Women Page - Overview
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P
Pap Smear test
A test which involves painless scraping of the cells of your cervix (the entrance to your womb) to detect for cervical cancer.
Period
When a female is mature enough to have a baby, her ovaries will release an egg each month and a thick lining of blood vessels will also form in the uterus (womb). If the egg is not fertilised by sperm (male egg) it will be discharged, along with the womb lining, through the vagina. This is known as a period, or menstruation, and it usually lasts from three to eight days.
The Pill
A contraceptive tablet taken by a woman so that she can have sex without getting pregnant. There are two main types: the combined pill (containing the hormones oestrogen and progestogen) and mini-pill (progestogen-only pill). Possible side effects may include weight gain, changes in menstrual flow, headaches and nausea for some women. Note the pill is taken to prevent pregnancies, it will not prevent you from contracting STIs including AIDS/HIV.
