pumpkinbagel
09-04-18, 19:14
Hey folks,
I'm new to the forum though I've been lurking here on and off for the past few months. Health anxiety has been an on and off friend of mine for over a decade and over the past 8 months I've been going through a horrible time of it consuming my life.
Currently, my anxiety is focusing on melanoma and the fact that I'm convinced that I have it and that it's too late for me. Four months ago I saw a random news special about the ABCDE's of melanoma. I have a few big moles... two are on my back, are quite large (larger than a pencil eraser) and are very dark brown (I am very fair skinned!)
The moles have been there for as long as I can remember and my husband claims that they don't look any different than they ever have. They're in the dead center of my back, so I can't really see them well enough to tell. But after seeing the special on TV I was sent into an obsessive panic over them, when I've never thought much of them before.
I was so terrified of receiving bad news that it took me until this morning to see a dermatologist. I showed him all of the moles on my back and stomach and he said all of them looked normal but wanted to do a shave biopsy on the two big ones. The procedure was painless. I told him all about my anxiety hoping he'd say something reassuring, because i told him I was likely going to lose sleep waiting for the results.
He was a kind man but didn't really do much to assuage my fears. He talked about my anxiety and recommended exercise, etc, which I already do. The one thing he did say was that he's counting on me being around for a long time to look after my young children.
He told me if the moles come back moderately or severely dysplastic he'll recommend I come back for a full excision. He never mentioned the C-word outright, just talked about how there's a wide spectrum between a normal, non-dysplastic mole and actual malignancy.
Anyone have any positive stories to share about big ugly moles that ended up being nothing? Because I'm freaking out here. He said it'd only take a few days to get the results but that just feels like a lifetime right now. My moles were kind of oval, dark brown but had color variations within, and one was 7-8mm and the other was 6-8mm. They've been there for as long as I can remember.
Help?! :D
I'm new to the forum though I've been lurking here on and off for the past few months. Health anxiety has been an on and off friend of mine for over a decade and over the past 8 months I've been going through a horrible time of it consuming my life.
Currently, my anxiety is focusing on melanoma and the fact that I'm convinced that I have it and that it's too late for me. Four months ago I saw a random news special about the ABCDE's of melanoma. I have a few big moles... two are on my back, are quite large (larger than a pencil eraser) and are very dark brown (I am very fair skinned!)
The moles have been there for as long as I can remember and my husband claims that they don't look any different than they ever have. They're in the dead center of my back, so I can't really see them well enough to tell. But after seeing the special on TV I was sent into an obsessive panic over them, when I've never thought much of them before.
I was so terrified of receiving bad news that it took me until this morning to see a dermatologist. I showed him all of the moles on my back and stomach and he said all of them looked normal but wanted to do a shave biopsy on the two big ones. The procedure was painless. I told him all about my anxiety hoping he'd say something reassuring, because i told him I was likely going to lose sleep waiting for the results.
He was a kind man but didn't really do much to assuage my fears. He talked about my anxiety and recommended exercise, etc, which I already do. The one thing he did say was that he's counting on me being around for a long time to look after my young children.
He told me if the moles come back moderately or severely dysplastic he'll recommend I come back for a full excision. He never mentioned the C-word outright, just talked about how there's a wide spectrum between a normal, non-dysplastic mole and actual malignancy.
Anyone have any positive stories to share about big ugly moles that ended up being nothing? Because I'm freaking out here. He said it'd only take a few days to get the results but that just feels like a lifetime right now. My moles were kind of oval, dark brown but had color variations within, and one was 7-8mm and the other was 6-8mm. They've been there for as long as I can remember.
Help?! :D