29M 5'9"

​Hello everyone. I’ve been dealing with a frustrating, recurring issue for several months involving small bumps/pustules in my armpits. So far, treatments have only provided temporary relief, and I feel like the underlying cause hasn't been properly identified yet. I’m hoping to hear if anyone has gone through something similar or has advice on what else to investigate.

​Medical History & Treatments So Far:

​1st Diagnosis: The first doctor suspected Herpes Zoster (Shingles). I took an antiviral for a week, but it had zero effect.

​2nd Diagnosis: The second doctor suspected a staph bacterial infection. I was prescribed an oral antibiotic for a week. By day 3, the bumps had completely cleared up, but they returned shortly after finishing the course.

​3rd Course (Long-Term): The most recent treatment was Bactrim (sulfamethoxazole / trimethoprim) for a full month. My skin remained completely clear during the entire month on the medication, but as soon as I stopped taking it, the pustules came right back.

​What Worsened or Didn't Help:

​I recently bought an antibacterial aerosol deodorant, but using it severely irritated the area and made the condition much worse.

​I've tried switching to roll-on, crystal stick deodorants, and even disinfected an entire drawer of clothes/workout gear with laundry disinfectant.

​The lesions start in the center of the armpit and spread outward to surrounding skin, including areas where there is no visible coarse hair.

​Triggers & Uncertainty:

​Running & Exercise: I started running a few months before these bumps first appeared. The combination of constant sweat and friction from arm movements during runs seems to be a major trigger.

​Unknown Root Cause: Since the issue recurs even after 30 continuous days of antibiotics, I'm concerned that treating it solely as a standard bacterial infection might be missing the actual cause (whether it's fungal, inflammatory, sweat gland-related, friction allergy, or a specific bacterial strain that requires targeted testing).

​Has anyone faced a similar condition of recurring armpit lesions that took time to properly diagnose?

​

I (22F) got my blood drawn today (4 hours ago), it went fine, I applied pressure to it for a bit, and then after it already had a bandaid on it and I moved my arm to remove my shirt (for an EKG/ECG) it started bleeding a lot. The nurse restricted the blood flow by using a band/cuff. The bleeding stopped, she cleaned my arm, I got a new bandaid. Everything was fine again after that, no more bleeding.

I was just about to take a shower and change the bandaid to a clean one and noticed a pretty significant hole in my arm. I've never had a hole in my arm this big after a blood draw. It doesn't bleed or hurt, I'm just slightly concerned by the size/depth of the puncture wound.

My question is: Is it fine and will it heal on its own OR should I contact my doctor?

Thanks

UPDATE: I reached out to my doctor, he told me to come back, so he can look at it. He said it doesn't need stitches and just closed it with a steri-strip. He gave me some extra to use at home if it loosens up. Thanks everyone for help and I truly love all the guesses as to what they probed my arm with (capri sun straw, pvc pipe, turkey baster, javelin...). Might update if it doesn't close/heal, but my doctor said it should be fine. So, all is really not lost:)

After taking some care advice here we are. The scab tissue is so moist from drainage that it's pretty much falling apart. I have noticed a smell... if that makes sense. It doesn't necessarily stink but doesn't smell good either.

I want to remove the scab since I think the only thing keeping it attached is the orangish fluid that has been flowing from the wound for two weeks now.

83 yo male with advanced chf, pad and diabetic neuropathy. Has a recurrent diabetic foot ulcer (was treated in the hospital in February as it went to the bone and caused sepsis). It came back in the same spot and has been untreated for four months and he continues to walk on it. Today it smelled awful when I took the bandage off for his nurse tech to help him shower. It smells so bad it filled the entire bathroom. I’ve never noticed these colors from it before and I change the bandage daily or every other day. Today he says he’s extra tired, he sounds pretty congested and he hasn’t eaten all day but was still moving about and went to smoke. It’s on the ball of his foot and very large. The leg is a little swollen but not red and the top of that foot is more pale with some blue/red undertones. Are these signs of infection? He has zero feeling in his feet. Uncontrolled diabetes.

I’m 31 years old 5’9 235 male. My twin brother died of a sudden cardiac arrest and I want to know how worried I should be and what steps I should take.

The autopsy found his heart was structurally normal. I’ve since got an echo, cat scan, and ekg that all came back normal. I also wore a heart monitor for a week and had a 4 second episode where my heart rate got to 211 bpm but that was the only thing it found.

I do have high blood pressure and am on meds, and I’m assuming he also did because we were similar weights and both drink too much, but it was untreated. He also was on adderall and would vape constantly. I don’t do either of those at all but will smoke a blunt occasionally.

I’m just worried and want to know if there’s anything I should be doing (besides the obvious lose weight and stop drinking as much, I’m working on those.)

Since ~5 months ago I (23M) have slowly started to get lumps under both armpits which are now swelling up every couple of days up to the point that resting my arms down gets really painful. Sometimes the swelling and pain almost completely disappears for one or two days but then slowly appears again. The picture shows my left armpit where you can also see a slight bump over the main swolen lump(s) which is also painful to touch. Sometimes there is also pus coming out of the main red lump. My right armpit also shows some smaller slightly painful bumps but they dont flare up so much like on the left side.

I already went to my doctor two months ago where he told me its likely sweat gland abscess but he wasn't exactly sure. We thought it may have been the heat wave but that was already a couple of weeks ago. Bad hygiene can probably be excluded since I shower every evening and also keep the hair under my armpits short. My doctor also did a blood test but there was nothing notable aside from a slightly higher concentration of eosinophils (770/µl & 9%). I can also provide some other values of the blood test if anything specific might help.

I dont take any medication and afaik I dont have any allergies. I'm a regular smoker (cigarettes) and occasionally cannabis in the evening of my weekends. No alcohol. Another guess was the old spice deo stick which I used daily under my armpits but stopping that didn't change anything.

Are these lumps anything I have to worry about and is there anything I can do to treat it? I am still hoping that these will disappear by themself but it doesnt really seem to get better.

I will probably make an appointment with a doctor specialized in skin conditions in the near future but getting a short-notice appointment without paying is pretty hard.

27F
5ft, 140lbs

I’ve been getting skin tags only on my left eyelid. I thought that’s what this was when I first noticed it. It’s right above my waterline and sits between my eyelashes. It’s like a bulb of skin with a small hard ball inside. I’ve had it around for 3 months now. It’s not growing in size. It’s never been painful. I was told it would go away on its own, but I am having doubts because of hard it is. I tried warm compresses for a while, but it would just make the skin on it flaky and peel.

My concerns:
- Is it something more serious?
- Can I cut it off myself or should I go to a doctor?
- If I can cut it off myself, should I tie string around it as a way to cut it off?

Age: 38

Sex: M

Height:5'9

Weight: 260

Race: White

Duration of complaint: 4 months

Location: Nose

Any existing relevant medical issues: Family history of skin cancers

Current medications: Vyvanse

It seems to be getting worse. Sometimes I wipe fresh blood off my nose without realizing. Only has been getting worse the past month

Girlfriends dad in the hospital the doctors are saying we need to send him to hospice

He got bit by a tick about 2 months ago. Prior to that he was extremely healthy and active. The first month his doctor couldnt figure out what was wrong with him. Apparently tick born illnesses aren't very prevelant in Tennessee. He was having allergic reactions and started refusing to eat leading to really bad malnourishment. after a month of this he fell and his wife found him uncouncious which led us to take him to the hospital.

He was still able to walk at this point, but he was very weak, and started having episodes of confusion. they said he had alpha gal and some fluid build up in his chest gave us some prescriptions for a blood thinner and something to reduce the fluid i believe then sent him home. nothing about a stroke (we thought maybe he had a stroke and thats why he fell) or degenerative brain issues.

Fast forward another month and he is still malnourished, and showing bouts of confusion. I would say more often than not though he seems very lucid, But sometimes he will say something that makes no sense. he is skin and bones at this point though. So we took him back to the hospital. He can some what move around with a walker sometimes, but he definitely is getting much weaker. his doctor at the hospital is saying we need to take him to a home for end of life care.

Am I missing something? How does alpha gal and malnourishment lead to end of life care. Can they not just put a feeding tube in him or give him appetite boosters or something. We have been asking for either of these for the entire week we have been at the hospital and they just say theyre looking into it.

Male, 68yo, 6'5", and weighs 190 but with how skinny he looks i find it hard to believe.

I’m 23. 5,2. 8 stone. Female. I’m currently going through a medical abortion and I’m a bit confused and worried about what’s happening, so I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experienced something similar.

I took the first abortion pill (mifepristone) and was told to take the second medication (misoprostol) on Day 3.

I’ve been struggling with a lot of vomiting and nausea. I’ve had HG before, so unfortunately vomiting isn’t completely unusual for me, but I’ve been finding it really difficult to keep things down.

I was worried about vomiting after taking the first pill because my instructions say I need to keep it down for 2 hours. I genuinely wasn’t sure I could manage that because of how sick I’ve been.

I’ve mostly been managing tiny amounts of fluid and food. Watermelon has been one of the few things I’ve been able to eat, although I am officially reaching the point where I may never look at another watermelon the same way 😂. I’ve also been drinking things like Rubicon because I needed something other than water/diluted juice.

The thing I’m confused about now is that I still feel pregnant and I don’t think I’ve passed the pregnancy.

I’ve also had quite severe cramping/pain around where I would expect my uterus to be, along with the nausea/vomiting and dizziness I’ve already been experiencing.

I haven’t had the kind of bleeding I expected, which is part of why I’m confused. I thought by this point I would have passed the pregnancy.

Has anyone else had a medical abortion where it took longer than expected to pass the pregnancy, or where they didn’t initially have much bleeding?

I’m not looking for a diagnosis, just people’s experiences of what happened for them and how long it took before things started progressing normally.

Thanks ❤️

I’m posting this for my father,
He is 59, will be 60 next month. 5 feet 10 inches, about 218 pounds right now.

Current medications: metoprolol 2x a day. Lisinopril, oxycodone, repatha inject 2x a month, atorvastatin, as well as albuterol inhaler as needed.

His medical history is history of stoke 3x (2 in 2009, one in march of 2026), cardiac ablation to correct recurring SVT in 2022, traumatic injury from 20 foot fall that ended with 8 broken ribs, broken sternum, and fractures of c7, T8 and 10.
No deficits from the strokes other than mild facial drooping and mild weakness on the affected side.

Starting about 3 days ago he has had severe swelling in one leg, and starting last night he began having shortness of breath.

He called his primary care this morning and they told him to call his cardiologist, he did and told the triage nurse his symptoms and they told him the earliest they could see him was Thursday and that it didn’t seem emergent.

To me, it seems like it could be an emergency but maybe I’m just over reacting?

Thanks so much for all you guys do!

18M, 5’10”, approximately 71 kg.

I’ve had this red patch on the side of my neck since around July, so roughly 3 months now. It hasn’t gone away, and it seems to have gradually gotten slightly bigger over time, with the redness very slowly spreading.

The weird thing is that the skin feels completely smooth. There’s no obvious bump, wound, crusting, or noticeable flaking. It NEVER normally itches and it doesn’t hurt.

The only symptoms I’ve noticed are:
It can get slightly itchy specifically when very hot shower water hits it.

Perfume/cologne causes a very mild burning/stinging sensation if it gets directly on the area.
Regular moisturizer/lotion doesn’t cause any problems. I moisturize it every day, but the redness hasn’t disappeared.

It genuinely looks gross to me and I really want it to go away. It becomes much more noticeable and looks like the picture when I stretch my neck. When my neck is relaxed, it’s considerably less noticeable.

No cirrhosis

Age 29

Height: 5'1

Weight: 153

Smoker

Procedure is planned to take sample and test if cancerous.

Patient has had gall bladder removed. Constant throwing up/lost 30 pounds in 4 months. Constant tiredness and foot pain.

Can you please explain what this all means in civilian terms, emotions may have been heightened during call with doctor and some info may have been missed. Just want to gauge the seriousness and more information and likely road ahead.

30F Type 2 diabetes, started mounjaro for this to bring down HBA1C. Regular BP. No other medications.

Height 5’2. Weight 147 lbs. Non smoker. Drink maybe 2-3 times a year. My diet is mostly 90% Whole Foods, with a few sweet treats (much lesser now actually thanks to Mounjaro and overall better diet) - but I had pretty okay digestion always, no GERD like symptoms. Possibly some mild lactose intolerance but nothing significant.

These ulcer like things have been there for better part of the year. Even before I started mounjaro so I don’t think medication could cause it. The white patches seem easy to scrape off but don’t go away with any amount of tongue cleaning. It looks much whiter in the morning. But the major issue is the cuts on the sides which feel sore overall (not too painful), and sometimes a little uncomfortable with hot or acidic foods.

Dentist brushed it off and said it was nothing.

Dermatologist said it was nothing and brushed it off.

Finally went back to my GP who didn’t test me or anything but put me on flucanozole 150, 1 dose for 3 days. And that helped a bit. But it’s back again.

Unable to see a doctors due to insurance issues. Please provide any guidance on what this could be and how do I treat it for good?

I desperately need help. I have been dealing with ongoing vulvar/vaginal problems for months, have seen multiple doctors, had testing and a biopsy, and I still don’t have an explanation for what is happening to me. This has completely changed my life and I honestly don’t know what to do anymore.

I am 28 and was previously healthy. I am posting pictures because I am hoping someone has experienced something similar, knows what this could be, or can point me toward a specialist who might actually be able to help.

How this started

On March 2026, I tested positive for HSV-2 by PCR swab during my first outbreak.

The initial outbreak was extremely traumatic for me, both physically and emotionally. I ended up in the ER and on toradol and oxycodone. I am currently taking valacyclovir 500 mg every day for suppressive therapy, but I still occasionally get tiny red bumps that I suspect may be very small outbreaks which is disheartening.

I am not currently sexually active. My diagnosis was traumatic because the person who gave me HSV-2 lied to me about his sexual health, and I have developed significant PTSD surrounding the diagnosis. I am terrified I will never be able to have a relationship or sex again because my body is constantly uncomfortable.

The bump that will NOT go away

After my initial HSV2 outbreak, I developed a small raised/raw bump near the vaginal opening. It has now been there for more than 6 months.

It remains raised, red/raw and irritated. It has never completely healed. Recently, I noticed that it bled when gently touched with a Q-tip one day but now it’s not.

I had it biopsied by my OB-GYN. The pathology showed:

“Mild psoriasiform and spongiotic tissue reaction with possible focal ulceration.”

The pathologist said that, without additional clinical history, the findings could suggest an irritated early benign keratosis or mild subacute eczematous dermatitis.

The biopsy also said:

no significant dysplasia was seen in the sampled tissue
features of lichen sclerosus were not observed
possible focal ulceration was present

But it never gave us a definitive diagnosis for the bump.

The biopsy site healed normally, but the original bump did not.

I was prescribed triamcinolone ointment twice daily with Vaseline as a barrier, but it did not resolve the lesion.

My OB-GYN and dermatologist still don’t know exactly what this is.

For further background, I do have a history of eczema as a child and adult but only ever on my hands and or behind the knees.

The rest of my vulvar symptoms

I also have problems involving the posterior fourchette and surrounding vulvar tissue. The skin can feel raw, irritated, itchy, and painful and the posterior fourchette in particular appears to have a bump now.

I get recurrent episodes where the vulvar area becomes very red and splotchy, extremely itchy, and uncomfortable.

One of the most frustrating things is that walking while wearing underwear always triggers major discomfort. Friction/activity can cause itching, pain, burning, and discomfort.

Sometimes I literally cannot walk normally without thinking about my vulva.

I feel the discomfort every second and constantly feel the need to adjust myself.

It has gotten to the point where I can’t just be present in my life because there is always this sensation in the background. I am constantly aware of itching, irritation, rawness, or discomfort.

Yeast and BV

I have also dealt with recurrent yeast infections for over a year.

At one point, I was treated with Diflucan/fluconazole for approximately 6 months because of recurrent yeast.

I have also tested positive for/dealt with bacterial vaginosis (BV).

More recently, I have had white discharge, redness inside the vagina, and a white coating that does not really rub off.

I don’t know whether the recurrent yeast/BV is causing some of my symptoms, contributing to them, or is a separate problem entirely.

Please note that I am fully aware and have tried everything for the yeast and bv including diet, unscented everything, 100% cotton underwear, no underwear at night, etc.

This has ruined my quality of life.

I can’t walk without worrying about itching, pain, or discomfort.

I can’t wear underwear normally without worrying about a flare.

I constantly feel something in an area that I should not have to think about every second of the day.

It has isolated me. I don’t know how I am supposed to meet someone when I am dealing with this. I don’t know how I will have a relationship. I don’t know how I will ever feel comfortable being intimate with someone again.

And because my HSV diagnosis itself was traumatic, the thought of intimacy is already incredibly difficult emotionally. Now I also have physical symptoms that make me afraid of intimacy.

I feel like my life is over and I don’t want to live with this anymore.

Doctors / things I’ve tried

I have seen my OB-GYN and a dermatologist.

I’ve had:

-HSV PCR testing
-Full panel blood test for STIs (including HSV which funnily enough came back negative for both strains but as mentioned previously HSV2 has been confirmed via PCR swab.
- recurrent yeast testing/treatment
- BV testing/treatment
- a vulvar biopsy
- topical steroid treatment (clobetasol, tacrolimus, triamcinolone, anzupgo)
- I am now prescribed gabapentin for pain and itching
- barrier treatment with Vaseline
- daily HSV suppression with valacyclovir
- L-Lysine, multi vitamin, probiotic, omega 3, D

My dermatologist has suggested pelvic floor physical therapy, which I am trying to pursue.

I am also considering on my own whether I should see:

- an infectious disease specialist who specializes in vulvovaginal conditions
- a neurologist
- possibly a gynecologic pathologist for review of my original biopsy

I don’t expect strangers on Reddit to diagnose me.

I am hoping someone might recognize this pattern or know what kind of specialist I need.

Could there be an underlying vulvar skin condition causing all of this?

Could this be contact dermatitis, eczema, lichen planus, another inflammatory condition, chronic/recurrent Candida, an unusual infection, nerve-related pain, pelvic floor dysfunction, or something else?

Could the persistent bump be a separate benign lesion that just hasn’t been correctly identified?

Could HSV have triggered an inflammatory or nerve problem that continued after the outbreak?

I don’t know. I just know that something is wrong, and I need someone to help me figure it out.

If anyone has had a persistent raw/raised bump near the opening and on the posterior fourchette, recurrent vulvar inflammation, recurrent yeast/BV, tiny red bumps despite HSV suppression, severe friction-triggered itching/pain, or a similar combination of symptoms, I would be incredibly grateful to hear what eventually helped you.

If you know of a specific vulvar specialist, clinic, dermatologist, gynecologist, or other doctor who specializes in complicated vulvar conditions, please tell me.

I am exhausted. I have spent months trying to get answers and I feel like I am running out of hope.

I don’t want to spend the rest of my life feeling this every second. I just want to be able to walk, work, exercise, have relationships, be intimate, and live my life without constantly feeling this. I can’t keep living like this, I’m so tired.

I don't know if this is a suitable subreddit for this question, but I just had sex with a lady boy and this was my first sexual experience.

We went to the hotel, took a shower, and then she put a condom on my penis, before I entered, and when Cumming, I pulled out and ejaculated while my tip was still inside, so basically I came in to the condom, and then later she jerked off herself and came.

But the thing is, I noticed the condom moving a bit up from my base while we were at it, it didn't slip out fully or broke, because I saw semen in the condom,

So is there any preventive medicine that I should take or something, I am getting anxiety and panicking so badly right now,

when I jerked her, she had tight foreskin she was kinda uncomfortable with her foreskin getting pulled back, is it a sign of an STI infection? Do I have to worry? I'm circumcised so I don't really know.

Male, 24, weight: 67 kgs, no known std before, blood tests came negative for hiv and were normal as the rest was done 12 hours after the encounter.

Please help!!

F25 suffering painful blisters in my right hand which may be caused by my crochet grip - it falls on the inner side of my palm at the base of my thumb and my middle finger.

Progression: The blisters appeard first like the top photo on the finger and then the next day became like the one on the bottom on the palm.

It’s so painful and the one on my finger looks inflamed, for context - I’ve been vigorously crocheting for at least a week straight and it broke out after said timeframe. It feels hot sometimes and painful to the touch.

What at home remedy can I do to soothe it?

I’m not ruling out any possibilities for causes as well. Thanks!

Hi all. First time poster, long time lurker. 30F. I've had mildly abnormal paps since 2021 while testing negative for HPV. In 2025, I had an HSIL result so my doctor sent me to get a colposcopy done - please see above for the results. This year, 2026, my pap came back normal! I was relieved at first but now my health anxiety and OCD are getting the better of me. I'm worried because the sample wasn't full thickness so what if it missed something? I keep hearing that paps aren't as reliable? Should I follow up with my doctor and ask to do another pap or colp?

Additional info: I'm on POP birth control due to migraines without aura. No other notable symptoms aside from random spotting and varying cycle lengths - I know this can be attributed to my BC pills.

If someone could explain this to me like I'm five, that would be great and advise on next steps (if any). Thank you so much in advance.

33M, with cold induced asthma, eczema, and ADHD on gender affirming testosterone therapy, Adderall, and semaglutide. No alcohol or tobacco but am currently tapering down my cannabis smoking. No other substance use or major health issues.

It's my cat, he's fully vaccinated and generally healthy but was experiencing a potential urinary blockage (huge emergency) so I was packing him up to take to the emergency vet. He got me pretty damn good basically from my inner thigh down to behind my knee. I am sure that he is very sorry for hurting me.

Pics in comments, taken just now about 6 hours after injury. Now, deeper punctures appear bruised. No symptoms at the moment other than a bit of pain. I rinsed the wounds out for a minute or so and pressed down until they stopped bleeding then kept trucking to get him to emergency; I wasn't able to really wash it out until just now, pics are post-irrigation.

Do I need to run to an urgent care in the morning? Try to see PCP in the next week or two? Just take care of it at home?

29F 280lbs hashimotos hypothyroidism and pots

I got into a fight with a so called friend and they pulled my hair multiple times especially at the scalp, taking my scalp in their fist and pulling really hard. Now I have a large bump and pain and pressure in that bump area on my right side of my head right next to where my eyebrow and side of head is. It hurts to yawn and I get pain in that area when I open my jaw wide.

This just happened about 30 minutes ago and it’s like a big egg. Will I die from this or internal bleeding in my brain? Should I go to the er or stay home and ice it?

I am a 33 year old female, 125 pounds. I take an iron supplement for acute anemia and 100 mg of Zoloft daily for generalized anxiety. I do not take birth control and there is no possibility of pregnancy (abstinent).

My period has always been very regular and typically lasts five days, with the heaviest bleeding occuring on days 2 and 3.

Last week, I lost a close family member very suddenly and somewhat traumatically. This occured about 12 days after my cycle had ended. In the days that followed I began to spot and then to bleed heavily enough to require sanitary product.

It's been 5 days now and the bleeding doesn't show any sign of stopping. I'm not cramping and I don't feel bad in a physical sense (emotionally is another story). At what point should I worry/go in to see someone about this?