Jul. 30th, 2013

[identity profile] sleek-asashriek.livejournal.com
Hello everyone. I've never posted before but I've been looking at the posts and responses and I'm glad this community exists, where one can learn about different bodies, identities and relationships sharing questions and answers.
I'll apologize now for any writing mistakes (or differences in med components names), English is not my first language.

My post is about vaginal discharge. I saw several posts about it here but I couldn't find in them a situation similar to mine. I don't know if this question will have a simple answer but this issue has been in my head for some time, and I'd figured I'd ask here.
Some background if it's relevant: I'm a 22-year-old cis-female, got my period at 10 years old, never had had any YI or BV until I started having PIV and oral sex at 20 years old (and if I got one of those, they were asymptomatic and cleared up with no treatment), I have been on HBC -combined pill- for 8 months.
The type of contraception my cis-male boyfriend (24 years old) and I use is the pill + condoms (only for PIV). We're both free of STDs. We use already lubed condoms and add lube (glycerin based) when needed. We perform PIV, oral and rimming on each other, and he performs anal on me. His penis never passes from my anus to my vulva/vagina without a condom, and no fingers or tongue that were near any of our anuses do either unless they've been washed before.

Finally my question: what type and amount of discharge would be considered healthy?.
Since I started having periods I kind of remember having some discharge throughout my cycle, which I learned was a normal thing. Sometimes I would have my underwear wet in the part which is in contact with the vaginal opening for a whole day.
Last year I started having PIV and I got a YI after two months (March). The symptoms were itchiness, redness, burning in my vulva and cottage cheese-like discharge. I had to get treated twice for it and it went away (metronidazol and miconazol were the main ingredients in the vaginal suppositories prescribed). My gyno said it was a result of the medication I had taken for an UTI I'd had previously, but added, for me to take in account, that leaving the vulvar srea wet for a long time and wearing several layers of non-breathable underwear and clothes could help develop a YI.

This year, around the same time, I got an UTI. I suspected I might get a YI again due to the meds and the doctor I saw about it said I wouldn't necessarily get it. I delayed my annual pap smear until the UTI was healed as recommended by this doctor. Finally, during the pap smear, the new gyno I'd started seeing said I had "vulvitis". I thought the name standed for only one condition, but later through the internet learned "vulvitis" could refer to different infections (I never knew which of them she was referring to, silly me for not asking). She said there was "a lot of discharge" and that my vulva was swollen; and couldn't get a proper sample for the test. She prescribed a med (vaginal suppositories) that contained metronidazol as its main ingredient. She recommended I washed my vulva with mild soap or a glycerin one, with no scent or colouring. I was already using the second type of soap suggested, but not on my vulva because I'd read in the internet that part of the body should be washed with water only. But as she recommended it, I started using soap on my vulva.
The discharge I was having was normal for me (and I didn't have any annoying symptom), that's why I started asking myself the question "what would make a healthy discharge?" (and now ask it here).

After finishing this treatment, I got checked by my gyno again and she said the vulvitis had cleared up, but I had some kind of wound around the cervix, that could be caused by "something infectious" or maybe the lubricant that already came in the condoms. She also said it was difficult to find some balance between birth control and vaginal health (DAMN!). I got vaginal suppositories meant to cicatrize the wound.

I went back to get checked almost one month after that because I had to wait until my period was gone. She found out the vulvitis was back and my wound had not healed. So this time she gave me prescriptions for the infection and the wound in order to be used simultaneously. The meds for the wound were the same prescribed before. Nevertheless, I recognised the ones for the vulvitis; those were the meds I'd had to take for the YI one year before. I realised this when looking at the packaging back home. That was when I discovered "vulvitis" standed for several conditions (checked via internet). I have to say I'd only felt some mild burning when washing my vulva for some days before the diagnosis. I hadn't felt anything really annoying in my body indicating a YI as the previous year (there was no itching and redness), apart from the symptom I've just described, though my discharge was cottage cheese-like. I remember I felt my vagina super tight one of the times my boyfriend and I had PIV during the treatment (my gyno said I could do it before inserting any suppository), so I attributed it to the swelling caused by the vulvitis, a symptom apparently I can't be aware of unless I'm having PIV. I say this because I'd been looking at my vulva with a mirror for awhile and hadn't noticed any swelling.


I finished both treatments 1 month and a half ago, I haven't gone to the gyno yet because I had to choose a new one (no luck with the last one, really skilled at practising but also at making inappropriate comments) and couldn't get an appointment until this week. I have a discharge now that at first looked like the one I had last time I got diagnosed with a YI, although by now it's not cottage cheese-like but thick. Soakes my underwear like I explained before, sometimes. It's also of a really light green. I found greenish discharge can indicate trichomoniasis but it doesn't have a bad or strong smell, and I don't feel any pain or itching (symptoms I saw listed for trichomoniasis) when I urinate. I also don't feel any itching, burning or redness in my vulva/vagina; as regards to symptoms related to BV. I also found out many vagina-bearing people don't get symptoms for BV, so I guess I could have it without noticing it. And that leads to another question: what can occur to your body if you happen to not have any symptoms of this kind of infections, therefore don't realise they're there?.
I plan to take to my gyno appointment this week every product I use near or straight on my vulva. And also the meds I've been prescribed and my HBC. Maybe she notices something needs to be changed in that set.


OK, SO SORRY FOR SUCH A LONG POST. Hope someone has something to share as an experience or information.
Bye :)
[identity profile] bambiblake007.livejournal.com
Me and my husband have been together for 2yrs. Right b4 we met his ex told him that she may have herpes so he needed to be checked. His tests all came back negative. I'm pretty sure when I was in my early 20s my gyno checked me for STD's (i.e. Chlamydia and Gonnorhea but I can't be 100% sure since I've been getting conflicting info about when and wat doctors usually check a woman for STD's). Anyway, my last ex was a bit shady about stuff and I told my gyno that he was questionable but my gyno told me that if I didnt c anything weird chances were I didnt have anything but if I do find something weird then I needed to let him kno. Well I never found anything weird..this was 2yrs ago..Back in 04 or 05, I was diagnosed with HPV but it was anal HPV and I've never had anal sex so idek how that happened..But my PCP was specifically asked to do a HPV test about 3 or 4 yrs ago and he said everything came back normal..Ok, so my husband definitely doesnt have anything when we met, I could've been a carrier of Chlamydia and not known about it, I'll admit that..but how could I have not known for 2yrs and with me getting regular PAP Smears wouldnt my gyno have suspected something if he'd seen anything like discharge or something?? I go to the ER about 2wks ago and thought I had a yeast infection (i'm prone to em bc i'm diabetic and i do have uti's sometimes but not really had a bad one in a yr or so) turns out I had Chlamydia and BV. The week b4 that, our mutual GF told us she had a uti and a ruptured ovarian cyst. She said she got tested on her 2nd visit to her PCP to follow up and all STD's were negative. My husband had been having sex with us both b4, after, during all this time. We've been a polytriad since April. Like I said, my husband and I have been together and very faithful to one another for almost 2yrs. Wat happened?? my husband thinx she may have had Chlamydia this 1x b4, she told us she did a while ago and it cleared it, and maybe she didnt get it cleared up like she thought and was the carrier or she had it in her rectum and not in her vagina and when they did a vag swab they didnt catch it -- is that even possible?? We're a bit confused and dont want to believe she cheated on us since we both of us kno we didnt cheat on anyone. I mean, I could've been a carrier but wouldnt her tests the week b4 mine have been positive for Chlamydia since we'd been having sex since April??  Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
[identity profile] alleriah8.livejournal.com
Hello all!

So about 2-3 weeks ago I cut my labia minora while shaving (OUCH), which caused some abrasions. It hurt a lot to pee but didn't notice any other symptoms.

Fast forward to about two weeks ago. I still had the sore from the razor but it was healing. I was taking a 3-4 hr road trip with a friend and noticed that the area where my butt ends and thighs begin was kind of annoyingly sore. I pushed it off as part of the car ride. A few days later, the pain started getting more frequent and extending down my legs. If any of you have had bad "growing pains" as a child, then that's what they are like. The pains are also in both legs. While this was occurring, my vagina was somewhat burning and my anus was very sore. I've been having frequent diarrhea for months so thought it was because of that. However, my bowels had become firm when the pain started so it made it more painful to use the bathroom. The leg pain would come and go, sometimes both legs, sometimes one, sometimes just the calf, etc. But the pain is ALWAYS in the back of the legs, and seems to be mostly triggered when I'm being inactive (laying down or sitting for long periods of time). Tylenol helps some, but it'll come back. It isn't constant, but frequent.

After doing my own research and scaring the crap out of myself, I called my gyno. She told me that I should come in for a blood test to test for HSV-2. I about dropped the phone.

They drew blood last Thursday. I called Friday to seek any info and they told me "Your preliminary labs show exposure to HSV sometime in the last 3 months". (Insert panic)

In the last three months, I have had 3 partners, two of which have HSV-1 (cold sores). All are getting tested but have had NO symptoms like mine or any pointing to HSV-2. The partner I'm suspecting did have intercourse with someone while we were on a break, and after speaking with her, she said he had been the first in awhile and would get tested. The other one gets tested regularly and the third guy who also has HSV-1 has only had intercourse with me (I know he isn't lying since he's a really bad liar and hasn't experienced symptoms either.

So here I am, waiting for results, and ready to jump out of my skin. I haven't had any sort of "outbreak of sores" or abnormal discharge that's alarming. Here are the symptoms I've experienced over the last 2ish weeks.

Burning and itching in and a little around the vagina (changes each day)
Burning and itching around anus along with pain when passing bowels (also changes every day. Today it's itchy)
Bad pains in back of legs (this is every day but switches spots and sometimes is even down to my ankle/bottom of foot)
No other partners have had symptoms
2 out of 3 partners have HSV-1

So in general, I'm scared, angry, ashamed, all the biggies. I'm very careful about who I have intercourse with. I don't know what to think. I guess I just need some nice words or maybe another explanation?
[identity profile] perigrine.livejournal.com
I've been to the Dr today for antibiotics for a UTI that involved urinating blood 24 hours ago. However, unlike previous UTI's (many many years ago - I don't think I've been to my current Dr previously for a UTI, which means its over a decade) there was no 'burning' or 'frequency' or 'full bladder after peeing' happening. The entrance to my urethra was sort of 'tickly' at the end of normal peeing over 4 days - until the blood. With the blood came the non emptied bladder feeling, and 'straining' (to get the last drops out).

Because this episode has been almost symptom free (and I nearly passed on calling the Dr today coz everything felt better), I am wondering if the other tickly-urethra-after-peeing times have been minor UTI's that haven't done anything. I have that feeling reasonably often, (perhaps even monthly. I haven't taken THAT much notice), but not often enough to see the Dr I guess.

When is a 'funny feeling while peeing' a mild UTI, and when is it not?
[identity profile] auroras-dreamer.livejournal.com
Okay I'm kind of freaking out a bit, I have a friend that just got pregnant while on birth control, and we were talking and several people I know have now told me they were on BC when getting pregnant... Well I'm also on Topamax, which I just looked up for risks of pregnancy while on this, it's a category D stating that if taken when pregnant increases risks of cleft pallet so I've been stressing about that fact too, I hadn't taken it for a few days, and while reading pregnancy risks, it also states that it can lower the effectiveness of the BC something no one had told me, so I'm concerned.... I have been with my boyfriend a total of 3 times, none of which we used condoms. So now reading this I'm concerned??? I guess I should just start using back up protection, which stinks because I totally went on the pill so that I didn't have to worry about condoms. Thoughts??

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