To be disappointed my scan was normal

[cantdothisanymor]

I saw a physio ages ago and was told I likely had a torn meniscus.

I’ve finally had the scan and the report says all is fine, just a small cyst. It could be a ganglion or a parameniscal. But it’s all fine.

I’ve got an appointment booked in with an orthopaedic consultant to discuss the scan properly but I’m almost sad that I just have to live with this pain now. For the last year I’ve been in agony, every step hurts, and now it turns out it’s just me being a baby.

I could cry, I really thought that I was about to find an answer and a cure. But this is just how I live my life now. I can’t imagine another 70 years of this agony.

Why do you think you have to live with it? I had a ganglion that was causing me a lot of pain. I know they're supposed to be painless but it depends what it's pressing on.

I had it drained (privately £210) and the pain was resolved instantly.

The NHS won’t do that and I can’t afford to do it privately. I have a private consultation booked but I think I’ll cancel it and ask my GP to review because I think the extra £200 will be a waste of time

DH has has an entirely painless and mildly inconvenient ganglion surgically removed from his wrist on the NHS, so I’m not sure you’re right that they won’t do anything.

And you need to switch the narrative. If you go to a doctor saying there’s nothing wrong with you, they’re not going to do anything. If you go waging you’re in so nice pain that you can’t live your life and it’s causing mental health issues, and it’s possible that a simple cyst/ganglion removal might help then it’s not a forgone conclusion they’re just going to send you home.

Did you post previously as whatawonderfullife op?

But it’s not painless.

No, I’ve never heard of that poster before.

The NHS doesn’t give a shit if you’re in pain though, that’s how I ended up having to go private

I recognise them too but she says she's never posted before.

OP, it’s hard to know what you really want from this thread - you’re being so disingenuous and passive-aggressive. You know quite well that the scan report is just an objective description of what was seen by the MRI - the machine hasn’t called you a baby, or told you you’re imagining it, or any other of the ridiculous things you've said. You have significant pain, and the fact that you don’t appear to have a meniscal tear is neither here nor there.

’Benign’ in this context simply means ‘not cancerous’ - it says nothing about whether the cyst is causing your pain.

As a GP I know well that sometimes breaking good news to people - “You scan is normal, Mrs X” - can be complicated - having a significant finding on scan can be very validating, especially if the patient has been suffering for a long time. So I do get that. But this pre-emptive defence of what you assume is going to happen when you see the consultant - all the silly self-talk and calling yourself names - is not serving you well.

have a look into complex regional pain symdrome . I have this in my foot and it's awful but it's not as limiting as it seems online

I’m just so gutted. I wanted an answer, I wanted to get it treated and put it behind me. I feel like I just have to put up with it now

When I had mine done privately, by a surgeon who also worked in the NHS, after being told by GP that the NHS doesn't do them, she told me they do see them on the NHS, so it might be worth pushing harder.

But it was the best £210 I've ever spent.

Fwiw her letterhead called her. Podiatric surgeon, but I'm not sure she was what we'd think of as a surgeon

Benign just means it's not cancerous or fast growing, not that it's not painful. They can be very painful.

Some go away on their own. It's possible to get temporary or permanent relief by having them drained and massage and exercise can sometimes help them to drain naturally. So it's not nothing and it's not all hopeless.

Yes, I understand that completely - but you haven’t seen the specialist yet! You’re jumping the gun to a ridiculous degree. Have the conversation, explain calmly and clearly how much pain you’re in every single day, and what effect it’s having on your quality of life. And then ask what the options are for treatment.

This is surely good news. A ganglion is much easier to fix than a memiscus tear. You can probably have it done this week if you can find £200.

A ganglion is painless though and wouldn’t cause the degree of pain I’ve got in my knee

Yes but it isn’t a painless benign cyst is it?

I don’t think it’s reasonable to just accept this pain. Talk to the consultant.

Realistically though they’re not going to say anything different to the MRI, and it’s just such a bitter pill to swallow. I’d told myself that this was only temporary, I’d get the diagnosis and a treatment plan and instead it’s just more pain.

I was in absolute agony with the one on my foot. The cyst itself is harmless but it depends what it's pressing on. I had it drained and the relief was instant.

You are massively overreacting due to what you perceive as the removal of hope OP.

You are in pain. Just because the scan didn't show a reason doesn't mean that isn't true. Ganglion cysts in joints aren't always painless as they can cause nerve pain. I know you've said it's not in the same place, but referred pain is a real thing. My DM spent a year practically unable to walk due to knee pain, turns out it was actually her back, after many many tests, but the pain had referred to her knee due to the way she was walking to compensate for the back niggle she had.

It's not the end. You cannot give up and live a life of pain because one scan didn't give you the answer you assumed it would. Stop being defeatist and advocate for yourself.

Has an actual medical doctor told
you that or are you getting this from google?

I had an appointment with a senior physio at the Pain Clinic the other week after over a decade of suffering chronic pain and being pushed from pillar to post and I hope what he told me, helps you.

He said that scans are no good for picking up pain itself and just because a scan comes back as "normal" doesn't mean that there's nothing wrong or that your pain is imagined and "in your head". A scan can only pick up injuries to bones and muscles etc but don't pick up on nerve pain for example and that physios are now reducing how many MRIs they send patients for because recently old long held beliefs about pain have been debunked and he actually said that "pain is NEVER all in your head" (which is something a previous physio had said was what was going on with me - he was later proven wrong).

All of the above is me paraphrasing what he said but I remembered it all because it was the first real time I've seen a physio who actually listened to me.
You are definitely NOT being a baby - chronic pain is never as visible to others as us sufferers actually FEEL it - I have Spinal Stenosis but not even my DH realises just how much pain I'm in daily and he's supportive - it's just that it's difficult for others to understand your levels of pain and the impact it actually has on you because we all suffer pain differently and have different thresholds.

Hopefully your consultant will be as helpful with you as mine was with me - perhaps write a pain diary from now until your appointment if you've not already done so.

Your pain is real and if its chronic pain, there IS help out there that WILL make your life easier - good luck at your appointment and don't be afraid to speak up for yourself, be honest and I promise, you will get through this - chronic pain can and does cause depression and anxiety and anger and frustration plus affects your sleep cycle but there really is plenty of help out there.

I get that you are really disappointed OP as you thought you would get a clear diagnosis that would lead to a guaranteed treatment to make the pain go away and you had pinned all your hopes on that. I have a lot of sympathy for you - as do many other posters - living with chronic pain is really hard, demoralising & debilitating. Your view of the world becomes narrow & limited and naturally you focus on the pain and life becomes greyer as a result.

Please don’t give up. When you have had a chance to mentally process the report, read the suggestions on this thread, there are many good ones. Talk to people, join a support group, find people who know what you are going through to help you advocate for yourself even when you have lost hope.

Thinking of you (my ongoing trouble is my ankle so I really do sympathise )

Are you always so hard on yourself? Your allowed to still be in pain if you have a cyst, your leg doesn’t have to be physically hanging off

@SideboobToYouToo

No it isn't. Yes I understand some people who are handed diagnosis wish that their tests had been clear. But a clear scan or test result can also be very frustrating and disappointing. I received a test result today that was clear, if it hadn't been clear, I would have received the diagnosis for something that is very easily treatable. Now I am facing weeks, maybe months of more tests and investigations and possibly a more serious diagnosis at the end of it. I also wish that my test results hadn't been clear.