Health anxiety : I see people on here... - British Liver Trust

British Liver Trust

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Health anxiety

I see people on here saying not to worry if you have normal labs and ultrasound but I am also reading that your can have it and it’s not always detected and only was with fibroscan and mri. I don’t know how I’m supposed to put out of my head I don’t have cirrhosis when I possibly could even with normal tests. This is enough to drive anyone crazy 🥺

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Linzenilss38

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13 Replies

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Worriesalot3 years ago

Same here, awake worrying, feeling sickly. So many symptoms but friends and family keep saying, I’m worrying my self I’ll cos scan and bloods clear. Awful. If you’ve not many symptoms I bet you’ll be okay.

Jaygee873 years ago

I dont want this to come across as rude, as I understand your struggles with anxiety but even if you had the fibroscan you would try and find some reason as to why its not accurate and then just be in the same position... I dont think paying private will help you anymore than the results you already have. You're spending your healthy life worrying about being ill. I think you have said before you have a fatty liver, which is curable. Its best to focus on that now rather than fantasising about something worse.

Jaygee873 years ago

Hi Linzenilss38,

I'm sad to hear you're suffering so much with anxiety. You need to just see the bigger picture here... the people who look at your results are trained medical professionals. They do this, day in and day out. When I had my ultrasound it was obvious straight away there was an issue, the test is used because it is highly reliable. Please stop googling, as all it will bring you is misery. I know its hard, but be happy you're well and not ill.

deanw413 years ago

Once I read, on here,”why worry and die, just die”. So what I took from that was there is no point in worrying about the inevitable (death),it’s just takes away from the joy of life. I now just try and stay in the day, enjoying every moment. I’m sober, it’s a much better life. I eat my fruit and veggies and I love cake too! I no longer fear scans or blood tests, there are people far worse off than me(I’m off to an hours Boot camp, some don’t have the luxury of getting out of bed). So when I finally pop my cloggs (nobody’s knows that and I don’t ask or engage in life expectancy conversations),I can say I live my life to the full!!😊👍👍🌟

Worriesalot in reply to deanw413 years ago

Hope you have lovely day today. ☀️

deanw41 in reply to Worriesalot3 years ago

And you too. I used to have crippling anxiety when I was drinking. I hope you manage to get on top of yours!! Have a inspired day!!😊😊

chrisw7403 years ago

It's not that one believes that a small amount of fatty infiltration or a small amount of early fibrosis has been missed on an ultrasound (quite possible but still not very common) but that full on cirrhosis has been missed. Likewise, that normal bloods have missed decompensated liver disease. That changes in one's breath and bowel habits is proof of one thing only, imminent liver failure. So although normal bloods and clear ultrasound are not concrete proof of no changes at all in the liver... the person with real health anxiety will think these normal tests results have actually missed the absolute worse case scenario. There is no room for a moderate, reasonable view on things when health anxiety takes hold.

Health anxiety feeds on rare negative examples as proof of it's beliefs, disregarding the enormous evidence that doesn't agree with it.

Health anxiety is virulent. It is contagious. It should be respected, not dismissed and ultimately receive treatment too. You must be on here so much making yourself literally sick with worry which is rotten for you surely. I genuinely wish you peace of mind.

Worriesalot in reply to chrisw7403 years ago

My scan report says liver is normal size, homogeneous texture, spleen and pancreas look normal. No ascites. Surely a badly damaged liver would be obvious on scan? LFT I know is just a snap shot but platelets for example wouldn’t be normal? Thanks for reply Chris.

chrisw740 in reply to Worriesalot3 years ago

Exactly you would not expect any of these normal observations with a cirrhotic liver. The report sounds thorough. Think about the detail a prenatal ultrasound sees. This diagnostic tool remains well regarded and trusted.

I don't want to go down a rabbit hole with you as no-one can improve upon the tremendous feedback you have already had over the last few weeks...explaining at length that what you're describing is not evidence of anything liver related.

It feels like you have a tentative grasp on this encouraging ultrasound test result and you need to firm up your grasp... grab it, don't let go of this imperical fact based report.

Be kind to yourself and take a break from this forum. Reintroduce your best self to your friends and family.

Worriesalot3 years ago

Sorry to hear about your troubles, thanks for friendly reply and advice.

deanw413 years ago

Try and make the best life for yourself now 😊👍🌟🌟

3 years ago

Linzenilss38 - I am sorry your original post has been hijacked.

I will close this post to replies now.

Can I remind and encourage all members this is a supportive, friendly forum which we have all worked hard to create.

If you have an issue with another member, please keep it civil and report to Health Unlocked if necessary.

@Linzenilss38 - I can see many of our forum members have offered supportive, useful comments to help guide you - there is lots of useful information on our website or you can call our nurse led helpline on 0800 652 7330 Mon-Fri 10am-3pm .

Take care,

Trust9

3 years ago

EDIT - following several reports to HU I have tried to delete comments which are not relevant to the original thread .( without losing context)

Please remember the community rules of our forum .

Trust9

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