Health Anxiety - Part two

[MrsWhites]

Hi everyone, it seems we have reached 1000 posts on our original thread which is amazing, just shows how much support we have been able to give each other.

I thought we would benefit from part two!

@tmh88 That's a good idea, I am going to do mine below. From top to toe…

Head: Nothing on the top of the head.

Neck: Lymph-node's, slightly enlarged cervical lymph nodes on both side. Super clavicle lymph-node on right-hand side.

Throat: various lumpy throat bits, some of them large on the right, or on the left.

Breasts: everything, various lumps, small lumps like beads, hard bits, soft bits, movable bits, bony bits, ridgey bits, ropey bits, cysty bits, flat circular bits, I could genuinely go on… Not the same on both sides, left slightly bigger.

Abdominal: Weird periods, sometimes have stopped with stress, most recently one day of non-bleed, followed by a day of lead. Various anxiety relating to surgeries and ovaries. With no specific symptoms.

Back bones: Weird lumpy bits on either side towards the bottom of my back, possibly my back hip bones? Seem to move around a bit and be probable.

Have come and gone: Spots… Red spots throughout body, including pin pricks. Still have those.

@TheSilentStars Brilliant news 🥳🥳🥳🥳

@skyliner001, I've got those wobbly boney hip bits at the back. Right one moves and crunches, left one doesn't.

@TheSilentStars YES! I love this thread, so glad that it's not just me!

I lost an entire evening to poking them, my partner thought I had gone mad. I missed the entire film we were trying to watch as I was so stressed out.

But when you google "lumps on the back" it's impossible to find out what they are, I was even googling pictures of Skellington's… My right hand side is wobbly and bigger than my left hand side.

@Skyliner001 Your breasts sound like mine! I've also had a few appointments at the breast clinic. I've reached the head in the sand time with them now though. I don't even touch them, for fear of feeling something. Not the best strategy really.

@ofwarren I completely get that, it makes the examinations so stressful. I tried to do a baseline after I went to the breast clinic recently, they only scanned my left breast, but the right one was very well examined by the consultant. He described it as very nodular, but said that he wasn't worried. The left one he obviously could see the giant lump, and expected it to be fluid filled…And then the ultrasound showed a cyst 3" x 2", which was drained.

There was a small amount of fluid after the cyst was drained, amounting to a very liquidy probably half pea size lump, which slowly went away after about two weeks, but sent me into a complete spiral of anxiety. I have stopped hating my breasts again now, but I genuinely thought I wouldn't like them again, as they were causing me so much anxiety.

Wow so much happening on here this morning so sorry if I haven’t kept up!

@TheSilentStars brilliant news! Your appointment sounds like a bit of an ordeal, getting through all the Covid and printer drama 😂 Can I ask what herbal medication you take?

@Skyliner001 so glad to hear that the medication is helping you!

@ofwarren welcome to the thread, I hope it helps you as much as it helps me.

I am determined to have a no poke day today! Boobs are so sore from my previous poking that I think i’d hit the roof if I tried anyway! 😢

@MrsWhites i'll definitely join you on that, let's check in again later and see how we are getting on. I poked my left one so much last week that it went numb, apparently you can cause nerve damage by repeated poking, which can actually damage the breasts. Temporarily, but it did make me think actually I need to try not to poke it as much… The numb thing was really scary

@MrsWhites
I take Holland and Barrett 5HTP (which converts to seratonin apparently) H&B magnesium + B6 (that's the one the gynae told me to take for anxiety) Always have Rescue Remedy on hand as well.
The melatonin one is called Anxiorem but that was from Amazon.

@Skyliner001 I’m doing ok so far mostly because they are so sore. Bruised feeling and stabbing pains 😢 Having a lazy pj day though so need to go and get dressed, that’s the big test for me!

@TheSilentStars thank you that. I will definitely have a look at those. I used to take magnesium and b6 but stopped too soon I think!

@TheSilentStars glad you’re feeling a bit better after your hospital ordeal!

@chorusline79 I’m doing ok thanks! I do think it’s starting to feel more normal now the shocks worn off from her death! I still get upset but I will for a long time I think!

Hey ladies, I’m the same, doing ok today but only because I’m so sore. Have had some shooting type pain which keeps freaking me out. Keep trying to figure out if it’s the actually breast tissue that’s hurting or deeper, think it’s both as I had a good dig around.

@Goolies I had shooting pains in mine last week after digging deep to check and honestly it felt like I'd bruised them it was awful!

Today I've convinced myself my nipple feels funny again. I've checked it, it looks the same as the other. The Montgomery turbacles or whatever they're called from being pregnant are still there, don't know when they'll go away.

@TheSilentStars really pleased your scan went well!

Had a sharp pain in the bottom of my right boob when I picked something up and almost poked!

I'm back from the doctors and I do have an inner ear (labarynthitis) infection.
This is what I find hard about health anxiety as whenever I have symptoms, it is because something is wrong. I catastrophise and think it's something worse like MS or something, but it is never just nothing at all.
My worry is that I will tell the doctor about my anxiety and they won't take future symptoms seriously.

Don't think like that @ofwarren - if you trust your GP and find them understanding, they will also understand you

@Skyliner001 well done for not poking!

Anyone else struggle taking new drugs too? I'm on a new antibiotic and I worry about drug side effects. I can't not read the sheet they give you.
Good job I did read it today because I can't take this drug with omeprasole and she never told me that.

@Skyliner001 well done! I’ve poked myself to the extent my neck and shoulders hurt today think I’ve prodded around too deep into the muscle! Wish I didn’t worry about them as they are small lumps left hand side is pea sized and right is like half pea sizes!

@ofwarren I do yes! I make sure I never read side effects otherwise I seem to get them all when I know about them

My period hasn’t shown this month which is adding to my anxiety but I’m logically thinking it must be stress!

@dillydallydollydaydream7 it’s mad isn’t it even though I know I’ve poked I worry when it hurts after. Makes me get so paranoid about my heart too as it’s my left breast that gives me these troubles!!

@Skyliner001 wow so the pain on bending down isn’t just me then! It’s so good to know and and sharing these things with you all helps to normalise things somewhat

TMI alert. 😳

I had done so well today, no problem at all of any upper body.

Went to the loo when doing the shopping, and had a tiny amount of pink discharge, possibly less than 5 pence piece size wise. So a tiny tiny amount, and went into an absolute spiral.

Had to come back and do an examination down there… Including googling lots of pictures of normal looking vaginas…

I am embarrassed for myself, just wanted to share. Had a flashlight at the mirror, I think all is okay, I can't actually see the cervix though...

Just had visions of their being a massive lump there…

Honestly, why do we do this to ourselves!?

@tmh88 My periods are always stressing me out, they arrive late, or a skip them, or are they are light, or they are heavy. Stress plays havoc with them…

Its 24hrs since period finished. So hoping just a bit of blood left over. Probably the equivalent of one drop, if that.