Nervous/Anxious about an X-Ray

[MarkJames3]

Hi Guys,

Yes I'm back again after a while away, I feel myself sliding back down a slippery slope :(

So at christmas I found a boney lump on the top of my shin bone, headed straight for m GP who just said it was the top of my bone and is just slightly different to the other side. (a bit more pronounced), I went away satisfied...

I have since moved doctors due to moving house etc... and I went to my new doctors yesterday and he was very thorough, he took a look and agreed it was slightly different, but it was smooth and not tender etc so was quite happy it was just a little extra bone... He then said I will send you for an x-ray mainly for your own piece of mind and just to confirm it is what i think it is... He explained he is just sending me for confirmation rather than an investigation into what it might be.

He didn't seem worried and said it was just to cross the t's and dot the i's.

However it has peaked my anxiety incredibly and now all sorts of thoughts are running through my head, what if its cancer? a lump is not normal.... etc

Even though everything he said seemed positive to any rational person I just feel like I'm hitting rock bottom.

Has anyone got any advice?

Its going to be torture this next week or so, with waiting for results etc

[Annie0904]

Like the doctor said it is just for your own peace of mind. Some doctors are just more cautious than others. I have a doctor who sends you for further investigations for just about everything just to be 100%. If it was anything serious you would have other symptoms by now. One of my sons found a lump on his leg and it was just where he had injured it when he was a small child but he had never noticed it before. I am sure you will be fine.

[MarkJames3]

So ive just been for the x-ray and am now sitting here with utter dread and sickness with what the results will be... I know everything points to it not being serious... 2 doctors basically saying the same thing etc

But why do I come away from the x-ray feeling utter dread that its going to be a bad result rather than thinking that went well.

X-rays are being sent to my docs by tuesday, what frustrates me the most is i can see the x rays on the screen, so why cant they tell me there and then or at least send them across to my doctor now?

Im not sure I should have looked at the x rays on the screen because now my mind is travelling off with all nasty thoughts about things I may have seen on the x ray.

To make matters worse the docs is fully booked all week next week, so I will have to ring up weds morning and hope to get a cancellation.

This is torture....

[AlexandriaUK]

The reason they cannot give you the results is because they are not Doctors or Radiologists only technicians and although they would probably know if their was a problem they are not trained and could give you the wrong result.
It happened years ago that some one was told that they had a certain illness and they committed suicide and it was found out afterwards that they had got it wrong, so now all tests have to be checked by Doctor/Consultant etc so they can follow the duty of care that all practitioners have to follow.
So sadly you will have to wait till your Doc has a look and I am sure it will be as he says and that he has kindly sent you for xrays to put your mind at rest, lucky you that you have found a Doctor that just expects you to go away and forget it, he has obviously dealt with HA in the past.