AIBU to be very upset GP wont see me for a week despite me being really worried (plus WWYD)

[owlelf]

Apologies if this is TMI, and possible AIBU is wrong place but I am hoping for a few responses fairly quickly.

I have been experiencing a pinky discharge for a few weeks. Its not my period, or ovulation and I am not pregnant. This weekend it got worse and I am now bleeeding lightly.

Called GP at 8am this morning, this is the earliest you can call for an appointment. I was held in a queue and by the time I got through there were no appointments left. Receptionist agreed to ask GP to call me.

I spoke with GP on the phone, he said they need to see me to take a look at cervix and take some swabs etc. He said to speak to receptionist to make an appointment.

Receptionist said the earliest I can be seen is next wednesday. She said that I can't attend a standard morning appointment instead (thses are given out first come first served over the phone from 8am) as I need a longer than standard appointment, and that he would put in my notes that I should be given an appointment.

I am scared and uncomfortable. It feels wrong that I should have to wait for a week. I have explained this to the receptionist, she was very nice but said there was nothing she could do.

DP thinks I should go to A&E, and be seen today. I would love to do this but I think that would be wrong of me.

AIBU to be tempted to complain?

Thanks all, am relieved to hear its possible to have a smell free infection (that's not something I ever expected to say).

I think you are right, the GUM doctor would have spotted anything obviously wrong with cervix, or an erosion (which I appreciate isn't something to worry about).

But I'm frightened about other things like womb and endometrial cancer- there I've said it- maybe the elephant in the room will go away now?!

Thank you for all your support and kind posts. It's made a big difference.

also when i had pre-cancer cells it was a gum clinic doctor who told me they thought something was wrong and i needed a colposcopy just from doing swabs and an internal exam. so if it was cancer they'd definitely know imo.

you are worrying irrationally - that's not a dig btw but a statement of fact. do you usually experience a lot of anxiety and distress over health stuff or is this something recent? do you have problems with anxiety in general?

i do think it's your mental state that needs taking care of now - you need to try and relax, meditate, exercise, whatever works for you and not pick over and over this worry. it can only have been a couple of days since you started the antibiotics - see how it is going on monday. try to relax over the weekend.

I'm a GP. Random bleeding, continuous bleeding, irregular bleeding, heavy bleeding, light bleeding, old blood, pinkish discharge - all are very very common. In 16 years of general practice (and 21 years as a Dr) I have never seen a pre-menopausal woman with womb/endometrial cancer.

Mild odour-free infections are also common.

I would put money on this being nothing to worry about.

swallowed I don't think I usually have a problem with anxiety, health or otherwise. I do feel worried though, despite my best attempts to be calm. Maybe the problem is in my head not my body.

Thank you for your professional input Velma. It's reassuring to know that those cancers are so rare in premenopausal women.

However, regardless of it being rare I do feel worried- I know it can happen in younger women (albeit rarely), and as such the possibility is there IYSWIM.

I guess swallowed is right I do sound overly anxious . If I knew how to get rid of the feeling I would.

i don't mean it nastily honestly owlelf. we can all do it. i had a constant headache in a very specific area for months on end and became convinced there was something physically wrong in there that i could feel, which of course translated into thinking i had a brain tumour even though i wouldn't say it. in the end i was sent for a brain scan and everything was normal. i am still having the headaches but now that i've gotten rid of the anxiety they are not as bad as they were and i don't constantly notice or tune into it iyswim.

all i can tell you on the cancer front is that generally if you are someone who has regular smear tests any changes are picked up on early. i've had treatment for pre-cancer cells 3 times now as they always recur. i'm about a year late for getting back on the smear test, colcoscopy, treatment, recheck, get signed off for a year roundabout and i'm not really worried. i must book an appointment and most likely the smear will show changes again and it will be level 2 again and be treated again. it takes a long time for cancers to develop. i really wouldn't recommend to anyone leaving it like i do though! it's just that i know if i'd gone back at the time i was meant to it probably wouldn't have shown significant changes yet so it would just be an extra stop on the route to the same destination.

i was really scared the first time i got an abnormal cells smear - i hadn't had children yet and i was convinced (secretly) that i was going to turn out to have cancer and never be able to have children etc. it was fine.

obviously i can't say what's wrong with you but like the gp who posted i'd lay money on you being fine. TRY not to worry. it's only a few days till you see the gp and tbh there's nothing the gp can do more than the gum clinic doc did really - you've had recent blood tests that didn't show any issues, you've been examined, you've had swabs taken - there's not really anything else they can do unless those swabs show something. try to think that if you had cancer something would likely have shown up on your blood tests or during your examination.

sorry - epically long post.

Focus on the appointment- think youve got it booked?
try to relax and drink water and eat well and rest so the antibiotics do their work. i don't blame you at all for being anxious, it's really upsetting if something unusual to you is happening.
Just try to protect yourself by keeping your mind busy, stop any googling of symptoms, and, easy for me to say, focus on the r and r rather than all other less desirable bits swooping around.
You've already done the right thing going to the clinic
Youve got the appointment with the doc
You've got meds in the meanwhile
You're doing all the right things xxx