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Posted 12/29/2007 3:12 PM (GMT 0)
Hello

I am new to anxiety, I have not been told any of my symptoms is the cause of stress or anxiety but i was doing some research on symptoms of anxiety & I seem to fit.

I have been on the gerd forum which I had an endoscope & it came back I have inflamation of the esophagus but been on many ppi's which have not helped. I get burning sensation at the top of my back near my neck bone & have a very sore throat best part of the time sometime to the extent i feel i am losing my voice & cant swallow. been to the doctors & emergency lots of times & the doctor seems to think I have no showings of throat cancer even tho they have only felt my neck not ran any test. My greatest fear is Cancer.

I moved to America 2 & half years ago, my daughter is still in London with her grand mother who is 19 she did not want to come cause she liked her friends & social life there. The reason i came here is I met an American & got married & now we have 2 children one 17 months & the other 6 months. I am 40 & had a hard time with the 2nd pregnancy which brought on all the symptoms above. At that time they could not run test as i was 5 months pregnant, but as soon as I had the baby I was still the same so they gave me lung xray came back normal, I had liver & gallbladder checked that was normal, had spine checked for trapped nerve that was normal, then I had an endescope which was inflamation of the esophagus which as explained above have not got no relief yet & the doctors seem to be a bit puzzled.

I am wondering if this is all caused by stress or anxiety as i have been through a lot in 3 years. I have very bad dreams all the time & always feeling my neck for lumps & I always think its swollen cause I am in constent pain in my neck. The weirdest thing is my dreams always relate to trying to get home to my daughter & I get lost in London & never reach my destination. All the family are going to England to visit in Feb so i was waiting to see if these symptoms disapear while i am there. Just thought it could be i am missing all my family & daughter.

Any thoughts?

Thankyou so much

Red

Posted 12/29/2007 3:57 PM (GMT 0)
HI Red and Welcome to a/p forum and HW.............

IMHO I would think that many of the SX you are explaining here that you are having can and probably would be attributed to anxiety and panic

Especially when your last words are about the nightmares and never reaching your daughter............

Many with a/p have Health Anxiety.......it is not anything to be ashamed about and there is NO judgement here..we all know what you are going thru or at least we know how you feel .........and can be here for you anytime as a support system or sounding board

DONT be a stranger til you go back in February
You did great coming and opening up about this hun and I think there is more you can share if need to or if you want to .........we will always be here for you and others
Resources are to the side in Yellow and go thru some of the old threads and see what may help you

STAY with us plz ......I know you will learn to see the family atmosphere here is the best ...as is the support and caring

LYN

** Wen has brought up a thread " relaxation techniques that may help as well maybe you should talk to the doc about some short term meds ......and combine with self help techniques

Just a thought

Posted 12/30/2007 5:12 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Red,   Welcome to the A/P Boad and to HW.   As Lyn said, it sounds like anxiety and panic that you are dealing with and the resources to the right in the yellow area are a really good way to start helping yourself with the a/p.  The a/p can be so difficult to deal with and we need to do what we can to help ourselves - for yourself, your husband, your 2 babies and your older daughter.   I too have GERD and it has created ulcers in my esophagus which as you know is a pre-cancerous condition.  However, the chances of developing esophageal cancer are extremely low.  If you look on the GERD forum there is a thread that I started with this very worry - I already knew that developing this type of cancer is very, very low but I too worry about it and was looking for some reassurance.  Take a look at that thread as there are some statistics that I was given and they are about the probability of developing this cancer.  I try not to worry too much about it because I'm doing everything my doc is telling me to do because I don't want this to happen.  But you do have to get on a GERD med that will work for you by keeping the acid reflux under control and from coming back up.  What meds have you tried?  How many times a day were you taking these meds?  Have you been able to get advice from those on the GERD forum?  Have you tried a different doc?  Maybe another one will have different answers for you.  Just a thought for you to consider.    Also, as Lyn said there are relaxation techniques that you can try to help get the anxiety under control.   Again, a warm welcome to you and keep posting to let us know how you are doing.   Wen
Posted 12/30/2007 7:43 PM (GMT 0)
Hello Red,

Just dropping in to Welcome you to Healing Well and the A & P Forum.

I am so glad you have found this forum and I hope we can meet your needs.

You have great advice posted already..................keep on posting as we are here for you.

Kitt

Posted 12/31/2007 4:28 PM (GMT 0)
Thankyou for your advise. I am already a member to the gerd family & have been posting there. I have had an endoscope done & have tried all medication they have prescribed me with no releif. My main fear is that they are not looking in the area of concern which i have explained to the doctor. Its my throat & neck that really are bothersome but as the doctor keeps telling me if there was something there they would feel it. This is why I thought it could be anxiety cause I did read up that you can have neck pains with it. I will stay on the meds I have till i have a ph test done & go from there. My husband seems to think its more in my mind cause the slightest little problem I turn it into a big problem & think I have a serious illness. I think may be he could be right cause I had to young babies at my age & feel like I am not going to see them grow up. I know I am not really old so may be I should get all theses thoughts out of my head.

I know I have been through a lot moving so far from all my family & having 2 more children. My mum seems to think I have to much time on my hands so I think the worst all the time.

I do love it here in America but as they say there is no place like home. If I could make the move back I would but in the current situation its near enough impossible but may be I need to try harder at working on it.

Thanks so much for your help

Red
Posted 12/31/2007 5:52 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Red,   I'm glad you have posted again, as we are here to help you.  I'm sure you have gotten some good advice on the GERD board as well.   As all of us here know that anxiety is a REAL condition.  As Lyn said earilier, many of us deal with health anxieties and I think you may be dealing with that.  You have a real condition with the GERD/acid reflux.  But the chances of developing cancer are very slim, I know said it before but I know what the statistics are but I still worry from time to time about developing cancer.  Since I do have ulcers in my esophagus I have to be scoped about once a year to make sure nothing has changed.  My doctors have made it very clear to me that as long as I stay on the medication for the rest of my llife and my chances of developing cancer are very small.   It's difficult to get these thoughts out of your head, but maybe you could try some of the relaxtion techniques that are posted.  You could also try CBT - this is a technique that teaches you to change the way you think and teaches you to think better thoughts.   I can only imagine what it's like to have two small babies when you're 40.  I'm only a couple of years older than you but my two kids youngest kids are teenagers (and there are many times I'm ready to pull my hair out).  I can't even begin to imagin starting over with kids at my age.  But I believe that you are strong, you have to be strong for your children, and you will see your children grow up.  I know that you can overcome these fears, but you will have to work at it and it will take time.  This will not be an overnight change.  I honestly dont think you are having these thoughts because you have too much time on your hands.  With two young babies, I don't think you have much extra time for anything else.  I just think you are worried about your health.  I hope you can get to see a therapist who can hel you with these issues.    Remember, you have to do what you think is right for you and your family.    Please keep posting and we will do our best to help you.   Wen
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