How to prevent and naturally treat yeast Infections.
Our yoni is made up of a lot of bacteria!
Yep. That's what I said. And this flora is totally normal and amazing. The yoni is always growing normal amounts of bacteria, and its healthy.
However, there are times when the vaginal flora can get out of balance, over populate, which then can lead to an infection. Typically, bacterial overgrowths happen when there has been an environmental shift in the yoni’s ecosystem that then shifts the pH imbalance.
The most commonly known and experienced vaginal bacterial infection is a yeast infection. A yeast infection is caused by an overgrowth of Candida albicans, which is a yeast-like fungus that is found in the yoni all the time, but if there happens to be an overgrowth of candida, you may start to feel signs of having a yeast infection.
Having a yeast infection is seriously uncomfortable and there is a large spectrum of situations that leads to them.
Our yonis are hardcore, but they also can be pretty sensitive. They can respond to not only the foods that we eat, but also to our mood, our stress levels, how much booze we've been drinking, our hormonal shifts, what medications we are taking, how much sex we are having.. and the list goes on…
Because what causes a yeast infection is so broad, I wanted to provide some ideas to help prevent them:
1. Maintain good nutrition, limit overdoing it on sugar and refined carbohydrates.
2. Avoid washing the yoni with soap. The vagina is self cleaning, and does a pretty good job at it. I repeat, do not use soap down there!
3. Limit antibiotic use, and eat more probiotic foods like ferments.
4. Only wear cotton, breathable underwear. ( 100% cotton is the new sexy)
5. Avoid scented paper products and menstrual products. For real, scented menstrual products can really can upset your yoni.
6. Wash any sex toys after use. Even when it's just you using them.
So, what can you do if you feel like you have a full blown yeast infection?Here are some recommendations to help heal yeast infections naturally:
1. This is the hardest one, but the most effective long lasting treatment. It is important to eliminate all sugar in your diet. This includes even naturally occurring sugars like fruit, starchy foods, and alcohol. Sugar is candida's version of a super food and the more sugar you eat, the more powerful and larger the candida colony will grow. You want to starve the candida to quickly curb its growth.
2. Stress less. I know, it’s easier said than done but the reality is when you're happy, your yoni is too. It's all connected!
3. Garlic suppositories! Not only should you be eating lots of garlic during this time, you can use it internally for great relief. What you do is carefully peel a garlic glove (make sure the clove is not nicked or damaged to prevent irritation), wrap it in clean piece of thin gauze, fold the gauze in half and twist it into a tail. It should look like a homemade tampon with a tail. Dip it in olive oil, and insert in the yoni for up to 5 hours and then remove it and insert a new garlic suppository. Repeat for 3 to 5 days until the infection is gone.
4. Boric Acid Suppositories. This tends to be the natural remedy that works when nothing else does. To use boric acid for yeast infections, fill 12 "00" gelatin capsules with boric acid powder. Insert 2 capsules before you go to sleep, deep in the yoni. The heat of the body will melt the capsules and release the boric acid. You may want to wear a pad to bed, because there often is a lot of discharge when the boric acid starts to work. Repeat the process for 7 days. There might be a burning feeling the first couple of days, but if that persists stop using the capsules. Note: boric acid is poisonous if ingested. Do not ingest the capsules.
If you exhaust all of these options, I recommend going to see your gynecologist and trying anti-fungal medication to wipe out the infection, and then on top of this try options 1 and 2 in adjunction to the meds.
Artist Credit: Tina Maria Elena Bak — IG: @tinamariaelena