Painful bump/sore on labia

At first I thought it was an ingrown hair - did you shave near there or on that area? BUT since you can't rule out Herpes - i would REALLY like you to get checked out! Due to the fact you said it was "somewhat flat" it sounds like a herpes lesion! But let's see before panicking! So book an appointment with your local Planned Parenthood Clinic and get tested ASAP! And your partner should too! Please let me know how you make out OK? Good luck!

I guess I should have chosen my words more carefully when I said I "worry about the possibility" of it being genital herpes; I am simply not ruling it out as a possibility. Upon further examination of the spot (before I was simply relying on touch), there are two small bumps right next to each other, and they are pink in color with no red/white sores or openings. I'm just trying to get a handle on this before going to the doctor...I'm 26 years old and have never been to a women's health doctor (very bad/negligent on my part, I know!), largely because I don't have insurance or the extra money to pay for visits. But this only happens to me when the area gets irritated, say by shaving or using deodorant tampons or after rough/not-well-lubricated sexual intercourse, and it's always in the same spot. And I can always feel when it gets irritated...the other day, I had sex with my boyfriend (who is well-endowed, shall we say), and was not fully lubricated...I could feel tugging on that spot as he entered me, and it was irritated afterward; the next day it was uncomfortable, and the day after the spot(s) appeared. Is that characteristic of herpes, or are there other possibilities that I should keep in mind as well?

Herpes is insidious, it sometimes has NO outward indications! And other times it is full blown sores! It could be irritation! BUT just 2 on the labia seems slightly odd! As it is usually the vaginal opening that gets irritated!

After reading replies and other similar posts on the discussion boards here, I am really starting to freak out at the thought that I may have herpes. I've been sexually active since I was 15 years old, and have only had unprotected sex with 3 people. One was my first boyfriend whom I lost my virginity to at 15, the second was my ex-boyfriend of seven years (and we only had unprotected sex 2 times in those 7 years), and the third is my current boyfriend of 5 months. I noticed that these "irritations" started happening roughly a year & a half to two years ago...every few months or so...always following a pubic shaving or my period where deodorant tampons were used. (My ex-boyfriend & I didn't have very much sex, so I never had a flare-up after intercourse...which is why I never thought that this could be anything sexually related). But I've had this/these bump(s) appear twice in the 5 months that I've been sexually active with my current boyfriend, which is more frequent than I've ever gotten it before, and that's why I am now concerned as to it's origin.

I have had some "casual sexual hookups" when I've not been in a relationship, but I have always used protection during those encounters. The only times I have engaged in unprotected sex was within my relationships. I'm ruling out that I could have been infected with herpes from my first boyfriend (since it's been around 10 years between the time that we were together & the time I started noticing this), and I'm also ruling out my current boyfriend (since I've noticed this before we ever got together). I suppose the possibility exists that I could have been infected by my ex-boyfriend during one of those 2 times where we did engage in unprotected sex, but I never noticed anything on his genitals as far as "outbreaks" go in the 7 years that I was with him. (I know we didn't have sex very often, but I saw him naked almost daily).

So I'm having a really difficult time trying to figure out, if it IS herpes, where the hell I got it. I've never had sex with someone, protected or unprotected, and noticed my first "outbreak" shortly after. If that would have ever happened, I would have taken notice of the situation & the possibility that it could be an STD and went to the doctor immediately. The first time this happened to me was a result of shaving the same spot over & over again in the shower (with and against the grain), and it hurt after...then the sore bump appeared a couple days later when the hair started to regrow. I chalked it up to being an ingrown hair & the fact that I have always had sensitive skin anyway. It healed after a few days of applying Neosporin & switching to cotton panties as opposed to nylon or lace. Then any time I angered that same area, by shaving it (which I only did every few months), by inserting/removing deodorant/scented tampons, or by washing too vigorously with a shower puff & scented bodywash, it would appear again. Never without these irritants, and never in a different spot. Now with my current boyfriend, I noticed that both times it's happened has been a result of me not being lubricated enough when we begin to have sex, and I could feel tugging on that part of my skin when he entered me. (Oh, and I also shaved a week before this).

I don't want to lie to myself about the possibility of it being genital herpes (or some other STD/STI), but I just don't think it's a high possibility given the circumstances. I don't want to justify it & pretend it's something else if it IS an STD, but I also don't want to freak myself out & stress about it for nothing if it is possible that it's something else. I am terrified to go to the doctor & be diagnosed with an STD...especially an incurable one...I feel like my life will be ruined. But I suppose I can't keep putting it off any longer either. :|  

With your excellent description I do NOT think it is Herpes - unless your boyfriend was a cheat! And one other thing When someone finds out they have herpes they HAVE to tell the people they might have infected! SO IF your ex had been infected, you would have received a phone call! I am leaning towards aggravation - ingrown hairs, scented products, too rough sex! Also have you had any urine problems? - like smelly urine or a bit of a burn after urination? the reason why I ask is because I was just talking to another young woman, who had similar problems - BUT there was no possibility of a STI, so at first I said "yeast infection" but it turned out to be a UTI!Which kind of shocked me! So I DO REALLY want you to go and get a check up! IF you are nervous about an STI then go to your local Planned Parenthood Clinic, or STI clinic! they can do the swipes there!

So I went to a doctor the other day regarding this, and she examined the bumps after we discussed my symptoms (and lack thereof) and sexual history. She said that it didn't look like herpes lesions, but that she would like me to get bloodwork done just to be sure, and for my peace of mind since I've never been tested or even gone to a gyno before. I called the lab today, and was informed that "partial" results had come in, so I went ahead & picked them up. It was an IgG test for HSV-2 that had the results today, and the result was 0.94H, which is "Equivocal"...whatever that means. (The IgG test for HSV-1 and the IgM tests for both HSV-1 & HSV-2 should be ready by Monday). When I went to the medical center, I was simply directed to the lab & given a sheet of paper with my "partial" results...no one spoke to me in depth or explained to me what the results meant, what the results we're still waiting on will tell us, or what I should do next. I even tried calling the doctor who had helped me so I could ask her all these questions, but I couldn't reach her. Now the medical center is closed tomorrow & Sunday, and I'm left with this data that means nothing to me. I have an apparently inconclusive test result, but have no idea why. I've been parusing the web, and it seems that a 0.94 is very close to the 0.90 negative, and far from the 3.0 that most positives average, but I'm still not resting easy yet since I have no idea what this medical/numerical jargon means.

Did you ever find out what this was? I also have two small lumps right near the opening of my vagina and they are very painful and sore. They appeared after rough sex with my boyfriend.

I'm thinking more a long the lines of a cyst, Bartholin's Cyst to be exact.

My gf gets that sometime due to pants fiting to tight

@ kimmiepooh how come u just stopped saying nything abt the issue like I having d same problem doctor recommended I do a hepes test waiting on d restults

Ok, I thought I was the only one in the world with this problem. I have been having this same problem for YEARS, and wish I could find the answer. Mine show up anytime they want to, and are usually gone in about 5 days. I can usually tell when it's coming because I feel this "twinge" where it's going to appear (usually the same area), extreme discomfort, the full "bump", and then about 2 days later, it's gone. I usually shave the area (if it isn't already), try to keep the area clean and dry, but most of all keep it covered in Monostat. I do not have cycles anymore so I tryly believe that tampons, rough sex, or your menstral cycle has anything to do with it. I would sit down and talk to a professional to see what is going on. Everytime I get ready to go to a doctor, mine is gone, and they have no idea what I am talking about and it's hard to talk about something without a visual aid. So Please post you final results because I am curious about them too. Thanks for sahring it made me feel a little better about my situation.

I am having same exact problem I think its rough sex and shaving iv been having this problem for a while now. I hope that u come back soon and tell us the cure cause going to the doctor is expensive

I read your first post when u described what u have. I think i have the same issue. Ive been tested for stds and hiv over the past years since i startes having sex PERIOD. LOL even before I started having it unprotected. All results came back negative. Regardless, I still think I may have something because this bump kept coming back in the same spot on the right side but now I see it on the left for the first out of about 4 times. I cantremember the first time ive had it. But i hope this helps because im visiting a clinic this week if i can find a free one. I dont have health insurance either :-

Hi I've been with my current boyfriend for about 2 and a half months now. Three days ago I started to feel uncomfort down there after sex. The next morning I got in the shower and began to shave and it started to burn and hurt really bad and when I look I realized there were bumps on my outer labia!!! I piton actively assumed herpes but my boyfriend believes I just have ingrown hairs... I also realized the day after I saw the bumps that I had a yeast infection which I've already started to get treated with over the counter meds... NOW let me not forget that a couple days before all of this I was admitted into the ER and had a ruptured cyst and the doctor gave me a paps and pelvic exam and said every seemed normal and everything came negative!!!! The bumps now are open bumps and are red and burn and itch like crazy!!! I've never had anything before and I'm only 19 could anybody please help!!!!