u/aurorajanettson

26F, 5ft 11in (180cm), 180lbs. I don't smoke, drink alcohol, or use recreational drugs. I engage in endurance sports and am relatively fit. I live in the US.

Please help, I'm at my wit's end. The itchiness is starting to affect my cognitive function and my mental health.

I'm always extremely itchy on my clitoral hood and around my anus. No itchiness inside my vagina, just the two end points "down there". The itchiness exacerbates when I sweat and when I'm swimming in a pool. This started 2 years ago in the summer of 2024. Prior to this, my scalp has been suffering from itching, flaking, and bleeding since 2019 and in early 2025 I was diagnosed with scalp psoriasis by a dermatologist and was prescribed clobetasol. During the derm visit, I mentioned that my clitoral hood and perianal area also itch and asked whether these two could be related. My derm said I could also have inverse psoriasis down there and told me to use cortizone 10. I would apply cortizone twice every day for a few days, and if the itchiness subsides, I would stop until the itchiness comes back and I would reapply.

Then I started to have horrible recurring yeast infections in my vagina. When I get those yeast infections, my butt crack will be flaky, and the itching down there becomes unbearably intense. Still, my vagina is not itchy, only my clitoral hood and my perianal area are itchy during yeast infections. My gynocologist said since cortizone is a steroid, and yeast loves steroid, I could be getting recurring yeast infections from applying cortizone 10.

So I went back to my dermatologist and raised my concern. My derm basically dismissed my concern and told me that applying hydrocortisone is completely appropriate for treating inverse psoriasis, and prescribed me with Hydrocortisone 2.5% again. I used it for a few days and am now suffering from intense yeast infection again.

I don't know what to do. Are there any medications that can make the itchiness go away, while not giving me yeast infections? It's so itchy down there ALL THE TIME, combined with my itchy scalp, I cannot concentrate on doing anything. It's so inconvenient when I'm itchy down there in public too!

I'd appreciate any insights. Thank you!!!

Hello everyone! I'm a PhD student and I was assigned as an instructor for a summer online course. The course is a "cookie cutter course", and my role is basically to moderate the course and grade assignments and exams. The course has already been designed and I'm not in charge is teaching. All class materials, assignments, and exams are online.

This past week we had our final exam. Upon examining the session info on Canvas, I see that some students completed the exam in only 4 minutes and received perfect scores. Now, the exam is pretty straightforward, so it doesn't surprise me that some students got perfect scores. But it does have 3 questions and 20 subquestions which involve a fair amount of calculations, and it took me 15 minutes to complete the exam. I'm very familiar with the course material and it still took me 15 minutes, so I don't think completing the exam in 4 minutes is possible, unless they use generative AI.

I also examinined their action log, and it appears to me that they exited and resumed the exam page multiple times. I know that action log is not perfectly accurate, but my gut is telling me that those students viewed the exam question, took a screen shot, hop over to ChatGPT, and then copied the answers on the Canvas exam page.

I don't know how I should proceed. The behavior is highly suspicious, but I also understand that (especially for an online exam) I would need strong evidence before making an academic integrity allegation or assigning a 0. 

I'd really appreciate any insight. My supervisor doesn't check his email over weekends and we as instructors should submit grades by tomorrow.

Thank you!!!

Hello everyone! I (26F) just got my first colonoscopy & upper endoscopy done. I've been suffering from acid reflux and heartburn for almost every day over a decade and I have weekly diarrhea. I finally decided that I've had enough and got a colonoscopy done. However, the results came back normal, and my physician told me I likely just have "irritable bowel syndrome". I feel like I've wasted medical resources 😅

I was wondering if anyone has any tips going forward. I'm very health-conscious; I exercise 5-6 times a week and I eat a balanced meal. But this daily heartburn is killing me, and having a diarrhea episode in the middle of something has always been inconvenient 😭 I was tested negative for H.pylori and celiac disease, and I'm not lactose intolerant.

Thank you!!

Hi! First time posting here. I’m training for an Ironman 70.3 and I do swim sessions regularly in the pool. The thing is, my vulva (specifically, my “clitoral hood”) and my butthole itch INTENSELY when I’m swimming in the pool. As soon as I get out of the pool and rinse my lady parts with water, the itchiness goes away. It’s so annoying and it interferes with my training 😭 I’m reaching out to ask if any ladies experience this and what helps. Thank you 😭😭

I (26F) lost my best friend (29F) Emma because of her abusive boyfriend (30M) Todd recently.

All three of us are in our respective PhD programs. Todd and I are in our 3rd year, and Emma is in her final year of her program. Todd and Emma starting dating in late 2023. In late 2024, I upgraded my photography equipment and asked in our student group who wanted to be my model. Emma responded and told me she also liked photography. She and I had the same camera model, and our research fields were also adjacent. We bonded instantly and agreed to meet up for some casual photography.

Right before our designated meeting time, Emma informed me that Todd would join. During my first time meeting them, they seemed like a nice couple. After our first meet, Emma and I became friends and met up a few more times after that, it was then when Emma started opening up to me privately about Todd's abusive actions. Emma was forbidden to wear shorts and dresses, because "they were too revealing". They had their curtains closed in their apartment all the time, otherwise "there would be stalkers outside", when Emma liked a sunshine-filled room. Todd made Emma cut ties with all of her friends, males and females. In addition, Todd didn't like that Emma and I became friends, and that was why he was there on our first meeting. Not long after they got together, Emma found out that Todd had rage problems and would often smash things up. He even pulled on Emma's hair once in public during an argument, after which a bystander called the cops. But Emma didn't want it to escalate and lied to the police that "he was just teasing me".

As time went by, Emma and I grew closer. At first, when Emma and Todd got into an argument, I thought I'd be a good friend and be there for her. But after a few months, Todd's abusive actions started to affect me and my well-being. I can think of at least five occasions when I made plans with Emma, only for her to tell me shortly before we were supposed to meet that she and Todd had gotten into a bad fight and she had to cancel. There was one time when the three of us went hiking together, and they got into an argument out of nowhere. Todd stopped the car abruptly, slammed the car door, and stepped out for a cigarette, leaving me feeling very awkward and unsure of what to do. During the time I was friends with Emma, whenever she and Todd got into a serious fight, she would move all of her belongings out of their apartment. On one occasion, she even stored some of her things at my place, only for me to discover a few days later that they were back together as if nothing had happened. She would tell me that "he actually treats me very well, he just has a temper."

The incident that made me consider cutting ties with Emma happened a few months ago. One day, Emma suddenly texted me asking whether she could have lunch at my place. During our lunch, Emma told me that Todd threatened to call ICE on me (all three of us are international students) during a huge fight between them, which started because of the most trivial things. I told her that she was in an unsafe relationship and that she should leave. She told me that since she was in the last semester of her program, it was best for her to stay instead of leaving because she was in the stressful process of finding a job. But that was the first time I felt caught in the crossfire of Todd's behavior. He threatened me out of nowhere, not because of anything I had done, but simply because I was friends with Emma. I already feel unsafe under the current administration. After Todd's threat, I felt terrified.

A little bit over a week ago, on the day before Emma's dissertation defense, she texted me at 11pm asking whether she could stay at my place for the night. She told me that she and Todd started arguing and he told her to "get TF out". I made the bed in my guest bedroom with fresh sheets and waited for her to arrive. After she arrived, she told me that she'd rather go back. By then it was already midnight and it was raining outside. I told her that it was not a safe place for her, and that she should have a safe goodnight's rest before her defense. She wouldn't listen and insisted to go back.

After she passed her defense, she texted me a few photos. I asked her who took the photos, and she told me "Todd did", which didn't surprise me, because they would always pretend like nothing had happened after a huge fight. She asked me to go for a walk in the afternoon with her, only for her to bail on me minutes before we were supposed to meet because she and Todd were "going away for the weekend".

She asked me later whether there was another time that I was available, and I told her that I was going to take my rabbits to their vet in three days. The vet was 2 hours away, so I thought Emma and I would have a little road trip. She happily agreed. I was supposed to pick her up so we could drive to the vet together. When I arrived at her place, I saw a text she had sent just a few minutes earlier while I was driving. She told me that Todd believed my rabbits might have a contagious disease that could spread to their cat (my rabbits were completely fine), and because of that, she would no longer be accompanying me.

That was my last straw. I texted her with my best wishes and ended our friendship right there. 5 hours later, after I got back from my vet trip, she has blocked me on all social media.

So I guess she chose her abuser over me.

I was hurt so badly. I cried for days. Emma was my best friend, and she was my only friend still in town over the summer. This friendship breakup hurts way more than any relationship breakups I've experienced. Emma and I created a lot of beautiful memories together. At first, after our friendship ended, I felt resentment towards Todd. I thought, if it wasn't for Todd, Emma and I would still be friends. But then I thought, Emma wasn't a good friend. She was flaky and stood me up multiple times. She made promises that she couldn't keep. She even admitted to me that she was dependent on Todd—someone who threatened me—by saying that "I don't think I can live without him". To Emma, I was someone she could take for granted. She knew I would be there when she needed support, someone she could call after a fight with Todd, someone who would listen and provide help. But when maintaining our friendship came into conflict with maintaining her relationship, I was always the one who got sacrificed. And while that realization hurt, it also helped me let go of the anger I had been carrying.

I'm sharing my story to ask for support. Logically, I know I made the right decision, but deep down I still miss my friend. Part of me wonders whether there was ever anything I could have done differently. For those of you who have lost a friend because of their abusive partner, how did you cope with it?