Does anyone here use a Vaginal Estrogen Cream

[nottoc4]

Does anyone here use a Vaginal Estrogen cream? My GYN put me on that before the diagnosis of IC.....I've been tracking my food and symptoms and shucks,it may be that the cream is aggravating my vagina...that or the soap I have to use to wash the applicator afterwards.I have a slight burning feeling but in the vagina not from the bladder I don't think.
I use the cream 3 nights a week. It has helped with the dryness I was experiencng and GYn said it would eventually help my urethra and the"'twitching" feeling I get and it seems to have done that so I would hate to quit taking it. Jo :help:

[dg2901]

I was rx'd Estrace vaginal cream 4.5 yrs ago; I havent had any issues with it. Perhaps like you said, its the soap you're cleaning the applicator with thats causing the burning. I suppose the only way to test this theory is to change soaps. It would be a shame to have to stop using this as it seems to be helping you.

Hopefully you'll figure whats going on very soon.
Wishing you well...
Diana

[Roandro]

I've been taking it for a year and have had no problems. I just wash it with a tiny dab of mild hand soap and rinse it a lot with cool water. Then I lightly wrap it up in tp and put it in the medicine cabinet. Seems to work for me.

Do you take any progesterone with it? Are you menopausal or post-menopausal?

[nottoc4]

I am definitely post menopausal...66 years old. I strongley suspect the liquid hand soap..and I think it's antibacterial as well!! I'm going to try some very mild soap and I am getting a refill on prescription and will get a new applicator with it and start fresh with that one.(Just in case the soap I have been using penetrated the plastic applicator in some way.) Jo

[sami4]

Use vaginal cream two times a week and smear it around vulvar area as well. Love it, it has helped me greatly. Just because you take oral estrogen does not mean your vagina and vulva have enough.
Sammi

[Mel53H]

I had been using Vagifem, but now I am on Estrace every day. The Uro gyno that I went to said that the Vagifem was not enough and wanted me to use the Estrace every night before I go to bed until my next Dr's appt on the 14th of this month. I have no trouble with either one of them. I wash the applicator with regular liguid hand soap, not the anti-bacterial kind.

[Backtomylife]

I'm post-menopausal and my gyno also prescribed estrogen cream. First it was Premarin. I had vaginal burning so I asked him to prescribe Estrace. He was amazed that I had burning. I guess it's not a common symptom. Sure enough the Estrace caused burning also but I continued to take it for awhile since I was not sure if it was vaginal burning or IC related.

During the period I went to a urogyn and described the burning symptom and he prescribed vagifem (pills vaginally inserted). That seemed to relieve the burning for awhile but it started up again.

I did a lot of research and decided that the propylene glycol in the creams and also in the vagifem were causing my problems. I called a local compounding pharmacy and talked to the pharmacist who was a very understanding compassionate lady. She called my gyn and compounded the estrogen without propylene glycol in a mild base.

It has worked wonders and I feel so much better! I think that post-menopausal women have very sensitive tissue and sometimes the ingredients in commerical estrogen cream aggrevate the skin. My skin was red and very irritated. I dreaded using the estrogen cream and skipped it often. Now I feel much better!

I hope you find relief...

[Want2BPainFree]

Yes, Premarin burns like fire for me, so I also have a compounded estriol in petroleum jelly. I do not use that internally, only on the vulva and urethra for now.

I experience a slight burn when I put the estrogen on the vulva because I have atrophic vaginitis and I read that if your tissues are low on estrogen, it may burn a bit when they first start absorbing it. I don't know if that is medically true as I have not researched that further.

[nottoc4]

Thanks for all the input.I got the new applicator and bought some hypo-allergenic baby wash and used it last night. So far so good. No burning.It is Premarin I'm using.

[Tuckersmom]

I use Estrace Cream. It used to burn a little, but it doesn't happen very often now that I've been on it for a few months. It has helped my bladder considerably.

[judy45]

Since I have been on estrace for vestibulitis I have gained a signifcant amoutnt of weight. I was just wondering if anyone else had this problem?

[Tuckersmom]

Since I have been on estrace for vestibulitis I have gained a signifcant amoutnt of weight. I was just wondering if anyone else had this problem?

Judy, I've been using Estrace Cream since April, and have not put on any weight.

[nottoc4]

I have not gained any weight from Premarin cream either.

[TKC]

I'm menopausal and told I have terrible vaginal atrophy. It hurts and burns and my bladder feels awful at times. No infection. Thought I had yeast--but no evidence seen by doctor.

Was given Estrace to use. I didn't realize it helps the bladder as well. How long does it take before you feel relief?

Thanks,
T

[Tuckersmom]

I'm menopausal and told I have terrible vaginal atrophy. It hurts and burns and my bladder feels awful at times. No infection. Thought I had yeast--but no evidence seen by doctor.

Was given Estrace to use. I didn't realize it helps the bladder as well. How long does it take before you feel relief?

Thanks,
T

Last April, I started out using 2 grams (1/2 of the applicator) every night for 2 weeks, then went to every other night for another 2 weeks. I am down to using the Estrace Cream 3 times a week, and am still using 2 grams. I should only be using 1 gram twice a week by now, but I find that I need to continue on with what I am currently doing. (And my Dr. is okay with that).

The bladder infections stopped immediately, but it probably took about a month-or-so to get the full effects. I also started taking FemHRT 0.5/2.5 not long after I had started the Estrace Cream.

[izazen]

TKC, I had problems very similar to the ones you are experiencing - really terrible. My life was totally messed up for several months until I had the courage to go to the Uro. I was trying to cure myself without knowing for sure what was wrong with me!
When I started have blood in my urine (visible) in addition to some tiny dots that would appear on the toilet paper - I knew I had to do to the doc.
It was the best thing I ever did as I was dx'd with mild IC and vaginal atrophy plus pfd.
I take 1 gram of Estrace 3 times a week and it works very well. I'm so much happier than I was then!
Good luck to you.
P.S. I took Estrace (1 gram) once a night for 2 weeks before I noticed an improvement.