hi everyone i am 26 years old and having issues with my health/anxiety. i get strange dull pains on my left and right side and fear that this may be something serious My biggest issue is that once I get even remotely sick...my brain immediately goes to the worst possible case. all i can think about is stomach, colon, or intestinal cancer. like right now I have had some weird stomach/gas pain as well as changing bowel habits for about 10 days now. I saw my GP and he said that it "sounds like classic gastroenteritis" my thoughts were "SOUNDS like?" So he ordered a blood test and urinalysis and they came back normal but my mind goes straight to "what if they missed something?" Or "what if these tests can't detect what is going on?" And the only thing that would make me feel better is a scan. Idk what to do? Please help.
Interesting bc I’ve been struggling with some stomach issues also for the past couple months. I get a crampy feeling that comes and goes, mostly on my sides of my stomach. A lot of gas and belching also. I saw a gastro Dr for first time a week ago and did an ultrasound - no issues there. I have an endscopy sched for Jan 2 which I am quite anxious about bc I’ve never been sedated before =( I’m wondering if my stomach issues are just anxiety induced, I wouldn’t be surprised as I’ve had manyyyy strange physical symptoms from anxiety lol.
- I do not think they missed anything. If the stomach issues continue they will do further tests, and if those all come back normal then you know it’s your anxiety!
- On a positive note, IF u did have gastritis or something similar to that, it’s not a life threatening thing… It’s just uncomfortable. So IF they did miss something like that, it’s not like OMG I’m gonna die. It’s just annoying bc ur stomach will keep bugging u until it’s fixed lol. But again, I highlyyyy doubt they missed something.
thank you very much. my concern is that its a serious illness like a type of cancer. i freak myself out and am hyper aware. if anything it got slightly better? i am not sure. these pains come and go and are irritating and most of all, SCARY. My fiancee, sister, step brother (who is about to start residency), and dad think that i am fine. i just keep going back to the what if scenarios. anyway i hope that goes well for you, god bless and prayers for you. keep me updated.
i dont mean to belittle your conditions, but both of your conditions are caused by anxiety. if the specialist says so, accept it. anxiety is awful. ive suffered from it most of my life. ive had the localised tension in my chest, racing heart beat, seemingly unregular heart beat, felt rock solid all over my body, where its hard to move, and used to get bowel issues. my health concerns over my physical symtoms dissapeared when i started to realise i wasnt going to drop down dead, and there was nothing physically wrong with me. it was purely anxiety. the chemicals we produce when anxious, cause muscles to contract or tense. its usually the muscles we dont have conscious control over, head, chest and stomach. you can create such issues, just worrying about a certain area of your body. ibs and other similar stomach issues, are all caused by anxiety, tightening stomach and intestinal muscles. if you get your anxiety levels down, the symptoms will go away. when i began to understand anxiety, and what it can cause, my worries about physical symptoms dissapeared. however, my high anxiety levels continued, and turned into depression. controlling my anxiety has been extremely difficult, as for many people, and can be a lifetime issue, if not dealt with. concentrate on anxiety, look into what you can do to lower it. you may need to see your dr about medication to get your anxiety under control. the physical symptoms you are experiencing are typical of early stage anxiety, even long term anxiety. accepting and believing this is the first step, then you can try to address the real issue, anxiety.
thank you i really appreciate your comment. i didn’t at all take it like you were belittling my symptoms. hopefully this goes away soon
Reading your post is like listening to myself. Health anxiety ruins my life, I’m OK until I get a illness or a pain. I’m 50 now so obviously I get more aches and pains but I always Google and focus on worse case scenario. Which is always cancer. I to have digestive issues like gas, bloating etc and also bowel issues, I had pain in right side for weeks and thought I had liver cancer, Im constantly at doctors and they told me It sounded like ibs but then I start to think what if they’ve got it wrong, they’re are only human and can make mistakes. Over the past 2 years I have had stomach, colon, liver pancreatic esophageal, throat mouth and breast cancer. Also a number of neurological illnesses as I forgot to mention I twitch quite a bit. I do think most of it is caused by anxiety. But it’s just convincing myself this as I constantly overthink everything. I totally relate to how you feel. Big hugs, I also think yours sounds like anxiety by the fact you said it comes and goes. Hope you feel better soon xx
Well keep in mind, if it were something serious it would not come and go. That’s what my Dr always tells me to reassure me. It would be persistent, it would affect your sleep, and get worse if it were really something serious. The fact yours comes and goes is a good sign it’s nothing concerning!
Try not to worry I’ve been like u for years and it’s horrible. One things for certain if docs thought u needed a scan they would send u for as they can’t afford to lose their job if they miss anything. Try goin on YouTube turn your lights out type and listen to night drive sleeping sounds. It really relaxes u. Hope u get sorted soon 
HI, i feel the very same way its after one it’s another. Now i feel like im losing my mind and i’m scared and worried that i will go crazy