1) When I was a child, I used to wet the bed. This finally cleared up when I was about twelve. In the last month or so, it has come back — except it's even more embarrassing now because I'm twenty-eight and share my bed with my husband! It started when I had a bad cold, so I thought perhaps it was just stress incontinence caused by coughing while asleep. I do suffer somewhat from stress incontinence, but I learned to deal with it when awake by clamping my legs together whenever I cough or sneeze. I talked to my doctor about this, and he also thought it was due to coughing while asleep. He treated my cough and assured me that once the cough was gone, the bedwetting would be, too. Well, my cough has cleared up, but I am still wetting the bed almost every night! It's mortifying, and I feel like my husband finds me disgusting (not that I really blame him). He says it doesn't matter to him, but I feel like I ought to be put in a nursing home. Is there anything I can do to stop this?

2) I have an embarrassing problem that has always held me from going to a doctor. I do not know if it's called incontinence. When I'm out of the rest room, I always find a few drops of urine being discharged later in my dress. This usually occurs when I bend down, or when I sneeze, or sometimes even due to a jerk. I have tried to prevent this many a time by remaining in the comfort room for invariably a long time trying to make sure that I'm done fully, but in vain.

Being a Muslim, I always find it very difficult to offer my prayers due to this. I'm suffering from this problem for a long time. Would you please advise if there is any cure for this? Can some pills treat this or an operation is a must?

1) What are the long-term effects of sleep deprivation?

2) Me and a few friends are planning on doing a fundraiser where we stay awake for five days straight. At first it was a great idea, but I started thinking about if there might be some serious damage to our bodies for staying awake that long. Will there be any long-term or short-term damage for staying awake for five days? If so, is it safer to stay awake for three or four days?

And how long can the body really go without sleep?

I read the info on molluscum in the Men's Health section. Are there any signs that distinguish molluscum from genital warts/any way to tell if you have one or the other?

1) What is TMJ? What kind of doctor handles this problem?

2) I have a rather odd problem. For the past several years, I have noticed that when I open my mouth wide to yawn or take a bite out of a sandwich, the right condyle of my jawbone slips laterally from the temporomandibular joint, making it difficult, and at times, painful, to close my mouth. I basically have to slip the condyle back into the socket; otherwise, it slips in by itself, which is what causes the pain.

Other than being inconvenient, this has not adversely affected me in any way that I can tell, except that I am now careful not to open my mouth completely when I yawn. I am reluctant to see a doctor about this because I cannot reproduce the situation at will, and don't know if the problem can be diagnosed or detected unless the doctor actually sees the condyle slip out.

Also, any time I have gone to Health Services, it seems that whatever the problem, they just send me home with a jar full of ibuprofen. What do you think is wrong? Is this problem serious? Does it deserve immediate attention? What type of doctor would I need to see and could I get a referral from Health Services?

1) I often have a bad taste in my mouth, and bad breath as well, I assume. This doesn't stem from poor hygiene: I brush my teeth at least three times a day, and usually more. I'm wondering if there is anything I can do about this. Could this be a symptom of some sort of nutritional deficiency? I think my diet is pretty bad, although I'm working pretty hard on getting more protein and eating less fat. I've also been nauseous a lot lately, and vomiting some. Could that be related?

2) Like many people, I often have an embarrassing bad breath. Listerine and other mouthwashes won't be of any help for this chronic problem. There are lots of products available to get rid of "volatile sulfur compounds (VSC)" - that supposedly cause this — and I just don't know which one I should try. Also, what's your opinion on tongue-brushing?

I would like to be able to cuddle up to my partner at night, but I can't sleep if anyone is touching me even a little bit. I'm very prone to insomnia as it is, so it's hard to practice. Is there a way I can learn to sleep differently?

1) My problem is this: whenever I have to study late at night, or do anything late at night, I usually have trouble (a lot of trouble) concentrating on whatever it is that I have to do. I'm not going to try anything like No-Doz, but when I drink coffee or anything with caffeine, it just knocks me out even faster. I can't believe it — it's like caffeine's some kind of sleeping potion for me. Some of my friends say eating while you work can help you stay up. I tried that, too. Didn't work. Any suggestions? Or am I just better off sleeping and leaving the work 'till the next day?

2) I am a junior in college. I am pre-med which means I study all the time. However, I can really only focus when I study at night. When I study during the day, it seems that I cannot recall as much information as opposed to studying late at night. How come I can't stay focused during the day? What should I do to help me concentrate during the day?

1) I have asked this question to many sites with no response, but came (sorry:) ) upon your site which seems to be willing to post just about any question and answer them too, so here goes:

Is there a laxative effect of ingested ejaculate, or is it ALL in my head (oh gosh, another one :) )? I have found that when I ingest my own ejaculate, almost invariably within a matter of a few minutes, I have loose bowels.

2) My boyfriend and I have been exploring oral sex for a couple months — but I've only just noticed that when I swallow I seem to experience a bout of diarrhea within a couple hours of doing so. Is it normal to have diarrhea from swallowing ejaculate?

I recently read an article in a magazine regarding a new disorder termed "Diabulimia." Supposedly, this is a disorder displayed by women with type 1 diabetes in order to lose weight. The women with type 1 diabetes, who take insulin shots, compared these shots to "injectable fat" and therefore they skip their shots all together.

The reason why this topic is so surprising to me is because I am a type 1 diabetic and have been for almost 17 years and I have gained weight since beginning treatment. What happens to the body when this occurs? Also, if a person tries to treat the "diabulimia," will all the weight that was lost be gained right back when she begins to inject the shots again? What other method of losing weight would you suggest for someone like this? I would never risk my life in order to lose weight, but I would still like to learn about it because it is something I have never heard of. Thank you so much!

I am seriously infatuated with my therapist, which is really embarrassing. How do I keep this from influencing our sessions, which have been very helpful to me? Should I tell him? Is this common?

Dear Alice,

Is it dangerous to sleep in your soft disposable contact lenses for one night if you can't get them out?

I have the biggest problem getting out of bed in the morning. I set two alarms and I still go right back to sleep. For this reason, I am always running late to work. Do you have any suggestions on how I can make myself get up earlier in the mornings?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Some roommates of mine and I have been thinking about sleeping lately.

Usually we're all told to get eight to nine hours of sleep, and a lot of the time we do! The problem is, once in a while, when there's an essay to write or exam to study for, I or my friends may end up having no choice but to be up until 6 in the morning. No one's really explained what the best thing is to do if you have to be up.

What would you suggest? Should we eat? Take a quick nap before class, sleep during the afternoon or wait until evening? Any suggestions you have would be great.

I know that herpes are only supposed to appear on the mouth or genitals, but is it possible for them to occur elsewhere, as well, such as the shoulders or legs? I ask because I believe I might have genital herpes, but am unsure if this is the case as the "herpes" are not confined to my genitals/butt/thighs, and are appearing on my shoulders and lower legs.

If I get hurt really sharply or suddenly, I end up passing out. This has happened once when I slammed my finger in a doorway, once when I bashed my elbow on the shower wall, once when my finger was held in an awkward, painful position, and once when I got a flu shot. Why do I pass out like this, and why do I have such low pain tolerance?

If you step on a nail and have not had a tetanus shot in the last five years, how soon should a person be vaccinated? 24 hours? 48 hours?

I'm about to have rotator cuff surgery and repair some torn muscle. What natural healing foods can I eat to reduce the inflammation as well as increase the speed of healing of the muscle??

My wife has noted that she is recently losing hair at a much greater rate than normal. She feels her hair is significantly thinner (less density of strands) than in the past. What could be the cause of this?

1) This is in reference to your Missed periods Q&A. Another cause of missed or late periods is PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome). A lot of health care providers don't seem to be aware of this syndrome. In this syndrome, missed or irregular periods are caused by unusual hormone levels, sometimes in combination with insulin intolerance. Because missed and irregular periods cause scar tissue build-up in the uterus (which may cause endometrial cancer) and may cause infertility, it is important that your readers know to ask their health care provider about this syndrome. There are obviously other symptoms and complications, but I just thought that I might mention it to you so that you might read up on it for your readers. Thank you.

2) I was recently diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). I'm only 17 and am afraid that this will affect my chance of having children. Should I worry? Also, I know birth control pills will help me regulate my period, but if I take them, will it stop the effects PCOS has on me? Like me gaining rapid weight, missed periods, and losing my hair? This is really worrying me. Can you inform me on this syndrome?

I am a 19-year-old male. Over the past three years whenever I urinate, my urine stream splits in two (one continuous stream and one stream which is basically drops of urine.) Is there something wrong??? I also have another question. My grandfather has prostate cancer. I was just wondering when I should begin checks for this type of cancer.

I was told by my dentist that my teeth eroded, due to consumption of too much acidic food. I would like to know what kind of food causes tooth erosion. Do you have a list of these foods?