cervical screening/ smear test

pavlovs_dog

i had a letter today 'inviting' :cool: :rolleyes: me for a smear. it was a bit of a shock to say the least, as i thought this wouldnt happen until i was 25 (im 21 in september)

ive never had one before..and so dont know what to expect. i wouldnt say im scared, more aprehensive because it is a complete unknown. the fact that it is invasive doesnt help (although that said, ive not had trouble with..ahem... the other sort of invasion )

would any ladies like to fill me in on what a wonderfull experience it is, and what to expect?

i suppose my questions are of the elementry nature, but what the hell im going to ask anyway does it hurt? how long does it last? do i need to do anything to prepare? what do they do if it is painful? how naked do you have to get? do you shave? what position does it happen in? do they talk to you whilst they are down there? how long does it take to get the results? can anything go wrong?

thanks in advance for sharing this joyous :rolleyes: event with me :rotfl:

p_d

Jay-Jay_4

knicks off, lie down, soles of feet together, knees relaxed, poky poky, knicks back on, cheers :wave:

Honestly it's no big deal at all, it takes 30 seconds if that, may feel a tad uncomfy but isn't painful (more embarrassing than anything) my doctor does mine and she barely glances down during the whole process

pavlovs_dog

Jay-Jay wrote:

knicks off, lie down, soles of feet together, knees relaxed, poky poky, knicks back on, cheers :wave:

im used to that bit..its just doing it with a doctor rather than OH which feels weird :rotfl:

Katyag

I had my first when DS was 6 months old, wasnt looking forward to it either but the amount of poking and prodding after child birth i shouldnt have worried.

Just got my letter in for another one, again still not looking forward to it but once its done you wonder what all the fuss is about! lol

arnie&caseysma!

P_D - you are sooo lucky that you have not had one as yet - our health authority starts when you are 16! So far I have had 9 - average once a year but then I have had many health problems. It is exactly as Jay-Jay says, it can be a bit uncomfortable and I didn't find any of the painful at all. It may help if you take along a pantyliner or something as some people feel the need for this afterwards due to the sensation of the lubricant they use and also a little spotting that can occur afterwards.

Lie back and think of Britain!!! lol

pavlovs_dog

out of curiosity, how old were you when you had your first?

i'll prob be (just turned) 21 by the time mine takes place

pavlovs_dog

arnie&caseysma! wrote:

P_D - you are sooo lucky that you have not had one as yet - our health authority starts when you are 16!

:eek: :eek: :eek:


still, i suppose if you are sexually active (which you can legally be from 16) then you are more at risk

arnie&caseysma!

As above, I was 16.......just turned 25 this year.....

pavlovs_dog

where they screen at 16 - is this regardless of whether you are sexually active or not?

arnie&caseysma!

pavlovs_dog wrote:

:eek: :eek: :eek:


still, i suppose if you are sexually active (which you can legally be from 16) then you are more at risk

Yes and no, some things do occur as a result of being sexually active but many of these are not routinely tested from the smear. I did ask about it before as the proforma letter had the STD part scored out and I was told that they dont routinely test then. If anyone feels that they do want a 'full MOT' as I call it, then there is no harm in asking about it when they are there for a smear, usually only takes a couple of swabs and a urine sample.

Generally in a smear they are looking for abnormal cells which they believe they may need to keep an eye on - most of these (like mine) do not grow into anything and infact do remedy themselves, others require a little bit of treatment which I don't know anything about.

Katyag

I was 23 when i got my first. Second one will be this summer and im 27 now.