Yesterday I had the follow up blood tests, plus a few more, which had been requested by the first doctor I saw at the start of my illness a month ago. The follow up gap has actually been five weeks because of the absence of nurses to do the blood tests at the surgery.
It has been a rough month and my nerves have been on edge and I have been extremely worried. I do not wish to go into details here about the problems I had but for some unknown reason I had something and the nearest matching illness to my symptoms was non-respiratory covid where my internal organs were attacked. Some very nasty things were happening to me. The local GP surgery were supportive although unable to name what I had wrong with me. The elderly Indian doctor acknowledged that something was wrong but as I was feeling better the internal functions would be improving and the blood test results would, he assured me, illustrate this. At the time I was worried that he may be wrong. Although I was getting better I was also very on edge and concerned.
This morning I have woken up to a message from the surgery saying that all my tests have come back normal
I have been through them and made some comparisons and they are indeed improved. I did this myself because I wanted to see where my results stood up alongside the stated average norms for my age group which I consulted Google for. Links from the NHS app alongside the test results are in fact given for this purpose.
The NHS app is a wonderful tool, I can see all my test results listed in date order, and I can make comparisons of my progress without troubling the surgery. I can see on my record the comments made by the doctors. The lovely Indian doctor commented on my record that as I left the surgery he thought I was reassured and calmer. Yes, I was. Now that I have seen the results I am now even calmer.
If you do not have the NHS app and are in two minds whether to have it or not I would say don't hesitate to get it. It helps and is there if you want it. Blood tests are the gold standard in medicine today, I don't always agree with this but it is where all investigations start. If I can have a look at my results without hurry and with the availability of further comparisons if I want them, then for me it is good.
I have adjusted to the surgery and the messages and the algorithms and moved on to the way of medicine as it is now. And I know that if I want to speak to a doctor I can.
It is a relief when the test results show that all is normal. Although still puzzling when you continue to suffer symptoms.
ReplyDeleteA neighbour recently suggested that my symptoms may be due to some form of Long Covid as all the scans to date have shown nothing of concern. Perhaps she is correct, but I am not sure that any tests will be able to show that.
I believe my illness was a Covid variant. I still have some symptoms but the blood tests come back as normal and, as you say, Long Covid does not show. My numbers are encouraging and that has to be something.
DeleteSo happy that your blood test results were normal Rachel. I hope that your symptoms continue to improve. x
ReplyDeleteThanks Simone. I suppose in "olden" days before blood tests we would have just been thankful to get better without knowing the figures. I am not sure what is best. I think because of so much information available via Google I probably made the past five or six weeks more stressful for myself.
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