Hi everyone,
Over the last few months I've been having various health problems, all starting back in June or so - it all started with numb and tingling hands, followed shortly after by what now turns out to be (although I didn't know it at the time) a panic attack - I had no idea what was going on and honestly thought I was having a heart attack.
A week later I had pretty much my entire left arm and face go numb, so thinking I might be having a stroke I called 111, who advised me to go to A&E. The doctor there diagnosed anxiety and prescribed me a week course of diazepam.
After reading up on diazepam and feeling a lot better afterward, I never actually took the prescription, and felt almost back to normal for a couple of months. During this time, and as a response to these health scares, I quit smoking. Probably not the smartest move, anxiety wise, but I'm still glad I did!
Anyway, fast forward a couple of months, and I started to get chest pains. Initially I thought it was just a pulled muscle or something, but it didn't feel right, so of course, as a recent ex smoker, I assumed it was a lung issue - specifically, cancer. I've spent probably about the last month or so half-convinced I had some horrible disease.
A month later and after one very dismissive GP appointment ('Oh, it's probably nothing to worry about' 'OK, what's the problem then?' 'I don't really know.'), things were no better, to the point where I ended up in A&E again with a weird stabbing chest pain. Six hours, an ECG, two blood tests and an X ray later, they determined that there was nothing actually really wrong with me.
So today I had another GP appointment (different doctor this time!), who, rather than just the usual prod and poke, actually listened to me and took me seriously. He explained that he was almost 100% sure there was nothing physically wrong with me, but what I had was anxiety.
This really fits well and was something I've suspected for a while now, but it feels so good to have a medical professional say it. I think even the fact that I feel much better a few hours after him saying that suggests he's right. After listening to what's going on in my life right now, he said he'd be surprised if I wasn't suffering from some sort of anxiety.
And so here I am! I'm still very much having that small 'He's wrong, it's cancer and you're gonna die!' voice in the back of my head, but that's something I'm going to have to deal with at some point. For now, I've got a referral to the local wellbeing service, so I guess my journey starts here!
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