Health Anxiety causing REAL symptoms?

[Mumma02]

I have had my fair share of illnesses over the last 18 months and have developed terrible health anxiety as a result. From irregular bleeding, loosing a lot of explained blood during labour, battling low ferritin ever since, developing an overactive bladder and ibs, being referred for suspected bowel cancer due to what turned out to be piles that actually produced clots!! Here I am now...I almost feel this anxiety is justified.
Here's my problem...As soon as I get over one problem, something else happens. Each of the occassions above I was convinced I had cancer. Now out of the blue 6 weeks ago, I developed an extremely unusual headache on the right side of my head which made my face go numb and made me feel sick. Obviously I convinced myself it was a tumour. Since then, I have had this headache to a degree every single day on the right side of my head! I've never experienced this unusual pain before, it can be a stinging/tingling/burning sensation at times. Over the last 2 months or so I've also developed pins and needles in my feet/hands/arms/head and even mouth on one occassion. I feel sick and dizzy often. My legs feel very heavy or like jelly at times. My arms (but particularly my left arm) feels weaker and harder to use. I've seen stars in my vision (had an eye test last month so I know it's not my vision), had palpitations, chest pain and air hunger (went to a&e last month who did an ecg and said I was ok), feel faint and as if I am going to pass out during the middle of a conversation, extremely fatigued, feeling that I'm not really here, balance is off and started to get twitches all over my body...probably more but I can't think! I'm hoping to try and see a private neurologist next week but my question is...can anxiety cause any of these symptoms or am I actually just that unlucky to keep having things wrong with me? Trouble is, I've never felt this bad...it's effecting my life every day and I'm fed up about fearing the worst every day and want a diagnosis so I can just deal with it and move on.
I'm 32 and have 2 children aged 1 and 4 for context. Happy in every other aspect of my life. I've been tested for vitamin b12 and d, thyroid, autoimmune diseases, iron, full blood count...all normal other than low ferritin which has started creeping up with liquid supplement.

You’re doing the right thing to get checked out but yes, I think health anxiety can cause these symptoms. I suffer from health anxiety too and around 20 years ago started to worry I had MS after reading an article. Within a few days I started getting symptoms almost identical to those you have. I felt really unwell for months and even though a close friend who was a doctor told me he thought it was anxiety I just couldn’t believe it. I eventually got an mri scan and other tests and nothing was found although I still wonder if it might have been ME/post viral syndrome, but I can see now it definitely started with anxiety.

Try to look after yourself, exercise if you can, eat well, do relaxation etc. Also get some help with the health anxiety if you can.

Bless you @Mumma02 - HA causes all sorts of 'real' symptoms. DD was born in April 2019 and in the May I was under the GP for tests.
I remember having horrendous chest pains and convinced myself I was having a heart attack. GP tests revealed very low iron so I was put on tablets for about 7 months. I learned to realise the chest pain only appeared when I began to worry, when I wasn't worrying, I had no pain. By the Autumn of 2019 I was back at the GP about a lymph node on my neck. The node has been raised for over 12 years (possibly longer, 12 years ago is when I felt it). I prodded and poked it constantly to the point it was very sore and even when I wasn't touching it I would feel pain in it (in hindsight I was aggravating it by pressing it). Around this time I referred myself to Mind for counselling where I was diagnosed with Generalised Anxiety Disorder which manifests itself as Health Anxiety. GP referred me for an ultrasound scan which came back completely normal - he also prescribed sertraline (never taken it, just always carry it with me). I continued with counselling weekly for a few months then felt better once the results were back so stopped.

Next thing I know by the end of the year I had another referral as I found a lump in my left breast. December 2019 between Christmas and New Year I went to the breast clinic where I was examined and had an ultrasound that showed that thankfully the lump was just a fatty lump and nothing to worry about. I was elated!

Worries went. Nothing to worry about.

Convinced myself I found another lump so GP referred me back to the breast clinic in February. Specialist couldn't find anything.

Found out I was pg with DD2 in March, also thought I found another lump. Referred again in June 2020, specialist had a good feel and a good examine of both and said I just have lumpy breasts, that with pregnancy they can sometimes be lumpier than usual. I mentioned I had occasional pain in my left one and he said pain wasn't a sign of cancer (however Dr Google told me otherwise...) and that things felt as they should. I now self examine once a month.

I'm lucky that the GP kept referring me - she said she was only doing it for my peace of mind which I'm grateful for.

Currently on the ceiling with my anxiety again over my left breast again, occasional pain and self examining every day practically. Tonight I convinced myself I felt something which wasn't there when I felt again but then it was if that makes sense? I'm also considering starting to take my sertraline tomorrow as I feel I'm letting my mind go into overdrive.

What I'm getting at by posting this hugeeee message is that don't feel you're alone - myself like many others also feels physical symptoms with anxiety. Google is no ones friend. I find it helps to vent on here or try and talk myself through how I'm feeling.

Hope you're okay

This sounds quite similar to what I have been experiencing for the last 4.5 months. It started with dizzy spells, palpitations and chest pain and has escalated to an almost constant bounding (not fast) heart beat/pulsing through neck and body and almost constant dizziness. I have shortness of breath or rather breathing feels forced and laboured, which is quite possibly altering blood gas levels and making me feel dizzy and strange. I swing between accepting that it is anxiety related and then being convinced that there is something wrong with my heart or lungs. Either way it is absolutely debilitating.

How you feeling op? I definitely have these symptoms and I am learning that it is my health anxiety but it is awful and so worrying

@AllTheThing I'm in a much better head space than I was when I posted this but I STILL have a lot of these symptoms plus new ones! I have a lot of over/under active thyroid symptoms to be honest but gp has tested me twice and said I was fine so who knows. Health anxiety is debilitating though. It would be nice to just wake up and not notice every symptom of something! Hope you're ok.

OP as far as I’m concerned this is textbook health anxiety - or perhaps closer to what is now termed “somatic symptom disorder”. I’ve been in and out of neurology more than once over things like this - the symptoms were entirely real even to a neurologist but nothing to be found as a cause. I’m also going through a bad patch just now and for similar reasons - young child, real postnatal health issues, and my DH was recently diagnosed with cancer, none of it helped by the bloody pandemic. I hope you continue to feel better. It’s a bad thing to go through.

OP, I could’ve written this 3 years ago. My Ferratin levels were really low due to heavy periods, and my symptoms were dizziness, fatigue, feeling faint, palpitations, weak left arm, and EXTREME anxiety. I eventually had a severe panic attack and a passerby called an ambulance. I honestly thought I was dying.

My periods have been sorted and I take iron tablets now and - touch wood - I feel so much better.

I was also perimenopausal at that time. Are you? I was mid-40s.

Oh, I also convinced myself that I couldn’t swallow, and only ate soup and porridge for a month till I had a camera down my throat. When I walked in the room, the (lovely) consultant said, “I don’t think we’re going to find anything wrong at all.” It was like he knew, due to my age/general panicky disposition! And they didn’t. But I honestly COULD NOT SWALLOW FOOD until they retracted that camera, showed me the photos, and told me everything was ok.

You can definitely manifest symptoms.

I’d see someone about the headache, but I don’t think it’ll be anything serious.

Have a read of "It's all in your head" by Suzanne O'Sullivan. That's not meant to sound patronising, as the symptoms are real not "imagined" but it helped me understand how the brain can cause very real physical symptoms which have no medical cause, often due to stress or trauma. For some, it was a failure to be seen by the right type of doctor for ages, others just didn't want to hear. I hope you get some answers and reassurance.

@MacbookHoHoHo oh wow really? It does actually reassure me when I hear other women suffer with these issues and it just turns out to be low ferritin. I'm not perimenipausal, I'm 32 and have had my hormones tested for this and all was ok. Regular periods etc. I actually saw a neurologist privately in January and had a brain mri. Nothing found but did question intacrainial hypertension which sent me spiralling in to a panicn reading about brain stents! But neurologist doesn't seem to think it is this and more likely due to tension in my neck. I've developed a bit of tinnitus now too but again neurologist isn't worried. Wish I could be more chilled about it! Can you take iron long term? I stopped taking it but my ferritin was only up to 14 and I've had my period this week and low and behold feel a bit rubbish again.

My mum had that inability to swallow, it has a name in women, can't remember it but you are not alone. She also has a lot of physical tension due to stress, poor posture, being worried about exercising. Thankfully she has a supportive GP who sends her for tests when necessary to reassure her but encourages her to keep going for walks etc.

It's called globus sensation ( used to be called globus hystericus). The treatment is usually investigation to rule out anything else, once that is done, it usually resolves.

@ATieLikeRichardGere hope you're ok. So sorry to hear about your husband.

Thank you, @horseymum! It’s lovely to know I’m not the only one. How strange, though - such a weird thing to feel you can’t swallow, but then for it to vanish as soon as you’re checked. They never really explained it to me. Hope your mum is fine now.

@Mumma02

Can you take iron long term? I stopped taking it but my ferritin was only up to 14 and I've had my period this week and low and behold feel a bit rubbish again.

Yes, you can take it safely until your levels are restored. Ferratin of 14 is really low. I think mine was 35 and I felt horrendous. Are you losing hair? Mine was really thinning abd I read (on here 😆) that Ferratin under 50 can make your hair fall out.

Are you on decent strength iron pills? My GP put me on Ferrous Fumerate pills, I think around 320mg/ug/whatever they measure iron in, and I felt better almost immediately (which might’ve been psychosomatic but it was a real relief).

You can buy Ferrous Fumerate over the counter.

You can overdose on iron but only if you take LOADS. I once rang my GP in a panic because I’d been swigging an iron tonic out of the bottle, and he was in stitches. Apparently you’d have to drink gallons of it to OD. So you should be fine to take it long-term.

@MacbookHoHoHo

They were 9 at their lowest. GP never overly concerned as HB levels in range. Hair not falling out but I've had palpitations, chest pain, tingling, sore muscles, aches, weakness in arms and legs, headaches, metallic taste in mouth, nausea, tinnitus, breathlessess, fatigue but also find it hard to sleep, faint temor in both hands...most symptoms come and go and may not all be related. Hence why I always think its something that hasnt been detected. Not nice waking up every day wondering if you will be ill or not!

The HB range is weird in this country — you can be in the “normal” range but still feel like death.

I am currently experiencing very similar symptoms @Mumma02
I'm sure it is the case that these things can all be anxiety, but it's so hard to accept when you're experiencing it yourself. I've been to the GPs where they did some neurological checks and said I was fine. However I remain convinced I could have something terrible and it consumes my thoughts nearly every waking minute. When I was checked over it was more the constant specific headache on one side, since then it's progressed to feeling dizzy and nauseous constantly. I know they've already written it off as nothing so there's no point calling them again. Those who mention seeing a private neurologist - do you have health insurance or have you just paid for it yourself? I've tried to see how much it would cost me (I don't have insurance) but can't really seem to get an idea.

@monkeyted I don’t know if this will
help but recently I have shared with my GP my concerns about symptoms alongside saying that I’ve got health anxiety and strangely this has actually led them to do more thorough investigations in order to definitively reassure me and progress with my anxiety treatment. Of course you don’t want to get into a cycle of needing the reassurance constantly but occasionally I think it has to be a first step. Previously I have seen a neurologist through the NHS. Really sorry to hear how bad it is for you at the moment.

Have you had Covid (suspected or tested) as the symptoms would also match Long Covid. It’s awful feeling poorly and worrying, I hope it improves soon for you

@monkeyted that's so strange that we have both suffered with one sided headaches! Did they give you a diagnosis? I do have private healthcare which I started paying for last year. It's worth it's wait in gold. £11.50 a month and I saw a neurologist and had an mri 3 days later and the results back 5 days after that. It would have cost over £700 upfront and no waiting around like you would on the nhs which isn't great when you're anxious anyway.

@pasinphoebe I don't think I've had covid - but the symptoms fit don't they! I'm a teacher so have to test at home now and my latest was negative. I understand it would show as positive for up to 90 days if I had had it.

@Mumma02 no I haven't been given a diagnosis - I was told 'it's like a tension headache, although not in the right place for a tension headache'. Which really didn't help! It is strange re-reading your OP as what you've written could be me. Fortunately I've not had other difficult health experiences recently, but I have all the same symptoms as you now, same age and same age children! Although my headache is left sided with left sided arm/leg issues (which I realise makes no sense). Was your MRI because of these current symptoms? Do let me know what the neurologist says if you get to see them. Also who are you insured with - I've never found anything for less than about five times that price!

@monkeyted I can't believe how similar we are. I am with Benenden. Look them up - worth every penny. My neurologist isn't concerned at all to be honest. He says I need a period of time for the symptoms to go away and once they do I won't think about them and they won't come back! Still suffering daily with headache pain. Sometimes it is right at the top of my head and other days on the right hand side. Sometimes I have a sore neck and tinnitus noises in my right ear. I would love for it all to just go away so I can get on with life!

Have you taken any steps to treat the underlying anxiety?