Peak
08-19-2013, 07:20 AM
Not having a good time of things at the moment as my Health Anxiety is just going into overdrive and finding new outlets. In the past my anxiety has focused almost entirely on my heart but in the past few weeks it's now focusing on cancer in various forms. The reason for this is because I do have some of the symptoms but none of the significant ones i.e. the ones I have are ones also shared with numerous totally benign conditions that everyone gets from time to time. But being an anxiety sufferer I don't think I have these benign conditions do I? No, I keep fretting that there is something seriously wrong.
In a nutshell I'm worrying that I may have either:
An enlarged prostate or prostate cancer - based on the fact that I've recently been experiencing the frequent need to urinate and blood tests have come back negative for diabetes and my dad had prostate cancer. But no other symptoms of prostate cancer have been noticed and I'm 'only' 40 so unlikely to suffer from this just yet.
Or
Bowel Cancer - based on the fact that I'm going to the toilet more than usual (and other changes) with some stomach discomfort and the fact that things in that department haven't been 'normal' for a number of years but I'd always put that down to poor diet and being overweight. But no other symptoms of bowel cancer have been noticed.
I also started a new diet last week which I'm sure is having some effect in this regard but a lot of these 'symptoms' pre-date this which is why I can't totally discount them.
I'm trying to be rational and just say to myself that if anything I possibly just have some minor stomach bug or at the very worse I have IBS but I don't seem able to convince myself of this. It's not helped by the fact that when I saw the GP I asked about prostate cancer and she was neither dismissive of it or supportive of it either and when I was given a physical examination of my stomach she pressed so lightly I could honestly barely feel it and so being a large person I'm sure she would not have been able to feel anything even if it were there.
I don't want to keep going back to my GP as I'm sure they are sick and tired of seeing me. Also as I'm going through a stressful time at the moment with other things there is even the possibility that all of this is just a physical reaction to anxiety or at least in part it is. I just don't know what to do for the best. I don't want to be like this and worrying over every twinge and pain but at the same time I don't want to ignore something only to find later that it was something I shouldn't have ignored! Just don't know what to do for the best or how to stop worrying over something that quite possibly is absolutely nothing.
In a nutshell I'm worrying that I may have either:
An enlarged prostate or prostate cancer - based on the fact that I've recently been experiencing the frequent need to urinate and blood tests have come back negative for diabetes and my dad had prostate cancer. But no other symptoms of prostate cancer have been noticed and I'm 'only' 40 so unlikely to suffer from this just yet.
Or
Bowel Cancer - based on the fact that I'm going to the toilet more than usual (and other changes) with some stomach discomfort and the fact that things in that department haven't been 'normal' for a number of years but I'd always put that down to poor diet and being overweight. But no other symptoms of bowel cancer have been noticed.
I also started a new diet last week which I'm sure is having some effect in this regard but a lot of these 'symptoms' pre-date this which is why I can't totally discount them.
I'm trying to be rational and just say to myself that if anything I possibly just have some minor stomach bug or at the very worse I have IBS but I don't seem able to convince myself of this. It's not helped by the fact that when I saw the GP I asked about prostate cancer and she was neither dismissive of it or supportive of it either and when I was given a physical examination of my stomach she pressed so lightly I could honestly barely feel it and so being a large person I'm sure she would not have been able to feel anything even if it were there.
I don't want to keep going back to my GP as I'm sure they are sick and tired of seeing me. Also as I'm going through a stressful time at the moment with other things there is even the possibility that all of this is just a physical reaction to anxiety or at least in part it is. I just don't know what to do for the best. I don't want to be like this and worrying over every twinge and pain but at the same time I don't want to ignore something only to find later that it was something I shouldn't have ignored! Just don't know what to do for the best or how to stop worrying over something that quite possibly is absolutely nothing.