Back again and my hypochondriac strikes again.
So, I’m 22/female. For a while now my right lymph node under my jaw stays swollen all the time. My neck/throat has been feeling so tight and I’m so scared to even touch my neck. I’m terrified it’s lymphoma or something because of the symptoms that come up on google are very similar to what I have. I’m so scared. I have an 8 month old and that makes my fear so much worse.
Okay so first, calm down! I am 28 yr old female and I have been dealing with lymph node issues for almost a year now so I feel like I can be a bit of help to you! =)
In short: I've had lymph nodes swelling all over my head/neck area for almost a year now. They come and go, but none of them seem to disappear permanently yet. I've seen my reg Dr, dermo, ENT, and an oncologist (i wanted a variety of opinions thanks to my hypochondriac/anxiety lol). I also had an MRI and ultrasound. At one point I had 8 swollen at the same time (one behind my ear, one on back of my neck, a few under my jaw line, etc.)
So what I've learned from seeing all those doctors is that the main red flag for a worrisome lymph node is size. Even tho google will say all these different red flags, size is the only thing that is a definite worrisome symptom. So if your lymph nodes all feel normal sized (less than 2cm - bout the size of a marble or bean) you have nothing to worry about. If they become bigger (2.5cm - or size of a golf ball) that is when you should worry a bit. Also, if you have physical symptoms like extreme fatigue, persistent weightless, fever, or bad night sweats - that is also a sign of something worrisome. As I said earlier, I had 8 swollen at one time and I had nodes that were hard and tender, movable and not movable, etc... and all those ^ doctors said none of that really matters just watch the size of the node. The oncologist told me, "you could have 15 swollen lymph nodes for years and as long as they are normal size and you have no other physical symptoms, it's not worrisome."
You mentioned neck tightness/stiffness... I get this also and that is almost definitely anxiety and muscle tension. I get this ALL the time. Mine comes and goes but whenever I am feeling extra anxious my neck gets sooo tight and sore, and the nodes there then feel tender also. But I always notice as soon as I'm distracted and not anxious, I suddenly don't feel it anymore. It's so annoying/uncomfortable -_-
So in conclusion lol: my bet is that you are completely fine. Apparently nodes can swell for so many reasons not cancer related. Those doctors ^^ think mine are swollen from my acne on my face bc I had extra bad acne this year. They said my nodes are prob just very sensitive and reacting to the inflammation/acne on my face. Who knew right?
Hi,
I'm 18 and i've never had a swollen lymph node before. My throat started feeling sore 5 days ago and for the past few days I've had a sore throat and stuffy nose (no fever). Most likely it's just a very common cold/flu since I'm feeling a lot better already (after 5 days). However, Friday night i was just watching tv and rubbing my neck/shoulders etc. like i often do for no reason. I noticed a small lump on the back of my neck, a little bit to the right. It definitely scared me and I showed it to my mom but she didn't think it was anything dangerous. Me doing the dumbest thing i could do in that moment, i googled it. I didn't know anything about lymph nodes before and i didn't think anything like this could even happen. I found out it is very common to have swollen lymph nodes if you're also having a flu or some other infection. I felt very relieved after reading that. However, I felt like i was going crazy and i couldn't stop reading more and more about it. That's what I've been doing for the past 2 days and it's made me really anxious and scared.
Now what really scares me is the fact that every article i read basically said: if your swollen lymph node is hard and does not move, you probably have cancer. I did not see anyone talking about whenever slightly hard and not movable lymph node is normal (except you). I would say mine is quite small, maybe 1cm, but it does not move. It feels like it's very deep under the skin and you can't actually notice it if you don't know what you're looking for. Maybe it's just in a place where it has no room to move? I didn't have any pain in the beginning, but now i feel slight irritation (because I can't stop touching it).
Oh i do have acne as well so maybe that could have something to do with this?
I haven't gone to see a doctor yet, i will try to make an appointment tomorrow but I'm really scared and nervous. I haven't had any other symptoms like night sweats or weightloss and I feel fine and energetic (even if I'm still a little bit sick)but then again I've only had this for a few days. I know there's no way of you knowing if my lymph node is just swollen or if it's something else, but your comment gave me a little bit of hope. After 2 days of reading about this i was convinced i have cancer. I'm terrified of just the idea of it. What do you think? Do you think this is normal or should I be worried?
If you have cold like symptoms also I would def think the lymph node is something to do with that. You prob have a minor cold or infection and when that goes away ur lymph node will, too.
And yes one of mine is hard and doesn't move, thought it was a part of bone on my skull at first lol. I had that one MRIed and it was nothing but a normal swollen node, no cancer etc. So obv the hard/immovable thing is not true then bc I read the same as u. Which my dr even confirmed that when they all said size is really all that matters for lymph nodes. But google scares u!!
Ok thank you for your response! i’m going to see a doctor in a few hours so let’s hope it’s nothing serious!