I'm a woman in Texas. I'm married and have a school-aged child. I have a medical background. I'm quite liberal, socially. I love helping people with medical, parenting, and social questions. Don't ask me about tech stuff or finances, because I need advice on those things myself!
Gender: Female
Location: Texas
Age: 34
Member Since: December 17, 2006
Answers: 795
Last Update: September 2, 2007
Visitors: 49975
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Xenolan
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i just started my period what do i do? (link)
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You get cleaned up, put a pad in your panties and go about your day. Take Tylenol if you need it for pain. Try to avoid eating too much salt because it can cause you to retain fluids. Get plenty of sleep and take an iron supplement if you don't usually get enough protein sources with iron. And you should probably tell a parent/guardian.
Congratulations.
Sabine
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how far in the vagina is the hymen? (link)
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It's right at the opening of the vagina. See these pictures?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hymen
You can't usually put in a tampon without touching it, but sometimes you can use a tampon without rupturing the hymen.
Sabine
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sorry have to ask this question again
my face is uneven i think? it looks so in pictures but i look normal-ish in the mirror when i see myself.
my question is, when other people look at you, is that what you see in the mirror or a flip of you?
also, what about when a picture is taken of you? (link)
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Sorry, but I disagree with the previous adviser. When you look in the mirror, your right eye is closest to the reflection of your right eye and your left eye is the closest to the reflection of your left eye. When people look at you, their left eyes are closest to your right eye and their right eye closest to your left. They see you correctly. The image in the mirror is the one that's flipped. Anyway, most of the time when you look different in pictures, it's because of your expressions. If your face were really uneven, it would be the same unevenness in the mirror as in the pictures. The differences are in the lighting and in your expressions.
Sabine
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my mom made an app. for me to go see the dermatologist. and see if i can use proactiv and if it would work for my type of skin.
will they be cleaning my face or do i specifically have to make an app. for them to do that. (link)
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Usually, when you go to see the dermatologist, you should come in with your face freshly washed clean and no makeup or moisturizer on.
Sabine
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is it possible if you are bulimic that you can cause some kind of heart condition??? (link)
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Yes. Bulimia affects the heart in two ways. It denies the heart the nutrients it needs to make new muscle and repair it. Cardiac muscle is constantly dying and being replenished in all of us, just at a very slow rate. Without the proper proteins and minerals, our cells, including those in our hearts, cannot replenish themselves. This leads to weakened hearts and muscle walls which are more likely to blow holes.
The second thing it does to the heart is to cause it to have problems with muscle and nerve conduction. Calcium, potassium, and magnesium are all necessary for the proper functioning of the cells in the heart. If you throw up a lot, you lose potassium and other electrolytes. That leads to irregular heartbeats and possibly even cell death.
Bulimia is very bad for the heart.
Sabine
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Ok firstly, i know your not doctors but i just want some kind of advice, anything you can give.
Secondly, i dont need you moaning at me about worrying this and worrying that.
Thirdly, dont tell me to go to the doctors, ive tried, they make you wait weeks to get in, i cant wait that long i need some kind of advice.
Ok, im 16, and my periods keep missing lately, and i know it may be nothing and its normal for teens but im the sort of person that has to look into things, i know i shouldnt but i cant help it, its like i HAVE to do it. Ive had my period for years now, and its always been fine.
I read this online, and its kind of worried me..
Disorder: Premature Ovarian Failure (POF) (endocrine disorder)
Causes: Viral infection, exposure to radiation, chromosomal problems, other genetic conditions
Symptoms: Most common: absent periods, irregular periods, hot flashes. Other: Irritability, sleeping disorders, night sweats, vaginal dryness, bladder control problems, mood swings
This can cause you to not be able to have children!!
So my question is.. what are the chances of this??
(link)
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You're asking what are the chances that a woman will develop POF? http://www.pofsupport.org/information/factsheet/fact_sheet_english.pdf
That web site says it's between 1% and 4%. If you're asking what the chances are that, given your symptoms, you have POF, I'm sorry I don't know. Are you asking what are the chances that POF will cause infertility? That seems, by the same info sheet, to be 92%-94%.
I hope I've answered your questions.
Sabine
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Ok you said something about Clomid I actually would like to have more than one at a time.It would be killing 2 birds with one stone.I realy only want 3. or something like that. So do you think if I asked him to give it to me he would.Or would he tell me to wait.Me and my Fiance were planning on getting pregnant before this year was over please help me (link)
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OOOooh. I don't even know how likely it is that your endocrinologist or OB/GYN would give you Clomid. Sorry. :( I wish I knew. If you call tomorrow, his nurse might be able to advise you on this. I think it depends on the doctor's prescribing habits, your medical history, and how long you've been trying.
Sabine
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My 14 year old cousin, recently got out of the hospital about a week ago from radiaton treatments anc chemo therapy, due to a brain tumor located on the spinal cord. Now that his treatments are over and he is at home, he is having a hard time recovering from the treatments and is on a lot of naturual medicines and herbs to keep him helthy. But my question is, how long does it typically take for chemo and radiation to leave your system? Are there any ways to speep up the process? Any help would be AWESOME. (link)
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I'm sorry to say that I don't know of a good answer for you. Radiation and chemotherapy damage the body and it takes a while for the body to heal from that. There are a few factors involved, including how healthy the body was before the treatment and how much/how strong/how long the treatment was.
Your cousin should be sure to get plenty of water to flush the chemo out of his system. He should empty the bladder a lot because some chemo regiments can cause bladder cancer from the chemo sitting in the bladder too long. He should rest as much as he can/needs to and he should eat as well as he can. He should take a multivitamin if he can and possibly any 'detoxifying' herbs such as Goldenseal Root. I would say that he should definitely contact his oncologist if he still feels lousy in another week. The docs are probably watching his blood counts and monitoring his health. Please tell him to ask his physician before changing anything. If he has burns or skin rashes from the radiation, he probably should keep them clean and dry. The oncologist's nurse is likely a good source to answer any questions you and your family might have.
I wish him a fast recovery.
Sabine
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theres multiple mini q's in here. i hope thats ok because they may be related somehow. sorry, really long. any advice is appreciated. i know i should seek some other doctor or something but i was just wondering if anyone knew anything about any of the below?
also the details are kind of personal so if it is possible to put the answer as a question and drop it in my inbox (username: sickperson) so i can delete this question later without it showing up on someone's advice column just in case. thank you guys!
http://www.advicenators.com/column.php?u=sickperson
17/f
i woke up one day and where one of my legs is connected to the pelvis and found this mysterious lump there. hmm. ok and the lump and surrounding area hurts. my sibling suggested it to be a hernia! uh dunno about that but anyway went to the gyno b/c my pediatrician was on vaca. anyway he said it was like some lymphona or lymph node? and he wasnt sure b/c its not exactly his field. he told to to watch out if my period gets weird. my urine test came out to be normal and my blood pressure and stuff. he checked for meningitis andi could move my neck so its not that. i dont really show other symptoms. also later my blood test came back and he said to take some meds- dunno what it is. parent told me in a different langauge what it is and i dunno what its called in english but its like for killing bacteria and he said the results showed that i have some infection within?
at home my temp was taken and dunno if the thermometer is working b/c my parents used it and both got 96 - isnt the normal body temp like 98.6? maybe the degrees are off? even though i feel hot a lot? why are they colder than normal? moreover, i had random temperatures. like 100+ and 99.2+ at some points throughout the next few days and one of the next few days when i was sleeping at night i felt extremely cold even though i had a blanket covering my entire body and it wasnt enough and i dont think the air conditioner was even on. i keep tossing and turning when i sleep and the lump keeps on hurting when i walk and sit and move and stuff because of its location. and so one of the next few days (sorry about repeating this i dont know what happened when its been like 4 days now since i woke up with the lump and on that day i was fine-no fever) i get cramping and lower back pain and no period and yet my pee or w/e smells like i got my period if that is possible and cramps continue. my last period came a long time ago. maybe 2 months? weird. maybe it was normal. i dont keep track but i need to start now. also my stomach hurts and i have extra sensitivity to everything like a cold chair and when i get up from laying down or sitting my head hurts and i dunno how to describe it. im not really hungry much either.
i dunno whether to mention this stuff. i stepped on a pin twice in two different locations a while ago. i didnt do anything about it. also theres some random red round thing on my foot. maybe from stepping on one of the pins. (link)
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Sorry, but I couldn't find how to put a note in your inbox. Because I have a paid account, I could see other questions you've asked. Girl, you are prolific! :)
You have now complained about swollen lymph nodes in your groin (hip area), under your chin, and in your arm pits. This, accompanied by cold sensitivity, irregular period, abdominal cramping, lower back pain, fevers that come and go, the weird thing on your foot, loss of appetite, etc., all add up to a convincing argument that you need to see a physician. You may even need to see an infectious disease specialist. I don't know whether you are American-born, but since you said your parents speak a different language, I'm going to assume it's a possibility that you are not. You may have been exposed to a number of diseases. You should get it checked out by a trustworthy physician.
What you are describing could be anything from a virus to lymphoma to lupus. You could have a kidney infection or nothing at all, really, but you should see a doctor to make sure.
Good luck.
Sabine
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I have a painful bump that just appeared today on my bottom part of my eye like a little under where you would put eyeliner. It hurts if i touch it feels like a bruise but i know its not because its a bump idk what it is do you have any ideas? Its red its not itchy its just a bump and it hurts. (link)
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That is most likely a sty, as the other advicinator said. It's usually a bacteria trapped in an eyelash follicle.
http://health.learninginfo.org/eye-sty.htm
It can sometimes be a virus. It usually goes away on its own within 5 days. Try not to touch it or scratch it. Throw away your eyeliner and mascara and don't use any until the problem is resolved. Buy completely new eye makeup at that point.
Sabine
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ok my chest just started hurtin recently. like not my boobs but inside my chest. like between my breasts. i feel like someone is sitting on top of me, but i have no trouble breathing at all. it just hurts idky why.
ps. if it helps. im pregnant. first time.
17/f (link)
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Okay - not that DangerNerd's advice isn't good, but I would actually suggest that you call your OB/GYN first. They can usually tell over the phone whether you're in serious trouble or they can send you to the ER.
During pregnancy, one of the changes we get quite often is a laxness of certain muscles. That leads to heartburn. It *could* be just heartburn. But DangerNerd is right, you need to speak with a doctor ASAP in order to make sure you're not in any immediate danger.
Take care.
Sabine
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my sister wore super red nail polish and when she erased it (and yes she did it good because my aunt used to work at the nail salon so she has everything at home) her nails were like pinkish red.
What's wrong? she scrubbed really hard and stuff but it just stays that colour (link)
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The key to avoiding that is to use a good base coat before the nail polish. The pinkness on her nails will fade away eventually (it took about 5-7 days at the longest last time I did that).
Sabine
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Hi, I asked about the abortion procedure. I'm guessing you know about it, so any information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. (link)
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Hi. I had an abortion of an 11-week-gestation pregnancy back in July of 1995. It was done surgically, meaning they dilated my cervix with laminaria (seaweed-based stuff that expands the cervix). The doctor gave me something called Daypro before the procedure. He inserted a vacuum tube into my uterus and emptied it that way. It hurt a lot. I did have an infection afterward, but that's what my body is like - I get infections.
I was a college student with $8 in my checking account when I found out that the pill didn't work. I had been spotting off and on. I had been with my boyfriend for 2 years, but we were not ready to get married or have a baby due to college, finances, etc. When I went in for the procedure, the doctor told me he could not find the fetus's heartbeat and I was likely miscarrying anyway.
I have a friend who has had 2 or 3 abortions now. She is now divorced from the husband who wouldn't use protection. She would go to into planned parenthood (after making an appointment). They spoke with her briefly in another room. Her husband wasn't allowed to be in the office with her. She was given an I.V. and medicine through the I.V.. She says she got sleepy and when she woke up she the procedure was done. She didn't get an infection or become nauseated. There was light bleeding that lasted 3 days. She didn't have much pain and she was given medicine to take if she did. Everything was fine and she was able to get pregnant again when she wanted to.
The surgical procedure costs about $400 cash, usually. There are other methods, including the RU486 abortion pill. I think they cost about the same amount, but the pill has a higher failure rate - that is, sometimes the pregnancy is not terminated and must be terminated later surgically. You will need a trusted friend to drive you to and pick you up from the procedure. Sometimes they are allowed to stay in the room.
There are consequences. I still get a little sad around the anniversary of the abortion. My boyfriend, who is now my husband, prefers to think that we did the procedure because the baby was dead, not that we were going to do it anyway. I have one little girl and I am not supposed to have more. Sometimes I wonder what life would be like if I had an 11-year-old now. All the same, I know I made the right choice for myself, my husband, and my daughter. In the same position, I would do it again,though I would choose a different person to do the procedure. I felt like I was allowed to be in more pain than necessary just as a way of punishing me or teaching me a lesson.
Earlier is better as far as abortion goes. You want to do it less than 12 weeks into the pregnancy. After 12 weeks, it gets to be a much bigger deal and you will have a hard time finding someone to perform the procedure. It gets more expensive, more risky, and more detailed.
Please let me know if I have not answered your questions or if you need anything else.
You, or whomever you are doing the research for, are in my thoughts.
Sabine
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Has anyone gone through having an abortion procedure? Personal experiences would be greatly appreciated, and maybe if you have close friends/relatives that you know of that had one. I would really like honest answers instead of opinions, please. Any information about the actual procedure & afterwards would be great. (link)
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Please send questions to my inbox.
Sabine
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In the middle of August I'm going to the beach, and I realized that during that week I'll be getting my period, lucky me. I'm on birth control pills that have three weeks of birth control and then one week of sugar pills. I heard that to skip your period for the month you can start taking the next pack of regular pills when you're supposed to start the sugar pills. Is this true, and does it really work?
If it is, I'll make an appointment with my doctor and everything, I just want to know if it can actually work. [And yeah I realize it might be unhealthy but I doubt one skipped period will kill me haha.] Well thank you for answering. (link)
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It's good that you're going to consult your doctor, but unless you need to go in, this is probably something s/he can tell you about over the phone.
Many women take the hormone-containing pills back-to-back and don't bother with the sugar pills. You can probably do this. You should understand that the risks are that it may slightly increase your risk for a blood clot (even over taking it with the sugar pills) so don't smoke, and it may slightly increase your risk of bone loss. Other than that, it's pretty safe. There are birth control pills where women have their periods only every three months and some women are choosing not to have periods at all by taking the pills continuously.
In fact, it's not really the hormones that will cause P.M.S., it's the change in the balance of hormones. When the balance between the estrogen and progesterone changes, we get P.M.S.. That's why docs prescribe birth control pills in order to regulate and control P.M.S.. Not all pills do this, however. It depends on whether yours is the 'mini' pill with more progesterone, etc.
Anyway, doctors are used to this question. They often have brides skip the sugar pills if their periods would come during the honeymoon, etc. It's not unusual.
Just call your doctor and I'm sure you'll get the answer you need.
Sabine
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I felt the inside of my uterus for the first time, and now i feel bumps. They are big and swollen. Is this genitial herpes? or just a normal thing? can u get g.h from sex or anything else? Thanks (link)
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Okay, I can pretty much guarantee you didn't feel the inside of your uterus. You would have to have recently had your cervix dilated by either a baby or a doctor, pretty much, in order to do that.
You probably felt the inside of your vagina. It's normal for the inside walls of the vagina to feel smooth except for some bumps near the entrance (it feels rough, kind of wrinkled). There are many things that can cause bumps, including genital herpes (though most people have lesions on the labia as well). Yes, you can get genital herpes from sex. Also from receiving oral sex from someone with a mouth infection of herpes. You can get it from any contact with any body part infected with the herpes virus. If a man has herpes and touches his penis before touching your vagina, you can get herpes.
The only way to find out what these bumps are and whether they're something to be concerned about is to see a doctor.
Sabine
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ok i asked this question::
ok im not sick or anything.
but for about a while (many months) now ive noticed my toncils and back of my throat are coverd in bumps everywhere!! but there not white. there red.
sometimes they get erriated, but rather than that i dont feel them.
at first i didnt know this was normal or not.
so haha i checked all my freinds to see if they have them and they dont!
does anyone else ever had/have this?? please help cause im a healthphoibic and im freaking out that im going to dye! =/
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this one girl said i have bad tonsils and that i might have to get them remmoved!!
please i need your help on this cause i cant handel hospitals,surgry,or any of my bodyprarts being removed.
do you think i should get it checked out?
thanks sooo much! xox (link)
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Okay. You have a body part that looks different from others' but doesn't hurt or make you sick. It doesn't change your appearance.
You're not going to die. You probably don't even have anything wrong with your tonsils. If you're worried about it, you should see a doctor. The doctor would likely just say everything's fine - why would they do surgery on something that doesn't even make you sick? If the doctor did say there was something wrong, you could then take care of it (probably just antibiotics if anything) or you could ignore his/her advice.
I didn't answer this question at first because I get chemotherapy and I have surgical procedures about every 3 weeks. I have 8 different specialists. If I freaked out over red bumps that don't hurt, I'd just be freaking out all the time. I have to be tough. I have no choice. I have a hard time dealing with people who can't handle simple medical issues without getting hysterical.
These are not a big deal. I'm sure you have other things to think about and put your attention into. It's silly to jump to conclusions about needing surgery (advice from a teenager who never went to medical school, even if she is a very nice person and a sweet friend). It's even sillier to think you're going to die. I don't wish to insult you or hurt your feelings, but you're *way* overreacting.
If you want to be reassured, go to a doctor. If you want to avoid doctors, then you'll have to find a way to deal with not knowing what those things are. But I can tell you, I worked in the medical field for quite some time and there is not a single fatal disease I know of that has as its main symptom red bumps on the throat.
I hope you can figure out how to make yourself feel better. :)
Sabine
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I'm 22 years old. When I was 19, I got married and my husband and I decided to have a baby. Well, I had a miscarriage. I was devestated, but I decided to try again. Well my husband and I split up for various reasons, and I was engaged to another guy. Well, I got pregnant again, and later had another miscarriage. I started to feel extremely scared, so I went to my doctor and asked him what was wrong. He told me that it was just a flaw and that I could conceive a baby. So I tried again. About 5 months ago I became pregnant with twins. Well, I just lost one of the twins, and I'm ready to sue the doctor. I guess what I'm asking is, can I sue him, and will I ever be able to conceive my own child? And what should I do about this baby? (link)
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It's a possibility you could sue, but your chances of success depend on the laws in the state in which you reside.
So you're 5 months pregnant with twins and one of them is dead inside you??? It seems your doctor should have some sort of plan and should at this point be transferring your care to a high-risk OB/GYN, also known as a perinatologist. I am not sure what exactly your situation is, what the treatment will be, etc., but it depends on the cause of the death of the fetus. I hope that the surviving one is healthy and can make it to term.
There are many things that can cause a woman to have serial miscarriages. Your doctor can do tests, including bloodwork, to find out what keeps going wrong. Chances are that one in two women who get pregnant will have a miscarriage or stillbirth sometime in her life. Sometimes it's late-term, and sometimes it's before the missed period, but pregnancy is a complex process and if everything does not go perfectly well, there can be dire consequences.
The first thing I would do, if I were you, is to find a high-risk OB and try to find out what's going wrong before you lose this child as well. After you figure out what's happening, you may be able to prevent another miscarriage or make a decision about whether you should conceive more children. You can then think about whether it's appropriate to sue your MD when you know more.
Best wishes, and you have my sympathies on the loss of your child.
Sabine
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Ok I asked a question earlier about my throat. The doctor won't take me until tomorrow & I'm going crazy. I don't know what it is.
-I feel physically sick
-Heads heavy
-Throats extremely heavy; hurts if I move it & hurts if I touch my glands
-Glands in neck are swollen
-There's so much white on my tonsils/back of throat. It's basically covered
-It's so painful to eat/talk/swallow/do nothing. I feel my throat throbbing just sitting here
-Ear ache. My ears hurt when I swallow also.
-I'm starting to get a bit hot
Does anyone have any idea what this is? I tried 2 cups of tea, tylenol cold/sore throat liquid medicine, hard candies, ludens, vick's throat spray, gargling, hot soup, icecream, etc.
Does anyone have any ideas what this is or any other remedies that might work?
Thanks!! (link)
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The white sounds like strep throat. The only thing that will cure that is antibiotics. Gargle with warm salt water because it will help make you more comfortable and can help kill the bacteria. There's nothing else, really, you can do. :( Sometime strep throat comes with a headache, stomachache, and rash as well as the symptoms you mentioned. I hope your appointment goes well.
Sabine
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i have a question, obviously. Today I woke up with 2 bumps near my ear. (not my face, but the skull and hair part) one is 1/4 of an inch long and etends outward a little less than that. 1/8 of an inch and the other is about half of that, it is located about 1 inch below the bigger one. I don't have any headaches, or anything unusual with my body. It only hurts when I touch it, also. I'd like to know if there could be anything wrong with just the bump? it doesn't seem like there is, but then again.. you never know. I know people could tell me to see a doctor, but if anyone's ever heard of anything like it or know anything about that, please tell me! thanks. (link)
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These sound like swollen lymph nodes. You should simply keep tabs on them and see your doctor if they haven't gone away in 2 weeks.
Lymph nodes trap bacteria and viruses and encapsulate them. They get swollen sometimes with lymph fluid and with foreign material and sometimes it takes a while to clear the stuff out. Some people think you should massage swollen lymph nodes (lymphatic drainage massage) and apply hot packs. I don't think that's always a good idea. Your body has isolated something there for a reason and if you let it free before the white cells have had a chance to neutralize the threat, you may set the bad thing lose on your body.
So I'd just watch them for a couple of weeks and don't do anything unless they turn painful.
Sabine
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