Just someone slap me and tell me to STOP

[cattia]

So I went to the doctor again about my imaginary thinning hair. He said (like everyone else) that my hair looks normal to him. Great, good. He then decided to go over my blood test results with me to prove his point that I am healthy. But when I saw the results on the screen, I noticed that in my full blood count, my lymphocytes were right at the very bottom of the normal range. If they even drop a tiny bit, they will be below moral levels. So now of course I'm stressing that I have lymphoma. I'm trying so hard not to get drawn into this, but my mind is spiralling. Help!

[Anxiouscow]

Hello there,

A level of lymphocytes that is quite low are usually caused by undernutrtion. However, if this was the case, the doctor would have been concerned, but they obviously weren't. If your doctor is attempting to "prove a point" that you are healthy, then he has obviously thoroughly looked at your blood test results, and is not concerned about a possible low lymphocyte count. My advise to you as a sufferer of health anxiety would be to focus on that, and if there is any possibility that you may not be eating the right foods, attempt to do that accordingly.

If a fireman told you that a fire was out, would you believe him? If a chef told you that your food was cooked correctly, would you believe him? Just think about it. Doctors look at blood test results daily, and if there had been any chance of lymphoma, trust me, he would want that to be checked.

I hope you feel better soon.

[cattia]

Thank you! I guess my diet isn't always the best when I'm stressed, so I will try to eat better. I kind of wish he hadn't shown me the results! But I suppose if you have a normal range, some people are bound to be at the top or bottom of it.

[swajj]

I have a lot of hair. A couple of years ago I noticed that it was getting thinner. Everyone said it wasn't. I got blood tests done which showed my Vitamin D was very low so I started taking supplements. My hair continued to get thinner with no explanation. Two years later it is thinner but still very thick. No one except me can tell the difference. I honestly blame it on the anxiety. I have read posts from others here about hair shedding which convinces me even more. All I can say is it's vicious cycle.

[Hypomean]

Okay so the doctor saw it and there was no cause for concern. Then guess what?? You are fine you were right there with him. You should of brought up your concerns.

[axolotl]

The bottom of normal range is still in normal range, i.e. normal.

[Bigboyuk]

Exactly same as if they are slightly higher than the normal high, just like your body temp 98.4 F is normal so is 99F so is 97F obviously 100F might be some cause for concern as would be 96F and anything less than 96 or higher than 100F would need to be looked in to but small differences even . some thing is of no concern atall. We are all made differently so everything is fine if it wasn't your dr would have done more tests or referred you on :) Cheers

[cattia]

Thanks everyone. Hypomean I did ask him about the results that were at the very low end when I was there and he just said 'oh it's fine'. If something is in the middle of the range then obviously you have some wriggle room but if it's right on the cusp then a tiny change is going to move it to being a cause for concern. So in my mind I'm close to being that.
Swajj, I also think anxiety is a factor, in fact my dr said that although he thinks my hair looks healthy, stress can definitely cause more thinning.