Molluscum Manifesto: My experience with Molluscum two years ago and what I learned.
Success/ My Story:
Subjects covered: coinfection with ureaplasma and chlamydia, herpes scare, diagnosis, cryotherapy, acyclovir/valacyclovir, tea tree oil and iodine, eczema, podofilox, dial antibacterial soap, surfing, horseback riding, mental health
Diagnosis Story:
First contracted early May 2024, cleared in < 3 months by August 2024. I’m female and they were exclusively in my genital/ groin area.
Notably, I had tested positive for chlamydia in early March 2024. I did a course of antibiotics (doxycycline) that had successfully cleared that infection.
In early May I noticed overall discomfort/ slight itching, abnormal discharge, and stronger than normal odor “down there”. I did a visual inspection of the area and noticed a small, under the skin bump surrounded by a small pink ring on the side of my labia with a small white head. At this point I was freaked out thinking I had herpes. I went to my urgent care clinic - Carbon Health in Echo Park, Los Angeles, they are great. The doctor looked at the bump and said although he couldn’t be sure, his best bet was that it was molluscum contagiosum. That was the first time in my life I had ever heard of molluscum contagiosum, and he explained what it was and prescribed podofilox gel to apply topically.
He took a syringe sample of the core of the bump, a comprehensive STD swab panel, and a blood sample for herpes testing, as I was hopeful but still concerned. Because I was so concerned, I also had them prescribe me Valocyclovir, oral herpes medication, to start taking “just in case” while we waited for results.
The swab came back positive for Ureaplasma Parvum, a bacterial infection that explained the itching/ odor. I was put on antibiotics for this. If you have molluscum you have contracted sexually, especially if you are female, get very comprehensively tested for EVERYTHING.
A few days later when my herpes tests came back negative, I started to really deep dive into the information/ forums about molluscum online, which is when I realized how potentially contagious and difficult it can be to get rid of. I have a history of mild eczema, which added to my anxiety about getting rid of the molluscum.
I booked in with a gynecologist, who was also not able to give an affirmative diagnosis of the bumps and referred me to a dermatologist.
The dermatologist was GREAT - BHskin dermatology in Glendale, CA. She used an illuminated magnifying glass to analyze the bumps, and immediately confirmed they were molluscum.
Treatment:
At the same derm appointment we did a round of cryotherapy and I was told to set up a follow up appointment three-four weeks later.
Luckily by the time I got to the derm I had read others stories on here that at the beginning of cryo treatment, they needed to go in weekly, as the initial cryo was either not enough to make larger bumps truly die and blister, or the initial treatment caused new bumps to appear. So I booked a follow up cryo appmnt a week later, and then a week after that. Because I was being seen by a physician's assistant and not the attending Dr. they were able to get me on the books regularly.
Sure enough, a few more bumps appeared less than a week after the initial cryo, and my big original bump needed two rounds of cryo to knock it out. No idea why this happens but it seems to be common. The derm got all these on my second and third visits. I urge you to find a derm that is cautious of not damaging skin but who also understands the importance of knocking these guys out quickly. Knowing that for my first three weeks of treatment a medical professional was going to be assessing my bumps on a weekly basis gave me so much mental stability, even if we hadn’t needed multiple rounds of cryo.
Around the time of my first appointment, I read the studies about using acyclovir to treat molluscum. This interested me as I had completed the course of valocyclovir (basically extended release acyclovir) and had only experienced a mild spread of bumps, although the mild spread may be due to being very careful with hygiene/ my own immune system. I wound up having the urgent care doctor prescribe me another one time 10 day script for the acyclovir. I did 8/10 days of this in conjunction with my other therapies.
Supplemental treatments/ preventative methods protocol I used:
- I completed 6 weeks of podofilox SOLUTION treatment. Would have loved to use the gel but it was not covered by insurance. I applied with tiny makeup applicators, twice a day for three days, then “rest” for four days.
- I intermittently applied tea tree oil and 10% povidone iodine (poured both of them onto cotton makeup pads) to the affected areas. I did this on the days I didn’t apply podofilox and any time I felt irritated down there or like a new bump may be coming. The treatment felt physically soothing and made me feel like I was doing something to help.
- Did not rewear underwear or pants.
- Avoided tight clothing - I swear my really tight jeans gave me two new bumps the day I wore them. Most days I wore loose pants made from soft materials (sweatpants or loose cotton-poly work pants) or dresses/ skirts. A few times I wore baggier jeans but I tried to stay away from rough materials.
- Changed bedding regularly - can’t remember how often, but I’m pretty lazy so it probably wasn’t more than once or twice a week. I always slept in giant sweatpants or long mens shorts to keep the area off the bedding.
- Showered as soon as possible after getting sweaty or wet.
- Used the Dr’s recommended towel method after shower- Use a clean towel after every shower, and dry the affected area last. Sometimes I just used a smaller hand towel for the affected area.
- Used Gold Dial antibacterial soap on the affected area in the shower. I did this last in the shower and washed my hands with hand soap after applying. I didn’t scrub - just kinda gently patted the soap lather on, waited like 30 seconds, and then rinsed.
- Purchased a small illuminated hand mirror to check the area for bumps. Did my thorough checks on podofilox days or when I felt a new bump coming on - after the first few weeks I found that doing a full body check every single day caused me to get unnecessarily anxious about a lot of non-molluscum skin blemishes, so I reduced to checking every 3ish days instead and then eventually to 1x a week as I started to get less and less.
- Took vitamins:
-really good multivitamin with trace materials and magnesium (I take a liposomal)
-iron
-zinc
-melatonin and L-theanine/magnesium gummies on days I had trouble getting to bed because of the anxiety.
Lifestyle Changes I implemented:
- i tried to do cardio 3-4 times a week. Usually running
- Tried to get 8+ hours of sleep
- gentle yoga in my home
- I had such an unhealthy diet before this, kind of a “Scavenger” mindset and regularly undereating to “stay skinny”. After molluscum diagnosis I had a huge mindset shift and started going to the grocery store at least twice a week to get tons of colorful fruit/ veggies, leafy greens, healthy protein sources, nuts, fish, yogurt and fermented food (miso, pickles, kimchi).
-Limited alchohol/ marijuana.I tried to limit alchohol to two drinks a week, ideally 0. I limited weed to about once every two weeks, again ideally 0.
-Didn’t have sex. I didn’t have a partner so this was obvious. Folks, please abstain. Do other stuff. Don’t risk passing it and extending the annoyance and stress. IMO, if your partner would rather have a pox infection down there than not get any for a few months, you should probably dump them.
The surfing/ horseback riding thing: Prior to molluscum I was a regular surfer and horse back rider. During my molluscum journey I halted both of those hobbies because I was afraid of the friction in my genital area aggravating the molluscum. It was okay and eventually I got back in the water/ on the horse. Super deep cleaned my wetsuit before that though, lol.
Mental Health:
The molluscum right after the chlamydia/ concurrent with the ureaplasma has been the worst thing I've gone through in my 20’s - I was 26 when it all started happening. SO so grateful that I can say it was the worst thing, but also, it did genuinely suck! It was a huge turning point in how I treat my body, my sex life, and my mental health. I got a therapist around that time, in large part because I was developing a weird compulsion to research/ body check that was keeping me from focusing on work, and having sessions with her helped. I definitely felt very down and “off track” at this time.
If you are like me and get a bit of health OCD, please set a time, preferably in the morning, to do any molluscum research, and then do not do any googling for the rest of the day, especially at night. Talk to a trusted friend or family member and preferably also therapist about what's going on, don't spend too much time alone in front of a computer or iphone, even if it's your work laptop, and treat yourself kindly. Watch good movies and television or play a fun game, do a gentle workout, cook good food, spend time outdoors.
A few years out from molluscum, there is still definitely some lingering health anxiety, but my whole “STD era” was a huge catalyst for me to begin to live a healthy, gratitude based life style and also develop a genuine sense of self-trust. If you are reading this and you are scared about molluscum, please know you will be okay and you will heal and have a normal lifestyle again! Having a viral infection that didn’t have an easy button pharmaceutical “cure” freaked me out so bad, but in the end I was very lucky and was able to knock the molluscum out in less than 3 months.