This time its Colon Cancer

[Jamie123]

Hey guys Im back this time with a different worry. I just got over my worry of having Alzheimers at 20 and now its a different 1. A few times in the past few months I have had blood in my stool. A few days ago this happened again and today also with 1 bowel movement with no blood in between. I have no pain however I feel that these bowel movements were harder as I had eaten less and had more time between them due to Anxiety. I have talked to my mother and she has said that it is a Hemorrhoid and that she has had many similar symptoms and described exactly the same thing to what I said. The blood was bright red and was a streak near the end of the bowel movement (the first bit of the bowel movement felt hard) and then after 1 wipe with toilet paper there was no more blood so it was hardly a significant amount.Also I had to strain to push the bowel movement out at first but after the initial push the rest was easy to pass. I am very worried this may be bowel cancer. I know none of you are doctors but im very scared of going to the doctor and my mother said if it continues she promises to take me. Does anyone have any reassurance that this is not bowel/colon cancer because I am going to have a panic attack and am very scared of going to the doctor. Thank you in advance.

---------- Post added at 23:15 ---------- Previous post was at 21:16 ----------

Just read something about bloating and now feel bloated. Great:mad:

[Hypo84]

Well, it's either Alzheimers or colon cancer...no see any other options really...anxiety, anal fissure/hemmoroids could be one possibility but don't let them convince you it's smth so benign at age 20...

[Jamie123]

I know my worries dont make sense really but Im finding it hard to deal with. Sorry for all the posts I know it can be annoying.

[Cerysa]

Okay, deep breaths. Ever hear of a Benjamin Franklin balance sheet? Fold a piece of paper in half. List all pros (reasons to relax) on one side and all cons (reasons for concern) on the other. Just from your post there's a lot on the relaxation side: bright red is new (black is old), its not continuous, its small amounts, your mom has had h-roids, you prob share a similar diet too, there's times without blood, there's evidence of hard irritating stool, your mom is there to support you, etc. On the other side is the bleeding, and fear. So then looking at the paper there's more reason to relax than to fear, see what I mean? It's about creating perspective. Same with visiting the doctor, remind yourself you have a supportive ally (your mom), its only a few minutes to get through, etc. Set mental ground rules to acknowledge your concerns but limit the amount of time you allow yourself to think about them. Stuffing fears down hasn't helped me any, my body will eventually let them bubble up into panic symptoms. So I've found acknowledging fear, seeing it as a misguided ally who means well, and putting limits on "worry time" are helpful. It's a process and I've got a ways to go before it becomes second nature. The bigger battle for me is to stop the default toward judging things as good or bad. Without the judgment, everything seems easier to deal with even when it's hard stuff which is just part of life too. Meditation is rooted in that philosophy, so learning mindfulness techniques and relaxation breathing can help. There's lots of free stuff online. Shinzen Young and Tara Brach are my favorites. I'm glad your mom can help you decide when a checkup is warranted bc obviously there's limits to what online support can do (as you noted). Btw drinking lots of water and eating babyfood prunes may help avoid hard stools. Good luck and wellness.

[jackdobs]

Hey Jamie,

if it were anything sinister, would it really come and go? I'd say it'd be there every time you go to the toilet and would be getting a lot worse and a lot more painful. Also, if it was something awful like you-know-what, then surely you wouldn't just google a symptom, read about it and then start feeling it. The symptoms would control you, not the other way round.

Also look at your age...when I get intense fear, sometimes it's comforting (in a very weird way) to type in "_____ cancer age statistics." More often than not, a cancer like bowel cancer is strongly linked to old age. Not to say younger people can't get it, but it's probably extremely rare. Googling is never ever good though, I must stress that.

we must try to rationalise as much as we can, even though it's very hard.

Jack.

[DonnaT]

Hi
I wanted to answer this post because this was one of my fears as well. It started years ago about 7, mad I know thinking about it. Ive never had the best stomach in the world but it had been getting worse, I had been having the same symptoms as you, but I was having a loose stomach. Some times I used to bleed and I mean bleed a lot (sorry tmi) I went to the doctors and spoke to five different doctors and my own doctor about this 100 times, no lie. The doctors felt my stomach, I had samples taken to see if I had blood in my stool or any infection. Everything came back normal.
I moved away and thought that enough was enough and decided to get it checked privately. I had a colonoscopy and I was so glad I did. He found a haemorrhoid and a polyp and that was it, nothing else.
Go to your GP and get checked that is the first thing you need to do. that is not meant to scare you but it might put your mind at rest. Doctors have heard everything before. Your very young to have something like this, I know that doesn't always put your mind at rest but you are. if your having harder stool that might be the cause. I hope this helps put your mind at ease a little. Take care