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Came here because I don't know who else to talk to

HoneyBean12
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Good afternoon. My name is Jade, I'm 24 years old and I'm here because I am concerned about cervical or ovarian cancer. When I came off the contraceptive pill in 2019 my periods (and life) was never the same again. I would be in agonsiing pain every month, the bleeding incredibly heavy and all sorts of other horrible symptoms. After months and months of trying to convince my doctor that this wasn't normal (it's so disgusting that women aren't taken seriously with things like this) I was referred to a gynecologist who confirmed that my symptoms were not normal. Surprise surprise. I have been waiting for a diagnostic laroscopy for over a year now thanks to COVID, but during that time things have got a lot worse. The bleeding has got heavier, to the point where my heart rate and blood pressure drops and I almost pass out. In the last couple of days I have started having brown discharge and light bleeding, which is not normal for me because I usually get this the day before my period. My period isn't due for another week or 2 at most. I often get spasms in my vagina, that feel veyr deep inside, and I always have pain and discomfort in my lower abdomen. My stomach and abdomen also feel bloated most of the time. Discharge is smelly but infections have been ruled out. I also would like to mention that I cannot have sex at all due to it being so painful. It feels like razor blades are inside me and I have screamed in pain to the point where I physically cannot do it anymore. A couple of months ago I got called for my first cervical smear test, but I have issues accessing my GP practice due to my autism. They were unwilling to arrange for me to have the examination somewhere else. I have had to pay £350 to a private hospital to have one done and I am terrified because a lot of my symptoms fit into cervical cancer. And if I was to have cervical cancer, how bad would it be considering how long I have had to wait for all of this. Sorry for the long post but just wanted to give some proper background on why I am here and my story so far. Thank you for reading. 

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    Hello Honey

    Most times no news is good news..I think you or someone else need to keep phoning to get your results..

    Why did you come off the pill ? Have you had children ?

    Your symptoms sound familiar..maybe look at your diet ?

    Remember although your young ..keep getting your smear tests even after your 65 years old..when they stop doing them

  • Offline in reply to Glitterbrain.

    No I haven't had children and me and my long term partner are certain that we don't want children. I came off it because of the blood clot risk due to me putting on weight. After that I didn't feel comfortable going on any other contraception, and didn't really see the point considering I can't have sex anyway. When you say my symptoms sound familiar, what do you mean? 

  • Offline in reply to HoneyBean12

    Hello

    Your symptoms sounds like what I suffered but mine were due to stress and bad diet x

  • Offline in reply to Glitterbrain.

    Sorry to hear that. What did you get diagnosed with? 

  • Offline in reply to HoneyBean12

    Hi Honey

    I see you are concerned you might have cervical cancer. Having been through cervical cancer with none of the symptoms you describe, can I just say that it’s not always useful to try and compare symptoms with someone else and attempt to diagnose yourself. I appreciate you are very anxious and worried, but the only way to know for sure what is wrong is to see a gynaecologist and have an examination. A smear test is not a diagnostic test for cervical cancer- it is all about screening for abnormal cervical cells, but I do hope you are able to get some answers soon. 

  • Offline in reply to Minska

    I apologise, it's just quite distressing when you have so many symptoms that could mean so many different things. I certainly don't want to diagnose myself. Oh, I thought a smear test was the main way to diagnose cervical cancer. I've never been educated on them too much, just told I needed to have one. 

  • Offline in reply to HoneyBean12

    No need at all to apologise-there is a common misconception that a smear test is a diagnostic test for cervical cancer, but it’s not. It is merely a screening test, and of course it’s very valuable in having this screening to identify and treat any abnormal cells long before they turn to cancer. It’s definitely a very good thing to have this screening to prevent abnormal cells from getting worse, and typically cervical cancer is very slow growing so screening gives the opportunity to identify abnormalities at a very early stage so they can be treated. But you’re right to say your symptoms could mean many different things so it’s important not to race ahead in your mind assuming it’s cancer. 

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