What your discharge is telling you

We’ve come a long way in destigmatizing and normalizing many aspects of reproductive and vaginal health — periods, contraception, sex, even pubic hair is being more widely discussed. But the next frontier and one that doctors maintain is critical to a person’s understanding of their vaginal health, is cervical mucus. In 2019, Instagram posts depicting cervical mucus were flagged and removed because they allegedly violated policy on “nudity and pornography” despite this being a totally normal bodily fluid like spit or urine! And Dr. Ava Maineri, Head of Research at Tia, wants you (yes, you!) to get familiar with inspecting your discharge, and free yourself from shame & embarrassment surrounding your body.

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What is cervical mucus?

Cervical mucus is fluid that’s secreted from the glands in the cervix (the lower part of the uterus that opens into the vagina, specifically. It mixes with arousal fluid (lubrication) and water to make what we know as discharge. The mucus is made up of healthy vaginal bacteria, cells that have been shed from the vaginal surface, and a tiny amount of fluid that leaks across from the bloodstream. Cervical mucus is comprised of between 90 - 98% water — and on average, the body produces 1-3 mL of it every day.

Why it rocks

Next time you pull down your pants and see discharge in your underwear, rather than an eye roll, think about what your cervical mucus could be telling you! At Tia, we often talk about menstruation as the 5th vital sign, a helpful indicator of the body’s functioning — and we think of cervical mucus in the same way. Much like you get to know your menstrual cycle so you can tell when something is “off,” get to know what *your* normal looks like when it comes to discharge. It looks different from person to person! Do things smell new or different than before? Has your texture suddenly changed from what it usually is around this time in your cycle? Has your discharge completely dried up? These types of inconsistencies and more could be your body telling you something important, though changes throughout the month (in line with your body’s hormonal changes) are completely normal.

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In addition to acting as an indicator of health, cervical mucus also helps to aid fertilization (it literally helps semen get to the cervix!), flush out bad bacteria that can destabilize the vaginal ecosystem, and promotes and feeds good bacteria that the vagina relies upon to flourish and stay healthy. Cervical mucus also promotes vaginal lubrication, which is helpful for sex and pleasure!

Cervical mucus and fertility

Because cervical mucus is directly impacted by hormones and the menstrual cycle, you can guess it also has a critical role to play in our fertility. People who are trying to get pregnant will often be counseled to examine their cervical mucus because it offers important clues about fertility and ovulation. Based on where you are in your menstrual cycle, your cervical fluid will be different in quantity (it spikes during ovulation!) color (it may look brownish or reddish just after your period ends), and texture (it thickens post-ovulation when you are least fertile).

Abnormalities

So, you’ve gotten to know your cervical mucus better….and now you notice something’s “off.” Don’t worry — there are many non-medically-serious reasons why your discharge may be out of whack. A few things that can throw your cervical mucus off:

• Medication
  • Antihistamines, fertility & PCOS medication and more can all create an imbalance in your cervical mucus content and production.
• Infection
  • Bacterial infections like vaginitis or an STI can cause shifts in your cervical mucus norm, usually through changes in texture (it may become more chunky than you’re used to!) color (becomes greyish or green), and smell (if your discharge begins to smell different or becomes foul-smelling, it’s usually an indicator that something is going on!)
• Irregular or disrupted menstrual cycle
  • If you have or develop a condition that disrupts your menstrual cycle such as PCOS or Turner Syndrome, your cervical mucus will be impacted.
• Hormones
  • Folks who get the Mirena hormonal IUD overwhelmingly report much thicker than normal cervical mucus. Other types of hormonal contraception will cause it to reduce in quantity or become drier.

Of all these fascinating factoids about this miraculous biological process, the biggest thing Dr. Maineri wants you to take away is that “discharge and cervical mucus are completely normal, exceptionally healthy, and valuable to bodily functioning. It’s so incredibly good for your vagina and has so many benefits.” There you have it — let’s celebrate cervical mucus!