Anxiety or something else?

[marigold1]

Hi, I'm 27 years old with generally untreated anxiety. I've always had pretty severe anxiety about little things but something big recently shook my world up. I found a breast lump on 07/04/11. After a painfully stressful waiting period, I was diagnosed with a benign lump on 09/07/11. So I was dealing with INTENSE anxiety for two months. For example, heavy sobbing, dry heaving, life prohibiting nervousness, etc. I was prescribed Lorazepam for the "waiting period" which absolutely did not work. Since I found my lump, I have been experiencing upper back/shoulder pain and phlehm buildup. I've had a chronic irritation for at least two years which has caused me to cough. It's not really a cough but my attempt to force the tickle out of my throat. It ends up seeming like I hav a chronic cough but I don't know if that's right or not. Now it's mostly phlegm that I can't cough up. Very rarely something will emerge but mostly I have to swallow it back down.

Now that I've been told that my breast lump was not cancer, I feel like I should be celebrating but these other symptoms are scaring me. I worry about lung cancer or lung mets from a possibly misdiagnosed breast lump. Does this sound like it could be anxiety? Can a chronic irritation/cough that has been present for at least two years be lung cancer without worsening? I'm just worried because my googling keeps bringing up lung cancer.

Can upper back/shoulder pain and phlegm go along with the anxiety I'm describing. I cried more than I've ever cried in my life time which may/may not produce more mucus. Most of the tension from crying could be carried in the shoulder area. But it's not going away. It's not severe pain and it's not constant. It's intermittent but I experience it pretty much daily at some point. Does my body need time to relax or does this sound like an emergency lung issue?

You may not know the answers but.... do any of you have upper back/shoulder issues and phlegm with your anxiety?? Thank you!

[brady]

Hi that sounds pretty bad, but atleast its not cancer eh :) i think maybe the shoulder/back pain could be a symptom of anxiety, i get random pains here and there regularly, and chest pains and so on are symptoms, but the phlegm im not sure about, never heard of that being related to anxiety. good luck!

[Anxiety beater]

Hi there - anxiety can cause all sorts of weird and wonderful physical symptoms. If you're really worried about symptoms that you can't explain and haven't already done so, it might be worth getting checked out by your doctor for reassurance, but if the doctor gives you the all-clear and confirms, as seems most likely, that your symptoms are anxiety-related, then you need to accept this and address the underlying anxiety itself. If you are developing a problem of 'health anxiety', i.e. worrying excessively about your health, the first step on the road to recovery is to understand and accept that the problem is not physical but psychological. But you might need to get medically checked out in the first instance just to make sure you've no underlying health issues. I'm pleased your breast lump was benign - that's really great news. I wish you well and a good recovery - in every way.