Fear of getting medical tests

[Lannsutt]

Can anyone help on this.....i am petrified to get blood tests, pap smears, mammograms, echo cardiograms etc..... i am paralyzed with fear that i will find out something is terribly wrong! I just KNOW something will be wrong-instead, i stick my head in the sand. I wake in the middle of the night in a panic worried about my health- at my age (55) i should not be this afraid of health issues- how do i make myself have a checkup and blood tests etc... and if something IS wrong how do i deal ??? Can anyone help?

[RyRywifey]

There is always a strong possibility you are 100% healthy. It's better to have the tests done for your own peace of mind. Having health anxiety, nothing feels more rewarding then good test results. You'll be able to sleep thru the night and wake up happy

[Lannsutt in reply to RyRywifey]

Thank u so much for taking the time to reply- it really helps coming from people who understand

[FXP_OK]

You don't mention suffering from any symptoms of anything. Do you even need any of these tests?

[Lorcabella in reply to FXP_OK]

When a woman is over 40, she needs more tests. Sad, but true!

[Lannsutt in reply to FXP_OK]

Well yes i do need tests- about 3-4 yrs ago i went to my doc cuz of swelling/pain in my finger joints ( i still have that) - she did labwork and my ANA was positive so she thought i might have lupus- went to rheumatologist who said she didnt think i had lupus but wanted to do more labwork to be sure ( (she saw the previous lab results)- i never got the repeat labs and never went back -just left in a panic- i finally made another appt with her for nxt month- im scared to get the labs done and find out what she has to say- is there anyone out there who has lupus that can make me feel less scared if i DO have it?

[Lorcabella]

Hi Lannsutt! I'm exactly the same way! I schedule appointments, then get scared and cancel. I'm 60, so I think I'm old and probably have a horrible disease and I'd just rather not know. So I stay awake all night feeling for lumps and counting heartbeats! So silly, I know. When I do make myself go, I'm absolutely giddy afterwards. I did it! Yay me! Maybe we can both remember how good it feels it get it over with!

Also, if you can get someone to go with you, it passes the time and helps with anxiety. Good luck to you. We can do it! We'll find out we're fine and breathe a sigh of relief.

[Lannsutt in reply to Lorcabella]

Thank u for taking time to reply- it really helps so much!🦋

[Hidden]

Hello. No one is more of a "scaredy cat" of needles than I am. I MEAN NO ONE. But I am over 50, so as you pointed out, we need physical maintenance....mammograms, dexigrams, blood work, etc. annually. And even with medicare in the US, we have co-pays that are expensive sometimes.

But you and I need to suck it up and have the "maintenance" done, hoping all is ok.

Unfortunately this year one of the "maintenance test results was not good. I received the news that I had a vertebral fracture that required surgery to fix. That fracture was the siren to sound that I had osteoporosis that was progressing rapidly.

The specialist then told me I needed the only medication he knew that would cause the growth of new bone mass to replace where I was losing it.

To make matters short, I hated the news but the testing caught a very serious problem that could be treated. For the next two years I will inject that medication daily.....and even though it costs about $100 a day, the drug manufacturer is providing it free because my Medicare part D refused to cover it.

So be worried if you can't help that. But please get your physical "maintenance". I almost did not have the dexigram. Thought it wasn't necessary. Am so glad I had it done.

[Agora1]

PTSDforyears, I wish you well with the medication. How fortunate you are to have discovered the problem through maintenance testing. It's unbelievable how much the shots cost. I'm happy for you that the drug company will pick up the costly tab. Good Luck!