Blood tests

I went to the doctor a couple of weeks ago to order some blood tests. Just the usual ones they recommend when you get to a certain age (God, I feel so old sometimes!!) I had them done this morning and am glad to have them out of the way.

Last year, I had the same blood tests done. I asked my doctor if I could get my thyroid checked because surely there was a reason why I was putting on weight and not being able to lose it even when I was watching what I ate. I was tired all the time and seemed to have all the classic symptoms of an under-active thyroid. To my horror, when I left the clinic and looked at the blood slip, liver function tests were on there as well. I was drinking daily at this stage, so I was absolutely terrified of the results. So I put off having that blood test for months. I convinced myself that I had cirrhosis of the liver and having a blood test would just confirm that. I agonised over it for a long time. And kept putting it off. I don't know what I expected to happen. If there was a problem, I told myself, surely it's better to know about it so you can then start treating it? But in my usual fashion, I buried my head in the sand and just put it off.

I eventually gained the courage to have the tests done. I had done Dry July by then or was in the middle of it, I can't remember now, but in the end, I just decided to face my fears, whatever the outcome might be. I didn't hear back from the doctor so I thought that must be a good sign. I thought of ringing the clinic to get the results, but a part of me was scared to do that in case the results were in fact bad, and they had just forgotten to let me know. A couple of months went by and I ended up going back to the doctor for something else, and I casually asked her about my results. All fine she said. Everything was perfect. Can you imagine my relief?!! All that agonising, for nothing! So, my liver was fine after all the abuse I had put it through. I admit a part of me thought 'great! I can drink now knowing that I haven't done any damage'. But it is always in the back of my mind. I know you can have normal liver function test results even if your liver is damaged. It can take a long time for damage to show up on a blood test. So I continued with my quest for an alcohol free life.

This time round I didn't have that fear of having the tests done. I am more curious about my thyroid function results because I am convinced that it is under-active. Hopefully my liver function is normal though. It is always in the back of my mind that it must be damaged after all these years of drinking. But I am not going to agonise over the results. What will be will be.

So, today brings me to day 6. I'm tired because I am not sleeping the best, but I can handle that. Being not hungover is a joy. Knowing I am going to wake up in the morning with a clear head is wonderful.

Have a great day everyone.

A x