this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2023
20 points (100.0% liked)
Chat
7498 readers
20 users here now
Relaxed section for discussion and debate that doesn't fit anywhere else. Whether it's advice, how your week is going, a link that's at the back of your mind, or something like that, it can likely go here.
Subcommunities on Beehaw:
This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I'd guess the change on cervical exam was the nurse/doctor that did it. But as we get older, there is less natural lubrication (probably why they use gallons of lube on the speculum). If it happens next time, mention it to the doc/nurse. They can give suggestions for making it less painful (assuming they don't suck, and tell you it's all in your head). IIRC where you are in your cycle can also play a role (don't quote me on that).
To answer your original questions, I think they generally get more invasive, so yeah, but as technology has improved, exams have become far less awful overall.
It could also be that they've used a larger speculum. Makes a huge difference.