Thank you for all your advice. I am trying to boost my immune system. I started to take multi vitamins, and started to eat healthy foods. As far as my stress level goes though, I just don't know how to control it. I am in Grad School, there are many family issues, and on top of everything now this! I am thinking of maybe signing up for Yoga classes, because I can't continue having this much stress in my life. Anyways, thank you everyone for letting me vent, I really need this.

Good Idea Google. Yoga would be great and you will be working out mind, body and spirit. Don't forget about SHOPPING!!!!!!!!!! Great exercise ( well not for your wallet - smile ). Stay strong and good luck in grad school. Keep us updated sweetie

Some ideas for decreasing stress while in school are going to the university counseling center, checking out some DVDs from the campus library (not all schools have this, be we did at my school), working out at the campus gym, and taking classes, like yoga, at the campus gym. All of these are free activities. I really recommend one or two counseling sessions to help you manage your stress. At my university they had really good stress reduction/management programs.

When I was in school (and I just graduated a year ago, so I'm not that far away from it), I had a really hard time with depression and stress. Some of the things I did were to take a bubble bath about once per week, check out movies or go to a movie once or twice per month, make time for lunch with my best friend once or twice per month, just dress up and wear makeup on days when I was feeling down, and take frequent study breaks during finals and other stressful times. During those study breaks, I'd do something to completely get my mind off the schoolwork for 20-30 minutes and then go back. I also studied with friends, making it both a social activity and school work. Of course, you may be in a more individualized program, so the study groups won't help, but there are a lot of free things you can do on campus to help with stress.

None of this is useful if you're in a distance learning program, so I hope you have some resrouces you can use!

Yoga sounds like fun! Let us know how it goes!

kay, so I was just wondering how do they know the cells are normal during a pap smear? Don't they get a sample from just one spot? Couldn't another place on the cervix have abnormal cells? I am just wondering because my first pap smear was ASCUS, so I asked the doctor to do another pap smear with HPV testing this time, and it came back normal, but positive for HPV. She said there is nothing I should be doing at this time. Is that true? Should I get a coloscopy?

Another question, what exactly causes lesions? and once they are removed do they come back?

Pap test samples are taken from more than one area, ideally being collected from the outer portion of the cervix as well as from within the endocervical canal.

ASC-US Pap test results only tell you that some abnormal cells were detected, but that it isn't at all clear what might be causing them (could be HPV or any of a number of other things, like recent intercourse, yeast, etc.) Then, a follow up Pap is done, often with an HPV DNA test. Lesions (abnormal cell growth) related to HPV has a characteristic appearance under a microscope, but sometimes the sample is difficult to evaluate.

When the Pap is abnormal and the HPV DNA test is positive, colposcopy is usually done but your second Pap was normal, so no treatment is indicated and your healthcare provider doesn't seem to feel a referral to colposcopy is needed. You're probably going in for more frequent Pap tests, though, and keep talking with her if you have questions.

HPV related lesions often do go away naturally and they sometimes do recur, but the immune response most often clears the virus at some point, so recurrences typically don't persist over time.

Hope this helps,
Fredo

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ASHA Moderator

Yes it does help. Thank you very much!
One more question. I am taking multivitamins with folic acid in them, and I am also taking a folic acid capsule (once a day). Is that too much folic acid? Should I only be taking the multivitamin? I really don't want to cause any additional problems.

Thank you

The average dose of a woman before she's pregnant is 400mcg per day.Once pregnant toe dose should be about 600mcg - 800mcg per day.Breastfeeding's range is 400mcg - 500mcg per day.

Also some of your dry cereals are high in Folic Acid as well as dark leafy greens, cataloupe, strawberries, spinach,beans,asparagus,oranges,eggs,chicken liver.


The bottles should say how much folic is in each vitamin or at least the dosing size so check the back of your bottle. If your multivitamin is supplying you with the adequate amount then you may not need an additional supplement. Remember too much of a vitamin or mineral can be just as bad as too little.


Hope that helps

Um yea, Ooops, the multivitamins contain 200mcg I think , and the capsules are 800. So I think i am taking 1000mcg a day. I should stop, huh?

Try not to take no more than 1000mcg of folic acid per day.Here's some information from the CDC:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/folicacid/faqs.htm

Folic Acid is water soluble so if you take too much usually your body will rid itself of the excess.It may just be that the multivitamin may be enough or if possible you could just half the folic acid supplement and take it alongside the multivitamin.Also GNC sells folic acid in 400mcg amounts as well as multivitamins made specifically for the ladies :

http://www.gnc.com/search/index.jsp?kwC ... 0acid&sr=1