How can we be sure it's anxiety and not something fatal.

The title of your post caught my eye, because I have those same thoughts myself....I have the same list of symptoms as you, and have had most of them every day for the last eighteen months....I've had an MRI (head), EKGs, several rounds of comprehensive blood work, an upper GI endoscopy, as well as countless trips to my primary care physician and various specialists (oh, and five trips to the emergency room during that time)....like yours, my test results have all been clear, and the dignosis (from more than one medical and mental health doctor) has been "anxiety"....I've spent more hours than I'm comfortable admitting looking up my symptoms online and speculating about what might be wrong with me (in fact, that became quite an addiction of mine for a time....I almost couldn't stop myself, so convinced was I that the doctors were all missing something)....I'm doing my level best to accept (truly accept, not just lip-service accept) that all of my physical symptoms are anxiety-related and that I need to trust the health care providers I've hired....this is, without a doubt, the most difficult thing I've ever had to do....I get so frustrated that no one seems to understand how truly terrifying the physical symptoms are, especially when they're present every single day....I think the frustration and resulting loneliness may be the worst part of this ordeal....I have days where all I can think is "why can't I be like I was eighteen months ago? will I ever feel well again? why is this happening to me?"....I just want to feel normal and be able to do the things that I used to take for granted.....all that being said, though, I remain optimistic that this too shall pass....if my anxiety produced all these symptoms, then it's within my power to heal myself (along with some help from my therapist!)....my thoughts truly are with you and everyone else on here who is struggling with this beast...it's not easy, and I'm so glad to know that I'm not alone.....take care.

If anyone has such bad anxiety that they think they are going to die then  think of all those people in, say, Syria, who are living it for real and then you might realise your life ain't so bad after all.

Unfortunately anxiety causes physical pain. The sooner we all learn to accept it the better we will feel. Although it's easier said than done.

The fact that you have had tests and it's been 8 months should tell you that if you had something fatal, it would have had you by now or would have been picked up on your tests.

Health anxiety is so hard to deal with. Not only do you have to deal with the anxiety itself, but the physical pains it comes with.

Try to take some comfort knowing that everyone who posts here has pains. Some people have suffered most of their lives but they are still here.

Hope you get well soon

As you get the feelings between 8.00 and 6.00 then perhaps it's something to do with where you work, either you are stressed out about the job or there is something called Sick Building Syndrome which gives people all sorts of illness, a lot of which you experience.  Try looking it up and see what you think.

Hi gordon77178,

I can totaly relate to everything you have said, i have also had what feels like a million tests all which are fine, however my last test by a rheumatologist showed high inflamation & low AnA's. Inflamation can cause all sorts of symptoms, the list is huge. My gp had perviously dismissed my inflamation markers as normal. My rheumatologist has suggested i have some kind of auto imune diesese. Again if you look at auto imune disorders the list of problems it can cause your body is huge. I still panic & think something has been missed as i feel so bloomin awful all the time. It's been a whole year now that i have felt this way & ive lost count of  how many times ive been in A&E for high blood pressure, blood clots & chest pains only to be told im fine. I'm still not convinced & i lie in bed at night in pain thinking i'm going to die which is horrific. Hope you're   feeling a little better.

Ema

hi gordon i no this might be late replying but i just joined, firstly i am so sorry for wot yr going through, i can sympathise with u, i been on seroxat since 19yrs of age i now 34, n they have stopped working so i am weaning off them, now beleive it or not i am a very anxious nervous person anyway so every symptom u have i am no doctor but i got that fixated with all anxiety meds etc its a shame some docs dont try doing it now n again (researching that is ) that i can tell you each n every reason for your symptoms plz reply back if you would like me to settle yr mind a bit, best of luck

I feel exactly how you feel. I had my first panic attack about a month ago. When I had it, I could hardly breathe, I was going numb in my arms and legs, I felt dizzy, and I had sharp pains in my chest with heart palpitations, which scared me to death. I honestly thought I was going to die. After the panic attack, I havent felt the same. I have felt sick to the point where everything that used to be fun to me didnt matter anymore. Since then, it feels like there is something in my chest that wasnt there before the panic attack. I havent had a normal bowel movement since then either. This makes me feel like there is something fatally wrong. Something heart related. So I started googleing symptoms and researching. This made me feel like I could have something from a pulmonary embolism to diabetes. I realize this just puts ideas into my head about being actually ill, but I do it anyway.

I am 18 so I realize the chances of me having something seriously wrong with my heart is slim but heart disease runs in my family and I dont live best life style. Im pretty sedentary, I eat what I want, not excessively but I pay no attention to what I eat. I dont work out much. I smoke cigarettes and I used to smoke marijuana but after I had my panic attack, I quit because marijuana only exacerbates anxiety. I have since also quit drinking caffeine and I am weening myself off of cigarettes, (down to 5 a day.) But it doesnt seem to be improving. With the way I have been living my life the past few years, it scares me that something is very wrong. And with this anxiety came a fear of death to a whole new level for someone who used to feel invincible.

But I know exactly how you feel.

Hi Gordon

I am 30 years old and I am facing same situation as you have described from last 1 year. I had MRI twice, Echo 5 times, Stress Echo, Cardiac checkup many times. I try to stay positive and make up my mind to fight my symptoms, but symptoms strikeback with double intensity , making my condition worse. I was a perfectly fit person till last year, but things have changed suddenly. My life is awful. When i look at people around me , nobody feels like me. I am unable to go out or enjoy any where. After seeing 50 doctors , I am hopeless.

Just want to know whther you got rid of your symptoms. If yes , please do share how did you get over it.

Thanks

Vineet

Sgot (liver) blood tests for the liver and a thourough eye exam with a opthamologist or a specialist called a nuero opthamologist (optic nerve exam) that would be for the dizziness and nasea.  I found out the hard way about a nuero oothamologist, never knew they existed. Ill leave out those details but i now know from my life to mention it to anyone with dizziness and nasau and headaches. Anyway those would be the only physical tests left. The results would not be life threatning by the way.  There is a theory out there about Epstein barr syndrome and its consequences as well. A lot of what yiu are writting does apoear to be panic attacks and anxiety but diet can cause many health issues as well. You should absolutely look into starting and maintaining a healthy well balanced diet and keep a log. Deficiencies like vitamin D, b12, low co enzyme10 levels and low magnesium levels could mimic or even trigger high anxiety levels. Those are blood tests. Learn meditation, healing meditations they are extremely helpful and calming to the body. Anxiety is a really big beast to challenge as you will need to relearn and rewire your brain and emotions.therapy is great if you get a therapist who is willing to delve deep into your past and help you figure out when this all began. There is a lot of research about panic attacks in every level. Some science blame strep as a child aka pandas, epstein barr as a teen with residual effects, low gut flora but nothing seems concrete as they find it amazingly complex to figure out the brain, meta physically they blame deadly emotions, betrayl thats gone unforgiven and the soul that feels low self love...etc.. Some write it all off do to negative thinking which plays a huge role only this would mean the mind no longer automatically calms itself and would have to be a very concious manuall retraining. All seems valid. There are traditional medicines to help with the gaba and dopamine levels and serotonin levels if depression is involved. They are now also using bp meds like propanol and beta blockers to slow the heart rate and body so the symptoms are milder. There are holistic or alternatives like l theanine, kava kave, kalm, 5htp..etc..there are alternative doctors that can help in that area. There was a theory in candida overgrowth as well.whatever it is there is an imbalance inside you on some level. CBT must be learned so you are aware of whats going on, if you are in a crisis state cbt wont work because fear blocks learning. Fear needs to be put in its place somehow.exercise is a must on every level. No matter how you feel you must incorporate excersise its very needed in too many ways to go into detail here. Cardio, 45 min. At the gym or home ..yoga..No caffiene at all.  The lifestyles of people have become so low in movement and diets so crappy that it can make a mess of the human body. You would never be confused if you poured crap into your gas tank, never changed the oil then expected it to run properly right? I hope that gives you a lot to think about and helps you. There are people who do master all this and recover, but it will take a lot of  effort and faith in yourself to do so. There are tons of ways to address this outside medicatiins, and if you need them to get a kickstart so be it. calming down feels good and lastly Pinterest has tons of stuff that can help give you more ideas.

If your gp say its anxiety and is sure nothing else is behind it,then that's how you can be sure. After all if we can't trust a Dr,then there's no point seeing them at all. I struggle with these things too, most people with anxiety do, its just the nature of it. Dealing with the root anxiety really is the only way to deal with anxiety long term, a pill can't do that

Hi I am feeling the same, 4 months before I had some beer and when i wake up i had anxiety, since 4 months i feel dizzy all the time I feel like I will die, chest pain, back pain, less concentration and I also had weight loss I am so scared all the time. I dont know how i will feel well again.