Here at Women&#;s Health Specialists, we know that the idea of your first annual gynecological exam might make you nervous, but never fear! Once you&#;ve become more familiar with the exam process and the procedures and questions involved, you&#;ll be much more likely to feel calm and at ease when the time for your exam comes around. Your annual exam is a standard and efficient procedure that goes a long way toward ensuring you maintain excellent overall health.
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Your regularly-scheduled annual exam allows the Women&#;s Health Specialists experts to check your feminine organs to ensure they&#;re all in good health and promote the best possible overall well-being. The actual physical part of the exam should take roughly around 10 minutes. In addition, there will be portions before and after the exam during which you can ask any questions you may have and answer any questions.
Read on to learn more!
What to do before your annual examination.
The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists recommends that you begin receiving your well-woman visit (the standard name for your annual gynecological examination) between 18-21. Additionally, you should begin receiving your exams three years after you become sexually active.
Of course, if you begin to experience any sort of gynecological symptoms, it is recommended that you schedule an exam to deal with them directly. Common symptoms you may experience include any irregularity or change in your menstrual cycle, abnormal or major pelvic or vaginal pain, unexpected vaginal bleeding or discharge, tenderness, sores, swelling, lumps, itching, or unexpected changes to the breasts.
If it is your first time receiving a gynecological appointment, you should probably tell your doctor it&#;s your first exam. This will help your specialist to provide you with the answers to many women&#;s questions during their first examination. It&#;ll also give them the insight they need to make you feel as comfortable and confident as possible. Remember, this is a normal and important part of every woman&#;s life!
You&#;re welcome to have a friend or family member accompany you if you feel that would be helpful to make you feel more relaxed. We can also provide you with an additional nurse as a chaperone if you like.
Besides that, you won&#;t have much to worry about when it comes to preparing for your first exam. You should avoid using douche, vaginal creams, or sexual intercourse for 24 hours before your exam. Additionally, be sure to call and reschedule if you begin your period when you are supposed to come in for your exam.
What the Gynecological Exam Includes
Your physical exam will include the following standard features: an internal and external pelvic exam, a breast exam, a pap smear, and a urine sample. We&#;ll go over each of these below:
Pelvic Exam
Your pelvic exam during the gynecological review consists of four primary steps. These are an external genital exam, a speculum exam, a Pap Smear test, and a bimanual exam.
During the exam, you&#;ll be asked to lie on the examination table in a dressing gown, at which point you&#;ll place your feet in the foot rests. You&#;ll have a sheet draped across your legs to provide personal privacy. Once you&#;ve prepared yourself and gotten comfortable, your doctor will ask you to spread your knees, at which point, she&#;ll encourage you to relax and breathe deeply. It&#;s important at this point to avoid tensing your muscles, as this will impede the progress of your exam. If you&#;ve relaxed and are breathing deeply, this will make the process much faster and more comfortable overall. In the event that you&#;ve brought a friend or family member or asked for a chaperone, they will be positioned in such a way as to ensure your privacy.
At this point, your doctor will perform a visual examination of the vulva and labia. Your doctor is checking for irregularities, including any irritation, swelling, redness or cysts, as well as visual signs and symptoms of any sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
Cervical Exam
After the genital exam, your doctor will insert a speculum into the vagina. The speculum is used to gently separate the vaginal walls in order to allow your doctor to examine the cervix. This may be accompanied by pressure or brief discomfort, but you can communicate with your doctor to ensure that it is within your tolerance for discomfort.
When the speculum is opened, your cervix will be examined. The clinician is looking for signs of irritation, atypical discharge, or indications of sexually transmitted disease. With the speculum still in place, your healthcare provider will continue with the Pap Smear test.
Pap Smear
The Pap Smear is designed to check for precancerous or cancerous cells. Your Pap Smear will be a quick procedure during which cervical cells will be obtained (painlessly!) and checked to ensure they&#;re healthy and cancer free. This is a vital test for your overall health, as early detection is a major factor when it comes to the successful treatment of cervical and other cancers.
Your Pap Smear results will be available within the next few weeks, so don&#;t worry! The next step is the bimanual exam.
Bimanual Exam
The bimanual exam is performed after the speculum has been removed and consists of insertion of a gloved and lubricated finger into the vagina. With their other hand, your doctor will press down on your stomach. This is important for determining the health of your internal organs. Just like with the other portions of your exam, communicate with your doctor to let them know how you&#;re doing. Some slight discomfort is normal, but you will never have to deal with more than you can handle.
Breast Exam
The breast exam is brief and painless. Your health care provider will manually palpate your breast, feeling for lumps, thickening, or discharge. They will also teach you how to give yourself a personal breast exam.
Urine Sample
You will be asked to provide a urine sample. Urine is used to check for kidney health, various infections, and/or pregnancy.
Q&A with Your Gynecologist
A normal and important aspect of your exam is a question and answer portion with your doctor. During this session, answer any questions regarding your family history, current and recent health, as well as sexual activity. You will also receive questions related to your menstrual cycle, contraception, STD prevention, illnesses, surgeries, any pregnancies you may have had, as well as alcohol and drug use.
Even though some of these questions can be quite personal, it is vital that you feel comfortable being entirely honest. Women&#;s Health Specialists takes great care to ensure that all of your answers are entirely confidential. This is also a great time to ask any questions you may have, so feel free!
Call Today to Schedule Your Exam Call Today to Schedule Your Exam
Thanks so much for taking the time to read more about what to expect during your yearly exam. We know your health is important to you, and you can rest assured that when you come to see Women&#;s Health Specialists of Germantown, it&#;s important to us, too. We&#;re not just experts in women&#;s health, we&#;re your friends and neighbors, and we take pride in offering the best care available. Call today to schedule your appointment!
Your yearly checkup is the perfect opportunity to ask an OB-GYN all of your reproductive health questions
Chances are, you have questions&#;a lot of them&#;about your reproductive health. And the perfect time to ask them is at your annual well-woman exam.
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&#;When we do an annual exam, we like to discuss the basics, such as menstrual cycles, birth control, and concerns regarding female anatomy, including breasts,&#; says Sandhia Varyani, MD, OB-GYN at University Hospitals based in Cleveland, Ohio. &#;If a patient is having symptoms and no longer needing birth control, we discuss menopause and those concerns. The annual exam is a basic review and exam including a Pap test.&#;
5 questions to ask a gynecologist
What questions should you ask? Really anything&#;be it a concern or a curiosity. If it has to do with your reproductive or even your general health, it&#;s fair game. Here, five questions to consider.
1. Is my period normal?
&#;Normal&#; varies from woman to woman. Menstrual cycles are counted from the first day of bleeding one month to the first day of bleeding the next month, according to Planned Parenthood. On average, that&#;s about 25-30 days, although having a cycle that&#;s as short as every 21 days or as long as every 35 days is also considered normal. Bleeding generally lasts two to seven days, but that can vary based on factors such as your age and your birth control method.
How does a medical professional determine whether you might have a problem with your menstrual cycle? &#;We look at a woman&#;s personal and family history, her hormonal status [for example, if she&#;s ovulating or in menopause], bleeding disorders as well as anatomic concerns, just to name a few things,&#; says Dr. Varyani. &#;Testing depends on many findings.&#; Your doctor may look into include:
2. Should I be screened for an STI?
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and the sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) they cause, are ailments passed from person to person via oral, vaginal, or anal sex. (They can also be passed through the sharing of needles.) These conditions, which include things like chlamydia, HIV, gonorrhea, and genital herpes, can impact a woman&#;s health and fertility, leading to things like cervical cancer, pelvic pain, and ectopic pregnancy (when a pregnancy grows outside the uterus).
For more information, please visit gynecological exam table.
Featured content:Indocyanine Green | Chemical Properties, Uses and Side ...Retinal Imaging On the CheapLower Limb Prostheses - Medical Clinical Policy BulletinsRetinal Imaging: Purpose, Procedure, Risks, ResutlsEverything You Need To Know To Find The Best medical beds for saleHow to Remove Surgical Staples [+ Free Cheat Sheet]How often should prosthetic liners be replaced?STIs and STDs are common. April of every year is STD Awareness Month, dedicated to improving understanding of these health conditions. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that on any given day in , 1 out of every 5 people in this country had an STI. To make matters worse, their symptoms can be silent, meaning an infection can be passed unknowingly between partners whenever they have unprotected sex.
&#;Screening for sexually transmitted infections should be part of every annual well-woman visit,&#; says Amanda Henne, MD, OB-GYN with Ochsner Health. &#;Your gynecologist will likely ask you questions about your sexual practices to better assess if you&#;re at higher risk and to help guide screening recommendations.&#;
Some questions you&#;re likely to be asked include:
Are your sexual partner(s) men, women, or both?
How many sexual partners have you had?
What kind of sexual contact are you having or have you had in the past? Genital, anal, oral?
Are you and your partner(s) using protection against STIs?
Have you or your partner ever been diagnosed with an STI?
3. Do I really need to do a monthly breast exam?
You might if you&#;re at a higher-than-average risk of breast cancer (for example, you have a mother, sister, or child with breast cancer).
If you&#;re at average risk, both the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the American Cancer Society say that a breast self-exam is not essential, as there&#;s little evidence that it detects cancer or improves survival rates. These experts also note that many women normally have lumpy, bumpy breasts, so a self exam can produce a lot of needless worry and unnecessary biopsies. What experts do recommend, however, is developing &#;breast self-awareness.&#; To do that, they advise that you become familiar with the way your breasts look and feel so if changes do occur you can spot them early and talk about them with your health care provider.
&#;In the average-risk patient, it&#;s recommended [by ACOG] to have a clinical breast exam [which is performed by a healthcare provider] every one to three years from ages 25-39 and annually at age 40; yearly mammograms should also begin at age 40,&#; says Caitlyn Ranger, MD, an OB-GYN at Ochsner Health. &#;These recommendations may differ for someone who has a higher lifetime risk based on their own or their family history.&#; Additionally, the American Cancer Society no longer recommends routine clinical breast exams, so it&#;s good to ask an OB-GYN or your primary care provider about what&#;s best for you.
4. Am I the only woman in America who&#;s not that interested in sex?
You&#;re in good company. &#;Female sexual interest/arousal disorder, often referred to as decreased libido or sex drive, is extremely common. In fact, approximately 43% of American women report sexual dysfunction at some point in their life,&#; says Dr. Henne.
What can cause a sex slump? A lot of things, including:
Sleep disturbances
Certain
medications
, such as some
antidepressants
and anti-anxiety drugs
Medical conditions like
diabetes
Hormonal fluctuations
Relationship problems
&#;It&#;s important that your physician knows your medical, social, and surgical history, as well as the medications and over-the-counter supplements you&#;re taking,&#; says Dr. Henne. &#;This may help in diagnosing the underlying cause of your sexual dysfunction and guide the treatment options, which can range from lifestyle modifications, exercises, and therapy to certain medications.&#;
5. Am I using the right birth control?
As your life and your relationships change, so might your birth control method. What seemed like a good choice when you were 25 and dating may not be the optimal option when you&#;re 40, married, and have completed your family.
When choosing the right contraceptive for you, you and your health care provider need to ask a number of questions. For example, how often do you have sex? Are you in a mutually monogamous relationship? Do you want children in the near future? Do you have any health risks that would eliminate certain birth control options (e.g., women over 35 who smoke or women at high risk of heart disease shouldn&#;t use certain birth control methods containing hormones). Based on the answers, you and your healthcare provider can narrow down your choices and select the right option for you.
RELATED: Questions to ask a gynecologist before pregnancy
What questions do providers ask at a well-woman exam?
As part of your well-woman exam, your healthcare provider will ask you routine questions to get a better sense of your overall and sexual health. These are aimed at better understanding your reproductive health, and if any additional screenings might be necessary. Some common questions your healthcare provider might ask include:
Are you sexually active?
Are you using birth control or STI protection?
Are you happy with your birth control method?
Do you feel safe with your sexual partner?
Are your periods regular?
Do you have any pain or bleeding during sex?
Have you noticed any changes in the appearance or odor of your vaginal discharge?
Are you experiencing any itching or unusual sores?
Have you done a breast check recently?
Has anything else in your medical history changed since your last visit?
These questions might feel uncomfortable, or too personal. But they are necessary to give your provider a full picture of your health. Try to answer as openly and honestly as you can.
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