Scared I have Polycythemia

Hi guys, I'm  new here. Last Friday I went to my GP because I was feeling left upper side pain in my stomach after being constipated for some weeks, and she ordered me an ultrasound and a blood test. I have an appointment fro the ultrasound on Feb 23 but my blood tests came back on Monday and I have some abnormal results. 

WBC: 6.79  [nomal value 4-10]

RBC: 5.89  [3.5 - 4.5]

HEMOGLOBIN: 15.8 [12 - 18]

HEMATOCRITO: 47.5  [normal value to 52]

Platelets: 255 [142 - 424] 

The thing is I'm a female, 25 years old and although I have always have high rbc (5.4-5.5) my hemoglobin and hematocrit values have been lower [hemoglobin around 14.9 and 15.2, and hematocrit around 44 and 45]  I didn't really pay attention to my  hemoglobin and hematocrit counts until I looked it up on the internet  (I was more worried about my rbc because it was higher than normal) Of course my research led me to Polycythemia. I suffer from severe health anxiety so I went back to my GP yesterday and talked to her about it. She didn't seem worried at first, until I insisted and told her I don't  smoke nor I drink, my meat intake is minimal and I'm also very thin, and so she looked at the test again and seeing I'm young and skinny, she decided to order more tests and refer me to an haematologist to rule out polycythemia. Until now, I had had hope that she would tell me it everything was normal and I could go home and forget about it, but when she actually mentioned polycythemia as an option, I freaked out. Strokes have always been one of my biggest fears and knowing I could have polycythemia, which could cause a stroke, is driving me insane with fear. I have had two panic attacks since yesterday and the symptoms have worsened. I don't know if what I'm feeling (some dizziness, cold hands and feet, stomach bloating, some mild general itching, some mild numbness in my fingers) it's just my anxiety playing me after I read the symptoms (I usually get symptoms after I read them, thanks to my health anxiety) or if it's related to polycythemia. I feel I'm dying. I mean, I'm 25 years old and I've read that untreated Polycythemia can sometimes progress to something worse, but articles also say the drugs used for treatment can also lead to cancerif taken for too long, and I don't want to have cancer in 10 or 20 more years. I also want to have a family at some point and I read polycythemia makes it dangerous to get pregnant. Oh and some articles say you can still have a stroke even if polycythemia is controlled. I'm trying not to panic again but it's hard when I keep thinking I can have a stroke anytime now. This fear is making everything worse. 

I'm gonna have more blood tests this Tuesday and make an appointment with an hematologist. I still have hopes that the abnormal results were due to something else (my menstruation cycle had ended a week prior to the test, and I've been urinating a lot because of my anxiety lately. So before the test, which happened in the morning, I urinated like 4 or 5 times and didn't drink enough water. I also didn't have a good meal the night before. I don't know if this could lead to those results). I don't know if I have sleep apnea, either, since sometimes I wake up at night or after a nap feeling like I've been holding my breath for some time. I also yawn a lot during the day, but this could be caused by anxiety as well. I have some mild headaches from time to time, but I have Temporomandibular Joint Disorder so that could be the cause too. And I have blurry vision, but I also have dry eyes that according to my eye doctor, causes blurry vision too.  I just... I'm so scared right now I'm crying. 

How do you deal with this? 

Sorry if my post is a long mess, but my head is a mess right now too.

Oh and sorry for my bad English. 

0 likes, 16 replies