Well woman exams are the foundation of great women’s health and should never be overlooked. These routine visits are similar to your primary care physicals but focus specifically on reproductive health and wellness.
During a Well Woman exam, your past medical, social, current, and family histories are reviewed, your blood pressure and heart rate are evaluated, and a basic physical exam, including a breast and pelvic exam, are performed.
These are just some of the topics you can cover during your well-woman exams. Because so many of these issues are personal, finding a practitioner you can get to know, and trust is a critical part of reaching and maintaining optimal health.
Women Wise Holistic Healthcare and Wellness is also a trauma-informed practice that values and promotes a soothing, positive, and curated environment.
Your practitioner understands the unique gynecologic needs and sensitivity required of women who have survived physical, sexual and emotional abuse. They take the utmost care to assist women in feeling safe and empowered during their examinations. If someone is ever uncomfortable during the examination process, the choice to stop the examination is ALWAYS an OPTION and respected.
Pap Smears are recommended every 3 years between the ages of 21-65 unless your pap smear is abnormal. It is often paired with additional HPV testing to aid and guide in care. Your practitioner discusses the screening timeline that’s right for your needs.
To perform the Pap Smear, your practitioner inserts a WARM speculum to visualize the cervix and gather a sample of cells from various areas of your cervix with a special spatula and brush. Those cells are examined under magnification by lab technicians trained in detecting precancerous and well as cancerous cell changes.
Any cultures that are recommended or requested are done next. Sometimes spotting occurs when the Pap or cultures are taken and that can potentially be expected. Next, your clinician will insert two fingers in your vagina, and the other outside hand pressing gently on the lower part of your abdomen and pelvis to help assess the uterus and ovaries and make sure everything is normal and healthy.
A well women exam can evoke nerves, especially for those that have experienced physical or sexual trauma. Because we have allocated an ample amount of time for our well woman exams, we can take our time during the process to ensure patients are as physically and emotionally comfortable as possible.
Eve informs every woman what sensations she will feel before she starts that part of the exam. This anticipatory guidance helps clients relax as much as possible and stay present allowing Eve to gather all the information she needs from the physical components of the exam. More importantly however, this allows the client experience and the patient's sense of safety to come first and be of foremost importance and value.