hi ignore my question about the oil found your link, very helpful Thanks