HPV & Guilt

wanneda

I agree, It can be very confusing.

I am not sure how long a particular HPV virus remains dormant (in an infected person) before flaring up, but it appears to be a very long time. This may explain your present enigma. It is quite possible that you are both infected with the two strains but are reacting differently.

It is interesting that you hold your bf responsible for your infection. This may or may not be so . Remember that you could have been infected with your very first sexual encounter!...your bf may not have been involved (only you would know...smile).

It is possible too, that you may have infected him...a hard pill to swallow.

You said you were not diagnosed with genital warts, however warts tend to be more visible when present in the male than in the female. The lack of a visible presence does not mean the absence of warts..it may or may not be the case.

Having said all the gory stuff, let me hasten to reassure you that you are on the right track, having done the cryo-treatment. It's very effective in burning off cells that are pre-disposed to cancer. What is important however, is the follow-up care. Your doctor would have given you a list of guidlines to follow that would help prevent any re-occurrence. You would most certainly have been advised do do regular papsmears...every the to six months. It is not unusual for some women to have to repeat the cryosurgery a number of times.

It is good that you and your bf practice monogamy, but remember that while you are being treated, he must be treated as well. That should take care of things and help put both your minds at rest.
Do however follow your doctor's advice. Once detected early, infections can be controlled and or treated.

Learn to build trust and avoid pointing fingers of blame! You are both in this together!

Do Keep us posted.
Goodluck!

Selene71

Hi wanneda,

Oh, trust me, my boyfriend and I have gone through this issue together with nothing BUT trust and love for one another--I only said he "most likely" was the one that had transmitted to me because he's had numerous unprotected sex relationships, and I have not--except for him and with my ex husband almost 10 years ago(but I do realize that condoms do not protect you fully from HPV and it can lay dormant in the system ) and yes, we're both in this together, for life(we're planning on getting married in the next year) We both did research on this issue when I first told him, and we both came up with the conclusion that he would be the one most likely to have brought this into our relationship.

I've been on the Pill for 15 years, and have religiously gone for paps 1-2 times a year since the first year. I'm suprised that this year was the first time I've had an abnormal pap.

Wouldn't my doctor be able to diagnose me with both strains instead of one, if the warts had been present? She advised me that I don't have to worry about getting the wart type as long as my boyfriend and I were practicing monogamy, which we are. We are both concerned about how this will affect my chances of getting cervical cancer. I've been following the guidelines that my doctor has advised, and am prepared to repeat cryo if necessary. I'm hoping I'll be clear next month, however.

I know this is something that we have for life, and it's more common than people may believe, but I'm hoping that having both strains will not be difficult to control. Right now, I'm not worried about anything but spending a long, wonderful life with my true love. Anyone out there have both strains and have it under control?

wanneda

Sounds good to me...the management of emotions, togetherness and all else! You WILL conquer!!

Re abnormal/normal papsmear: I had consistently been having normal paps for 20 years and been involved in a monogamous relationship for the said time.
It happened on this particular occasion that the pathologist's report had recommended a three-year repeat which I had planned on ignoring (I had grown comfortable with yearly)....

then a funny thing happened; I confused the dates and had another pap done six months later (am baffled to this day!). Imagine my astonishment and my doctor's (not to mention my H's) when the very lab returned a negative result.

It was a time when 'trust' was sorely tested!...on both sides!

I did go through the colposcopy/cryo treatment, and I've often wondered whether some mistake had been made made. The specialist however had every reason to err on the side of caution so regular paps every six months since...they have thus far been normal...that was 5 years ago.

Good luck and all the best to you and yours...my congratulations!...I sense lasting love and commitment...you'll be alright for sure!!

Selene71

Thank you, wanneda

Here's to normal paps for all of us!

brownie12

I found out I had HPV the day after 9/11. My mom fell to her knees and said "I don't want you to be that kind of girl." I had only had sex with a small number of boys but I instantly felt like a *****. No matter how rational I was in other parts of my life, I began to believe I brought this upon myself. That I deserved it. I had abnormal paps and biopsies for the next four years and got a LEEP last week. I don't yet if they got all the abnormal cells but ready to be done with it.

CarpeDiem2006

Not sure if you know but technically the virus can "clear" itself out of your body after a period of time due to immunity (according to my doc)--that is why many women never experience abnormal paps again...not meaning you are not contagious but probably less contagious (completely not the case for Herpes which is highly contagious). I know this sounds weird but many viruses become less potent with time because your body starts fighting them off.

Also, make sure you see your paperwork. I was misdiagnosed with HPV years ago because I had an abnormal pap.....many docs will say cervical changes are HPV if you are young because typically this problem arises from sexually transmission but not always. Also, it could also be a fluke of nature. When I read my paperwork years later to my surprise, it said it was "suggestive but definitely not diagnostic of HPV"....it also said I only had 1 of 2 cellular changes you need to make the diagnosis.......interesting how the doc left that out until my current doc noticed that. I would only trust the lab report.......

Selene71

Hiya beez! Welcome back! I go in for my first follow-up after Cryo next Wednesday, and I'm a bit nervous. I'm also going to tell my doc about my BF having genital warts--I still don't understand how I could have the other type and not the wart kind. But at this point, I'm just hoping for a good pap.