Do I have pregnancy symptoms?

Britney writes, "I was not on the pill and made love to man, even though, he said that he did not go all the way in. I did that about 17 days ago and my period was more than 30 days ago. I have been feeling quite tired recently, more hungry, some smells irritate me now, a bit nauseous. etc. I am not sure if I am pregnant or not. I used two pregnancy test strips (HCG strips) over the weekend and they gave an INVALID result. I bought another one and it gave a negative result too. though I am still scared. I had to contact HIM so he'll know and we'll find a solution to it. Please, do you know if I can be getting the above pregnancy symptoms so early?"

Since you can still get your period (looks like you have been stressed and that can delay your period), it is best to do another test later this week. If it is still negative, that means that you simply missed your period and are not pregnant. The symptoms that you are having are not definite signs of being pregnant. It could be due to lack of sleep/rest, stress, and worry.

To get complete peace of mind, you can meet with a doctor who can do a more thorough test to determine what is going on.

Calm down and relax a bit. You are getting too worked up and may take a wrong decision. Merely missing a period does not mean much, particularly, if you have a history of irregular menstruation.

Sarah Jessica Parker surrogate twins

I can understand why gays like Ricky Martin or Clay Aiken would use a surrogate to become parents.

Women that choose to be single moms or lesbians need not use surrogates if they can become moms themselves.

I can understand if Marissa Jaret Winokur used a surrogate since she was incapable of carrying a baby herself. For the same reason it would be understandable if Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick were a childless couple and SJP had problem conceiving and carrying a baby, but they already have a child.

Therefore, their choice to use a surrogate for their twins conceived by IVF at such a late stage in their life is simply disgusting. Does it mean that the rich can do anything they want because they have the money? Can they use other women as babymakers because they can? If they loved kids so much, they could have adopted from an orphanage.

How to find out if I am a virgin?

India writes, "Due to a great error in judgment on my part, I made love to a man, and even though, he did not go all the way in, I think he ejaculated inside me. He told me to stand up straight after the intercourse so that the semen will kind of flow out due to gravity. I want to be sure I am not carrying his baby (we didn't use protection when he went in. I was fertile that day (checking my fertility again); I think it was the day after my ovulation and I am not on the pill since I have never had the use for it (I am not sexually active). Could I still be a virgin?"

Regarding your pregnancy, a pregnancy test kit at home or a blood test in any clinic can confirm if you are pregnant. If so, obviously, you are not a virgin.

Now if you did not become pregnant, then, it is hard to say. Generally speaking, it is understood that a girl is not virgin after the hymen (a membrane inside the vagina) breaks. However, girls who play sports or ride horses/bikes or even those who might fall down in the bathroom, might have a ruptured membrane. Only a medical test can determine if the hymen is still intact.

Now based on this, I cannot tell you for sure. A doctor has to examine you to confirm it.

Am I still a virgin?

Candice writes, "I am 20 years old and until I met this older man, I had never been physically intimate with a man. Though I told him I did not wan to have sex, but a week ago, we were playing and he went half way inside me. There was no rupturing, I mean no blood but not everyone gets blood. Also no pain except a slight feeling of inconvenience that was over in about 30 minutes. I am not sure any more if I am still a virgin. Please can you tell if I could still be a virgin? My lover even called me later and said he is not even sure if I was a virgin or not. I feel awful and have broken up with this man.

If you are virgin or not, it is very hard to say. Blood does not always come out during sex for the first time. Also, it is not necessarily painful. Most likely you are still a virgin but only a doctor can say that after examining you.

The reason your lover is telling you that you were not a virgin is because he wants to manipulate you by saying so. If he can convince you that your body is not that of a virgin any way, he will find it easier to convince you to have sex with him.

So just relax, take a deep breath, don't worry about virginity, and get rid of this man. Not all men expect you to be a virgin on wedding night. You can also have hymen repair surgery or fake virginity by using a fake hymen to make your husband believe that you are a virgin.

Kirstie Alley obesity

I was so glad to see Kirstie Alley lose her weight and show up in a bikini. That gave a lot of hope to fat women that they could lose weight. Then, I noticed that Alley got fat, and now we have her admitting that she has become one fat cow again. 

How did this happen?


The problem is that despite my saying it again and again diets don't work. They only work as long as you follow them. That is true for Jenny Craig or Weightwatchers or any other fancy diet you choose to follow. So while I would like to say that Kirstie got fat because she was pigging out on butter and pasta, the reality is that we now have solid evidence that Jenny Craig does not work.

Now the good news is that Kirstie wants to get back to her bikini-ready body at 140 lbs, which on her 5'8" frame is a bit ambitious. I think she would be better off trying to shoot for a more realistic weight at which she can be happy, that is, she can occasionally eat what she really wants.