Smear test please advise

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

GEEGEE8 wrote: »

Well my nurse said I had to have it done because I could have cancer. Her words. To so I wasn't impressed is an understatement.

Not tactful, but you had kept on putting it off, and it is technically true.


Another blunt way of putting is that there is a lady who posts on these boards who kept on putting her smears off. She is now making the most of the time she has left.

Even blunter is that I worked in Gynae and I worked in a hospital specialising in cancer treatment. Women can die at a very early age, although most are older and have children to leave behind.

Cervical cancer is horrible. It can be a screaming, sobbing, incoherent, screeching, wailing agony that no drug can take away. The consultant I knew was haunted by his own mother's death (which led to his specialising in oncology because he never wanted one single woman to go through what he watched his mother suffer) and relived that with every woman he didn't get to see until it was too late. He felt that every woman on 'his patch' that did not take up the offer of a smear test was evidence of his personal failure in health education.

You must get smear tests done. A smear test can identify changes at the cellular level that could become cancerous in many years' time. So they can be treated and dealt with before they ever have a chance to change and steal your fertility, your life and your future children of their Mummy.

*****

Is it really worth refusing it? You lie on your back, legs apart and something hard is inserted for a few seconds until it is pulled out. It's not difficult and if you are using contraceptives, it's not like it's the first thing that's been in the region.

And unlike the other - it might just save your life.

ailuro2

could it be that you've been putting off talking to your GP about the in between bleeding, and the nurse's comments have kind of cleared the way for your imagination to go straight into overdrive.

Sit down, have a cuppa and ask yourself what's the worst that can happen after having your smear...

the results show you're fine and healthy
the results say you need another smear as the first scrape wasn't a good one (they need to be one cell thick I was told, not that easy to do which is why they have a dedicated 'foof nurse' in bigger practices;))
the results say there are abnormal cells that need further investigation
the results say you have a more worrying problem with your cervix

No matter which one it is, you'll be much better knowing which answer it is than carrying on worrying for more months than you're admitting to;)

I always go for my smears, but was having bleeding in between, so I got referred to the gynae unit at the local hospital they did a quick biopsy to rule out anything sinister then basically said it was hormonal and here's some tablets, and I've settled down now I'm not overproducing the lining in my womb because of the hormonal imbalance.

Best of Luck - hope you're feeling a bit better knowing there are loads of other people that hate getting smears too - try telling the nurse she's called a special name on MSE next time you go:D, most of them are happy to talk about the weather, holidays, pets and kids, it helps break up their day too, remember it's their job to look at foofs all day.;)

ailuro2

p.s. I'm a mine of normally useless info... I remember reading that women who have Bacterial Vaginosis will smell a bit fishy the day after sex.... can anyone corroborate this, or am I remembering it wrong?:eek:

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Yup. BV alters the pH value of the vaginal vault and, in reacting with semen, creates a 'sour' smelling compound and often a wetter/'squeaky' feeling than associated with the usual consistency of mucus.


Not so much a mine of useless information, more a mine of embarrassing information - but I would stress that the majority of my knowledge is gained from work, not from personal experience!!!!!!

elfen

Doesn't it sometimes (if it's bad) cause a fishy smell all of the time? That's what I read as well, and it changes the colour of the discharge too and it can get heavier.

I had a smear at 21 (was just before they changed the age) and when I registered at a different practise, they were shocked I'd had one done. I don't like them either, they are pretty uncomfortable as I'm quite small down below, but I take some ibuprofen before and it's not so bad, just a bit sore for a few hours after.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Could do, but definitely at its worst after sex.

And with all delicateness possible, you're designed to get a baby out of there, which is roughly 10cm across at the widest point of the head. It's not a matter of size, just being tense and the small area of the cervix which has basically been lightly grazed.


They are far more tolerable after childbirth, because nothing really shocks you anymore and you aren't worried about a little piece of plastic/metal that is pretty much knob diameter.


Nobody likes smear tests, but the alternative is far more disagreeable.

piglet6

Re: bleeding afterwards. This can sometimes be nothing to do with you. I had a smear test in my 20s which was quite painful, but where the nurse told me while she was doing it that she had been "a little heavy handed - sorry" and caused me to bleed. I was grateful for her honesty, because it saved me worrying (had never bled with previous 2 smears). She also told me that the results may come back as inconclusive and I might be called for another test, because of the blood which was mixed in with the sample taken (and because I was now bleeding she couldn't re-do the sample). She was right, they did come back as inconclusive and I was called back again. Again, I would have worried if she hadn't warned me about this. However, when you think about it, she was basically admitting that she had "messed up" on the job, as it were, and not everybody would be willing to admit to this.:o I was grateful that she was honest enough to tell me the situation, and not let me worry about things. (Incidentally, the second test was absolutely fine - no pain, no bleeding and all clear with the results).

Please go for your smear test, and don't be embarrassed. The nurses who do them really do carry out lots and don't think anything of it. It takes 5 minutes maximum and, the way I look at it, one person looking at your bits for 5 minutes is much better than the whole oncology team looking at your bits (and probably having to do more than just looking) for months on end, in much greater depth (as it were!!).

On a slightly different note, at my last smear, there was a student nurse in the room. I was asked if I minded her being there, I said no. I hopped up on the couch (curtain drawn round) and the (fully trained) nurse came in and started relaying what she was doing verbally to the student on the other side of the curtain. Genuinely puzzled, I said, "Is she not coming in to watch?". They were surprised and amazed that I was happy for her to be present, as I was the last smear of the day, and the only one all day who had allowed her to come on the same side of the curtain. My response was "well, she's not going to learn much on that side, is she?! ", which made them laugh, broke the ice and put us all at ease. So she came in and watched. It didn't bother me. Its not like she was going to recognise me in the supermarket from the end that she was studying!! (And on a slightly more selfish note, I was more concerned that the poor woman shouldn't be let loose on an unsuspecting public without ever having seen the deed done on a real person during training!!!).;)

piglet6

P.S. Also meant to say, if you do get a nurse who says something strange to you (that you feel uncomfortable with), don't be afraid to ask for a second opinion. At my second smear test, the nurse had problems inserting the speculum (it took a couple of goes - not painful, not uncomfortable, she was more embarrassed than I was...), at which point she said, "well, you are a rather strange shape down there, aren't you?". I didn't know what to say (I was too shocked to answer, I think!:rotfl:).

Given that my periods were regular, and that my sex life was (as far as I was aware...) perfectly normal, I didn't know what to think, so did nothing (but it nagged away at the back of my mind). It wasn't until about three smear tests later, when the nurse was very friendly and laughing and joking with me, that I plucked up the courage to ask her if I was abnormal in any way "down there"?! She was surprised at the question, even more so when I told her why I thought I might be, and reassured me that there was nothing unusual about me, and she had no idea what the other nurse was talking about. (She also pointed out that there is no set "shape" for a vagina - like a nose, or a big toe, or any other part of the human body, everybody is slightly different!!;)). Again, with hindsight (and a few more years life experience on the clock!), I suspect that the first nurse might be covering her own embarrassment at the difficulty with inserting the speculum.

But secretly I worried ever so slightly about it for years - and all for no good reason!

GEEGEE8

Well.. I went for my injection (depo) and she said she would do my smear there and then - it had been booked for the following week... eeeeeeek!

It went fine, I was strangely not that embarrased about opening my legs lol - never had kids, so it was quite new for a lady to be peering at me.. lol.

Felt fine when she put the device in, felt slightly uncomfortable/strange when she expanded it.. and didn't really feel much when she scraped the cells from my cervix.

All in all it took about 30 seconds from inserting it in and taking it out.

Phew! At 27 yrs old I've finally got it done, just have to wait for the results now.

For anyone worried, I can assure you it was fine.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

Well done! And thanks for posting your update.

Mine came back as all normal on Monday - I suppose it's a bit quiet at this time of year, so it only took 7 days including 2nd class postage.

Nothing to worry about for another 3 years - but of course, if there are any unusual symptoms, like bleeding mid cycle or post coital, pain, swelling etc, I'd be straight back down there like a shot.

Not my preferred way to spend a Monday morning, but I've done worse things at least I know I'm good for another 3 years