There are a few medical procedures that bring fear into the hearts of young adults everywhere, those who know they are going to have to start getting them soon: wisdom teeth removal, colonoscopies, and pap smears. Part of what makes these things so scary is the unknown of it all – how painful will it be? What do you need to do to prepare? What, exactly, are you doing this for? As college students, we are approaching (or have passed) the age of 21, which comes with plenty of excitement – officially full legal adulthood and the year everyone with a vagina should get their first pap smear! An intimidating concept, but as someone with a vagina and an IUD, I am here to share my incredible wisdom with all of you; you can thank me later!
How should I prepare?
However you prefer to address your pubic hair (whether you leave it alone, shave, or trim it), you should enter your appointment feeling your best. If you haven’t shaved in a week and don’t have time to, don’t worry about it! Your gynecologist is not concerned about what your vagina looks like aesthetically – they are only worried about your health and I guarantee they’ve become so desensitized to bodies they don’t even notice what you look like. Just about everyone has at one time thought that they might have a particularly “unique”-looking vagina, so if there is something you’re genuinely concerned about, don’t be afraid to ask your doctor about it! In terms of what to wear, they are going to ask you to take your bottom layer off, so your choice of outfit is fairly inconsequential.
What does it feel like?
The actual process of getting a pap smear is pretty simple – you’ll enter the room, most likely have a conversation with your nurse and/or doctor, then you’ll be given a blanket or hospital gown, told to take off your bottom layer of clothes and sit up with your legs in the stirrups. This is definitely an uncomfortable position, but eventually, you get used to it. A speculum is inserted into your vagina and this is probably the most uncomfortable part – they’re pretty cold and it’s a super odd sensation. It doesn’t hurt, necessarily, but it isn’t exactly pleasant. Then, a cotton swab-like thing will be used to swab the lining of your vagina, then placed in a test tube and sent out for testing. This is a penetrative experience, but it isn’t a sensation you’re necessarily used to – if you’ve ever used a cotton swab to clean your ear and gotten pretty deep in the canal, that odd sensation is similar to what it’s like but, you know… In a different spot.
Why should I get one?
The number one purpose of getting a pap smear is to test for cervical cancer. They swab your cervix (which is the connection between your uterus and your vagina), and examine the cells they collect to see if there is any cancer. Your doctor may also choose to test for gonorrhea and/or chlamydia with this smear, and if you would like to elect for this test, feel free to ask if it is at all possible. Kill as many birds with one cotton swab as you can, right? The test results can come in within a few weeks, depending on the lab’s status as well as the way in which you receive these results (they usually take longer by mail).
Overall, getting a pap smear is a somewhat nerve-wracking experience your first time – not only is someone seeing your vagina in a purely medical situation, but it’s an entirely different sensation that is pretty mysterious as to its purpose. Until now, that is! My biggest piece of advice is this – relax. Everyone is there for you and your health, and once you take a breath and recognize that, although this is an event for you, for everyone else involved it’s just another day at work, another patient they are seeing. Hospitals are scary, but pap smears are a necessary part of life, and incredibly important for your health. So let’s get it pappin’, folx!!