Cryosurgery, My Personal Experience

While I was pregnant with my daughter I had several PAP smears. When I was around six months pregnant the Doctor called and said they found some abnormal results with the tests and I needed to come in for more. My first thoughts were for the worst. I was pregnant after all, could this hurt my baby? I went in for the appointment scared out of my mind. The Doctor said I would have to have a colposcopy so he could get a better view of my cervix. The procedure itself was a little more painful than a regular PAP smear. They said someone would call in a few days with the results from the colposcopy. These were going to be a long few days.

About a week later the Doctor called and informed me there was abnormal cells on my cervix and I would need to have Cryosurgery. They would not be able to do this until I had given birth to my daughter. I did not know of anyone who had Cryosurgery, I had never even heard of the term before. The next few months were filled with mixed emotions. I was thrilled to be so close to the delivery of my daughter, but scared at the same time about the abnormal cells.

After my daughter was born the Doctor scheduled my appointment for the Cryosurgery. It would be for eight weeks later. The day had arrived and I was very nervous. I was worried about Cryosurgery, and didn't quite know what to expect. The Doctor explained what would happen, and asked me if I knew how raw meat looked when it was thawing from the freezer. I told him sure I knew, I had seen it many times. He informed me that I may have some cramping and discomfort while the procedure was taking place. Afterward I would have a discharge that resembled that of thawing meat. That didn't sound too bad. I had always had heavy periods anyway, so a little discharge wouldn't bother me much.

The Cryosurgery was easier than I thought it would be. I laid on the table and had my feet placed in stirrups. The same ones used in a regular PAP smear. I could feel the Doctor insert the Speculum. It was a little uncomfortable, but nothing I couldn't stand. Next I felt the Iodine solution the Doctor was using to clean my cervix. It was very cold. After that the Doctor got started doing the Cryosurgery. He used probes to freeze my cervix with liquid Nitrogen. I didn't feel anything. I had to lay there for around five minutes. The Doctor waited until my cervix thawed a little and repeated the procedure. The whole thing was pretty simple.

The Doctor said I could go back to daily activities the next day. I had to refrain from having intercourse for two weeks. I left feeling so much better than when I came in. The rest of the day I felt fine and went about normal life.

The next part will explain the after effects of the Cryosurgery. It may be too much information for some. I will go into very detailed descriptions.
The next day I awoke to a soaked bed. I was bleeding far worse than any period I have had. The bleeding was not the only thing I had to deal with. I had severe cramping. I felt like my insides were trying to bust their way out. I was passing huge blood clots and soaking pad after pad. My husband called the Doctor and he said that I should remain lying down and that some cramping was normal. He said that meant my body was doing its job.

I had never experienced such pain before. It was very comparable to labor. The next day the pain had eased some and the bleeding was slowing down to the discharge the Doctor had described. I was very scared of the after effects the Cryosurgery had caused, and want to let other women know about my experience. If you need to have Cryosurgery plan on taking the next day off from work, and have someone there to help you just in case.

I had to have another PAP smear three months later to make sure the Cryosurgery had worked. When the Doctor called and said everything looked fine I was thrilled. There was no way I wanted to go through that ordeal again. Abnormal cells on a womens cervix can lead to cancer so it is very important to have regular PAP smears. They are something we women would like to do without, but we can't.

If you are having Cryosurgery and have any questions you would like to ask me about my experience feel free to message me here.
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