I can't stop thinking about it.

Hey everyone, im new to this forum!!! So let me start by saying that im 20 years old, female, and generally healthy. I was diagnosed with anemia in December after nearly passing out in the shower from dizziness. The doctor said my red blood cell count was at an all time low and they did tests to conform it was anemia and not anything too serious. I am now taking iron pills. My symptoms starting abut 4 or 5 months ago with a tingling in my elbow. Over the next few hours that tingling spread to my shoulder and then my left cheek. I did the smart thing (not) and looked up on the internet what my symptoms were a sign of. Among other things, MS came up. I freaked. I immediately resigned myself to my fate with MS.Of course i was panicking by that time when i noticed by legs were numb. i immediatly made an appointment with my primary care doctor and explained to him my symptoms. He told me that he was positive that i did not have MS and if he felt there ws a 5% chance, he would have sent me to a Nuerologist. I still had difficulty believing himto i went to my phyciatrist who i've been going to for 10 yrs, who conformed that he didnt think it was MS, but anxiety. he explained that i was hyperventilating nd it was causing my legs to go numb, and that there was a lot more to MS than just numb feelings. So for the next month, after being reassured i didnt have MS, i felt 100%. No symptoms whatsoever. However, they came back about a month later. This time i went to see a nuerologist who specialized in MS. he told me he couldn't diagnose me bc of all the symptoms i was having, but that he was sure about one thing: it wasn't MS. He told me that because my symptoms weren't consistent and came and went after a few days, and because i was having difficulty breathing (stress-related) he was sure it was just anxiety. I asked him what he thought about me getting an MRI, he told me that he was 95.5% positive that it would come back normal and that o would be wasting my time and money getting one. He kept assuring me that he's diagnosed countless people with MS over the 30 yrs he's been a nuerologist, and thaat i didnt have it. He did some standard tests (walking, stand on one foot, eyesight testss) and told me i was good to go. I am relieved, BUT MY SYMPTOMS ARE SOMETIMES STILL HERE!!! My goodness, ive been to my phyciastrist again as well as my primary care physician, and BOTH are telling me its nothing serious and that its anxiety. It's like i eat, sleep and breath MS. if there's an odd sensation in my ankle:it must be MS. If i feel a little dizzy: it must be MS. If a muscle twitches: IT MUST BE MS!! I'm going crazy over here (obviously) and my parents are getting sick of hearing me moan and groan about my symptoms. I just cant seem to get it through my mind that i'm fine. I honestly feel like im giving myself the symptoms. I've begun seeing a psychologist once a week, who has confirmed that i have severe anxiety. Has anyone else here gone through similar experiences? Does anyone feel like they can hardly get out of bed for fear of my symptoms staring up? Its (almost) all i can think about. I've been getting a little better talking back to my anxiety, but i still feel like it's winning most of the time. Thank you for reading this and please message back if you've gone through similar experiences!!!

THE one thing I think most of us do is try to explain the symptoms by finding some disease or injury. I am in that same mode right now. I am having horrible symptoms that are really messing up my life and honestly I can't imagine they are all anxiety. It feels crazy to think that our bodies can betray us like this. I know.

If it helps at all, I have in the past, had numbness as one of my symptoms and it did resolve in time.

Hello and welcome to HW!

I am an 18 year old male and have dealt with my fair share of anxiety and doctors. Though I wasn't worried about MS I still went to many doctors and I to didn't believe what the doctors were saying. Everytime I went they tested me and confidently said to me that I was fine. But the symptoms still bothered me so much to the point where I was so covinced that I had a health problem. But my problem was that I just couldn't accept the doctors. I needed more and more reassurance that I was okay. It was like I wouldn't feel better until I got a doctor to diagnose me with something just to prove to myself I was right. But it never happened because the doctors WERE right. They told you you are okay for a reason. They are medically trained professionals especially that neurologist that you went to see. And yes all of the symptoms you are feeling are from anxiety! How do I know you may ask. Because your doctors have given you a clean bill of health. You even said yourself that you had a point in you life where you felt fine and had no symptoms! I had that too! But then like you the symptoms came back with a vengeance. And I was scared and looked up on the Internet( not a smart idea at all) and convinced myself again and went back to doctors. I was sick of it and my parents were surely sick of it. You see the more you do this to yourself the stronger the symptoms will be and the more you will convince yourself of health issues and it'll be even harder to break free. You have to stop this vicious cycle you are on. And the first step is to BELIEVE YOUR MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS. They know what they are talking about. Second is to recognize what anxiety is and what it can do to your body. It can make you think you have cancer though you don't. Everybody on this anxiety forum is here for a reason. Maybe you should go take a look at some issues that other people have and you'll find that you are not alone. And they fight the same struggles as you. I guess what I am saying is my next step is to have a strong support group. Healing Well is a great place to be for support. I know many people here who have helped me and always listen to what they have to say.

It's a tough road I know but you will get through it. Just know that there is nothing to fear and we are here to help! If you want to email me specifically for any questions or just to chat about your anxiety feel free. I don't bite! Though I am 18 so if you think I'm too young lol then that's fine. Our Moderators are always here as well. One more thing if I haven't mentioned it already.... STAY AWAY FROM DR GOOGLE OR DR BING OR DR YAHOO or whatever search engine you may use.

God Bless

Jocipher

Hello!
I've been dealing with the exact thing. Though doctors say it's not so serious, I can't convince myself to believe 100%. Since I was diagnosed with having GERD, I felt different symptoms which made me google them and convince myself I have a serious disease more than just acid reflux. Every little symptoms or pain, I'm already paranoid about it. Until I've learned about anxiety. When I try calm myself, my symptoms seem to be controlled. It made me realize that I truly might not have a serious disease because all my pain hasn't been severe enough for me not to work or do some things. I feel strong physically, but weak inside because of fear. That's why I tried many things to reduce anxiety, like exercising, healthy diet and deep breathing. Until little by little, my anxiety became less frequent.
But there are also times of relapse.. Where I feel very heavy again all at once. All the anxiety comes back, the struggle and depression. I felt that I conquered it already, but whenever I hear a bad health problem about someone, the anxiety returns. I felt like their illness might also happen to me. But I don't want to think that way! I don't know how to control my feelings towards that situation. :( like today, I heard a bad news about one of our politicians who was recently diagnosed with a disease, and that moment I began to think about it all the time... Then the symptoms began to appear again. It's like an ongoing cycle, and I really want to change.

Post Edited (angelcat) : 7/7/2014 6:48:00 AM (GMT-6)

You are very welcome...post anytime!! :)

S.C.