Stupid lymph nodes!

[MaryMac]

Hi everyone, I posted yesterday about finding a spot on my left tonsil, and since i found it, I've constantly been checking my lymph nodes under my chin and neck. I think I can feel them, they seem very small and moveable and I don't think they're swollen, but I also feel like I'm sort of catching a cold but dunno if it's an allergy... it's ridiculous, if I wake up in the middle of the night the first thing I check are these stupid nodes! I was totally fine for a few months then for some reason "the fear" and compulsive checking is coming back and I can't concentrate on anything! Also going onto lymphoma message boards and reading other poor people's stories.
I really am my own worst enemy... anyone else constantly checking nodes?

[Amandopondo]

Yes! My mouth, particularly my tongue feels awful, I have lumps under my tongue which I'm not sure about (are they supposed to be there?!) but I'm now constantly feeling around my neckand jaw. I'm the same, I can't tell if they're swollen or not. I've had a mole removed and am also constantly checking my underarms for swollen lymph nodes, but again, I don't really know what I'm feeling for. The constant checking is annoying, it's gotten worse since the mole discovery.

[Fearthainn]

I was obsessing about my lymph nodes about a year ago too. At the time I found a few in my neck and in the back of my head that freaked me out. Visits to a few different doctors who all told me it's normal to be able to feel some of your lymph nodes even when you're healthy. Blood tests were all perfect.

I got over my fear after a few visits and one year later these same lymph nodes are still there, so it really must be normal like the doctors said!

I know it's easier said than done but it's really not worth obsessing about. If it was something serious I guess it would become pretty obvious. Good luck!

[stripeypurplekat]

I have lumps all over my neck which I worry about I have two marble sized hard ones under my jaw a marble one further down my neck and loads of tiny ones some down my windpipe actually writing this it sounds really bad... anyway I've been to the docs he said its fine had I blood test which came back fine I e had them for months- year and they haven't grown so i think it would have grown by now :/ if you look at my other posts you'll see how worried I've been about them I've had some reassuring answers which might also reassure you. I might go back in the summer if they e changed but if they haven't I think i accept there are lumps around your body mAny of which you can feel on your neck. If it helps my sister and mum also have lumps around there neck and if they are under 1cm or even 2 they are considered normal im 16 by the way

[Rachel W]

Most people can feel some. I have one that I can feel under my jaw if I dig. What you need to know is the more you poke the more they may be palpable so it is a bit of a cycle. Just try not to poke them and if you are getting a cold then you would feel tender.

My tonsils are not the same either. My right one actually sticks out and my throat is not even. It freaked me at first but then realised that I had never looked that closely so it may have been like that for a while and I have been at the dentist and a neurologist who looked at my throat and never said anything. It sounds as if yours may be because of a cold coming on though if you are feeling that way.

Don't worry, tonsils, lymph nodes are supposed to react to an infection and this means your body is working.

Hope this helps.

[MaryMac]

Thanks everyone... It's just so annoying! I was convinced this morning I had a swollen node under my arm so now I'm checking that religiously. It's just so frustrating that since I became aware of a disease like lymphoma, I keep thinking I have the symptoms! I'm even blood itchy sometimes. But like I said I've been worrying about this since last October, and my last few months I've been fine but then I start worrying randomly and checking. I know going to a doctor would probably put my mind at ease but I'm just terrified. Argh!!

[stripeypurplekat]

If you've had them since October wouldn't they have grown by now? I don't know a lot but I wouldn't be worried if I was you you'd also probably be really ill but if you're still worried ask the doc :) I'm trying to reduce the amount I'm worrying about mine. Apparently they are only swollen if they are like bulging out your neck I read that once on here. If I press my neck I can feel loads so could my doctor but he wasnt concerned about it at all he just thought I was being over the top lol

[candy_floss]

Doctors don't take Lymph Nodes half as seriously as we do, ironic isn't it?!
I have several confirmed swollen nodes in various locations, mainly around my neck area. They are all painless so I've ran from doctor to doctor freaking it and none of them could actually care less.
They just shrug and go 'it's just lymph nodes' whilst we are worrying ourselves stupid over them!
I recently begged for an ENT refferal but when my doctor discussed it with the other doctors at the surgery, the request was refused because lymph nodes which are not growing and under 1cm do not need further investigation apparently, even if they are swollen. It's all so frustrating but I just wanted to put things into perspective for you regarding these buggers.

I wish I could go back to the days where I didn't even know what a 'lymph node' was. Now I know where to find them, what they should feel like, what size they should be, how long they should stay swollen, why they become swollen....I could write a book on them! :blush::unsure:

[stripeypurplekat]

Just shows how much we worry about then when there isn't a reason to :) ive read that a lot before as well that if they are under a 1cm and not growing they are fine. Puts stuff into perspective. You're post was actually reassuring for me as well so thanks :)

[candy_floss]

Just shows how much we worry about then when there isn't a reason to :) ive read that a lot before as well that if they are under a 1cm and not growing they are fine. Puts stuff into perspective. You're post was actually reassuring for me as well so thanks :)

No problem....:)
I always try and refer to posts about lymph nodes because I've been through hell and back with them myself. I know how scary it can be when you first discover that you can feel lymph nodes if you search hard enough!
I thought it might help to know that even those of us who actually have swollen nodes (not just palpable, there is a difference!) are not being rushed off to hospital for further testing, and this is despite me having swollen nodes behind both ears, on both sides of my neck and under my hairline...I can even feel some in the clavicle area which if you Google will tell you you almost certainly have cancer but my doctor doesn't care about them either!

I am off to the doctors again on Wednesday to have them checked out again to confirm that they haven't grown but I already know it will lead to nothing. They won't even let me have a scan, let alone a biopsy.

[stripeypurplekat]

What is the difference between palpable and swollen I thought they were the same thing and I also have some in the collarbone area my mum also has one in that area as I was concerned as there was a marble type lump in that area which i actually think moves and other gristle type things (that area on my neck is quite bumpy and I have some parts which I'm unsure what they are they are all really small though) and my mum felt hers and told me to and there was a lump there but she isn't concerned at all I wish I could be more like her.
Most of mine feel hard and there are nodes at the side of my neck which I don't think move but I think they are like a couple of mm and I read a lot of lymphnoma lumps are like 4cm also I read that someones mother in law is a nurse and she works with lymphnoma patients and they grow rapidly and you are really ill with it. Ive had mi e for months to like a year so I think they would have grown. Other people on here have really helped me to put stuff into perspective though :)

[candy_floss]

What is the difference between palpable and swollen I thought they were the same thing and I also have some in the collarbone area my mum also has one in that area as I was concerned as there was a marble type lump in that area which i actually think moves and other gristle type things (that area on my neck is quite bumpy and I have some parts which I'm unsure what they are they are all really small though) and my mum felt hers and told me to and there was a lump there but she isn't concerned at all I wish I could be more like her.
Most of mine feel hard and there are nodes at the side of my neck which I don't think move but I think they are like a couple of mm and I read a lot of lymphnoma lumps are like 4cm also I read that someones mother in law is a nurse and she works with lymphnoma patients and they grow rapidly and you are really ill with it. Ive had mi e for months to like a year so I think they would have grown. Other people on here have really helped me to put stuff into perspective though :)

Palpable = you can feel them and swollen, obviously means swollen.
Consider the fact that a thin person has little fat to hide their lumps and bumps so it's not unusual for them to be able to feel their own lymph nodes even when they are not swollen.
I carry a lot of weight on my stomach and almost none on my upper body, giving me a very defined collarbone. As a result, I can feel all of the nodes their without them being swollen, especially since I know where to look for them! And groin lymph nodes are palpable in most people because they are some of the biggest lymph nodes in the body (see, told you I could write a book!).
My doctors trying to drum into me the idea that being able to feel lymph nodes does not actually make them swollen...

[stripeypurplekat]

If they were hard would that make them swollen or would they have tO be like over a cm because I think all of mine are under a cm but some are hard and maybe unmoveable :S

[MaryMac]

It's a bloody nightmare isn't it?! I keep running to the toilet to check myself. I've had lots of different things since October, it all started with an abcessed tooth, then a cold I couldn't get rid of, and then google, then it all just escalated!!! I've also been getting petechiae after having a shower, my skin goes red then when the redness fades, I get the little underskin dots that don't blanch! Also, on/off bone pain. It gets to the point when all of these things add up, and you think "nah this can't possibly be anxiety, I MUST be ill". But then, here I am almost a year later and not particularly ill... it's just a vicious cycle of checking, worrying and googling! I'm not going to touch my nodes again tonight. I mean it.

[Peterbelfast]

Would blood tests pick this up if there were a problem with your lymph nodes? I had a full blood count done about 3 weeks ago. My thoat feels tender but not sore but i am constantly pushing and prodding at it.....

[candy_floss]

Would blood tests pick this up if there were a problem with your lymph nodes? I had a full blood count done about 3 weeks ago. My thoat feels tender but not sore but i am constantly pushing and prodding at it.....

The honest answer is no.
However, you would hope that it would show the effects of Lymphoma.
Cancer can mess with your blood count. So if you have a blood test that has an odd blood count, it's up to the doctors to investigate. It could be something as simple as anemia, or something slightly more serious...
Many people were diagnosed with Lymphoma despite having perfectly normal blood counts. Many others showed slightly elevated white blood counts.
As I've already said, the only way to know for sure is to do a biopsy. However, you'd be hard pushed to find a doctor who will do this on nodes less than 1cm.

Good luck. I hope others can find some kind of relief from this obsession!

[stripeypurplekat]

I had a blood test and my doctor said that the white blood count would be high but he didn't Investigate further after it came back fine I might go back in the summer hole about them and get the doctor to check my entire neck lol