Dolly Doctor was a rite of passage for many Australian girls; it was the safe place where you could ask those ‘embarrassing’ questions about boobs and boys and even if you never sent in you were bound to beg, borrow or steal a mag from your best friend to pore over every earmarked page.
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So, we’ve compiled some of the funniest and craziest Dolly Doctor questions and we have a confession – we were secretly dying to know the answer to some of them!
1. I’m 14 and I have a rather embarrassing problem. Every time I laugh, I wet my pants. I put my jumper around my waist to hide it, but it smells.
This is called stress incontinence. You should also notice it when you cough, sneeze or exercise. It’s unusual in a girl your age, and suggests a problem with the shape of your bladder. The most effective way of fixing it is an operation, but it would have to be very severe to justify that. There are several things you can do to help yourself. Try to keep your bladder empty. Go to the toilet whenever you can. When you do, sit a few minutes longer and try to go again (this is called double voiding). Wear a mini-pad or panty-liner to avoid the embarrassment of wet clothes. You should also do pelvic muscle exercises, to tighten the muscles that close off your bladder. At least 200 times a day (!!), slowly squeeze, as if trying to stop the flow of urine, and then let the muscles go. You can do these exercises anywhere – on the bus, watching TV – and no one will know.
2. Is it possible to catch AIDS from a public swimming pool? My mum won’t let me go to the local pool because she says she is certain I will catch AIDS but I don’t think she is right. Is she?
It is impossible to catch AIDS from normal use of a public swimming pool. It is now quite well established how AIDS is transmitted, and swimming pools and normal social living are not amongst the methods. Very close personal contact… and infection via contaminated blood, such as from using another person’s needles which have been unsterilised, are amongst the known methods. Really, the experts now say that apart from the known methods, the germ is not highly infectious, much less so than the virus causing the common old cold. You can swim in peace, and have no fears.
3. I really like chunky black shoes, striped socks up to your knees, and big shorts, but when I wear them to school, people laugh and start teasing me. I really hate this, so I usually end up wearing ordinary clothes that I don’t like very much. How can I stop them teasing me? Upset.
Can you help it if you’re a trendsetter? You can’t stop people being narrow-minded and petty, so if they really are getting too much for you, consider these options. Assert yourself – let them know you’re an individual, not a sheep. Or simply admit it’s too much to cope with at school on top of your studies and just dress like the sheep. Maybe it’s best to strike a balance between what you love wearing and “normal” clothes. For example, wear your shoes and socks with a skirt, instead of your shorts. Meanwhile, try hanging around with people at school who aren’t afraid to be themselves.
4. I am 14 years old and have heard that wearing a bra while my breasts are developing will cause them to sag. I feel more comfortable wearing a bra, but this has discouraged me. Is this true?
Your fears are totally unfounded, and if you feel better wearing a bra, use one by all means. Breasts are essentially developing milk glands and fat. If you suddenly decide to lose weight when your breasts are developed, sagging is common, for being of soft texture, breast fat readily vanishes. Ideally, keep off high kJ foods (those containing sugars and refined flours), which will help prevent general excess weight, so that your body in general and breasts in particular will remain trim and taut. Exercising daily is also a good idea.
5. I have an irritating itch in my throat after giving my good friend’s boyfriend a blow job in the movies. I am scared to tell my mother as she is friends with my boyfriend’s mother and I am sure he will find out about what I’ve done. Is there such a thing as throat thrush? It flared up about two weeks ago and has since returned. I am 15 years old.
Oral sex means stimulating each other’s genitals with your mouth or tongue, such as giving a blow job. Although oral sex is a normal sexual activity practised by many people, there is a risk of spreading some sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhoea, hepatitis B, and possibly the AIDS virus. Often there are no symptoms of such infections, but a sore throat may occur. Also, stress through feeling guilty or worrying about the possibility of an infection can result in an irritating feeling in your throat. If the problem persists you should go and see your doctor or go to an STD clinic where the advice you will receive is free and confidential.
6. My friend has been taking tanning pills as if they were lollies. Can you give me some information on them and tell me if they have any side effects?
Most of the “suntanning” pills have been taken off the market. I guess that has to make you a bit wary. There are still some available, without prescription. They are not really tanning pills, as they don’t alter the sun’s effects on browning. They pigment your skin yellow-orange, with no difference between areas exposed or not exposed to the sun. They often contain elements which are not necessary, e.g. zinc, copper, manganese, but not in sufficient amounts to cause harm. The yellow colour comes from a carotene compound, which contains vitamin A. Excess vitamin A can cause general skin yellowing, including the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. Vitamin A overdose is possible, but does no irreversible damage. If she suffered an overdose, your friend would probably have nausea, vomiting and drowsiness. I don’t think this is a problem, but you could make your friend aware of the possibility. And maybe you could persuade her not to introduce unnecessary chemicals into her body – we often don’t know long-term side effects until it’s too late.
7. I have sex regularly and often get embarrassed about oral sex. Can you tell me what I should do when the guy ejaculates? Should I swallow
There are no rules about what to do. You can spit the semen out if you don’t like to swallow it – that’s your choice. You can swallow it if you want to. Semen contains sugar and secretions designed to nourish the sperm (up to 5 per cent of semen ejaculated is sperm), and it definitely can’t harm you. If you choose to swallow it, it simply goes into your stomach and is digested along with other food. Some guys are turned on by having the semen swallowed – maybe you could ask your boyfriend, if you don’t care either way.
Images from jennifarley.com
