Free Our Bodies, Ourselves by Boston Women's Health Book Collective

health-care provider and, until then, avoid using any commercial vulvar or vaginal treatment or medication not prescribed to you, including over-the-counter yeast infection treatments. If you don’t know for sure what the cause is, taking the wrong medication can worsen the irritation and make it difficult to diagnose what if anything is wrong. (See “Vaginal Infections,” )
GETTING THE SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE WE NEED
    Throughout our lives there are times when taking care of our reproductive and sexual health involves getting help from health care providers. Many of the chapters in this book, including “Abortion,” “Sexually Transmitted Infections,” “Birth Control,” “Pregnancy and Preparing for Birth,” and “Navigating the Health Care System,” discuss the types of providers and the specific kinds of care they offer, how to find a provider, how to access care if you don’t have health insurance or your insurance doesn’t cover the care, and what to expect at a visit.
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    SEXUAL SELF-CARE
    If you experience vaginal, vulvar, or other pain with sexual activity, stop. Find out the cause of the pain before resuming. Sex can be painful if you’re not fully aroused. Pain can also be caused by a scratch or an abrasion, sexually transmitted infections, and vulvodynia, a chronic pain condition . Sex should be about pleasure, and pleasure is connected to listening to your body and addressing your health needs.
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WHEN SHOULD I SEE A PROVIDER?
    Most of the time, we visit a provider for our sexual health when a particular need arises: We need birth control or are pregnant or have an unusual vaginal discharge. A gynecological health care visit is also recommended if you have complaints about or issues with your period or any part of your menstrual cycle; if you are experiencing pelvic, vaginal, or rectal pain or discomfort; or if you’re experiencing unexplained vaginal bleeding, spotting, or any unusual discharge.
    It’s also a good idea to have periodic visits once you are sexually active. Since most sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have no noticeable symptoms, it is wise to be screened for STIs before and after you have sex with someone new, if you are sexually active with more than one person, or if you think or know your partner has had sex with someone else. It is recommended that you have a gynecological exam by age twenty-one, even if you are not yet sexually active.
    Other reasons to see a provider include:
    â€¢ You want to start or change prescription contraception.
    â€¢ You miss three periods or your periods become increasingly heavy or irregular.
    â€¢ You have unusual genital discharge (which you might notice on your underwear) that lasts for more than a few days or that causes itching or burns or smells bad.
    â€¢ You have a lump in your breast, or any bumps, sores, swelling, or redness in your genital area.
    â€¢ You have persistent pelvic or genital pain with menstruation, urination, or sex, or in general, such as when sitting or walking.
    â€¢ You have unexplained pain in your lower belly or around the pelvic area.
    â€¢ You have vaginal bleeding that lasts for more than ten days, bleeding at times other than during or around menstrual periods, or flow during periods that becomes unusually heavy or light.
    â€¢ You are planning to get pregnant.
    â€¢ You find out you are pregnant.
    â€¢ You are experiencing a miscarriage.
    â€¢ You have problems, pain, or discomfort following labor and birth, a miscarriage, or an abortion.
KINDS OF PROVIDERS
    Many different types of health care providers offer reproductive and sexual health care to women, including nurse-practitioners, physician assistants, midwives, and doctors such as pediatricians, family practice physicians, and obstetrician/gynecologists (ob-gyns). Some of us obtain care from providers who specialize in women’s sexual and reproductive