New member needs your help please

[TueMan]

Hello all health anxiety sufferers.

I'm 35 from Canada and found this forum while googling about my symptoms. I've had bouts before where I thought I had lymphoma because of a small bump on one side of collarbone which turned out to be just my bone. One time my chest was feeling tight and I thought I had lung cancer. Turns out after a chiropractor adjustment, it was just a misaligned/adjust back causing the chest to feel that way. Long story short I've always had hypochondriac, I feel like I'm doomed every time I have something weird or not normal in my body. Everything is normal until the next time I feel something and I google it.

i just came back from Hong Kong and got a cold/cough that's ongoing for close to 11 days now. I've ate less during this time from being sick and jet lag. I weighed myself and then I lost weight from 180 to 174 pounds. Been having dry mouth and loss of appetite so I googled and of course loss of weight and loss of appetite points to a few cancers such as pancreatic and colon. This has caused me so much anxiety and stress that it's making me unable to eat and I don't know if it's the ongoing anxiety causing the loss of weight and appetite or it's cancer. I don't have any other symptoms but it's weird I don't want to eat because I'm a big foodie. Can this anxiety be causing me to feel like not eating and loss of weight like I'm doomed?

Please help :unsure:

[Mav]

The weight loss was most likely from being sick and jet lag. Loss of appetite now is ENTIRELY anxiety, trust me. I love food and in my severly anxious period I couldn't swallow one bite of bread.

A wise person told me that appetite is the first to go with anxiety.

A friend of mine was CONVINCED he had stomach cancer and told me he couldn't eat anything for months and then one day he decided to just give up and say tell himself he is fine and being disgustingly irrational, and his appetite came rushing back.

[pablo0977]

Every time I fly to or from Russia I have digestive and appetite issues that cause me to lose a little weight. Changing that many time zones can really have horrible effects on the body. Also, the dry air in plane cabins also makes you far more susceptible to chest colds and the like.

How do you plan to address this anxiety? To me it seems like you are jumping to conclusions that your symptoms don't really warrant. Have you spoken to a medical professional about these fears?

[TueMan]

Thanks for the replies.
Yesterday I actually had - bowl of soup with meat balls and afterwards my appetite opened up a a little and i had some waffles a few hours after dinner because for some reason the anxiety started lessening.

However I feel fine but I still can't stop checking out the mirror to see body changes such as weight loss and I'm going to the gym today to steam and sauna my sciatica. I'll no doubt weigh myself again to make sure I don't lose more weight and that might trigger another anxiety stress.

I haven't seeked any help for my anxiety. It's almost like I'm fine except whenever any weird little lump or something like loss of appetite can trigger me to go off on Dr. Google and start my anxiety again.

I wish I can live carefree but at same time I don't want to miss out on any life saving symptoms my body is telling me. Meaning I want to find out early for the cure.:wacko:

Edit: also it's been almost 13 days and will jet lag last this long? I also have a fear of flying so it's been like 10 years since I last flew. And it was a major long haul flight. So I don't know what to expect for jet lag.

[pablo0977]

One day for every time zone for someone who isn't suffering from anxiety. Usually takes me about two weeks to feel completely myself for a any change over 10 hours. Anxiety could do all of this without the jet lag btw.

[TueMan]

Today after eating lunch which i basically ate to keep healthy but I really had no excitement in the food whatsoever. Felt full but know I need to eat.

Afterwards I started thoughts again because I didn't have appetite and then I started dry heaving and couldn't really stop doing it until I had some mint gum.

I read anxiety can cause vomiting too, now I wonder how bad my anxiety is or if Its something else showing it's ugly head.

I wish this awful feeling would go away for everyone who is suffering from it.