The first time I heard the words cervical cancer was when I was sitting in a Sexual Health class in secondary school at a talk that lasted around 20 minutes, a shamefully short amount of time for something that is so serious.
The school were the first of a few in the East of England to offer the HPV Vaccine that would help eliminate a young girls chances of getting cervical cancer. I decided that I would go ahead and have the vaccine, after all if it was eliminating my chances of getting cervical cancer, I couldn't see why I wouldn't. Plus, I was extremely lucky to be in a position where the vaccine was made accessible to me.
After I had the vaccine there wasn't much mention of cervical cancer until 6 months before my 25th birthday. I received my first appointment letter though the post and knowing how important it was to have a test, 3 days later my appointment was booked.
On the lead up to my appointment I went out with a group of friends, 2 of which had received the letters to book their appointment but hadn't booked it yet. We spoke about the reasons for them not booking it and they both agreed they were just 'too embarrassed'. Something which had never bothered me but seemed to affect a lot more woman than I originally thought.
With cervical screening tests in England being at its lowest in nearly 20 years, I knew that no matter how 'embarrassing' or 'scary' the test might seem that those few seconds of my life would be incredibly important. Lots of people don't realise that while the vaccine is safe and effective it protects against 70-80% of the risk of cervical cancer not all the 15 virus types, so even after having the HPV vaccine, it's still important to have caervical screenings.
On the day
My test day arrived; the appointment was booked for 9 am and after 20 minutes I was out of the health care practice and walking to work.
It was even quicker than I thought,
and my nurse was so friendly!
The nurse knew that it was my first test so talked though the process of collecting the cells and how long it would be until I received a letter containing my results. She asked a few more questions regarding any contraception and my periods, nothing too confusing! I had decided to wear a dress for the test, a little tip I picked up online to make the whole process even quicker. I laid down on the bed and the test began, she talked to me throughout the whole process and told me to tell her if at any point I felt uncomfortable. Yes, it was a slightly strange sensation but at no point was it painful and it was over in less than a minute.
I walked out of the doctors so confused as to why there is so much stigma around cervical screenings and why someone would ever put off booking a potentially lifesaving appointment. I instantly messaged my group of friends telling them my experience and encouraging them to book theirs. The text took me longer to write than the cervical screening test itself!
Around 10 days later
My test results came back all clear. In 3 years', I'll have another letter asking me back for my second cervical screening and to be honest with you, if it means I'll have some peace of mind that everything's ok I'll be booking straight away.
I can't stress enough how important these tests are, if you're putting off booking a test because you're worried about going alone then you can take someone with you. If you're nervous you can listen to some music or if you're worried about a nurse seeing your lady bits then, don't, they see them every day and really do not care if you've had a wax or not.
I hope that my story encourages you to book your appointment, after all, it could save your life.
