5 Things You Should Know Before Getting Your First Smear Test

So I’ve been 25 for a while and like every other woman in their mid 20’s it means it’s time to get that very important test, a cervical screening. A smear test detects signs of cervical cancer and it’s done to look for changes within your cervix. The test is extremely important so today I’m going to share 5 things you should know and also share my experience with you all.

1) It doesn’t hurt! Well, mine didn’t. I can’t vouch for every woman, but what I can say is during my experience I know I was incredibly nervous. I kept thinking, ‘what if I kick her in the face?’, ‘what if what ever she’s putting up my vagina gets stuck’ (I’m so silly) but I was seriously shit*ing myself. After listening to the conversations between both nurses who took my test, I learnt that the instrument they were using on my vagina was called a ‘speculum’. This was what they inserted inside me for my screening, and it wasn’t bad at all. Although they had to do it twice after messing up the first time, don’t even ask, lol.

2) It’s usually advised to get your test two weeks after your last period. If you didn’t know this it’s fine as I didn’t either. Would you believe at 9:00am in the morning, during my first appointment I was sat in the nurse’s office as she told me I had to re-book, because my period was over two weeks? This meant that I had to make another appointment. I was slightly annoyed at the fact that I wasn’t told this the first time round before heading to the doctors, but I guess I could have done my research also.

3) All women who live in the UK are sent a letter to book their very first smear test shortly before their 25th birthday. You’ll also be given information on what the screening is about. My GP literally kept sending me letters every 3 months as a reminder.

4) Women aged 25-49 who are registered with a GP are invited for a smear test every three years. Women aged 50-64 every five, while over 65’s are only invited if they haven’t been screened since age 50 or have had abnormal tests in the past.

5) They deliver your test results back within two weeks after sending it off to a laboratory. Once again this literally depends on your surgery. I received mine a few weeks back after my test and I was pleased to read that my letter said everything was normal.

Getting a cervical screening is incredibly vital ladies, so if you’re due for one, book it ASAP!

If you’d like more info on smear tests check out the links below:
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Cervical-screening-test/Pages/Introduction.aspx
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOeHraG1FkQ
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2016/04/25/what-is-a-smear-test_n_7584246.html