#and yet there are constant never ending stories of doctors simply not telling afab people really basic warning signs about their bodies

[cervinelich]

PSA FOR TRANSMASCS

And afab people in general. There's gonna be some TMI here so I apologize in advance.

So, I was using some nipple suction things for sex reasons when I noticed that a tiny bead of sticky fluid had come out of one of my nipples - and, firstly, you should always tell your doctor if you are having nipple discharge.

I told my doctor about it and she referred me to get a mammogram and breast ultrasound because this can be a sign of cancer or infection. It can also be caused by hormone irregularity (for instance, if you are on testosterone).

Due to a bunch of insurance shit I wasn't able to get in to my mammogram/ultrasound until 5 months after the initial discharge and in the meantime I was still using the nipple suction bc 1. I like it and 2. I kind of had a morbid curiosity about the discharge tbh.

Here's the MOST important part.

It wasn't until I spoke to the ultrasound technician 5 months later that she told me under no circumstances should I be intentionally expressing the discharge.

My results all came back negative and it turns out it was just hormonal, however my regular doctor had not told me that expressing the discharge opens up your mammary ducts to infection. The more they open, the more likely they are to get infected. And, according to the technician, it is not easily treated with antibiotics and is extremely painful - and sometimes requires surgery.

Unfortunately for me this means no more suction devices, rip, but since my doctor had neglected to tell me about this I thought it was worth spreading the word.

#medical #afab #transmasc #psa #its always weird to me the way that every PCP who learns I'm on testosterone gives me weird condescending lectures #about how hormones affect the body and do I really know what I am doing #and yet there are constant never ending stories of doctors simply not telling afab people really basic warning signs about their bodies #I'm thinking of course about that one post by the doctor about menopausal symptoms of cancer #anyway if you are on testosterone this might happen to you and even if it is caused by hormones you should still tell your doctor #just in case