Q I am a 22-year-old man and I am asking for your help. My girlfriend has contracted a urinary tract infection. She went to the doctor and got prescribed medication to treat it.
Could she pass it on to me during sex?
If so, should I go to a doctor and get treated? Or, could I heal over a period of time?
A Quite a lot of young guys seem to worry about this matter. Urinary tract infections are extremely common in younger women, especially after they first start to have sex. This is mainly because inexpert 'love play' often transfers bowel germs from the young lady's anus to her urinary opening.
However, there can be other reasons for getting a urinary infection. For instance, many women make the big mistake of wiping FORWARDS instead of BACKWARDS. This transfers germs from the anus to the urinary tube.
Now let us turn to your question. Can a guy catch a urinary infection from his sex partner?
That is almost impossible. Very few males get urinary infections, and the principal reason for that is the fact that the male urinary passage - which runs through the length of the penis - is far longer than the female one. So, it is quite difficult for germs to find their way up all that long distance.
Therefore, you are quite safe.
Q My clitoris is often sore after a night's love-making. Is this OK, Doc?
A Yes. Friction on the clitoris does tend to make it sore and swollen the next day. It can even bleed.
In future, I suggest you use lots of lubricant before sex, and tell your partner to be gentler.
QI am a young guy and sometimes 'water bumps' appear on my foreskin. They burst by themselves, except when I jab them with a needle.
This leaves a slight sore, which heals in a few days.
I went to a doctor but, funnily, he never recommended a blood test. I asked for an explanation and he told me the blisters were stress-related. Is that so?
A I am afraid that I cannot think of any way in which stress could cause blisters on the foreskin.
From your description, I would say that this could be quite a trivial problem but it could also be something more serious, such as herpes.
You must go to a doctor experienced in treating diseases of the sex organs. Do that this week. Meanwhile, no sex, please.
QI think I may have accidentally left a tampon inside me last week, so I guess it is still there.
Does this matter?
A It certainly does! If you leave a tampon inside you for a few days, it will probably start to get infected. The result will be a vaginal discharge that smells really bad.
If you cannot get this tampon out yourself, please go to a doc or nurse who can extract it.
QMy boyfriend and I have been thinking about having sex. He has gone to a doctor to be tested and is healthy. I have not been to a doc yet.
We are both virgins. Do I need to see a doctor before starting to have sex?
A If you are a virgin, there is not much point in consulting a doctor or having tests. It is almost impossible that you have any sexual infection.
QI am a young man and I have had untreated high blood pressure over a period of maybe three years now. The last time I went to the doc, which was at the end of July, my pressure was 160/100.
I have tried eating garlic to get it down, but it's just no use.
Now, it feels as if my heart is getting really weak and as if my blood circulation is poor, and the blood is not reaching my entire body sufficiently, especially my legs. I also feel weak at times.
How much longer can I live?
A I am sure you will live for a very long time. The symptoms you have told me about are NOT due to 'pressure'.
However, your 'BP' is certainly higher than it should be for a young man. You need to take urgent action to get it down!
Two things you can do for yourself are to get plenty of exercise each day, and to make sure that you are not overweight. But it is probable that you also need to go on prescribed daily pressure-lowering medication. Good luck.
QDoes a girl have to orgasm in order to conceive?
A No, this is quite a common myth among young people. Indeed, teenage boys will sometimes tell their girlfriends that it is OK to have intercourse because 'the woman cannot conceive if she doesn't discharge'. That is total foolishness.
QI am a 20-year-old girl and I would like to know why so many of the young men I have met want to give me a 'facial'.
It seems pretty strange to me.
A Yes, it does seem odd to women. Psychologists say that males are strongly conditioned to want to get their seminal fluid into, or on to, girls. Their biggest desire is to send it into the vagina, but they are more than keen to 'inject' it into other bodily openings too.
As an alternative, many males also have a real strong desire to project their sperms on to a female's breasts or belly or face. This tends to give them a lot of satisfaction.
What I would say to you is this: No woman HAS to allow a guy to give her a 'facial'. If you don't like it, do NOT agree to it.
One final point. If the seminal fluid gets into the girl's eyes, that can be painful and distressing. So do not let that happen.
QFor the past few weeks, I have had heavy pounding in my chest. Why? I am five feet, nine inches, stoutly built and weigh 235 pounds.
A Well, clearly you weigh far too much at the moment and must try to slim down. However, I must tell you that in a young person, pounding in the chest is more likely to be due to anxiety than anything else.
But you must see a doc this week.
Want advice from Doc? Email saturdaylife@gleanerjm.com or post questions to Doctor's Advice, The Gleaner Company, 7 North Street, Kingston.
