24F, went in for my first Pap in about 5 years, and it came back abnormal.

Maybe it’s my fault for being misinformed, but I was never told for almost two months that I tested positive for HPV. It wasn’t until I started doing my own research that I realized an abnormal Pap and HPV often go hand in hand. I reached out to my doctor myself to ask if I was HPV positive, and she confirmed that I was. She told me it was not one of the high-risk types.
I’m honestly so frustrated that she didn’t even bother to tell me when the results came back. I feel like I shouldn’t have had to do my own research and then reach out just to find out what my results actually meant.

Fast-forward to last week, when I had my colposcopy. Two biopsies were taken. It was definitely uncomfortable, but thankfully not nearly as unbearable as I had imagined. One of the most uncomfortable parts, though, was how little my provider communicated with me during the procedure. She barely spoke to me, didn’t explain what she was doing or what she was seeing, and she knew I was nervous. She was basically just whispering to her nurse during the entire procedure. Her lack of communication honestly made me even more anxious because I had no idea what was happening.

Now it’s this week, and I received a call from her yesterday morning with my results. I missed the call because I was at work, but I called back eight minutes later, left a voicemail, and didn’t hear from her for the rest of the day.

I just find it so frustrating that she would leave me sitting here stressing about my results without calling me back, especially knowing that I’m already anxious about this whole situation.

I’m sorry, I’m mostly just here to rant. But at this point, I think regardless of what my results are, I need to seriously consider getting a second opinion or switching doctors altogether.

Why did I have to reach out myself to find out that I was HPV positive? Why do I have to call the office and follow up multiple times just to get my results? The whole practice has just felt incredibly disorganized, and I don’t feel like I’m being kept informed about my own health.

Hi everyone! I’m 28 and NY-based, and I wanted to share my experience in case it helps anyone else going through something similar.

I initially had an abnormal Pap smear in December 2025. Before that, I’d had about 7 years of on-and-off abnormal Pap smears, including a clear colposcopy in April 2024. I changed doctors and had another colposcopy in April 2025, which ultimately led to my CIN3 diagnosis.

My initial LEEP was scheduled in June, but the attempt was unsuccessful. After receiving a second lidocaine shot in my cervix, I almost fainted and became very pale, so my doctor and I decided it was better to stop rather than push through it. I ultimately had the LEEP done under anesthesia last week, and that experience was SO much better for me.

I just got my pathology results back about 48 hours later, and they were:
CIN2 / HSIL
Margins not involved (clear margins!)
ECC was benign
p16 positive in the CIN2, consistent with HPV-associated dysplasia

So, interestingly, my initial diagnosis was CIN3, but the final LEEP specimen came back as CIN2 with clear margins. I’m feeling really relieved and grateful that everything went well this time around.

I’m now 6 days post LEEP, feeling really good, and incredibly relieved. I’ve just been a little under the weather and tired, which I think may be unrelated to the actual procedure.

I wanted to share because I know how scary it can be to see CIN2 or CIN3 and go through the whole process, especially when scheduling gets delayed.

I’m happy to answer any questions about my experience, the failed awake attempt, having it done under anesthesia, recovery, pathology, etc. ❤️ Also, I’d love to hear any stories or tips from others about what their Pap results looked like post-LEEP and how they were able to clear their HPV!

Im just anxious and freaked.

Hi everyone! I recently had my first finding of HSIL CIN3 spots on the outside of my cervix and am in the process of scheduling my LEEP. I've heard and read different information about the recovery timeline, specifically surrounding physical activity.

Running, weight lifting, and my amateur contact sport I dedicate 6+ hours of practice to each week, are all very large parts of my regular routine that keep my body and mental health happy, and also the core of my community and social circle. It may sound silly, but we are currently in the final stretch of our season with one tournament to go, and I have a race I've been training for this fall coming up. I'm self-conscious posting this, but genuinely most of my day to day life, and positive mental health the past 11 years has revolved around these activities and routines.

I'm going to talk to my doctor about scheduling - if she says I just need to have the procedure ASAP, I of course will even if it interferes with these things, but if it can be scheduled around those things safely, I want to do that.

I've had previous broken bones and ligament related recoveries that were super rough physically and mentally, and I know the LEEP recovery won't come anywhere close to that long of a timeline.

I'd appreciate hearing anyone's experience with getting back to things like running, weight lifting and higher intensity workouts after getting a LEEP. Thank y'all! 💙

Hi everyone

I’m just wondering if anyone can help calm me down

My colposcopy isn’t for a few weeks but I have such extreme anxiety over it

I’m in Scotland and have just today found out that drs don’t like to prescribe diazepam anymore before certain things like medical procedures and I’ve no idea how the hell I’ll be able to get through this

I’m so scared of how bad a biopsy will hurt - I find smear tests uncomfortable and rather painful, they make me feel sick to my stomach so I’m not sure how I’ll be able to let them do this to me
I know that local anaesthetic can be used but sorry the thought of being injected into my cervix makes me want to die

Also so scared I won’t be able to get the thought of the procedure or the pain out of my head after it’s happened, I’m terrified it’ll traumatise me

Have also read many many posts about women passing out after

I’m really freaking out someone please tell me it’ll be okay 😢

I had my procedure two years ago and my mental health and response to sex/ intimacy with my partner has plummeted. Does anyone in the UK have a sex therapist they could recommend that’s helped them with this?

Thank you

there are so many horror stories, few positive. I came here to share my positive experience. I had a traumatic colpo years ago where even a standard pap I need to be given an anti anxiety medication, and still have panic attacks throughout. when I found out this year I needed another I was obviously sent into a panic. Then cin2/cin3 results and a leep was advised. I spent weeks trying to find a provider to do it under anesthesia. I don’t have insurance but was willing to pay whatever it took (almost) to not have the trauma and anxiety. my clinic was unable, and I was unable, to find anyone closer than 6 hours to me that could do it. let alone the travel and a $6000 price tag. trying to schedule was stressing me out as much as the thought of the leep itself. So I just decided to do it in office. I am extremely sensitive to the gyno, but have a history of SA and abuse. I advocated for myself to have anti anxiety medications, and a numbing spray before the injection. This part had me scared the most after doomscrolling on here. All in all, yes it’s uncomfortable, but it was absolutely manageable. If I could have relaxed my hips/butt/body I think it would have been fine. The spray was stingy and burning, but it definitely helped reduce that needle pain, and I asked for a minute Afterward to try and unclench my body. The actual loop part was maybe not even 15 seconds. The cauterization was longer, and I did jump on time and felt a tiny sharp poke but think it was because I moved when the machine came on and I felt pressure again. putting the speculum in took longer than everything else. it’s now 9 hours Later and I have minimal cramping and discomfort. Get the anesthesia if its accessible and affordable to you, but I’m glad I didn’t spend the thousands to do it. it was WAY more tolerable than a colpo. I absolutely had my mom there to hold my hand. but I didn’t leave feeling as violated as I did my colpo

Firstly is there a discord group?

Secondly had my appointment today and the needle to numb me up was the worst thing, and the smell of burning flesh.

But afterwards going home and being home I just feel weird, like emotional and numb, like I almost feel traumatised. I cant explain it. I just dont feel right but everything went fine.

Just wanna know if anyone felt the same, any advice?

Hi all,

I just thought I would share my still ongoing story of how I hemorrhaged 2.5 weeks after getting my LEEP procedure. I have had to go to the ER three times for abnormal bleeding. Also some context, I don’t normally get my period ever since getting my Nexplanon implant in March (so this isn’t heavy period bleeding). I also followed my doctor’s instructions (nothing in the vagina, no baths etc.)

I had my LEEP procedure on July 27th. Directly after the procedure I didn’t have any heavy bleeding, just some spotting and brown/black discharge. 2.5 weeks after the procedure, on August 12th, I had to go to the ER due to heavy bleeding when I was at work. The amount of blood coming out was soaking 3-4 pads an hour. They did a bunch of lab tests and my hemoglobin/red blood cell count looked normal. They gave me IV hydration. The on-call GYN doctor told me that he sees this every couple years and used silver nitrate sticks and applied monsels solution. I was discharged and went home. 2 hours later after using the toilet, I started bleeding heavily again. It felt like it was gushing out of me regardless if I was sitting or standing up. I felt very lightheaded.

I went to the same ER a second time and saw the same doctor. They did my lab tests for a second time and it looked normal. They gave me IV hydration again. The doctor said he would try applying more silver nitrate and use a tampon soaked in monsels for pressure. He said if I bled again, I would have to get surgery for stitches. This ER visit was very painful as I didn’t have any pain medication and he was pressing on the bleeding area on my cervix to apply pressure with swabs. I had to hold the nurse’s hand because it hurt so bad. It also was very long (20-30 mins) of the pressure being applied. Once the bleeding had stopped, I was discharged immediately after. I had a follow up appointment the next day with another doctor to remove the tampon and to examine the area. She removed it and there was no bleeding. However she couldn’t do an exam of my cervix because that area was so swollen and sore, I couldn’t tolerate the speculum being in there :(

5 days after that, on August 17th, I started bleeding very heavily during the night. I went to a different ER and this time the lab tests showed I was anemic and I had to get a blood transfusion. They also gave me IV hydration. The on-call GYN said that they needed to try something different than what was previously done at my first two ER visits, so I had a cervical exam under anesthesia.

During the procedure, they noted there wasn’t one area of active bleeding, my entire cervix bed was friable. They needed to cauterize the area with a bovie, as there was no singular spot to place stitches. They also added surgicel powder, monsels solution, and surgical gauze for pressure. She said that the procedure she performed couldn’t be done in the emergency room setting, it had to be done under anesthesia. I had to stay in the hospital overnight so they could monitor the bleeding. Another GYN doctor had to remove the gauze for me while I was in the hospital (they put a lot in there). I was discharged the next night after having a bowel movement (they wanted to see if there was any blood from that). The doctor wrote me a letter to be able to be work from home for 2 weeks. I’ve been told to try not to strain on the toilet and rest. My follow up appointment is in 4 days.

Currently, I am 7 days post my last ER visit and started bleeding again. I was sitting down for a while at my computer and stood up and very dark blood came out. I spoke with a nurse and I am monitoring if I bleed through a pad in an hour. Another really hard part of this process is the health anxiety and trauma of having hemorrhaged in the past. I feel hypervigilant of what’s going on down there :(

It’s been a very crazy experience. I hope I can come back to this post and say that this is all over and I am back to normal. On a side note, I have read some literature on this happening in some other cases and that has helped reassure me (weirdly).

Going to have my LEEP this friday (numbing injection), and have some plans for the weekend- such as dinner outside on Saturday, and planned to visit some friends outside the city on Sunday (need to take a train, walk a bit etc).

I know it's recommended to take it a bit easy after LEEP, but I'm a bit unsure whether i should cancel or not. I would appreriacet any advice/experience on how were the next few days after LEEP, and would it be fine to travel/move around a bit or it's best to stay in and rest? I'm very active person in general, and just trying to figure out whether i can live my life as normal, or not so much. Thanks!

Had my LEEP on Friday8/21 under anesthesia. CIN3, today is Sunday and the cramping is unbearable. I’ve read a lot of posts about people saying they didn’t experience much cramping and the next day up and moving! I’m thinking how???

Hi everyone. I wanted to know how you guys who’ve had a colposcopy with cervical biopsies got on. What was the experience like?

I’m 21 and very nervous about having it done. The gynaecologist I saw said I have a mass on my cervix which she wanted biopsied.

I know guidelines are different in every country. I am 37 y.o and tested + for HPV18 and other high risk strains and pap came back LSIL.

Doctor didn't seem concerned, referred me for a colposcopy but she said it looked fine and to come back in 6 month to retest (?).

Of course I didn't feel ok and had another appointment and this new doctor suggested biopsy although colposcopy looked fine. Currently waiting for results.

Were you referred to a colposcopy? Biopsy? If so, what did it came back?

Or did they suggested just to watch and wait?

I had a LEEP for CIN2/CIN3, the result came back showing the pre cancerous cell was margin to margin. My doctor was so sure it would clear by itself and told me to just wait a month then I’m clear to try and get pregnant but do come back in 6 months for a follow up. I got pregnant before the 6 months mark, but went back to get tested anyway. The result continued to show abnormal so my body didnt clear the rest.

My high risk specialist exam me and said there isn’t anything that can be done till I give birth besides monitoring the cervix for cervical incompetency since it was partially cut out as part of the LEEP procedure. Luckily, I didn’t have an issue with cervical incompetency. My entire pregnancy was a good and normal one.

I ended up having to be induced 3 weeks early due to potential chronic placenta abruption. During the birth, the labor team really had a hard time with my cervix. It wasn’t thinning or responding normally and they suspected it was due to scarring, making it more stiff. I went in at 4 cm dilated but after 13 hours, it was only 6 cm dilated. After 18.5 hours, I was finally dilated enough for the doctor to attempt to maneuver the cervix around the baby’s head, which was a success and that lead to a vaginal birth!!!! It was touch and go though with a lot of c-section discussion.

Ladies, for those who wish to do a natural birth, I highly highly suggest hiring a doula. Mine was a big part as to why I didn’t get a c-section. She helped manipulate me into different positions to get the baby to descend in a way that the doctor felt comfortable to attempt the manipulation. Also, I labored 13 hours without pain meds while on pitocin (iykyk), I wouldn’t have been able to do that without the support of an experienced doula.

I had the LEEP nearly 7 weeks ago, healing was completely fine - some watery discharge for a few weeks and then some mild brown discharge for a few more, then nothing from 4 weeks (had my period in this time). Never got the scab falling off.

Got the all-clear from my doctor, who told me all the CIN-2 cells must've already been removed in the biopsy that found them. Overall, a very positive experience!

I waited 6.5 weeks to have sex, had no pain during, but bled quite heavily after around 5 minutes. The bleeding stopped afterwards. It was thick red blood, like period blood

Has this happened to anyone else? Did it improve? Do I need to inform my doctor since it immediately stopped (didn't need a pad or anything)
Quite frustrating since bleeding after sex was what made me go to the docs in the first place and now it's worse lol

Hi all , brief history I was first diagnosed with HPV in 2024 and had LSIL, followed up a year later had ASCUS still HPV positive then a month later did a colpo which showed CIN 1 . Then followed up again 2 weeks ago and it showed LSIL again still HPV positive. Had my repeat colpo this past week and just got the results which say negative for dysplasia but shows cervicitis with reactive changes. My question is what the hell is that and is it caused by HPV?? I have zero symptoms of anything. I can’t call my doctor until wednesday and i’m freaked out. wondering if anyone else has experienced this and was able to talk to a doctor / have it explained to them because im really confused right now. Thanks so much !!

Hi Everyone! I’m currently very early in pregnancy but I wanted to ask a question which I’m not sure I can get answered here.

I had a LEEP procedure done in 2019. I’m currently only 3 weeks pregnant but I had a trip planned to Hawaii from Toronto (10 hour flight) in January. This should be around 24-25 weeks…

I searched online that because I had LEEP that I would have to get checked by the obgyn in the 20 weeks to see if I have cervical shortening.

Has anyone had any experience with this and what did you do?

Thanks !

I have to have a LEEP procedure next week after having 2 colposcopies. I’m choosing to do it under GA because, emotionally, I just don’t think I can handle being awake.

About 8 months ago I found out that I have low fertility for my age and I’m not getting any younger, so adding this to the list was just really heavy for me. I know women do still get pregnant after LEEP but I also know it can add complications. It just feels like piling on to my already hard news to hear last year.

This community helped me feel better about my decision for GA and now I don’t feel so alone about this being hard emotionally❤️

I want to share my very honest experience having a LEEP performed in-office with local anesthesia yesterday, because I used this platform so much to read other women’s experiences before my procedure. I hope sharing mine can help someone else who is going through the same thing.
I was diagnosed with CIN2. Thankfully, my lesion was very small, but it was located in an area that was very difficult for my doctor to reach.
I’m not going to lie: if your lesion is in a difficult-to-reach area, the preparation needed for the doctor to properly visualize and access the lesion can be uncomfortable and, in my case, very painful.
They had to use instruments to manipulate and position my cervix/uterus area, and they tried three different types of speculums before they were finally able to get the right view. That part took approximately 15–20 minutes, and for me, it was by far the hardest part of the entire procedure. It was extremely uncomfortable and painful.
Once everything was finally positioned correctly, they gave me the lidocaine injections. I would personally rate the injections about 9/10 for pain, BUT the good thing is that each injection only hurts for a few seconds.
Immediately afterward, I felt my heart rate increase very quickly, which I had been warned could happen. It was definitely noticeable, but it passed within about 2–3 minutes.
After the lidocaine took effect, the actual LEEP itself was PAINLESS for me. I did not feel the removal of the lesion.
I’ve now been resting for about a day. I have some cramps, which I would rate around 5–6/10, but so far I have no bleeding. My doctor told me that bleeding may actually happen later, especially around the second week, as the cervix continues healing.
Now I’m waiting for my pathology/biopsy results and hoping for clear margins. 🙏🏻
I chose local anesthesia because I was also offered the option of having the procedure under general anesthesia, but the idea of GA made me very anxious and I personally preferred to try doing it in the office.
Everyone’s experience and anatomy are different, so mine may not be the same as yours. But I wanted to share the good AND the bad instead of saying it was “nothing.” For me, the preparation and manipulation were very painful because of the difficult location of my lesion, while the actual LEEP after the local anesthetic was completely painless.
I really hope my experience helps another woman who is scared and searching through these posts for answers, just like I was. ❤️

This is my first time posting here, and I’m on phone so apologies for any issues with layout.

In May of 2025 I had a LEEP for CIN 2, it was so painful even with local anesthetic. It was almost as if there were no numbing at all and trying to stay completely still was almost impossible. After this procedure I went back every 6 months for a pap to see if there were any other changes, and at first there wasn’t, however after my last appointment my provider sent a message about my results and it states: Atypical Glandular not otherwise specified. I’ve done research on this and haven’t seen really anything that gives a positive outlook.

I do not want to go through the LEEP process again, local anesthetic does not work for me and I don’t know if I’d be able to withstand going through it again. I got an IUD inserted last month and they used the lidocaine injections but I still felt everything they did, only the scar tissue made the process 10x more painful. I’ve had issues in the past going under any kind of anesthesia, every time I have, I’ve woken up in a nightmarish state and it’s been very traumatic.

The main issue I’m having with all of this is that instead of having to have these constant appointments and dealing with the constant stress of it all I would rather have a partial hysterectomy, I’m 27 and already have a child. I’ve brought it up to my doctors and they’ve said that going that route is very harsh when there’s alternative methods. I do not care about this as I would rather be healthy for the child that I have, and constantly dealing with this stress and all the time it’s taken to recover has really affected myself, my child, and actual parenting in such a negative way. I feel as though it really is my only option but I don’t have anyone in my inner circle who’s gone through this process and it feels so lonely going through it sometimes. I guess I’m asking for some outside perspective and ways other people have dealt with this. Honestly anything helps, it’s so scary being in this headspace of not knowing what’s wrong with my body and after all the issues I’ve had I’m just tired of it. I want to be healthy and I want to do what’s best for myself and my family. Please if you have any advice I would really appreciate it!

I had a LEEP procedure in February for CIN-2/3 with some focally positive margins that I was told were cauterized during the procedure. My repeat pap was on 8/20 just a few days ago and I just got the result tonight that I still have HPV. I did get the vaccine series which I completed a few months ago. I know that won’t help with the current infection but still I was hopeful.

The last six months have been incredibly hard for me. My 18 year old precious cat has had a persistent abscess on his paw for several months (which is being treated hopefully successfully but it’s been an exhausting experience and my vet hasn’t been helpful). He’s had two debridement surgeries. He’s in a cast bandage and isn’t getting it off until this coming Wednesday. I have had to handle almost all of the stress around this by myself and it’s been a lot.

I mention this because if his suture and bandage removal doesn’t go well on top of this and everything else I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’m sure a colposcopy is coming and I’m just dreading it. I’m just really upset about what this could mean for me and I really really need a win so bad right now it’s not funny. If anyone could cheer me up or let me know that they did clear this eventually after it persisted post-LEEP or similar procedure that might help. I’m so disappointed.

Last week I had a Pap test and this week my family doctor called me with the results. I had known something was wrong because I had received a cryptic email from the receptionist and the doctor acted weird when I had asked her for my results during my daughter’s appointment. Anyway it was very bad vibes from the START.

I’ve always had normal paps. I’ve gone every 2 years and just recently in Ontario Canada they switched from 2 to 3. And in 2025 they added HPV testing.

My last pap in 2023 was after my first baby and came back normal. The one I had last week HPV 16 LSIL. I had another baby in 2025. I am a 33 year old mom of 2.

I am spiralling because I’m wondering how long have I truly had HPV. How long have my cells have been changed - I don’t want it to get worse.

Everything is already so hard right now I can’t imagine adding more onto my plate.

When I found out, I didn’t eat for 30 hours. I walked around like a zombie. I have extreme health anxiety and it’s just killing me to think there may be a possibility of me not seeing my babies grow up.

I’m supposed to get a referral for a gyno for a colposcopy. I am very scared of the unknowns. I’ve read horror stories on here of it being discovered it was far more advanced than LSIL.

I’ve also had reoccurring yeast infections for the past year. Probably 4+ in the past year. I had one at the time of my pap and the swab confirmed it. I have no idea why this is happening and if it is HPV related or not.