8 yr old girl ?

[mamaw/two]

Hi, my oldest dd is a little over 8 yrs old. The last time she changed her undies, there was what looked like discharge in them, I didn't say anything about it to her. This morning she said to me that she thinks she is leaking a little pee, even though she is wiping really well after going to the bathroom, she said that because she is feeling some wetness down there. I looked in her undies and sure enough, it looked like discharge, not urine. Is this just a normal thing for this age, or is this a little early for that? I also asked her if she's having any itching or pain and she said no, she's feeling just normal besides the wetness thing. I'm guessing this is normal, but I thought it didn't start happening until more like 11 or 12 yrs old.

[CarrieMF]

it could be a yeast infection. itchiness doens't always happen with them.

[mamaw/two]

I thought that if it was an infection there should be a bad smell, but there's not.

[Vermillion]

I remember being about that age, maybe 9, and snagging my mom's panty liners! So things were definitely changing for me at that age.

It could be an infection. You can have an infection without odor or itchiness. Or it could be normal! I'd maybe up her yogurt/probiotic intake and cut out sugars for a bit to see if it helps, just in case it is an infection.

[momto4plus4]

Same thing just happened tonight with my 9 yr old. Definately looked like discharge. She has always been pretty sensitive down there so I told her to let me know if she has any pain. She's never had an infection but this is the first time she's had this that I know of.

[doulatara]

Discharge at 8 is completely in the realm of normal. Make sure you are communicating about the changes her body is and will be going through and continue to encourage the open lines of communication.

[Theoretica]

My almost 9yo (in a few weeks) has the same thing! Thanks for bringing this up-my mom freaked OUT about any occurences 'down there' so I never knew what was normal or not. DD and I chat about this kind of thing openly and she hasn't mentioned it but I did notice when doing laundry. I'll grab her some liners asap!

[Amanda L]

Originally Posted by doulatara

Discharge at 8 is completely in the realm of normal. Make sure you are communicating about the changes her body is and will be going through and continue to encourage the open lines of communication.

This exactly - and also to the suggestion of pantyliners.

[WCM]

As part of a regular menses cycle, discharge occurs before and during ovulation, with the most being after ovulation. Your DD's discharge could easily be a pre-puberty thing, her body beginning the slow changes to puberty. Some people have lots of discharge with ovulation others do not. Yeast infections do indeed have an itch or a smell.

If your DD's are otherwise comfortable I'd pass on some liners and have a discussion about the pubescent years.

[sleet76]

My DD has this, too. As far as I can tell, she doesn't have an infection, but we haven't had any testing. It started when she was 6 yo and about 40 lbs. She is now 7, and still tiny, so I really don't think it is puberty-related. But it's there. Hmm. I haven't thought of this in a while, maybe I should get her checked out.