Vaginal Strep in a Non Pregnant Woman

[PeachesGZ]

Hi,  I had been having lots of itching, burning and a brownish discharge for two weeks after a fun sex filled weekend with a boyfriend whom I only see every two months or so.  This happens often and I have always treated it as a possible yeast infeciton.  This time it didn't go away and so I saw my ob/gyn.  She took a culture and found strep B, which has nothing to do with Strep A that creates strep throat.  She said she could give me antibiotics to make it go away but then I would get a yeast infeciton from the antibiotics and then we'd have to use another cream etc.  She said just to let it ride it's course.  Now it's been three and ahalf weeks and it's better but not all healed.  Does anyone have any ideas about treating this or preventing this?  Every article on the internet has to do with Strep B in prenatal women (when it is very dangerous for the baby) and nothing about Strep B for regular women in their 40's like me :)  Thanks, I'd love to hear from anyone who has ever been treated for this disease or any doctors out there.

[Finallyhealed]

I had suffered for 9 years with GBS until I realized that GBS is only a problem when there is an imbalance in the natural flora. I started taking certain probiotics and it made a difference. However, the thing that finally cured the problem for good was an energy machine called the Ondamed.   This machine targets bacteria with energy that destroy the bacteria. After 9 years of having GBS, only 2 minutes using the Ondamed wiped the problem out for good. I could not believe how long I had suffered because I did not know about this treatment option. It is so good to know that if I ever get reinfected I can get it treated quickly.

[Ana20142018]

Hi what is Ondamed?

[Finallyhealed]

It is an energy machine. The machine takes about 5 minutes to target the bacteria at an energy level that will destroy it. Check out Ondamed’s website to find a local practitioner.   I wish I had found out about this machine years ago. It would have reduced my need for antibiotics for the last three decades. I have not had any antibiotics in over a year which is amazing given my history. Ondamed will clear up other infections in addition to GBS.

[LB270]

I believe I have the same problem. When I was 35 weeks pregnant and tested for Gb strep I was positive. I didn't know what it was so I researched it a little but thought it went away after I had the baby (I had c section since my previous child was a c section baby) Well I thought I had yeast infection a few years later, took the 1 day treatment and woke up the next day burning like fire. Called ob and made appt but then she, my doctor, had to reschedule and she was too busy so I went to see another doctor in her office who was a man. He said I probably had bv and gave me cream. Didn't work. Went back and he gave me the keflex for 7 day. It worked but then came back and still have it because Ive just gotten aggravated because he's a man and doesn't understand I guess. My doctor is hard to get in to see because she's so busy so I've just been looking things up myself & realized gb strep isn't just in your gut, it also lives in a woman vagina.I guess i shoild of known that but it just didn't click at first. Well I recently found a website to help pregnant get rid of it naturally so im doing some things like take cinnamon and garlic but I guess I need to do them all. Has anyone else had any luck?  Any updates ladies?

[GBS_patient]

Hi there, I do have some experiences to share....  18 months ago I got a UTI & then vag cultures positive for GBS infections.  Dr's seem as clueless as initial internet postings where everyone swears it's not possible unless you're a newborn or elderly.  But it is, and the infection can be quite serious.  Dr's told me I couldn't have it bc I'd have to be bedridden.  But I have been- was just finally getting active again when this hit.  5 years prior I had what I thought was PID, but no pathogen ever showed in tests.  The pain's been so excruciating that I've been on heavy narcotics thro pain management.  If you get that much pain, don't delay in asking to be referred bc it can take a while to start treatment & pain can escalate quickly.  So at the time I finally started getting positive test results, I could feel the disease spread thro my body & attack my heart.  I've been close to death a lot the last 18 mo.  Was fortunate to see an ID Dr in time to start continuous oral antibiotics.  But it was like putting a bandaid on an open wound.  He wanted to prevent Rheumatic Fever, but I quickly realized that I HAVE RF.  And oral AB's do not cut it.  Standard treatment in Penicillin G injections, a lot of them.  But I couldn't convince Dr's I was that ill.  Until... the story changed from, 'you're not ill' to 'you're too ill.'  Just like that, I was written off as chronically diseased & beyond hope.  So I discharged from one of my many hospital stays & procured Pen G from... a vet supply store.  Turns out GBS is common in farm animals.  It's thought to have crossed species from cows to humans about 50 years ago.  I was born 46 years ago.  My older sister became ill at age 4 and died of respiratory failure from bacterial infection they never ID'd.  When I turned 4, I also was hospitalized, and dx with scarlet fever, from strep.  Probably strep B.  Probably we both contracted it at birth, congenitally.  I remember my Dad turning down the Dr's advice to put me on oral antibiotics.  To avoid chronic infection.  I had two contraceptive implants as an adult and each time had horrible pain at their sites.  Now it all makes sense that I've had this my whole life.  Nowadays, this is most likely what they want to prevent by screening & treating expectant mothers. This is a fairly NEW problem, and I wonder if it's a silent epidemic.  Worldwide, most common cause of death is heart disease by bacteria.  Most common type?  Strep.  Strep B is tough; requiring roughly 5x the AB's to treat than Strep A.  In America, we rarely diagnose anyone with RF, and clearly, it's even more rare to treat for it.  I thought maybe they were saving AB's for 'old people' who need it.  But we're in a health crisis, and the goal is to not adequtely treat bacterial infections under the premise that we're holding out for 'real' infections.  This is a real infection.  Good news is that it's possible to live with it asymptomatically by overcoming the infection.  Do take any AB's offered is my advice.  Also go on an elimination diet : nourishing meals.com.  Pretty much same food as candidadiet.com.  Decrease stress etc.  It's really not possible to get the support needed if it gets worse; becomes a downward spiral.  I do believe this is how people become homeless bc it rarely kills us prematurely.  It just spreads, so try to take care of yourself & heal. If I can do it, You can do it!  Good luck!

[SickandScared14]

How often should I get penicillin G injections? Background: 36 years old, 3 kids, partial hysterectomy in 2015. About 4 months ago I had a yeast infection but since I get them a lot I took diflucan and terazole vaginally. It wasn't working still after 3 days and so off to the doctor I went. Did a culture and two weeks later my doctor called and said I was positive for GBS prescribed me Augumentin. Took that felt better and went back for a follow up culture. Tested positive. Prescribed more Augumentin. Took another culture 2 weeks later. Nope still there. Prescribed Keflex 2000mg for 7 days. Cultured came back negative. One week later I am feeling symptoms and knew in my heart it was back. Took another culture on 11/18 and sadly it was positive for yeast and GBS. I've seen two Infectious disease specialist during this entire time and both have told me to stop the antibiotics and just treat the yeast? This doesn't make sense to me because when I'm not on antibiotics I feel like crap. I'm fatigued, get pain in my lower abdomen, and since I'm a big time hypochondriac all I can think about is how this bacteria is going to get worse and eventually kill me. I'm taking supplements, vitamin C, a prenatal vitamin, two types of probiotics specific for Women's yeast problems, and also align. On top of this I am doing acupuncture and taking his herbal concoction that is bitter and gross but I'm desperate for help and cure! Also I started inserting coconut oil internally.
This is affecting my marriage, my work, and overall quality of life. I'm so sad and depressed and of course every day I'm scared out of my mind.

[Marisy21]

Have you had any luck since post?  Dealing with this on and off since August.

[Ginny37]

This completely sounds like me. I was positive with GBS during my pregnancies and had to treat with Keflex but I recall being positive one of the times I wasn't pregnant and was given flagyl. Last year I started itching vaginally and in and around my rectum. Those are my usual symptoms ( I have tested for pinworms and negative but have treated just in case in the past and that wasn't it) I had so many cultures done  within 3-4 months and finally was diagnosed with BV (had a copper IUD at the time) Was treated with just amoxicillin because I was nursing and of course it didn't clear. Finally I was given metrogel and ended up treating a yeast infection with Fluconazole and later monistat as well. I still didn't feel well and finally got a total vaginal hysterectomy with pelvic and vaginal reconstruction. All was well until 2 weeks post surgery and I started itching. I thought it could be the normal discharge and healing process. Well 2 months later I'm back with same symptoms and my BV and yeast culture came back negative. They didn't test me for strep b because practitioner said its normal to colonize strep b vaginally and in the rectum. The only time it's dangerous is when your pregnant and you have to treat so the baby won't get it. Hmmmm so why did I have to treat years ago for it by another doctor and I felt better afterwards. I feel like I'm going crazy and don't know who or where to turn to. I've recently started the candida diet with supplements. I've always used probiotics too.  Almost 1 month into it and I don't feel improvement or at least not yet. I'm also trying to reduce stress and get more sleep though it's hard.

[Falloo]

I am not entirely surprised at the lengths some women will go to to rid themselves of this painful and debilitating disease. I have suffered with it on-and-off for over 5 years since the birth of my first child. Symptoms have become basically the same as severe thrush but swabs come back negative for thrush and positive for GBS. itching, burning, heavy discharge sometimes with blood spotting. Nurse who did my internal exam said it looked grazed inside which explains the above.
Things that help me the most (as antibiotics just cause secondary infections like thrush, so back to square 1 basically) are
Garlic (eaten 3x daily, raw)
Cut out all sugar and wheat flour (as these feed infection)
Sitting in lukewarm water with quarter cup of bicarb of soda (baking soda) as this is anti bacterial and anti fungal and sooo much milder than hydrogen peroxide (which can thin the skin when used often so AVOID!)
Drink lots of water, avoid caffeine and alcohol.
An ice pack between the legs (wrapped in cloth) really helps bring down swelling and reduce urge to itch.
There are sadly no overnight cures and nothing to prevent future flare ups, but these really help.
I always find mine flares up if I've had more sugar than normal - this time it was a macdonalds milkshake on a long car journey - lesson learned!
Hope this helps.

[Marisy21]

So thankful I found this forum, I have been having symptoms for 2 and a half months, however, I think I have had this on and off for years after reading the posts.  I always treated for a yeast infection, but it would return.   Now it is just brutal, it feels like acid was poured in my vag, occasional itch but not bad, the burning is awful.  I went for urine culture and they found low colony count of strep which would explain what is going on with my vag.  they did a swab and all it said was abnormal flora but did not show strep, but hands down I have all the symptoms.  I am using the vag probiotics, cut sugar out, increased immune boosting supplements but still have symptoms, some days are better than others, I find when I am stressed it flares up bad.  night time is when it is at its peak.

[Sugargirl38]

Hi marisy21, it sounds like you have desquamative inflammatory vaginitis. It is similar to aerobic vaginitis. I have this condition, and before it was controlled, I too felt intense burning and like acid was in my vagina. Where do you live? A vagina clinic would be best for you to visit. You can message me if you like.

[Marisy21]

Hi there, I am not sure if that is what it is.  I am leaning towards more of a strep infection seeing there is low amounts found in my urine.  The urologist will not treat it because of the low numbers and no WBC, I do get symptoms of cystitis with the burning on the vulva and vaginal area.  I have tried many remedies that I found on this page and some worked for a couple weeks., then I did ozone therapy and that gave me relief for a month and a half.  Now it is back and it seems to flare up right after my period.  Hormones are definately making this come to the surface.  I read about DIV, but I would not say I meet all the criteria of that one.  Doctors have ruled out vaginitis by doing two cultures.  They have not done a strep b test despite me asking.  So I am back doing ozone, I feel a small amount of relief from the two I just had, going to insert probiotics in between to keep the good bacteria up.

[myloMsincere46]

THANKYOU FOR THIS...I HAAVE BEEN SUFFERING WITH THIS FOR OVER A MONTH... I COULDNT DIFFER WHETHER I AM HAVING GROIN PAIN/PELVIC PAIN. I AM POST TOTAL HYSTER FOR 4YRS AND I'VE BEEN NOTICING GROIN PAIN WHEN I WAS HAVING RECURRENT YEAST INFECTIONS WONDERING WITH THE AWFUL ODOR WTHeck IS GOING ON...????? NOTICING PAIN IS VAGINAL AND IS HURTING ACROSS PELVIC INTO RIGHT GROIN WHICH HURTS TO THE CORE AS I LIFT MY LEG TO WALK OR JUST REXING..... FIND OUT TODAY W CULTURE RESULTS THAT IT IS MYCOPLASMA,UREEAPLASM, STREP B, YEAST INFECTION!!!!!!!
1. TINIZADOLE, 2. DOXYC 100mg I HAVE FINISHED SO TODAY WILL GET NEW ANTIBIOTIC TO HOPEFULLY BEGIN THIS TREATMENT PROGRAM & GET BACK ON MY VITAMINS & PROBIOTIC WHICH IFAITHFULLY USED  TO TAKE....BUT INCURRED SOME HEALTH ISSUES ALONG W DEPRESSION AND MY IMMUNE SYSTEM IS NOTICEBLY NOT WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE.... STARTING NOW W/NEW PRESCRIPTION HOPEFULLY SOON AND CHANGE MY DIET BK TO NO SUGAR, MORE WATER, VEGGIES & PROTEIN (been eating OREO cookies dble stuff, & sour sweet-tarts @  nite)...... GETTING BACK TO MY PART...a HEALTHIER.ME!!!!!!!!!

THANKFUL FOR ALL THE POSITIVE INSIGHT & EXPERIENCES....

[Cleared]

I have found that a combination of Cipro and a cephalosporin for one week will clear up the problem.

[Normsie]

Can you tell me how you use the tea tree oil? It is a very strong ingredient, and I would think it could burn the delicate tissues in the vaginal area?
Thanks
Normsie

[Falloo]

I would not advise using tea tree oil internally as it is very strong stuff. Using bicarbonate of soda (known as baking soda if you're in the US) mixed with water is much more effective and soothing. When symptoms are getting too much for me I run a lukewarm bath about 4" deep and put roughly 1/4 cup bicarb in there. Sit in and sleuce the area for as long as you can manage. Pat dry gently with toilet tissue or something similarly absorbent and soft. It is very soothing, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and helps alleviate symptoms almost immediately. And you can repeat as often as you need with no side effects (unlike the hydrogen peroxide etc I've heard other people using).