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Genital Warts - my story - needing support and advice
I am a 26 yr old female and about 3 months ago I had found out I had genital warts.
I honestly didn't see any symptoms or warts. I just had this gut feeling that I needed to get checked. I had gotten really drunk a few months before and had unprotected sex with someone I did not know and did not remember it happening until I woke up in his bed the next morning. It was one mistake that ended up costing me.
When the doctor checked me out, she could see a little white area near my vagina opening that she said looked like warts. There were also other bumps that she stated were ingrown hairs from shaving. I got a perscription for Aldara and applied it as I was instructed to the area near my vagina opening. It went away in about 2-3 weeks.
The have recently come back. This time more noticeable. I could feel 3 small bumps between my anus and vagina. I have been applying Aldara again. I also don't have the best immune system at the moment... but that is a whole other story that I am trying to work out... I hear a good immune system helps.
I am just really needing support and advice from people that are going through this right now. I have absolutely no sex drive since I have found out. I figure no guy is going to ever understand or want to be with me if I tell them. And I am constantly afraid that the warts will keep coming back or that they will never go away. Even the littlest spot on my vagina scares me into thinking it's a wart.... when it might just be an ingrown hair. I am obsessing over every little thing I see. I have recently started hanging out with a guy I really like and I can't even have him touch me because I'm scared and ashamed and feel dirty.
It's sucks to feel this way because I know I am a great person and have a lot to offer. I have been educating myself a lot on genital warts and it is such a shame that there are not more people that are educated about it because I think more people would be understanding if they actually knew the facts. I am sure a lot of people that don't have the disease think dirty things about it... when really it's not and it's so common! I know before I had it, I was one of those people.
Anyways, I just needed somewhere to let my feelings out. And if anyone experiences similar feelings to me it would be great to talk. Any advice is welcomed as well. Thanks
I honestly didn't see any symptoms or warts. I just had this gut feeling that I needed to get checked. I had gotten really drunk a few months before and had unprotected sex with someone I did not know and did not remember it happening until I woke up in his bed the next morning. It was one mistake that ended up costing me.
When the doctor checked me out, she could see a little white area near my vagina opening that she said looked like warts. There were also other bumps that she stated were ingrown hairs from shaving. I got a perscription for Aldara and applied it as I was instructed to the area near my vagina opening. It went away in about 2-3 weeks.
The have recently come back. This time more noticeable. I could feel 3 small bumps between my anus and vagina. I have been applying Aldara again. I also don't have the best immune system at the moment... but that is a whole other story that I am trying to work out... I hear a good immune system helps.
I am just really needing support and advice from people that are going through this right now. I have absolutely no sex drive since I have found out. I figure no guy is going to ever understand or want to be with me if I tell them. And I am constantly afraid that the warts will keep coming back or that they will never go away. Even the littlest spot on my vagina scares me into thinking it's a wart.... when it might just be an ingrown hair. I am obsessing over every little thing I see. I have recently started hanging out with a guy I really like and I can't even have him touch me because I'm scared and ashamed and feel dirty.
It's sucks to feel this way because I know I am a great person and have a lot to offer. I have been educating myself a lot on genital warts and it is such a shame that there are not more people that are educated about it because I think more people would be understanding if they actually knew the facts. I am sure a lot of people that don't have the disease think dirty things about it... when really it's not and it's so common! I know before I had it, I was one of those people.
Anyways, I just needed somewhere to let my feelings out. And if anyone experiences similar feelings to me it would be great to talk. Any advice is welcomed as well. Thanks
<3
Hi there I’m sorry to hear about what you are going through, please know you are not alone I clicked on your question because I am going through something very similar!
I have 2 questions for anyone reading this and would really appreciate some advice:
1) has anyone ever suspected a former partner of being the one to give them HPV and contacted them to let them know you now have it and they need to get checked? Has this gone over well or don’t even bother with this because it’s hard to trace. No help from my GP
2) does anyone here have advice for someone with an auto immune condition who has HPV? Having a strong immune system seems to be the answer to clearing the warts but obviously that’s hard in my situation :(
Thank you!!!
I have 2 questions for anyone reading this and would really appreciate some advice:
1) has anyone ever suspected a former partner of being the one to give them HPV and contacted them to let them know you now have it and they need to get checked? Has this gone over well or don’t even bother with this because it’s hard to trace. No help from my GP
2) does anyone here have advice for someone with an auto immune condition who has HPV? Having a strong immune system seems to be the answer to clearing the warts but obviously that’s hard in my situation :(
Thank you!!!
Sorry to hear about your situation, dizzzzy. I'm sure it's frustrating to not get an answer. I'm like both of you in that I can't stop looking at the darn thing. I'm driving myself nuts!
cccddd: I don't know why my dr. didn't mention Aldara. At first, she suggested freezing it off, but then we decided to cut it off and have it biopsied to see for sure what it is (she may have just been humoring me, but who knows). However, when the time came to remove it, the numbing medication she gave me wasn't adequate and so it was too painful to go through with it.
Now I've decided to go see an OBGYN on Weds. I'm kind of glad I didn't get it removed because I want him to see it and give me a second opinion. This time I'm more mentally prepared for it to be HPV, even though I'm hoping it will be something else. I've decided if it is a wart, I want to be checked for any more warts (even though I've looked high and low down there and I can't see any other bumps!) and then have them all frozen or cut off. You may want to ask your dr. if you can have yours frozen off, as I think it's a faster treatment method.
The other thing, too, which I can't help but think is related, is that I've been doing laser hair removal in my bikini line area. I noticed this bump a few days after my fourth treatment. I'm wondering if it's a side effect of that, or maybe if the laser could cause a genital wart outbreak and that's why I never had one before?!
I have a book recommendation for you: "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About HPV and Abnormal Pap Smears" by Joel Palefsky, M.D.
After my dr. gave me zero information during my first visit, I had soooo many questions. This book really broke it down for me and I think it will give you some answers to your questions.
cccddd: I don't know why my dr. didn't mention Aldara. At first, she suggested freezing it off, but then we decided to cut it off and have it biopsied to see for sure what it is (she may have just been humoring me, but who knows). However, when the time came to remove it, the numbing medication she gave me wasn't adequate and so it was too painful to go through with it.
Now I've decided to go see an OBGYN on Weds. I'm kind of glad I didn't get it removed because I want him to see it and give me a second opinion. This time I'm more mentally prepared for it to be HPV, even though I'm hoping it will be something else. I've decided if it is a wart, I want to be checked for any more warts (even though I've looked high and low down there and I can't see any other bumps!) and then have them all frozen or cut off. You may want to ask your dr. if you can have yours frozen off, as I think it's a faster treatment method.
The other thing, too, which I can't help but think is related, is that I've been doing laser hair removal in my bikini line area. I noticed this bump a few days after my fourth treatment. I'm wondering if it's a side effect of that, or maybe if the laser could cause a genital wart outbreak and that's why I never had one before?!
I have a book recommendation for you: "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About HPV and Abnormal Pap Smears" by Joel Palefsky, M.D.
After my dr. gave me zero information during my first visit, I had soooo many questions. This book really broke it down for me and I think it will give you some answers to your questions.
So, an update. I went to the gyne today, absolutely convinced that I have GW from the same strain as the "mystery bumps" on my mouth. She assured me that the one area she did see on my labia looked like a sebaccous gland - but that I had all sorts of cuts down there from the pulling and proding I've been trying to do to see if I could notice any more bumps. She told me that GW usually look like skin tags or cauliflower, and that my concerning "bump" did not look like either one of them. She said that what I have is not contagious and I should not worry about passing it on through sexual activity. She also said that since I completed the Gardisil vaccine 4 years ago, the likelihood of contracting GW is extrememly low, since I should be protected against HPV-6 & HPV-11.
I'm still not totally convinced that I don't have GW.
I feel like I'm driving myself crazy because I am convinced I have HPV and that no one is listening to me. And even if it isn't HPV, then what the heck is it?!? I know I am driving my boyfriend crazy because I always talk about it and tell him I'm concerned about having sex, for fear of passing something on to him. Then I always return from my doctors appt with nothing new to report.
I'm going to try and stop thinking about it until my appt with the oral surgeon. I'm going to insist on a biopsy for the lesions under my tongue in hopes that I get some sort of definitive diagnosis. Also hoping the new derm has some good news for me.
Hope you are feeling better.
I'm still not totally convinced that I don't have GW.
I feel like I'm driving myself crazy because I am convinced I have HPV and that no one is listening to me. And even if it isn't HPV, then what the heck is it?!? I know I am driving my boyfriend crazy because I always talk about it and tell him I'm concerned about having sex, for fear of passing something on to him. Then I always return from my doctors appt with nothing new to report.
I'm going to try and stop thinking about it until my appt with the oral surgeon. I'm going to insist on a biopsy for the lesions under my tongue in hopes that I get some sort of definitive diagnosis. Also hoping the new derm has some good news for me.
Hope you are feeling better.
Thank you so much for sharing your stories. It really does make it a bit better to read what other people are going through. It's hard doing this alone. I am holding on to this hope that men are more understanding about this stuff than women.
@titangurl - I'm just wondering why Aldara or some other cream wasn't perscribed to you? is there different strains of warts? ones that you apply cream and ones you get burnt off right away? Thanks for your support.
@dizzzy I totally am with you on the obsessively checking my vagina. Every little thing I see I assume to think is a wart (even if it's not). Also, the 2 doctors I have seen have been so easy going about the whole thing... which freaks me out even more. I wish the doctors would be more sympathetic. None of them addressed any of my concerns and basically just perscribed Aldara and sent me on my way. I had so many questions! and I just felt so lost. I thought it was the end of the world for me. Sometimes I still do. I am hoping I can get my sex drive back because it has been over 3 months and I still can't even touch or think of my vagina being touched. I just think its dirty all the time and I'm scared there is always going to be some 'hidden' wart I can't see. I feel so horrible about it but it's true.
AND I was under the impression Gardisil prevented it too! Wow that is crazy! But good information to know because I think a lot of people think it prevents but you are a prime example.
Please keep me posted on your doctor update and if you need to talk I'm here.
@titangurl - I'm just wondering why Aldara or some other cream wasn't perscribed to you? is there different strains of warts? ones that you apply cream and ones you get burnt off right away? Thanks for your support.
@dizzzy I totally am with you on the obsessively checking my vagina. Every little thing I see I assume to think is a wart (even if it's not). Also, the 2 doctors I have seen have been so easy going about the whole thing... which freaks me out even more. I wish the doctors would be more sympathetic. None of them addressed any of my concerns and basically just perscribed Aldara and sent me on my way. I had so many questions! and I just felt so lost. I thought it was the end of the world for me. Sometimes I still do. I am hoping I can get my sex drive back because it has been over 3 months and I still can't even touch or think of my vagina being touched. I just think its dirty all the time and I'm scared there is always going to be some 'hidden' wart I can't see. I feel so horrible about it but it's true.
AND I was under the impression Gardisil prevented it too! Wow that is crazy! But good information to know because I think a lot of people think it prevents but you are a prime example.
Please keep me posted on your doctor update and if you need to talk I'm here.
I understand exactly what you are going through. I'm a 25 yr old F. Five months ago I had recently started a new relationship (which I am still in), I started noticing tiny bumps on my lips. Went to my PCP who thought they were canker sores secondary to an upper respiratory infection. Dispite my worries that the bumps on my lips were warts, which at the time I thought were transferred from a wart on my hand, my doctor said that people don't really get warts on their lips. She prescribed antibiotics for the upper resp infection and sent me on my way.
A month later I was back, as the bumps had not gone away. Doctor put me on another antibiotic.
After the second course of antibiotics didn't work, I went to the dermatologist. My dermatologist told me they were warts within 2 seconds of looking at them. I freaked out and asked her to look at some bumps in my genital area, which she stated were glands and nothing to worry about. She gave me Retin A to put on my lips to make the warts flake off. When I got home from the derm, I decided to inspect my entire mouth to see if there were any other suspicious looking bumps. Sure enough, about 5 small bumps under my tongue at the base + 1 growth that looked like a skin flap. I immediately made an appointment with an ENT and voiced my concerns. He looked in my mouth and said the bumps didn't look worrysome and didn't look like warts, but there was no treatment to make them go away.
I went back to my PCP and got tested for every STD imaginable, including HIV and a pap test. Everything came back negative/normal. At the time, no visible bumps or lesions on my genital area.
After 5 months of dealing with warts on my lips and mystery bumps under my tongue, I made an appointment with an oral surgeon (which is coming up in 2 weeks) and with another dermatologist to determine if there are any other treatment options for my lips (coming up in 3 weeks).
Last night, after getting a shower I decided to check (as I do periodically) to see if anything looked unusual "down there". I noticed about 5 unusual small bumps on my inner labia, near the vaginal opening. They really look like the small warts that are on my lips. I am beyond depressed right now and made an appointment with the gyne (which is probably what I should've done in the first place) for next Tuesday. I am 99.9% positive that everything I have is related to the same strain of HPV. I'm obsessive about checking the bumps every time I go to the bathroom, every time I look in the mirror. It's really disrupting my relationship as my boyfriend, who is really laid-back, does not understand why I am getting so worked up over this. As a side note, I do not think I contracted this from my current boyfriend, as we had not had sexual contact when I first noticed the bumps on my lips. I'm very frustrated that the 3 doctors that I have seen never recommended a biopsy and reassured me I had nothing to worry about. What's more, 4 years ago I got the Gardisil vaccine and wrongly assumed I was protected against this. I'm worried about infecting my boyfriend and about the warts getting bigger or increasing in number.
Thank you for posting your story. Please know that you're not alone.
A month later I was back, as the bumps had not gone away. Doctor put me on another antibiotic.
After the second course of antibiotics didn't work, I went to the dermatologist. My dermatologist told me they were warts within 2 seconds of looking at them. I freaked out and asked her to look at some bumps in my genital area, which she stated were glands and nothing to worry about. She gave me Retin A to put on my lips to make the warts flake off. When I got home from the derm, I decided to inspect my entire mouth to see if there were any other suspicious looking bumps. Sure enough, about 5 small bumps under my tongue at the base + 1 growth that looked like a skin flap. I immediately made an appointment with an ENT and voiced my concerns. He looked in my mouth and said the bumps didn't look worrysome and didn't look like warts, but there was no treatment to make them go away.
I went back to my PCP and got tested for every STD imaginable, including HIV and a pap test. Everything came back negative/normal. At the time, no visible bumps or lesions on my genital area.
After 5 months of dealing with warts on my lips and mystery bumps under my tongue, I made an appointment with an oral surgeon (which is coming up in 2 weeks) and with another dermatologist to determine if there are any other treatment options for my lips (coming up in 3 weeks).
Last night, after getting a shower I decided to check (as I do periodically) to see if anything looked unusual "down there". I noticed about 5 unusual small bumps on my inner labia, near the vaginal opening. They really look like the small warts that are on my lips. I am beyond depressed right now and made an appointment with the gyne (which is probably what I should've done in the first place) for next Tuesday. I am 99.9% positive that everything I have is related to the same strain of HPV. I'm obsessive about checking the bumps every time I go to the bathroom, every time I look in the mirror. It's really disrupting my relationship as my boyfriend, who is really laid-back, does not understand why I am getting so worked up over this. As a side note, I do not think I contracted this from my current boyfriend, as we had not had sexual contact when I first noticed the bumps on my lips. I'm very frustrated that the 3 doctors that I have seen never recommended a biopsy and reassured me I had nothing to worry about. What's more, 4 years ago I got the Gardisil vaccine and wrongly assumed I was protected against this. I'm worried about infecting my boyfriend and about the warts getting bigger or increasing in number.
Thank you for posting your story. Please know that you're not alone.
Hi there, I am a 28 year old female and my doctor told me today that the small bump I noticed on my labia is a wart. I was stunned. In fact, I passed out. I went into my appointment thinking it was going to be nothing. I mean, the bump is sooo small! Plus, the last person I had sex with was my boyfriend/fiance of four years. We've since broke up, but if I didn't get it from him, then it means I've been carrying it for several years.
Having been single for only a few months, I also had the same gut reaction as you. How is anyone going to want to date me? But, then I talked to my friend who has had it for about six years now. She said it is extremely common and, after getting her warts treated, she has not had another symptom since (in six years). This made me feel a whole lot better, but I am dreading getting this removed. I know it's going to be perhaps the most painful procedure I'll ever have. But, I'm hoping it will prevent more from appearing.
I'm absolutely worried about telling potential boyfriends about this -- terrified in fact. But, it is so common like you said and I've decided if they won't accept this about me -- this thing that I didn't want to happen to me -- then they aren't the right guy.
This is not the end of the world for us. We get it treated, we take accountability for our health and our partners' health, and we go on living happily. I know this will get better once I address it and educate myself. You'll get through this, too, I know you will.
Having been single for only a few months, I also had the same gut reaction as you. How is anyone going to want to date me? But, then I talked to my friend who has had it for about six years now. She said it is extremely common and, after getting her warts treated, she has not had another symptom since (in six years). This made me feel a whole lot better, but I am dreading getting this removed. I know it's going to be perhaps the most painful procedure I'll ever have. But, I'm hoping it will prevent more from appearing.
I'm absolutely worried about telling potential boyfriends about this -- terrified in fact. But, it is so common like you said and I've decided if they won't accept this about me -- this thing that I didn't want to happen to me -- then they aren't the right guy.
This is not the end of the world for us. We get it treated, we take accountability for our health and our partners' health, and we go on living happily. I know this will get better once I address it and educate myself. You'll get through this, too, I know you will.
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I'd love to know how it all went I've been with This for a couple months now
You are reading content posted in the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Community
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
STIs are the most common cause of genital sores.
Millions of people are diagnosed with STDs in the U.S. each year.
STDs can't be transmitted by casual contact, like hugging or touching.
Syphilis is an STD that is transmitted by oral, genital and anal sex.
