30 years old, colonoscopy 3 weeks away!

[panic1986]

Hi there,

I am not new to this thread, but I am returning after a reprieve and break from experiencing severe health anxiety. I have had digestive issues for about 6 or 7 years now, including stomach pain, intermittent diarrhea, constipation (which I am currently experiencing), periodic rectal bleeding, gas, etc...I am 30 years old, and I am scheduled to have a colonoscopy in 3 weeks time. 21 days to be exact from today. The panic is setting in, as waiting to have a diagnostic test is the worst. I have been googling colon cancer symptoms and of course I have all of them. Thin stools, difficulty passing stools, pain, blood. What if I have left this too late and the cancer has spread? This three week wait is going to be so incredibly hard on my well-being. The only saving grace is that both weekends in between are incredibly busy with yoga teacher training and a wedding out of town.

The practical part of my brain is trying to remind myself not to worry until I have the test, because there is no use in worrying about the unknown. I cannot move the test sooner as I am here in America, and need to scrape together half of the $1500 copay (ugh), and I cannot take the time off work between now and then (and my gastro is fully booked on the alternative days that I could fit it in). I am also reading the stats on colon cancer(cancer stats have NEVER comforted me), and the fact that this is IBS or something similar is more likely than the big scary C, but still. I have also stumbled upon young people with colon cancer stories and I am terrified as all of my symptoms are the same. And if this does end up being cancer, than it is likely that it has spread all over. Can someone give me some comforting words or tools to help me get through the next 20 days? It feels like FOREVER. I am not seeking medical advice, only comfort. I also forgot to mention just being EXTREMELY tired, and my absolute neutrophils at my last physical (August 2016) were Low, 1.2.

Thank you all, so so much.

[Fishmanpa]

All I can tell you is that it's really not that bad. The prep is worse than the procedure. Just let them know you have anxiety and ask for something to help when you go. You'll get the good stuff and frankly won't give a hoot what they're going to do They let me know when I woke up all was well. Sounds like you're dealing with some IBS issues due to stress and anxiety and it's a pretty common theme around here. In the mean time, stay away from Dr. Google!

Let us know when you get the all clear

Positive thoughts

[worryingmum]

Hi

My husband 6 years ago was expierencing all of what you describe pls a lot of weight loss. He was also very fatigued as well. As u can imagine I was in a state of panic because he literally ticked all of the boxes for u no what.. turns out he had inflammatory bowel or Crohns disease. Now don't get me wrong it's still a chronic illness but it wasnt that.
You've got age on your side and you mentioned you've been having these symptoms for a long time, that's reassuring in my mind! Try to keep calm

[NervUs]

So sorry you're in this horrid wait.

I am also in a 3 WEEK WAIT for a growing lump in my toe. It's maddening that they make us wait this long!!!!! I have been googling, looking for any clues as to what my could be. IDK. I was having a REALLY bad time but am functioning a little better. I cannot wait for the day to come...and then I have another whole flipping week until the doctor gives results. The whole system is torture!

[BikerMatt]

So sorry you're in this horrid wait.

I am also in a 3 WEEK WAIT for a growing lump in my toe. It's maddening that they make us wait this long!!!!! I have been googling, looking for any clues as to what my could be. IDK. I was having a REALLY bad time but am functioning a little better. I cannot wait for the day to come...and then I have another whole flipping week until the doctor gives results. The whole system is torture!

Don't ever move to the UK and NHS then Probably be a 3month wait, then it will be cancelled, in a hospital that's like going back to the 50s and when it does happen you'll get a doctor you can't understand anything they say!

[TattooArtist]

Wait times can be really long here in the US, and we also end up broke during times of medical stress because of how much our care and copays can cost. I've also seen more doctors that have English as a second language than otherwise... Grass isn't greener here for medical care. In either country, the thing to remember is that when doctors think your situation is dire, your care gets prioritized. It's easy to forget that... Anxiety is by nature a selfish condition... We are impatient to have answers (as anyone might be), in part because we know it'll put a stop to the anxiety spiral and lessen our symptoms. Which, to be fair, means we want testing and results NOW, not later, even though that means skipping ahead of someone that really needs lifesaving care right away. I try to remind myself of these things when faced with wait times... My husband has had a very serious melanoma... You wouldn't believe how fast things moved after they diagnosed it. So try to take some comfort there, OP. Maybe look into getting a small loan or cash advance if you are able to move it sooner (we've had to do this to afford care in the past). Good luck.

[Thorey]

I have a light IBS, and have had a LOT of all the symptoms you have, often. Rectal bleeding and mucus most often (as for me) occur because of hemmorhoids, or because the rectum has simply become sore after a lot of toilet visits...
I have thin stools every now and then, pretty much always thin stools has to do with the consistence of the stool rather than an obstacle, soft stools will often come out in "string" form.

Also - you can pretty much rule out cancer since it would have become much worse at this point if you've had trouble since 7 years back. Seriously, you wouldn't have survived this long. At all. You CAN'T have cancer (is my conviction, at least. I'm medical student but not a doctor)

I know the thread was started long ago, but I'm writing this anyway so it hopefully can b helpful to someone else <3