View Full Version : full body scan?
I am starting this post really to get an indication of what everyone thinks. Basically i'm a 26 year old female, I've just passed my degree, had my second child 14 weeks ago & on the verge of starting my teacher training course which i have been working up to for a long time. I've had HA really since a very young age (thought i had breast cancer when I was 10!) 5 years ago I had a terrible episode where I thought I had a brain tumour. I put my parents through hell, almost lost my job, my partner, lost my ability to function and in the end was so convinced of my imminent death that I was sofa bound. The only way I got over this episode was to have an MRI of my brain. That was the only way I could be convinced that I was indeed healthy. My parents happily paid for the MRI because they were incredibly worried about me. Although many said having the MRI would just be hiding away from the anxiety, it actually allowed me to have my life back. For 5 years i've had the odd worry but nothing even close to the extent of that. However since having my last child I have been slowly getting back to where I was before. On the brink of despair. This time however, it's not so simple. My symptoms are so non-specific that I just have this bad feeling that i'm dying, that something has spread through me and is slowly defeating me. Its heart, it's irregular heavy periods, aches and pains, fatigue... it's not just one thing which makes me worry constantly. I've got to the point now where I have little control again, I have daily panic attacks and it's stopping me looking forward to anything. Most importantly it's affecting my ability to mother my two daughters. Yesterday was so bad that I started cutting my arms, just for some distraction. I'm so scared that everything i've achieved in life will be lost if I don't get a good hold of this horrible thing soon. I came to the conclusion last night that maybe my only hope is to have a full body scan, and I mean the full works, blood vessels, bones, every organ, you name it. This is obviously very expensive but i feel right now it may be my only hope? Im having therapy but I think my fears have gone to far now. I have convinced myself that im very unwell. Sorry for the long post but Im just hoping someone has been in this position too? L :weep:
macc noodle
12-07-11, 16:11
And would that really put all this anxiety to bed?
I doubt it having been in a similar position - the only way is to tackle the anxiety and deal with that - far better spending your money on some therapy in my opinion.
You will have the scan and it will satisfy you for a while but then the doubts will creep back and to be honest they are only accurate on the day - what happens the next day is anyone's guess.
Try and see your GP and discuss how you feel and see if they can recommend a CBT who can help you move forward without having to have medical check ups when there really is no need.
:hugs:
thanks for the reply :) I appreciate that going for the scan will not treat the root cause of the anxiety. However, just the thought of having a year or so without this worry makes me feel it would be worth it. In reality I know it's probably the 'easy' option but I feel desperate. :(
Hi Love
I really don't know what to say to make you feel better as I have been in your position many a time and I know its absolutely soul destroying.
Are you on any medication - Antidepressants or anything? I am not saying these will make everything better but they do take the edge off of my health anxiety and I am able to look at things more rationally. But you do need to address the root of the problem. Whast kind of therapy are you having?
L.x
Its not the easy option at all, but i agree that it wont be the salvation you seek, simply because when the scan finds out that your perfectly healthy, the anxiety will rear its ugly head again and again and you say that if you get a year of worry free thoughts it will be worth it, your could get a year, five years or ten minutes because unless you rid yourself of anxiety it will always be there, im sorry to sound as negative but only overcoming anxiety wil give you the peace of mind you and many many like us so desperately want.
i hope you feel better soon
take care
xx
Thanks all... I'm not on meds, however I do have diazapam for the bad days. My therapy consists of a lot of talking and trying to indentify the route cause, not sure if it's CBT though. Its once a week & I always feel positive leaving but within a day or so the anxiety is winning again. I must say though, I was 100% for the full body this morning and now just by having a short discussion I feel like it might not be the best option! I guess I needed someone to try and convince me otherwise! x
Sometimes all you need is someone to talk to - a problem shared is a problem halved.
Do your family know how you are feeling again? Are they supportive?
xx
My mum used to be very supportive but I lost her 3 years ago. Unfortunately both my dad and husband find it very hard to understand. Plus I don't want to worry my dad after all he's been through. I've actually stopped discussing it with my husband now because I end up feeling so stupid. He believes that I can control my symptoms if I just "try harder". Unfortunately it's just not that simple. I have some good friends who I can talk to but it's easy to feel a burden when they have their own lives going on too! It's such a horrible, horrible thing. xx
First of all let me tell you that I know exactly how you feel. 3 years ago I too was convinced I had a brain tumour as I had constant headaches which lasted for more than 3 months but eventually the medication I was helped me with my anxiety and the head tension eventually left, I don't really remember when it was just gradually. Anyway I too have had a relapse and am now worried that I have some kind of gyne cancer as I have frequent urination and pressure in my bladder. My GP has told me that I need to remember from when I thought I had a brain tumour and the kind of things I did then to recover, even though I don't think I did anything in particular, just took meds and it eventually went away, which is what I'm praying for at the moment. I have had blood tests so I know my general health is ok at the moment, and when I mentioned to my doc my worry about ovarian cancer she did offer to send me for the C125 test but said that it would just continue the anxiety cycle. So I didn't go for the test, cause she said she saw no cause for her to think I would have OC. And I am now pretty sure that when another symptom comes up mu current ailment will go away. I really don't know what the answer to all this anxiety crap is. As the previous post said a full body scan could give you the all clear now, but what about next week? Its the anxiety that has to be dealt with, are you on any meds at the moment? I totally understand the fear, when I am at my worst I cannot function and just imagine the worst case scenario. At the end of the day, as my hubby put it the other day, none of us knows what's gonna happen, we could get knocked over by a car tomorrow, a meteor could hit the earth, we gotta try and live for now, cause none of us knows how long we got, I know that sounds morbid but I don't know else to think about this stuff. Of course if you have consistent symptoms that say last for at least a month or more you should always get it checked out cause if there was any disease then the earlier its caught the better. I wish I could help you more and myself too, maybe we just gotta live each day at a time, and devote as much of that time as poss to the people we love. So go ahead with the full body scan if you feel that it will give you peace of mind for now, but should consider some kind of therapy (meds etc) for the future. Also if you can find somewhere where you can get a cheap body scan please let me know xxx
MVP - First of all you are so so brave. When I was convinced I had a tumour, I gave in and had the MRI. You obviously fought it and won, what an achievement that is... and you still are showing how brave you are, not electing to have that test?! amazing I can never imagine doing that. I take them all! My husband has exactly the same attitude... to be honest, he's too much the other way though.. at least our kids should turn out normal! With regards to full body scans, I don't think there is a cheap option! Think for everything you're easily talking over 1k.. ouch. I'd be tempted to pay it though, even if it means taking out a secret credit card! I'm not on meds, did you find them useful? I have diazapam but just for the very bad days. x
The thing about the meds (I am on fluoxetine) they can take a while to work and also they can make you feel worse in the first few weeks, I have also had diazepam to take on the really bad days. But they did help me through it last time, it just takes some time. The only reason I had a relapse was because I felt so much better I stopped taking the meds and a few weeks later it all came back with a vengeance, I have now been back on the fluoxetine for 3 weeks and just waiting for the full effects to kick in, in the meantime I am still worrying about my gynae problems, but just trying to take my docs advice, which is sometimes so hard. Have you told your GP exactly how your feeling?x
I had probably my worst ever panic attack down the doctor's surgery recently so she saw the full force of it! She's fab but that was the first time she had been made aware of the issue so just gave me diaz & told me to keep up with the therapy. I have an appointment on fri so maybe i'll mention meds then. Back to your comment, that they can make you feel worse in the first few weeks - oh dear i think i'd struggle with that but if they work in the end it's got to be worth it! Did you ever get to the point of feeling normal again when on meds? I find it hard to imagine getting back to my old self now. x
To be honest throughout my illness all I have ever wanted to do was to get back to normal, to the way I used to be. The good old days when I used to get aches and pains and not bat an eyelid. So no unfortunately I never did get back to being completely normal, but when I was really ill a few years ago all I could think about was dying, every single day, and when I got better I thought about it less and less. When I was seeing a counsellor I told her I just wanted to get back to normal and she said that you have to change your perspective and accept that you may never be the same as you once was, but it is all about acceptance. And you have to accept the things you cannot change, which is hard n but such is life. Now I just want to get back to the way I was a few months ago before I stopped taking the meds. I wish you the very best of luck in your recovery and and me too lol, got the dreaded smear tomorrow and another urine test urrgghhh xxx
You have achieved so much while having to cope with health anxiety.
I like you was convinced i had a brain tumour and was dying.
I have been in therapy for the past four years and am slowly getting help with my past. Unfortunately this has all come so late - i am 47.
please get the help you need, you have a family and a life x
It just sucked the life out of you doesn't it. I could have such a lively life but I feel like it won't allow me to. I often remanise about how my life was before the worry, completely took feeling normal for granted. I'd give anything to get back there. Best of luck in your fight xx
i am just like you apart from my anixety is around my heart ive had heart scans everytest under the sun and im fine but i cant belive it so having a scan wont help.
you need to change the way you think have you had cbt? im starting soon pm me if you ever need to chat x
TooWorried
13-07-11, 22:10
Hi Lucyliz, I completely know what you're feeling. My health anxiety is completely debilitating at times and really robs me of a lot of joy that I should be experiencing. I have an (almost) 8 month old baby, and my healthy anxiety is worse than ever because I'm absolutely terrified of dying and leaving her. I have a really fantastic doctor who knows I'm very anxious, and after a few major episodes, he actually sent me for a PET scan, which basically checks the entire body for cancer
(my big fear). He said it was to reassure me that there were no hidden cancers or lymphomas. I don't think this is as complete as what you were proposing, but probably close. It did help me, but honestly, the anxiety is still with me. The scan runs from the head to mid thigh. I had the scan about 3 months ago, so now when I have a symptom, I just worry that something has developed since then...I also worry about a lump on my lower leg that wouldn't have been included in the scan (even though 5 doctors have looked at it and not been concerned). If you want to talk or just need somebody to discuss the pros and cons of these scans with, feel free to PM me!
I often become overly concerned with my heart, bp, pulse, pulse strength, any pain that could be associated! I lost my mum to a heart attack & my dad had one few years back which obviously doesn't help. Had the tests too, countless ecg's, echos and was even put on betas to lower my pulse. Bought a bp monitor a few years ago & ended up chucking it because it made me so paranoid! Good luck with the cbt, would be interested to find out what techniques you try! :-)
Wow, fair play to your gp doing that for you. Mine is fab too but I haven't mentioned the scan to her. The thought of getting instant relief after all the exhaustion would be fabulous but as you rightly say, it's only a short term thing. But even knowing that, when desperation kicks in I'll do anything.
my doctors fab to he really trys to understand mine started as my dad died of a heart attack when i go the doctors im always panicing about my pulse and he always checks it and trys to calm me down. theres a fab book about adrenaline which is what makes your heart pump fast when your anixious ect its got some really good tips and things to help calm you donw ill post the title if your intrested x
enriqjames
14-07-11, 14:24
Even if you scan revealed significant, this may give you a false sense of security, and may prevent you from seeking proper care of your doctor or start beneficial lifestyle changes. Some people who smoke, for example, and get a clear lung scan may decide it's better to continue smoking. In addition, whole body scan can not replace the annual inspection or appropriate screening tests.
So gutted... Was initially so pleased to post this thread, it stopped me from ringing the organisation who does full body scans because I knew it would do me no good. This morning I went to my doctor instead and explained just how bad I was feeling and she put my mind at rest completely. It was such a relief as I'm on holiday with my husband & children for 2 weeks and I really didn't want the HA getting in the way. However... Walking down the street earlier, not thinking about my health whatsoever I had quite a few heart flutters. I normally get one but I've never had 2 or 3 consecutively.... Well this scared me to death, had to sit down and got home as quickly as I could. Once again I am now back to my usual fearful state but this time with my heart as the main concern. I've had burning chest pain for the last few weeks which my gp has put down to heartburn but now I'm obviously thinking it's cardiac related & I'll be dropping dead at any moment. So this afternoon, whilst I'm supposed to be enjoying myself on out holiday I'm stuck in our cottage looking up bupa health checks as they seem to carry out extensive checks on your heart. I've had ecg's (one fairly recently) and it's been normal but now I'm worried something has changed :-( fed up. What do I do???
Anxious_gal
15-07-11, 18:37
my first thought was "i want a full body scan too"
The next was "wow 5 years of no anxiety after a MRI sounds like a pretty good deal to me"
But did it really help your anxiety? did you still have it? Did you still have the scary thoughts but then thought well my MRI was clear and that helped calm you down?
I get health anxiety every day but have found CBT therapy to help.
I do panic but find I can calm my self down or distract my self.
My main issues are that when I get odd sensations that well are pretty much real I think the worst case scenario :(
Then if my symptoms get worse I really start to freak out to the point I can't tell what is caused by me freaking out and what are the actual symptoms :(
One thing I found helpful is asking myself am I over reacting? How would a non anxious person respond to this situation?
Hello LucyLiz,
If you have had ecgs in the past and they have been fine, and the most recent one you had, which wasn't that long ago, was perfectly normal you have absolutely nothing to concern yourself about. Your anxiety is the problem, and as you know it will find a way of fixating on all sorts - anxiety leaves your mind in a state of high alert, and it is very difficult to level it out.
If you can discipline yourself to avoid self checking and googling, this will go a long way to helping you to find other things to absorb your attention, and slowly you will be able to break the cycle of worry. Please do allow yourself to enjoy your holiday, and promise yourself to stay away from google. :hugs:
Yes. Stopped my panic attacks completely. But five years I had a specific health concern, I was convinced I had a brain tumor. Everything revolved around that and every symptom I had I associated with the tumor. It was worth it then, god yes. Not just for me but for my family. I got my life back. I did gradually start to get the odd panicky sensation after a few years but it was a very slow onset and now unfortunately I'm back where I was but this time it's not a brain tumor, it's everything.
It's very hard to know what feelings are actual feelings and what are fear feelings, I think it's almost impossible during an attack... Do you have a specific health worry?
Thank you so much Rosie, I really needed someone just to tell me it's going to be okay :-) x
my ha is all focuesed around one thing which is my heart ive had scans ecgs and echos and its fine ithe doctor said its healthy but i still get anixety flushes and my heart beats fast.
have you had cbt? im starting next week the doctor thinks it will help my ill also do bretahing excercises which do help but i do still check my pulse. you will be fine but anixety is a awful thing x
out of curiosity, what does a full body scan cost?...... must be a small fortune!! Surely it will only pick up tumours in the body and will be a complete waste of time for the majority of ailments.
Serious money, the full works with a cardiac check & numerous blood tests, over 2k. Bupa do health checks including complete cardiac assessment & many blood tests but no body scans, they are around £500 & that is really tempting to me ATM. I get fast pulse too, when I had my echo o few years ago it was 179 at rest! Never found anything though.... I have found the info on eptopics on this site really useful though.
like you have suffered from lots of anxieties as a child and go through good and bad spells. After having my child I had Post Natal depression and finally was put on 20 mg of citalopram. I found when taking this that my anxieties virtually disapeared. I came off it over a year ago and my anxieties are returning so am gonna take it again. You could talk to your doc about medication as I found this to be really good.:)
Really? That's good to know. I've never considered meds other than diazepam. Don't know why. Do you find they have an impact on other feeling, not just anxious ones? I guess part of me feels meds would neutralise most of my feelings and I wouldn't be motivated to do anything. Obviously I have no experience of Meds so it's not for me to say :-)
I truly feel like I I've come to the end of the road. After 3 months of fighting this thing I know can say it has consumed me completely. I am now anxious virtually every minute of the day, I have no life whatsoever and my poor husband and children must feel they have lost me to this illness. I gave in today and booked a bupa health assessment to hopefully get some relief but now I feel incredibly defeated by it. Probably in the worst place I've ever been and just don't know where to turn next. :-(
allergyphobia
18-07-11, 17:05
Hi Lucyliz.
Please take some time to consider this BUPA assessment. You mention in your posts that you had an ECG not long ago that was fine…but you are not satisfied with that very reliable test, and you want more. How long until this BUPA assessment does not satisfy you anymore? Yes when you had the MRI you felt panic free for some years because your anxiety was so specific. However now your health anxiety has got extremely general I don’t think you can look to these tests to reassure you anymore. They will only be a quick (and expensive!) fix and you will move from test to test… and have you stopped to think what it will do to you whilst going through the process? Agonising waiting for results, wanting more and more and trying to find out more information?
What you need is CBT to address your problems and find the root cause. Then you can start working through, and you will start to realise how much of your problems are caused by anxiety. I got to a point where I was too frightened to walk up the stairs without taking an inhaler I didn’t need…. Because I thought the exertion would be too much for my body. My symptoms were the black demon of anxiety sucking the life out of me. No scary disease… or atleast nothing that has killed me off yet. Every time we focus more on our symptoms and indulge our anxiety we encourage it to get bigger and more impressive. The brain learns new behaviours quickly and it takes a lot longer to pick everything apart and find out what is really behind all of this. I am sorry to hear about the loss of your mother… perhaps something in this triggered your anxiety off again… I’m really hoping you can find some strength soon to start fighting just a tiny bit, baby steps.
We are all here to support you every step of the way, we have all lived and breathed anxiety and are constantly living it every hour of every day, some of us very much struggling and some of us further down the road to recovery. Take a look at some success stories to see how far some of the members here have come. Take care and be strong, talking on this site has helped me so much in my journey x x x
:hugs:
macc noodle
18-07-11, 18:14
An excellent post Allergyphobia and I think it encapsulates perfectly the vicious circle that we find ourselves in when we suffer health anxiety.
Lucy Liz - you are just going to allay your fears temporarily and nothing more.
Soon it will come back and grab you again and you will want another health assessment or full body scan - just to put your mind at rest ...............
It is truly CBT and help from your GP for the anxiety that is required and in my honest opinion instead of spending hundreds of pounds on an assessment, you would be better off spending it on some therapy.
Good luck in your quest hunni.
please dont waste you money of bupa you need help with the anixety and you need cbt ive been there ive payed for scansect and im still sat hee just as bad as before im starting cbt as ive lost 6 years of my life please contact some one about cbt if you have a womnes center they offer it for free x
I know, it's a terrible place to be but I'm so desperate. Within a few weeks I've gone from happy, outgoing individual to someone who can't leave the house. I'm in such a mess, my family are distraught with worry which makes me feel so much worse. I feel like I'm in the verge of losing everything. If this assessment can just Give some relief, just for a few weeks while I continue with my therapy it will be worth it. I'm losing this battle, fast, frightenly fast. :-(
Anxious-Ashley
21-07-11, 00:36
Hi LucyLiz,
I profoundly sympathise with you, I have been suffering from Anxiety since 2008 now. The amount of symptoms I've encountered are petrifying and nothing seems to convince me that everything is anxiety related.
The truth is anxiety is a vicious circle, a new symptom pops along - You worry - It fuels your Anxiety - You encounter a new symptom. This cycle occurs constantly until you find ways to 'break' into your anxiety, if you beat one symptoms, that's an achievement in itself.
I have kept a personal list of my symptoms and it's literally pages long! From chest pain to visual disturbances to head pressure and headaches.
I've been to the doctors about 50 times this year alone, had countless tests which always come back negative.
The tests I've had within the past two years are:-
MRI of head and brain
ECG heart monitoring
Chest x-ray
Camera up nose and throat
Ophthalmologist - For visual problems
Blood tests (at least 15) including a full blood count
Optician visits x 2
Dentist visits x 3 (I was paranoid about white patches and ulcers)
I've also got an upcoming appointment to have an x-ray of my foot and legs as I've had a swollen foot and leg aches and pains.
Anxiety is a horrid illness which can, sadly, affect 90% of our organs and body attributes, our brain functions as per it was designed, meaning it is very powerful and can change literally anything within us!
Psychological symptoms of Anxiety for me are most scary! I've had derealisation, weird thoughts, memory-loss, fear for health and safety, fear of dying and they still are fuelled by something today!
I deeply hope you and I and everyone else suffering from this illness breaks the cycle at some point and can live an anxiety-free life.
Best wishes,
Ashley x:hugs:
Thanks for the post Ashley. It is indeed a vicious cycle. I am unfortunately the product of two very anxious parents so I believe the root cause for me is quite clear, however knowing this hasn't been enough for me to beat this thing. How do you feel when you get the 'negative' or 'normal' results? Do you get any sense of relief? My assessment is tomorrow, I pray it will be enough of a step up for me to fight this thing on my own. I just feel I need a completely clean slate if that makes sense. I wish you all the best! Feel free to pm me if you ever want to talk! L
Well, I ended up going for the health assessment today... Initially it was horrid, being poked and prodded whilst on the verge of a panic attack... I had to fast 6 hours before the test too so I was feeling quite dizzy which didn't help! They took my bp which was 128/95 which scared me to death.. They took another one but it didn't decrease (not surprising really) I was starting to regret it big time until I got to talk to the doctor about my tests... He could quite clearly see anxiety and stress were huge factors in my life and after a top to toe check, including a smear! He advised cbt and meds... Which I will certainly do. Long day though and very stressful.
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