smear test help!

[gardentink]

Hi beauties

Has anyone tried the at home HPV screening? I’m due my smear and I find them so horribly painful and uncomfortable, that it’s a big effort to go (I’m sure some of you can relate!)

When I went last time, the nurse mentioned that by my next one there should be at home test kits. I haven’t found an NHS one, but I’ve found one from Superdrug.

Has anyone tried these? Were they more comfortable than the one at the drs?

Thanks in advance. Hope you’re all as pain free as can be!

[SavageGold]

Hello.Yes they are available through your Dr's practise. I had one at home. Pretty sure I posted it back.

As there's no speculum and nobody shoving you around and blindly telling you to scootch down, arch your back lift your legs and then ripping the speculum out with no regard for your agony and humanity, it's much better to do at home yourself!

It's a wee bottle brush on a long stick and you push it in until you hit the top. Turn the brush a few times and bring it out at your own pace.i knelt in my bathroom to do mine.

Mine was covered in blood but they still said I got the cells I needed. 🥳

[gardentink in reply to SavageGold]

Thank you so much! That sounds a lot better. I’ll give my drs a ring then and ask for one 😊

So much better than being told to relax whilst someone shoves a piece of plastic up inside 😂

[HPVisanSTI in reply to SavageGold]

You don't need to collect any cells to test for hpv! Some vaginal moisture is enough of a sample to enable them to test for dna from the HPV virus.