hello Everyone.

I am due for my Leep August 19th. I am suffering extreme anxiety just imagining the needle entering my cervix. it seems so very invasive and painful.
Is there any way I can be completely put out, because I am afraid I may even cancel out on the whole procedure. if you have read my last post, I have CIN 111
and just had gallbladder surgery...so very recently I have been put under. I just don't think my mind and body can take any more stress and I think that being completely under is the way to go. My question is, will the doctor do this for me? I just can't wrap my mind around it. I am so very scared to get the needle that will numb me. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated.

~glorydots

Yes you can go under but it depends on the doctor. I would just have your doctor call in a xanax or valium before the procedure to calm you down. I had a LEEP and it was seriously nothing--the shot does not hurt--it's a pinch. THe only reason you hear a lot of people talking about it is that it's the only thing that you feel relative to the rest of the procedure. I promise you it will be FINE and afterwards you will laugh for causing yourself so much anxiety. I sure did.

Just a suggestion but have you tried contacting your doctor to move your LEEP up. The anxiety of waiting for the procedure is the worse part. I had my LEEP moved up a month because I was tired of obsessing about having CIS and worrying about the procedure. I had a very painful LEEP but it is because I'm resistant to the anesthesia they use to numb your cervix (which I should have guessed because I need 10+ shots to get a tooth filled - the anesthesia is very similar to what dentists use). However, this must all be put into perspective. The shots to your cervix don't hurt at all (and I'm needle phobic). They are less painful than the biopsy. The whole procedure takes less than 5 minutes. Plus, they need to "super" open the speculum so the uncomfortableness (but not pain) was enough to keep me occupied. The worse part of the LEEP (and this is from someone who actually felt the LEEP) is the emotional impact. Once the LEEP was finished, I had no pain. I'm usually in more pain when they ***** my finger for a blood sample.

It just seems like such a risk to use a general anesthesia where things could go really wrong and it is so much more strain on your body (but if that is what you need to get this done, please do it).

thank you both for your advice.

I was originally scheduled to have my leep yesterday. Unfortunately I had to reschedule because I urgently needed to get my gall bladder removed as it was in bad shape.
But it's funny that you mentioned the anesthetic. That is why I am afraid of needles. I have been joking around saying I hope it's not the same thing the dentist uses cause it does not work. I need over 15-25 nicks of the needle and gas when I go to the dentist because I don't numb easy.
I am afraid to feel any of the procedure incase I do not numb completely.
That is the only thing I fear.
To be honest with you, the biopsy was not as bad as I had worked it up to be....
So, I can't get in any earlier...unfortunately. SO i get to sweat over this for another month....
Should I tell my doctor that i do not numb easy??? or would she think I was just being paranoid and dumb?
Thanks for your advice guys...I really do appreciate it!
~glorydots

I would definately tell your doctor that you tend to be resistant to the anesthesia. I found that I reacted very similarly to how I react at the denist (which is also why I'm needle phobic). However, getting the shot in your cervix is MUCH less painful than getting a shot in your mouth. Your doctor should know how you react because she may want to try a different type of anesthesia or make sure that she gives you more shots than she would with a normal person. If she is aware of what is going on, I'm sure she will wait to make sure you are really numb (instead of just assuming). I really think if you were fine with the biopsies, you will be fine with this. But I think it is a good idea to have the doctor prescribe an anxiety reducer. If I had to do it over again (and I really hope that I never do), I would still go with the local but I'd have the doctor give me something to reduce the anxiety and I'd let her know that we may have to go with more than three shots of anesthesia.

Glory -
Don't worry - I am soooooo not receptive to the Novicaine either. The shot the Gyn. uses to numb the cervix has epinepherine in it. And it really works! It feels like a dull cramp - not even a pinch. The worst part is that the shot gives you a rush for about 5-10min. and your heart races. You won't feel a thing. I swear!
Just had mine last Wednesday and had four shots - four lesions removed - and one very deep one. I was so scared - but didn't cry until it was over and the doc left the room. Only because I had worked myself up so much and felt so silly. My emotions were all over the place. I look back and chuckle actually.
Anyways - please don't get all worked up. You will be fine, I promise.
Keep me posted girlfriend, and try to relax. :angel:

hey choznone.

Thanks so much for calming my nerves. I have a tendancy of getting all worked up and then when it actually happens, it's not all so bad.
But once I heard general anesthetic I just recalled all those moments in the dentists chair, after being numbed, and he would start working on my tooth and I would jump out of the chair. I cannot even begin to explain to you the pain I feel each and every time!!!!
If I thought the biopsy was a breeze (well not so much, after i had it done I got sick in the waiting room and was very light headed, but as for the pain of the whole procedure, it was close to zero)...so this should be a breeze too. I am trying to think positive. Not an easy task lol!
When do you get your results back? Is the waiting not worse than the whole procedure? that's what i found after my biopsy...the three weeks of just waiting.
Let me know how they turned out...
I will definately keep you in the loop.
Thanks again lady...you have been a godsend.

~glorydots

...and leave us not forget that there are very FEW nerves in the cervix! I mean think about...if there WERE lotsa nerve endings there, name ONE woman who'd agree to have a natural childbirth!!
;)

Good point csoar...I never even thought of that!!!
I feel so much calmer.
I also spoke to my doc's receptionist and I can take some kind of anxiety meds if I am that nervous, which I will consider doing. I just had gall bladder surgery so the meds in my house are endless!!!
Thank you so much for everything!

~glorydots