White discharge

[rexcody]

I always have normal clear discharges consistency and amount but it is just these past few days where my discharge have been white and thick but no odor and no other weird things happening to my body. It started when my boyfriend fingered me on the last day of my period until he said something white was coming out with no smell. We did it again twice in the next 5days and the same thing happened. After 1.5 weeks my discharhe has been white and thick paste like, no smell. This is just unusual for me. It’s been clear discharges for me eversince. I hope you could help me out.

[Heather]

It's actually very normal to have this kind of discharge both/either after a period ends and before ovulation begins and then again, towards the end of a cycle. It's also typical for menstrual/fertility cycles, including discharges, not to stay the same for a long time, and to particularly not be the same once they settle in as it all was the first 3-5 years of having periods.

This kind of discharge often won't show up in underpants because of its thickness, but when you often will discover it is when, for instance, someone has their hands inside the vagina. So, if that's new to you or your boyfriend, it may well be you've always had this kind of discharge, this is just the first time you're really aware of it because manual sex (fingering) is new to you.

If it's not, are you up-to-date with your current sexual healthcare, including pap smears, if recommended for you?

[rexcody]

Thanks for the reply!
So it is really normal to have (now) white discharges which was then clear? Even during arousal it was white but more liquid type. Can discharges really vary month to month? Thanks!

[rexcody]

It’s been at least three months since we started manual sex and it’s our first time to see such white discharge...

[Heather]

During every menstrual and fertility cycle, you're going to have different discharges, very much including at least *some* thick (some people describe it as "dry" instead), white generally odorless discharge. It really is sounding to me like you just didn't notice before because -- pardon me if this sounds crass, just trying to be clear -- you didn't have someone putting their fingers inside your vagina to scoop it out. Like I said, that kind of discharge often doesn't wind up on underpants for some people because it just stays inside the vagina due to its lack of fluidity.

The fact that you're only now seeing it is probably about timing: this may have just been the first time at this stage of your cycle you were having manual sex. Too, it could have been there was just more of that discharge for you in this cycle than there was the last few, because, yep, it can vary.

With arousal, the fluid your body will produce with that is clear, not white: but the fluids that are around not because of arousal, but because of the fertility cycle can get mixed in with other fluids, so yep, that can look whitish sometimes, too.

Here's two pieces that can tell you a bit more about all this (though I'm fine talking about it with you more, too, if you want):
• On the Rag: A Guide to Menstruation
• Honorably Discharged: A Guide to Vaginal Secretions

[rexcody]

So the white discharge can be a result of hormonal changes? Discharges aren’t really i worry about before, it’s just that it is white for this cycle which I never had in the last three months. My period will be due next week and im still experiencing this type of discharge which i would like to believe is normal coming from your answers and other stuff i read. Could you please tell me more what triggers these white discharges during post menstruation and during ovulation? I would also like to ask if this type of discharge at this period of time can be a symptom of pregnancy? Just curious. Thank you, you’ve been really helpful.

[Heather]

Yep: that discharge is probably about your fertility and menstrual cycle, and those are all about hormones.

Were you able to read those articles I linked you to? The On The Rag article answers exactly the question you're asking about the why of this.