How do you know?

When I am teaching, I often ask the child who answers a question, 'How do you know?'  This is to check for misunderstandings and help others, who were unsure, learn how the solution was derived through that child's explanation. Answers require some prior knowledge.  But what if there is no prior knowledge?

This was my experience with my liver.  I had felt not quite right for some time.  Nothing stood out as being amiss; I was just always exhausted, a bit old-lady achy, and I developed what I assumed was stress related itching.  Menopause, I thought.  Stress of teaching, I felt.  Not a must see the doctor issue, I believed.

I now know that there are no symptoms for the early stages of liver disease except fatigue and itching.  It is only when the liver is so damaged it is unable to cope with the usual onslaught of normal daily life and a typical 'not quite as healthy as we'd like to think' diet that doctor-trip-worthy symptoms appear.

For me that was autumn 2017. I sat in the doctor's surgery telling her I felt exhausted, a bit nauseous, and my wee was dark brown whilst my poo light, sloppy and floaty.  She sent me for blood tests.
Now usually when you go for blood test you have to ring the surgery a few days later to get results.  Not me.  Not this time.  I got a call the next day asking to go for more blood tests on my liver function.  And so the story begins, though it takes six months before a diagnosis is made.

Comments

  1. sheilb1 June 2018 at 05:59

    I imagine that you'd rather not be writing this....but thanks for sharing

    ReplyDelete
  2. Unknown1 June 2018 at 06:46

    Me too, lots of different niggly symptoms diagnosed 4 months before transplant

    ReplyDelete
  3. My Lousy Liver1 June 2018 at 07:36

    Caveat: Not everyone gets itchy or tired with liver disease.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Unknown26 July 2018 at 11:13

    I got that call back from the GP too. Terrifying (I'd only had routine bloods 'because of your age').

    ReplyDelete

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