NOT a movie review, I promise. :P

[orangewrath.livejournal.com]

The da Vinci Code opened up in theaters in the States today (yay!). I went and saw it and, contrary to the bad reports, I wasn't disappointed.

The ending of the movie has a lot of meaning, definitely brought a tear to my eye. The pentagon (or Star of David, in the end..it is the joining of man and woman) is a wonderful symbol throughout the movie. I don't want to give the story away, but I did want to let you ladies (and gents!) know that I think it would inspire women to see themselves how nature made them to be. No, I'm not saying that we're all walking uteruses, but it's..definitely enjoyable (and a change!) knowing that pagans worship our uteruses and believe we're sacred and all that good stuff. :)

Now..personally, I enjoyed Robert Langdon's (played by Tom Hanks, so maybe I enjoyed it a little TOO much!) description of the blade (penis) and the chalice (womb), and of course, Teabing's little remark making a mockery of being a chauvinist. I hope it put some people's thoughts into perspective on why some guys have to be so "macho" all of the time. I don't want to give too much away..so..go see it!

For those who have seen (or read) it, did it also make you want to have sex on top of La Pyramide Inversee, directly above The Blade? I know I sure did. :) Well, with my someone special, that is.

Just a little note: I am in NO WAY saying that being heterosexual is "natural" or the "way a woman is supposed to be". Or..anyone, for that matter. This isn't just about man and woman joining, it's about femininity being sacred which EVERYONE can enjoy, no matter what your sexual orientation (or gender) is. I noticed that this could be a touchy subject, so I wanted to make that clear. :)

Missing period.

[rererepetition.livejournal.com]

I haven't had my period since February. I think the first day of my last period was February 23rd, so I haven't had my period in almost three months. There's no way I could be pregnant; I haven't had sex in almost a year. This isn't the first time I've gone this long without a period. It happened once before just recently. I went off the birth control pill in August, but I don't think that would still be messing up my cycles so much.
Does anyone know what might be causing this?
Also, are there any ways I can make myself start my period? I drank a cup of parsley tea a few days ago; it did nothing. I have about 2 weeks of birth control pills. If I take some of those, could that cause me to start my period?
I'm really starting to miss it....

lost a pill?

[mhmmm.livejournal.com]

so i know this is going to sound extremely scatterbrained but unfortunately this is true. this evening i retrieved my birth control pill from the pack and then i got distracted by my roommate asking a question. after dealing with her and then going online, i suddenly realized that i don't THINK i ever took that pill. i don't remember taking it but i also can't find the damn thing either. so basically, this is a question of a lost pill. will my body regulate itself even if i lost a pill and end up skipping a day? i'm worried, and mad at myself for being so scatterbrained.

The Pill & PMS & skipping a period

[meaningrequired.livejournal.com]

Im on the pill... I get mild water retension before my period. Im going away and my doctor told me that, to avoid having a period on holiday to take the next packet straight after this one. Will my water retension go away when my period is "due" or will I have mild pms symptoms until I next bleed?

just off HBC, possible condom rip, what's the danger?

[anti-socks.livejournal.com]

I've been on HBC for five years -- Yasmin mostly, and NuvaRing for the past month. I went off of it on Sunday, so I guess this is my fifth day off of it (or sixth, since it's technically Saturday morning). My fiance and I are new to condoms, as we were both tested before we started having sex and we've been totally monogamous, so we've had no need for anything but my pills.

Tonight we had sex, with condom, of course, and afterwards when I went to the bathroom I had suspicious white gunk in my vagina (I tend to sweep with my fingers, just habit from un-condomed sex). We thought it was probably just from my juices and the lube on the condom, but I'm tired and cranky so I got a little freaked out. My fiance had checked the condom (feeling and looking) right after we finished, and thought it was fine, but retrieved it from the garbage and filled it with water just to set my mind at rest. There was a fairly large tear in the side of the condom, about two inches up from the tip.

At most, only a little of his semen got inside me. Also, the rip could have occured between when he pulled out of me and when we retrieved the condom from the garbage to inspect. But I don't know. I don't think there's much chance I could have ovulated between Sunday and now, especially since I haven't had any signs (cramping, egg-white cervical mucous, etc), but like I said I've been on HBC for five years and therefore don't really know what my body's up to right now.

All that to say: should I worry? Should I go for Plan B tomorrow? Gahhh. Pregnancy is not a worry I need right now.

Thanks in advance, bunches.

question about skipping periods

[im4ft12.livejournal.com]

Ok, so I think I pretty much know the answer to this, but I'm gonna ask anyway.
Next Saturday I'm in a wedding, and I realized last week that I will be on my period on the day of said wedding. Now usually that kind of stuff doesn't bother me as my period is usually a non-issue. However the dress I have to wear is all gauzy (and UGLY) and for some reason I'm really paranoid about some leaking occurring because it would be DEVASTING if it did. Plus, I have to wear all sorts of evil undergarments (think control top granny-panties, corset and maybe nylons) so that will just make things more difficult. Also, I'll be getting a room with my bf and we almost never get any alone time. If I will be on my period we'll probably do it anyway but it's just not as fun!
SO now the question is, I'm on trinessa which is the generic form of ortho tri-cyclen. I've never tried skipping my period in the 5 years I've been on it because I've been told that because of the different levels of hormones, the first week is too weak to stop a period. At this point, I think I'm going to just start my new pack and see what happens, maybe a lighter period? I guess I'm looking for any input from people who've tried this with the triphasic pill. Wish me luck!
Thanks ladies!

diflucan....

[vaysha.livejournal.com]

my doctor perscribed me diflucan for a stubborn yeast infection.
I've never taken anything orally for a yeat infection before, I usually use the suppositories if I have to use anything that isn't natural.
Has anyone else taken it and expereinced a general feeling of nausea and queasiness?
Nothing too intense, just enough to not feel right at all.
I'm curious as to others experience/side effects with it.
thanks.
:)

Frequent Urination

[wish-this-true.livejournal.com]

Hey VP, I just have a quick question.

Lately, I've been having to urinate quite frequently. I don't know what to attribute this to, and I'm hoping that you could help me shed some light on this.

I don't think it could be a pregnancy sign as I've been taking my birth control religiously, at the same time everyday, and I don't have any other pregnancy symptoms.

There's no burning or anything with this urination.

I also haven't been consuming more liquids than I normally do.

Any possible reasons that you could think of? I'm kind of slow when it comes to this kind of thing :/

The complexities of rape.

[memory-guilded.livejournal.com]

Hey all. I have a few really personal questions to ask all of you, so I can get a better idea of that issue called rape.

( Cut for massive triggers. )

Is it a zit?

[purplefirsts.livejournal.com]

I just discovered a "bump" in my vagina.
It's slightly painful/tender to the touch and feels absolutely huge...but in actuality it looks like nothing more than a pimple.

I'm really concerned. What could this be? Could it just be a zit in my vagina?
I'm 19 years old and not sexually active.

Any input would be much appreciated.

Burning pee

[4everyourstruly.livejournal.com]

ok so heres whats up with me

it burns when i urinate like i still have to pee but i dont
it burns for an hr or more after i urinate
when i have to pee i feel urgency like im gonna pee my pants
im all itchy and ive had alot of discharge
no terrible smell or anything
also i get this terrible pulling pain that runs from my navel
down to the back end of my vulva when i straighten my body out it feels like a string is over stretching

i had all theese symptoms a few months ago
went to the doctor and took a urine test for yeast and bladder infection both came out negative
im not pregnant either.

your thoughts? pleeeeeeease

Announcing New Community: vp_bulletins

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

Hello VPers,

We really appreciate all of you who take the time to ask over in contact_vp before advertising a real life event or a new Live Journal community in VP. Since vaginapagina is such a large and active community, what it sometimes means is that we ask you not to post ads that do not specifically relate to vaginal health. While this is necessary for VP to function smoothly, it makes us sad that some very cool ads have no place to go.

So the VP Team is announcing the creation of vp_bulletins , a community for VP members to post information about women's health events and to advertise female-health-related LJ communities. We hope that this will give members an appropriate forum in which to post their bulletins while preserving space for vagina questions on VP itself.

A couple of quick points about the new community:

1. Posts on vp_bulletins will be moderated, which means your post must be approved before it will show up on the community page. We're doing this to hopefully eliminate duplicate posts as well as to make sure each bulletin truly is on topic.
2. While the VP Team approves the community, it does not mean that we endorse every single post. You are encouraged to do research and exercise good judgement while reading.
3. VP's safe space policy still applies.
4. This community is new, so we're still working the bugs out. Please be patient with us. If you have any feedback or suggestions for improvement, you're always encouraged to email the VP Team at vpteam @ vaginapagina . com or to post in contact_vp.

Viva la vulva!
Tori
for the VP Team
contact_vp

Interesting discharge, yay.

[zdarlight.livejournal.com]

Usually, I have the normal, every-day, common or garden dishgarge, but it's changed recently. It's now a sort of yellowy brown and rather thick (but with no apparent smell). It doesn't usually make it as far as my knickers, but is there when I wipe. In the last couple of days, there's also been a little pain, only when I wipe, and I also think I saw a tiny bit of blood (I'm not due for my period until Wednesday... plus the pain & discharge are further forward, as it were).
Thoughts, anyone? This is a little different from any yeast infections and such which I've had in the past, which is why I'm asking.

Diuretics

[lisbonlovesjacq.livejournal.com]

I'm currently taking diuretics and will be for the next six days. Ever since I began taking them I've been very constipated. Is this a normal side effect?

Going on that, would it be healthy to mix diuretics and laxatives? That just seems like it can't possibly be right, but I can't just not poop for a week or so :( I have a pretty high-fiber diet to begin with so I don't know if adding some more fiber would help move things along much more.

Ouch, cramps

[prettygolucky.livejournal.com]

Help! I have cramps from hell and the only Midol in the house has an expiration date of 04/05. I know nothing about medication and what happens to it after it expires; is it at ALL safe to take this stuff or not? I know that's a stupid question, but I'm just so desperate at this point.

trimming & hair on vulva

[xhoneyxpotx.livejournal.com]

hi everyone, i've been reading here for a while and this is my first time asking a question... :) I have 2 and they are both about hair down there...

1. it seems like lately i've had way more hair on the inside of my outer labia... (like in between inner and outer labia.) as inspired by a recent member post, there's a general anatomy picture with the area circled behind the cut
( Read more... )

Nuva Ring & Sour Taste

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

As a bit of an update from here. The update, though, is really only tangentially related to the actual question.

So, I'm T+24 hours with my first Nuva Ring, and no vomiting. This is an HBC first for me.

What I did notice, just a few minutes ago, is that my vaginal taste has changed. While it is usually... um, of a robust flavor... now it is decidedly tart or sour.

The fluid has not changed in color or consistency, nor am I experiencing any itching, buring, or pain. I'm 99.5% certain that it's not a yeast infection or infection of another kind. The key element to the change seems to be the ring.

It's not a complaint, really, since I"m not sexually active at the moment and since receiving oral sex is not a huge part of my sex life. Just wondering whether this has happened to anyone else and if so, whether it's changed over time.

Thanks!

Cross posted to nuva_ring and vaginapagina.

My first pap smear

[misplaced-nyer.livejournal.com]

So I went to the doctor’s for a physical today. It was a bit different than my other physicals because I am now [enter triumphant trumpet noises] an adult.
My doctor gave me a breast exam. Not with the machine, she just felt around. I was in the exam "robe" thing and she had me lay down on my back, put my arm over my head, and she had my arm out of my sleeve so that the robe could be pulled back so she could see and feel my breast. She allowed me the modesty of only exposing one breast at a time, and for that I am grateful.
The biggest difference… I got my first pap smear. Now, it was nowhere near as horrible as I’ve heard some people say. My doctor is wonderful and she explained everything to me before she did anything so I wouldn’t be surprised.
Instead of those giant metal salad bowl things I’ve come to acquaint with vagina areas, my doctor used this plastic thing. It’s shaped kind of like a gun and it’s narrower at the tip and then gets a little wider. There’s a gadget near the handle that clicks a bit and opens up the tip of the gun. So it looks kind of like a duck. It looks a little intimidating but it’s not bad at all, and it’s all lubed up so you can hardly feel it. After everything was spread open she did two swabs. One I didn’t even feel and the other had this really soft brush thing on the end that made me cramp a little bit but it wasn’t painful. Then she took the gun-thing out and did a manual exam. She just took two fingers and felt around in there. The hardest part for me was letting myself splay my legs wide open. It wasn’t bad though and my doctor was wonderful about everything. Oh, that was one of the things I was surprised yet pleased about. I always assumed that pap smears were done my gynecologists. But my regular doctor did it, and I was happier that someone I’m rather familiar with did the exam instead of a complete stranger. And I’ve determined that I could never have a guy do this exam. I would just not be comfortable with a guy poking around down there…