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View as: GRID LIST

This is a public cervix annoument

1
This week is Cervical screening awareness week and with 1 in 4 women still failing to attend I can’t think of anything more important to spend this week talking about than the joyful but beyond necessary importance of popping along to your nurse when ’that’ letter drops through the letterbox.

Look its not like we’d volunteer ourselves to regularly partake in these unless necessary, but it really is brief. You’ll be asked to undress from the waist down (if you wear a skirt they might let you keep it on which somehow makes me feel just a little

SelfishMother.com
2
bit more covered up) You’ll hide your knickers within you clothes or bag, not really sure why, but I’ll be really surprised if you don’t, you’ll pop yourself on the bed, pop your dignity to one side for a minute and let your knees drop. The nurse will then insert a speculum which opens up and allows the cervix to be seen and use a brush to sweep over your cervix for a sample. That’s your part over.

The sample is then sent to a lab and you’ll receive your results usually within 2 week.

So why oh why are 1/4 not picking up that letter and

SelfishMother.com
3
going, it totally baffles me, so I’m going to waffle through my experiences with smears over the last 3 years. Because had I not gone for that first one or followed up. This year would have been entirely different for me.

 

S M E A R S

After my first smear test aged 25 I received a letter stating that my smear sample has come back showing mild dyskaryosis. Oh. I would need to have a colposcopy and received a leaflet explaining the colposcopy and potential treatment. Right ok, so I did what all sensible 25 years olds do, I googled. Cancer,

SelfishMother.com
4
hysterectomy’s, death. Yep I was a goner. Then I came across Jo’s Trust, I sat and read through the pages of information, I also joined the forum and added an incredibly long, totally irrational post. I was met by other ladies, kind words, sympathy and a slight hint of a politely put pull yourself together. I still felt anxious but I stopped feeling alone.

C O L P O S C O P Y

I had the colposcopy, essentially the same as a smear except they use a spray that shows up the abnormal cells and a camera (you can even watch if you like) and decide if

SelfishMother.com
5
you need a biopsy or treatment. The nurse confirmed it was incredibly mild and would likely go away by itself. Great news.

A year later a smear letter dropped through my door again, just to check that those abnormal cells had buggered off, which was fine except I was 7 weeks pregnant with my third baby. My practice nurse waited until I was past 12 weeks and I had a repeat smear and went on my way again. This time a letter arrived a week later, ’Moderate dyskaryosis’. Bugger it hadn’t gone, it was in fact worse annnnd I was pregnant. So back to

SelfishMother.com
6
Jo’s trust I went. An irrational post later and was met once again with support, my anxiety though sky high felt more manageable. I used the forum and website almost as a way of coping and offloading, my husband, friends and family were very supportive, but really I needed somewhere I could offload the ridiculous thoughts I’d have and I had plenty.

I went along to the colposcopy, cried when I told the nurse I was pregnant but was once again reassured and as the colposcopy and smear result seemed to match I was allowed to go away and come back at

SelfishMother.com
7
around 32 weeks. I did this and there was no change from the previous colposcopy so left that appointment knowing I’d be having treatment after her arrival, but much more able to focus on the baby I had to push out (which caused considerately more ’discomfort’ than all of these smears and colposcopys let me reassure you)

So if your still with me…

L L E T Z

Grace is 5 months old and my third – at the age of 27 i’d had as many smear tests as children they were basically a 5 minute break away at this point – third smear test letter falls

SelfishMother.com
8
through the letterbox. Which funnily enough reveals moderate dyskaryosis again, no changes, I took that as a bonus this time and had my colposcopy appointment shortly after, I was fully prepared for my lletz procedure this time (a small wire loop with an electrical current running through it to cut away the affected area whilst sealing the wound). I had the lletz the month after, I had worried myself sick and was shaking from start to finish, part fear/part adrenaline from the local anesthesia mind but I was in no discomfort throughout, the nurses spoke
SelfishMother.com
9
to me the whole time I was distracted and kept as relaxed and you possibly can be whilst someones taking an area of your cervix away. I was crampy afterwards but nothing some nurofen and paractemol couldn’t fix and was told to rest. PAH I was breastfeeding 2 hourly and have a 7 and 8 year old, but I did my best not to overdo it. I developed an infection later that week which caused a bleed. Unfortunately, I needed to go back to the gynecology department to be cauterized.

C A N C E R

Sat in the quiet waiting room on that Friday afternoon and I was

SelfishMother.com
10
dreading being cauterized, mainly because of the visions of them using a flame torch and burning my cervix like a creme brulee, hows that for an image. We’d taken the bigger two to be looked after but Chris and Grace joined me in the waiting room. And a consultant came out and asked me to follow him, but we didn’t go into a treatment room, we went into a different kind of room. I looked around for what he could possibly cauterize me with in that little room. Except that wasn’t why I was there. He’d just looked over the results of my lletz and he
SelfishMother.com
11
suspected the trouble I was having was due to the large area they had needed to remove… he then said they’d found an area of cancer but it was small. (silence) it wasn’t silent but it may as well have been, that word is deafening. He quickly called in my husband and explained that it was very early and looked to be stage 1a, there had been no multidisciplinary meeting about me yet but there would be and the treatment would be decided. He said confidently that he would suspect a second larger, deeper area would be removed in hope of clear margins. He
SelfishMother.com
12
even drew me a terrible picture. I was then taken into a different room where they used the same instruments as with a lletz and re sealed the area and I was sent home with antibiotics and what felt like total shock.

Back to Jo’s trust I went but this time into the newly diagnosed forum, where I was once again filled with kind words and understanding and a second lady who was in my exact same situation. I can’t stress enough how amazing this charity is for support I really can’t.

I had my following treatment 6 weeks later and was informed that

SelfishMother.com
13
they had gotten clear margins and that there was no residual cancer. Winner Winner. We celebrated with a day in london organised by my husband with the kiddies where I was subjected to the london eye… I’m more scared of heights than I am smear tests I can confirm.

I had my 6 month check in April just gone at the hospital, they perform a colposcopy and take a smear sample. This time both results came back normal, delighted wasn’t the word. I will continue to have 6 monthly checks, for the next year and be moved onto yearly for the next 9 providing

SelfishMother.com
14
everything stays just fine.

Happy ending.

But imagine if I hadn’t of gone for my first smear… or followed up… or didn’t get to distracted with the daily life of a newborn and postponed after having her. Just imagine. Because the consultant that day was very positive but these words stuck with me ’another 6-12 months and we’d in an entirely different situation and outcome’ just 6-12 months.

So please if you belong to the 1/4, it isn’t that painful, it isn’t that worrying, you’re not THAT busy and your life is not worth that risk.

SelfishMother.com
15
Please be lucky too xxx

 

 

 

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- 13 Jun 16

This week is Cervical screening awareness week and with 1 in 4 women still failing to attend I can’t think of anything more important to spend this week talking about than the joyful but beyond necessary importance of popping along to your nurse when ‘that’ letter drops through the letterbox.

Look its not like we’d volunteer ourselves to regularly partake in these unless necessary, but it really is brief. You’ll be asked to undress from the waist down (if you wear a skirt they might let you keep it on which somehow makes me feel just a little bit more covered up) You’ll hide your knickers within you clothes or bag, not really sure why, but I’ll be really surprised if you don’t, you’ll pop yourself on the bed, pop your dignity to one side for a minute and let your knees drop. The nurse will then insert a speculum which opens up and allows the cervix to be seen and use a brush to sweep over your cervix for a sample. That’s your part over.

The sample is then sent to a lab and you’ll receive your results usually within 2 week.

So why oh why are 1/4 not picking up that letter and going, it totally baffles me, so I’m going to waffle through my experiences with smears over the last 3 years. Because had I not gone for that first one or followed up. This year would have been entirely different for me.

 

S M E A R S

After my first smear test aged 25 I received a letter stating that my smear sample has come back showing mild dyskaryosis. Oh. I would need to have a colposcopy and received a leaflet explaining the colposcopy and potential treatment. Right ok, so I did what all sensible 25 years olds do, I googled. Cancer, hysterectomy’s, death. Yep I was a goner. Then I came across Jo’s Trust, I sat and read through the pages of information, I also joined the forum and added an incredibly long, totally irrational post. I was met by other ladies, kind words, sympathy and a slight hint of a politely put pull yourself together. I still felt anxious but I stopped feeling alone.

C O L P O S C O P Y

I had the colposcopy, essentially the same as a smear except they use a spray that shows up the abnormal cells and a camera (you can even watch if you like) and decide if you need a biopsy or treatment. The nurse confirmed it was incredibly mild and would likely go away by itself. Great news.

A year later a smear letter dropped through my door again, just to check that those abnormal cells had buggered off, which was fine except I was 7 weeks pregnant with my third baby. My practice nurse waited until I was past 12 weeks and I had a repeat smear and went on my way again. This time a letter arrived a week later, ‘Moderate dyskaryosis’. Bugger it hadn’t gone, it was in fact worse annnnd I was pregnant. So back to Jo’s trust I went. An irrational post later and was met once again with support, my anxiety though sky high felt more manageable. I used the forum and website almost as a way of coping and offloading, my husband, friends and family were very supportive, but really I needed somewhere I could offload the ridiculous thoughts I’d have and I had plenty.

I went along to the colposcopy, cried when I told the nurse I was pregnant but was once again reassured and as the colposcopy and smear result seemed to match I was allowed to go away and come back at around 32 weeks. I did this and there was no change from the previous colposcopy so left that appointment knowing I’d be having treatment after her arrival, but much more able to focus on the baby I had to push out (which caused considerately more ‘discomfort’ than all of these smears and colposcopys let me reassure you)

So if your still with me…

L L E T Z

Grace is 5 months old and my third – at the age of 27 i’d had as many smear tests as children they were basically a 5 minute break away at this point – third smear test letter falls through the letterbox. Which funnily enough reveals moderate dyskaryosis again, no changes, I took that as a bonus this time and had my colposcopy appointment shortly after, I was fully prepared for my lletz procedure this time (a small wire loop with an electrical current running through it to cut away the affected area whilst sealing the wound). I had the lletz the month after, I had worried myself sick and was shaking from start to finish, part fear/part adrenaline from the local anesthesia mind but I was in no discomfort throughout, the nurses spoke to me the whole time I was distracted and kept as relaxed and you possibly can be whilst someones taking an area of your cervix away. I was crampy afterwards but nothing some nurofen and paractemol couldn’t fix and was told to rest. PAH I was breastfeeding 2 hourly and have a 7 and 8 year old, but I did my best not to overdo it. I developed an infection later that week which caused a bleed. Unfortunately, I needed to go back to the gynecology department to be cauterized.

C A N C E R

Sat in the quiet waiting room on that Friday afternoon and I was dreading being cauterized, mainly because of the visions of them using a flame torch and burning my cervix like a creme brulee, hows that for an image. We’d taken the bigger two to be looked after but Chris and Grace joined me in the waiting room. And a consultant came out and asked me to follow him, but we didn’t go into a treatment room, we went into a different kind of room. I looked around for what he could possibly cauterize me with in that little room. Except that wasn’t why I was there. He’d just looked over the results of my lletz and he suspected the trouble I was having was due to the large area they had needed to remove… he then said they’d found an area of cancer but it was small. (silence) it wasn’t silent but it may as well have been, that word is deafening. He quickly called in my husband and explained that it was very early and looked to be stage 1a, there had been no multidisciplinary meeting about me yet but there would be and the treatment would be decided. He said confidently that he would suspect a second larger, deeper area would be removed in hope of clear margins. He even drew me a terrible picture. I was then taken into a different room where they used the same instruments as with a lletz and re sealed the area and I was sent home with antibiotics and what felt like total shock.

Back to Jo’s trust I went but this time into the newly diagnosed forum, where I was once again filled with kind words and understanding and a second lady who was in my exact same situation. I can’t stress enough how amazing this charity is for support I really can’t.

I had my following treatment 6 weeks later and was informed that they had gotten clear margins and that there was no residual cancer. Winner Winner. We celebrated with a day in london organised by my husband with the kiddies where I was subjected to the london eye… I’m more scared of heights than I am smear tests I can confirm.

I had my 6 month check in April just gone at the hospital, they perform a colposcopy and take a smear sample. This time both results came back normal, delighted wasn’t the word. I will continue to have 6 monthly checks, for the next year and be moved onto yearly for the next 9 providing everything stays just fine.

Happy ending.

But imagine if I hadn’t of gone for my first smear… or followed up… or didn’t get to distracted with the daily life of a newborn and postponed after having her. Just imagine. Because the consultant that day was very positive but these words stuck with me ‘another 6-12 months and we’d in an entirely different situation and outcome’ just 6-12 months.

So please if you belong to the 1/4, it isn’t that painful, it isn’t that worrying, you’re not THAT busy and your life is not worth that risk. Please be lucky too xxx

 

 

 

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