- Date posted
- 6w
Worried
Im worried i have a cancer lump in my chest, i cant tell if it's a lump or just fatty tissue im so worried
Im worried i have a cancer lump in my chest, i cant tell if it's a lump or just fatty tissue im so worried
You would know if it was cancer! It feels way different than breast tissue and you'd also have other symptoms if you had cancer. It's probably a milk duct or lymph node. I have lumps that I thought were cancer before too and it helped me to learn what a real tumor feels like. I asked my OBGYN and she was super helpful.
It also started to get itchy and have a pimple on it out of nowhere ans it scares me
@Anonymous If it’s really scaring you I would schedule an appointment with a primary care doctor and they can check it out! I have had this exact same obsession and it sucks a lot. I’m really sorry you’re going through this! Talking to a doctor about it helped me rationalize my way through this obsession a lot.
It makes sense that you're feeling anxious about what you're noticing in your chest. Health worries can be overwhelming, especially when OCD is involved. Remember, your mind may be trying to convince you of the worst, but that doesn't mean it's true. If you’re struggling and need more assistance, remember that help is available. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at NOCD to find out how we can support you. Also here are some helpful resources: https://www.treatmyocd.com/blog/constantly-worried-cancer-ocd/ https://www.treatmyocd.com/my-ocd-journey/putting-ocd-in-the-backseat https://www.treatmyocd.com/what-is-ocd/common-fears/fear-of-heart-attack-health-ocd
I’m not a medical professional or therapist, but I’d like to offer some tips: -Did the lump appear suddenly where you know it wasn’t before? -Has it grown or stayed over a period of time? -Can you gauge how long it’s been there or did you just notice it? -Are you sure it isn’t a lymph node that’s gotten inflamed? Depending on its location, this may be what it is. After you’ve checked for the answers, try to remain in a mindset of “maybe/maybe not” with the cancer thoughts if you haven’t found anything that’s definitely concerning. Even then, schedule a doctor’s appointment if needed and try to keep your thoughts ambiguous to deter anxiety and repetitive acts of reassurance. Overall, I recommend to examine the spot and keep an eye on it for a while without triggering intense stress.
I just had a really awful chest pain that felt like my chest was exploding and im really terrified. I feel like maybe it was a heart attack but idk. I've had many ekgs and a chest x ray and they don't find anything wrong with me. Idk what this means anymore im so sick of being scared that ill die. Can anyone relate at all? It comes out of nowhere
I went to internal medicine today, and i'm not perfectly healthy, My liver is a little bit fat, I have to lose weight so thats okay, also I have gallsand, which is not gallstone yet but it can become that if its not treated. Now im like these arent big problems but when i heard these I started to overthink and think about the worse that I will have gallstones cause the doctor said I have it cause it runs in my family(my mother/grandmother and uncle had it) and I just think that it wont go away, and even if i doesn I will be worried all year if it came back. Im just so afraid. Also they said I should go get a blood check, but I said i will hesitate now cause last time i almost fainted and felt horrible the whole day, and now i hear from people i know that they went and they felt sick and vomited there. But the overthinking comes from me thinking if these little symptoms I experienced which I thought its because of anxiety, was because of health issues then the other symptoms I experience sometimes (headache and lightheadedness) are there cause of another health issue, and im worrying about my health, im afraid of death, i keep imagining myself if they tell me that i have terminal illness or something really bad and i dont know how to handle it. Now i feel nausea and i would say its because of stress but i keep thinking that its because of the health issues I have...I don't know how to handle this fear, if you ask others or therapists, they will say "yeah everyone is afraid of death and suffering" or "Try to think about something else" and i wont pay for advices like this...
I'm going to try and be coherent because I know that sometimes during these moments I tend to babble in fear. I have a mole on the left side of my chest that I've had since I was a kid. Been there for as long as I remember. And I never paid attention to it; it was just a part of my body. I even felt a little sad considering that I might not have it anymore whenever I get top surgery. Yesterday I went down a rabbit hole and landed on Melanoma. Which, of course, prompted me to look at my mole again. And again. And again. It's large, bigger than my other moles. Always has been, at least to my knowledge. I always thought it was cute whenever it crossed my mind. Now...now I'm just scared... I'm not asking for reassurance. None of us on here are medical experts (unless youre an actual doctor) (also insert OCD joke here). I sent a picture to my doctor, and she said that if it hasnt changed size that's a good sign. But she also suggested a follow-up with a dermatologist. And that's what scares me the most. All of this started yesterday, but I sent the message to my doctor this morning. And ever since then...I havent been okay. I can barely eat, and every time I try to I can barely swallow. I've isolated myself in the guest bedroom of my parents house. I cant move. I cant think straight. And...let's just say my thoughts havent been good. Like I said, I'm not asking for reassurance or medical advice. I just...I need help to not feel like I'm dying. I didnt mention that yesterday, in the midst of going down the rabbit hole, I realized how badly I didnt want to be afraid, and yet I also felt like I needed to be afraid. And I realized that that's what ERP is (at least for me in case it's different for everyone). I really did naivietely think that it was just going to be about avoiding compulsions. I didnt realize that accepting uncertainty would feel like a death sentence. And now this has happened. I just...I'm scared. And I dont want to be. I dont want to live in this reality where I'm sick and dying. I dont want to have to tell my family. I dont want to live in that world, but it feels like I'm already in it. My body is just preparing me for it. I dont know. I dont know why I'm even making this post. No one can help me, can they?
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