I have just joined the forum. I am so glad to have found all of you amazing ladies…
My first smear aged 21 (14 years ago) was borderline. I had a colposcopy at the time as was hysterical! I did not fully understand what this was at the time but there was some kind of inflammation I think which was causing extremely heavy discharge. My next smear three years later was also borderline. 6 months later it was severe. I had a colposcopy and LEEP procedure and all was well for nine years.
I was tested for HPV twice and both times was negative. I was put back onto three yearly smears. However I was worried about this and booked myself a private smear after two years for reassurance.
Typically - this has done anything but reassure. It came back borderline. I went to the NHS Dr and had a colposcopy.
This showed no abnormalities but a biopsy showed CIN 1 and HPV positive! I am devastated.
I have been married for 10 years. I felt like the Dr did not believe neither me nor my partner have cheated as she said I must have been exposed to a new strain! She said that they do not know if it could have been a reactivation of an old strain.
I have been under immense stress for the last few years. I think that this has caused a previously dormant strain to reactivate. I don’t see there can be any other explanation.
They do not now the specific strain I have tested positive for and I am told to back in a year. I am not happy with this. Am I asking too much to ask for a repeat colposcopy in 6 months?
Anyone else had a positive hpv having not had a new partner?
The Drs are amazing but sometimes if you do not ‘fit’ with the established research and statistics you can find yourself very alone and to a certain extent, dismissed.
Any help/support and advice would be much appreciated.
Hello! It's perfectly possible for HPV to be dormant for a long time. I don't think your Dr was right to say that you 'must have' been exposed to a new strain. Sorry to hear you've been having a stressful time for the past few years. I'm at the beginning of all this as I have symptoms but as my last smear was fine (2.5 years ago!) I'm really struggling to get the tests I need to rule out cervical abnormalities and cancer. I've had a very difficult few years too and like you am worried that's made me susceptible to HPV. I think I may have to do what you did and go private (even though I can't afford it at all), as I started bleeding after sex a year ago and still haven't had colposcopy, so I really relate to what you say about feeling dismissed. I also think you're right about having a follow up in 6 months time, a year is a long time to live with the uncertainty.
I hope you don't mind this suggestion, but I've been doing a lot of reading about women's health since these problems started and I've recently made a lot of changes to my diet and started taking some supplements to support my immune system. As I understand it, CIN1 can resolve itself, and it might be worth doing what you can now to support your immune system to try and make sure it does. I've started going to yoga and tai chi to try and deal with the stress aqnd uncertainty and to improve my sleep. There's a book I found very useful by a woman called Dr Marilyn Glenville, "The Nutritional Health Handbook for Women" which i got for a couple of quid from Amazon, and there is a section on cervical abnormalities. She recommends increasing your intake of antioxidants, taking a multivitamin, higher doses of B vitamins as well as vitamins A,C and E, selenium and zinc, linseed oil, and finally a few different herbs which are meant to help including echinacea. The book also has a lot of useful information about your general diet. As I say, I really hope you don't mind me suggesting these things but learning about what I can do to support my body has helped me feel a bit more in control of what's going on. I do think you should push for a 6 month follow up and in the mean time do what you can to reduce the stress and take care of yourself. I also really recommend calling the Jo's Trust helpline for reassurance and support, they're really good xx
I dont mind at all and I agree. I am am going to doa ll I can to eat healthily. I have been researching a product called AHCC. There seems to be preliminary studies that show it gets rid of HPV , or at least semds it knto dormancy.
I hope you
get the tests you need. Personally, I would go private for peace of mind, but is so expensive. Keep pushing the Dr first though. Im surprised with bleedong they dont refer you or at least check for infection?
