Scared to get a pap smear?

Question

My mom and doctor wants me to go in to get a pap smear. I am already on birth control and didn't need one bc I was only 16 at the time. Now that I am 18, they are only going to give me one more month of bc pills then i'll have to get a pap or I'll no longer get the pills. I am terrified to go in. I am a virgin. It would make me feel violated. I know its for my health, and it's only uncomfortable not painful, but I would rather quit taking the pill. Even if i go to the doctors for a sinus infection, I break out in hives....now talking about it I'm breaking out in hives.....HELP...what should I do???

Answer 1

This is an exam you will have to be getting for the rest of your life every year.  You need to just suck it up and go.

I find it odd that this should make you feel "violated".  It is a medical exam.  It is necessary.  The doctor is not getting off on it.  They are not doing it to torment you or to make you feel bad.  Your mother and your doctor just want to make sure you are healthy.  I was a virgin for my first pap (to get on BC) and although I felt uncomfortable and scared and the sensations were totally new to me, I certainly didn't feel any more violated than during any other medical exam.

Ask for a female doctor or physician's assistant.  Once you get into the room with the person who will do the exam, explain to them that you have never had a pelvic exam before, that you are a virgin and that you are really nervous.  Ask them to tell you exactly what they are doing during the exam.  I had a doctor who gave me a sort of play-by-play so I was never surprised when she touched me.  Ask them if they could please use the smallest possible speculum.  

Above all you should be aware that everyone is really nervous the first time they get a pap smear, it is totally natural.  Try not to get too hyped up about it or you will blow it totally out of proportion.  It is a medical exam.  It is over very quickly.  You will need to do them annually so you might as well get used to it.

You will be fine! Good luck!

Answer 2

Go to the doctor and start by talking to them about this. Let them take you through it verbally and ask to have a nurse in the room with you. Try to have the examination and if you start feeling apprehensive you can always ask them to stop. You may need to get some more professional help if you aren't able to get through it on your own, but you won't know how you actually feel about it until you at least attempt the procedure.

Answer 3

why are you on birth control if you are a virgin? Well I guess the only other reason is to regulate your periods. But a pap smear is uncomfortably but it is over very quickly.  There is really nothing for you to be worried about. It is better that you go ahead and get one instead of pushing it off until later.  Just relax and it will be fine.

Answer 4

I suggest you do what's best for your health.  If your doctor recommends you get a pap smear then you should.  I'm not really sure why you were taking birth control pills if your're a virgin.  Maybe more detail would help us help you more?

Answer 5

I know exactly how you feel! I was 16 when i first started the pill. (I am now almost 18 as well) I was on the pill for about a year before i even started having s*x. My doctor encoureged me to get a pap test. We booked an appointment and I was so scared I didn't go. Then we booked another one, and i decided that i have to do it eventually so i may as well get it over with. (I was also a virgin when i had my first pap smear).

I'll be honest, I was TERRIFIED for it. I prefered to just have my doctor in the room, not my mother or other nurses ... it's not the kind of thing i was anyone other than my doctor to see. After it was finished, i felt silly for being so worried.  I won't lie, it was a little uncomfortable because it's not something that i am (or you) are used to. But it doesn't hurt at all or anything.

Trust me, get it done! Even if you are a virgin it is still good to get them done once a year.  

Answer 6

There is no reason to be scared.  I started getting paps at 19 and I was a virgin until I was 32.  I also was on the pill for fourteen years from ages 31 until 45 to regulate my cycle (I have PCOS).

It will make you feel less violated with a woman doctor.  All of my Gyns have been women.

Answer 7

I think EVERYONE is uncomfortable during their first couple pap smears! Get used to it. Pap smears save lives!

Answer 8

I was scared too and I wasnt a virgin. Just hold your moms hand and hum yourself a toone.  remember its for your health and eventually you will have to get one. and when you get pregnant one day you wll get toched alot more so get used to it

Answer 9

It sounds almost as though you have issues with fears, and or your nerves...sometimes people get so anxious about something, they dread the activity because they are already anticipating that they're going to have an anxiety attack....so your focus should not be how to avoid a pap smear, but how to go in and have one done without panicking. You could ask your doctor if they'd be willing to give you a sedative, maybe - if you have a history of anxiety? I don't even know if this is ever done...but, I figure if they can sedate people to get their teeth cleaned, it's not unimaginable that they could consider it in such a case...at least they'll know how upsetting it is for you if you ask! That brings me to my next point. Tell your doctor how you feel. Believe me, you are not the first person to feel this way about a pap smear. Finally, I know this sounds crazy, but, in about a decade - you will not only have had a bunch of pap smears, but, will have forgotten all about how nervous you were the first time, and may even laugh about it!  

Answer 10

Sorry honey but its just part of life. So lay back and spread em.

Answer 11

Ok... listen, this is part of growing up and becoming a woman.

It is also very important for your general health.

The sooner problems (such as ovarian cancer) are detected or breast cancer the better chance you have at fighting it off.

It is not painful at all, I was a virgin the first few times I had it done.

just try to think about something else.

Once you have a baby you aren't embarrassed doing that anymore because you have to have someone looking down there every month.

It is important to stay on your pills to help regulate your periods and to

protect you incase you decide to have s*x.

You have to be on the pill 3 months to assure your safety.

I applaud you for still be a virgin at 18 these days it is a lot harder than it was when I was your age.

Don't worry about it honey and ask for a nurse to be in the room during the pap, it will make you more at ease or ask for a female dr.

.

Answer 12

If you don't need the pills, don't take them!

Remain a virgin until marriage.

When you finally do go to a gynecologist, make sure you go to a woman - men who choose that specialty tend to be pervs. Seriously. Super seriously.

Answer 13

do they know you are a virgin? im suprised they would make you since you are. its not as scary as you think i promise. They just want to make sure everything is ok and that you are healthy..... it honestly does not take more than a couple minutes and there is nothing to be ashamed of

Answer 14

Relax, I was nervous the first time but it is really no big deal, your doc does them a dozen times a day, and it only takes a few minuets..

Answer 15

You really need to get it done.  Regardless of being on the pill or not and sexually active or not, its a required exam and can detect cancer that would kill you.

I was a virgin until I got married at 31 and I went in for yearly pap smears starting around your age.  It doesn't feel like you're being sexually violated because its a medical procedure.  The nurse will be in the room and you can even have your mom in the room with you if you want.  The exam goes quickly and isn't painful if you relax.  

Find a doctor that you're comfortable with (maybe a woman would be better), and just do it.  To the doctor its totally a medical thing, they aren't viewing it as sexual.  Tell them its your first exam and that you're a virgin and they'll be even more gentle with you.

If you ever plan on having children, doctors are going to check you there lots of times...its best to get used to it now.

Answer 16

I was like that when I got my first pap. Yes, they are very uncomfortable esp. if you are a virgin, but they are going to put a lot of K.Y. on the tube, but the best thing to do is relax. I was tensed up the first couple of times I got one and they kinda hurt. But the last time I went in with confidence, and I was very relaxed, so therefore I didn't feel a thing (I haven't had s*x for over a year, if that helps). But getting one is something all females that age should get, it will let you know if you have any UTI's, Cancers, and other problems down there.  

Answer 17

A pap smear checks if you have CANCER.  A nasty, painful form of CANCER.  Are you willing to die of embarrassment?

My dad hated getting a prostrate exam (turn your head and cough).  He ended up dying of prostate cancer.  He basically died of embarrassment.

A pap smear will be in your future once a year for pretty much the rest of your life.  It's time to grow up about it.

Answer 18

if you are not active, why are you on the pills putting your life in danger at the age of 16 unless it is due to a medical condition?   Just curious because the pills can cause you to gain weight, and /or get blood clots.  

don't fret the pap smear... Put your head phones on, lay back and forget it.  My Daughter puts her head phones on to get blood drawn, go to the doctor or what ever.  

Answer 19

It's really not so bad, but we all dread going.  I've been going regualarly for the last ten years and I still don't like it.  I've found that the most important thing is going to a doctor who know and trust.  For me, that is usually a woman doctor, and usually my GP.  Maybe ask the doctor if your mum can stay in the room and hold your hand?  I would definitely let the doctor know you're scared and they should talk you through it and make it as comfortable as possible.  It is really over very quickly.  

  

Edit:  Ignore the people who are telling you that you shouldn't be on birth control if you're not a virgin.  I was on birth control for about a year before I had s*x, due to irregular periods and really bad cramps.  Whatever reason you are on the pill is between  you and your doctor only.  :)