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Natural Birth
wannabigfam
member
GBS Alternative treatments worked
wannabigfam
member
I know there have been a lot of posts and questions about GBS and alternative treatments. Just got my test results back and I was negative! I used multiple alternative treatments including garlic capsules, high dose vitamin C, grapefruit seed extract, probiotics starting at 28-29 weeks. Then I also did a mix of tea tree oil & olive oil on a tampon once a day for 6 hours (vaginally obviously) and then for a few days before the test I used tea tree oil w/ olive oil in (just barely) and around the butt :-) The night before the test and the morning of the test, I did a really thorough cleaning of the whole area "down there" using hibiclens. The morning of the test I also used 100% tea tree oil in and around the rectum. I brought a hibiclens solution w/ me to the dr. office and after they had me pee in a cup (before the GBS test was done) I did a quick re-wash of the whole area.
It worked, I'm negative & happy I don't have to worry about antibiotics. I was going to decline them anyway but this just makes it easier - now there's nothing to decline. I was positive with my first - I know that one's GBS status can change every few weeks, but I'm sure I would have tested positive this go-around had I not used the alternative methods of treatment. My midwife is very happy too!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: GBS Alternative treatments worked
I am happy for you, but hope that your wash of the area immediately prior to the test being performed didn't alter the test (similar to the way that people can sometimes "fake" negatives for drug tests by consuming massive quantities of water in the hours leading up to the test). If you really are GBS-positive, but you washed away all the bacteria that was present on your skin at that moment by washing directly before the test, you could have masked the fact that you really are positive. I would maybe call the dr.'s office and tell them that you washed the whole area thoroughly with an anti-bacterial solution immediately prior to taking the test. See if they want to re-test you. If you are really negative, you wouldn't have needed to do such a thorough cleansing in the seconds before you took the test. Just be careful--the risks to your baby are real if you really did "mask" the true results.
But I hope you will test again and find out that you really are now negative!
The point is to test negative. :-) It's not tricking the test when I would refuse antibiotics anyway (and didn't receive them last delivery despite being positive) this just avoids the hassle of even dealing w/ declining them. GBS isn't something I'm worried about - I know the signs and symptoms to look for in a newborn. In addition, I don't believe in the validity of the test. When a mom takes the test at 36 weeks and is negative (even when doing nothing to try to test negative), the doctors assume that they are negative at delivery. When in fact, many women would then be positive at delivery b/c GBS status is CONSTANTLY changing. The doctors don't worry about those "false negatives" though. Anyway, I asked about hibiclens before I used it - my midwife said the research on it is "iffy" at this point but didn't think it was a big deal if I used it or didn't (esp since I would decline treatment regardless). In addition, this protocol is what is recommended by the OBGYN at the birth center in town (as well as the midwives there). If it's good enough for the birth center, no reason it shouldn't be good enough to follow for those of us in the hospital.
I did vit-C and probiotics and a few garlic pills, but I didn't "wash" before I was tested. I'll find out tomorrow if it worked for me to test negative (I too tested positive with DS#1 and DS#2).
As for the risks associated. I just looked up and around 1 in 2000 babies born to those afftected with GBS+ (about 25% of US women) have some complications. To keep that in perspective, in the developed countries a woman has a 1 in 2800 of dying from childbirth (but in the US it's closer to a 1 in 9000 chance). I guess I don't see too much risk in "fooling" the test as a previous poster mentioned b/c as long as you keep up the probiotics and clean wash activities, you will continue to keep GBS at bay and your baby should not be at risk during birth.
...baby #3 is here...