Mr. Kull,

Lately I have experienced many little raised white bumps on the lips of my vagina. I'm not too sure what exactly they are. They don't itch at all, and they didn't start to break open or anything until yesterday when i decided to break one open and see what would happen. No puss would come out of it, but there was actually lots of blood. I'm not sure if i have an std or what? The closest thing that i could fine to anything i might have is herpes. But if it only takes about a month or less for symptoms to start up after having intercourse with somebody... then i don't see why i could have herpes. The bumps actually started popping up soon after i got on "the pill" Do you think the hormones in the pill has anything with making the disease more visible or maybe even making a girl break out down there or what? I'm really confused, and i can't tell anybody yet, not even my mom and i tell her everything. Please help.

Bumps on the lips of your vagina could be normal, or they could be related to somthing else, like a sexually transmitted infection. It's going to be difficult to tell what is going on with you on your own; any time you notice a change in your body that concerns you, talk with a doctor to get an accurate explanation.

Try not to panic or jump to the worst conclusion. And don't pick at the bumps since you could cause yourself more discomfort than necessary. It's normal for peoples' genitals to have bumps, folds, and tags of skin, and it's probably best to not mess with that.

It's really hard to talk with parents about these things, and whether or not you speak with your mom depends on what you expect her response will be. A lot of parents are understanding since many have been where you are and are most concerned about your health. If it's too difficult to be specific, could you tell her that you wanted to go to the doctor without going into much detail? If talking with her at all is out of the question, there are other options. If you are in school, go to your health clinic. Otherwise, organizations like Planned Parenthood can hook you up with clinics that you can go to on your own.

RMK