It seems like more people come on this forum after the loop treatment for cell removal, but I’m wondering about people’s experiences after cold coagulation?
I actually wasn’t told that was what I had - the process wasn’t named, just explained to me in terms of what it did, burning off a layer of cells from the surface of the cervix (in my cases because the consultant thought everything had been removed by the biopsy, but when the results turned out to be CIN2, they wanted to do some treatment as a precaution because I’m over 30).
Anyway, I know I’m kind of looking for reassurance I probably won’t get because everyone’s recovery can probably vary, I just hoped I could get some kind of indication of how others have found it because mine is worrying me a little. I think I know it’s just anxiety because nothing has been beyond the realms of possibly being “normal”, but I just find uncertainty hard right now.
Because I’d had such relatively minor treatment, a very small area and almost superficial burning rather than the actual cutting of lletz/loop, I thought/hoped I’d get off light and at first it seemed I did.
I had no bleeding at all, bar the tiniest pinkish stain when wiping, which probably makes sense as the burning probably cauterises and nothing is actually “cut”. I didn’t have any real discharge for at least a couple of days. Then I did start to get a clear watery discharge, so I was like oh, OK, not going to get away with nothing after all and they did say to expect this.
But now I’ve basically got my period four days early which is unusual for me. I’m not like clockwork, to be fair, but I’d normally only be a day or two early or late. It does seem like it could be my full period rather than just some bleeding because I’m prone to migraines - I don’t only get hormonal ones, but hormonal ones are almost guaranteed. When I had one for the last few days, I put it down to the heat/dehydration/lack of sleep - I didn’t think about my period because of the timing. But then I got cramps so bad they woke me up at 4am today and discovered I was bleeding, normal lighter coloured day one of period type blood, but maybe a little more than would be normal for me. A couple of painkillers seems to have worked and the cramps have subsided - I’d normally suffer longer on day one without painkillers doing much good, although my periods generally aren’t too bad at all compared to some.
Everything I’ve read says this can happen, although by “this” I mean official NHS advice just says periods could be affected. I think the uncertainty of not knowing for sure what’s going on is just hard given where my anxiety levels have been pushed to lately. I’m really sensitive to the least little period-related thing because it was one/two slightly wonky periods that started all this - I got it into my head I was having hot flushes, so when my period was much lighter than normal and then came again two weeks later (I’m not on the pill or anything like that), I convinced myself I was hitting early menopause and really fell apart. My GP confirmed with blood tests that everything was totally fine, did a smear literally just to be thorough and to get me done and dusted while I was there because of the Covid-related backlog in the normal screening programme. I went away reassured and thinking nothing of the smear at all, until BOOM, results gave me something else to worry about.
So yeah, a wonky period after treatment isn’t easy to handle right now!
