The Well-Woman Visit

A well-woman visit is a yearly preventive appointment. Its job is to check where you stand on the screenings that catch problems early, and to keep your history and your risk factors up to date while we do it.

At Legacy OB/GYN in Frisco, TX, that means looking at where you stand on cervical cancer screening, mammograms, colon cancer screening, and bone density, and sorting out which of those apply to you right now.

One thing worth knowing before you come in. This visit is preventive care. If you have a symptom that needs attention, that is a different appointment, and we would rather give it the time it deserves than squeeze it into this one.

What the visit covers

A typical well-woman visit includes several parts:

• A review of your health history, including your medications and your personal and family history
• Blood pressure and weight, plus other vital signs as needed
• A clinical breast exam
• A pelvic exam when it is indicated
• A look at where you stand on cervical cancer screening
• Whether it is time to start, or continue, mammograms
• Whether colon cancer screening and bone density screening apply to you yet

Our well-woman exam page explains the visit in more clinical detail, and our cervical cancer screening page covers the Pap and HPV tests specifically.

What this visit does not cover

A well-woman visit is preventive. It is not the appointment where a new problem gets worked up.

If something specific is going on, book a visit for that instead:

• Perimenopause or menopause symptoms you want managed
• Pelvic pain, or bleeding that is new or has changed
• A breast concern
• Anything that has been bothering you and has not been looked at

That is not us putting you off. A preventive visit runs to a set structure and a set amount of time. A symptom deserves an appointment built around it, with room to examine, test, and come up with a plan. Tell us when you book and we will get you the right kind of visit.

How to prepare for your visit

You can prepare for a well-woman visit in about five minutes, and it makes the appointment more useful. The details that are easiest to forget in the moment are the ones worth writing down first.

Bring, or note ahead of time:

1. The date your last period started
2. A current list of your medications and supplements, with doses
3. Your personal and family history, especially any cancer, heart disease, blood clots, or diabetes

When each screening starts

Most of the preventive plan comes down to which screenings apply to you yet. This table is a starting point, not a rule. Your own history can move any of it, which is exactly what the visit is for.

Cervical cancer screening can often stop around age 65, if you have had adequate normal screening before then and are not at higher risk. That is an individual decision, so confirm it with us rather than stopping on your own.

Cervical cancer screening and self-collection

Cervical cancer screening has become easier, thanks to a self-collection option. Instead of a clinician collecting the sample, you may be able to collect your own sample for HPV testing in a private setting. For many people that makes screening feel less stressful.

Self-collection does not replace the rest of your well-woman visit, and it is not the right fit for every situation, so it is worth talking through what makes sense for you. We cover how it works, who it is for, and what the results mean in our companion article on cervical cancer screening and self-collection.

Booking a visit

If it has been more than a year since your last well-woman visit, or you are not sure which screenings you are due for, this is a good time to come in.

Call (972) 731-6565 or book online through the scheduling link on our website. If something specific is bothering you, say so when you call, and we will book the right kind of appointment.