Anxiety - scared I have brain tumour or MS

[Christrev]

I have recentlt started suffering what I think may be anxiety attacks and I'm posting these symptoms in the hope that other people have experienced the same and have some coping mechanisms.

It begins with light headedness and feeling seperate from anything going on me and this doesn't have any particular triggers and I am not stressed in the moment it happens.

Then my vision begins to blur and I start to feel like I'm fading out of the room.

I start to get really irritated by certain noises and cannot stand things like a droning sound or a high pitched noise.

Then I start to panic and begin to cry uncontrollably at the feat that I have multiple sclerosis that is causing this or a brain tumour.

I am a 24 year old male from the UK, I just want this to stop, I've been experiencing these symptoms for a week now.

Any help would be massively appreciated, I just don't want to feel like this anymore.

[kborge]

Been there and somewhat overcoming it. More than likely you are stuck in a flight or fight response and under chronic stress/anxiety. I literally convinced myself I had Parkisons or MS and as time went on and tests confirmed - it was bullshit. I was under a tremendous amount of stress and handled it horribly. Try CBT and breathing exercises. You won't be better over night...hell, it might and probably will take you months to get back to "normal"...but don't let it spiral out of control anymore than it already is. Get some tests done and if literally everything comes back as "good"...accept it and heal. Hardest thing I have ever had to do in my life and I suffered from PTSD long before any of these happened to me.

[Christrev in reply to kborge]

Thank you so much for your reply.

It really helps to know that I'm not the only one experiencing the symptoms.

I basically went from 1 quick google search of my symptoms in webmd to convincing myself I have MS in the space of a day.

[kborge in reply to Christrev]

Ya, stay off the internet. If you google tension headache or legs feel wobbly, you will see MS or Parkisons. Granted, it can be a possibility, but highly improbable given the rareity of these diseases. Get checked out if you are worried...I got every test and scan done and came back clean, but yet I still think there is something more sinister wrong with me. You aren’t alone, it starts with your beliefs.

[Icanbeathis2016]

Hi. Definitely can relate to the symptoms. Can certainly relate to crying. And the intrusive thoughts and convincing myself I have every bad illness. You are not alone. Infact, I've decided to start a broadcast on YouTube to discuss my anxiety stories and my fears and worries. I wanted to show my face as I speak about my journey. I hope it helps people when they can see others as we share our struggles. This episode actually talks about how my mind races thinking all kinds of things and worried its something bad happening. Check it out if you can. You are not alone.

youtu.be/p6PbhX3FrwQ(Not working as expected?)

[Christrev in reply to Icanbeathis2016]

Thank you for the words of support and I draw so much strength from knowing that I am not the only one with this problem.

I think the worst part is that it doesn't care where you are or who you're around. Yesterday started off bad with me basically crying in front of my girlfriends parents but luckily they're both nurses and calmed me down. The second half of the day was much better after taking a walk and I found that deep breathing and taking a moment for myself helps me get through the lightheaded spells without panic.

I'd love to one day get to the point you're at where I can help other people.

Thank you.

[Icanbeathis2016 in reply to Christrev]

You already have begun to get to the point that I have, just by posting on the forum to reach out to others. It's a step. The same step I took. But yes anxiety doesn't care if you are in public, private, or have something important going on. It peaks its ugly head whenever. Especially when you have a few good days and you think things are going so good and then it decides to come right back to knock you down. Wish us the best.

[RheaBird]

Hi Christrev...

I had some of the symptoms you mention and it turned out to be mostly migraine. The sound sensitivity especially. I learned there are many causes of migraine and I think of it as a passing brain storm now...sometimes it passes more quickly, sometimes slowly. MS if fast developing will make itself clear as a diagnosis fairly soon. If slow developing the second attack may come much later... My first year of not knowing if I had MS was so stressful. But the possibility faded into my background, fast developing MS was ruled out, and 7 years later I realized even slow developing MS had basically been ruled out. Meanwhile I worked on managing my migraines. Hang in there Christev whatever the case.

[Christrev in reply to RheaBird]

Hey Rheabird, thank you for your response, every time I hear from someone who has experienced the same feelings and jumped to the same conclusions it reassures me that what I am experiencing is simply a case of my mind running wild.

Last night I experienced pins and needles in my foot and my mind went crazy, since then I have been focusing on the sensations in my foot and feeling things that are probably always occurring in the background but I am focusing on it so closely because it's a symptom of MS. Did you experience anything similar to this?

Interestingly my feelings of dizziness, lightheadedness, blurred vision and headaches wore off whilst focusing on these tinglings which makes me think this is anxiety as MS wouldn't turn symptoms off while other symptoms occur but I think the anxious brain would probably focus in on one symptom at a time.

[Christrev]

So last night whilst I was laid watching tv with my girlfriend I began having pins and needles in my right foot. This caused me to panic as I have read that it is a sign of MS.

All night after that point and this morning I have been hyper aware of any weird feelings in my right foot and focusing on any tingling sensations so closely.

I'm sure in the back of my mind that I am feeling these tinglings because I am constantly looking for the tinglings and I think this is something I could probably feel in any part of my body if I focused closely enough on it.

Has anyone else experienced anything like that?

[kborge in reply to Christrev]

Yes, typically if I'm concentrated on something, I don't even notice those feelings. You are searching for it, so with anxiety...you will always end up finding something.

[Gg12352]

Hi (Chris?)

I experienced the same sort of symptoms and was convinced I had a brain tumour.. never even thought about MS but I won’t google that! Things got so bad that I ended up staying in bed for a week just crying, thinking my life was over. I had intense headaches.. blurriness in my eyes, felt like I had all the symptoms. So I frantically paid for Brain MRI scan- 340 pound down the line and I don’t have anything going on up there, well apart from mental health- it’s impOrtant to remember that anxiety can cause endless symptoms and the more you fixate on them the more you get. I’m slowly starting to understand this now with a therapist- and get my fight or flight back under control- it sounds as if you are in a constant state of panic. It’s easy to say don’t worry- but the less you are thinking about the symptoms the more you’ll be able to relax- by no means don’t ignore the anxiety you get- just know it’ll pass.

I hope you feel better soon.

[kborge in reply to Gg12352]

Great advice!