Beyond panic

[MaryMac]

My fear is leukaemia and last night I came out of the shower and found petechia on my right foot. There's little red dots that don't blanch. It could be from wearing my shoes too tight but to be honest I think ive justices beyond panic and am sort of numb. I just cut my finger with a knife in my work by accident so it's obviously bleeding and I have a plaster on it but I want to check and see if it's syopped bleeding because if not then my fears will be confirmed...

---------- Post added at 08:21 ---------- Previous post was at 08:21 ----------

Sorry that should say "just moved beyond panic"instead of justices! Stupid iPhone :)

[LizeeeH]

Hi Mary

Please dont worry you dont have leukemia I had a friend with it and they had loads of symptoms, the spots were probably due to your shoes:)

liz

[MaryMac]

Thanks for replying but I just don't know why I'm getting this just now? My "get out" so to put it was that I didn't have petechia but now I do?? Argh!! I want to go for a blood test but am so scared

[macc noodle]

How do you know about petechia???????? Have you ever suffered it before or is it courtesy of Dr Google??

Is it just a slight red rash or is it purple? If purple then clearly you need to seek urgent medical advice.

If you have a red rash it could just be a reaction to the shower, the soap, washing powder etc etc etc

If a doc thought you had petechia then they would undertake the necessary tests without question.

And regarding your cut finger - if it had not stopped bleeding then it would have come through the plaster so there is no need to worry there.

You need to stay calm about this - chances of you having it are very very low and more than likely it is just an irritation rash. I hate to suggest this since I am against using the internet for diagnosis but if you just look at the Wikipedia page on this condition and look at the picture, I am almost 100% sure that you will see that your red rash does not look like that.

If it does, call the out of hours doc.

tc and let us know how you get on.

Macc Noodle

[MaryMac]

Doc google is to blame... I've never suffered from it before and I've looked at alot of pics and to be fair it doesn't look like any of them but it is little red dots scattered on my foot that don't blanch and aren't itchy. They don't seem to be anywhere else or I'm too scared to look!! Im just fed up of googling leukaemia symptoms and shaking constantly. I can't eat, I have palpitations I cant focus on anything. It's ruining my life.

[b4eve]

Leukaemia is my big fear and I have had petechiae loads of times. I had a very small "crop" on one toe last summer and I've had them brought on by the pressure of straps and most of all by scratching (often on my thighs). I can tell you not to worry but then I know that I worry even though it's happened to me loads of times (it's happened to my kids occasionally too), if you still feel scared tomorrow see your GP who'll no doubt tell you it's just one of those things, probably down to your shoes. I'm so sorry you're feeling like this and I totally understand and I wish I had a better answer!

[MaryMac]

Thanks for the replies. :) I'm just sitting with my socks off but the thing is, I wouldn't notice these things unless I have a torch and am scanning! I have no idea how long they'd have been there, but right now I can't even tell that they're there. I've been looking at petechia pics constantly for a few months and they look quite severe whereas the ones on my foot don't. I just don't know!!!! The amount of anxiety I've been feeling for the last while is enough to make me ill itself!

[macc noodle]

MaryMac

Just stop looking - I know that this is very hard cos I suffer dreadful HA and GAD myself and am having a really tough time this weekend with my own woes and worries!! I know only too well the constant need to check and the constant belief that you really have something wrong with you.

Why on earth would you use a torch ?? How do you know that it is different today to how it was say 3 weeks ago - do you regularly examine your body with a torch??

You are constantly fuelling your worried by checking and it really does need to be the first thing you address - could you consider not looking for the rest of the day and just check it again before bed time say ?

Then tomorrow one check when you get up and then one at bedtime? If there is no change for the worse, then you then do not check it again until bedtime the following day?

It really is worth a try hon - I had a similar compulsion for checking my body for signs of late stage cancer (not going into details cos it may get you thinking) - I was at it constantly morning noon and night - driving myself and everyone around me to distraction.

Anxiety is a horrible thing to suffer from and it can make you feel really grotty.

Macc Noodle
xx

[MaryMac]

Hi Macc Noodle. :) I had to get a back tooth out in November last year, and I sort of got into the habit of putting a torch in my mouth to make sure that the gum was healing properly, and my HA started around then, thinking that the tooth abcess was going to spread etc... Stupid google! Anyway around the week after I had it out, I got a bad cold, and I couldn't get rid of the cough, so for some reason I googled (argh!!) and leukemia came up! My common sense at the time told me that obviously I don't have leukemia but then for some reason I started obsessing over it and developed "symptoms". Of course all of the symptoms were of my own making, but like I said earlier my "getout" clause was always that I didn't have petechiae. I've noticed small red dots on my skin in the last couple of weeks, but they've always faded and I'm pretty sure its shaving rash or something, but these ones on my foot! Again they don't look like the petechia on google images, but it just makes me wonder when I've been worrying about something so much, why does it just suddenly happen!?
Normally I'm a very rational, carefree happy person, I've been through CBT/therapy when my mother died and I have a great life/career/friends and other than my tooth abcess a few months ago, no health problems. Why I'm so fixated on leukemia right now is a mystery to me.