"Perhaps all pleasure is only relief." --William S. Burroughs
I am beyond grateful today; I've received in the mail a letter from my reproductive endocrinologist that states simply that my second Pap test was normal, and that annual checkups are all I need at this juncture.
Until that one negative result, I had always taken Pap tests with a proverbial grain of salt. I always assumed my tests would be within normal limits. But, as with anything else in life, you can't assume anything. Things change. Circumstances change. Your body changes.
I still would have any and every woman out there in the world take an annual Pap test. You may read this and think, well, I do, Stace. But there are many of you out there who avoid the subject because you don't have insurance, you don't have time, you don't want anyone testing anything that has anything to do with your private parts...whatever. Too bad. Check out the last few posts. It's not worth the risk of forgoing such an important annual screening. What if it's positive? At least you can jump right on top of the situation and get the treatment you need. Pre-cancer turns to cancer and cancer equals death. We all have to die sometimes, but cancer is not the way I choose to go. It's one of the most wretched, agonizing, painful ways to die. If you skip the test, you're just playing roulette with your health.
Sometimes being an adult sucks, in plain English. But you have to be responsible, not only for your own good but for the good of all who love you and depend upon you. Suck it up. Make that appointment for your Pap, breast exam and just general annual checkup today. And while you're at it, get your regular doctor to give you an overall wellness check and physical. If you don't even have a regular doctor (or primary care physician or family doctor), do not pass GO, do not collect two hundred dollars. What the hell is wrong with you? It's not worth letting your health go like that! Make the appointments. Pay the co-pays if you have insurance. Call up, get a quote and save up for the appointment fees, lab fees, and what not. I know you'd rather spend the money on a few coffees, a new outfit, a round of drinks for your friends on Friday night or whatever. But think about it. If you don't spend the money and the time making sure that you're healthy, and your health eventually goes to pot, then you won't be enjoying very many more coffees, outfits or drinks, now will you?
I'm sorry, but after having bronchitis for two weeks, laryngitis for a few days after that, and then getting up out of a sick bed to discover an ingrown toenail that required surgery (so back to bed for a day of recouperation), I can tell you truthfully, the quote "You've got nothing if you don't have your health" is my total mantra now. Being ill not only kept me from posting for the past few days...it kept me from everything! Get your priorities straight...you want all of the pleasurable relief you can possibly get from health tests that come back negative. A negative has never been such a positive for me until now!
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