Jenna

Jenna, 29 Years Old

I was diagnosed with HPV my second year of college. I was just 19 years old at the time. My male doctor was not exactly sympathetic about it. In fact, he went out of his way to make me feel like I had done something wrong, like I was a bad person for having sex. He said that we would not worry about it yet, that he would just watch it. Needless to say, after that really unpleasant experience I disregarded my next three abnormal pap smears. When I was young, my preferred way of dealing with things was to just ignore them.

When I had a pap smear done after my second child was born when I was 24, my HPV had become carcinoma in situ. I decided to face up to my fears and faced it head on. They did a punch biopsy on me. It really hurt! A LEEP was used for treatment.

Since my treatment, I have had two more beautiful children. I have not had any problems since I was treated. All of my pap smears for the last five years have been completely normal.

I have grown up a lot since I first had to deal with the HPV and then the carcinoma in situ. I don’t run from things anymore like I used to. I have come to realize how lucky I am. Because I put things off for so long, I could have died!

I am very supportive of the HPV vaccine. I wish that it had been available for me when I was a kid. I feel reassured knowing that my two daughters will be able to get it and not go through what I have gone through.

Lessons Learned from Jenna’s Story

· If your doctor makes you feel uncomfortable, find a new doctor.

Pap smears should be done regularly to detect any abnormalities. It is never okay to skip a pap smear.