Change in Period

[Booksandoceans]

Hello I’m a 19 year old girl and I’ve been really concerned because my current period and my period before this has been unusually light. Usually, I would bleed heavily within a few hours and then change my pad, but then the bleeding is quite light now. It has never been like this before, which makes me worried.

Before this happened, my bf fingered me around the time I was ovulating. He also briefly grinded naked against me, but I had cotton underwear the entire time and no ejaculation while doing so. I was worried that maybe there was precum in his fingers, but I read your articles and saw that there is no pregnancy risk from precum and fingering. Coincidence? I haven’t even had protected sex since July and even then I had regular flow twice. However, now it just looks odd

I have been exercising 2x a week (2 hours only every week) because of PE. I do weights, core, leg exercises, and high intensity interval training for like 10 mins because of my teacher. Could this change my period, even if I am not intensely exercising daily like an athlete? I have also been stressed with school and sometimes even wake up at 3am just to study. Would it be rational for me to take a test just for peace of mind?

Thank you for everything you do I appreciate all that you do in this site

[Sam W]

Hi BooksandOceans,

It's not unusual to have your period flow vary from time to time. Most people will have months when their periods are heavier or lighter than they're used to. The reproductive system is pretty sensitive so lots of things (rest, activity, how and what we eat, stress, and health changes) can influence our cycle. It sounds like those changes are the likely explanation for what you're experiencing, in which case it's not cause for concern.

[Booksandoceans]

Hi! Thank you so much! I hope this is okay to ask. Your articles state that precum in fingers is not possible to cause a pregnancy, however Planned Parenthood’s website say that it’s possible but not likely. I am a bit confused about this in particular, since I am not really knowledgeable about it. Again I hope it’s okay to ask this!

[Sam W]

We can't say why Planned Parenthood gives that explanation on their website. Based on the most current information we have about how pregnancy does and does not happen, we know that unless someone ejaculates on a hand and then immediately and deliberately puts that hand into the vagina (in other words, this is the kind of thing a person does on purpose, not by accident), there's just not a way for sperm that end up on someone's hands to survive and go on to create a pregnancy.

[Booksandoceans]

Hi! Sorry to bombard with questions, but I really want to educate myself more on this. There’s a lot of misinformation in the Internet and I am not sure anymore if I should believe them. I read a girl post a comment on a Reddit thread that she got pregnant from precum through fingering. Not sure if this is truthful information or perhaps there were other circumstances that happened that she failed to mention?

[Gone.Sorry.]

Well, personal anecdotes on reddit definitely aren't a medically verified source of facts backed by research, so I wouldn't put too much weight on anything you find there. If you have questions, it would be much better to consult with your doctor or another medically verified source rather than trawl reddit for scare stories. So, it's good you came here!

Precum does not contain (living) sperm, hence why you cannot get pregnant from it. However, rarely, ejaculate can leak into precum and then contain traces of viable sperm.
Furthermore, sperm can only live for so long outside the body. While it can survive for a couple of days in the wet, warm inside of your body, it can only live about 15 - 30 minutes outside the body before it dries up. Which is partly why it is so unlikely to get pregnant via sperm that's been exposed to air outside the body.
Finally, the higher the sperm count, the more sperm candidates there are available to fertilize an egg, increasing chances of pregnancy. Any sperm leaked into precum is going to be in small amounts and any ejaculate traces on the hand are going to be far less than what's directly released from the penis, resulting in lower sperm counts and therefore lower chance of pregnancy.

Put all those factors together and that's why, as Sam W explained earlier, the chances of getting pregnant from precum on fingers is really nonexistent and the chances of getting pregnant from sperm on fingers is very unlikely.

It's been a while since you first asked and it sounds like you're seeking out more information that maybe perhaps feeds into your fears. Have you been having a lot of anxiety about this? Is this something that's causing you a lot of doubt and worry and perhaps distracting you from other things you should be focusing on?

[Booksandoceans]

Hi! Thank you so much for the reply <3 I often visit this site to educate myself more, especially with so much misinformation online and from peers which cause a lot of confusion. Thank you for being kind and patient with the questions too.

Yes, I should admit that I have terrible general anxiety, and not just over this matter, but also a lot of things that concern me. I recall having a lot of breakdowns as a child due to anxiety and since I studied in a Catholic girls’ school all my life, the lack of sex education I received (actually, no sex education at all) and the stigma surrounding sex made me more anxious when I began to explore things with my BF.

I am learning to cope with my emotions by opening up to my friends and family. And yes, sometimes this anxiety gets in the way of my studies as a college student but I am trying to best to cope and take deep breaths.

[Sam W]

Hi Booksandoceans,

It's great that you're taking steps to be more comfortable opening up to people in your life about how you're feeling. In addition to those steps, have you ever gotten any professional support around your anxiety from someone like a therapist?

Since you mention that you think your time at Catholic school might be playing a role here, I want to give you this article: Impurity Culture: Pregnancy and Fear. The whole "Impurity Culture" series that's a part of may be of interest to you, but that article talks specifically about dealing with the fear that growing up with shame-filled, religious messages about sex can instill in you.

[Booksandoceans]

No, sadly I don’t seek professional help ( I would consider it when it gets too much. Thank you for the article and again for responding!

[Heather]

Do you want any help seeking out that kind of care? In the meantime, you also might find some of these resources -- including some helpful and free apps -- to help you manage your anxiety: https://www.scarleteen.com/anxiety_and_ ... _resources

[Booksandoceans]

Yes I would appreciate it. Thank you and I really appreciate it so much.

I hope it’s okay again if I can ask for advice since I find it really hard to open up about this to close friends and family. So this morning I got my period, but it is slightly the same as my periods for the past 2 cycles that I described in my first post here. The period flow has really changed and it is not as heavy on Day 1 as it has always been for years. I don’t know how to describe it, but the color is the same as period blood (red or dark red), but it’s like the blood consistency is kind of gooey? Not too thick or clumpy nor too watery. But when it comes out, it looks stretchy. And it seems like now the period blood doesn’t flow out by itself unless I urinate or try to “push” it out by contracting the muscles down there like I do when I urinate. It’s been like this for 3 periods ever since my BF fingered me really hard last September during my ovulation (with possible precum but we are actually not sure. Even if there were, it’s probably in very little amount).

I also trust that there is no pregnancy risk since you wrote that in your articles and I find Scarleteen to be credible for me. But given this, do you think it’s rational for me to visit a doctor, or am I simply overthinking things? Is it even possible that maybe this is caused by an STD or infection that affected my periods even if we are both monogamous and never dated anyone before each other?

I’ve talked to my BF and he is very patient and understanding with me, but he really thinks there is no way I could be pregnant since we haven’t done it in 5 months. My parents also know that my BF and I had sex last July and they were both very upset with me. We havent done it since, but the situation I am in is starting to affect me emotionally and mentally. Thank you!!

[Gone.Sorry.]

I think the staff will be better equipped to help you with resources for finding professional help for anxiety, so I'm going to leave that to them.

However, I can help with the period consistency you're noticing. First, I'm going to quote this from earlier:

Hi BooksandOceans,

It's not unusual to have your period flow vary from time to time. Most people will have months when their periods are heavier or lighter than they're used to. The reproductive system is pretty sensitive so lots of things (rest, activity, how and what we eat, stress, and health changes) can influence our cycle. It sounds like those changes are the likely explanation for what you're experiencing, in which case it's not cause for concern.

regarding your flow. For the consistency, it sounds like you just have some cervical mucus mixed in with your period blood. This can happen, and it's pretty normal!

Signs of STIs or other infections to look out for include:
- Flu like symptoms
- Odd discharge (ex. chunky texture, unpleasant odor, green color)
- Pain around the vulva area
- Persistent/severe itchiness around the vulva area
- Pain/burning during urination
- Soreness around the vulva area
- Swelling around the vulva area
- Bumpy rash, sores, or warts in the groin area or around the anus
- Lower abdomen pain (that isn't PMS)
- Fever, chills, night sweats
- Weight loss
- Persisting diarrhea
- Yellowing of skin
- Bleeding from the vagina in between periods

If you notice any symptoms like that, then a trip to the doctor could be in order!

But it sounds like you're having regular periods that are just lighter than you are used to. =)

[Booksandoceans]

Thank you for taking the time to respond! It means a lot. I don’t experience any of the odd symptoms that you listed, but I will keep a look out for it just in case.

So I talked to my BF recently and we discussed that he wouldn’t do anything to me in the meantime just to be safe. I think I should also mention that when my BF fingers, he does it quite rough and it always causes some slight bleeding that looks like spotting for 1-2 days. It also often hurts to urinate when he does it too rough. So over the past 2 months, I gradually didn’t let him finger me because of this. And the lesser he fingered rough, the more gradual my periods got (quite) slightly heavier.

We thought that maybe this rough fingering has changed my flow somehow? so we’re gonna abstain from it for now to avoid anything potentially serious. I am also not sure if my stress has ever affected my periods because I recall being very very stressed and sleep-deprived in HS, yet this never affected my period flow at all. So I can’t tell if stress is a factor that affected my flow. In the meantime, my BF and I are talking things through so we can discuss a solution together

[Alexa]

Hi Booksandoceans:

It sounds like you and your boyfriend may want to find a gentler or different way for him to touch you. The skin that makes up the vulva is mucosal tissue, which can tear more easily than other skin. If you are bleeding whenever he touches you, then that indicates you may need to try a few things to find a safer method of being intimate -- that might be lighter touch, more foreplay, lubricant, etc. His touch won't affect your period, but if you are bleeding, you are likely getting small cuts on your vulva when he is too rough with you.

I'm glad you two are talking things through and working together on solutions! That sounds like a strong foundation on which to build a healthy sexual relationship.

[Booksandoceans]

Yes we are definitely gonna be more careful next time. My BF and I have set some terms already because he cares about my health and all

It still boggles me that I have had 3 light periods in a row and I am starting to think that maybe this is a health problem or a hormonal problem. thank you for taking the time to respond. We are still contemplating if a trip to a doctor is worth it or if I’m just anxious

[Mo]

If you're able to get in to see your doctor, I don't think it would hurt, although I'm not hearing anything that sounds like a clear sign you need to check in with your doctor right away. Maybe give it another couple of weeks and see how you're feeling?

[Booksandoceans]

You’re right I think I should give it a few weeks. I also talked to my mom and it sounds like she doesn’t want to take me to the doctor, though. :/ I will wait and see while I give my body a break.

Again, thank you so much for talking to me. It helped me feel somehow better.