Bossip I have a question. My girl is the best thing that ever happened to me but lately she’s been smelling foul. The odor is fishy and overwhelming. We’ve been together for about 6 months and I’ve never known her to smell this way so it caught me off guard when I caught a whiff of it. I thought it was a one day deal considering she was fresh off her monthly but it continued. It’s been two weeks and she’s still fishy. I don’t think she realizes she smells this way because she tries to have sex like everything is cool or if she does know it doesn’t seem to bother her. Why does she smell like that? How do I open up that discussion?
Happy Friday, sir! Thank you for writing in and sharing. Okay, so you want to know what causes the “fishy odor?” Well, more often than not, it’s an infection called Bacterial Vaginosis or BV. The fishy smell is caused by an overgrowth of naturally occurring bacteria in the vagina. It’s very common and, as quiet as it’s kept, it’s more common than a yeast infection. There’s an array of scenarios that can cause a woman’s vaginal PH to be thrown out of whack – it could be hormonal, it could be inconsistent use or a change in birth-control methods. If you two engage in unprotected sex then it could be your seminal fluids. You have to think, the vagina is a dark, moist pocket that has its own bacterial regulatory system and sometimes, for whatever reason, it malfunctions.
The upside: it can be treated! She should go to her lady doctor so they can perform all the necessary tests to be sure it’s BV and they’ll prescribe an antibiotic to to treat it. The downside: many women who are diagnosed often experience recurrences shortly thereafter but, with the help of antibodies, the vagina will rebalance itself. But she absolutely needs to go to the Gynecologist to be sure its BV and not Chlamydia or Gonorrhea. Just to be safe, you should get tested also.
This is not an easy topic to discuss. There’s no easy way to say it. She may be completely unaware of her odor so you should let her know. The best approach is a diplomatic one. Just say, “hey, I’ve noticed an odor lately and I just want to be sure you’re okay. What do we do?” Or something along those lines and the conversation should progress from there. Again, not an easy conversation but try to keep it as nonchalant and easy-going as possible. Hope this helps and good luck to you!
Bossip Readers, how should he tell her?
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