Hypochondria vs Brain Tumour

[AutumnRose92]

Ok, so this is my first post.... I am having an internet forum day... I have never posted on forums before- I have been googling illnesses for years and I always find that none of the symptoms quite match up to mine so I thought I would make my own post!! It is a little scary, I must admit....

So, for the past 5 1/2 years I have been TERRIFIED that I have a brain tumour.... I have never told anyone, I feel really bad about having not told my family about it but I have never wanted to scare them.

I have been googling symptoms for years and more recently- the past 3 months- I have been having more severe symptoms... I have posted on a health board all of my specific symptoms to see if they can shed any light on my issues- I have been to a doctor- twice in the last few weeks- the first doctor did my temperature and blood pressure and told me I was fine pretty much. The second suggested muscular tension or dehydration.

My question to the forum, really, is do people believe that my symptoms (I'll post in a sec) could all be caused by anxiety....

HEADACHES: This is where is all started 5 years ago- random stabbing pains throughout my head. Now more recently I have been having DAILY headaches or pains... sometimes tension, sometimes stabbing, sometimes one sided, sometimes both sides, often worsened by movement and I have developed 'tender spots' on my head, which hurt if I push them. (I know stress can cause tension headaches but can it really cause all of the rest of this?!)

NAUSEA: Speaks for itself really, not constant but fairly frequent, sometimes with the headache, sometimes without.

NUMBNESS, TINGLING, TWITCHING: Sometimes I get numbness and tingling in parts of my face (left cheek and tongue- odd (!) mostly!). My eyelid has also be twitching quite alot recently.

I have had these symptoms on and off for years, but more recently they seem to be constant and there is nothing I can do to relieve the pain- ibuprofen, paracetamol, aspirin- nothing seems to help.

I am stressing out about this ALOT... otherwise though I have nothing to be stressing/anxious about.... every slight twinge, new symptom I get I am straight to google! I am very, very SCARED. I don't like to leave the house in case I collapse, and I am scared of being left on my own. I am worried that I am going to die, and soon.

I may be a hypochondriac, but even hypochondriacs get ill, right?

Sorry for this rather lengthy post, any thoughts/experiences that anyone can share would be greatly appreciated.... Thank-you

[swgrl09]

Hi and welcome There are tons of people here who have the same feelings that you are experiencing and understand completely how scary and real symptoms are to anxiety-sufferers.

If you have had these symptoms for 5 1/2 years, you really don't need to worry about a brain tumor. It would have progressed WAAAAAY beyond what you are experiencing by this time. I get all of the symptoms you have very often when I am having bad bouts of anxiety.

[honeyb]

Hi there and welcome, as swgrl09 said, i very much doubt this a brain tumor as after 5 1/2 years you would be seriously ill by now. Definately sound more like anxiety to me. I get a lot of tension in my head that makes me feel nausious and off balance, i also get pulsing in my head, it's amazing how anxiety can make us feel. I to also such google for symtoms etc in fact every day i'm checking my symptoms on google, what you have to remeber is checking google is fueling your fear and its a vicious circle. If you stop googling for a while you will be suprised how better you feel.

[flossie]

Sounds pretty much like classic anxiety to me. Stop googling every little twitch and niggle as this is only serving to feed your worries into something much bigger. If you want to read about your symptoms I recommend books by Dr. Claire Weekes. (Have a look on the website of your County library to see if they have a copy that you can have sent to your local branch for you.)
I think you will find all your symptoms mentioned there and how to move forward toward recovery.

[mikewales]

Yes, as the others say, all of these are syptoms of anxiety. If you had had a brain tumour for 5 1/2 years I seriously doubt you would be here to post on forums !

You would be better off spending the time googling on looking for some proper help with your HA as this is the main problem that needs treating.

[AutumnRose92]

Thank-you all very much for your thoughts. They do give me some reassurance!

I could almost believe it was an anxiety if it wasn't for things like the headaches worsening with movement- I mean I don't suddenly get more anxious when I stand up!! And the tender spots on my head....
Has anyone had those and it turned out to be nothing/ just another side effect of anxiety?

I feel like I am going absolutely insane sometimes... it is the fact that alot of this has been going on for 5 1/2 years that provides me with some comfort when I am in an overly paranoid state.

Thank-you all for replying, I know it sounds daft but it really does mean alot to have people to 'talk' with.

If anyone has any further thoughts please do share

[honester]

Hi read my posts, i have the same symptoms and the same brain tumour fear too! Surely we can''t all have one eh? more likely that we must be sharing the same symptoms of anxiety.
I feel stabbing / shooting pains in my head daily and they freak me out!! dizziness/ weird vision!! I get pains when i bend down and move my head sometimes, not all the time - i think it's because i've looked at the brain tumour symptoms and then tense up when I'm thinking about them...to a point where I'm tense every time i move my head!

Hope this reassures you! .....your not alone with those symptoms xxx

[Amysunshine]

I get stabbing pains in my head alll the time. They catch me when I stand up or when I turn my head to look at something. These have only been for about 6 months but Im not too worried about them. Although in the last 2 years one eye has got back with looking one way as it hurts alot and has got blurrier...I should probably be worried but Im so fed up with worrying about other stuff Ive just ignored this. If its really bothering you get it seen to is my advice, or it will eat you up. x

[JcbyFong]

They catch me when I stand up or when I turn my head to look at something.

[flossie]

These feelings are something we all have when going through a phase of anxiety.
If you had severe tension in the calf muscle of your leg you wouldn't be surprised that the pains shot into your hip or ankle. It is the the same with the upper body too. You may not realise how much tension you are carrying around your shoulder, neck and facial muscle area because you have had it for so long it feels natural to you, but that doesn't mean that it isn't there.
Tension in these muscles will create the stabbing and flashing pains around your face and head. Move your face and jaw around, raise your eyebrows and then frown. Can you feel how these movements move the whole area of your head? How tense are you holding your tongue? Do you hold it it tightly or pressed against your teeth?
I find it incredibly difficult to let go of the tension in my tongue but if you can that will help a lot.
I suggest you get a relaxation CD. I got mine from the NoPanic website but there are others available. Your local pharmacy might have them. It is finding the right one for you. Don't expect to be able to relax straight away, it could take a couple of weeks using it every day before you notice the difference between tense and relaxed muscles but it may help.
You could try yoga or tai chi, swimming or walking. Find something that you find relaxing, exercising will tire your muscles in a healthy way and it will also help you mental well being.

And just to let you know - you are not going insane living with this for over 5 years. I have been going through this for well over 30 years. Once you can accept that your self diagnosis is wrong and that your pains are caused by something entirely different you can move forward to managing them.