As someone who hates going to the doctor, it is no surprise that I put off going to the gynecologist for so long. The fear of having someone poke and prod in an area I myself am not comfortable with was enough to keep me away far longer than recommended. People with vaginas have a lot of stress, I think, about down there. What if the doctor says something, what if it looks funny, what if it smells funny, so on and so forth. You hear stories of pain, embarrassment, and shame. Whether these stories are true or not doesn’t matter. They are enough to get into your head and make you never want to go despite knowing it’s for your own health. I had a lot of reservations and I know I’m not the only one, so today I want to share my experience of going to the gynecologist for the first time.
Let’s start with my expectations. I had a whole idea about what was going to happen. In my mind, these are the points I expected to hit during my visit:
Questions about my period, physical health, and sexual activity
Having to get naked
The exam would hurt and I would bleed
I would at some point experience embarrassment
My doctor would make a comment that would make me feel uncomfortable (whether or not they intended to)
I would be sore for a while after coming home
To be a little better prepared, I talked to a couple of friends of mine about their experience. They advised the following:
Take Advil/Tylenol 30 minutes before the exam
Ask for the smallest speculum
Ask for lots of lube
Bring something to distract you during the exam (music/phone/etc.)
So how was it actually? “It’s not as bad as it seems” is a phrase we hear a lot and it’s not always helpful, but I really find that it rang true for me this time. I spent a lot of time trying to distract myself before the appointment and during the agonizingly long wait in the waiting room (this was not normal waiting time I don’t think, but be prepared just in case) and to be honest, this was the worst part. I was admitted into the room with the medical assistant and we went over the questionnaire I was given that covered my medical/sexual history. She asked if I had any concerns and I stated I was nervous because it was my first time doing this. She assured me it would be fine and went to get the doctor as I undressed and waited on the exam table. The doctor came in and went over my questionnaire again, explained she would walk me through everything as she did it, and that if I felt pain (it shouldn’t be painful) at any time we could stop. She started with the breast exam and then moved onto the Pap smear, which took all of 30 seconds. She was very quick and gentle. She even used the smallest speculum without me having to ask. I was done in a fraction of the time I sat in the waiting room and I marveled at how my experience was nothing like I thought it would be. I know not everyone is as lucky as me with their first exam, but I really hope everyone can have a similar experience.
In summary, here’s what I experienced at my first Pap smear (and perhaps what you can expect as well):
Answering questions about my period, physical health, and sexual history
Having to get completely undressed (I had coverings over me)
Discomfort during the exam, but not much pain
Minimal discomfort and no bleeding nor pain after I got home
And finally, make sure you have a doctor who takes care of you like mine did. She made sure I was as comfortable as possible, that I knew what was happening, and she was nothing but professional and kind. If you don’t feel that with your doctor then get another one if possible. Am I jumping for joy at having to go again in the future? No, but I won’t be dreading it anymore, and I am happy knowing I am doing what I need to do to take care of myself. I hope you now feel more at ease with taking this step to take care of yourself, too.
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