Feb 24
UK_Nurse commented on SL Letter of the Day: Do It, Sissy.
UK_Nurse commented on SL Letter of the Day: Do It, Sissy.
Agree with Dr Barak and the other healthcare professionals in the comments - not a good idea.
As has already been mentioned by Shann - a vagina has the cervix to stop things from disappearing any further inside, a rectum is just the start of a long length of intestine.
As someone who has retrieved a few retained tampons from patients, I can tell you that those things not only retain lots of fluid, but also provide a perfect breeding ground for bacteria (any other healthcare professionals on here will know that a retained tampon produces a smell perhaps only beaten by fungating breast tumours). Losing a tampon inside the rectum risks developing a serious bowel obstruction, which can be fatal.
And it seems to fly in the face of the advice you regularly recommend ER doctors tell their patients, Dan - don't stick anything in your ass that doesn't have a flared base.
As has already been mentioned by Shann - a vagina has the cervix to stop things from disappearing any further inside, a rectum is just the start of a long length of intestine.
As someone who has retrieved a few retained tampons from patients, I can tell you that those things not only retain lots of fluid, but also provide a perfect breeding ground for bacteria (any other healthcare professionals on here will know that a retained tampon produces a smell perhaps only beaten by fungating breast tumours). Losing a tampon inside the rectum risks developing a serious bowel obstruction, which can be fatal.
And it seems to fly in the face of the advice you regularly recommend ER doctors tell their patients, Dan - don't stick anything in your ass that doesn't have a flared base.
Feb 5
UK_Nurse commented on House of Commons Backs Same-Sex Marriage.
UK_Nurse commented on House of Commons Backs Same-Sex Marriage.
@gloomy_gus, Nadine Dorries is an utter joke of an MP (she spent three weeks of parliamentary time on a reality TV show last year). I too found her statement utterly insane.
I would not be surprised if she proposes an amendment that allows her to check every married woman's vagina to check that their hymens are good and broken. Because she is all about the act of consummation.
I would not be surprised if she proposes an amendment that allows her to check every married woman's vagina to check that their hymens are good and broken. Because she is all about the act of consummation.
Feb 5
UK_Nurse commented on House of Commons Backs Same-Sex Marriage.
UK_Nurse commented on House of Commons Backs Same-Sex Marriage.
Still has to get through House of Lords, but it is really exciting news.
Plus, the rifts it has caused in the Conservative party mean that the Tories are very likely to be on their way out in 2015.
Two reasons to celebrate really!
Plus, the rifts it has caused in the Conservative party mean that the Tories are very likely to be on their way out in 2015.
Two reasons to celebrate really!
Feb 2
UK_Nurse commented on Savage Love Episode 327.
UK_Nurse commented on Savage Love Episode 327.
Between listening to this podcast and finally getting round to watching Girls (I'm always last on the bandwagon) I have to say - Americans, seriously, calm the fuck down about HPV and Herpes.
Working in a clinic in the UK, we do not test for HPV or HSV routinely because there is no need to - unless you have symptoms, what is the point? I was glad to hear Dr Anna stress that point although I think Dan was still a little too hysterical with his point regarding disclosure.
I would be interested to know what tests Dr Anna would actually do in her clinic for someone who is asymptomatic but requests an HSV test. In my clinic, we do PCR testing if someone presents with visible sores, which would test for both HSV I and II, as well as syphilis. If there are no sores, there is nothing to sample - surely blood tests would only test for antibodies, which merely show if you've been exposed to an infection?
Working in a clinic in the UK, we do not test for HPV or HSV routinely because there is no need to - unless you have symptoms, what is the point? I was glad to hear Dr Anna stress that point although I think Dan was still a little too hysterical with his point regarding disclosure.
I would be interested to know what tests Dr Anna would actually do in her clinic for someone who is asymptomatic but requests an HSV test. In my clinic, we do PCR testing if someone presents with visible sores, which would test for both HSV I and II, as well as syphilis. If there are no sores, there is nothing to sample - surely blood tests would only test for antibodies, which merely show if you've been exposed to an infection?
Nov 14, 2012
UK_Nurse commented on Woman Dies After Being Denied an Abortion.
UK_Nurse commented on Woman Dies After Being Denied an Abortion.
@29 - Actually, Northern Ireland has very similar laws regarding abortion, only permitting it in the cases where there is a risk to the mother's health.
It really is a ridiculous state of affairs as many women seeking terminations in Ireland will just travel across to the UK and have it done in private clinics. It is the most vulnerable women - the young, the poor, the disenfranchised - who have no ability to travel to the UK that are most badly affected by an unwanted pregnancy and are therefore most in need of access to termination.
It really is a ridiculous state of affairs as many women seeking terminations in Ireland will just travel across to the UK and have it done in private clinics. It is the most vulnerable women - the young, the poor, the disenfranchised - who have no ability to travel to the UK that are most badly affected by an unwanted pregnancy and are therefore most in need of access to termination.
Sep 10, 2012
UK_Nurse commented on Actually That Looks Delicious.
UK_Nurse commented on Actually That Looks Delicious.
If vaginas looked like that to gay men, I wouldn't be able to get any work done for fear of losing a hand.
Jul 25, 2012
UK_Nurse commented on SL Letters of the Day: TOP Has Other Options.
UK_Nurse commented on SL Letters of the Day: TOP Has Other Options.
I found reading the comments following this week's column really interesting as I work as a Sexual and Reproductive Health nurse in the UK - access to free contraception means we are essentially able to offer whatever we want to our patients, provided they have no medical problems or personal objections.
The LW's husband being a dick aside (I agree that seemed to be the central issue, rather than her inability to find a contraceptive method that worked), she should definitely approach another healthcare professional for their opinion as I find it odd that her doctor has changed her brand of pill so frequently, rather than changing to another method entirely.
The copper IUD is certainly the most effective non-hormonal method and the main contraindications are previous pelvic infections and abnormalities to the uterus, as well as heavy, painful periods (in which case an IUS or Mirena coil would be the better option as it reduces bleeding by up to 90%).
Fertility Awareness Methods require a lot of teaching and is not really a method I would recommend to anyone under the age of 35, as being slightly older offers better results due to natural loss of fertility experienced by older women. It is recommended to use two methods of FAM - basal temperature and cervical mucus are the most frequently taught - and does need to be monitored for at least three cycles before being relied upon as a contraceptive method. Fertility beads are crap unless the woman has a perfect textbook 28 day cycle all the time and even then, it only works if she ovulates on day 14 - which not all women will.
While sterilisation has been mentioned quite a few times, you may be surprised to know that the IUD/IUS and subdermal implant are both more reliable than sterilisation (both vascetomy and tubal ligation) as well as being safer in terms of side effects and risks of surgery. The subdermal implant is a great progestogen-only method that lasts up to 3 years, although unacceptable changes to bleeding patterns is a side effect that results in most women having it removed - 70% of women can expect to be amenorrhoeic by the first year.
The other point to make is that a hormonal method that does not agree with a woman at one stage in their life, might be perfect for her at another - so don't rule out a method completely if your circumstances change. Also, any method of hormonal contraception is associated with side effects in the first 3-6 months as the body adjusts to a change in hormonal levels - grinning and bearing the short-term side effects for a longer term benefit of contraception is the price of admittance.
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The LW's husband being a dick aside (I agree that seemed to be the central issue, rather than her inability to find a contraceptive method that worked), she should definitely approach another healthcare professional for their opinion as I find it odd that her doctor has changed her brand of pill so frequently, rather than changing to another method entirely.
The copper IUD is certainly the most effective non-hormonal method and the main contraindications are previous pelvic infections and abnormalities to the uterus, as well as heavy, painful periods (in which case an IUS or Mirena coil would be the better option as it reduces bleeding by up to 90%).
Fertility Awareness Methods require a lot of teaching and is not really a method I would recommend to anyone under the age of 35, as being slightly older offers better results due to natural loss of fertility experienced by older women. It is recommended to use two methods of FAM - basal temperature and cervical mucus are the most frequently taught - and does need to be monitored for at least three cycles before being relied upon as a contraceptive method. Fertility beads are crap unless the woman has a perfect textbook 28 day cycle all the time and even then, it only works if she ovulates on day 14 - which not all women will.
While sterilisation has been mentioned quite a few times, you may be surprised to know that the IUD/IUS and subdermal implant are both more reliable than sterilisation (both vascetomy and tubal ligation) as well as being safer in terms of side effects and risks of surgery. The subdermal implant is a great progestogen-only method that lasts up to 3 years, although unacceptable changes to bleeding patterns is a side effect that results in most women having it removed - 70% of women can expect to be amenorrhoeic by the first year.
The other point to make is that a hormonal method that does not agree with a woman at one stage in their life, might be perfect for her at another - so don't rule out a method completely if your circumstances change. Also, any method of hormonal contraception is associated with side effects in the first 3-6 months as the body adjusts to a change in hormonal levels - grinning and bearing the short-term side effects for a longer term benefit of contraception is the price of admittance.
Jul 5, 2012
UK_Nurse commented on Savage Love.
UK_Nurse commented on Savage Love.
@3 I'm a long-time lurker on this forum, but reading this link actually incensed me enough to want to register!
What an utter load of lies and false information dressed up with Instagram-esque graphics! And I wonder if Neil Patrick Harris knows his image is being used on there. . .
I work as a sexual and reproductive health nurse in the UK and a lot of my work involves educating and providing contraception to my patients. Very often, they are surprised at the wide range of contraceptive options available beyond condoms and the pill - which this site seems to feel are the only viable options available to women as birth control (beyond Natural Family Planning methods, which are only as effective as condoms in practice and is often used by couples after they have had their families, hence tend to be older and already less fertile and therefore less likely to conceive anyway!)
IUDs are completely non-hormonal methods of contraception as well as being incredibly effective methods - why aren't they mentioned? Long-acting hormonal methods like the implant, IUS and injection are also extremely effective and have fewer side-effects that the combined hormonal methods. And while the Combined Pill does appear to have a correlation with a slight increase with breast cancer, it also has a protective effect against endometrial and colon cancers - funny that is never mentioned, huh?
As for venous thromboembolism, there is definitely an increased risk in women using the combined hormonal contraceptive pill - non-contraceptive using women who are not pregnant have a risk of 4-5 per 10,000 woman years of developing a VTE; CHC using women have a risk of 9-10 per 10,000 woman years - it is a much smaller risk compared to women who are pregnant (29 per 10,000 woman years) or those post-partum (300-400 per 10,000 woman years). Better to be using a method of contraception to falling pregnant.
Natural planning methods do work if used correctly - just like the pill and condoms - but to suggest they should be the only method available is utterly ridiculous.
More...
What an utter load of lies and false information dressed up with Instagram-esque graphics! And I wonder if Neil Patrick Harris knows his image is being used on there. . .
I work as a sexual and reproductive health nurse in the UK and a lot of my work involves educating and providing contraception to my patients. Very often, they are surprised at the wide range of contraceptive options available beyond condoms and the pill - which this site seems to feel are the only viable options available to women as birth control (beyond Natural Family Planning methods, which are only as effective as condoms in practice and is often used by couples after they have had their families, hence tend to be older and already less fertile and therefore less likely to conceive anyway!)
IUDs are completely non-hormonal methods of contraception as well as being incredibly effective methods - why aren't they mentioned? Long-acting hormonal methods like the implant, IUS and injection are also extremely effective and have fewer side-effects that the combined hormonal methods. And while the Combined Pill does appear to have a correlation with a slight increase with breast cancer, it also has a protective effect against endometrial and colon cancers - funny that is never mentioned, huh?
As for venous thromboembolism, there is definitely an increased risk in women using the combined hormonal contraceptive pill - non-contraceptive using women who are not pregnant have a risk of 4-5 per 10,000 woman years of developing a VTE; CHC using women have a risk of 9-10 per 10,000 woman years - it is a much smaller risk compared to women who are pregnant (29 per 10,000 woman years) or those post-partum (300-400 per 10,000 woman years). Better to be using a method of contraception to falling pregnant.
Natural planning methods do work if used correctly - just like the pill and condoms - but to suggest they should be the only method available is utterly ridiculous.
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Peristeen anal plugs are essentially tampons for the anus, available as a method of managing faecal incontinence. They expand to create a plug at the top of the rectal cavity and can be left in for up to twelve hours. They are shaped differently so there would be less risk of it being lost inside the anus (although that's not no risk).
These are only available by prescription in the UK but I'd imagine there are similar products available in the USA.
It's an option but I still stand by my original opinion of not shoving things up one's ass that could potentially disappear. . .