does synthroid cause a decrease in effectiveness of hbc?

[malinelisabeth.livejournal.com]

 hello there-

about 8 months ago i went to my gynecologist to talk about getting birth control.  she prescribed me ortho tri-cyclen lo, which i filled, but did not start taking.  

a few months after that it was determined (by another dr) that i had hypothyroidism and i began treatment with the drug synthroid.  i've been on synthroid now for almost 6 months.  for the past two months, i have started taking the ortho tri-cyclen lo i was previously prescribed because i am now at a point in my relationship where i want to start having sex without a condom.  

i actually just saw my doctor, and it slipped my mind to ask him, but i was wondering...  is the effectiveness of the birth control lowered because of synthroid?  i take my synthroid in the morning when i wake up.  i don't take the birth control until later that evening.  from my internet research, it seems the birth control might affect the synthroid, but not vice versa.  is this correct?  if this is the case, it is fine, because the next time i get my levels checked, my dr can adjust my medicine accordingly.  but i want to make sure i am protected from pregnancy.

also, i asked my doctor if there were any supplements i could take that would help my metabolism and thryoid function.  he said that i could try taking selenium and chromium picolinate in addition to my synthroid.  i wanted to make sure these supplements would not affect my birth control as well.  

i don't want to have unprotected sex with my partner until i am sure that the medications won't cause the birth control to be less effective.  thanks so much, sorry if this is not the place for this question. 

Tea tree oil for yeast infection

[eatswithfork.livejournal.com]

Help! I've had a yeast infection for the past week. It took me a couple days to admit to myself that I had a yeast infection and that I had to deal with it but I wanted to give tea tree oil a go over messy yogurt or monistat (yuck). I soaked a sea sponge in water with 5 drops of tea tree oil and I have been redoing that solution twice a day but most nights I go without to check if it did the trick. It's been 3 or 4 days and so far all it offers is relief - I still have a yeast infection. Am I doing something wrong? I was really hoping this would work. Thanks in advance.

just curious...

[velkoria.livejournal.com]

Okay this may be a bit funny but... does anyone else get this crazy 'I want to have a baby!' feeling when they're gong to get their period?? I get like this a lot when I'm about to get my period which is really funny. 'm not ready to have a baby but I suddenly feel an almost neeeed to have one! It makes me laugh a lot. I keep it to myself mostly (like my bf wants to hear THAT!) but I was curious if anyone else got this?

HBC & Withdrawl Method - effective in preventing pregnancy?

[moonmad.livejournal.com]

Dear VP,

This is a great community so I thought I'd ask you folks for advice. My boyfriend of over 2.5 years and I have to this point relied on both Hormonal Birth Control (Necon 1/35) and condom use to prevent pregnancy. While this routine has been effective in pregnancy prevention, it has also caused a lot of strife within our relationship. Stupidly (I now realize) we had been using using KY as a lubricant which contains glycerin and has been the source of many, recurring and painful yeast infections for me. Previously, I tried a glycerin free natural moisturizing lubricant but unfortunately it contained a fragrance that I was highly allergic to and I had to discontinue use. I have been thinking a lot recently about the potential chemical and spermicidal content of the Durex pre-lubricated condoms that we use. If I could go back four years to the beginning of my sexual activity I would have purchased non-lubricated condoms along with a separate, all natural/organic glycerin-free lubricant to prevent sex-related pain and infection. Alas, it is impossible to go back.

Below is an excerpt from a letter I wrote to my boyfriend about the reason that I am attempting to find a second alternative birth control to replace condoms, which I have slowly begun to resent and mentally hold responsible for many of my female health problems:

"I think it's safe to say that while our current contraceptive "regimen" has been effective in preventing pregnancy, it has also caused many problems within our relationship. For me, random pain during sex, having to always buy condoms, a hatred of lube and its tendency to spill all over everything, and constant yeast infections and UTI's as a result of the combination of lube and chafing. For you, feeling unwanted and upset because the above hassle has caused me to physically want sex less and worry more over the possibilities of the onset of a painful infection...

Maybe it's time to cut out the problem completely and stop using condoms in favor of the "withdrawal method" which recently has been proven to be more effective than it was previously believed to be and almost as effective as condom use. Since many couples rely only on oral contraceptives to prevent pregnancy, using both oral contraceptives and this method would probably make pregnancy for us extremely unlikely."

I was referencing the following article which states that with perfect use, despite decades of scorn, the withdrawal method only has a 6% failure rate, and with average use closer to a 30% failure rate: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Economy/sex-study-pull-withdrawal-method-rivals-condoms-birth/story?id=7688558

I would not rely on this method alone, but combined with my HBC do you guys reckon it would be sufficient in preventing pregnancy? I really have reached my wits end regarding various lube and spermicide allergies and vulnerabilities and would just like to have sex without chafing and the above stated condom-related issues. Ultimately, if this works out for us I am hoping to switch over to Coconut Oil which is a very popular natural lubricant.

Thanks everybody!

Long term discharge question

[mystikravyn.livejournal.com]

Hello. Long time listener, first time caller.  I have a problem i have been dealing with for a long time but because of no insurance and no free/low cost gyn services in my area the ER is my only option.  In Oct 2006 I had a child via c-section.  In Dec 2006 I had a Mirena IUD inserted. I had some side effects of the IUD but they were minor ones like weight gain and a small amount of hair growth. 
( Symptoms behind the cut )

thongs = unhygienic?

[so-much-udder.livejournal.com]

I just recently heard someone say that wearing thongs on a daily basis is more unhygienic than other kinds of underwear. Apparently this is because they have more direct contact with the anus and can slide around a bit more, thus potentially spreading bacteria to the vagina. Does anyone know if there is anything to this at all?