MammoOUCH!!!

[ellenkushner]

Got my annual mammogram yesterday - and this year it really lived up to our nickname of "tit-squish" - yeowch! It really hurt! I would keep this info to myself, but 24 hours later I'm still quite sore ETA on both sides - feels like a bad bruise - no visible marks, but tender to the touch.  I am, ah, not a large woman.  But I've had a quite a few of these over the years, and oh my darling it's never felt like this.

Did they do something wrong?  Did I? Is there something I can do next time to prevent this?

Full disclosure:  For years, it never hurt at all, and I couldn't figure out what all the fuss was about.  In the last few years (when I have gained more body fat - more for them to seize hold of? or am I still so small that they need to get a good handful of muscle as well into the machine?) it's been kinda unpleasant, but not hurt afterwards.... What gives?

And let me just sternly add that if you have not had yours yet this year, don't use this as an excuse to avoid it!  Because (a) It probably won't hurt at all, and (b) even if it does, you just have to be brave for, like, 11 seconds.  And you can do that.

Just make someone take you for ice cream, after.  You can do that if you're brave.

Comments

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

Even for my tiny ones, they did 2 photos each - from different angles. But at least they let them go between pics: I mean, if you really look at the time it takes during which pain happens: There's some discomfort as they arrange you, but only when they clamp the vice down that it hurts like the dickens if it's gonna. So it's: Arrange, Clamp>Yeowch! - tech goes to machine (5 secs?), hold your breath while they take the picture (5-8 secs?) > Blessed Relief. Repeat this 3+ times, but it's not like you're in agony for 10 solid minutes . . . unless you had a really ugly technician?