Here we go again...terrified of melanoma!! Please help

[CG5246]

So I thought I was doing so well with my health anxiety...I've been able to talk myself down from almost every cancer I've thought I had...but not this time apparently.

I was scrolling through Facebook and I happened to see a post about a former classmate of mine who is battling stage 4 melanoma. She is 29, just like me.

So this made me start worrying about a couple moles I have. I inspected myself in the mirror, one is on my neck and is skin-colored (most of the rest of my moles are tan or brown) and is smooth and raised, less than 1/4 inch, but the border seems a little darker than the center. It's been there for A WHILE...so like months or a few years. I haven't noticed any change but I'm now worried about it since I don't know if it's a mole or if it's cancerous because it's different than my other moles and since I haven't been watching it I don't know if it's changed at all...? It looks almost like a zit on my neck but it hasn't gone away months/years! I attached a picture of it to this post.

Then I inspected myself further and found a skin colored less than 1/4 inch oval thing (not sure if it's a mole?) on my upper right back. I've never seen it before, but I don't know if it's a mole since it just looks slightly whiter than the rest of my skin. I'm not sure if it's a scar or what since I have had acne in that area in the past, but it looks a little different than my other acne scars back there.

Then I started thinking about how when I was 19 I went to a tanning salon for a month or two, and then stopped. That increases my risk for skin cancer. The rest of the years I haven't been good about applying sunscreen but I haven't had a bunch of really bad sunburns that I can remember either.

Basically I am worried that it's melanoma since I was an idiot and tanned for those couple months and haven't been diligent about sunscreen, as well as these moles or whatever they are, seem weird. Thoughts??

[CG5246]

Thoughts...anyone??

[Bastett]

Well now it certainly looks like you've poked and prodded it because skin around it is a bit red. Leave it alone. If you've had it for years then it most likely is very benign.

---------- Post added at 14:43 ---------- Previous post was at 14:30 ----------

But I do know that reading something like that can put us into downward spiral... There is a singer in our country I happened to know once when he was one class higher than me in university. 8 months ago I read about him in newspaper that he was battling cancer (not specified). I had headaches back then so took that as a sign that I have brain tumor. Then my headaches subsided and I forgot.

Then several months ago I saw another article about him but did not read in order to avoid going into my HA
. But my friend just mentioned him and his cancer and I freaked out! I had a full blown panick attack that night. Next day I found a small "lump" on my soft palate and diagnosed myself with minor salivary gland tumor. I went to a specialist who checked me with Velscope and laughed at me a bit and said that it wasn't even a lump but an overused muscle because I eat mostly on that side.

Long story short - it's our health anxiety that puts us into magical thinking that we read about something so the same should happen to us. In reality hundreds, thousands of people read the same articles and are just as prone to getting the illness as we are. Do they all get it? No. Do we get it? No. Well, not likely. And surely not correlated with something you read on social media or newspapers.

[CG5246]

Well now it certainly looks like you've poked and prodded it because skin around it is a bit red. Leave it alone. If you've had it for years then it most likely is very benign.

---------- Post added at 14:43 ---------- Previous post was at 14:30 ----------

But I do know that reading something like that can put us into downward spiral... There is a singer in our country I happened to know once when he was one class higher than me in university. 8 months ago I read about him in newspaper that he was battling cancer (not specified). I had headaches back then so took that as a sign that I have brain tumor. Then my headaches subsided and I forgot.

Then several months ago I saw another article about him but did not read in order to avoid going into my HA
. But my friend just mentioned him and his cancer and I freaked out! I had a full blown panick attack that night. Next day I found a small "lump" on my soft palate and diagnosed myself with minor salivary gland tumor. I went to a specialist who checked me with Velscope and laughed at me a bit and said that it wasn't even a lump but an overused muscle because I eat mostly on that side.

Long story short - it's our health anxiety that puts us into magical thinking that we read about something so the same should happen to us. In reality hundreds, thousands of people read the same articles and are just as prone to getting the illness as we are. Do they all get it? No. Do we get it? No. Well, not likely. And surely not correlated with something you read on social media or newspapers.

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. Yes I was poking it and prodding it so it looks a little red still. You’d think that if it was cancer it would’ve changed or something, but I don’t think it has changed...but then again I haven’t been keeping track. Skin cancer wasn’t a concern for me until now when I stumbled upon her post... :doh: I know me reading it won’t give me the cancer, it’s just that it gave me a new thing to worry about.

Especially since I remembered my grandpa and possibly my aunt had basal cell carcinoma. And I went and tanned for a couple months and didn’t Wear sunscreen regularly. Luckily basal cell carcinoma doesn’t really spread and it’s mostly found in people who are over 50.

Health anxiety is so horrible to deal with...some days I just don’t know if I have a legitimate concern or if it’s HA and I worry that I will just miss Something if I assume it’s HA. UGH it’s exhausting.

[Fishmanpa]

Your thread title says it all... "Here we go again"... You know you're going down the rabbit hole about an irrational fear. Are you getting any help with your anxiety? Ultimately, that's the key.

Positive thoughts

[Halle0587]

Go to derm regularly and that will help your fears. My mother has melanoma so I go regularly. I've had displastic Nevis removed so I go every six months. I have skin colored bumps that she has called keritosis (sp). One in my right eyebrow and one on my left shin. She keeps checking them for size and change. It's in the computer so I don't have to keep up with the measurements myself. Also, my mom was given 9 months, she's stage 4. She's been NED for 2.5 years now, thank you Jesus! Breathe my friend!

[CG5246]

Thought I would update this for any of my fellow HA sufferers. I went to the dermatologist and she took pictures of a few moles and said they all look normal and to come back in a year. Turns out I was worried for nothing!