VP Team Bios - free_me07

[free-me07.livejournal.com]

My Dearest Vulva-Loving Superstars,

As several of you have requested, your friendly neighborhood VP Team members are taking this opportunity to let you get to know us a little better. We will take turns posting our bios for your reading pleasure. :) Check out the tag for this entry to view them all.

Of course, we want to get to know you, too, so if you haven't already and you'd like to, feel free to introduce yourself here, as indicated on the profile page. (Note that you can also now add yourself to VP's Frappr map from the intro page.) If you made your introduction a while ago and your life has changed dramatically since then, reply to your old comment and update us!

( without further delay... )

painful penetration on right side

[mercurysmile.livejournal.com]

Okay, so, for several months I've had pain with deep penetration. My two very very favourite sex positions are now completely off-limits because they're too painful to enjoy. I didn't actually give a ton of thought to it, but I got a physical a month and a half ago, and I mentioned it to my doctor during my pelvic exam. When he was examining my ovaries (he inserts two fingers into my vagina and pushes in one direction while simultaneously prodding the ovary on that side through my abdomen), the left side was completely painless, but when he pushed on the right it felt exactly like that pain during sex. I was shocked to realize it was just one side that hurt, and it wasn't just a general "hurts to go too deep" feeling. He took a swab or two (aside from the pap) and told me he'd check for an infection, and if it wasn't that we'd explore other options. I never heard back from the test results, so I figure no infection, so I guess I should book another appointment, but I might not be able to get in for a while, so in the meantime...should I be worried? Should I be rushing away from my job to get this figured out, or does it seem reasonable to wait until I've got a free day and can get in with my regular doctor? And is there anything I can do for the pain?

late period

[yankeechic87.livejournal.com]

ok so my last period was in the beginning of june.
in the beginning of july i had sex and the condom fell off. the next day i took Plan B and the day after that as instructed by planned parenthood i began birth control pills (estrostep) which obviously made me skip my july period.

the problem is that tomorrow is my last day of placebo pills and i have not gotten my period this week like i was supposed to. last week i had some spotting and brown discharge. i took a pregnancy test on monday which came back negative.

my question is...should i start my next pack of birth control on friday even though i did not get my period? i have been really stressed and this was my first time ever taking birth control so i dont know if that has caused my missed period.

im really scared that im pregnant but i want to stop freaking out so much. i just want to know if it is safe for me to start my next pack without having gotten my period this month.

Regular Cycles after the pill?

[roonwicket.livejournal.com]

Hello, everyone...

I created this journal specifically to get advice on this issue.

In December, after 5 1/2 years on BCP, I went off the pill. My partner had a vasectomy last fall, and in December he tested "clean" (so to speak) -- no live semen showed up. I'm monogamous. So there's no reason to believe I might be pregnant. I don't know how regular my periods were before going on BCP; I didn't pay attention back then. Since going off the pill, I've charted my cycle faithfully, and it looks as if 35 days or so is the norm for me -- I have had one much longer cycle, about 2 cycles ago.

At this point, I'm on day 52 (!) of my cycle, and so far... nothing. I don't have anything at all that I might identify as a symptom of pregnancy. I gained 5 pounds sometime in the last 2 weeks, but that doesn't seem abnormal, really. I'm starting to stress, because we don't want kids (hence the vasectomy!), but the sensible part of me is wondering just how long it can take to regulate one's cycle after extended, continuous use of hormonal birth control.

Does anyone have any advice, words of wisdom, etc.?

Thanks so much!

HBC question

[wish-babe.livejournal.com]

Hi everyone-
I take YASMIN28 and I start the "period pill" week today, but for the past two or three days of the pill, I've had some cramps and some tendernous in the breasts. I've never had this happen before and wondered if it was common or if it meant something? Also, I've been on this pill since I was about 15 and I'm 19 now. I'm on it because everytime I go off it I get ovarian cysts, however, now it is causing constant headaches. My neurologist says this happens sometimes and that I have to get off the pill... what do you all think? Cysts or headaches?? That's my choice basically..
Thanks,
Sara

colposcopy

[jadorelefromage.livejournal.com]

so i got a phonecall from my gyno yesterday saying my pap came back abnormal and that they needed me to come in for a colposcopy. have any of you had to do this, how much does it hurt? thanks!

also, is this something to be worried about? is it likely ill have to take meds for whatever is wrong? i really am clueless about what is going on with this.

UTI issues

[hardtogetover.livejournal.com]

I wrote a few weeks ago about oily, smelly pee, and y'all advised to see a doctor. By the time I saw an obgyn (I just moved so it was a first appt, and I couldn't get a regular dr. appt until sept), I had had a lot of cranberry juice and it went away. A few days later, the symptoms returned with a vengence. Pee is oily and smelly as ever, now my panties smell like ammonia, and I have mild stinging sometimes when I need to pee badly. I made an appointment with the obgyn for Monday (that was the soonest they could take me) and am taking cranberry pills, which will hopefully help. I do have HSV1 genitally, which I've heard can mimic UTI symptoms, so now I really want to see a doc to make sure this doesn't get worse. I've been avoiding seeing a doc, however, because a few months ago I had terrible allergic reactions to azithromycin and avelox, and am scared to death of taking another antibiotic and having an allergic reaction to that, too. Are those two families of antibiotics common treatments for UTIs? Is it likely that I'll be allergic to whatever she puts me on even if they're not related to those two? I'd also like to try and avoid the doc if that's at all possible. Can the infection be successfully treated with at home remedies alone? Since I've had this so long, how likely is it to be a kidney infection or something I can't treat myself? Thanks!!

std's

[shmeho.livejournal.com]

ok so i aplogize for updatin everyday...

but i have a new problem...

my bf got tested, got his results, and they were fine. but then they called him back, and said that they made a mistake, and said he has chlamydia.

so i'm angry for several reasons:
1. i've given him head recently (3 times, 2 times he came in my mouth, atleast partially), in the past week and a half...the only times i have EVER done it with ANYONE.
2. the doctors fucked it up (although i guess we should've waited, but they told him the results!)
3. he told me he used protection in the past...i trusted him...(he's only had 2 partners, 1 was a one night stand, the other wasn't)

so i looked some stuff up, and it said that it was rarely passed through oral...

http://www.scarleteen.com/infection/risk_1.html

that one said you couldn't even get it.
so obviously i should still get tested, but have any of you had issues with this in the past? has anyone gotten it from just oral? what do you do to get rid of it?

i'm just scared. maybe this is the reason my stomach has been feeling different? (that or im just nervous for other things) and would my period be effected by this, if i do have it?


ugh i never want to touch a guy again.

severe chafing & renegade hair

[songforpolly.livejournal.com]

Two things:
(1) Last night I had a lot of very drunken sex, which was nice except that it resulted in a lot lot lot of very painful chafage. What can I do to soothe the agonizing pain in my poor raw cunt?

(2) I was giving him head at one point, and I'm pretty sure that he had hair growing out of the actual shaft of his penis, not just at the base. Granted it was dark so I couldn't really see just feel, but is that even normal?? I've never seen that.
P.S. could the hair on his shaft have contributed to the chafing? If so how have you ladies delt with it?

Thanks girls.

Nifty HBC comparison chart/period predictor

[fallingtopieces.livejournal.com]

Hi everyone. I've been combing through the archives since a couple of days ago, and I didn't find anything to help me, but when I started Googling instead, I also didn't find anything that helped me.

However, I did find a couple of sweet little tools that may be of help to some of you at some point, and please forgive me if they've been posted before; I went through all the posts on contraceptives and didn't see:

Here is a period predictor. Choose your cycle length and the date of your last period, and see the approximate dates of your periods for the next year. Fun!


And this second thing is exactly what I've been looking for for a while now. I hope you find it helpful also. It's a rather thorough HBC comparison chart.

And that's all I've got for now. :)

P.S. Someone find me an HTML tutorial. ;)

Ovulation cysts

[alonewestand.livejournal.com]

If anyone can help me with this situation, I'd really appreciate it.

When I was younger, I went for an ultrasound due to pelvic pain, and it came back fine. A year ago, I went for another ultrasound, and it came back fine again. About 3 weeks ago, I went for another ultrasound. I called my doctor's office about 10 times before someone helped me. I just spoke with the receptionist, and she said she just spoke to the doctor, and the doctor told her word-for-word what to tell me. She said the ultrasound showed ovulation cysts, that sometimes develop during ovulation. I do not always experience pelvic pain. Sometimes I can go 3-6 months without any pains, but when I do experience pain, it's terrible.

Anyway, the woman who I spoke with just told me the doctor said there is nothing they can do. They said to just take Advil or something when I experience the pain. I told the woman that the pain is terrible, and I can't even function when it happens. She just said I have to deal with it. Then she mentioned she had cysts when she was younger, and went to the hospital, and they did surgery on her. But she kept saying for the cysts that I get, there is no surgery.

I'm extremely upset about this. I mean the good part is that I can go months and months without getting these pains, but the bad news is that when it happens, its the worst thing ever.

What should I do? The doctor recommended I see a Gastrointestinal doctor when I was last at her office, and I already made an appointment with him. What will this doctor do for me?

The next time this happens, should I just go to the emergency room?

ovulation smell

[wretched-snail.livejournal.com]

Normally my vaginal odor smells perfectly fine and is barely noticable. But I've noticed that when I ovulate, it's a lot stronger, completely different, and, strange as this is, smells like the Frito Lay factory to me. A lot of people I know actually like the factory smell and will make comments about it when we pass it on the highway (I have to try not to laugh)! I, however, can't stand that smell. I hate potato chips!

I said something to my boyfriend one time and he laughed and said he didn't know what I was talking about. But it really bugs me. Is it even normal to be turned off by your own smell? Not to be crude or anything, but you know how most people don't mind the smell of their own farts? I thought it should be like that. But my ovulation odor seriously grosses me out.

On a related note, I drank some acai juice today and 2 hours later, my crotch smells exactly like berries, which is weird because usually nothing I eat affects the smell, except for cheese, which I haven't eaten in forever because I've been vegan for a long time. I guess I could try drinking a lot of that juice next time I ovulate.

Swollen Labia Minora

[bleedingcherub.livejournal.com]

This morning, when I woke up, the left side of my vulva was itching. I was half-asleep and absent-mindedly scratched it (yeah, I know scratching your vulva is probably a bad idea). It felt itchier and itcher, and finally I got up to go check it out. Lo and behold, my entire left labia minora is swollen to like 5 times its normal size! It completely dwarfs the other one; it's like a bedspread or something. It's not raw, but it is red and clearly swollen/puffy-- not the normal texture. It feels kind of "full", but isn't bleeding or anything. I'm not on my period, have not recently switched products of any kind; in short, everything's typical. What the heck is going on? Did I just anger it by scratching?

EDITED: to reflect proper spelling of vulva :P

I got sick.

[lacymagnolia.livejournal.com]

Okayy. Long time lurker of the memories, first time I couldn't find anything about a subject... So I am prescribed to Apri, a pretty common birth control pill. I took my pill at the normal time that I do every day, and then threw up a little more than an hour later. I am relatively certain that the pill came back up, because the only thing I ate today was oatmeal cookies and coffee (yes I know I have gorgeous eating habits, my body loves me) and what came up was clearly coffee AND cookies. So. My question is, am I still protected if I wind up having sex within the next 24 hours?

Thank you so much, this community has answered so many of my questions in the past!

Inducing periods

[simplebeauties.livejournal.com]

Hello. I am on OTC-Lo and I'm in my period week. My period usually starts on Wednesday [It lasts 4 days] and ends on Saturday.. Right before I start my new pack. I was nervous because my period didn't start today so I induced it with a masturbation session. It worked. My question is, had I not done that.. and it took let's say a day longer to come... Would I just have like a day long period or would it spill over to my first set of pills with the next pack?

Also... Why does your period stop in water?

Thanks.. [=

Periods, Pregnancy and the Pill

[moonstrucky.livejournal.com]

I know that when on the pill, your period is actually only withdrawal bleeding.  So, my question is...
If one happened to get pregnant while taking the pill, would they or would they not have withdrawal bleeding during the placebo week of pills?
(Slightly panicky, am 5 days late, but have been very stressed out due to other reasons as well so... trying to wait it out a few more days.)

bicycle injury. bleeding vagina. ouch.

[deprisa.livejournal.com]

Today I got into a rather stupid bike crash (use a messenger bag or a basket, folks), which resulted in me being sort of catapulted off my bike and banging my vag on it.
Now, I can deal with the skinned knee, but I seem to have cut the outside of my vagina, and I'm not sure what to do.
It's mostly stopped bleeding, but it really hurts, especially when I walk. I took ibuprofen... but damn, it really hurts. Do I just grimace and wait for it to heel? Not an area for a band-aid, I suppose.
Any advice would be appreciated.

update on the girl terrified of a biopsy. +cryo surgery =\

[six58.livejournal.com]

hi. some of you may remember me. i posted a week or two ago about being terrified of having a biopsy.
well. today was the day. i drugged up on motrin and valium, and even though i was nervous, i didnt throw up or pass out or anything like i thought i would. i let my gyno and the nurse know that i was VERY nervous about the biopsy, and they were super nice to me. all through the colp and biopsy, they kept asking me if i was okay.
it wasnt pleasant, by any means. in fact, im pretty sure i squealed like a piggy when she took the biopsy. haha. it took her a while to get the bleeding to stop. =\ that freaked me out a little. but then she got it to stop. and told me to raise up very slowly, asked me if i felt dizzy and i said "...not yet." i was sure that i would go into my state of shock that i usually go into after i have any invasive medical procedure done. so i sat there for a few minutes. but to my surprise, i felt fine. they gave me a pad (even though id brought one with me) so they left, i got dressed and went to make my follow-up appointment.

so anyway.
it turns out that i have mild to moderate dysplasia. the lab results from my pap indicated that it was mild, but my gyno said it looked more moderate during the colposcopy. =\ so i have to go back in ten days for cryo surgery.
im not TOO worried about that. ive heard different stories. that it doesnt hurt, or it hurts like hell. *shrug* i can handle pain i suppose.
freezing parts of my cervix doesnt freak me out as much as cutting pieces off of it.

but. so anyway!
how many of you have had cryo done?
id really like to hear your experiences with it.\
of course, you can tell me about the pain (if any) involved.
but im more curious to know if its pretty successful in getting rid of the bad cells.


also.
if my dysplasia is moderate...what are the chances of my biopsy coming back showing cancerous cells?
im actually really worried about that. my gyno said that if it came back showing that, they'd have to do a cone biopsy.
frankly, id rather shoot myself in the face.


thanks, girls.

post-great-sex vaginal burning

[palebritevesper.livejournal.com]

I'm sure this is a question that has been answered plenty before but I haven't found it in the past few days per se since this is an everytime problem.
Each time after my current boyfriend and I have had sex (minus the very first time we had sex) I have experienced burning afterwords that is incredibly painful...slight rubbing sort of seems to subside it but I feel sort of silly sitting there rubbing my crotch after a few great orgasms..and my boyfriend finds it particularly odd that I need to go ahead and rub myself after all the rubbing that has just been done! I have experienced this pain with and without condoms, with and without lube, with and without lube and condoms...all the different combos you can think of with lube and condoms or without lube and without condoms :P Water doesn't seem to help..hot or cold...or maybe I am applying the water incorrectly...maybe I should use a cold/hot washcloth or soak in hot/cold water...I don't know - I just know I'm completely complexed. It's not like I'm particularly dry either...we've had dryer sex and we've had slippery sex...everything inbetween but the burning is just the same every time!

If it helps any, here are a couple other factors I notice that don't necessarily accompany the burning but also deal with my vaginal health:
-I always have discharge..I never have a pair of underwear that don't suffer the pains of ugly discharge that doesn't always smell - my midwife says it's normal
-the burning isn't always accompanied by redness
-i have been tested for stds before and during sexual contact with my current boyfriend and frequently..but not in the past 4 months and we are both faithful and have had no other partners in the past 4 months (I was tested but he was not after the miniature breakup).
-it doesn't matter what position i always end up with the burny-problem..although i have noticed that with me on top, the burning subsides more quickly
-we have both been shaved and unshaved and this doesn't seem to affect the degree of burny-pain

input is so appreciated...even though I visit my midwife in a week..it's still kind of embarassing to talk face to face with a fifty-some year old woman about my sexual recreation..it's like talking to my mom about penises...just not a cool thing

Antibiotics and periods

[siz-t.livejournal.com]

Evening all!

A couple of months ago I was put on a two-week course of Flucloxacillin for an insect bite on my leg which got infected. Of course, the antibiotics completely screwed up my cycle and my next period was, I think, about a week late.

This month, should it all be back to normal or does it take longer for this? My period's a week late this month and I'm wondering whether it could still be the antibiotics, or whether it's something else.

Thank you :)

Incorrect approch to HPV in a news story? Or an over sensitive LJ user?

[josiethefiend.livejournal.com]

The news story behind caught my attention for several reasons, not least of all the horror inspired by the mere thought of someone sexually abusing a disabled person.

Second, the approach to HPV by state officials and the Seattle Times shocks me. What do they mean the other residents tested negative??? How exactly would they claim to have tested the men? And since when does a facility like this one have the money to do HPV screening on a whole group of people? A normal pap alone won't show that a woman doesn't have it, it just means the HPV hasn't caused dysplasia, right?

Asuming that I'm not completely off base here, the misconceptions here anger me greatly as someone with HPV, who strives to educate a few people about it every so often. Anyone else have any thoughts? I'm thinking I may pen a letter to the editor...


( Disabled Woman Tests Positive for HPV )

Skipping period on Nuvaring: 4 weeks in, 1 week out?

[ezraslaststand.livejournal.com]

Hi. I read the memories pertaining to skipping your period with the Nuvaring, but they didn't exactly answer my question. Others have posted about keeping the Nuvaring in for four weeks, taking it out, and then immediately putting a new one in for three (or four) weeks. My period is due to start on the first day of vacation with my boyfriend (how convenient!), and I'm wondering if it would be safe to leave my Nuvaring in for that extra week, take it out after four weeks and have a period, and then put another ring in for three weeks and continue with my regular cycle. Has anyone done this? Did it mess up your cycle?
Any help would be appreciated. Thank you!

Altitude and menstrual cycles

[kerplunkymonkey.livejournal.com]

I've been on a trip for about a week, and the place I'm at has an altitude that's a bit over 2000 meters above what I'm used to. I'm not scheduled to start my period until around or after the 12th, give or take. I always start my period first thing in the morning when I get up. When I got up on Monday (the 7th), I had a feeling that I had started, and when I went to the bathroom I noticed that I had started very lightly. After that, my period stopped altogether and I'm waiting for it to start up again. Is it normal for altitude to affect your cycle? I travel quite a bit, and that usually doesn't change anything, and I'm usually very regular. I've been trying to research it online, but I haven't come up with much. Any ideas?

Thanks ladies.

EDIT: I'm in the range of Acute Mountain Sickness, which discusses plenty of common effects that I've encountered (fatigue, shortness of breath, dry cough, etc). It doesn't discuss menstruation at all, but it suggests that women who are in the premenstrual phase of their cycles are more highly affected. I've never had a period this irregular, so I'd appreciate any ideas.

waxing moles

[whitelime.livejournal.com]

Hi all,

I have a relatively large, raised mole near my bikini line in my pubic hair. I'd like to get the area waxed, but I've read that you shouldn't wax over moles. Why is that? What do those of you with pubic moles do for hair removal? Is it okay to pluck hair from moles?

genital warts treatment

[metricks.livejournal.com]

the treatment (in my case liquid nitrogen) seems to be working. dramatic decrease in size/number.
then: it seems like the existing warts are increasing and new ones are popping up. despite treatment. they are significantly worse now. similar to before i started the liquid nitrogen.
what should i do? and is this normal????

cryos and periods. oh my!

[six58.livejournal.com]

um. i just realized that on the day im scheduled to have my cryo, i'll be on my period.
im just assuming that's not okay. would i be right in assuming that?

do you think i should reschedule, or try to skip my period on my otc-lo?
i semi-successfully did it one time, by skipping my placebo week and starting a new pack backwards.
i considered it only "semi" successful because it pretty much just...delayed my period for a week and a half and then i spotted a ton through the rest of the active pills..and then had a period.

but. i wonder. if i tried to skip it and got spotting or even some light bleeding if it would make a difference?

id really rather just get the procedure over with ASAP instead of rescheduling.