Varicose veins

[MissM94]

Sorry it's a bit of a long one! But I've had varicose veins all over my legs from when I was 18, I got referred to a specialist a few years ago maybe like 2016/2017 but they said they wouldn't do removal as there is no health risk.. but last November I went to my routine pill check app with the nurse and just mentioned this burning feeling I'd felt in my right leg for a couple of months, actually went to an out of hours app about it, but he said it was nerve damage and hadn't even documented the app we had! Wasn't on my notes or sent to my gp so roll around to the nurse app she spoke to another doctor and sent me up to a&e for possible deep vein thrombosis.. had all the checks and scans I don't have deep vein but I have thrombophlebitis which is basically one in the surface not in the deep vein, so the lady told me I needed to be referred as it is not a health risk and couldn't understand why I was allowed to be on the pill when I had varicose veins she said she was surprised this hadn't happened sooner, so I'm not allowed to be on the pill and she said I need surgery to get rid of them.. so I've got my referral app with the specialist in a couple of weeks and I just can't help but feel anxious about it because I just know they're going to say no to surgery and I'll just be absolutely gutted, the pain I have is horrendous & itching like no other, I literally make my skin bleed and scab! And the lady who referred me said that it's also an effect on my confidence (which is completely is but didn't want them to think it was being done for cosmetic reasons) but I absolutely dread summer, I wear tights or pants with everything and it's unbearable because of the heat so if I could just have a few months of no bulky horrible veins I'd be so happy 😩 so I'm just wondering has anyone else ever had varicose vein treatment/surgery?

• The lady told me I needed to be referred as it is now a health risk -

Yes i've had it twice now. happily surgery has moved on since the first time, they do keyhole surgery now so you don't need to take two weeks off to recover which was the case with my first op. it's a pretty simple op nowadays

@refusetobeasheep oh really! So was you in and out and okay to walk/drive after it? If you don't mind me asking did you have something similar to me as to why you needed surgery?

i'm sure they will say yes to surgery for you. I think with me if i'd first tried home remedies for six months or so and still got pain then that was enough.

Ok to go home that night but via taxi / friend giving you a lift, not driving yourself

DH had it done last year on both legs - in in the morning, out after a couple of hours. He had to wear medicinal elastic stockings for a couple of weeks.

@refusetobeasheep yeah they said the same to me last time! I've done home remedies for years haha I currently wear support socks every day for work and elevate my legs at night but nothing stops them they've gone considerably worse throughout lockdown which makes no sense as I spent most of last year on furlough haha ahh hopefully they say yes then! My doctor said she doesn't know what they will do because there's so many on both legs so hopefully they agree to ripping them all out in one go not just the one with the clot in 😂

@Prokupatuscrakedatus out after a couple of hours, that's brilliant! Did they disappear straight away?

I had mine done when I was 19 or so (a long time ago) and they have since returned. I went to the GP but they said they wouldn’t operate unless they were ulcerated, no matter that they were so itchy I was making my legs bleed with scratching. So I am saving up to have them done privately when it’s possible again because like you I never wear skirts or shorts, always in tights or leggings. I might give the GP one last go but I’m not hopeful.

I’ve had thrombophlebitis for about 25 years, OP. Long before any varicose veins appeared. Just wanted to reassure you that it is something you can live with without too much concern.

Yes but privately . Endovenous laser ablation, in a lunch hour, followed by foam sclerotherapy sessions. I’d had the worst veins I’d ever seen!
The improvement was enormous after surgery.
However I had been accepted for nhs treatment too , but the process was so complex, time consuming , and such a long wait that I opted to go private. The assumption seems to be that the nhs always say no to vein surgery, but like you I’d had thrombophlebitis (in fact I’d had it maybe ten times) and had had frequent courses of heparin injections. The consultants were only surprised i’d not been referred earlier. Varicose veins can really be a health risk, far before the point of dvt.
The negative of this story though is that the veins came back, (just popped out in different places) I suffer now from the worst water retention in my legs, and I had two years of excruciating nerve pain post surgery. For about two weeks I had legs like a celeb though.
This time laser surgery isn’t possible , as the new varicose veins are extremely convoluted and twisty apparently. This time corrective surgery would require general anaesthetic, and lots more recovery time. It would be nhs only (private clinics aren’t up for this one now) and the waiting list is unreal. (Pre covid, I dread to think of it now).

@dubyalass oh no, sorry you can't get them done again I would give it one last try if I was you before you pay all that money, I've had a look before it's about 4 grand a leg isn't it?!
What does ulcerated mean? 😅 like where they bulge?

@TomHardyAndMe oh really? Sorry you've had it for so long I've only had it a year and the heat and ache drives me mad 😅 thank you for reassuring me!

@Kingdombythesea bloody hell you've had it rough! Do you have a family history? My doctor can't believe how bad mine are, I don't even know anyone else in my family that has them.. maybe my grandma on my dads side but I don't know anyone with legs like mine 😩

@Kingdombythesea do you have any post surgery scars btw?

No real family history of them, they appeared after my first baby. It really isn’t as expensive to get them done privately as you think Op, I think mine was about 3k all in, for both legs, all the sclerotherapy after and any consultation/ aftercare stockings etc.
As I say, mine looked amazing initially but I think I was really unlucky with nerve pain.

Zero scars. really you go in to a swish little office, have a few injections.... put some stockings on and go home! You can just chat throughout , it’s like having a pedicure or something.
The bruising though is pretty horrendous (massive black painful bruises afterwards that last a while)

@Kingdombythesea oh tbf that's not a bad price to have celeb legs 😂 would consider donating my left arm just to be able to wear shorts in summer hahaha

I have really unsightly varicose veins on my legs and also never ever have bare legs in summer because I can't stand the thought of anyone seeing my legs I've sometimes wondered if I should look into doing anything about them but I've been too anxious.

Does anyone know if you lose weight whether it reduced them? I could do with losing about 2 stone, and wondered if it would help or if it might make them more noticeable.

No, losing weight does not have a dramatic effect @covetingthepreciousthings.

@covetingthepreciousthings I've always been under the impression that when they're there and visible they're not doing anywhere without physically getting rid of them, stockings are supposed to prevent them getting worse or more coming up but didn't work in my situation, apparently standing up for long periods of time makes them worse/brings them on.. I've always worked on my feet so that's probably why mine are so bad, never had a sit down job always worked in hospitality so long hours stood up and walking around

Thanks, I have always worked standing up too! So that probably makes sense why mine are so bad too.

@covetingthepreciousthings I'm sorry you aren't able to dress appropriately for summer 🙁 it's so rubbish isn't it, I wish we didn't care what people thought but it's so hard to be confident when they're so noticeable I also have ankles like this aswell so sandals is also a no go

Sorry for the graphic pictures lol!

For anyone feeling self conscious about veins I’d absolutely recommend seeing a private surgeon for a consultation, despite my experience. The initial consultation isn’t madly expensive. The thing about varicose veins is that when you have a lumpy leg in loads of different places it’s easy to assume the problem is more complex than it actually is ( it may just be one vein that can be dealt with injections alone, which is about £200- £400). Not all veins require expensive lasers.
Even if you decide not to proceed you have a clearer idea of your situation and a piece of paper with a detailed diagnostic report to take to the nhs , if you decide to proceed that way.

@MissM94
I went and had a look - yes his legs look normal, there are still tiny scars visible but he got a cream for them. I thought it would take longer.
He is supposed to do walking, biking or swimming to keep his veins in shape, though.