Hello there...
I'm new to this forum as a member, however I have frequently used it for reassurance in the past. I was going to make a post about my constant thoughts of a brain tumour and the feeling impending doom that it was causing, but I now have something more positive to say. Finally I gathered up enough courage to visit the medical centre today and ask them directly about the problem.
For four years I've been experiencing extreme and frightening symptoms - Complete numbness/paralysis in my left hand, ringing in my ears, pressure and a rather odd pain in the right side of my head (Which was constant and didn't seem to be triggered by anything in particular), Pressure behind my right eye, Vision changes, visual snow, flashing lights, blurred vision, muscle tremors in my hands and eyes, mood changes, nausea, weakness in my legs and various other things that all seemed to be indicators of a tumour. I was certain that something incredibly sinister was going on (Generally I have no fear of death and I've been 'dead' in the medical sense previously, but the thought of becoming unable to see/speak/walk because of tumour was incredibly depressing) I have seen the symptoms listed on anxiety forums hundreds of times, but nothing would alter my thoughts about the issue. Today, I was told that my previous blood test results were perfectly normal (which probably wouldn't be the case if I had such a serious illness for a long period of time) and that my reflexes were excellent... I also had my eyes thoroughly examined by three doctors and my eye pressure checked - I know from reading experience that if I did have the aforementioned tumour (which I thought was somewhere behind my eye/in the front of my head) they would certainly have noticed it by now. I was advised against a CT scan due to the radiation involved and apparently it was quite unnecessary. I was told that my symptoms were caused by severe anxiety, my bipolar disorder (Diagnosed one year ago), the bad habit of smoking and migraines. I was prescribed Pregabalin (300 mg daily) two weeks ago and Propranolol (40mg) today. After taking the first Propranolol tablet I can't be certain if it's making any difference, as these things take time to work... but I can say that I've had no eye pressure or head pains for at least 5 hours and the visual snow is quite subdued. I wanted to share the experience as a reassurance to other sufferers - If you tend to panic or experience stress and then develop these symptoms, don't let them take over your entire life. I've wasted four years of my life worrying about a non-existent brain tumour. Even if you have quite severe symptoms, it's highly unlikely that you have a brain tumour. Do get an examination from a medical practitioner, but keep in mind that anxiety really can cause some horrendous symptoms that resemble a brain tumour or stroke... I'm fairly sure that most sufferers will be given the same result as I was.
Stay well and fill your time with something that you love to do.
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