Brain Tumour fear

[Sma81]

Hi all,

I'm new to all this, but hope someone can help me. I'm a 24 year old male, no history of any serious medical condition.

It's probably important to say first of all, that all of my symptoms and fears began around a month or two after an old friend of mine was diagnosed with a brain tumour this year at the age of 23. I didn't immediately start feeling this way and jump to conclusions, but it came on gradually and then I started worrying about a brain tumour.

For around two months now I've been getting daily headaches. They begin in the back of my head/bottom of my neck and refer pain forward to above my ear, temple and around my eyebrow/forehead. Predominantly on the left side, but occasionally on the right side. I also get random pangs of pain/pressure in my head which last a few seconds. The pain isn't severe, it's relatively mild in nature and doesn't interfere with daily activities. It just worries me that it's there a lot of the time. It also doesn't appear to be getting worse. My neck and shoulders are also very tense and tight.

Recently I've noticed that I seem to be getting a lot of floaters in my eyes and and my eyes can sometimes be a bit blurry and feel very watery. I've been to the opticians for an eye test and was told that everything was fine, although I was prescribed glasses for short sightedness. I also notice that I quite regularly get eye strain and it becomes a little bit harder to focus, but I work at a computer all day so it could probably be attributed to this?

I've seen a doctor who said she thought it was tension headaches and I've recently started physiotherapy and have been receiving massages/small adjustments to my neck and shoulders, as well as posture excercises. I've only had two sessions so not really enough to notice a huge difference yet.

I guess I'm really just looking for some reassurance as the anxiety I've suffered with this is unbearable some days when I'm convinced there's something seriously wrong with me. Could all of this be caused by my subconscious mind being aware my friend was diagnosed and my naturally anxious nature just playing tricks on me?

I'm just driving myself mad with worry and some days I feel really down because of it. It seems to improve if I drink alcohol or do something that really takes my mind off it, but then the headaches, floaters etc. all become noticeable again and I'm back to square one.

Sorry for the long post. Any help, advice or reassurance would be very much appreciated.

Thank you

[countrygirl]

Its very reassuring that the optician gave all clear on the eye test as they can pick up signs of other illnesses in these tests. Your GP's diagnosis sounds right because any tension in your neck will give you pain/symptoms in your head ( I know as I have a proplasped neck disc and bad arthritis).

Trouble is the more you worry the worse the tension so the headaches continue, also painkillers can perpetuate the headaches by causing rebound headaches so best to avoid them on a daily basis if possible.

A close friend of mine has just had a benign brain tumour removed two weeks ago and she had very definite symptoms that got her sent for a brain scan.

You haven't said anything that would worry me about brain tumour but I of course do understand your panic.

[Sma81]

Its very reassuring that the optician gave all clear on the eye test as they can pick up signs of other illnesses in these tests. Your GP's diagnosis sounds right because any tension in your neck will give you pain/symptoms in your head ( I know as I have a proplasped neck disc and bad arthritis).

Trouble is the more you worry the worse the tension so the headaches continue, also painkillers can perpetuate the headaches by causing rebound headaches so best to avoid them on a daily basis if possible.

A close friend of mine has just had a benign brain tumour removed two weeks ago and she had very definite symptoms that got her sent for a brain scan.

You haven't said anything that would worry me about brain tumour but I of course do understand your panic.

Thank you for your response :)

If you don't mind, what symptoms did your friend experience?

[ker92ri]

Hi SMA, I'd listen to your GP, my sister suffers from migraines and she gets annoying headaches everyday but she is now on an anti depressants which help a lot. My dad had a brain tumour and he had a lot more symptoms than just a headache, it was quite awful really. Strangely enough brain tumours are not a big fear of mine even though my dad had an aggressive one. I do worry a lot about my eyes though. It has already been said that an optician can find out a lot about your health from an eye exam, including indications of brain tumours, particularly if it is affecting your vision.

[countrygirl]

Thank you for your response :)

If you don't mind, what symptoms did your friend experience?


I just knew you would ask that:) She did not have headaches but other neuro symptoms that you do not have and they were red flag symptoms that the Gp saw on her first visit and things moved fast.

I know you want to know the detail and it might help you but if could also worry someone else who reads this post so if you want to know more please message me instead.

[natalie yog]

Brain tumours and aneurysm are a big fear of mine too. I've had problems like when I walk I feel like I'm on a boat and when I'm in bed I feel like my head is swimming. I thought about it constantly for all these weeks and it really is tiring. But like you I've been told by my Dr and optician that everything is fine and that it's anxiety. My nans friend has just been diagnosed with a tumour and her symptoms proved to the doctor that she had one within 5 mins of her appointment.

[blondielady]

I'm here today because I am also scared of this. :( The headache you describe is almost like the ones I have. Mine are near my left eye, kind of above it, sometimes it kind of wraps the side of my head to the back near the base of my head. Sometimes they are a little stabby and those seem very intermittent, like they come and I get scared and moments later they are gone. The reason I'm terrified is because I used to get the eye floaters and now I don't but I have a blind spot at the top of my eye. I've had that checked out and the ophthalmologist says it is most likely from a complicated migraine that just happened to leave a blind spot. Of course now all I can think is tumor or aneurysm every time I get a headache on that side of my head (which is pretty much daily). These headaches are not bad. I don't take pain meds for them. They're just kind of annoying and send me into a panic. I wish I knew how to calm down and be reassured that the headaches are not from either of these things. :(

[Emmapony]

I am literally the same as most of you above!!!
My biggest fears are brain aneurysm and tumours :(
It's really hard to realise it's just a headache.
I think headaches/vision problems are very common (that's what I have gathered from this page anyway) and especially as they only started as your anxiety got bad, that shows there probably is a link.
I've learnt to live with the floaters, and you do get used to them. It's the headaches I really find stressful, but i'm sure the more tense you are, the worst they are too!

[Sma81]

Thank you all for your replies. Sorry to hear others are going through this :(

Countrygirl, thank you for your offer but on second thoughts I'm not sure I want to know as I don't trust myself not to start looking for the symptoms! I wish your friend well though.

For anyone going through this, I've been told to read up on this today and think I may have found the root of my problem. I think my symptoms are a mixture of anxiety, paired with either TMJ, Cervicogenic Headache or Sternocleidomastoid Muscle issues.

It's helped me a lot seeing that I have a huge amount of symtpoms relating to the above and only one, maybe two symtpoms of a brain tumour. Considering how rare brain tumours are compared to how common the above are, I know I'm probably worrying about nothing. Hoping the physiotherapy I'm getting at the moment will help me in time, along with decreased worrying (fingers crossed).

Hang in there guys, I know it's horrible though!

[humbug83]

I've been scared about this too.
Not really been getting headaches but I have noticed floaters more recently and in the last month I've been getting intermittent pinpricks of light in my eyes and sometimes a big flash. I've had two eye tests recently with different companies both which gave no cause for concern. I do get a bit trembly sometimes.
Everyone keeps telling me it's down to anxiety but I've just found this blog and wonder if the same thing will happen to me. It's similar to what I've been through in the last 9 months (apart from the seizures, loss of speech, confusion) so my doctor could be wrong too!
http://bensbraintumourblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/diagnosis.html?m=0

[countrygirl]

Glad you have found other reasons for your symptoms. I have prolasped disc in my neck and get all the cervicogenic symptoms that come with this including tmj and I really could write a book of symptoms from these conditions that over the years have scared me witless. With time and experience I now know what these symptoms are and can hopefully offer some reassurance to others but I too have been where you are worried about brain tumour.

[humbug83]

I would love to be reassured that what happened to that man in the blog is unlikely to happen to me.

[humbug83]

I'm lying in bed now with a headache and dizziness worrying about brain tumours.

[Gary A]

In future, try to remember that this is a health anxiety forum, therefore it is both unwise and extremely selfish of you to post a link to a blog which is authored by a brain tumour victim.

If you have symptoms then post examples and ask relevent questions, putting that link up will undoubtedly have triggered anxiety in a number of people who read this forum.

One of the mods may want to delete or deactivate the link provided by humbug83.

[Fishmanpa]

Look hard enough and you'll find something to justify your fear. Like someone who actually got 4.5 million dollars from a relative in Nigeria.

Positive thoughts

[humbug83]

In future, try to remember that this is a health anxiety forum, therefore it is both unwise and extremely selfish of you to post a link to a blog which is authored by a brain tumour victim.

If you have symptoms then post examples and ask relevent questions, putting that link up will undoubtedly have triggered anxiety in a number of people who read this forum.

One of the mods may want to delete or deactivate the link provided by humbug83.

Sorry

[benwatterson]

I've been scared about this too.
Not really been getting headaches but I have noticed floaters more recently and in the last month I've been getting intermittent pinpricks of light in my eyes and sometimes a big flash. I've had two eye tests recently with different companies both which gave no cause for concern. I do get a bit trembly sometimes.
Everyone keeps telling me it's down to anxiety but I've just found this blog and wonder if the same thing will happen to me. It's similar to what I've been through in the last 9 months (apart from the seizures, loss of speech, confusion) so my doctor could be wrong too!

the chances are very slim, 8 in 100,000, and then thats mostly in the elderly, also your symptoms don't really match up. i never had strange eye issues although floaters are normal for everybody. hope this helps somewhat. all the best, ben.