Excessive vaginal discharge

Guest:  The 22 year old who is a virgin..  Are you on birth control?  I feel like it must be hormone related as well.  And i am actively trying to think if i had this same issue when i was on a pill with higher doses of estrogen.  I feel my situation is very similar to yours.  When I was younger it was tolerable as I took it as a sign my period was about to show up and always sort of welcomed it as a warning.  Then there were a few years where I can remember it didn't really bother me at all, I was having normal amounts of discharge but nothing that I would have called excessive or concerning.  Now I seem to fluctuate between the creamy, lotiony like discharge which is in excess amounts (like handfuls, and enough to produce wet marks on clothing) and the sticky clear stuff that to me is like hot glue before it dries.  The latter I have read is a sign of ovulation and being fertile at that point, meaning if you are hoping to conceive you should do it when you have that discharge.  But still nothing to explain the excessive discharge.  To me, just the sheer amount of it is concerning, compared to the teaspoon or tablespoon of discharge the average person has a day, i must be at least 15x that!

I am going to see if I can actually talk to my doctor about the hormonal stuff and see maybe if he will try me on a few different pills, or look at the possibility that there is a connection.  I am not above taking estrogen or progesterone in order to not have to live with this issue anymore. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leukorrhea

This states hormonal imbalance.  I know that it is just wikipedia but it seems to make sense to me

I'm a 47 year old women and have the same problem. (excessive creamy like lotion discharge )   I went to the doctor several times and had all kinds of test done. The doctor didn't find anything wrong. I thought my pH was off so, I started taking RepHresh Pro-B to balance my pH but still having the same problem. I'm just fed up having that symptom. If anyone find anything else about this symptom , please let shed some light on it.

I have had this for a year and a half and responded here a few times before. I am currently on Evra, the trans-dermal patch for my birth control. I have found that while on the patch the flow lightens up to point where I am able to go with out the panty liners. I have also discovered that almost instantly when I go off the birth control that flow comes back.
I have had LEEP, STI testing, the works. This is normal and physiological thing for my body.
I hope this is helpful.

I have been having similar excessive vaginal discharge as has been described in this forum for the past nine months and am at the end of my tether with it.  I tried a thrush capsule which did nothing and eventually went to my doctor who did all the usual tests - smear, swab, blood tests for thyroid problems and hormone levels etc and all came back fine.  I went back and was given a ridiculously strong course of antibiotics to try and clear the problem - no luck.  So I went back AGAIN and was, against my better judgement, given the contraceptive pill to try for three months to see if it has an effect.  I have been taking it for a couple of weeks and frankly, the problem appears to be worse not better, combined with the fact that I haven't felt right since being on the pill and it also gave me my first bout of cystitis aswel, so I went back to the doctor and was told to stay the course as they do not know what else to do - apparently there has been no recent comprehensive research into excessive discharge therefore there is no new knowledge on the subject and they don't know what else to do.  I am 34 years old with no children, I am pretty healthy and eat well and am in a long term very happy relationship, thankfully with a very understanding partner.  I personally feel that it MUST be my hormones even though my blood tests were okay - after all hormone levels vary greatly throughout the menstrual cycle therefore all blood tests for hormone levels are likely to be incorrect as they never seem to take into account where you are in your cycle when the test is taken.

Maybe it IS normal for a lot of women and maybe it IS nothing to worry about, but nonetheless it is a very difficult problem to live with as it inevitably eventually affects self esteem, confidence and relationships as well as sex.  I can't wear panty liners every day as they irritate me so I am currently changing my stained underwear twice a day, and actually now look forward to my period where I get a couple of days off the discharge.  A fair amount of discharge on and off during my cycle has always been fairly normal for me, but not this much and not every day.  A further symptom I also get is waking up really hot in the vaginal area during the night - hence hot sweats are also a factor.  I have spoken to the doctor about early onset of menopause but she thinks it is extremely unlikely.

So, it basically seems that lots of women get this problem and medical professionals have no idea what to do when the usual tests come back clear.  Perhaps herbal medicine/homeopathy is the answer.  If ANYONE has any good suggestions or has found something that works, PLEASE post it on this forum for the sanity of us all!!

 

hi

I have been going through the same thing all my life ad its really got me down its affected my sex life with my partner , I have receently moved to austrailia and it seem to have go worse . I decided to go get second point of view s my doctor back home I had many tests and couldnt find anything they just said i had a very ad case of cormal disharge . The doctor i went to see here explained to me that it was my shower gel that was using too much parfum in it and this is why the discharge kept coming she told me to make sure that the shower gel is ph balanced, colour free, soap free, lanolin free and recommended by dermatologists . she told me about this one i use now ts called QV gentle wash its $30 which is expensive buts its completely changed my life and my sex life is better than ever i dont need to keep changing my knickers all the time . I didnt think a shower gel would be the main cause to this problem but it was and i so angry why no doctor has explained this before. This is very embarrassing to talk about this but i know exacty what your going though and believe this works good luck

xx

I am 40 and having been dealing with this since I was a teenager. Constantly switiching doctors to see if someone new could give me an answer. Nothing. I've been tested for everthing under the sun and then they just sort of shrug and tell me everyone is different. It's bad enough that sometimes mini-pads can't handle it if I cough or sneeze and it comes out. It's very frustrating. It'd be nice to be able to just put on a bathing suit and go the beach, but nope- too risky. I continue to search- although I am heartened to find this site- I was really thinking no one had this problem.

I am 39 years old and started having this problem about 8 months ago.  I can't stand up without feeling this mess come out, and I know when I walk my dogs, that I'll have to get cleaned up afterward.  It's driving me crazy!!  I've had all the same tests as everyone else, and I'm now waiting for the results of an endometrial biopsy that I had last week.  I've also had some other intolerable symptoms with it; rapid, excessive weight gain along with loss of appetite (how I keep putting on weight after months of not eating enough to keep a bird alive, I do not know), as well as my hair and skin have gone from very dry to very oily, and my hair has started growing more than two inches every month!  I was on birth control pills from the age of 16 to 38, and most of this started about 6 months after going off the pill.  A lot of it I suppose could be due to going off the pill, but not to such a degree that I would gain 40 pounds in 3 months, and have to keep a constant supply of pantyliners with me at all times!  I'm almost hoping that my doctor tells me something is wrong, just so I have some explanation for all of this!

It’s perfectly normal for all women to experience vaginal discharge. However, this nugget of information will be of little comfort to you if your handbag is a repository for clean pairs of ‘emergency knickers’. Vaginal discharge usually begins just before puberty and ends after the menopause. Effectively this is your vagina cleaning itself. Normal discharge is clear, white or creamy and may give off a musky smell, but it’s not unpleasant. You may notice the amount changing from time to time and getting heavier just before your period. Sexual arousal or pregnancy may also bring an increase. However, if your discharge becomes thicker and has a consistency rather like cottage cheese, then you may have a bacterial infection such as thrush. And if it’s a greenish yellow colour then it may be more serious and could be a symptom of gonorrhoea or trichomoniasis. And be warned: chlamydia may also cause a change in your vaginal discharge.

I am 55 and post "the change" 2-3 years. I did bear children and never had this discharge as all of you describe until one month ago. Same type of eggie stringy discharge with no odor. It is annoying, but it's comforting to hear all of you have been tested with no bad results. I think as women we have all had some discharge over our lives, but this is excessive, annoying and not normal. I read many post where people eat right and exercise, but that does not seem to matter. I really do no eat right nor exercise. I am happy that I found this site in order to know that I am not alone and because of your comments I don't feel like I have to worry anymore....just deal with it. :(

I watched a programme recently - embarrassing bodies in the uk, and the Dr diagnosed Cervical errosion. Apparently the cervix is responsible for producing discharge and when its erroded, it produces more.The woman featured had some cauterisation which cured it.Her discharge was bad enough to warrant wearing pads each day for several years.The Dr did say when seeing the Dr that women should mention this specifically as its not a widely thought of problem.

I have had this happen after my tubal ligation too, thrid child in Aug, 2010. Doctor had put me on the pill, did help the bloating,acne and hevey periods, but not hte excessive mucus. My doctor says it's the change in the hormone level that cause this and nothing that I can do.

(21 yr old) I have had the same thing except with a slight odor & light color. I went through many doctors and they told me the same thing...then I went to one another doctor suggested. He actually said that it's caused by Cervical Ectropion, which is not as abnormal as you'd think; some woman have less of it some women, like us, have an excessive amount of it. There are 2 extreme options to do (if you've tried the medications, vaginal wipes, & vinegar douches) and they are a simple LEEP surgery, which is a short, simple & small recovery procedure where they freeze or burn the outer layer of the ectropion. Recovery is 2-3 weeks, no heavy anesthesia, just sedation & some high mg Advils. The other, which is way more extreme, is a hysterectomy, or removal of the womb. My doctor told me that sometimes the LEEP surgery works fantastic for some women, others it didn't help at all. I have had it, and unfortunately, it didn't help a bit...but I have read it can be done twice & looking into seeing if the second time around will be better. I hope this helps you!

I have the same exact thing! White-Yellow, stringy, very uncomfortable! Please let us know what the doctors says! Ive been to my family doctor no gyno yet but he's given me many medications to clean my system but it still hasnt gone away! Im worried and it sucks because I am only 20 and I feel very uncomfortable at all times!

I also have the same thing that I was going to talk to my OB about when I see her next month. I'll let you know if I find anything out.