Anonymous asked: my vagina has a kind of fishy smell ... what should i do? im only 14 so i refuse to go to my parents or to a doctor... is this a serious medical condition? is there any home remedies i can use? please help. :s
UMMMMM … I just want everyone reading this to take a second and appreciate the fact that I am answering q’s (just like this one!) directly before dinner. Love you that much.
SO. A stinky vagina is unlikely to kill you but without knowing more about this “kind of fishy smell” or your sexual history, it’s near impossible for me to tell you how serious the situation really is. All vaginas have a smell and discharge - that’s totally normal. I don’t have an odor-o-meter, so I don’t know what “kind of fishy” means. That said, if your vagina smells like the inside of a fish market and it’s accompanied by burning, itching, or funny-colored discharge, then you’ve got a problem. And that problem could be a form of vaginitis called bacterial vaginosis (yes, you can get this even without having sex) or it could be an indicator of a STI or it could be Mystery Pussy Disease X. I really don’t know, since 1) I’m not a doctor and 2) I’m working with, like, four sentences worth of information. So on the off-chance that shady stuff is, in fact, occurring down there, you really should see a doctor just to make sure.
My one piece of advice is that whatever you do, DO NOT DOUCHE OR WASH OUT THE INSIDE OF YOUR VAGINA. It’s not necessary as your body cleans itself, and douching will actually do more harm than good. If you do it anyway, it will mess with your vaginal pH levels, which can put you at risk for the same medical conditions that lead to fishy smells. I know, the IRONY! Even the US government doesn’t want you to douche, okay? Okay.
If you absolutely cannot go see a real live doctor with this issue, I suggest you head over to the Scarleteen boards and ask a volunteer for help. Good luck!
More burning questions? Ask Lena.
Would you like to see me do sexual health coverage and reader Q&A’s on video? Head over to SHAPE Magazine to vote for TheChicktionary.com in the Best Blogger Awards. (It’s super easy to vote, just a click!)
