I'm at it again......google is my worst enemy! So as I said before I have persistent lower back pain and also like an upper back pain when I take deep breaths or stretch. What started my googling was a pain in my ribcage underneath my armpit. I see all these stories on Google about people having stage 4 cancer with no symptoms other than the few I already have myself.. so I am now convinced this must be me. Is there a way to just get a full body scan to put my mind at ease? I do not want to feel this Way! Every ache and pain I assume the worst. I am hyper aware of my whole body! Are my pains something to be concerned about? I read about pain under armpit being lung cancer....and lower back pain being pancreatic cancer. Help me!
Hi R - I am feeling similarly about my life so I understand where you are coming from and am sorry you’re feeling this way. I remember they used to do full body scans at some malls or something in the US? I don’t think they do that now. I am of course not a medical professional, but it seems much more likely that your aches and pains are due to things like how you sleep and also the muscle tension you have from being predisposed to anxiety, or how you hold your body, than anything truly nefarious. Yesterday I started googling because I thought I had lung cancer and lo and behold after I googled I started miraculously feeling all the symptoms I had read. You may be subconsciously doing the same thing. I think with anxiety we have a tendency to zero in on the extreme cases of things. Also remember that the things people decide to do new stories on are BECAUSE they are remarkable or an interesting angle people will write about, not because everyone who feels a twinge in their arm has cancer. I hope this helps, and I definitely feel where you are coming from!!
I end up taking on extra symptoms while googling as well. Definitely not a good idea to Google. I have stopped for the most part due to advice on this forum. They were right. I worry about cancer all the time I'm even worried a CT scan they did recently of my chest is going to prematurely give me breast cancer. It seems to run in my family as well as aneurysms so I'm constantly worrying about both of them and have now for months. My mother had both she survived breast cancer to die from complication of a brain aneurysm. Her father also had breast cancer and her sister. Her mother died of an aortic aneurysm. My uncle also had an aneurysm an abdominal aortic aneurysm. I don't hear about my cousin's being worried about those even with our family history but because of my anxiety I am worried about everything. Not that it's not warranted. But I am taking as many precautions as I can to try and check on my health as much as I can and that's all I can do besides pray.
Hi Rebecca
Google is a health anxiety sufferers worst nightmare! Never google symptoms as it always gives worse case scenarios. It sounds to me that your back problems are more likely due to tension in the muscles. When we are anxious or stressed we tense up. Sometimes I will be sat watching TV and realise Im tense for no reason other than thats what my body is used to now. Try and relax and maybe have a back massage to release some of those knots of tension. Also see your doctor. They will do a full examination of you and put your mind at ease that it is nothing serious. Also.ask for some help for your anxiety. I hope you feel better soon x