Vaginal irritation 2008 - Benadryl? - UPDATED 2021

Has anyone ever heard of taking Benadryl for vaginal/vulva itching & burning? I do not have a yeast infection, bacterial infection or anything. DR says everything looks good. It just doesn't feel so good. DR suggested I try taking Benadryl at night to see if that helps as it may be a Histamine skin reaction. I have to say it does make sense.
Just wondering if anyone else has heard this before?

No never heard of it. He doesn't think that it may be hormonal?

I don't think either one of us can really figure out what is causing the itching. Could have a lot to do with hormones as I never had a problem before my surgery. Is there a hormone I am missing as I only use the vivelle dot patch? I have the problems with vagifem or premarin and without. Doesn't seem to matter. That's why the Benadryl I think. We didn't talk about it after the tests results came back negative just e-mailed. I am just starting Premarin cream to give it a 2nd chance. Then I will be going back to see her if things aren't better. Trying to decide whether to take the Benadryl. It's just getting frustrating!
Thanks!!!

Jsut a thought here: while Benadryl is indeed good at blocking allergic reactions, it is also very DRYING to mucous tissues.

I can tell you from personal experience, that includes vaginal tissue......

And we all know that dryness in vaginal tissues promotes a constellation of effects.

Very good point! Well which will I choose dryness or itchy? There is never an easy solution when it comes to female issues.
I definitely don't want to cause dryness. One reason Benadryl makes sense to me is that all the itching started after I had allergy testing. Histamine was one of the injections that I had a bad reaction too. I had not thought of this until DR suggested Benadryl. So maybe if I just use the Benadryl 1 or 2 times it will help without creating another problem. And she did give me premarin cream to try again.
Hopefully just a couple of times would not hurt. I must decide what to do.
Thanks for the info.

I find that Premarin cream is too strong for me. You mentioned that you have used vagifem, but what about estriol? It has a special affinity for vaginal tissues and seems gentler than Estrace and Premarin. For me, using Premarin cream caused more issues than it solved.

I had a problem with Premarin Cream before. This time I am trying a very small dose. I am beginning to wonder if my problem has not been caused by other medicines and the allergy testing. That is why when I decided to stop the vagifem I used nothing for a while and am starting very slow with the premarin cream. Vagifem left me with a sticky/dry feeling with some itching too. DR said I really need to use something.
Is the estriol a vaginal cream?

I had EXACTLY what you're talking about. In the beginning it truly was a yeast infection (treated twice), but then the itch continued on and on and on. I went back to the doc twice and got lucky the second time. This doctor had had the same problem. She suggested I wash with Cetaphil or another very very "delicate" area cleanser. (I chose Aveno baby wash) She also prescribed Betamethasone VA 0.1% ointment. FINALLY RELIEF!!! It cleared up in just a couple of days (and I could feel almost immediate relief). Call your doc prior to the Benadryl, because as the others say, that will DRY you out!! Ouch
Best of luck

klgm - Thanks for the information. I have not used the Benadryl and don't think I will. I don't like the way Benadryl dries out my nose even. The premarin cream I think is helping right now. I'm using less than 1/2 a gram twice a week. A lot less than my gyn wants me to use but I know more will just irritate the area even more. The itch is not gone but it is not as bad. I know it will only be a matter of time before it really flares up. I think I will ask about the Betamethasone when I go back to DR. I have been dealing with this in one form or another since my hysterectomy. I have had too many yeast infections and bacterial vaginosis infections to count.

Best of luck!! One thing that might be different...mine was "external" itching. So it could be different, but anything's worth a try, right?