I had my first smear test in August as only recently became sexually actively and received my result letter in the post this week - I’m ‘HPV positive’ and they’ve found low-grade dyskaryosis. I now have a colpo… appt mid October.
I wasn’t expecting this at all and am overwhelmed, it’s always on my mind and feel ashamed at getting this diagnosis. I’ve told my partner about abnormal cells, that it’s only screening, not a cancer diagnosis, and that this is a more in-depth examination (colpo…). He’s offered to come with me if he can and my friend has offered if he cant. However, I’m also contemplating going on my own as feel embarrassed about this type of thing/tests. Is it better someone coming with?
Do things need to change with my partner and I?
Please can I ask what happens next - will I have to have treatment in due course? Any hints or tips? I keep reading stuff online which I know isn’t helpful!
i understand your feeling, and in my case my HPV is the high risk strain. It can be scary and i couldn’t sleep much and lost my appetite for few days.
in most cases, it will “go away” (become dormant) within 2-3 years and for some people it is just 1 year or lesser. Our immune system can help fight it, so for the time being while waiting for your appointment in oct, do your best to calm down and eat healthy, exercise and sleep well. (yes i know it sounds easy, but if your body is stress out, your immune system goes down and can’t fight it)
trust me, i understand that it’s easy to talk but hard to do it, cause we can shake off the worry when our health is concerned, but please don’t feel ashamed. if your partner is willing to go with you, then it would be great if he can accompany you. in times like this, it’s good to have some support. it’s a lonely journey to recovery, so it’s good if someone is willing to keep you company and encourage you.
Thank you for replying Angeline. All your advice and tips are really helpful. I am so naive with all of this stuff to be honest so sorry for the questions.
As you said HPv can go dormant, does that mean you’re never cured once you’re positive’?
Can the abnormal cells get worse or is what I have now (low grade) the final diagnosis?
By the words ‘journey to recovery’ do you mean the few years it may take until it goes dormant? Or to cure the cells/cancer completely?
You’re right, I sometimes feel lonely and feel like I’d be better on my own … and this is even before I have the colposcopy!
well i’m sorry i can’t give any advice on whether it’ll become worse or not because i don’t know the type of strain you have, and the virus is a strange thing so, it might just go away or become worse, we never know.
yes, what i meant is, even if your body is able to fight off the virus, and your test turns negative, the virus stays in us forever. it is just in a dormant state where in a way it doesn’t bring us any problems. in some cases, people who have successfully fight off the virus, experience a flare up again when they feel stress in some point of their life.
the journey to recovery covers everything actually from the moment you got your test results until the day you test negative again. we can have people encouraging us, but at the end of the day, we have to walk through this ourselves cause it’s our own body, but still it doesn’t hurt to have someone cheering us up, or someone to talk to when we feel worried.
