HELP!!

[barbn]

Hi all -

I am driving myself nuts and feeling terrible. I have had anxiety/depression for most of my life. I lost my job last January and thought I had uterian cancer - which of course I didn't. In fact the Dr. never even said she thought I did - she just wanted to run some tests becuase I had a heavy period.

So now I found a lump near the anal area - I had it checked out and the Dr. said she thought it was a swollen gland - which to be honest, it has gone down quite a bit (I have only had the lump for about a week and again it has gone down). I am going back to see her next week for a recheck on medications and we decided we would talk about the lump (if there was any) then.

Here is my issues - I have been so worked up over this lump that I have made my self sick and dying of cancer. I have read everythign there is to know about colon cancer etc...so here is my question - my anxiety is at its height right now, my stomch feels like butterflies all the time, my appetite is nothing, I want to cry all the time, and what is bugging me most is that I feel like I have to have a bowel movement and nothing. I do not have a gut ache, I do not feel bloated, no blood in my stool. Can anxiety do this, make you have diareaha and constipation and make you feel like you have to go and you don't really need to? To be honest none of this ever lasts for more than a few weeks...well, so far anyway...

Help put my mind at ease!! Plese tell me others have had poop issues too!!

Barb

[Utility]

Hi

Yes of course it can.
Anxiety can be the cause of this and more.

Your doctor is not concerned and neither should you be.

[jill]

Hi Barb

Please hun, if you have HA is a must that you DO NOT read up on the worse case scenario, this will only feed your anxiety.

If you have not put food in, then there not much to come back out, so to speak.

People who don't even have anxiety can feel like they need the loo, but when they get there, nothing, Hunny, you said yourself your anxiety is high sooo ohhh boy, Mrs anxiety is playing with you on this.

Anxiety CAN mess about with our body functions, when anxiety is high the flight, fight response kicks in and off loads things so to speak, we go to the loo, but because you have put nothing and not eating, there is nothing coming out, please hun, try and eat something, the sickly feeling maybe due to anxiety, but also because you have nothing in your tummy.

Your gp is not concerned at all, BUT, Mrs anxiety is helping you put 2 and 2 togther and come up with 5 (worse canse cenareo ) don't let her do this to you, please hun, try and calm yourself down, have a warm bath, listen to some relaxation cds.

you take care

LOVE JILL XXX

[barbn]

My husband wants to ban me from the internet sometimes!! I have to be honest, I really don't have any other symptoms, my stomach does not hurt - well it hurts like the nervous hurt when you haven't eaten anything. But no gut ache - no blood in my stool when I have them. No bloating...just nerves. And thinking back this all seems to happen when my anxiety is running high - when I calm down my stools seem to return to normal and I don't feel the urge. Well at least it has in the past. Even today when I have a moment of calmness, I think "hey, I don't feel the pressure" and then it comes right on back as I start thinking again! go figure! When I went in to the Dr's for the lump - I really didn't have the stool issues - so I didn't say anything. My husband did say if she (the Dr.) had thought there was more to the lump she would have had me in the hospital having a biopsy that day. So, I am worried about that and everything else.

Isn't it amazing what anxiety can do to you??? I think I am making myself sick and this isn't good!!