A&E Tonight, GP Tomorrow or Woman Up?

[MoonOnTheRain]

Just curious to see what most people would do. Don't want to waste anyone's time.

I'm anaemic, taking daily iron supplement, but the reason for the anaemia is ongoing. Last blood test about 6 weeks ago.

I'm under a consultant, but no recourse to message them. Expecting biopsy results in about ten days, when hopefully treatment plan will be come up with. Consultant will be in touch then.

Last week, have felt more tired and weak. Am pretty much on bed rest due to issue, plus anaemia. Tonight while going to loo, almost fainted. Made it back to bed, but couple of hours later, heart still pounding and feel dizzy. Feel quite unwell. However didn't eat much today, just didn't want it, so that could be part of it. Have now forced small snack in.

Not sure what I should do. Go to A&E tonight? Emergency GP appointment tomorrow if I can get one? Or am I just being a total drama queen and should just woman up until results are in, in ten days?

Apologies, I don't know how you ended up there.

I'm just genuinely shocked at some of the comments and the ignorant overconfidence they show. It's dangerous.

I swear if someone reported a chainsaw accident some folks on here would say don't clutter up A&E. Try your pharmacy. 😳

Thanks for all the responses.

Still in hospital, likely to be for a couple of days. Blood levels rising immensely slowly. Now having third transfusion.

Looking back, A&E would absolutely have been appropriate the first night. Honestly, probably even a week or two ago. But speaking to GP sent me straight here.

So relieved you're getting the treatment you need @MoonOnTheRain . And I hope they manage to sort out the underlying cause while you're there.

Glad you are getting looked after now op. Hope you feel better soon 💐

Seconded. What a time you've had. I Hope you are on the path to recovery.

Oh my goodness OP! Your haemoglobin must have been incredibly low? I'm so pleased you're getting the correct treatment, hope you feel much better very soon

I linked to nhs advice. Based on what the op said, I gave NHS advice. This is what we would advise through our nhs channels but speaking to a gp, the op was able to get advice from someone with the full picture. Unless there was more info op would have given 111, they would have advised what I said. 111 and posters on the internet can only go on what op writes.

Your post further underlines your complete ignorance. (And, sorry, but are you implying that you work in some sort of patient-facing/clinical role in the NHS? If yes, it's even worse than I thought, but hopefully just a misunderstanding.)

The NHS advice you linked to had zero relevance to anything the OP had written. You don't know enough to know that. Please just accept it and own it and, next time, sit it out. You actively tried to dissuade the OP from accessing care. Care that she urgently needed. Shame on you. You are not fit to comment on health matters.

Oh come on @TeenLifeMum you didn't just give NHS guidance.

After the OP confirmed the low iron was due to persistent heavy bleeding that had been going on for months, you continued with your dogmatic posts going so far as to say "A&E is for more urgent/life threatening situations. If she is concerned then of course 111 is the obvious answer."

Ongoing persistent heavy bleeding was a big red flag yet you either missed or ignored that and remained focused on low iron not being serious enough to warrant an emergency.

Dangerous posts like yours make people question whether they ought to go to A&E. I know from having read similar posts to this it's made me worry about going in yet on 2 occasions I ended up in resus.

The need to attend A&E was not based on the mention of iron deficiency, but because the OP was unwell and nearly collapsed. This may have been due to iron deficiency anaemia, but could have been due to absolutely anything.

Telling the OP to call 111 or seek proper medical advice is fine, but saying that iron deficiency is not an emergency alongside is not helpful. It's a bit like someone saying 'i've got really bad chest pain i think it's because I stabbed my toe' and replying 'stabbing your toe is not an emergency see your GP tomorrow'.

She was already under a consultant and gp for that so I’d have expected them to have advised.

@TeenLifeMum the opening post said the treatment plan would be established post biopsy results. Even if one had been set in the interim, the OP's symptoms could have worsened throwing an interim plan (if it existed) out of the window. Regardless, the continuous heavy bleeding coupled with the symptoms she described were a clear red flags.

Your expectation (assumption) was dangerous and there was no reason for you to be so dogmatic in your responses insisting a&e was not needed - posting once fair enough, but you kept coming back to reiterate a&e wasn't required/the situation was wrong. That is what I and other posters are getting at re your responses being dangerous as they can dissuade people like the OP to seek immediate help when it is critically required as was the situation in this case.

@MoonOnTheRain really hope you're improving.

Not on a Sunday which is when OP posted. She stated in her first post that she had no means of contacting the consultant. And GP not accessible.

Chronic anaemia can become acute and acute anaemia may be an emergency. And that’s not factoring in the biopsy - we don’t know what else is going on.

Medical advice is always if symptoms persist or worsen - consult a doctor.

Apologies typo. re posts saying a&e not required should have read as:

posting once fair enough, but you kept coming back to reiterate a&e wasn't required/the situation wasn't urgent.

My friend was weeks away from a planned Hysterectomy due to prolonged heavy bleeding from fibroids. She was constantly exhausted and became breathless if she exerted herself.

She refused all advice/pleas from family and friends to seek medical advice saying it’s only 2 weeks till surgery and I’ll be sorted. The week before her planned surgery she had a major heart attack aged 42 due to her heart muscle being starved of oxygen as a result of her severe anaemia. Thankfully she survived the heart attack but her surgery was delayed. She was told she was lucky to be alive as her blood count had dropped to a dangerously low level.

Every post you make just illustrates your lack of knowledge.

Please reflect on your over-confidence and absence of insight and perhaps just leave these medical threads for now.

I think it illustrates the information included in an op rarely gives a full picture so 111 is the best option. If someone feels well enough to post and isn’t calling 111 then it’s hard to imagine they’re as unwell as the op is.

I would expect someone under consultant care to have an escalation plan and know what symptoms are concerning - that’s part of a standard consultant appointment. It sounds like op didn’t have that - and clearly needed it.

I know you think I’m awful and wrong but I work in this world and sense checked with an ED doctor colleague who agreed with my initial response based on the original post. But that does show - the system processes are not perfect and if in doubt, trust your gut as you know your own body.

It just goes to show doesnt it. Don't trust online posters when it comes to medical advice. 'Sense checked' with an ED doc and still got it really bloody wrong!

It would be quite funny, if it wasn't so serious.

I wish Mumsnet would manage these scenarios more carefully, but clearly they don't have the resources or the expertise so just boilerplate it with the usual disclaimers and then disengage.

Folks post here when desperate because they've soldiered on too long. They're not the worried well.

I always advise GP, or 111. Occasionally A&E. I don't offer theories, solutions.

I'm under gynae care and have a named consultant. At my first appointment, I was told exactly the same as the OP ie we'll do a biopsy today but we won't give you any form of plan or advice until the results. Meanwhile, I ended back in A&E needing emergency treatment for the ongoing bleeding and resulting anaemia. I genuinely didn't know wtf to do but I was so dizzy I wasn't able to walk 10 yards. Sadly, this experience seems common for gynae problems. There's a huge amount of being sent away and waiting. I've been bleeding since last April.

Final update. I am home now. Anaemia wise, feeling much better. Above the level where transfusions are given, but not yet to normal. Now on super strong iron supplement. There's a query on medication over next couple of days, depends how my body reacts to a change of meds. But if it goes wrong again, I have a place to contact now, and will be able to spot it going wrong much quicker, so hopefully never end up that sick again. The whole thing was pretty traumatic, the shock of it, and also a couple of things that happened in hospital.

The nurses and doctors of the NHS were amazing. And I really appreciate the support of online friends as well as family.

Glad you're home OP. Make sure you follow up the biopsy results if you don't hear so you can get to the bottom of what is going on and get treatment.

Glad to hear you are well enough to continue recovering at home OP. Hope things go more smoothly from now on.