[neverending]

jewelscando:How is everything going?Any luck with other treatments?

[sassy]

precious...I'm sure if it had been in a capsule, it wouldn't have burned like that. Boric acid is safe to use vaginally but obviously you have to watch your own body and know when something is wrong. It is really really strong so putting it in without a coating on it is not a good idea.

[precious83]

to boric acid users: I had good results after using yeast arrest for several months. I would use it to keep my ph level balanced after my period. Two weeks ago i decided to use pure boric acid. I used the advice of someone else in the bv group on yahoo. I had the choice of using the caps or simply inserting with my fingers. I wanted to test it out first so i decided to use my fingers. Be ware pure boric acid burns the flesh arround your vagina. Some of the boric acid fell between lips and in between of my cooch. That was the worst experience ever. I dont think pure boric is safe for the vagina at all. Anyway i wanted to pass the information. I wouldnt want anyone to go through that. Oh yeah it will heal up but its not worth it. I only used it for two days. bye

[sassy]

Thanks dolores...that's what I thought. I am going to look into supplements to, but obviously I am a college student and I have little money at the moment. I hope the boric acid does start my road to getting things under control. I want to order the vaginal acidophilus as well when I get money to do so. It's part of the rockwell plan and I really hope it works!

[dolores]

hi Sassy: I used size 00 gelatin caps. health food stores should carry them. make sure they are the empty version. my pharmacy got confused when I ordered them and tried to give me the kind that actually contains powdered gelatin (for hair and nail growth) so I had to return them and ask for the right kind. The boric acid powder you should also be able to find thru your pharmacy or health food store. I found it cheapest at WalMart, $3 for a big bottle.

And yes, ingested orally boric acid is considered toxic (and says so all over the bottle), don't know about the rat poison part but keep in mind that this is a temporary treatment which has been studied to be safe for vaginal use with yeast infections. Boric acid has many other uses, i.e. it even comes in a cream form for some skin problems like eczema.

As for making the actual suppository, simply open the gelatin cap carefully so as not to break it, fill it to the brim with boric acid powder (I tried a mini funnel for this at first but switched to a scooping technique b/c the powder is so fine that it kind of sticks to the funnel and ends up making a mess -- so use a big plate or tray underneath to catch the overflow), close the capsule back up and voila! you are ready to pop that up your kitty.

another thing i wanted to mention to you all is that as part of my 'emotional' recovery from the BV I decided (and this may make you chuckle!) that it would be good to symbolically get rid of a lot of my old underwear, especially the synthetic ones, that I thought might be part of the problem. I've switched most of the old out for new, comfy cotton bikini briefs, and have tried to stop wearing thongs as much as possible, though they don't seem to bother me when I do wear them once in a while.

Jewelscando: have a blast in Vegas, hope you get lucky and when you get home I really think you should give the Primal Defense acidophilous a try. I am convinced that it, more than anything else, is what helped me the most. Though it did take some time to see the results. Yes, It's expensive, but it won't make you bleed or anything else scary like that and really caused me NO stomach discomfort at all, and I have a pretty sensitive stomach. And no, I do not work for Primal Defense -- LOL -- I had heard about it for a long time but was always skeptical to buy because I felt it was very expensive for my budget. It was not until I was at the health food store looking at it and debating over whether to buy it when another shopper passed by and told me it was the best thing that ever happened to him for his IBS and candida issues. I took the chance in hopes that it would help my BV and am so glad I did.

p.s. to all: I had sex for the first time in a month last week, and so far no bad smell, though my period did start the very next day. will keep ya'll posted.

[sassy]

dolores: I'm so glad you found something that worked for you. I've been wanting to try the boric acid for quite a while now and I want to make my own, although the yeast arrest is available in stores where I live. What size gel capsule do you buy to fill with boric acid?? (I think before I read someone said it was size 00). Also, where did you buy them? I found them online but I would rather try to buy them locally. Isn't boric acid sold as rat poison or something crazy like that? Where did you get yours?

[mela]

Well, personally I've never had BV issues till I got with my current and started using seasonale bc pills. We have been having oral and unprotected sex for the past few days and everything appears to be normal thus far. I also take bio K plus which is a supplement I picked up from the health food store. Everyone's body is different and doctors don't know much on BV therefore what works for one might not work for the other. This is the longest I have been BV free and we had tried the condoms and the no oral route in the past (and even no sex) and the smell would still come back.

I was also diagnosed with cervical dyplasia so I thought this could have been what was causing the smell in the past but the doctor says no, abnormal cells do not cause odor.

Anyway I wish everyone luck as this is an awful thing to suffer from.

Thanks,
Mela

[shorty]

hi neverending i bought them in the health food store called holland and barrett (i live in England) get the highest strength ones mine contain 90mg lactobacillus which typically provide3 billion viable cells it says on jar. Just make sure u get sugar free or else you could encourage a yeast infection. good luck!!

[neverending]

Shorty: Where did you get them from?(walmart,health food store,walgreens)

[shorty]

oh yeah i also have sex like 4/5 times a weekand still no reoccureece or odour

[shorty]

hi neverending and precious, i used Holland and barrett chewable lactobacilus acidophilus and lactobacilus bfidus combined, i also took hiigh strenghth acidophillus with 100mg pectin combined. I didnt use any of them as suppositories as i heard its best to treat the gut to manintain a constant amount of healthy bacteria it really worked for me, i found that the vaginal treatments i used were always either tempporary or induced thrush. I would also say to try to inhibit or stop all sugar intake because i notice that when i have sugar cravings im more suceptible to yeast which in turn progresses to bv. but those acidophilus pills really do what they say, The key in my opinion is to treat from the inside not just the vaginal area. and dont wear any panties at night make sure everything gets aired out that also reduces the terrible itching and help dry u up a bit.

[billygoat]

Ladies,

I've never been a big poster, but I thought I'd share somethings that have made my life SO much better.

I was diagnosed with several foods allergies. Now that I stay away from those foods, I haven't had a yeast infection or BV in...I don't know how long!!! The foods I'm allergic to: gluten (a protein in wheat, barley, rye), dairy (milk or anything with milk does a number on me), and sulfites (I do miss my wine, but this cuts a lot of processed crap out of my system!). It was hard at first to get used to the diet, but now I feel so much healthier than I have in forever.

You might try an elimination diet of wheat first and see how you feel. Yes, it's difficult to stick to, but one BV flare up and I'm reminded why I do it!

Good luck!

[jewelscando]

Awesome dolores!! Sounds like alot of work, but obviously it worked for you! I think I'd throw up if I had to take all that!! lol, but hey, it might be worth a shot. I'm headed to Vegas tomorrow, so when I get back, I'm attacking this B.V. like no tomorrow. I'm so fed up it's ridiculous. Anyways, I'll talk to you all when I get back!! Have a great weekend!!

[pepper]

awesome delores! your treatment sounds so good, i'll pass it along to my girl friend who suffered for so long in case it comes back.
girls, i think it's called bacterial vaginosis when it appears in the vagina, not meaning that it is exclusive to that region. my friend and her partner do not use condoms, have a tremendous amount of sex, and have not had a recurrance in several months to the antibiotics worked for the two of them. she had tried every other solution she could find before that.
i only ever get a mild case of bv now and then and only just in the last year or so (same with yeast infections, only occasionally, only mild, only in the last year). i am convinced that my last partner played a part in that as i haven't suffered with either since i split with him. but i haven't had any other sex either so i guess i'll have to test my theory at a later date.
whatever the case, i'm really enjoying reading your stories and especially hearing about the natural treatments that are tried out. i think you are all amazing for taking things into your own hands to figure out.

[dolores]

Hi ladies!!!

It's been ages since I last posted... and though there have been some ups and downs it would *appear* that (knock on wood) I am now BV free and have been for the past two months. Some regulars may recall that I had Planned Parenthood do a swab test during the most intense period of my herbal self-treatment to check and see how I was doing, and discovered that there was still some bad bacteria present, despite the lack of odor and discharge. Well, things have changed quite a bit since then. My wonderful natural smell has returned to exactly the way it used to be several years ago, pre-BV. I started getting some exterior itching again so I went in for a pelvic exam and much to my surprise, the doctor, after looking under the microscope at my swab, told me that I had more lactobacilli in my vagina than most women she's ever seen, almost too much! Well, after having gone without enough lactobacilli for the past two years, my reaction was, the more the friggin' merrier! They can have a party up there forever, for all I care! In fact she was kind of mad because before looking at the swab we were discussing my self-treatment, and I told her about all the acidophilous I took and how I felt that helped, and she said, No No, it does nothing. Well I guess I kind of proved her wrong. ! She said that the slight itching I was having was probably due to this "overabundance" of lactobacilli. whatever, I could care less as long as it's not BV!!!

Anyhoo, I thought I'd repost my self-treatment regimen for the benefit of the new folks in hopes that it might work for someone else out there. I know how frustrating it is, just keep trying, don't give up hope, STAY POSITIVE, and eventually with some luck you will find what works for you.

On a side note, I have greatly reduced the amount of sex I've been having, which has probably played a role in my recovery. Though I am by no means celibate, and did receive some sweet DATY (oral, for those new to my crazy acronyms) and finger play from the new boy 2 weeks ago with NO problems afterwards.

Without further ado...
DELORES' SELF-TREATMENT REGIMEN

vaginally:
2 boric acid suppositories (1 in the morning, 1 in the evening) for 14 days, then 1 per day as needed and always after sex til symptoms improve
*note: I started with the Yeast Arrest brand by Vitanica, but switched to making my own to save $

daily supplements:
4-6 odorless garlic caplets
2 Primal Defense
2-4 Alfalfa tablets
4-6 Chlorella tablets
1 multivitamin
1 calcium tablet
1 flaxseed oil caplet (for the omega-3s)
12-16 drops cinammon oil & ginger oil, added to juice, water or tea

weekly *extras* (meaning, when I remembered to take them):
4-6 tablespoons pure aloe vera juice
1-2 cranberry tablets (later I switched to 100% pure unsweetened, undiluted cranberry juice which seems to work better)
rest, positive affirmations, patience

well, that covers it. I also tried to cut down on sugar, caffiene and refined flour products and eat lots of fruits and veggies. I know it all sounds like a lot to take on, but once you get in the habit it's not so bad. Nowadays I only take the Primal Defense a couple times a week, along with some cranberry juice, a garlic pill or two when I remember, and a multivitamin.

Good luck and good health to all.

[honey]

Is acidophillus a cure?

[precious83]

shorty: Which brand of acidophilus did u use?

[jewelscando]

Sassy, I AGREE WITH YOU!! She is BV free due to the condoms and no oral sex. Not because he's on the meds. My boyfriend went on the meds also just to satisfy me, and it did nothing for me. So, the boyfriend being treated did nothing for me. And the antibiotics suck ass, but, it's the only thing that takes it away for me. Now, I need to find something to KEEP THE SHIT AWAY!! Dammit!!!

[neverending]

shorty:Did you use the regular acidophilus as a suppository or did you buy from that website?

[shorty]

thanx 4 your info quiet madness, regarding axidophillos supositories, u just use regular maximum strength pills but MAKE SURE THEY DO NOT CONTAIN SUGAR otherwise its bv and thrush who'll be turning u into a paranoid wreck! i personally took highest strength acidophillos orally and it really improved things this is the first time i have had a coil andno odour or constant damp uncomfortable watery.... u know the rest. It really did work for me and believe me i went through vit c tea tree which worked for about 2 months, metronizadole, no effect, clindomyacin, my cootchie was like a phamacy but acidophilus sugar free variety did wonders, i haave been bv free for about 7 months now, i occasionally pop an acidophilus (it has great health benefits any way, but have not had return of bv since i stopped taking 2 pills aday 4 months ago.