My "Second" Smear Test Experience

Last month, I had a very belated "second" smear test. My smear test is usually due in June - my birthday month - but the GP had no spaces until August, and then I was in hospital when my appointment was, and then I was travelling so I got the earliest appointment I could. I say "second" because my first smear test actually took 3 attempts. 

A test smear, also known as cervical screening, is a procedure that checks the health of the cervix and helps prevent cervical cancer. The test involves using a soft brush to gently collect a small sample of cells from the cervix, which is then sent to a lab for testing. In England, cervical screening is available to women and people with a cervix who are registered with a GP and are between the ages of 25 and 64. Eligible people receive an invitation by mail, with the frequency depending on their age. People aged 25 to 49 are invited every three years, and those aged 50 to 64 are invited every five years.

I was a little apprehensive prior to my appointment because of my previous experience. Whilst my third smear attempt, and first successful smear, was completely pain free and easy to complete, the first two attempts still haunted me in the back of my mind. When I booked the appointment, I specifically asked for a lithotomy bed which I felt helped last time, but unfortunately the reception didn't know what this was, and the nurse said the practice didn't have one. 

On the day of the appointment, I had an office day from home in the morning and then kept busy with decorating for Christmas in the afternoon. I think the distractions actually helped so I couldn't overthink. I arrived at the appointment and they saw me a little early. I gave the nurse a heads up and she said she did a clinic where she did smear tests every 10 minutes all day long, so was very experienced.

The whole procedure took maybe 3 minutes at most. She just used a normal speculum, but she did take her time advancing it, rather than pushing it all in at once quickly, which I think did help. The actually sample taking part was quite painful this time, whereas last time just felt like pressure so that was different and she defintely felt more thorough. I had quite a bit a cramping for probably a few hours last time as well, so at least I know she was in the right spot. I was expecting to bleed because of how aggressive it felt, but I actually never did. 

I got the results less than a week later in the post, saying I was negative. However, the nurse did inform me to chase it with the GP if I hadn't received the result within 2 weeks. Overall, the experience was good and I was so happy it was a one and done. Thankfully, I now don't need to go for another 3 years which is great. 

Regardless of the experience, smear tests are so important and it's vital that women attend these appointments to detect abnormal cell changes caused by the human papillomavirus, before they turn into cancer. I've been apart of the "Smear for Smear" campaign before and despite also having the full 3-vaccine HPV course, I still plan on attending every future appointment to help where possible!