STDs are bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections passed from person-to-person through sex, including vaginal, anal, and oral sex. Some STDs are spread from skin-to-skin contact by touch, not intercourse, like herpes and human papillomavirus (HPV).
Anyone can get an STD. It’s not unusual to have an STD and not have any symptoms. When left undiagnosed and untreated, an STD may lead to serious health complications like infertility or cancer.
If you’re sexually active, you should talk to your primary care provider or a trusted health professional about STDs and STD testing. It’s the best thing you can do to protect your overall health.
Anal discomfort is a symptom of some STDs, causing anal itching, burning, or bleeding. Some of the STDs linked to anal discomfort include:
Chlamydia
Gonorrhea
Herpes
Syphilis
HPV
These STDs may also cause a condition called proctitis, inflammation of the rectum, causing blood in stools, constipation, or rectal pain.
Anal discomfort is also a symptom of other conditions like hemorrhoids, anal fissures, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

I (19 M) had unprotected sex with a M about a week ago. I tested positive for gonorrhoea and chylamidia 2 days ago and already taking doxycycline. Im on my 4th day of meds and my balls are turning into dark black colour plus i have occasional itching on thighs and in back. What could be the reason? I have also taken HIV test but will get my results on monday (2 days later) this fear is not letting me function properly on my job and im lossing my sleep. Please help with any urgent information and what should I do.

Hey everyone,
I'm reaching out to see if anyone has any good skincare tips or advice. Since January 2023, I've been experiencing random flare-ups at least once or twice a month, and it's been quite frustrating. I get red and it itches and hurts. Sometimes I get tiny pimples with puss. I recently received a blood panel test which showed no abnormalities, and my hormones are in check as well.
I've tried various skincare products and routines, but nothing seems to provide a long-term solution. I was prescribed doxycycline, which helped temporarily, but it unfortunately hurts my stomach and makes me nauseated, so I'm looking for other options.
If you have any tips, suggestions, or personal experiences that could help me achieve clear skin, I would greatly appreciate it. Whether it's a specific product, a natural remedy, lifestyle changes, or anything else, I'm open to trying new approaches.
I eat a plant based diet for the past 19 years. I recently quit sugar (16 days now), rarely eat carbs, primarily Whole Foods, and minimal processed foods. My diet is primarily for health reason. I also drink daily kale/lettuce/parsley juice in the mornings. My protein intake is moderate. I walk 4x a week with up to 10k steps. I drink a lot of water, no soda, no alcohol- only on special occasions but it is a small amount.
Thank you so much for your help!

Chlamydia, a sexually transmitted infection, can cause bumps or boils on the inner thighs, typically transmitted through sexual contact or direct skin-to-skin contact with infected individuals or infected fluid. These bumps may resemble pimples or blisters, often causing pain, itching, and symptoms such as genital discharge and discomfort during urination. Treatment involves antibiotics such as Azithromycin or Doxycycline for the underlying infection, topical antibiotics, and symptomatic relief for the boils. They can be prevented by maintaining good hygiene, avoiding tight clothing, and refraining from sexual activity if infected.

MELALITE FORTE CREAM contains Hydroquinone which belongs to the group of medicines called Demelanizing agents. It is used to lighten the areas of darkened skin such as chloasma (brown patches appear on the face due to hormonal changes during pregnancy), melasma (skin problem caused by brown to gray-brown patches on the face due to sun exposure), freckles (small brown spots on skin often in areas that gets exposed to sun), age spots and acne scars.
Skin darkening is called as epidermal hyper-pigmentation and it is caused by deposit of too much melanin in the skin.
Before using MELALITE FORTE CREAM, inform your doctor if you have any inflammatory skin conditions, skin cancer or taking any other medicines that cause sensitivity to light (Ex. chlorpromazine, doxycycline and amiodarone).
This medicine is not recommended for use if you are regularly exposed to sunlight for long hours. Your doctor may advise you to use sunscreen products in addition to MELALITE FORTE CREAM to manage pigmentation on the skin.
MELALITE FORTE CREAM is not recommended for use in pregnant and breastfeeding women. Also, it is not recommended for use in children (less than 12 years of age). The most common side effects of using MELALITE FORTE CREAM are irritation, pain or swelling at the site of application, redness and skin dryness. Consult your doctor if any of the side effect gets worse or bothers you.
USES OF MELALITE FORTE CREAM
Used to lighten the areas of darkened skin such as chloasma, melasma, freckles, age spots and acne scars
HOW MELALITE FORTE CREAM WORKS
MELALITE FORTE CREAM is used as a de-pigmentation agent on the skin to suppress the activity of cells called melanocytes. Melanocytes are responsible for producing melanin, which leads to the darkening of the skin. MELALITE FORTE CREAM suppresses the overactivity of these cells by blocking the melanin production cycle, thus leads to fading of the brownish spots.
DIRECTIONS FOR USE
Apply MELALITE FORTE CREAM as advised by your physician. It is for external use only. This medicine is applied using fingertips and rubbed evenly onto the affected area. Wash your hands immediately after applying MELALITE FORTE CREAM. Avoid contact with eyes and avoid exposure to sun immediately after application of this medicine. Your doctor will decide the frequency of application and duration of MELALITE FORTE CREAM for you depending upon your age and skin condition.
SIDE EFFECTS OF MELALITE FORTE CREAM
Irritation, pain or swelling at the site of application
Red itchy rash on skin (allergic contact dermatitis)
Redness (erythema)
Skin dryness (xeroderma)
Burning and stinging sensation
RARE
Blue-black and/or grey-blue discoloration of the skin (which signifies some deposits in the deep layer of the skin (ochronosis))
Stop applying MELALITE FORTE CREAM and consult your doctor immediately if you experience this side effect:
Signs of severe allergic reaction (such as hives, redness and extreme itching).

I'm mtf and have been doing weekly injections of estradiol ethanate for about 2 months. I have pretty bad acne and I was recommended the medication doxycycline hyclate but I don't know if this would negatively impact my hrt and I was wondering if any of you have any experience with this or know another potential solution to acne. thank you!

Main symptoms have been vulvar burning at inner labia and vestibule, sometimes itch but mostly all day long burn varying in intensity.
Rx is pelvic floor dysfunction (likely caused by post infection chronic clenching like holding a 24/7 kegel know what I mean?) with some hormonal issues possibly from bcp use/lack of estrogen/testosterone.
Anyway on E/T cream about 6 weeks now with no significant improvement yet.
Gabapentin at night 500mg.
Earliest I can get into PFT is July 3.
Meantime specialist added diazepam 10 mg suppositories rectally (because this will put the medication as close to the muscles that seem to be the most impacted which connect toward back of vagina and around rectum).
I’m a scared to insert - will they make me incontinent with prolonged use? I currently have no issues with urinating or pooping regularly (if anything I have some IBS-D) my pft symptoms seem to be all vulvar.
Anyone use these and it helped?

So a couple weeks ago I (19M) had my annual physical and got a call back a few days later saying my piss test had come back positive for chlamydia. I was then prescribed a dose of doxycycline hyclate twice a day for a week which I finished about a week ago.
Am I automatically good to resume sexual activity or should I at least get tested again first?

I got bit by something when I was weeding my overgrown lawn on either May 22nd or 26th. On June 5th, I noticed a very alarming, red, circular mark had formed around the bite. After a quick Google, I made an appointment and saw my doctor yesterday. She confirmed that while we live just outside of the normal range for deer ticks, we have had a few cases of Lyme here.
My doctor wasn't convinced that the mark was indicative of Lyme, but thankfully, when I told her that I wanted to treat it anyway, she said that she would do the same thing in my place. She prescribed 10 days of doxycycline hyclate 100mg, which I started yesterday evening. This morning, I took it on an empty stomach, which my doctor and the pharmacist both advised. Of course, I puked it up 45 minutes later, so now I'm at home trying to figure out a path forward that includes keeping the pills down. 😅
Google eventually brought me here, and the wealth of knowledge y'all have put together here has brought me a lot of peace of mind. Thank you all for being here. I'm in my 30s, and I really had no idea that Lyme was still so prevalent. I'm angry that so many folks are suffering long term effects after receiving inadequate treatment.
Once I figure out how to keep these doxycycline pills down, I'm going to make sure I get my prescription extended to at least 30 days. If I can't keep the pills down, I'll insist on trying amoxicillin. I'm also looking at picking up grapefruit seed extract too. It's thanks to y'all, from your discussion and wiki here, that I've got a clear treatment plan in front of me. I know there's a lot I can't control, but focusing on what I can control alleviates a lot of my anxiety.
I'm going to keep reading through the wiki and also find a link or two to share with my doctor when I ask for a longer prescription. If y'all have any additional info/tips y'all are willing to share, I would be very grateful. 🖤

I have had mild flare ups of this hellish dermatitis for a year or so now.. caused my anything from my sunscreen to allergy meds to makeup to hormones.. ugh!
This is what cleared my worst flare up so far (eye was swollen, face was in so much pain I was so miserable)

1. Metronidazole 0.75 2-3 times a day
2. Doxycycline hyclate 50 mg 2 times a day
3. Cicalfate+ by Avene as moisturizer

I was prescribed doxycycline for 6 weeks and my doc said I could stop when it cleared up.. on my third day of the antibiotics and metronidazole I woke up feeling better than the days before, but my face still felt really bad. I then went to ulta beauty and got the cicalfate+. It was pricy, but they had travel size options for $12 and 1.3ml for under $30. Almost instantly after putting on the cicalfate with the metronidazole it… cleared up! Still a little dry, but I feel so much better. I was genuinely surprised at how well it worked.
The metronidazole and doxycycline were of course prescriptions but I was lucky that my insurance covered most of it, ended up being $3. But I hope it costs a good price for those without insurance too. My plan going forwards is to keep using the antibiotics for another week or so, and then once the flare up is completely gone put all 3 things somewhere so that I can use it next time it happens. 6 weeks of doxycycline is enough to possibly use another time. The metronidazole tube lasts so long.
I understand how frustrating this condition is it’s sooo annoying but I hope this helps anyone struggling! Also!!! Get a tube of non-fluoride toothpaste for when you have flare-ups.

Apologies if these questions have been asked, I've checked through the subreddit and I can't see anything so far that helps with my specific issue.
I've been suffering with this for just about a year now. My symptoms were:

• itching and discomfort, initially diagnosed as thrush by my doctor (it wasnt)
• that UTI feeling of always needing to pee, pain when peeing and severe burning afterwards, but all UTI tests came back clear
• Discharge, a lot of it
• Really smelly urine, like REALLY strong smell.

I did a microbiome/STI test in April and everything came back negative aside from Ureaplasma. Since then I've taken 7 days of Doxycycline, which initially made me feel better. All my symptoms disappeared in a couple of days, I had a little bit of thrush from the antibiotics but that cleared up quite quickly and within a few days I felt fantastic. This lasted for all of one week after finishing the course, and then my symptoms came back fiercely. My partner took this course too, and we have not had sex at all for many months, so I don't I think it's been passed back to me from him.
I gave it a few weeks and nothing improved, and decided to take another treatment before paying out for another expensive microbiome test, as I was SURE it hadn't gone away. (You know your own body right?)
So I bought a dual treatment online of Doxycycline 100mg (2 x a day for 7 day), and then 1.5 Azinthro to follow it. At the same time, I went back to my doctor and pleaded with her to look into this bacteria. After I told her doxy was the only thing in a year that has made me feel slightly better, she prescribed me only 5 days of doxy. I figured in for a penny, in for a pound and took 12 days of Doxy, followed by the Azinthro.
This time it didn't feel like my symptoms went away as quickly, and I still had on and off UTI symptoms, and some burning that came and went. It seemed to get better towards the end of the doxy course, and then worse again once I took azinthro.
I'm now 1 week after the entire dual course of meds is over, and I have burning, discharge and a lot of discomfort again. Nothing seems to ease the discomfort, I've tried sitz baths, cooling gel, I work from home so most days I wear loose pj bottoms with no underwear, etc. The only symptom that hasn't seemed to return is smelly urine, which I'm hoping is a sign that something changed.
I'm not sure what to do now - I was using DAYE as a way of testing, but its at least £100 per test, and the dual course of medication cost me almost £70. I don't have the highest income. I know I need to wait at least 4 weeks to retest, but if I still have symptoms should I not treat it again first?
I'm aware symptoms can linger, but can they go away and then fully come back a week later? I don't understand how it can get better and then worse, but I'm not a doctor.
I've also read online about coinfections, but I don't know what sort of test I'd have to do for this, and in the research I've done on this they appear to be somewhere between £200 and £500. I don't have the money to be spending out on a fancy microgen test right now - I have looked at Group Strep B tests as this seems to be the most common coinfection, but they just seem to have information for pregnant women everywhere I look and I'm not pregnant.
I just don't know what the next step should be. Wait it out and test again? Wait a bit and then treat again? Try testing for coinfections? Do I need to wait for those too? If I do treat again, what should I try this time? I've heard Moxi is not a nice antibiotic, and it seems difficult to get hold of without a prescription in the UK.
UPDATE: I began using BV suppositories to try and balance my microbiome out a bit, and after 2 nights of them, for the first time I'm actually feeling marginally better. The urethral pain is not as bad today, and discharge has been going away slowly. I'm also taking probiotics. Hopefully this is the start of the healing journey! I'll keep updating as I go. Don't lose hope all, we got this!

So I tested positive for chlamydia after getting cheated on, and found out months after. I also had chlamydia a year and a half ago from getting cheated on by another man…just my luck🤣got treated with doxycycline successfully for that a year and a half ago.
I took Azithromycin for 3 days (1g first day, 500mg once a day for 2 days). I took that on may 1st, 2nd and 3rd. I took it at similar times but didn’t take it with water and didn’t realise I was suppose to.
Still had symptoms and was scared it hadn’t gone away. Got prescribed the same the 2nd time, a 3 day course. I took that on the 20th, 21st and 22nd of May and took with water and at exactly the same times.
I am really nervous about treatment failure and have read bad things about azithromycin not being successful or not curing rectal chlamydia. I have not got symptoms like before but I get worried at the slight itch down there, and my anus being slightly itchy. I could be overthinking but I still have to wait to get retested. I don’t know if it’s safe to do anything with anyone.

So I tested positive for chlamydia after getting cheated on, and found out months after. I also had chlamydia a year and a half ago from getting cheated on by another man…just my luck🤣got treated with doxycycline successfully for that a year and a half ago.
I took Azithromycin for 3 days (1g first day, 500mg once a day for 2 days). I took that on may 1st, 2nd and 3rd. I took it at similar times but didn’t take it with water and didn’t realise I was suppose to.
Still had symptoms and was scared it hadn’t gone away. Got prescribed the same the 2nd time, a 3 day course. I took that on the 20th, 21st and 22nd of May and took with water and at exactly the same times.
I am really nervous about treatment failure and have read bad things about azithromycin not being successful or not curing rectal chlamydia. I have not got symptoms like before but I get worried at the slight itch down there, and my anus being slightly itchy. I could be overthinking but I still have to wait to get retested. I don’t know if it’s safe to do anything with anyone.

I am a 25 y/o female and I’ve had these bites/rashes for about two weeks now, and they have irritated me since they have come up. They itch constantly, are red and hot, but I’ve never experienced anything like this. I went to urgent care to treat them last week and I was prescribed doxycycline but the symptoms have only persisted. New ones pop up daily mainly on my right leg… but I definitely have noticed about 2 on my left leg. Any idea on what it might be or how I could treat them?

Male 60, 5’ 11”, 185 lbs, non-smoker, Cefdinir 300 mg 2x daily, Doxycycline Hyclate 100 mg 2x daily, Rosuvastatin 10 mg, Pantoprazole 40 mg.
My BF is suffering from a long-term illness that to date, is un-diagnosed. He had steroid injections between C3 & C4 on April 29th and June 13th due to a neck injury he sustained in a car wreck in January.
Time line:
Saturday – PM – Chills – We were at a wedding and he kept going outside in the Texas heat to keep from shivering.
Sunday/Monday – Extreme sweating and fatigue, fever and aches in muscles & bones from the waist down. He stopped after putting on his shorts because he didn’t have the strength to do more. Slept all day. His fever would come and go and he continued to sweat through his clothes and the bed sheets. He had no appetite but drank over a gallon of water. We alternated Ibuprofen and acetaminophen.
Tuesday – We went to his GP. They ran a CBC and tested for COVID, influenza. No indications of anything. The GP told us to go to the ER. ER also ran a CBC and multiple tests, chest x-ray, CT scan and an MRI. Still nothing. He was given an antibiotic drip and two saline bags and was admitted into the hospital.
Wednesday/Saturday – Continued to have the same symptoms. He regained a little energy because of the many bags of IV fluids and was able to eat a little. Multiple broad-spectrum antibiotics were given. They ran a CBC every day. Internal medicine doctor and an infection diseases doctor ran additional tests. All came up negative. They started him on oral antibiotics Friday evening and sent him home Saturday afternoon. Telling him he could go back to regular activities.
Sunday/Friday – He ate and drank plenty of water. His strength and appetite began to come back and he would walk around the block twice a day. But he was still having night sweats, fever and body aches every day.
Saturday/Sunday – He had a couple of good days with not too much discomfort. Still had a fever at least once a day and continued to have night sweats. Sunday, he went with friends for about three hours to just have a change in scenery.
Monday – Went back to sweats, fever, chills and body aches. He got up at 7:30 am and was back in bed and sleeping by 11 am. He’s back to being miserable.
Notes: His base temperature is 97.8. It has always been low. His fevers ranged from 99.6 - 101.8. He’s not one to complain and sit around, so I believe he is hurting a lot more than he lets on. He’s had a few headaches, but they don’t last long. No exposures that we are aware of to anything unusual. We haven’t traveled at all.
We have asked each doctor if the steroid shots could be the reason for these symptoms. No one is willing to confirm or deny.
We are at a lost on what to do next.

i’ve been with my boyfriend for 6months and we had unprotected sex for the first time over a month ago and there was no problem. however the most recent time almost immediately after i felt something wrong, i believed it to be a yeast infection and treated it as such i then proceeded to get my period which may be unrelated but i never get my period its very unregulated. my symptoms continued to get worse, i could barely walk without pain and going to the bathroom would leave me in tears. i began to notice sores and even blisters, by that point i knew i had to go to a doctor to get tested for an sti and i was heartbroken.
i was up yesterday 4:00am from the pain and anxiety. i had my boyfriend take me to my appointment where they examined me and tested me, i was negative for yeast, bv, and trish. the doctor then told me the rash looks very concerning for herpes and they would test for it, i lost it on that table i felt my world come crashing down and i was so upset i could let this happen to me, ive only just recently turned 18 and now i have to live my life with the worry and anxiety of carrying this virus. im still waiting to get my test results but my symptoms only continue to line up with the symptoms of herpes. however i’ve been given doxycycline hyclate and valacyclovir hcl for treatment now.
my boyfriend clames to have been a virgin before me and never had any unprotected sexual contact. i don’t believe he has cheated on me and i asked if he ever had any symptoms of anything at any point in his life and i was told no. could it have been possible for his mom to have had it and passed it to him unknowingly and he’s just been carrying it? i don’t understand how i could’ve gotten it now if we’ve made contact before and there were no symptoms or anything.
honestly im so distraught mentally and seeing the state i look has been so terrifying, im ashamed with myself for letting this happen and even angrier with my boyfriend for giving it to me, but he’s explained to me he never would have done this to me and he never thought he would have something or the need to be tested since he was a virgin….so i feel like i can’t be angry with him. how do i continue forward, other than pursuing treatment, what is life like after getting diagnosed? what do i need to prepare for?

Hi everyone!! I have yet to see an answer on this and I would appreciate alllll the help and suggestions with knowledge or experience. Just some background info:
I’ve had the majority of clear skin my whole life, i would get a phew pimples here or there, sometimes gnarly ones but it was rare. NEVER had textured skin/comodomes
Then one year in high school, end of 21-start of 22 i started breaking out like i have never seen before… closed comodones ALL on the side of my mouth, chin, forehead, and was getting some cystic acne. btw emotions or stressed have never been a factor to my acne because when i dealt with the most depression i had the clearest skin and i have a pretty good diverse diet too
i got prescribed clindamyacin phosphate gel 1% WITH doxycycline hyclate pill in the AM and trentinoin cream 0.5 at night. after three months my skin turned into GLASS. truly the best i have ever seen my skin…. but then i stopped using tret. my good skin lasted for a little over a year
until july 2023…. SLOWLY it has built up until now i started seeing closed comodones popping up on my forehead and then i started breaking out again all for it to be horrible now. the pimples are okay and have a lot of post inflammatory red spots on my cheeks, i hate it but it’s the CLOSED COMODONES that KILL me. I have never seen my skin such a texture before, the CCs are incredibly worst than the last time I broke out like this. the sides and outer perimeter of my face are infested with closed comodones. it genuinely upsets me… maybe it’s horomones? July of last year i turned 19
Went to the dermatologist again and i feel such dread starting my routine again because I feel like it won’t be as effective or it’ll take longer. it’s the expectations that make everything frustrating
anyway :’) my question is… is it even worth it to reintroduce clindamyacin phosphate gel and the pill? aren’t they both an antibiotic gel and a antibiotic pill? doesn’t your body get USED to them?? i really want to use it again with hopes it’ll be effective to a similar level like last time but….
again thank you for all the help in advance :)

Hi I’m a 5’3” 127lbs 27m. I got Tommy John surgery on my elbow 5 weeks ago. My elbow was broken in 2 spots (ulna and radius) and dislocated. LUCL was torn as well. I’m also suffering from an occipital condylar fracture and broken thumb. I got into a high-speed crash on my dirt bike. I’m 5 weeks post-op and the incision on my elbow is very itchy sometimes, other times not at all. Scabs are just now starting to form on both sides of the incision site, which seems strange given the amount of time that’s passed. Said scabs are forming (and getting larger) in the 2 creases of the “mountain” that my stitches created. I have very very lightly scratched this exact area once or twice at times when it was itching badly. Could this be the cause of the newly-forming scabs? Medications I’m currently taking: Hydroxyzine, Oysco 500+D, Doxycycline, and Gabapentin. Is this normal or should I seek medical attention?
Thanks in advance.