Doc, I need your advice on what to do now. I am afraid at this point to even think that it might be an STI. And my long-term fear is whether or not it will affect my getting pregnant in the future.

A. Sorry to hear about all this. However, I think your letter will serve as a warning to other young women who feel like taking the risk of 'riding bareback'.

As you frankly admit, having unprotected sex is really NOT a smart thing to do these days. Lots of people run into trouble because of it.

There are three main dangers from making love without any protection. First, there is the risk of unwanted pregnancy. I expect you have thought about that. However, I would say that you have been quite lucky to have had unprotected sex with your guy for the last four months without experiencing a pregnancy scare.

Second, there is the risk of cancer of the cervix. In young women, the cervix, that is, the lowest part of the womb, is really vulnerable to the human papilloma virus (HPV), which is the main cause of cervical cancer. Using a condom - or some other 'barrier' method, such as a diaphragm - certainly does not eliminate this danger. But it does reduce it.

Fretting about STI

Third, and this is obviously what is making you fret at the moment, there is the risk of catching a sexually transmitted infection. Now, when a woman starts a sexual relationship, and then develops a discharge shortly afterwards, the likelihood is that she has picked up a germ from her new guy.

So, if I were a betting man - which I am not - I would say that it is odds on that you have acquired an infection from your boyfriend!

Now I am not claiming that you have a serious STI. However, there is almost certainly something bacteriological that is causing this unpleasant discharge.

And in general, discharges that are associated with odours tend to be caused by a group of germs called gardnerella and the anaerobes. Anaerobes are bugs which can live without oxygen, and that gives them the capacity to produce a nasty odour.

Vaginal infection

So, I think that it is likely that you have got a vaginal infection, caused by one of these germs. However, it could be that tests - that is, vaginal swab tests - will reveal that some other micro-organism is inside you.

I am sure you can now see where I am heading. You need swab tests URGENTLY. Therefore, you should go to a doc or clinic as soon as possible and have those tests done. The docs should be able to give you results pretty fast. And on the basis of those results, they will be able to prescribe a correctly chosen antibiotic for you. That will cure you!

Furthermore, this kind of prompt treatment should make sure that you will able to have children when you want to.

However, you should not have ANY kind of sex with your guy until you have been diagnosed and treated. Depending on what your doc says, he will very probably need treatment too.

A. Well, this sounds rather like trouble with the prostate gland. However, prostate trouble is unusual at your early age of 39.

What you should do is to get yourself a thoroughly clean, screw-top glass container. Put into it a small 'first-thing-in-the-morning' specimen of urine, and take it to a doctor to get it tested for abnormalities. He will also examine your belly and your prostate gland. Good luck.

A. Yes. That is why it is important not to leave a tampon in the vagina for more than the 'maximum time', which is usually specified on the leaflet inside the pack.

A. I am really sorry to hear about this. There are two possibilities here. First, there is just a chance that the pain medication is making you have 'dry orgasms'.

So I think you should get a doc to alter your medication, and see if this makes any difference to your climaxes.

However, if that does not work, then it would seem likely that the car accident has damaged the internal part of your sexual apparatus. The urologist would be able to examine you to see if anything can be done surgically to make the fluid come out again. I wish you well.

A. No. But he, you and everybody in your family should have an occasional test for sugar, in case the diabetes gene affects you. Also, you should all keep your weight down.

AThis is nothing to do with the hurricane. The likeliest diagnosis is thrush, also known as candida or monilia.

I suggest you go to a pharmacy and buy some anti-thrush cream. The one I favour is called clotrimazole, but there are plenty of others. Use the cream four times daily for a week. If that does not cure the problem, you must see a doc.