Liverfast

[emarie96]

I'm going to get the liverfast test done on Wednesday (2 days from now). Unfortunately, I have pretty severe medical anxiety and my anxiety has convinced me that I probably have cirrhosis and I'm absolutely freaking out. Does anyone have any tips for reducing anxiety while waiting for test results? Also, praying for good news because my husband's birthday is in a couple of weeks and I want to be in a good mood and spoil him. He's been a trooper through all of this. Also, if anyone has had the liverfast, how long did the results take to come back? Thanks!

Erica

[nash2 Partner]

Hi EricaAnxiety can be a disease in itself. I suppose the only advice I can give you is to realize that even if that is the diagnosis it is generally a fairly slow process and if you can eliminate the things that are causing the problem your liver will work hard to improve. The first time I heard I had cirrhosis was 2010 so try to take a breath.

Wayne

[MINTVCX]

Hi, please keep in mind that there are not only two stages of liver condition (healthy and cirrhotic). In fact the stages between are the most tricky to diagnose. Good luck and all the best.

[kensimmons in reply to MINTVCX]

Mintvcx said it very well just now. The thing is cirrhosis isn't like a light switch that is "on" or "off". It's more like a light with a dimmer switch that sloooowly goes up and sloooowly can go down (for many not all). Other diseases are not like that. Either you have a broken bone or you do not. And sometimes of course either cirrhosis is so non-existant or the opposite, so clearly evident, that, indeed, it is there (or not) and steps need to be taken (or not). Other times it's borderline or just over or under, so you take precautions, improve healthy living, and things can be good for a long time.

Some doctors have patients on their registers who have cirrhosis for more than 20 years, even 25 and more. So relax for now, get tested, and remember that cirrhosis is not a death sentence. It IS something to take seriously, but it is not going to destroy you right away. If you had it badly you wouldn't be able to post here for example and your doctor would have not told you to "come back at a later date to see me", you would be in the hospital tonight.

Please post after the test, fingers are crossed for you! Good luck! And get some sleep!

[AllHis]

I’ve controlled my anxiety by acknowledging that I’m almost always wrong! (Lol!) seriously, I’m thinking about the LIVERFASt test for myself. I want something to track my progress. I’ll be doing it for me.I’m finally building up courage to advocate for myself, & this will be a valuable tool. I’ve done everything backwards thus far, because I’ve found no answers among physicians. The liver study has been very informative.

Here’s the one thing I want you to remember. There are many stages of NASH. You want to stop the progression and support the liver. By doing this you can live many years by not progressing. I, personally want to know the details.

Hugs!

[Hidden]

Hi emarie 🙃

I’m praying God will pour out His peace on you as you do your testing today!

I, too, am a worrier, and He’s the only one who calms me when I want to freak out!

Surprisingly, in this new year I have been calmer about tests. I don’t panic when a doctor tells me of a new diagnosis.

Let me share a couple of stories that will help you understand why I'm calmer now –

In 2009 a top rheumatologist in Seattle diagnosed me as "most probably" having Sjogren's,

but on a recent appointment a new rheumatologist told me she didn't think I had Sjogren's. I was stunned by the news. She encouraged me to see another rheumatologist for a second opinion.

Three months ago I saw the second rheumatologist for her opinion about whether or not I had Sjogren's. I was stunned when she told me I did not have Sjogren's! I couldn't believe it! All of a sudden, I didn’t have it?!?!

I was mad, too! All the doctors, the medications, the money my husband spent trying to find help for me, the stress and worry . . . were for naught!!! I hadn't had Sjogren's to begin with? So I was relieved, mad and puzzled - because I still have all the symptoms they attributed to Sjogren's.

It was an eye-opening experience, but it wasn't the first time such a serious mistake had been made.

Here’s yet another example of a doctor’s diagnosing error.

Around August 2021, my gastroenterologist’s physician’s assistant told me I had advanced fibrosis -F4- and that there was scarring on my liver. I didn’t know what that meant and I had no idea what questions to ask during the appointment.

But, after my appointment I immediately did a 'deep dive' on the internet to learn everything I could about fibrosis and F4. When I figured out that F4 fibrosis was cirrhosis - late-stage liver disease . . . and that that was permanent damage I freaked out!!! How could this happen when I had been under the care of a well respected hepatologist for the past 2 years?

I kept searching for more information and that's when I found the Fatty Liver Foundation (FLF). I could tell right away that the information was evidence- based and I eagerly devoured as much information as I could manage from this gold mine of a site.

When I came across Wayne’s story and his experience with the LIVERFASt test, I knew I should have that test done.

With supportive help from the FLF team, I scheduled my LIVERFASt test.

I had it done 5 months ago; the process and test were simple.

In only a week the results came back.

The LIVERFASt results were more accurate than the tests my gastroenterologist had ordered; lo and behold, my liver was in better condition than my gastroenterologist's office had led me to believe.

Instead of advanced fibrosis - F4 / cirrhosis, the LIVERFASt test showed I have minimal fibrosis – F1-F2, which gives me hope that I will be able to stop any further damage and potentially reverse some damage.

I pray the results from your test will be encouraging emarie. Most importantly, I pray that you will experience comfort and peace as you walk through your days.

Gentle hugs ~

A "liver sister" ~

mamaG ❣️

[ThyroidDeb in reply to Hidden]

That was so nice to read and encouraging. Hope it went well for her today. Did you ever have the fibroscan? I had that along with the fibrotest blood test which was F3 bridging the scan was probable F4 cirrhosis (hate that word). I would like to do the Livertest but it hasn't been long enough probably, for it to show change but if I can stop it! They say there's no pain with scan, my ribs hurt for 10 days. She couldn't find a spot to get a green light to start the scan. She kept running her fingers and the probe over my ribs. She said they usually take it at the base of small ribs but finally she crammed it in the middle of the big ones. 😏 I read they move it around but she stayed in one spot. Been thinking about emarie, hope it went well.

[Lovetoresearch]

Did folks request the test via the form on the website? I have attempted 3x and received an error each time. When I attempted to send a message via the contact form on their site I received an error both times, the first stating that they do not accept email from an iCloud.com address and the second stating that they do not receive an email from a Yahoo.com address. 😬 When filling out the form the Google Chrome browser reminded me that the form was not secure.

[emarie96 in reply to Lovetoresearch]

Hi! I filled out the form via the Fatty Liver Foundation and then someone from the company called me collected payment and then I scheduled the test at a Quest Diagnostics location. I hope that helps!

[Lovetoresearch in reply to emarie96]

Thank you for your reply. I’ll keep trying, maybe I will try a PC versus a Mac. I wish you all the best!

[WildnWooly]

I ordered my own Liverfast test through Link2labs. It cost $200 and I got my results in 8 days. link2labs.com/home/product/...

I agree that, luckily, this is not a fast moving disease and also, luckily, we can have some control over it through our diet and life choices. This makes it a gift to find out info as early as possible so we can affect the outcome. Hope this helps!