Doctor's advice - Frequent vaginal discharge worries me

Frequent vaginal discharge worries me

Q. I am a 19-year-old woman, and I have a problem with vaginal discharge.

This discharge is so heavy and frequent that I have to be changing my underwear very often.

Also, sometimes when I have sex, I notice a little blood afterwards.

Is this serious, Doc?

A. I am sorry to hear about this. Sadly, vaginal discharge is a big problem for a lot of young women, particularly in the years soon after they start having sex.

But I do not think that you have anything that is serious in the sense of being life-threatening. Try not to fret.

However, you do probably have quite a bad infection in the vagina. As with so many of these infections, it was almost certainly acquired through sex.

What could the infection be? Well, the main possibilities are:

Chlamydia;

Trichomonas vaginalis (TV or 'trich');

Thrush (also known as candida or monilia), which many people in Jamaica call yeast infection;

Gonorrhoea ('the clap');

Bacterial vaginosis (BV).

I must add that there is also just a chance that your discharge could be caused by a retained foreign body, most often, a forgotten tampon.

I cannot tell you which of those half-dozen diagnoses is the correct one. But what is quite clear is that you must go to a doc now and be examined. He/she will have a look to see whether there is any bleeding area.

She will also take swabs to send to the lab. She will be able to make a firm diagnosis and then put you on the right therapy.

Do not delay. See the doc next week. Until then, do not have sex. I wish you well.

Q. I am a 17-year-old male. A few years ago, I found a lump a little below my ear. It was smaller now than when I first found it.

When I touch it too much, it kinda gets inflamed and starts to hurt a bit.

I was wondering if it is a tumour? Or could it be cancer?

A Well, a tumour is just a swelling. So I think you can forget about that one.

As to cancer, I am glad to say that cancer is very rare at age 17. This lump has been around for several years without doing you any harm. So I am of the opinion that it is most unlikely to be cancer.

So what is it? Well, a lot of young guys get small swellings near their ears. The common causes are:

1. A swollen gland (lymph gland);

2. A lipoma (which is a harmless swelling of fatty tissue).

Have a doc check it out even though it might turn out to be harmless.

Q. Last month, I saw my period twice. It came only 18 days after the previous one.

Is that normal?

A No, it is not normal, but it's nothing to fret about. Young women often do get mildly irregular menses for a while. This can happen because of hormonal changes, or because something has upset them emotionally. Frequently, the periods soon go back to being regular.

So I don't thing you need take any action at the moment. But if your menstruation continues to be irregular, you should see a doc and ask her if you need any medication to regulate your cycle.

Q. I am a 25-year-old guy who weighs 180 pounds. Am I too heavy?

A. The average weight for a guy of your age and height is 170 pounds. So it seems likely that you are carrying just a little much, and would benefit from losing a few pounds.

These days, it is possible for anyone, male or female, who wants to check their weight against their height to look at a helpful website. It is www.halls.md/ideal-weight.

Q. I am a young female thinking of using birth control. What is the best method of contraception for a woman my age?

A. It is largely a question of what suits you, and what you are happy with. But worldwide, the most popular method of contraception for younger women is now the Pill.

It has the added benefit of making the menses shorter, lighter, regular and pain-free.

But it can have side effects. And it's not such a good idea for anyone who is a heavy or moderate smoker because that increases the chances of those side effects.

Q. My fiancé and I have been dating for five years now. He is living in St Andrew, and I am living in St James. He is 15 years older than I.

The relationship was initially rocky, but we were in love. We don't get to see each other often, but when we do, we have always had fun. However, something is now wrong.

He recently took sick with diabetes and high blood pressure. After that, he just shut down. He doesn't talk to me, and he's always complaining that he's tired. He doesn't hug or kiss me anymore, and we don't have sex.

Whenever I try, he just says, "I'm not in the mood."

I love him, but he's rejecting me. I don't know what to do. Help, please! Could he be seeing someone else?

A. I very much doubt it. Incidentally, you will see that I have altered one or two small details of your email so that you will not be recognised.

My feeling is this: Your man has recently developed two illnesses - diabetes and high blood pressure.

Diabetes often gives guys all the symptoms you mention. The drugs which are used for high blood pressure frequently do the same. So I think there are two good medical reasons why he is tired and why he doesn't seem to have enough energy for sex.

The vital thing now is for him to get his blood sugar under control. If that is done, it is probable that he will be much less tired, and that his sex drive will return to normal.

Also, someone should review his blood pressure medication to see if the pills he is taking are helping to make him tired.

Does he have a good doctor in St James? I hope so. I think that - with your boyfriend's permission - you should see that doc. Explain what the symptoms are, and ask him to adjust your boyfriend's medication in order to try to get him back to his normal self. Good luck.

Q. I breastfeed my baby. I want to take ginkgo biloba because it helps my study.

But will the ginkgo harm him?

A. So far, no one has proved that ginkgo can enter the breast milk and harm the child.

But it is possible that it might do so.

Incidentally, it has been claimed that ginkgo increases the flow of breast milk. However, I can find no scientific proof of that.

Got any questions for Doc? Send feedback to him at saturdaylife@gleanerjm.com.