How it changed my life!

A little about me

So, 2021 came along, and we went again for my 4th STD Test – and what a surprise eye-roll! We’re with HPV-positive Test results still! But, no cell changes, so that wasn’t so bad.

But I thought, f**k this – I can’t carry on like this; I felt like I was dodging fate and I was never going to be free of STDs; testing was my life now, of constant back and forth, anxious waiting and further testing.

So, I did some research; something needed to change!

Hi Everyone

I don’t post on here often. However, today, I have had some fantastic news. It’s been a long road, and hopefully, I can share how I managed to clear it in the hope that someone can take some comfort.

My experience began in 2018 when I turned 31. They just started doing HPV Home testing in my area. I had been getting regular smears since I was 25, and all of them were clear. The usual three-yearly letters came in the post asking me to take a smear test. So off I went (the day we were due to fly on holiday) for my smear, and I never thought about it. After the vacation, the results lay there: “HPV Type Positive” – wtf?! The only thing that stuck with me from that letter is that if it didn’t go away, it could turn into cancer. I was an absolute mess. I couldn’t eat or sleep as I felt so scared like death was impending upon me. The letter gave no information; it wasn’t clear what “it” was. The letter was awful, though.

But I managed to book an appointment with a male GP, who was fantastic. He gave me some perspective on what I was dealing with and reassured me to move forward.

Fast forward to 2019, I was called up for my yearly smear, which again came back as HPV Positive – FFS! However, I felt slightly calmer about it, as I had to return in a year. I thought it’d be over by next year – yeah, right.

NEXT STEPS

2020 came around, and Off I shuffled for my THIRD STD Smear Test, waited anxiously for my results, hoping and praying this rotten HPV would have cleared off – because, sure, “people tend to clear it in 2 years” – what a load of old tosh!

My results came back, which said I was still getting HPV test results, but this time, I had low-grade cell changes. Well, that just did it for me; I was well and truly over that cliff edge. The reality of it hit me like a train. The thought of having a 6-8 week wait for a colposcopy didn’t sit well with me. I was a total mess.

So I thought, bugger this, I went private and had a colposcopy booked in the week later. It cost me an arm and a leg, but for the sake of my sanity, it was worth it.

I saw this incredible consultant who felt it was CIN 1 / 2 but that the biopsies would confirm further. He told me I would get the results in a week—well, that was the longest week of my life, no joke!

My results came back, and I didn’t have CIN 1 / 2—but it was purely inflammation, and there were no cell changes. I was delighted and felt like the world had been lifted off my shoulders! He said I could go back to a 3-year recall, but I begged him not to do that and asked if I could be seen again the following year to make sure—luckily, he agreed.

THE CHANGE

I bought some AHCC from Time Health for myself and used to take six tablets a day for three months. I also took high-strength vitamin D (1000 mg) with multivitamins from Vitabiotics, a blend of WellWoman and Imunace Extra HPV. Additionally, I consumed many doses of turmeric every day.

I tried to eat healthier, drink less alcohol and exercise more, but it was hard to support a family and work full-time, so I did the best I could. I fought to get clear HPV Lab test results.

Anyway, June 2022 came, and my letter went through the mail, and that scary nausea feeling came back, bringing back all those bad feelings of fear and anxiety.

I prayed and hoped (you know when it’s 11:11 and you see magpies on the steering wheel?!) that I would get a negative result because I honestly felt I could not continue my life like this.

And today, I get my results… and it’s NEGATIVE! PRAISE THE LORD!!!

But my message to all girls experiencing this situation is never to give up hope. It took me four years to get here, and all the nonsense that says it will take “two years to clear” is untrue. Even though it seems like a never-ending cycle, it doesn’t mean something terrible will happen; you will eventually get there. Persevere, stay well, take those supplements, and boost your immune system!

You’ll get there x

Comments:

Your story and mine are very similar. STD Home tests are positive. I am 58 years old, and up until this year, my smears were clear. However, I was informed by HPV Urine Tests both last year and this year that I have the virus. It is HPV16, as confirmed by an STD Superdrug Home Test I performed. Excellent. Like you, I’ll spend the rest of my life in the waiting game. Watching to see how things work out. Like you, I take four to six tablets daily, multivitamins, green tea extract, vitamin D, and two cups of green tea. I have also read about the positive results of AHCC.

I am trying to keep my stress levels down, too. My colposcopy was fine. No biopsies are needed, so I hope it stays that way. If nothing else, I feel I am making the right changes to keep a check on the HPV.