afternoon?â
âFine,â they both replied practically in unison.
âGreat ... I am assuming you are Charlene,â the doctor said, seeing Charlene in the robe sitting on the table.
âI am,â Charlene said with a smile, raising her hand slightly.
âOK ... And this is your ...â Dr. Ginyard said.
âMy sister,â Charlene replied.
âNice to meet you,â Dr. Ginyard said.
As the doctor looked through Charleneâs file, she asked some other basic questions, like her age, and if she was sexually active and if she used birth control. For Charlene the visit was getting more and more uncomfortable as the moments went by, although not because Paige was sitting there hearing all her business. Charlene and Paige were close like that and there wasnât much Paige didnât know about her baby sister. It was because Charlene knew that soon the doctor was going to have to get down to what she was there for.
Dr. Ginyard asked Charlene to lie back and place her feet up in the stirrups; she was going to take a look. As soon as Charlene began to lie back, Paige gave her a look of reassurance to let her know that she was there by her side. If anybody knew how Charlene was feeling at the time, it was Paige. For years Paige had tried to convince Charlene that she should get this over with, so she knew that this was harder for her than it appeared. As Dr. Ginyard got her instruments, she asked Charlene when she had last had a Pap smear. Charlene had thought the questions might be over and wasnât prepared for this one.
âUmmm ... Itâs been a while,â she stuttered.
âWhatâs a while?â the doctor asked as she began to place the speculum inside of her.
Just as she finished asking the question and Charlene felt Dr. Ginyard begin to swab, her emotions got the best of her. Her voice cracked as she began to answer the question, and right behind it came a flood of tears down her face. Before Paige could calm her, it was too late. Charlene was already in the middle of a full-blown emotional attack. The doctor looked up over the robe to see what was wrong.
âWhatâs wrong? Am I hurting you?â she asked frantically.
Charlene couldnât pull herself together to answer. Paige reached down and hugged her, and the doctor took that as a sign to stop. The room felt to Charlene as if everything had stopped and like it was filled with a whole lot of pain and confusion all at once. Paige could tell that Dr. Ginyard didnât know if she should get involved or just wait the moment out.
Finally she asked, âDo you ladies want a minute alone?â
âNo, she will be fine. Can she get a cup of water, though?â Paige asked.
âSure,â Dr. Ginyard said as she exited, looking relieved to get out of there.
âAre you OK, Leen?â Paige asked
âYes, I donât know what happened ... I was handling it so well.â
âListen, Leen, she is a doctor. You donât have to feel uncomfortable around her. She can help you out. Besides, she sees many patients every day, she is not thinking about what she sees down there.â
Dr. Ginyard walked back in with the cup of water and noticed that Charlene already looked a little better. The doctor had other patients to see, so she knew she had to continue on with their visit one way or the other.
âIs everything OK, Charlene?â the doctor asked.
After looking over at Paige, Charlene replied, âWell, yes and no.â
âWhat does that mean, sweetie?â Dr. Ginyard asked.
Something about Dr. Ginyardâs sincere and caring demeanor made it that much easier to just spit it out, and so she did.
âWhen I was only thirteen years old I got pregnant and I was unable to tell my parents about it, so my friend and I tried to abort the baby on our own ...â Charlene began in a low and shaky voice. She was holding her head low, clearly ashamed by the story she was
âFine,â they both replied practically in unison.
âGreat ... I am assuming you are Charlene,â the doctor said, seeing Charlene in the robe sitting on the table.
âI am,â Charlene said with a smile, raising her hand slightly.
âOK ... And this is your ...â Dr. Ginyard said.
âMy sister,â Charlene replied.
âNice to meet you,â Dr. Ginyard said.
As the doctor looked through Charleneâs file, she asked some other basic questions, like her age, and if she was sexually active and if she used birth control. For Charlene the visit was getting more and more uncomfortable as the moments went by, although not because Paige was sitting there hearing all her business. Charlene and Paige were close like that and there wasnât much Paige didnât know about her baby sister. It was because Charlene knew that soon the doctor was going to have to get down to what she was there for.
Dr. Ginyard asked Charlene to lie back and place her feet up in the stirrups; she was going to take a look. As soon as Charlene began to lie back, Paige gave her a look of reassurance to let her know that she was there by her side. If anybody knew how Charlene was feeling at the time, it was Paige. For years Paige had tried to convince Charlene that she should get this over with, so she knew that this was harder for her than it appeared. As Dr. Ginyard got her instruments, she asked Charlene when she had last had a Pap smear. Charlene had thought the questions might be over and wasnât prepared for this one.
âUmmm ... Itâs been a while,â she stuttered.
âWhatâs a while?â the doctor asked as she began to place the speculum inside of her.
Just as she finished asking the question and Charlene felt Dr. Ginyard begin to swab, her emotions got the best of her. Her voice cracked as she began to answer the question, and right behind it came a flood of tears down her face. Before Paige could calm her, it was too late. Charlene was already in the middle of a full-blown emotional attack. The doctor looked up over the robe to see what was wrong.
âWhatâs wrong? Am I hurting you?â she asked frantically.
Charlene couldnât pull herself together to answer. Paige reached down and hugged her, and the doctor took that as a sign to stop. The room felt to Charlene as if everything had stopped and like it was filled with a whole lot of pain and confusion all at once. Paige could tell that Dr. Ginyard didnât know if she should get involved or just wait the moment out.
Finally she asked, âDo you ladies want a minute alone?â
âNo, she will be fine. Can she get a cup of water, though?â Paige asked.
âSure,â Dr. Ginyard said as she exited, looking relieved to get out of there.
âAre you OK, Leen?â Paige asked
âYes, I donât know what happened ... I was handling it so well.â
âListen, Leen, she is a doctor. You donât have to feel uncomfortable around her. She can help you out. Besides, she sees many patients every day, she is not thinking about what she sees down there.â
Dr. Ginyard walked back in with the cup of water and noticed that Charlene already looked a little better. The doctor had other patients to see, so she knew she had to continue on with their visit one way or the other.
âIs everything OK, Charlene?â the doctor asked.
After looking over at Paige, Charlene replied, âWell, yes and no.â
âWhat does that mean, sweetie?â Dr. Ginyard asked.
Something about Dr. Ginyardâs sincere and caring demeanor made it that much easier to just spit it out, and so she did.
âWhen I was only thirteen years old I got pregnant and I was unable to tell my parents about it, so my friend and I tried to abort the baby on our own ...â Charlene began in a low and shaky voice. She was holding her head low, clearly ashamed by the story she was
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