Janet - Interview 06

Age at interview: 49
Age at diagnosis: 37
Brief Outline:

Janet was diagnosed with CIN3 in 1996, aged 37. She was pregnant at the time but had to have a hysterectomy. It was a traumatic experience, and Janet is keen to raise awareness of cervical screening and CIN 3.

Background:

Janet does occasional nursing and teaching Ethnic background / nationality' White British

More about me...

In 1995, when Janet was working as a senior nurse, she started having heavy periods. She suspected something was wrong and, though she had not had a smear test in over ten years, she made an appointment to have one at her local surgery. Shortly afterwards, she received a phone call from her GP, who told her that she would need to have further tests.

Janet was 37 at the time and did not yet know that she was actually pregnant. After tests, she was diagnosed with CIN3 and told that she would need a hysterectomy. This came as a huge shock and was an extremely difficult time. Janet would have liked to have been given more information about saving her eggs so that she could have had children in the future, but this was not discussed with her. She felt rushed into having surgery and the whole experience was very traumatic. She had not had any children and would have liked to have had a family. She said, ‘It’s a very traumatising experience, and I think that you come to terms with it but you never quite get over it.’

After the hysterectomy, Janet became depressed and found the loss of her fertility difficult to come to terms with, as well as having an early menopause. She had 3-monthly follow-up appointments at first, followed by 6-monthly and then annual appointments. She advises women to attend for cervical screening and to ask for a second opinion if they are unsure about having the treatment that they have been offered.

Janet felt that, because she was still young, friends found it difficult to talk to her about her...

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Janet felt that, because she was still young, friends found it difficult to talk to her about her...

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I think a lot of it is my age, you know. Not that I wish it upon anybody at any age. But if you were kind of like in your mid fifties and had a family and everything... I think a lot of people found it very, very difficult that I was relatively young, and they actually found it difficult to deal with themselves. That was the impression I got from people. I was finding it very, very difficult. Not just family, but also like the professionals, they found it quite difficult as well, you know.

A couple of friends like me, they were nurses, one was a doctor, but they found it... they, who were very supportive, found it very, very uncomfortable. And very frightening. I mean one of my friends that did help me said to me, “It’s every woman’s worst nightmare.”

When Janet had a hysterectomy, she also lost her unborn baby. Her partner was very upset and they...

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When Janet had a hysterectomy, she also lost her unborn baby. Her partner was very upset and they...

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My partner – we’ve split up – I don’t think he was supportive, I don’t think anyone that knew me felt I was given adequate time to really take it in and deal with it. I think it was kind of like, “We need to do this…” It was very, very clinical. “One, two, three let’s go, let’s get it over with. That’s it.” You know. Which I can understand, I can understand where they’re coming from.

……My partner was very, very upset. Because, you know, we’d had all the, yeah especially when he knew, because he knew about the baby and everything else. He found it very, very difficult. Because for him, he had the real guilt problems, thinking it was his fault. And I had, we both had very guilty feelings.

Having a hysterectomy was traumatic because Janet had always wanted to have children. She felt...

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Having a hysterectomy was traumatic because Janet had always wanted to have children. She felt...

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I was only thirty six or thirty seven. It was absolutely horrific, you know, when everybody around you is getting married, having babies, and I’m having an operation. I’m aware that it can affect women, young women just as much as older women. It was to me like a lady who’s 80 sort of operation, and here I was, planning to have a family, and I had to have a hysterectomy. It was awful. Absolutely horrendous.

Well the whole thing, it’s just like a nightmare, it’s just unbelievable. Anyway I went in reluctantly. I was very, very reluctant to have the operation. It took a lot of people just to persuade me to go in. Because basically, it was so final. And I was quite annoyed because they seemed to totally overlook the fact that I wasn’t informed that my eggs could’ve been saved. And that made me quite angry because nobody seemed to be concerned about that. All they wanted to do was get the operation done, finished. It needed radical surgery that’ll fix it.

…I think it’s a very traumatising experience and I think that you come to terms with it but you never quite ever get over it. It’s caused me to get quite depressed.