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Slightly Inflamed Gland

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Posted 3/6/2014 7:22 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Everyone,

In November I started having pains and muscle spasms in my neck. Eventually I realized that something I was doing at the gym was causing this to happen. I stopped going to the gym, and my pain went away.I decided to start back up at the gym again and now the neck pain is back.

Ever since November my left gland under my jaw has felt slightly bigger than the one on the right. I never really took notice of the glands before then. I've had 3 different doctors feel them and all 3 of them said they aren't concerned. I have major health anxiety and I can't seem to stop touching them! It hurts around the gland, but I can't tell if it's the gland itself if it's from the muscle. Has anyone ever experienced anything similar to this and if so should I continue to worry? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Posted 3/6/2014 7:40 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Tinbo and welcome,

I know how awful health anxiety can be...so I am sorry to hear that you are currently dealing with these issues.

I think that you can trust your doctors, and that this issue is surely benign. Swollen glands can be from viruses to allergies, even issues in the mouth such as canker sores.

As far as the neck problem, it sounds like a seperate issue and should be addressed from an orthopedic angle.

Here is a link to our Resources. It is filled with all sorts of great self-help ideas for anxiety. It even includes two book recommendations specifically on health anxiety. Have a look and see if anything looks helpful to you.

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=9&m=104206



Post with us anytime. We understand and are here to care and support.:)

Scaredy Cat

Posted 3/6/2014 7:49 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Scaredy Cat,

Thank you so much for your response! I've been dealing with this anxiety for several months now and it has made quite a negative impact on my life. To help get my life back on track and to try and beat this thing, I've made an appointment with a psychiatrist.

Anyways, I know that typically an inflamed gland is due to some type of infection. What worries me is that I don't have any symptoms of anything and my gland has been this way since November.

I tend to think the worst, so right now I think I could possibly have some type of cancer!
Posted 3/6/2014 8:47 PM (GMT 0)
Tinbo,

Welcome to HealingWell and I am glad you found us.  You will find the members are kind and caring; wise and wonderful.  We have several fitness experts here ( SC and Merrida) that will have info re a possible neck injury if you want to share with us what you were doing for exercise  when you noticed the sore neck.

The glands you are referring to are your  sub-mental & submandibular lymph nodes.  Consistency of a lymph node is  important. Softer nodes are the result of infections or inflammatory conditions. It is also important to remember that sometimes, following infection, lymph nodes occasionally remain permanently enlarged, though they should be non-tender, small (less the 1 cm), and have a rubbery consistency

An increase in nodal size on serial examinations would be significant. Taking into consideration that there has been no changes over an extended amount of time and three different Drs. have examined you and were "not concerned" indicates the increase in the size one lymph node is  most likely  benign in nature. I hope you find this information helpful.

Do check out our resources at the top of the page. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for many people with health anxiety. It involves working with a trained CBT therapist to identify the thoughts and emotions you experience and the things you do to cope.

If you cannot find a therapist we have a free online CBT program listed; one that I personally used.

Free on-line CBT programs:

http://www.moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome

Stick with us as you will find  sharing a problem is like halving a problem.

Kindly,

Kitt

 

Posted 3/6/2014 8:52 PM (GMT 0)
Tinbo,

At some point, we have to trust our doctors and what they tell us,--especially when we see multiple docs and hear the same thing.

I'm not a doctor, so this is not meant to be any sort of medical guidance or information, but I'll relay some personal info to you. I'm getting the impression that it wasn't "working out" that was a trigger, but I really willing to bet it has more to do with one, or a few, select exercises, and more importantly, your form doing them. (I was a personal trainer for a long time, and I confess, I've seen many people hurt themselves, from mild to severe, doing exercises improperly or even dangerously).

Glands can swell for many reasons, so there's no reason to think the worse. Remember: If you hear hoof beats, it's probably a horse, not a zebra! So stay away from thinking it's a rogue zebra out to get you.

Anxiety does have quite an impact on our lives, and in that regard, you are not alone. The more you post with us here, and the more you share and hear from others, my guess is that it'll help put your mind to rest!

Welcome aboard the S.S. HealingWell!




M.
Posted 3/6/2014 9:24 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you Kit and M for your response!

I typically run at least a 5K every other day and do numerous abdominal exercises. I've done sit ups, crunches, reverse crunch, leg raises, planks, side planks, etc. It seems that I'm using my neck more than I'm using my abdominal muscles as I'm not seeing great results.

One of the doctors I have seen told me that he wouldn't really consider my gland swollen, and the other two noticed that one was slightly bigger but they weren't concerned because the consistency of them both were the same. One of them even told me to try and limit touching them to once or twice a month. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to do that. I touch them multiple times through out the day and I really feel like I'm making it worse. Could that be the case?
Posted 3/7/2014 8:22 AM (GMT 0)
Yes.

The more you fiddle around pressing on your glands, you're going to irritate or inflame them.

It sounds like you've gotten the all clear, so I'd take your doctors advice and keep those fingers away from those glands!

Sit ups (big culprit and not particularly helpful unless you're meeting a quota for the military), crunches can be fine if you lift slowly, short movements, don't rest your head back on the mat between reps, put a tennis ball under your chin to maintain neck alignment...(if you can't it means yep, you're straining your neck). Reverse crunches, again, put a lot of strain on the neck if not done correctly. Leg raises (you need exceptional abdominal and low back control to do them safely or they may over time cause problems).

Planks, good but challenging, and keep your head DOWN when you do front planks, and SPOT when you do side planks, keeping your head neutral.

To be totally honest with you, the exercises you listed off are some of the biggest triggers for neck pain.

Not sure that makes you feel better or not, but you can bet I have extensively seen these lead to all sorts of necks feeling crabby and take a while to heal up.

There's options.




M.
Posted 3/7/2014 1:30 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you so much! This makes me feel a whole lot better!

It sounds like I need to stick with just doing planks. Are there any other abdominal exercises that I could do?
Posted 3/7/2014 6:07 PM (GMT 0)
Tin,

Hey there I found this video you may like.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxOEk5Pg4fM

Merrida is our exercise guru so I would sure listen to her. I was the towel girl at the  YMCA years ago as well as instructed members on how to use the machines.

They listed me as a fitness instructor - lol.

Good luck.

 

Posted 3/7/2014 10:11 PM (GMT 0)
Tin,

Properly done, keeping your spine and head neutral (not letting your low back or hips dip and not looking up at the ceiling) while doing planks is a good exercise, and for most people, is quite difficult. So you just want to make sure you're keeping your whole body in a neutral position. Front planks, keep your eyes on the floor. Side planks, stare straight ahead and don't look around. (Yep, really).

The biggest culprit for contributing to a "hinky neck" (as I like to call it) involves using your head, (or any part of your body) for momentum. There should be absolutely no momentum in any movement.

Slow and controlled movements.

I don't know how strong your abs are or what your form is like, but the guidelines are always the same. Neutral head and spine, do not look up or down, don't put your hands behind your head (instead, hold your ears! You'll see why!), don't pull on your head,...

A basic measurement I'd use is have clients hold a tennis ball under their chin while we did ab exercises. If you extend your neck, the ball falls out. If you try jamming your chin into your chest, the ball stops you.

But remember, it's just a guideline. Don't use your arms or head to force a movement.

I figure since I cannot really suggest which exercises you do without watching you and seeing your form, at least I can give you some guidance on what not to do so you can give your neck a rest!

Sure hope it helps! :)




M.
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