To cancel my smear test today - do you go for yours?

[Wheresmyappetite]

I feel panicky and sweaty with fear at the thought. I have two days of hospital appointments this week and just don't think I can face another one today. It was due at the start of the year, so thinking about rescheduling in a couple of months.

I do have vaginismus which means penetration really fucking hurts unless I'm aroused and enthusiastic, which obviously is the complete opposite of feelings you have during a smear.

Do you go for yours bang on when it's due? Is it pathetic of me to cancel?

Bloody well go.

As someone who spends their working days with their hands in the female plumbing, I’ve seen lots of women young and old having bits of it removed and that is a lot more painful and uncomfortable than a smear.

Good luck for next time OP. I have taken diazepam for back spasms and it does help with those, so hopefully this will work for you. You could also take a strong painkiller such as cocodamol which you can buy in small doses from the chemist, or the doctors might give you a prescription with the diazepam.
Getting a good nurse you can trust will also help.

@PurpleDaisies
Thank you for your kind words

Yes. I always go bang on when it's due. I had to have yearly smears for 10 years because I had treatment following cell changes. I didn't have any symptoms before it was picked up in a smear test.

I'm now back to 3 yearly recalls and when I next have my cervical screening letter I will book in for a smear immediately.

@Eastcoastmost I've never felt pain like I did at the last smear test attempt, and that was my first one in the UK. I certainly hope it's not a UK/US thing. I do miss my OB/GYN from the US though. Terrified to go in next week, and I never felt anxious about them before.

@StrandedStarfish

The OP did go. She has vaginismus, so it's not like she just couldn't be bothered

@tistheseason there are a LOT of nhs initiatives based on dodgy data. There are many bodies set up to try and change this. There are rethinks underway. E.g. the current nhs guidance on drinking 8 glasses of water is complete bollocks and has been repeatedly debunked yet is still on most pharmacy windows and waiting rooms.

I love the nhs but they don't have over sell some shit.

Psa screening for example causes huge harm.

Women are actively harmed by by being nagged into smears and then not seeking help for other things cos they are scared of being nagged.

Go for smears if you want them. But don't make others feel bad for not. They are not fool proof. They have a high false positive and dubious all cause mortality data.

I urge you to watch all of this but if pushed for time just the bits from 7.36 to 9.50 is specifically about smears

wheresmy mid cycle used to be the recommended time to go for a smear years ago when it was an actual smear on a glass slide of the cells collected but with the introduction of liquid based cytology (LBC) it really doesn't matter when you go now.
You've done really well today and I know they are a shit thing to go through but they really do save lives despite what some people on here seem to believe.
I really hope your next appointment is more productive and less painful.

I have a similar condition to the OP My marriage is sexless My smear was due last November.

When i go for a smear the pain is like razor blades. Had me in tears the last time. As for comments about "big girl pants" .......well ive seen more sympathy on this board when men post about ED. Ive not seen any emotional blackmail on those threads about cost when they are asked about whether or not they want to go to their GP either.

If men had a similar problem you can bet that blood test would be available on the NHS by now.

The recent birth injuries campaign and threads had enough evidence on it to show how womens pain is dismissed by many in the medical profession.

Sorry but i dont think the NHS should be immune from criticism in this regard.

Im low risk (hopefully) and if the blood test was available im happy to go for that.

OP and im sorry that you had a shit experience today

i doubt it has helped.

Most days, that is really interesting. I had an abnormal smear aged 21, my first, leading to colposcopy and laser treatment. Follow up was 3 monthly, then 6 monthly, then annual checks, then back to the usual 3 year programme I guess I was just unlucky, being so young.

OP I'm pleased you went, but the fear and pain is very real. I am former midwife, and was treated horribly when I went for my first one - I was PETRIFIED having never had such an intimate examination, and I told the nurse this and asked her to be super gentle. She rammed it in, and I cried. And then it needed blooming repeating (nothing wrong, just inconclusive coz not enough cells apparently), second experience was SO gentle.

When I got my coil in I had the same experience - some HCP's have no business treating women! And these were women! I had the same doctor who wouldn't let me friend in with me and then rolled her eyes and refused to do the coil once the speculum was in and open because I was jumpy (I wasn't, she just shoved it in!) Second time I pre-medicated (I'd recommend this for smears too) and my friend supported me. Getting it out, the nurse was SO kind I cried again, but because I was so relieved and treated so patiently.

Surely it shouldn't be so hit & miss?!

I am 24 and had my first one last week. I booked the appointment as soon as my letter turned up. It wasn't painful for me, just uncomfortable. I would say it was weird more than anything, and isn't something I'll look forward to but figure it's a few minutes every three years and the possible alternatives could be worse.

@FairyDogMother11
I totally agree with you and the majority of other posters saying the same thing

It is hit and miss like Jelly said. I've had good experiences and bad.

The last time I went for a smear they used a metal speculum and it tore me. I had a visible split at the bottom part of where they put it in and it was agony every time I went to the loo. It stayed like that for days. I've also had virtually painless ones so it can be done. If I encountered a nurse like the one who did the above mentioned thing I would try to stop the procedure and leave.