Vaginal discharge after menopause

I just need to get this off my chest, I am really anxious now. I discovered a thin, yellowish vaginal discharge today. There might a bit blood in it. I am after menopause. I had no discharge the last 5 years or so. Now, I am concerned. It could be everything, ranging from stress, to an infection to, well, also cancer. I had a smear test for cervix cancer a few weeks ago and this came back clear. I also used twice a cream for candida last week, I sometimes reacted to that with discharge. But not like the one now. I made an appointment with a gynecologist, a private one, because otherwise it takes too long in our system to have a ultrasound scan done. So, Monday I will have this appointment and I need to calm down and think realistically. But how to do that? What’s really make me angry that I just began to feel much better and I thought I made a big step towards healing. But that is how life is, I guess. I wanted to feel safe and now this throws me again into this tumble ... any good advice?

 

So, I practiced self-soothing, not acting out but listening to my feelings. It works somehow. I come to understand that a huge part of the healing process is to feel the emotions psychologically - as emotions - and not as pain (sound like I know start to understand!). I think that is the core of TMS: we have not learned to attribute the emotions to our psyche but to the soma. It's like a short circuit: the feeling of disturbance and insecurity is directly felt as a body reaction. And I am now much calmer (the discharge did not show again, though I feel a bit itchy there - my guess is I have a slight inflammation or infection -- or nothing )

 

I guess it must have been a minor irritation, nothing serious. But I just want to tell you how the appointment with the gynecologist went, a bit for the textbook "Doctors and their contact with patients": He didn't say very much. When I am told him about my pelvic pain, he said that mmhmm, if it's stress related you have to take it from there ...(thanks, have never thought about it ...). Then he told me that he will look at the genitals and make an ultrasound scan. If the tissue in the uterus is too thick he will take a biopsi. This is a rather invasive procedure and painful without anesthesia. I was puzzled and said, that I prefer then to have done it in the public hospital (where everything is paid for by our health system) and not private (which would cost me a small fortune). He said mmmhmmm, let's have look. It turned out that the lining of the uterus is only 3 millimeter thick, that is normal, actually good. But, then he said that there are a little bit of unclear borders (I think he had trouble with the ultrasound scan, there were some problems in the beginning). I asked him if this is something serious. Again mhmmh, no, not really. But he thinks I should have the biopsy to close the case and rule cancer definitely out. I felt so uncomfortable with him and I also had the strong feeling that this is about money, that I told him I would rather talk with my doctor and he will refer me to the hospital to have it done, if my doctor also thinks that it is necessary. He didn't press me, so we ended this in agreement.
I have a history of very much worrying about diseases and I think some years before I would have been so terrified that I just would have obeyed. This time I used my experience and a bit common sense. He also admitted that there is absolutely no time pressure on the basis of these findings. The appointment lasted 15 minutes. I am calm now and know that I can deal with situations like this. But I am also frustrated about how dull and disinterested doctors can be.

 

Time2be,
I'm glad to hear that the doctor wasn't worried, it seems like they usually know if something is up, even if they want confirmation. It is so frustrating how apathetic some doctors are!

Lizzy

 

Thanks for your emphatic words!!

 

A little follow-up: my GP send me to the hospital where I saw a very nice and sympathetic female gynecologist. She examined me very thorough and even asked her chief. The result is that I don’t need a biopsy. Only if there is more discharge and especially if there is blood. She said that she don’t see any blurred borders in the uterus lining, on the contrary, everything looks good. I will have to go there for control in six months. I feel confident with these doctors and I have to say that this is quite often my experience with doctors in the Danish health system. They are not paid for doing extra diagnosis and treatments. On the contrary, because it is the tax payers money that finances the system they want to be as effective as possible. Sometimes it takes some time to get an appointment. If there is suspicion about cancer diagnostics must be performed within two weeks and in my case I got an appointment a week later after my GP referred me to the hospital. As TMS patients are often victim to overdiagnosis and medicalization I find it important to also have a critical perspective on a health system that makes money with pain and the anxiety of patients. I see this with some of my US friends and also from some stories here at the forum, but I know this also from Germany.

 

Time2be,

Thanks for letting us know!! This is a relief ☺️

Lizzy

 

Hi time2be,

Good to hear you are fine !

A friendly doctor can make all the difference. And communication skills are needed but sadly often very poor.

I have also enormous medical fear like you mentioned . and just last year after strugling for years with a gp who basicly made me scared more after seeing him than the actual medical problem ‘ i finally decided to go to another. Beats me why i strugled long with this man..
Sadly now i found a new one and before i could make an appointment he is burn-out, now went to see a temperary substitute.
a very young woman who was interested and kind
Now
kind of blame myself for dragging on with the bad one because i think it really effected me very negative and i have gotten more fearfull than was needed. I know i have huge health anxiety but a nice doctor makes it tiny bit easier

 

Glad to know you are fine. Some doctors are really insensible, glad you found one that is friendly

 

It’s not really over. I had again discharge (but no blood). And need to ask my doctor what to do. When I noticed the discharge I reacted first with panic, then I calmed down. The ultrasound was clear and this is something harmless. I simply do what my doc says. And if I ever feel the need to have more diagnostics I can do that.
For me with disease anxiety this is an important step.