(( VaginaPagina ))

Communities for people with anxiety disorders?

Sat, 18 May 2013 16:21:27 GMT

This isn't exactly on-topic for VP, and if it's not ok to post, then mods please feel free to delete this. I have just kind of exhausted myself with searching and thought that if anyone might be able to point me in the right direction, it would be the superstars here.

Does anyone know of any good (supportive, active) communities on LiveJournal for people dealing with anxiety problems?

Thanks in advance.

brown discharge 2 weeks after period/unprotected sex

Sat, 18 May 2013 15:59:01 GMT

i am on the combined pill since the beginning of this year. last month instead of taking a break, i continued onto a new pack and about halfways through the new pack on tuesday 30 april i realised i forgot to take mondays pill and i got some brown discharge and light cramps so i decided to let my period come.

on saturday 4 may i started a new pack even though i still had my period and the whole 7 day break had not passed.

on sunday 5 may (my period was really light/pretty much gone) i had unprotected sex. i don't actually remember if he came inside me or not, i was extremely drunk and blacked out and only remember parts of it. please dont judge me on this i feel like i was sexually assaulted because he didnt stop when i asked and i already have a lot of guilt.

today, 13 days later, i have brown discharge and light cramps (which feel like period cramps) in my stomach. i actually have the cramps for the past 2 days but the discharge just started today.

should i be worried?

Sat, 18 May 2013 02:41:56 GMT

I posted two weeks ago about some strange brown vaginal discharge 3 days after sex. (Penetration, if you will. He did not ejaculate) It lasted about 3 days, and I only needed a pantie liner on the first day - the last 2 days it was only visable when I wiped.

Yesterday, I noticed some light pinky brown stains on my panties at the end of the day, and then again today. For what it's worth, I had sex 3 days before.

My period is very irregular, especialy lately. My last period was on April 13th (I had skipped my March period).

I took a HPT this morning and it was negative.

I'm very concerned and I don't have health insurence or a gyno. What could this be? My first worry was that it was inplantation bleeding, but it seemed too early the first time and now I've got it (albeit, lighter) two weeks later.

There's no burning, itching, or irritation.

Breast Cramps

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:27:23 GMT

I'm having some rather intense cramps in my breast. This is not normal for me. I'm 43 and never really felt this before. I'm in the middle of my menstrual cycle - my period should start in a week. Any ideas about whether or not I should be worried about bigger health issues? I have no other symptoms at all, and do not have any complicating physical conditions.

Anon Post: Concern about abusive situations

Fri, 17 May 2013 16:32:20 GMT

As people hopefully know, VP maintainers/moderators will post anonymously for other. I'm not technically a VP maintainer (because I sometimes have to flake out and curl up under a rock for a few days), but I am also happy to help out and post for someone!

And, as the maintainers would say, Thank you for trusting VP enough to share your story. We're honored to have you here, and we hope you receive kind thoughts and the help and information you're seeking.

They'd also say, This is just a quick note to remind readers that VP has some guidelines for responding to posts about sexual abuse or assault. VP is fabulous because of its members. We appreciate your sensitivity and understanding when responding here. :)

Basically I want to know if this actually happens or if I am just a special
breed of special snow flakes? I mean... After doing a lot of therapy and
suffering more than my fair hare of mental illness I have accepted that I
have been either raped or sexually molested by 90% of the men that have had
come in contact with me that way. That... Is a total of 4 out of 6 guys and
one of those fabulous other 2 was physically and verbally abusive to me
(not slightly either... He broke my nose once and took a blade to my skin
many times even of I didn't want to cut at those times). So I am currently
dating the ONLY man who hasn't ever forced his touch on me or hit me or
stuck anything in my body that I didn't want.

This hurt... Admitting to it has left me distraught and sad. I used to
play it off, like meh it was nothing and like there was nothing wrong with
those relationships but looking back at my life and my history with self
loathing it's RIGHT there. The worst part? I dated two of these men or
YEARS and eventually I just gave in, let them do what they wanted and I
just laid there... Swallowing pain and hurt and pretended to like it...
Some times I even did. I actually really loved being physically abused
because he was on antidepressants and at least he couldn't get it up...
Which meant he couldn't force THAT on me. And one of them clearly was
hurting me.... Even when I finally managed to say 'no' out loud to him (I
rarely did, mind you with the others) he used his height and weight
advantage against me... And I went back to him for more -.-

I am pathetic, aren't I? I mean you're supposed to go through sexual abuse
only once by one person and know better not... 5 different people abusing
you... That just doesn't happen, does it?

Maybe I do just look for it... Maybe I secretly like it because it makes no
sense otherwise. I've been crying on and off about this for a couple of
days. How could I be so stupid and let this happen to me over and over
again?

Concerns about being child-free?

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:56:36 GMT

Howdy everyone!
I'm 22, which is pretty young to be making these kinds of decisions but... I don't want children. In fact, thinking about not having children is one of those super-charged-emotional topics for me. Ever since I was a kid, I just never wanted them because I didn't want to make space for someone else in my dreams for my life.

Having said that, I'm a real "type-a" people pleaser personality (total ENFP here). I worry that my decision to not have children will affect me and I'll be miserable later in life. Is there any truth to that statement?

Also, my partner's parents are very secular but are still from a more religious background than I am. They're North African, and kind of expect that everyone wants children. They know I'm pretty good with kids, so they see me as a "mommy" type. Should I let them know now that I don't want kids or wait for one of his siblings to have kids?

So I use a diaphram

Fri, 17 May 2013 11:25:38 GMT

Today I was looking on line, and saw this product.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gyneas-Femcap-26mm-Cervical-Cap/dp/B007MNWK5G/ref=pd_bxgy_d_text_z

is it safer, (it does claim this)? experiences? I like the fact a nurse fit my diaphragm, but Do find increasingly finding one who knows anything about them is getting harder and harder. So i feel increasingly unsafe or at least less sure then I would like.

Period starts, stops, starts, stops, starts.

Fri, 17 May 2013 03:18:20 GMT

I got my period last week but only bled through 1 tampon and then nothing. A couple days later, I started bleeding again. I went through a tampon and then it stopped again. Tonight, it started again. I'm not on any hormones and there is zero chance of pregnancy. Is this cause for concern?

To sleep or not to sleep?

Thu, 16 May 2013 22:45:36 GMT

Hello superstars!

I'm happy to say that thanks to the awesome support of this community (not necessarily directed to me, but helping me anyway lol) I think I've gotten my various vitamin deficiencies under control. The result? MORE ENERGY! I still get tired and sleepy, but not nearly to the extent of feeling like a zombie.

However, I do have to come to you all with a problem:

Pretty much every night for the past month or so I wake up between the hours of 2 and 4 am. And can't. Fall. Back. Asleep.

I don't know if it's the weather changing (yay summer!), stress (waiting on responses from interviews/job is getting stressful), or vitamin overdose (is this possible? Should I stop taking B12?) but it's driving me up the wall!

I know this is really vague, but any and all responses will be awesome.

Some possibly relevant background: I'm taking B12, Vitamin C, Calcium, Vitamin D, and Iron supplements as well as Mutacil (or something fibery) for my recently diagnosed IBS.

I showed a severe vitamin D deficiency a few years back, but wasn't able to follow up on it, and I was diagnosed as borderline anemic.

I can't be losing anywhere from half an hour to hour and a half hour of sleep every night. If I'm exhausted enough I still wake up at night but I can manage to fall back asleep.

Acne while on birth control

Thu, 16 May 2013 16:58:34 GMT

Hi everyone,

I'm taking the birth control Loestrin, and I have been on it for a few months. I'm stacking my pills so that I only have periods 4 times/year. So I take the pills for 3 months without taking placebos, and on the 3rd month, I take the placebos and have a period. I normally don't get bad acne at all. This month, I am taking the placebos and will have a period. I start taking the placebos in about 3 days. And I have terrible acne suddenly. All over my face and chest. I'm wondering...Does my body know I'm about to have a period? I thought the hormones are supposed to trick my body into not having one, so how would it know, especially since I'm not on the placebos yet and have a few more days?

Just wondering if anyone knows. More so out of curiosity.

Thanks! :)

Long period cycle?

Thu, 16 May 2013 08:45:02 GMT

Hi! I'm really confused as to whether or not i'm having a long period cycle or is it possible that I am pregnant? I already took two pregnancy tests. The first one was on the 36th day of my cycle and the second one was on my 44th day of my cycle. They both resulted negative. I usually have a 30-35 day period cycle so I am very confused and anxious as to why i still don't have my period. It's my 46th day now. Do you know of any ways to speed up my period? Hope you guys can help! Thanks!

Menstrual cup first timer questions - urinary related

Wed, 15 May 2013 04:56:40 GMT

Hello all!

I'm in the middle of my first period using a cup - a small Lunette cup to be specific. I really love the experience so far! I'm still getting used to some things, though, and I'm not sure if I'm doing something wrong.

The first is that I'm not entirely sure if my cup is not popping open all the way. I feel a suction when I'm pulling it down and when I stick my finger in it seems mostly popped out, but I'm just not sure about the section pressing against my pubic bone. I'm using the pushdown method with the pushed-in part facing down, towards my rectum. That side seems to pop-out fine, but when I feel around, it feels like there's a little dent when I dig towards the top. Is that normal, or should I be finding a stronger cup that pushes back against the pubic bone more?

I'm also experiencing a bit of spotting. The cup is literally nowhere near full, so I'm wondering where it's coming from. Could it be coming from the pubic bone dent? Or could it just be gunk that was sitting below the cup?

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I have a history of urinary discomfort and I'm a little concerned about how this could affect it. I feel like there's a pressure or sudden twinges of stinging in the first hour or so that it's in, before it's really settled in I guess. I moved away from tampons to help the general health of my vagina, but I never considered that a cup might not be the best for urinary problems. Anyone else use cups and have these problems? Any suggestions?

TIA!
x-posted to Menstrual Cups

What causes false positive urinary pregnancy tests?

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:00:04 GMT

Several months ago I posted in here an "am I pregnant" type post. The short story is I became temporarily abstinent, went off oral birth control a day after having unprotected sex (oops?), then took a pregnancy test after not getting a period for 6 weeks. It was faintly positive after about 30 seconds (well within the time limit of the test). In the week after that test I took two more and they were both negative. A week after my first positive and subsequent negatives, I had a transvaginal ultrasound that showed an empty uterus. The gynecologist offered to give me a shot that would start my period, but I decided that my period would come naturally.

I didn't have a period until 5 months after ceasing the pill, and finally getting so frustrated that I went to a GP who prescribed an oral dose of progesterone for 10 days. That did the trick, which according to internet sleuthing, meant that I hadn't been ovulating.

I've heard false positives are incredibly rare in HPTs and are usually either evaporation lines if read after the time window of an accurate result, or caused by something going on in your body that causes hCG production. Because I had two negative results following my positive, I doubt the latter could have happened. So my question is, does anyone have information regarding faulty tests? Could I have been pregnant and my body absorbed the embryo?

It was a really emotional week and I feel like I've never really gotten closure... I apologize if this is not the right forum but I have found the community members here very knowledgeable and supportive!

Cramping on birth control (and other birth control questions)

Tue, 14 May 2013 12:36:29 GMT

The story goes, I had my period for 5 weeks and went to a gynecologist. It was a very "interesting" appointment... full of jabs about my weight like "go home and eat an orange," "throw out all your junk food and replace it with vegetables," "learn how to say no to McDonald's," "take responsibility for your actions instead of trying to blame them on a disease" (when I asked about thyroid), "you caused your cycle to go off by gaining this much weight" (100 pounds in a year and a half, like I did it for fun), and "take a deep breath, drink some tea, and deal with it" (about my 15 years worth of panic attacks/anxiety and 6 years worth of PTSD). Needless to say, I won't be seeing her again.

But she did do a few useful things. She sent me for bloodwork, which I just got done yesterday. She ordered an ultrasound, which I haven't done yet. And she started me on Microgestin FE 1/20 birth control pills, which I'm now on day 14 of.

They took 2 days to stop my period, and my period was gone for 5 gloriously wonderful days. And then I started cramping like a full period and spotting light brown, with the occasional light red. I called the doctor's office and talked to the nurse, she said it's normal. My questions then are:

a) Is it normal for it to last 7 days? How long should I expect this cramping and light brown to continue? At what point will something be changed (different pill or different dose or whatever) if it doesn't stop?

b) Is it normal for birth control pills to help panic/anxiety? I still worry, get anxious, etc. but I haven't had a single panic attack in the 2 weeks I've been on this stuff. I normally pass out at bloodwork, and while I was scared as heck - I didn't actually panic. It's very weird, but I'm totally not complaining.

c) Can I get a transvaginal ultrasound to check for cysts in my ovaries while I'm cramping and having this light brown blood? Or do I have to wait for it to be over?

[LJ is being kind of weird right now, I keep getting errors when I try to load or post to journals. While writing this post I hit preview, and it posted instead of previewed. I tried to edit and it deleted instead of edited. Oy. Sorry to the mods for that little mess.]

Life after unwanted body hair from birth control?

Tue, 14 May 2013 09:24:10 GMT

I've only been taking Alesse for a month and it's been great for past problems that make me reluctant about taking HBC (mood disturbances, fatigue, weight gain, reduced libido) and it would be my perfect pill, except it's made my skin and hair go wild. It's even improved genital sensation for me, which is the opposite of the other pills I've tried. The acne I'm getting under control, but at the rate I'm getting new, dark body hair over the course of this month, I'm going to look like a caveman in 6 if I keep taking it. I'm already on 100mg of spironolactone from my dermatologist which is an antiandrogen so I'd hate to see what Alesse would have done to me *without* it. I could tough out the greasies on my face, but as soon as I saw the dark hair on the back of my thighs and started picking neck hairs I was done. I'm on my placebo week now and seeing my GP about switching brands but my question is whether this new body hair is here to stay. Is not taking the Alesse any more enough to make the hair go away or is it one of those things where once it's triggered in your body, you're stuck with it? Higher spiro doses and the very antiandrogenic bcps are what make me depressed/fatigued/etc so that's not a very pleasant option for me if so :(
I don't know whether switching to a similar pill like Loestrin would keep me down the same path of getting visibly worse over little time, but it's frustrating that Alesse still ticks so many of the right boxes - it's just that one huge, screaming dealbreaker.

MMMMonday: International Day Against Homophoboa & Transphobia

Tue, 14 May 2013 03:17:17 GMT

Sorry this is late, folks! My dog broke my Internet! (Okay, not really. But my Internet was not Interneting.)

Years ago, as a quite new teacher, I referred a student to my administrators for calling another a "faggot." Prior to this event, I'd tried other disciplinary steps for the student and had observed a pattern of harassment. Still, I was worried, simply because of the conservative area and the nature of the referral, that admin would write it off.

To my surprise, they didn't.

To my greater surprise, the parent came to school to contest the punishment. "Why shouldn't my kid get to call a faggot a faggot?"

About a month or so ago, while brainstorming topics for my state's Planned Parenthood Advocates blog, I learned about the existence of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, which happens to be this Friday. My first thought was that confronting anti-gay and anti-trans prejudices shouldn't need its own day because it's something we should be doing every day.

Because there are plenty of people energetically doing the opposite.

I know that VP isn't a space for politics, but I'm going to go there for a bit -- because I think treating all people respectfully shouldn't be a politically controversial act.

You may have heard about Arizona's proposed "bathroom bill"? It would have made it illegal for someone to use a restroom if the sex designation of the restroom did not match the sex designation on that person's birth certificate. It could well have made it tricky, triggering, or outright dangerous for trans or genderqueer people to enter a public restroom. After receiving some negative national attention, the bill's sponsor decided to pursue a different angle. Unfortunately, that legislation is even worse as it would actually make it illegal for municipalities to enact certain anti-discrimination ordinances or policies based on gender identity or expression.

People shouldn't have to be afraid to pee. People shouldn't have to fear being legislatively barred from using a locker room, particularly when there's already so much social baggage tied up in locker rooms -- especially for anyone whose appearance doesn't fit current standards for what is acceptable and normal. In that vein, both proposals have the potential to harm people who have non-normative gender expressions -- women who appear "too masculine," men who appear "too feminine," not coincidentally some of the same people who are likely to be bullied with words like "dyke" and "faggot" -- regardless of whether those folks are trans.

What makes me fearful is that this isn't just one school student; this isn't just one student's parent. These are multiple people -- the bill's sponsor and the committee members who approved the first version, at least -- in positions of power. As I'm sure at least some members of their constituencies are trans, these are legislators who -- as part of their professional actions -- are actively seeking to harm a portion of the people they're supposed to represent.

And I don't know what to do with that. I mean, yes -- I've contacted the legislators who've supported the bill, my own legislators, and any other legislators I think will listen. But I also fear that -- if these are the public words and official acts of people we've elected to help and safeguard -- this is just the tip of a very big iceberg.

How have you, or people you know, worked to confront anti-gay and anti-trans prejudices? What suggestions do you, or they, have for others looking to do so?

Probiotic vaginal suppositories for YI

Tue, 14 May 2013 02:51:50 GMT

Practical question: Has anyone tried some of these, homemade or store-bought?

Also: I've heard some people say online that applying probiotics directly to the vagina isn't helpful. Does anyone know why that would be, since if part of one's problem in a YI is that there isn't enough good bacteria, putting more right in the area wouldn't help?

Hard, Painful Lump on Upper Labia Minora

Tue, 14 May 2013 02:07:54 GMT

Hi Everyone,

I tried to get in to see a doctor, but it seems like all of the gynecologists around here are booked for about a month out. Anyway, this is the first time that this has ever happened to me, but I have a tender, hard lump on my labia minora.

I read about Bartholin's gland cysts and abscesses, but mine is definitely up higher/more forward than that (like, closer to my clitoris area as opposed to at my vaginal canal...not that it's anywhere near my clitoris - I'm just trying to explain where on my labia minora it is, if that makes sense)...so it's not really anywhere near the area of the Bartholin's glands.

Anyway, it just started as a hard bump that I noticed this morning while washing in the shower. I noticed that the area felt tender, and it didn't take me long to find this when I started feeling around. Since then, it seems to have gotten larger and more pronounced. It might be just slightly smaller than the size of a pea right now, and it's tender to the touch and when I sit certain ways.

It seems like it's under the skin, because the skin doesn't seem abraded or abnormal...maybe just stretched out to accommodate the lump.

So...what is this, and what can I do? Will it get a lot worse?

I guess just a little bit more background on me: I'm 26 years old and I'm married, with no kids yet. My husband and I are monogamous.

Oh, and I also think I have a yeast infection. I have been getting progressively itchier for weeks now, and I think I've been smelling kind of bread-like for a few days now. My discharge is thick and white today, so it seems like it's getting worse. What can I use to get rid of it? I'm mostly worried that if I use Monistat, it will somehow interfere with my Paragard (copper) IUD.

Thanks a bunch!

Position Advice? (Cis-Female, Cis-Male Sex)

Mon, 13 May 2013 18:34:34 GMT

So I have a relatively new partner, and we've come to that part of the sexytimes that never quite works for me -- me being on top. I am a cis-female, he is a cis-male. He's on the larger end of the spectrum of male penises I've encountered, and is able to maintain an erection in missionary and me-on-all-fours positions. He's interested in sex with me on top, but when we do it, he loses some of his rigidity and it's not particularly pleasurable for me (as well as being a hell of a lot of work for my thighs and core.)

Any thoughts on how to keep him harder and how to just generally make this better for me? I've never liked being on top...I guess I could try masturbating that way more often, but it just seems to be murder on my legs and it is so frustrating that I usually end up crying. He likes to stimulate my nipples but it's like they just go numb in this position and it's not terribly pleasurable. Maybe a cock ring? I dunno. Help!

Some physical info, in case it helps.
Him: Late 40s, normal weight, runs 5 or 6 days a week. No health problems he knows of.
Me: 35, overweight, cycle 5 or 6 days a week, Pilates five days a week. Mild arthritis and tendonitis in right hip. (My discomfort during sex is very symmetrical between my left and right legs, so I don't think the arthritis is what's causing the problem although it's probably not helping, either!)

Mon, 13 May 2013 17:28:47 GMT

So for the last couple weeks, I have been having one day U.T.I.s. the symptoms are common ones but it only lasts the day and then it's gone. Also, for the last week and a half, my lower back has been extremely sore. Not like period cramps, but like my bones/muscles are sore or something. What could this be?

Links Round Up: Week Ending 12 May 2013

Sun, 12 May 2013 17:15:36 GMT

Hi and welcome to our latest edition of the Links Round Up! Also, happy Mother's Day to moms and other folks celebrating!

For those who may not know, the LRU is a compilation of items from the past week that may be of interest to VPers and is intended to broaden the kinds of conversations we have here.

To submit articles for next week's round-up, e-mail frolicnaked@vaginapagina.com. If you have additional articles you'd like folks to know about this week, feel free to comment directly to this post.

As a reminder, in lieu of trigger warnings, I use keywords describing the themes of the piece. Please skim these before deciding to read the excerpt or click through for the full article. Outside sources are not safe spaces, and mainstream source's comments should almost always be avoided. The links I highlight don't necessarily reflect VP's views, or even my own, for that matter.

This week's round-up includes: abstinence education and rape survivors, adoptees finding birth parents, sperm cells created from a female embryo, survivors and masturbation, and the pursuit of thinness.

Elizabeth Smart: Abstinence Education Teaches Rape Victims They’re Worthless, Dirty, And Filthy by Tara Culp-Ressler at ThinkProgress (Keywords: sex education, abstinence, child sexual abuse, rape, victim blaming)
Social psychologists and sexual abuse counselors agree that comprehensive sex education can help prevent sexual crimes. Teaching children about their bodies gives them the tools to describe acts of abuse without feeling as embarrassed or uncomfortable, and it also helps elevate their self-confidence and sense of bodily autonomy. A shame-based approach to genitalia and sexuality, on the other hand, sends kids the message that they can’t discuss or ask questions about any of those issues.

Adoptees Shouldn't Have to Use Facebook to Find Their Birth Parents by Emily Matchar at The Atlantic (Keywords: US, adoption, birth parents, Facebook)
"Imagine a world where adult adoptees could access their birth records like EVERY other American and know the name they were given," she writes. "Then they wouldn't have to post pictures of themselves on Facebook holding signs with personal information all over. Then they wouldn't have to beg for strangers for shares in order to find out who they look like and if cancer runs in their family."

Sperm cells created from female embryo by Roger Highfield at The Telegraph (Keywords: biology, gender, sperm, stem cells)
British scientists who had already coaxed male bone marrow cells to develop into primitive sperm cells have now repeated the feat with female embryonic stem cells.

The University of Newcastle team that has achieved the feat is now applying for permission to turn the bone marrow of a woman into sperm which, if successful, would make the method more practical than with embryonic cells.

5 reasons for survivors to reclaim masturbation by Jen at We Can Come Home: Orgasm as radical self care (Keywords: orgasm, masturbation, sexual violence, dissociation)
I don’t often write these sorts of numbered lists, but today I’m thinking about why it matters that survivors of sexual violence reclaim their bodies, reclaim their desire, reinstate their sovereignty over their skin and hungers, taking all of it, every fiber, every nerve response, every singe of shame, every swallow of sorrow, every sob, every shapeshifted fantasy, every trauma-inflected stroke, back from the hands of the person or people who tried to teach us that our bodies weren’t our own.

Why I Don’t Diet – An Ode to My Father by Tiffany at More Cabaret (Keywords: death, dieting, weight loss -- with numbers, body image)
My father was born larger than life, to a family of larger than life people. DNA sequencing showed we are almost entirely Viking stock, no great surprise given the height and breadth of our bodies....

But he didn’t want to be a giant. He wanted to be thin.

Thoughts on any of these stories? Also, what have you been reading (or writing!) this week?

Post-Abortion Cramping?

Sun, 12 May 2013 05:08:00 GMT

Sorry to spam the community with posts, but I'm really concerned about the cramping I'm having today. It's day 4 after my surgical abortion, and I'm having severe cramps. Like 7-8 out of 10 on the pain scale, even with ibuprofen. I had almost no cramping until now, and other than passing a smallish clot yesterday, I've had no bleeding or clots, just tiny specks here and there of what looks like lining. I know there's something called "3-5 day syndrome" that is supposed to happen after an abortion, where you're suddenly hit with increased cramping and bleeding, along with clots, but everything I've read about it emphasizes bleeding and clots, neither of which I have. Just the cramping. Anyone know what could be going on? I'm worried that maybe something is blocking my cervix or something, but I don't know if that's a valid concern.

Messed up periods and ovary pain?

Sun, 12 May 2013 05:03:34 GMT

Hey VP! I Googled this without a lot of helpful results, so hopefully some of you guys could help me out.
Some background info: I'm a 20 year old cis female, and I've been on Trinessa since I was 14. My periods have been like clockwork while on BC til now.
Last month when I had my period, it was more like spotting than an actual period. I also had some weird symptoms during it and for a week afterwards(nausea, extreme food cravings, super heightened sex drive, constipation). I was about to take a pregnancy test, but I missed 2 light blue pills and started bleeding. I've missed pills without bleeding before, but I thought it would stop once I got back on track with my pills. It didn't. For a week it seemed like I was having a normal period, then it lessened to light spotting and hasn't stopped since. I took my first placebo pill yesterday, so the spotting has gotten heavier. I also got this dull pain in my lower right abdomen accompanied by slight nausea. At first I was freaking out thinking it was appendicitis, but the nausea went away and I also developed a pain on the left side that felt the same. The pain is in a specific spot and if I press on it, it feels like a bruise. Not super painful or anything, but it hurts a little bit. Could it be ovary pain? And if so, why? I'm wondering if there could be some sort of health issue because I've never ever had a messed up cycle on BC before. Or am I worrying about nothing?
Thanx in advance for the advice!

Cysts or Endometriosis? Or maybe nothing?

Sat, 11 May 2013 23:45:30 GMT

This is going to get long. I've suffered from what I was told were fluid-filled cysts bursting nearly every cycle since 2009. The first time it happened, I had been in pain all day (which was normal, horrible cramps sometimes causing me to miss school have been a thing since I got my period at 11) and was grocery shopping when I felt like a shaken can of soda had been opened in my pelvic area. It hurt and there was pressure at the upper right edge of my pubic area. I went to the emergency room without insurance, and a very kind and caring doctor examined me and told me it was probably non-dangerous cysts and to deal with it, because surgery can reduce chances of ever having children.
I can also remember being young, before ever having my first period, and having a lump in the spot mentioned above. It swells up occasionally and looks like there's a ping pong ball under my skin. I used to relieve the pain and pressure of it by pushing that lump back in (probably not a great idea, really). This lump still shows up often and is irritated by doing anything other than laying relatively flat on my back or left side (pain and lump are always on the right side).
The last several months, my period isn't a "normal" trickle of blood, but a huge gush every 45 minutes or so. The gush will soak a pad (I can't use tampons the first few days because it hurts too much) and leave a pool of blood on top of that. It's not just when I stand up or get out of bed, but even at work (waiting tables) it will gush like that.
I typically have longer cycles, and have regularly missed months (skipped January 3 years in a row), but the past six months or so, I have a big, gushing period mid-month (usually starts the 16th or so) that lasts 5-7 days, and then a week to ten days after that ends, I have another couple of days of random gushes.
This past month, I had my 5-7 day period, then a week of nothing, then two days of random gushes, then a few days of nothing, and then dark brown awful smelling thicker blood gushes for about a week.
I'm only 23 and I desperately want to have children someday. I don't have insurance and can't afford to go in for a diagnosis that I can't do anything about. I have a mental health diagnosis that hasn't meshed well with HBC pills in the past. The shot caused incredible headaches, spotting, weight gain, and mood swings. Mirena was a nightmare, causing 6 weeks of steady bleeding before it worked its way out of me; I went to the ER once and found out it was out of place, my body was pushing it out and the doctor told me I'd basically been in labor for several days/weeks (and that pain wasn't unbearable compared to what I've dealt with otherwise).
When my "cysts" act up, everything goes black, I lean against a wall or grab the counter, and hold my breath. This pain happens at least one week out of the month.
Somewhat unrelated, the women in my family have a multitude of feminine health issues. My dad's sisters both had hysterectomies for fibroids in their late 20s/early 30s. My mom had cervical pre-cancer at 27.

If you read all of that, thank you. I hope I didn't gross you out. What I'm looking for is some advice or support. I tried to talk to my boyfriend about it and he thinks I shouldn't worry. "It might be as simple as a vitamin deficiency" he says. I'm scared that I won't ever be able to have children, and/or that I'll have years of pain to endure just to wait until I can have children and then a hysterectomy.

No period for two months?

Sat, 11 May 2013 20:22:22 GMT

Hey, everyone.

As the title says, it's been two months since my last period, and I have no idea whats going on! I havent really had any PMS symptoms these last two months. My PMS symptoms are usually weakness, tender breasts, and i break out a lot - but none of that has happened.

The only thing I can think of is a suppliment ive been taking that has some pretty prominent antiestrogen properties. I took it for one month (which explained the first missed period) and have been off it for one month. I also started a new brand of HBC at the beginning of this month. Also, i've been pretty damn stressed these last few months and have been feeling quite depressed, which also could have contributed.

In the first month I was worried I could be pregnant, but in the last few months ive only had sex 3 or 4 times, all protected AND while i was on HBC. Obviously I know thats no guarantee, but that mixed with no real symptoms in the last two months has made me not too worried about that, though i may take a test next week to be sure.

Just thought i'd ask everyone elses opinions - should I be really worried?