Worrying results of fasting blood tests.

[Metalhead]

Both my cholesterol and my prolactin levels are sky high, and the doctor thinks it is because of fifteen years of taking Ziprazidone at a high dose. That also explains why it is so hard for me to lose weight and keep it off.

Thankfully, one of my close RL friends is a doctor who told me they should not have let me see the test results without being there to talk me through it. Looking these things up on the Internet had me thinking the worst.

 

[Masked Man]

Both my cholesterol and my prolactin levels are sky high, and the doctor thinks it is because of fifteen years of taking Ziprazidone at a high dose. That also explains why it is so hard for me to lose weight and keep it off.

Thankfully, one of my close RL friends is a doctor who told me they should not have let me see the test results without being there to talk me through it. Looking these things up on the Internet had me thinking the worst.

I think this is one of the drawbacks of having Mychart results available the way they are. On one hand, it's a good thing for the patient to have access to their test results. On the other, laypeople don't understand most test results and Dr. Google can make the results seem catastrophic when they're really not.

Hoping you and your doctor can get your treatment sorted out!

 

[Suzanne]

I have evidence to support that there is no such thing as "high cholesterols. Mine at the moment are ok so says the dr, which actually means they were quite low and guess what? I have health issues and yet, when they are considered too high, I am ok. A friend of mine who has severe diabetes and is severely overweight etc, cannot get her cholesterols higher and she is constantly been told to eat a lot of fat. How strange is that, if low cholesterols are supposed to be healthy?

It is a common habit here in France, where the patient receives the results as well as the dr, which is not great, for someone who suffers health anxiety.

I know someone who works with blood. She is the one who checks blood tests and rates them and she answered my query to why some results show extreme either end of the percentage bracket and yet, the dr says: all is ok?She explained that on its own, there is nothing to worry about. It is when other results are looked at, that is the telltale sign of something not right.

I had tests come back to say that I have an underactive thyroid and my blood sugars are way too high. I put out the suggestion that could it be due to anti anxiety tablets and thankfully, he did not rule that out!

I had an overactive thyroid once and followed the chemical direction, which just made things worse. A friend who is into natural therapy suggested: raw thyroid and so I started taking them and my next blood test came back that my thyroid was normal. In fact, the dr was convinced that the results were fit what he believed and was not too chuffed to see that I was right lol

Do look up the reality about cholesterol levels.

 

[Mary Terry]

Cholesterol levels are quickly reflected by our diets. Eat nothing but vegetables for several days and an average person's cholesterol will go to normal range. Eat a lot of cholesterol-laden foods for several days and the amount of cholesterol in blood will rise high. Our bodies reflect cholesterol from our diets very quickly, assuming there is no metabolic disease, or other medical conditions, or use of prescription medications known to raise cholesterol as a side effect, that average, healthy people don't have.

Statin drugs help control cholesterol for people who have levels above normal range.

 

[Rodafina]

I had a similar experience recently, @Metalhead. I interpreted my own bloodwork that was available to me before I got to discuss it with my doctors. I was right about some of my conclusions and wrong about others. It's interesting to have access to information on the internet that can be used to interpret results, but it's not always valuable to truly understanding what is going on and where the problems are. Even when I was exceedingly cautious about catastrophizing based on information from the internet, I still just got some things wrong. I have standing orders for bloodwork and now that I understand it better (because my doctors explained it), it's really fascinating to have access to all that data and watch it change over time.

 

[Mary Terry]

I had a mild scare reading MyChart blood test results for pneumonia in January. When I got the alert that the blood test results had been posted, I immediately looked at them and saw "abnormal". I worried that I had lung cancer or something really bad that led to "abnormal" results. My husband (retired doctor) explained that abnormal just meant "positive" for bacterial pneumonia. My GP texted me that next day to explain the same thing.

 

[vergil96]

Prolactin most often doesn't have adverse effects unless it's caused by a tumour or unless it interferes with fertility, but in the latter case, most often it's a symptom not the cause of the problem. It does indeed seem like your medications caused it to rise, prolactin is activated by low dopamine in a very specific region of the brain and medications to decrease prolactin increase dopamine. So definitely not a tumour. Nothing to worry about. High prolactin is also very common. And can increase from feelings of stress and depression - symptom not cause.

 

[Dagan]

About to find out all of my goings on again, as well. Follow up with plenty of labs getting done. They took 5 - 1/2 vials yesterday evening. I think they took enough for a cloning farm or something. Jokes on them, if they want to clone me of all people. Anyway, per my doctors, I bet that once again I am put through a grueling wait for any news at all. That's their MO.

 

[Metalhead]

Currently, I am using my adjustable desk in the standing position because I am afraid I will fall asleep at the office if I keep on sitting.

I talk to my doctor about the test results on the 31st. It feels like an eternity from now.