I stumbled across this webpage after looking for advice. Im just wondering if anyone has been in the same situation as me.
3 years ago I was sent for my regular smear which came back with abnormal cells. (all previous ones have been normal) Biopsies were taken and all came back ok but I was told they would call me in sooner for another smear to check up on everything.
Well fast forward 3yrs and I never heard anything until my regular smear app arrived again. The results came back as abnormal and I had my app on the 9th April. I was told by the nurse there that I needed to wait for a doctor. When he arrived he explained to me that he needed to take a bigger biopsy this time as the cells had changed again. (im kicking myself now but i never asked any further questions as i was just a bag of nerves made worse as I suffer with severe anxiety and had to go by myself because of the pandemic) There were two nurses in the room with me while the doctor examined me but i was in so much pain while having it done that he had to stop numerous times. (my first colopscopy wasn't painful just uncomfortable) He eventually finished and told me I would recieve the results in the post. I bled for a week after and since all has been fine. I didn't give it much thought as ive had so much going on but recently its in the back of my mind and I find myself waiting for the post every day. It will only be 3 weeks this Thursday but he never really gave me a time scale on how long the results would take. Im just hoping everything will be ok!!
Has anyone else suffered a painful colopscopy? More changes in cells from last colopscopy so needed a bigger biopsy taken? How long did you wait for your results?
I'm sorry nobody has replied to your post yet. I just wanted to let you know that in my case, with biopsy and LLETZ results, they both came back very quickly, around 7 working days for each, despite COVID going on. It may vary dependent on your NHS trust
Maybe you could give your colposcopy clinic a call to ask if theyve had your results? Or your GP?
Some days I am not receiving post at all due to Royal Mail service disruption so I was informed of my results over the phone on both times, as I had asked them to do this so I wasnt kept waiting at the mercy of the postman..
Thank you for your help and advice feelingthefear.
I will try my GP tomorrow to see if anything is on their system. I know it took around 5 weeks for me to recieve my smear results back so i was basing the wait for the biopsy results around that time frame. It just seems a life time away!! Hopefully the GP can help out tomorrow.
I phoned my doctors on two occasions who were not able to help me as they hadnt recieved anything and also the same at the colopscopy clinic. Finally, today after 6 weeks of waiting I had my results which have come back as CIN3. They have booked me in for the lletz treatment. Im really anxious about this due to my last appointment being painful and i only had biopsies taken then.
Thanks for the update. I'm so sorry you've had an anxious wait! You know, I felt exactly the same as you do when I was told i needed the LLETZ. My biopsy was pretty awful, I was in such pain and hyperventilating and panicky, and they were going to do my LLETZ under general anaesthesia as I had been so freaked out. Then COVID19 put a stop to all that and I had to choose whether to leave it until day surgery resumed, or to go ahead with local anaesthesia. I am not good at waiting so I went ahead with local anaesthesia, but I was beside myself with fear
I'll be totally honest with you, it was far more tolerable than the biopsy. The biopsy was so much more painful and distressing for me. You may be able to find one of my earlier posts where I talk about this in more detail but in a nutshell, I asked my GP for 2mg lorazepam which I took 90min before my appointment so I was calm and relaxed. There was a sting for 1 second when the local was injected, and again for 1 second with the 2nd jab, but the 3rd jab I did not feel. I felt nothing at all during the LLETZ and I had a big piece taken out, 21mm x 23mm x 13mm. I counted aloud throughout the process from when the speculum went in (I dont do small talk LOL) and I was on 91 when they took it out. It was probably no more than 4minutes? I think they tried to keep it quick as I had told them I was anxious and fearful. I had period pain type feeling for a couple of days and I felt tired. There was light bleeding and watery discharge for 4 weeks.
I was the biggest scaredy cat and really made myself almost ill with nerves and I can hand on heart say it was not necessary. In case you are worried I also tested my orgasmic function about 3 or 4 days after and it was unaffected.
Everybody's experience can be different and I know there are others who found their LLETZ much more challenging than mine was, so I dont want to undermine anybody elses experience but hopefully you can take some courage and optimism from mine :-)
Try not to dwell on it but if you are overwhelmed get something from your GP to calm you on the day of your procedure. It made a huge difference for me
Its such a worrying time and to suffer with anxiety while all of this is going on doesn't make it any easier. I hated having to go to my last appointment by myself because of this pandemic. Although that was a big achievement for myself as i know how important it is to attend these appointments i still couldn't help worrying and panicking which i think made me a lot worse while having the biopsies taken.
Im going to 'try' and have an open mind when i go for the lletz treatment which is 4 weeks away... your kind words and encouragement have made me feel more positive about it. I too count but silently as I try to distract myself from what is going on.
If i feel too overwhelmed by it all i will speak to my doctor to see if they will recommend anything.
I know you wont believe me but I think you've already got through the toughest part, which for me was the biopsy. My clinic also gave me the last appointment of the day so I didnt feel rushed either
I remembered something else that helped me. They said at any point up until the LLETZ wand cuts the tissue, I could stop the procedure. And the only painful part would be the injections, which are the same as the dentist injections. Only sharp for a second. So in my mind I was going there to see if I could tolerate the injections and if not then I would go back on the waiting list for general anaesthesia. I did the injections and then gave my consent to go ahead. Breaking the appointment down in this way and knowing that I was in control helped a lot.
I told the nurses I needed to count to keep my cool and that I didnt want to chit chat. It helps me to "go out of the room" and into a place of focus in my mind. I've been using the free headspace app to calm my fear and anxiety throughout my diagnosis and treatment process and it's been brilliant for me. Maybe it could help you too xXx
i was the same I was so scared for the Lletz but it wasn't half as bad as I thought it was going to be. They offered me gas and air, please don't be too scared to ask for it. My doctor said if it's there you may aswell have it. I think it varies so much from different hospitals as I had my Lletz done there and then at my first appointment, they gave me the option as waiting for 2 lots of results would have drove my crazy. I really feel for you.
