Lump between shoulder and neck

[Bewarethegeek]

Hi, really could use some rational help. While showering I found a hard-ish lump on the left kinda around the region where your neck and shoulder join. It’s not visible from just looking and I can only feel it well I raise my left arm. It feels firm, smooth, slips out from under my fingers. I don’t think it hurts but the entire region is generally really tight so I dunno (see below)

I have incredibly tight muscles on the side of my neck from anxiety and years of contact sports. They’re so tight I can’t properly turn my head in either direction and have not been able to for years. I’m otherwise in well health, don’t drink or smoke and exercise regularly.

Recent things that have happened:
- I got a nasty cold/flu thing before Xmas, had a course of antibiotics
- over Xmas I was exposed to a lot of bushfire smoke (hi from Australia) resulting in a steroid puffer for a week
- I’m going overseas soon and got a hep A / typhoid vaccine in my left arm about 2 weeks ago.
- I restarted at the gym and did a mixed martial arts style aerobics class (lots of punching in the air) on Monday where I really over did it and was soooo sore for two days following all over.

To make matters worse, unlike some of you that seek reassurance by going to your doctor, I have a terrible fear and mistrust of doctors and having to get tests so part of my anxiety in this is having to go to the doctor in the first place and then if it’s something bad, having to continue to go.

Please, what is the likelihood that this is either a muscle knot or a reaction from my recent vaccines!?!

[Bewarethegeek]

Im beside myself, a second lump has come up. My collarbone had been hurting in the same area and I think I’d been rubbing at it absentmindedly / due to being anxious and now a second lump has come up that feels like the first. It’s a public holiday and I can’t get to a doctor and I’m terrified to go because I’m convinced they’ll tell me it’s something awful and send me for a battery of tests. Please help.

[Adam1987]

Sounds like a muscle knot to me. I get them in the same location at the back between neck and shoulder on both sides

[Bewarethegeek]

Thanks for the reply Adam. These are more towards the front but I suppose logically you could get them in any location? Do yours change in size / ever go away? Have you ever had one come up from too much poking around?

I’m so terrified of having to go get medical tests but at the same time scared it’s some sort of cancer taking hold, though my mum agrees that it’s probably knots.

[katniss]

Is it above the collarbone area? Could it be a lymph node?

I recently made a post about this. My left collarbone lymph node popped up following the flu shot. I still can’t believe how big it got! It was 2cm long. I was a mess because I had read so much about how left collarbone lymph nodes could be bad news. Anyway, it’s size went down after a week. It’s still there albeit smaller.

[Bewarethegeek]

Is it above the collarbone area? Could it be a lymph node?

I recently made a post about this. My left collarbone lymph node popped up following the flu shot. I still can’t believe how big it got! It was 2cm long. I was a mess because I had read so much about how left collarbone lymph nodes could be bad news. Anyway, it’s size went down after a week. It’s still there albeit smaller.

Katnis, yes it is! Mine is about a cm and then a second one popped up a couple of days later but I think it is (hopefully) because I was poking around so much making sure there was nothing else because like you I’ve read tonnes about collarbone lymph nodes. I dragged myself to the dr today, felt like I was going to the gallows. He didn’t seem super knowledgeable and was like it’s either muscle or lymph and asked me a TONNE of questions about lymphoma symptoms and breast cancer symptoms that didn’t help with the anxiety at all. But then he said doing intense exercise / muscle injury could cause them to come up and it could have also been the vaccine and that in general lumps in that area was super common. Then said it’s nothing to worry about and if it gets bigger or I have other symptoms then come back. My family reckon they first one is my muscle and the second is from me poking around so I’m trying to calm down and not touch it for a week to see if it goes away.

I’m glad yours has gone down - how long has it been since your flu shot?