Did I do vaginal swab wrong - very worried!

[AOMum14]

Hello,

I'm an anxious pregnant lady - 12 weeks. I have been very anxious that I have an infection and have taken two swabs so far in this pregnancy that have come back normal.

They were self-administered and came with zero instructions. I just shoved it up there, swirled it round a few times and sent it off. The second one I did definatly had discharge on the que-tip. Now I'm having an anxious thought as when looking it up, you are meant to keep up there for 20 seconds. I am so scared that something will have been missed or I got a false positive.

I lost baby in third trimester (unrelated to infection) but it has made me terrified.

Any help would be much appreciated- I don't know what I would do without mumsnet!

I’d have thought putting a swab up there would increase the likelihood of infection.

They were requested by a doctor. Just self-administered by me!

What mental health support are your having for your anxiety OP? I'm sorry about your previous loss, but I'm concerned about this level of anxiety.

I find it bizarre that no instructions were given to conduct 2 self swabs. Also unusual to ask a pregnant person to conduct their own swabs! Did you ask after the 1st one came with no instructions for some to be provided? I'd ask for the practice nurse, midwife or sexual health clinic to do future swabs if required, or at least instructions. Are you sure its not UTI?

Firstly, do not worry about the discharge too much, you do still produce discharge during pregnancy. If you google discharge during pregnancy, there are colour charts to help you see what each colour might mean.

They say swab for 10-15 seconds to make sure that the swab is completely covered and has properly touched the sides. If you gave it a good twist, you should be fine.

Thank you so much for your comment. I went back to front desk when it was really unclear of what to do and they told me what to do. They just didnt mention the 10-15 second part! I have a lot of mental health support in place - just having a wobbly day - but thank you for asking x