another pregnancy paranoia question/planned parenthood

[opia-23.livejournal.com]

hi. i have some questions i'm really curious about. i think there might have been some questions similar to mine that i found in previous posts that i searched through, but...i don't know, i just need some advice/reassurance regarding my specific situation since everyone seems really friendly and comforting in this community.  :)

1) i lost my virginity early this month, and since then, i've had sex (protected sex each time) around a few times. the first time was really horrible/bloody and the worst pain i've felt in my life. i realized that it brought on my period right after. second time was still pretty painful, but i managed, and thereafter, everything went smooth with no blood. however, the last time i had sex, there was no pain, but there was blood, so my boyfriend and i didn't even finish. i was confused as to what happened...and the bleeding didn't stop; my period was due perhaps a few days later, but it seemed to have induced an early period - well, i'm pretty sure this was my period, but i'm having thoughts if there's anything wrong or i don't know...an unexpected pregnancy? chylamydia? the pregnancy thought was induced by a friend who kept joking that i'm probably pregnant since i'm getting sudden crazy cravings. now i'm just paranoid.

2) i'm planning on going to planned parenthood sometime for the first time. i do have health insurance, but it's a family plan. i'd prefer if my parents didn't know about this. do i have the option of not using my health insurance plan, yet getting a free checkup? i'm a college student and have no job. i know it's based on a sliding income situation, but i hear mixed responses when it comes to college students. and if i'm going to be sexually active, i don't think i want to solely rely on condoms. given my situation, am i eligible for free pills or other birth control methods? i don't want to seem like i want free things or anything, but i really don't have the money.

sorry, i know it's long. thanks a lot for reading!

Comments

[tweak23.livejournal.com]

Firstly, my dear, you don't specify whether your sexual encounters were protected or not. Later in the post you talk about not wanting to just rely on condoms--have you been using condoms faithfully? You are probably not pregnant. Stress (like when you get the idea in your head that you are up le spout) can knock your period way out of whack.

Did you just recently become sexually active?

As for PP - where do you live? In the US? It's unlikely you're eligible for free HBC unless you use your insurance plan, but I believe PP can hook you up with most combo pills (assuming you want the birth control pill, i think the ring, patch and depo all carry about the same cost when compared month to month) for between 10 and 15 dollars US monthly. Split with your partner, that's less than the cost of seeing a movie each and should be do-able.

[opia-23.livejournal.com]

thanks for the heads up. i shouldn't have left out such vital info. i just edited my post regarding protection. my bf and i have been using a condom each time. and yes, i became sexually active just recently, and lost my virginity early this month.

i'm in the US...i suppose 10-15 dollars isn't really bad. i could just cut the cost of some other things i buy if it means reassurance and less paranoia. thanks for the reply. :)

[hilikme.livejournal.com]

Just as a comment to the first question... I couldn't tell you the amount of times having sex with my bf has induced my period to start right then, in the middle of sex (always a couple days early to a couple days late of when my period should've started). I'm really not sure why it does this, but maybe it's something similar for you.

Sorry I can't help with anything else!

[jenn-possible.livejournal.com]

PP really depends on the location. In some states, it's almost free, and in other places, it's nearly as much as paying for a doctor without insurance. Your local PP might have a website with more info (Google should pull it up easily if it does), or you can just call and ask for details.

You said you were in college - does your school have a clinic? Sometimes, that option is cheaper than PP. You could also try your county health department if there's one nearby. I got my BC from the health department when I was in high school, and I thought the quality of care was pretty good. I know that sometimes health departments are viewed negatively, but it worked for me.

[buzzboomsplat.livejournal.com]

Having sex, especially PIV sex it seems, can put your hormones out of whack for a while at first. Inducing periods, delaying periods etc
If you're using condoms everytime, it's highly unlikely that you're pregnant or have chlamydia (although if your partner has had sexual partners before you and hasn't been tested yet, that might be a good idea- especially if you're considering HBC and might have condomless sex eventually).

[queensugar.livejournal.com]

If you were near the time your period was due, I would frankly assume that your period is just a bit earlier than expected. A few days early isn't much of a variation, so I wouldn't sweat it. There's no reason to be concerned about pregnancy, since you're using condoms and hey, a period would indicate you aren't pregnant. I also wouldn't really worry about an STI -- regular period-like bleeding is not a symptom of chlamydia.

Unfortunately, I don't know anything about US health care, so I'll let others address this question. :)

[dial-zero.livejournal.com]

You can also look in the yellow pages for family planning clinics. There might be other clinics that are not Planned Parenthood that offer cheap services (when I was a teen I used to drive half an hour to a PP to get my pills, when there was a non-PP clinic right in my town that offered similar services).

Like an above commenter said, the prices can fluctuate wildly depending on which PP you go to. I'm sure they'll be able to help you if you call.

Good luck!