Guys I'm 22 yr old female who suffers from generalized anxiety since 14 years old and also from chronic depression. My worst symptom are the physical ones like extreme terrible headaches, heart palpitation and multiple pvcs, tics/tingling all over my body even my butt twitches! I've never had a bf, I rarely go out with friends, I stay in my house the whole day everyday when I'm on vacations off college. My symptoms worsen everytime I'm on vacations but when I'm at college I barely have any anxiety manifestations. On summer '17 I thought I had lymphoma or a brain tumour cause I had too many of their symptoms like night sweats, swollen lymph nodes, phantom smells, strong headaches, nausea, leg pain, shivers, drowsiness but I got bloodwork and thyroid ultrasound that came back normal. I've had a ct scan of my brain normal but that was almost 5 years ago, I haven't another one. Ok so after that period I started fall semester and my symptoms were subsiding gradually until I had none. It's like when i focus my mind on school my symptoms go away. well after that semester finished, on last december, my symptoms were coming back again. Severe headaches, shooting pains, shortness of breath, nausea, derealization etc. I again started to convince myself I had a terminal brain tumor or other cancer. And the fact that one of my moms friends died from a brain tumor increased my fears. Wen to an eye doctor since I heard they can spot signs of a brain tumor and he said my eyes are optimal and the pressure in the eyes is normal, and he assumed I probably suffer from migraines and put me on flunarazine and b vitamin shots (I only took them for one week and then stopped). This last semester once again my headaches, palps and other symptoms were dissapearing slowly until I realized I hadn't had one. I was so happy at college, doing the only thing I'm good at: getting good grades. Also being with my friends, eating out with them whenever possible, anxiety?? Ha, it took her semestral vacations again. But it's been 2 months since I ended last semester, and last few weeks my symptoms are appearing again. Violent twitches all over the muscles of my body, you can even see my muscles moving from far, nausea, PVCs yes and these ones are the scariest cause I'm starting to get multiple pvcs in a row and I read it is ventricular tach which can turn into deadly fibrillation therefore sudden cardiac death. Also the headaches, my fears fluctuates between a brain aneurysm and a brain tumor. But this summer brain aneurysm fear is the one that is lingering the most. I feel like my head is being squeezed, like a spam in my whole head, like my head is beating with painful beats and when I get them I get a weird feeling in my heart and feel like I'm going to drop dead anytime. And I don't think its the typical tension or ice pick headaches that I also get and that I'm not afraid anymore. These ones are kind of different, they last only seconds, they're not like the worst of the worst but they do feel bad and scare me, as I stated before they feel like someone is squeezing my head or hitting me with a hammer. Anyone relate to this? Can any of you give me advice? I feel like I finally want to die (God forbid) because I feel miserable after all of these years thinking I'm terminally ill, getting pains and feeling like I'm not worth, lucky or strong enough to deal with this. I wish I was strong if in fact I happened to fall ill, to face it with real strength. I'm crying so much at this moment like so many people do, I have a a weird feeling on my chest, and I'm thinking of my family, specially my mom, nephews and older sisters. I love my family so much, I dont wanna leave them yet. And I see many young people dying suddenly from diverse causes on the news and that just makes me more depressed. Life it's so unfair. And most of my 22 yrs of life have been wasted thanks to my anxiety and depression..
First stay off of Google don't look up symptoms it makes things worse. You have all the classic signs of anxiety.im 41 and I've suffered from anxiety and panic since grade school. I took cymbalta for 10 yrs it stopped working now I'm on prozac and Ativan . I swear when my panic and anxiety come on I think I'm going to die. It's been a long hard road the cymbalta was a miracle drug for me and this Prozac just isn't helping like it should.
Hello
Reading through your post on major thing seemed to come across. When studying or taking examinations these activities are acting as a diversion so you feel ok.
When you finish for the holiday period you become bored and you have no diversions. The way out of this will be other diversions hobbies, like walking, travelling or meeting other people.
Consider diversions you would like to try, if you are sitting around with nothing to do you will be sensitized to your body and you will imagine you will have various conditions.
You also need to talk to your GP, He will be able too help
BOB
Im sorry you are going through this terrible time i suffer from anxiety of heart related fears same thing pvcs palpitations flutter ive had exactly every one of your fears aneurysm clots stroke tingling im very hyper aware of my body but im still here just like you you are strong dont worry about that i can see that in your post how u have pushed through it before ive had echo test mri stress test holter monitor and still believe somethings wrong constantly it does get better though i had panic attacks constantly and now i rarley get them when time went on and on and i didnt die i got use to it you will be ok you are 22 years young and have a full life to live and cherish you can and will beat this dont let it get the best of you as it is so hard to overcome its a uphill battle talk to your gp and get a therapists helped me more than anything and try to occupy your mind with a hobby anything but focusing on your body thats what anxiety does makes the littles things seem huge good luck and keep reaching out talking to people with similar experiences gives great reassurance
Hi @borderriever thanks for your reply!. Yes my symptoms always coincide with my vacations, dissapear over the first few weeks of going back to school. I might be wrong but I guess if it was a tumor indeed since last year, my symptoms would've gotten worse and I should've had like neurological damage I guess? And the median time of diagnosis is 3 months, it's been 12 months since these weird headaches appeared for the first time. When I'm out I forget about all of my concerns and just live my life like I'm supposed to, but it's hard for me to accept that this is just anxiety cause I get new symptoms and new worries start... But i still haven't understand how powerful can mind be.
You a right I must find something to do and keep my mind entertained, Tomorrow I will go to another city hope it helps me cause I can't stop thinking I'm near the end. Thanks for your advice xx.
Hi @Txtattoodmommy thank you for your reply, I try to stay off google but sometimes I just can't help it and I'm really sorry to hear that your treatment isn't working properly 
How about other antidepressants? And have you tried CBT or any other sort of psychotherapy? You've come a long way suffering from anxiety throughout all of these years, I hope from the bottom of my heart that you get well soon, we all deserve to be happy one day
heyy..i was having palpitations alot, i checked it out, and it was caused by my anxiety. im getting random shot pain in my head that last for a second,and i get scared if its brain tumor
Hi Trevor thanks for your reply, it cheers me how every one of you have taken your time to reply to a stranger and encourage them, thank you so much for your wishes your words have given me a little bit of hope xx. Omg I've also had the same worries and tests that you've had. In 2014 I got like 6 electros and 1 echo and they all were normal, but that year I was convinced I had heart failure and I was going to die from it because in 2013 my heart rate was always 85-90 bpm (I guess anxiety) and I thouggt my heart got damaged and weakened because of that, and I have other symptoms like bulging veins, shortness of breath, the palps... but thank God my tests were normal. But it makes me mad and sad that when i seem to get over something, I get new symptoms and it is a vicious circle jumping fom one doctor to another, getting tests coming back clear and then one week after, starting to worry again. I unfortunately can't go to a gp or therapist cause I lost my health insurance when I turned 21 and it takes a lot of time to re - request it.
Truee we're still here after having all kinds of diseases *sigh* I hate that we tend to focus on these things instead of living our lives and appreciating every moment. But have your fears subsided at this moment? Are you feeling better? Did the therapists help??
Hi Zainab, we also coincide in symptoms 
. How old are you? Is/Was there any stressful events in your life recenntly? Have you gone to a doctor? Yes it's more likely to be a product of anxiety, If you heart has been checked and you don't have any condition, then don't worry 
If you haven't been checked, do it whenever possible just to get reassurance, I know it's difficult sometimes to go to doctors because of the fear but it's better tahn being uncertain. I also get the shooting pains in my head, have had them since i was 14 yrs old. I get different ones, sometimes sharp/stabbing pains (ice pick headaches) sometimes like someone is hitting me (cluster i guess) and I had a ct scan for them when i was 17 and it came back clear. Brain tumrs are one of the most remote causes of head pain, and I highly doubt you have one, but go to the doctor if youre still feeling concerned. Hope you feeel better and I'm here if you want to talk
My panic attacks are gone but i still think everyday about my heart health even though im in clear and it makes my heart race palps pvc even showed on my stress test but they say im healthy my resting heart rate is 84bpm which. High but they arent worried about it with the slightest exercise its above 100bpm they say its anxiety stress adrenaline soo i try everyday to except that is the case but like u said anxiety alters your mind and makes you believe otherwise but day by day i keep fighting its definetly got better because nothing terrible has happened if you had a terrible illness you would know simple blood test can tell alot about your health we have to put faith in our doctors who are trained in the field easier said than done but lets keep on lifes to short to give up i still have symptoms but with time its gotten less intense
But fear still controls me but i keep telling myself its ok everyday and getting reasurannce from whoever i can crazy what the mind can do to you make you feel ill but it is all in are head even if the feelings are real so hard... i wish you the best and hope you can beat this lifes fragile already dont give in i feel you doc tells me test ok i sleep good have a good week then back to worrying viscious cycle
thankyou so much!
Hi my lovely
im an "oldie" lol 55 and for as long as I can remember I have suffered anxiety and depression its a very lonely place to be at times and when my anxiety is heightened boy do I know it I have had every condition going from my stress from my heart to a stroke to tias and yes this last period im convinced im going to die even to the fact of putting my funeral in place!!!! The palps feel like my heart is going to come out of my body at times and it was only last week I was back at the doctors with feelings of "bubbles popping in the centre of the chest. Im going abroad this week with my family and my biggest fear is when I come home I have visions of us not getting home my anxiety hits the roof big time my poor daughter gets the same. Im on beta blockers and have increased them and also my anti depressants. Its a horrible place to be when you are going through this and boy i am the worlds worst over thinker!!!! Please dont suffer like me for years I do have high blood pressure and Im sure this is one of the symptons from anxiety. what does help me to focus though is meditation and meditation music its hard espescially when you are pre disposed to depression and anxiety but you can get through this you are still young please try and live and love your life x
In a nutshell benzodiazepines make people feel like this. Drs are now restricted in prescribing them. See benzo buddies.
Hi. I’m sorry you’re going through this. I had similar symptoms a few years ago and now have different ones. I’m 21 and also have been suffering from anxiety for many years. 2 years ago out of nowhere I thought my head was going to collapse. I went and got a CT scan of the brain and ended up having another mri for reassurance. Then when they said it was all clear, I didn’t believe them. I thought for sure they were missing a tumor or something. Just know that the head symptoms do get better. I had relief for two years and only suffer now because I was stupid enough to come off of my meds a few months ago. Hang in there and maybe reach out to a psychiatrist to see if there are any suggestions on how to get some tension and head relief.
Thank you so much for your wishes, makes me feel a bit better! I wish you feel better and beat this too!! You heart is healthy, you are allright and in the end you'll be, and you're gonna overcome those fears, cause you're stronger than them xx.
Hi Sue!! I'm sorry you've spent all of these years with this awful condition Haha 55 is not old at all at leats that's what I think my mom is 61 and I find her still young with a long life ahead 
, I whish I could get to that age! Gosh I did the same for some time, thinking about where I wanted to be buried, what clothes etc. It's just awful. I got used to the pvcs but when they changed pattern and started getting them more frequent I feared the worst but the echo I had three years ago was normal. Now I feel like I'm going to faint when I get them and have a little panic attack afterward. If your hearts been checked you haven't got much to worry and you know blood pressure is very treatable nowadays but I know my words are not enough to calm your fears . I hope you get through this too, it's never too late! And I hope you have many more years to enjoy with your family. Thank you so much for your reply. Take care you all and safe travels dear, everything is gonna be okay<3
Hi Matt, I'm glad that you'r scan came back clear!! Can you describe me your headaches a bit more? I have had many different kinds of headaches since I was 14 with the chronic pressure head feeling, I got used to them but bam! a new kind appears and my brain tumor/aneursysm fears scalate again. I have ice pick headaches, then these sudden pains like I've being hit with a hammer, don't knwo if they are ice picks cause I guess the ice picks are sharp pains. I also get them but they do feel different. My ct scan was 4 years ago, eas normal and I felt reassured but that reassurance only lasted one week cause after that I started thinking the ct scan radiation gave me somr sort of cancer or brain tumor, I just cannot give a rest to this mind of mine. The new kinds of headache are in the same spot most of the time and it worries it is a tumor over there, it feels like ice pick headaches in the same spoy always and also there's the one that terrifies me the most it's a sudden whole head pain like it is gonna explode and feel a pressure and I feel I'm gonna faint, it's terrible. I start hyperventilating when I get them and start crying, during this last 12 months those headaches happened like 5 times, but since last week I'm getting several episodes everyday and it scares me more I can't stop thinking about it and if it'll happen again, don't know how to talk about this with my family and convince them I need psychological help, I depend upon them for this..
I can relate, it's not fun at all. I've suffered anxiety since I was 12 (32 now) and throughout the years it's varied in it's degrees of severity and really impacted on my overall self esteem and confidence. I didn't have a bf until my mid 20s either, largely due to my anxiety and esteem issues.
Over the years my Dr has diagnosed me with GAD/HAD and now MADD (I like to joke I'm officially crazy haha but it's a relatively new one this, mixed anxiety and depressive disorder. In short I have some characteristics but I no longer display the significant criteria to fit a certain category of anxiety) so it's been interesting finding the best treatment.
I've had health specific phases where I've been convinced I'm dying of heart issues, skin cancer, breast cancer, brain tumor, lymphoma, mouth cancer, cervical cancer etc. The accompanying symptoms ranging from lumps/bumps/spots on skin, a hemangioma on my tongue (nothing sinister all checked out fine on two occasions I had it checked out years apart), a legion on my vulva I had removed (benign mole), headache's, pins and needles in my limbs or right side of my face, pains in my chest/breast/arms/toes/neck/fingers/head/eye etc., palpitations, dizzying spells, nausea, reoccurring tonsillitis, hot flashes, weak and heavy limbs... Trust me, I've been there! Seen a few therapists and councillors in my years.
What's helped? I hit 30 and realised I'd spent over half my life worrying about things that haven't happened. I didn't want to spend the next 30 or however long I have doing the same. So step one... acceptance. I accepted anxiety is part of my life, it is "my" normal. And that that's ok, it's who I am. After all manor of bloods, ecgs, tests etc with *touch wood* nothing sinister yet, I started learning to accept my dr's diagnosis even when still feeling the symptoms. I ride them through, try distraction techniques and practice mindfulness where possible. I picked CBT up again and continue to try and practice it even when I feel better. Starting it and stopping when I felt ok in the past has meant it comes back down the line so I'm working on it as much as I can now. I read self help books, not all the time but refer back when I need to. I accept I have slip ups, for example I googled the other day because of a lump/rash on my boob (managed not to do that for about 10 months before this) so of course I panicked. Went to the Dr, I have mild case of shingles! See, worry again for something treatable. But it's ok, I did it, it happened. Now to move on and try again.
What saddens me about your post and a lot of this forum is that people think they're not strong or normal because of the anxiety. Let me tell you, statistically anxiety is the most reported illness in clinics and gps. Mental illness accounts 1 in 4 people. That's alot of people and in my eyes very normal.
As for strong, you and everyone here or everyone suffering mental illness are incredibly strong for coping with this over the years. Remember that! Let's break the stigma xx