DVT fears AGAIN! :-(

[Anxiety Jim]

Hi everyone,

I've been posting quite a lot for the past week. My health anxiety seems to suddenly come back last Monday night, when after sitting down for a few hours my calf suddenly went numb and swollen, I spent most of the night looking up DVT on the internet, went to see my GP the next day, and he said it didn't look like a clot to him, and to go back in a few days.

Just my GP merely mentioning a clot had me worked up all day, and I eventually had a panic attack so I went to A+E. They did a d dimer test and it came back normal apparently, so they sent me home, every day since I've been a bit paranoid with my left leg, trying to keep it straight all the time, and elevated too.

Since then I've had panic attacks thinking I've got one of stomach/pancreatic/liver/bowel cancer. And today again the DVT symptoms are taking priority in my mind, my left cal is really burning up tonight, and is VERY swollen, and there is pain in the middle of it going up to behind my knee.

I know I've already had a blood test for it, and that it came back OK but I'm still really worried the test might be wrong (it's only right 95% of the time) and because my symptoms are so bad I'm panicking again.

I really don't want to have to go to A+E again, I went last Tuesday with my leg pain, and yesterday when I felt very dizzy. I think if I turn up again now, I'll be turned away. :-(

Sorry everyone for the long post, and sorry for keep posting ever few minutes, it's just that this site is the only thing stopping me going mental at the moment.

[eileenb73]

Dont worry about going back to a&e I dont think they would ever turn anyone away, sometimes with my HA which is heart related the minute I read ANYTHING about someone with a heart attack/disease/disorder I start having all the symptoms within hours but as with anything I feel could be life threatening I would rather take the chance of yet again being told im fine at a&e than anything else

[Anxiety Jim]

Thanks for the post, I think I'll leave the A+E trip until tomorrow morning, after my blood test. That way they might be able to get me in for a scan that same day.

[eileenb73]

Thats sounds sensible, its always worse seeming at night there are no other distractions around except your own thoughts, it can be a scary time. Sometimes just sitting talking, writing, anything just to get through to the next day helps, Ive went out in the car at all hours as I know I need to concentrate when driving can just distract me enough to keep me from being in total meltdown.

[Anxiety Jim]

OK now I THINK I'm having a panic attack, my breathing has gone very shallow and short, and I'm feeling faint. I can't shake the feeling that this is a pulmonary embolism and not anxiety :-(

[Jules147]

Jim. 7/11. Pursed lips on exhalation..

You need CBT mate.

PS: your avatar says PANIC!

[Anxiety Jim]

It says Don't Panic in large friendly letter. It's from the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, if it might be unhelpful to people I'll change it.

What's 7/11?

[Jules147]

Breathe in, count to 7 as you do it; breathe out through pursed lips (to slow down the rate of exhalation) counting to 11 as you do it. Keep it smooth, no jerky breaths and do it for 3+ minutes with no more than 5 breaths per minute.

Breathe in through your diaphragm (tummy) and not your thorax (upper chest). Place your hand on your tummy and feel it rise and fall with each inhalation and exhalation.

[Anxiety Jim]

Thanks, I think I may have been doing part of that subconsciously for a while now, I always find myself breathing out very slowly through pursed lips when I'm feeling a little anxious. This was before my massive anxiety problem struck last week, so maybe for the last couple of years I've been keeping myself away from full panic and not even knowing it, or maybe it's just a coincidence, ha ha.

And also I'm still at home, I'm not dead, I seem to be breathing all right so far, so I think there's an OK chance I'll live through the night.

Still far too panicky to try to go to bed though.

---------- Post added at 01:15 ---------- Previous post was at 01:14 ----------

Also doing this 7/11 breathing thing makes me feel like i'm filling my lungs more. When I try to really fill my lungs normally it gives me a bit of pain and is very uncomfortable.

[Anxious_gal]

Where do you get the pain? When you breath in?