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Jan. 17th, 2011 09:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
adiva_calandiaOne of my readings for class tomorrow is a set of instructions on how to do your own vaginal/cervical exam. Which, you know, requires a speculum.
And I am all for being proactive about my health and all, but dude! Why would I want to voluntarily put a speculum in me! This has nothing to do with being squeamish about my ladybits, because I assure you my hands and my ladybits are on good terms, it has to do with the experience of having a speculum in me being kind of painful! The reading helpfully tells me that "Inserting the speculum with the handles down is strictly for the doctor's convenience, and it requires that a woman put her feet into stirrups at the end of an exam table," but it does not tell me whether inserting the speculum with the handles up or sideways will be more comfortable than the way the doctor does it, and that is an important consideration for me!
When I got my first (and thus far only) pelvic exam, my (female) doctor was quick and my (female) nurse encouraged me to squeeze her hand as hard as I needed. That physical support and consideration for my comfort is at least as important to me as knowing what my cervix looks like in the privacy of my own room.
That said, next time I get a pelvic (which ought to be in the next few months, before I'm off my parents' insurance), I think I'll ask the gynecologist if she can grab a mirror and let me take a look as well.
And I am all for being proactive about my health and all, but dude! Why would I want to voluntarily put a speculum in me! This has nothing to do with being squeamish about my ladybits, because I assure you my hands and my ladybits are on good terms, it has to do with the experience of having a speculum in me being kind of painful! The reading helpfully tells me that "Inserting the speculum with the handles down is strictly for the doctor's convenience, and it requires that a woman put her feet into stirrups at the end of an exam table," but it does not tell me whether inserting the speculum with the handles up or sideways will be more comfortable than the way the doctor does it, and that is an important consideration for me!
When I got my first (and thus far only) pelvic exam, my (female) doctor was quick and my (female) nurse encouraged me to squeeze her hand as hard as I needed. That physical support and consideration for my comfort is at least as important to me as knowing what my cervix looks like in the privacy of my own room.
That said, next time I get a pelvic (which ought to be in the next few months, before I'm off my parents' insurance), I think I'll ask the gynecologist if she can grab a mirror and let me take a look as well.
no subject
Date: 2011-01-18 03:33 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-01-18 04:24 am (UTC)But seriously, in a more helpful, sharing experiences mode: At my first pelvic (which sounds like a horrible children's book), I hadn't yet had penetrative sex and was extremely tight in my ladybits. I accidentally ended up cursing out my (male) gyno, who was super nice and patient with me, and realized pretty quickly that the smaller speculum (like what Viv mentioned) was the way to go. While not exactly comfortable, it was at least less uncomfortable.
Now that I've cashed in my penetrative sex V-card (which, honestly, was a lot like that first gyno appointment the very first time, only with a bit more crying--WHY DO PEOPLE ROMANTICIZE FIRST TIMES), my pelvic still isn't comfortable but it is less worse. (Not that I'm advocating copious sex as a way to have a more comfortable exam!) Honestly, I'm really curious about the whole "where the handles go--is a different way more comfortable" thing.
On a tangential note, where are you going to voluntarily get your own speculum? Amazon?