What Really Happened at my Full Body Skin Exam
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Fairface Podcast transcript / show notes
Hello my friends! Welcome back to another episode of the Fairface Podcast. This is kind of a special edition, following my very first appointment having a full body skin exam, also known as a skin cancer screening.
This is in essence, part 2 to our last episode # 36, Doctor Anxiety and My Upcoming Full Body Skin Exam. So I would recommend going back and listening to that episode first, and then listening to this one.
But today I'm here to tell you what really happened yesterday in the dermatology office, during my full body skin exam.
Now as you know, from the last episode, I have a lot of anxiety around going to the doctor. So first, I'm going to share a clip with you of me sitting in the car yesterday, before even going into the dermatology office.
And then I will share a clip of me right after finishing my appointment and back in the car.
So let's listen to those now
(I'm sorry, I do not have these 2 segments transcribed. To listen, click the podcast feed above. These 2 segments are right at the beginning.)
Pre-appointment jitters
Post-appointment recap
Well there you have it, as real as it gets.
So lets get down to the details:
Overall, how was having a full body skin exam?
The truth is, I would say the worry about the exam ahead of time was probably worse than the actual experience of the exam. Did I still feel uncomfortable? Yes. Did I still feel vulnerable and somewhat embarrassed? Yes. But am I glad I did it? Yes. Will I be traumatized for life? No.
Being naked under a robe, and having a doctor inspect all of that beautiful skin of yours all over your body is not like it's nothing. I needed to be mentally prepared for it, because you will be very vulnerable. And that's just how certain doctors appointments are. There are some things in life that are uncomfortable, but necessary.
I guess I would liken it to the vulnerability of a breast exam, but not as bad as a full lady exam, if you know what I mean.
I know it helped to really like my dermatologist and feel safe with her. So it's definitely important to choose a dermatologist you feel you could be comfortable with under these circumstances.
Before I walk you through exactly what my full body skin exam entailed, I'll answer a couple common questions.
One of the big questions is, do you or do you not wear underwear under the robe during a full body skin exam?
She told me to keep my underwear on, but take my bra off and then I put on their medical gown with the back open.
Another question is, do you have to take your underwear off during the exam?
This makes me laugh because you're not the one taking it off, but they do take a peek in what I will describe as a quick pantsing, or flashing, if you will, front and back.
So for me, while I was laying on my back, and she was looking at my skin, she suddenly did a quick pull down of my underwear just in the front, which I was not totally expecting but I was kind of in an out-of-body robot state of mind anyway, so it was like, huh, I wasn't totally expecting that, but ok.
Then when I was laying on my stomach, she basically pantsed me big time, and checked my bum cheeks, which caught me a little more by surprise. Both cheeks at once seemed like a lot, but again, in a robotic state, it was like, ok, I'm so sorry you had to see that, but enjoy.
So beyond the pantsing, let me walk you through exactly what happened.
Let's go back to the beginning...
How did I cope with my doctor anxiety?
You know from me in the car while I was waiting, (you could hear my breath was a little labored), I was trying to bring myself down from feeling anxious. While I was in the waiting room, I was also trying to pace my breathing. I had a face mask on, so that brings on a little more anxiety to the table because now I'm breathing through cloth.
So while I was waiting in the waiting room, I also did a few mind exercises that have been very helpful to me in bringing down my anxiety. These exercises help to basically engage my senses so I keep bringing myself back to the present and not letting myself stay stuck in the, "worry mind".
Brain exercise that helps reduce anxiety
So for example, I do the 54321 exercise - where I look around the room and notice 5 things I SEE, then I LISTEN for 4 things, then I TOUCH 3 things, SMELL 2 things and TASTE 1 thing. So it's literally as easy as, "I see a plant, I see a light, I see a door, I see a rug, I see a pen".
And then I listen closely to identify what I can hear. I hear someone talking, I hear the click of the computer keys, I hear a car honk outside, I hear a person clearing their throat.
Then for touch, I feel the zipper on my jacket, I feel the smooth table top, I feel the texture on my pants...and so on...if you can bring actual food to taste or something to smell you can do that, but I didn't have anything so it's a little harder to do those last 2 steps, but this process still works well for me. It really helps me come back to the present moment by just focusing on each of these little things, one at a time. If I'm still feeling nervous, I will repeat it.
I was feeling more relaxed by time the assistant took me back. She was nice and went over what was going to happen, left the room, I changed into the robe, and shortly thereafter Dr. Neill came in.
What did my full body exam consist of?
She is very kind and friendly, so instantly put me at ease.
She was also pretty quick with the exam, as well as being respectful and aware of trying to keep me covered when she didn't need those parts of my robe open.
She first had me lay down on my back and she started the skin exam on my feet and looked in-between my toes. She actually touched the skin with a gloved hand and touched the skin as she went over it. She went up my shins and up to my thighs and did look in between each thigh. So, that was a little uncomfortable, but ok. Then she did the quick pull down flash of my undies. which was also a surprise and then, before you know it, they were back on.
She had me sit up so she could examine my shoulders, back, lower back and neck. She examined my face.
She had me lay down on my stomach, so she could examine the backs of my legs and did the quickie backside undies flash to see both cheeks, and looked at my back some more and the nape of my neck and hairline...so basically covered it all.
I actually realized after she left the room that I still had my sunglasses propped up on my head. I had been so caught up in the nerves initially, that I forgot to even take them off and she never asked me too...so of course when I left I thought, what if there was as spot on my head she didn't see because I had my sunglasses on my head? I'm sure it was fine. She was very thorough and wonderful to work with.
At the end of my full body skin exam
At the end, she gave me a clean skin report - there was nothing of concern except one freckle that we'll watch to see if it changes year after year. But she looked through her special scope and said there was no indication anything was wrong. Other than that, she told me I had very nice skin, which is very nice to hear.
She also took some time to answer the questions I had (which she is always so good about doing). She's the one who when I went to my first appointment with her and brought my list of questions, she said, great, I'm not afraid of a list. She went through and answered all the questions I had and she was just as kind this time and answered the questions that I had this time as well.
Sunscreen questions
She asked me what skin protection I was using, which I told her, Eucerin SPF 30 every day. Then she asked me if I reapply it ever 2 hours...which I had to say, I do not. Unless I'm out in the direct sun for a longer period of time - and usually that's at the beach in the summer and I just spray my face with SPF over the top of the sunscreen I put on earlier.
She said it's important, that in order to get the most benefits from using sunscreen to reapply every 2 hours...and while I know this, the million dollar question is how to do this while wearing foundation on your face.
If I were to reapply spf every 2 hours on top of my foundation, it would rub my foundation off in a weird gunky, spotty way, and then how would I make my face not look like it had layers of gunk on it?
I know there's SPF powders you can add on top of your existing SPF and make-up, but I'm afraid it still might look cakey and gunky on top of worn foundation...I don't know how to do it without actually washing my face in order to get a clean finish - and that's not realistic. So I do need to figure this one out. If you have any suggestions, please let me know, because this has always been a big question mark for me.
Rosacea skin care treatments and Retinoids
As far as what else we covered during this visit,
I was able to get my rosacea metronidazole gel prescription renewed and I also asked her about starting a retinoid to help smooth my skin and fine lines.
She said because of my rosacea and the fact that retinoids can be really irritating, she recommended I start with an OTC, like the Olay moisturizers and see how my skin does, instead of going right to a prescription. She said we'll take baby steps in this area, because she was just afraid it would really irritate my skin.
She reminded me that it's a marathon, not a sprint, so we'll just take it one step at a time. Caring for our skin is really a life long process.
Next steps beyond my full body skin exam
And that was that. I'm probably going to have some freshening up procedures in the fall, where I can get a few things lasered, like I have some broken capillaries on one of my cheeks from the rosacea - cheeks on my face - just wanted to clarify, and a couple of spots frozen off that are not problematic, really just cosmetic for me.
She said after those types of procedures I may look a little beaten up, so I need to schedule those when I can kind of hide and take a break from my regular activities for a while.
But that was it! I survived. And I feel really good about having made this appointment and the peace of mind that I completed it and that my skin is healthy. I feel really blessed.
Are you ready for your full body skin exam?
So, what do you think? Do you think you're going to have an annual skin exam? If you deal with anxiety around going to the doctor like I do, I hope my anxiety mind exercises can help, or have a friend or family member go with you. You don't want fear and anxiety to be what stops you from going to these important appointments.
And like I've said, if I can do it, you definitely can do it!
Skin Cancer Screening Matters
It's so important to catch skin cancer early so it can be treated to have the best outcomes, plus it's nice talking to a professional about your skin and getting your personal questions answered. They may also be able to offer ideas or treatments you hadn't thought of that can help your skin look and feel even better than it already does.
I wanted to mention before I go, I really enjoyed listening to a recent podcast episode from Pure Skin Talk, where Devyn. who is a licensed esthetician and someone I've gotten to know the last couple of years who is wonderful, shared her guest, Kate Casey's experience being diagnosed with skin cancer. When Kate said she had fair skin and didn't remember wearing sunscreen as a kid, and got sunburned, I instantly thought, that is me.
It is very sobering to hear about someone else's experience with skin cancer and just makes itall the more real and such a good reminder that we all need to be diligent about having our skin cancer screenings done every year.
I hope this walk along with me to my first ever full body skin exam has helped take the mystery out of what really happens and what to expect. If you have any questions for me about this experience, please feel free to ask! I am totally an open book.
You can send me a message through our website, https://www.fairfacewashcloths.com/contact-us.html or you can always find me on Instragram @FairfaceWashcloths.
Thanks again for tagging along with me through this experience! And for those of you who reached out and wished me luck before I went in, and asked me how it went after I was done, it really helped me feel supported, so thank you.
I hope it's been helpful for me to share this with you. Thanks again so much for being here and I will see you next time!
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