- Warts on your vagina, penis or anus are called genital warts
- You get them through sex
- They usually go away on their own
- A lot people sometimes have warts there
- Usually, you can still work if you have warts
Symptoms
- The warts are on your vagina, penis or anus. You can usually see them yourself:
- They are pink, grey or brown (with people with a darker skin color)
- You can have one or two. Sometimes, you have several and they are in little groups
- Sometimes, you can’t see them. In that case, they are in your vagina or anus
Symptoms of having warts include:
- Pain
- Itching or irritation
Take an STI test
Do you think you have genital warts? If so, you might have other STIs. Get an STI test at the municipal health service (GGD) or at your doctor. Then you will know for sure whether you have an STI. And you will get medicine for it right away.
Treatment
Are the warts bothering you a lot? If so, go to your doctor. Sometimes, you can get a salve that reduces your symptoms or clears up the warts. You put it on yourself using a Q-tip. Do not do this using your fingers. Otherwise, you can transfer the warts to other places on your body via your fingers.
Warts do not always go away. And they can come back. In that case, you can get a different treatment.
You can read more about genital warts and the treatment at soaaids.nl (Dutch only)
Working while having genital warts
It may take a while for the warts go away. You can keep working, though. Are they bothering you a lot? In that case, it would be better to not have sex for a while.
If you have sex, use a condom. That will make it less easy to transmit them to someone else. Try to make sure the warts don’t touch the other person’s skin.
Use a condom:
- During vaginal or anal sex
- During masturbation
- During vaginal or anal fingering
- If you lay against or rub your vagina or penis on someone else’s. Or against someone’s anus
This applies to sex with your clients and your own partner if you have one.
What is ok to do if you have warts?
- Long-distance sex. For example, using a web cam. Read about how you can have long-distance sex
- Blow job, eating pussy or rimming. You can use a condom or dental dam if you prefer that
- Fingering or masturbating the other person. In that case, first make sure you haven’t touched your own vagina, penis or anus. Otherwise, you can transfer the warts to the person via your fingers
Doubting whether or not you can have sex if you have genital warts? Call the Aids Soa info line to ask.
Get three free Hepatitis B vaccinations
You can also catch Hepatitis B through sex. Especially if you don’t use a condom. You can get very sick from it. Get vaccinated for free at the municipal health service (GGD) so that you don’t catch this STI.
