What could brown discharge mean?

[Sunflower12345]

Hi last week I noticed some brown spotting in my underwear and when I wiped there was a brownish tint to my discharge along with a trace of what could possibly be blood. It happened a week after my period ended, around the time of when I am supposedly predicted to ovulate. I am a little nervous because I did have sex right after my period ended and I have read about stuff called implantation bleeding so I'm worried it could be that. However, I did use a condom and it looked like it never broke or tear. Should I be concerned?

[Heather]

I'm not sure what you mean by "supposedly predicted." Honestly, no one else but you can accurately predict your fertility, and in order to do that, you need to be charting at least cervical mucus every day, at least for 3-6 months of regular cycles, and then you need to know how to analyze that data properly, do so, and keep doing all that every day. Apps often freak people out or mislead them by giving you the idea they can predict this accurately for you: they can't. It's just much more work than knowing when you had a period.

Brown discharge can mean a bunch of things. In the kind of timing you're talking about, it's probably just your usual discharge with a bit of residual menstrual flow left over, and it looks brown because it's been around for a while. It can also be a signal of infection, so if this keeps happening, or doesn't stop after a day or two, make sure you're up to date with your STI tests, and if not, get up to date. Implantation bleeding is not only rare, and when it happens, often so skimpy no one even notices, but when they do, it's red or pink, not brown.

If you are concerned about pregnancy, the thing to do is to take a test.

While you're here, are you comfortable using condoms alone? If not, do you want to talk about your options in finding another method to use with them?

[Sunflower12345]

Thank you so much for replying! The reason why I even used the word predicted was because I know tracking from an app is not a really accurate way of knowing when you're actually ovulating but I thought the coincidence was weird so I was concerned. I only recently became sexually active and only since then have I found about the effectiveness of condoms from websites like this (unsurprisingly I wasn't given proper sex education in school) and it led me to be a little concerned so I'm abstaining until I am able to get an implant.

[Heather]

Gotcha! (Honestly, I could kick those apps in the shins for all the unnecessary worry they cause people. I've been watching my fitness tracker app presume to tell me when I'm "fertile" which has been particularly amusing in my case not only as someone who learned to chart almost 30 years ago, but who is at the place in perimenopause where it is very, very likely I am probably not fertile anymore, period, let alone in a given week they feel I should be based only on my occasional periods.)

Did you want that implant sooner rather than later? I ask just in case you want some help seeing if there are ways (and there often are) you can get it for free or very low cost, etc.

[Sunflower12345]

I do want it sooner and it is covered by my insurance 100% my only issue is getting to the appointment because my parents are fairly conservative about stuff like that so I would have to go by myself behind their back. I am 18 and I've already made sure that they don't access to my medical information anymore, it's simply a matter of finding the right time to go and get it.

[Siân]

Sounds like you have it covered! Any part of the process you want to talk through?

[Sunflower12345]

I was actually curious as to what the process is like in terms of the procedure for it. Like how quick is it, is it painful and do I need to do anything for it after it's been put in?

[Sam W]

Hi Sunflower12345,

All excellent questions! The actual procedure generally takes under a minute, plus a little time beforehand for the healthcare provider to get everything ready. In terms of pain, some of it depends on your own pain tolerance, but you'll be given a local anesthetic at the insertion site, so that should cut down on most of the possible discomfort. You may also experience some bruising or pain around the insertion site in the days following the procedure.

Your provider will likely give you instructions on how to care for site after the implant is in (and if they don't you can definitely ask them). Generally, all you have to do is keep a clean bandage in place for a few days.