The Planned Parenthood receptionist I talked to on the phone says that the nurse can write me an excused absence note

Yes, I made the appointment the morning after Election Day. It’s in 10 days. My girlfriend knows I’m anxious about it. I might reward myself with a good snack and some rest afterwards. I have class on the day I’m getting the implant, but there were only two appointments left in November so I might h...

I go to college out of state, so my dad wouldn’t be able to go with me. I was thinking of bringing my girlfriend. She’s been to urgent care with me before and she’s very supportive.

I talked to my dad about it again and he was much more open to learning the facts. My mom has untreated anxiety so she tends to overreact to medical things. I’m nervous to get the implant because I have PTSD associated with going to the doctor, and I hate needles. Also, sometimes numbing injections ...

Do you have any ideas for reducing my anxiety about the implant, and how I can ignore my parents’ judgment about it? I’m a legal adult so I can do whatever I want, but it’s really hard to deal with them calling me dumb and crazy.

I’m doing ok on the pills but I’m scared that the republicans will restrict access to birth control or ban it. So I have an appointment to get the implant in 2 weeks. My parents think I’m crazy and overreacting but my therapist said I should get the implant if it gives me peace of mind. Am I overrea...

The nurse who didn’t intervene is the health center director and she’s almost always at the front desk if she’s not with a patient. Sometimes there’s no one else available. I could probably ask to see someone else, though. My therapist and my partner both think I should go to the urgent care 1 mile ...

I might go to group therapy but I’m not going to pelvic PT. I’ve been doing exercises and using dilators on my own and making a lot of progress. Pelvic PT would trigger me too much

I don’t want to go into detail with this, but I recently realized that an experience I had at the doctor last year could be considered sexual abuse. It was at my campus health center and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t work there anymore. The nurse who was supervising and didn’t do anything is still the...

I’ve been thinking more about it and I’m probably going to introduce myself with my new pronouns in class and in school clubs. I don’t want to go backwards, and my dysphoria doesn’t really give me a choice.

The main thing I’m worried about is introducing myself in classes and student orgs with my pronouns. I don’t know if I feel comfortable saying I use they/them, but I also don’t like misgendering myself.

I’ve been going by they/them pronouns during my summer job and I really like it. I’m an office assistant at an LGBTQ center. I have a few trans coworkers and everyone’s nice to me. Outside of work, I’m only out to my girlfriend and my 2 best friends. My college leans liberal and all the professors a...

I’m probably some kind of nonbinary, maybe genderfluid. I just know I’m not a cis woman but I don’t want to be seen as a man either. I’ve seen videos of people who take very low doses of testosterone to look more androgynous and I’m interested. I’m not sure though because I don’t want to end up so m...

Thanks for the advice. I could see myself getting upset if I can’t get the smallest dilator in because I’m still insecure about having vaginismus but I know it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with me as a person.

Yes, I’d like to talk about it. I’m anxious that the smallest one won’t go in because I can’t insert my own finger. I’m also anxious that it will hurt a lot.

Thanks for all the advice! I think I’ll use the first appointment to talk to the doctor and deny a pelvic exam until a future appointment. But maybe it would hurt less because I’ll have been training for a few weeks. I’m anxious about starting to use the dilators.

What would possible accommodations be? I have an ativan prescription and that’s all I can think of,

Thank you, I think that would help. The idea of her inserting a finger stresses me out because it’ll hurt a lot. I’ve tried it and there’s burning pain for up to 20 minutes after. I definitely feel traumatized from previous failed/painful pelvic exams. The thought of it makes me want to cry. Maybe I...

I read part 2 of the article and I’ve looked at recommendations on Reddit. I’m thinking of buying the small set on Intimate Rose. I’d like to learn about advocating for myself at the doctor. Am I allowed to turn down a pelvic exam? I don’t think it’ll be physically possible for her to insert anythin...

I’ve talked on here before about how I had several failed internal exams, and the one time I could actually get a Pap smear I was in excruciating pain during it and for the rest of the day. In the past few months I can’t insert a tampon and I can’t even get 1 finger in with a lot of lube. The only t...

Yeah, I could check their social media to see what events they have.

Thank you both for the advice! My college has a queer organization and there’s an lgbtq community center nearby. I haven’t been to either but I could try. I don’t think I have time to join an intramural league right now but it’s a good option for the future. Almost all of my current friends are quee...

Yeah I’d like that! Just so you know, I’m sober and don’t go to bars or clubs.

Thank you for sending that article; it helped a lot! I don’t have any lesbian friends so I don’t feel a strong sense of community.

I have a very strong preference for giving sexually and I’m not into having my genitals touched. I get physical pleasure from seeing and hearing my girlfriend enjoying what I’m doing to her. I’ve tried receiving manual and oral sex before and it makes me uncomfortable. My girlfriend, on the other ha...