This Is What A Thyroid Biopsy Is Like

So, I lived through my first biopsy. Let me tell you, while it wasn’t that bad, it is definitely something I am not rushing out to have done again any time soon. So, what happened? Ok, so when I showed up for my appointment, I got my vitals read and then placed in this room I had been in before when I got an ultrasound of my throat done about a week before. The table starts off like a chair with a high back, so I sat there waiting. Once the doctor and her assistants came in, she sat down with me and explained everything that would be happening and asked me if I had any questions. With no questions to be had, they laid the chair back into a table and the table tilts you a little so you are slightly upside down so they can get access to your throat. From there they proceeded to set things up, the set-up honestly took longer than the procedure. Once they were all set up, they opened a package and took out a large cotton swab looking thing that had soap on it and they wiped it across my neck. Then they opened another package with another cotton swab looking thing that had a chemical on it that made the skin on my throat sting some. After that, they turned out the lights and used the ultra sound to find the nodule. Once they found it they used a cold spray to numb the area, then using the ultra sound she asked me to swallow and then had me hold still. She poked a needle, that is smaller than a needle used to take blood, into my throat into the nodule and poked it in and out of my throat 4-5 times to get a sample. She had to do that 4 times. On the 3 go the needle bent some due to the calcium in my nodule, I didn’t feel anything when the needle bent, and only knew about it from her telling me afterwards. Also, there is a lot of pressure during the poking. I’m not sure if it was from the needed or the ultra sound wand, but it can feel like someone pressing hard on your throat. As with the needle, the pressure is tolerable too. After everything was done, they wiped my throat, gave me a regular bandage, and an ice pack to hold on my neck for 20 minutes to help me from getting a hiccie bruise. I thankfully didn’t get one. After that I went home.

She said if I experienced pain to just take a Tylenol because other medicines may cause me to bleed, she told me I didn’t really bleed during the procedure. Now speaking of bleeding, to prepare the night before you need to make sure if you take pain killers that aren’t Tylenol that you don’t take them the day before so you don’t have issues with bleeding. Also if you have blood thinners make sure your doctor knows because that could cause bleeding also. So it’s been a few hours and it just looks like I got stung by a few tiny bees. It itches a bit and has a dull pain when I touch it, so I will skip the pain meds and just deal with the itching. It wasn’t that bad, but she told me that sometimes not enough sample is pulled out, and in that case I’d have to do it again when I see her again in 3 months. *sigh* Oh well, at least it’s over with for now. For now I will relax before I have to start stressing out tomorrow over what I am sure is to be my second biospy of the week. Yay me! LOL! Now, if you are brave, here is a video below of what a biospy basically is. It seems that this patient got a numbing shot instead of the numbing spray I got. Either way, you will be numb for the most part. You will feel the initial needle prick, but it’s tolerable, and this is coming from someone who hates needles and has a low tolerance for pain.

So yeah, that’s how a thyroid nodule biospy was for me. Not as bad as I pictured, not completely pain free, but it was tolerable. The only thing I felt was when she would stick the needle in for the initial stick and the pressure. I didn’t feel the in and out poking. So I basically felt about 4-5 needle pricks. Not fun, but you can deal with it, and before you know it, the lights are on, the table is back in the sitting position, and you are on your way out the door with a bandage and an ice pack, ice up at home if they don’t give you an ice pack so you can avoid bruising. So if you have to get one done anytime soon, you will be just fine and you’ll be so glad when you get the negative results. 95% of those tested come out negative, so try not to stress too much over it. And on that note, I will talk to you lovelies later. Until then. Take care. Bye for now.