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Hi there Aunt Vadge,
I had sex for the first time, and two days later I had pain and a bit of blood while peeing. It wasn’t the whole time, just the last couple of drops. Every time I flex my abs while peeing, it hurts. It’s been two weeks now. No more blood, just pain at the end. I had a feel with my hand to see what hurt but couldn’t tell – I only knew I was wet and it felt gross. I don’t know what’s going on, I just want it to stop.
Sincerely,
Bleeding
Hi there Bleeding,
Two weeks of pain when you pee is long enough that the main thing I want you to do is get it checked in person, rather than keep waiting it out. Stinging or pain on urinating that starts soon after sex is usually one of two things: a urinary tract infection, or a sexually transmitted infection such as chlamydia – and the two can feel almost identical from the outside. The only way to tell them apart is a simple urine test and an STI screen, so please book in with your doctor or a sexual-health clinic this week.
Why the push, when the bleeding has stopped? Because ‘mostly better’ isn’t the same as gone. Any ongoing discomfort when you wee means there’s still something to treat, and an untreated UTI can climb up to the kidneys, while an untreated STI can quietly cause problems down the line. Neither is a disaster caught now – both are very treatable – but two weeks in, home measures alone clearly haven’t sorted it.
New stinging after first-time sex often traces back to an infection in our experience, and at the two-week mark it’s worth testing rather than guessing. Get seen promptly if you also notice fever, back or side pain, feeling generally unwell, or the blood returns – that combination can mean the infection is moving to the kidneys and needs same-day care.
A few things worth knowing for the future. Anyone can pick up an STI, and male partners often have no symptoms at all, so ‘he seems fine’ doesn’t rule it out – read up on STIs and use condoms until you’ve both been screened. Most UTIs come from E. coli that lives harmlessly in the bowel but causes trouble if it reaches the urethra, so weeing after sex to flush things through, and keeping front-to-back separate, really does help cut the odds.
Write anytime, and let me know how you get on.
Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.
