OBGYN Visits

No, I'm not pregnant.

My previous OBGYN is a really good doctor, but she's a very busy doctor, and most of the time, she's late at her clinic schedule for 1-1.5hrs (we'd be surprised if she isn't). And I am only willing to go to her clinic if I'm pregnant because I only want to be admitted at Chong Hua Mandaue, so I always go to her if I'm pregnant.

But now, I am not, and we don't have plans to have another baby. I'm just going for check-ups and any concerns I have. So I went to a different OBGYN at UC-Med. What I like about her is her schedule and that she really sticks to her schedule.

Now that I'm older and have given birth twice, there are so many changes in my body, and am now prone to infections. Dirty water? Infection. Used a lot of pantyliners? Infection. YES! Omg, I can't stress this enough! If I am sweaty, need to change not just my clothes but including my under wears, too, else, I'd get an infection / painful boils.

Early on my second pregnancy, the first time I visited my doctor, she immediately conducted Gram Stain and Pap Smear, and we found out that I had an infection. If I remember correctly, I think she said it was normal, but it had to be treated. On my 34th week, I went to the hospital because I was walking too much on that day, I was in pain and I was having Braxton hicks. The doctor found some discharge and immediately gave me suppository medicine to treat it, and I had to treat it for a week since I'm about to give birth.

Fast forward, a year after I gave birth to my second child, I had a feeling I still have that infection, and this time, I had a list of concerns I wanted to ask, so we really made time to see a doctor.

I asked her about some contraceptive advices, infection concerns, and we did Gram Stain, and Pap Smear tests.

Contraceptives

On the first 3 months, I tried the Yaz contraceptive pills, but I stopped after 3 months. On the first month, I thought it was okay, I had no side effects - or so I thought. On the 19th day (of taking the pills), I started having very bad headaches, and it would take days before it's gone. I thought that I'm gonna give this contraceptive a chance and see if there won't be anymore headaches, but on the 2nd box, on the 19th day, I still have very bad headaches. It was not as bad as the first one, but it would still require me to just lay down in bed for days. Still, I tried a 3rd box and told myself that if I still have the headaches, I'm gonna stop using it. Well, yeah, I still have the headaches, so I stopped.

Infection

I am talking about Yeast infection. I don't really wanna say the name of the infection, it just sounds so taboo to me. I honestly felt really dirty, and to think that I am really conscious about personal hygiene. But it's not really that.

One of the reasons why a woman can have yeast infection is due to hormonal changes. Of course, I have given birth twice the past 3years, my hormones are going crazy, plus the contraceptives which is a hormonal pill. And using pantyliners. I use pantyliners everyday for the past 4-5 years. And although I change it every 4hrs, I think I'm not giving myself some room to breathe (if you know what I mean). I also did a Gram Stain re-test after I was treated to see how it went, and the doctor said all is well. I didn't really see the result, but I asked her thrice to be sure, and she said the results are fine. And of course, I haven't used pantyliners since, only when I am on my 4-6th day of my period.

Vaccine for women

Also, I finished all 3 doses of Gardasil-9 vaccine and had a flu vaccine yesterday. The Gardasil-9 vaccine is quite expensive, we paid Php8, 500 / shot.

Here's an overview of what this vaccine is for:

GARDASIL®9 (Human Papillomavirus 9-valent Vaccine, Recombinant) helps protect individuals ages 9 to 45 against the following diseases caused by 9 types of HPV: cervical, vaginal, and vulvar cancers in females, anal cancer, certain head and neck cancers, such as throat and back of mouth cancers and genital warts in both males and females.

Vaccination does not remove the need for recommended screenings for these cancers, and itʼs important for women to continue routine cervical cancer screenings. GARDASIL 9 does not treat cancer or genital warts.

Reference: https://www.gardasil9.com

It's hard

It's really hard being a woman, especially when you've become pregnant, and after you give birth. Your body is just not how it used to be. There are so many changes happening in your body. Even getting back in shape is difficult. You may lose weight but you'll still have that tummy pouch. And the boobs, I'm telling you, it will never be as perky as it once was. Aside from taking care of your kids, you have to take care of yourself, too.

And even after all that, your child is very precious, you'll love them with all your heart. And you know that this is all worth it.