Hippo Chondria

Welcome John. Lots of good advice and caring individuals here.

According to what I read on the infamous internet, white marks can be almost ANYTHING depending even on the sensitivity of the MRI. Everything from blood to fat to benign areas that just appear with age. So, yes, you are right.....you do not know what the hell you are looking at...let the doctor decide..it is most probably a normal or benign finding.

You've had these symptoms before. Though you could have gallstones, very very very very much more likely it is muscle related or due to movement of gas/stool through the instestine. In either case, not serious, though feels unpleasant. I remember getting pains from bowel contraction during anxiety fears that felt like a knife going through my pancreas through to my back. Pancreatic cancer? Colon cancer? Not even gallstones. Any unrelenting pain should be checked of course. But transient sharp pains can be very normal. When you feel these, imagine the gas/stool in your intestine trying to make it around the corner where your colon takes a 'sharp' turn until it finally gets to the straight path again. Don't forget there's more than one curve in your intestinal 'racetrack'. Unorthodox? Perhaps. But it does help me to not panic and instead to simply say...'Whew, that gas/stool passing by hurt like a son of a b**ch...Now, what was I doing again.'

Hi SC1996, I had a large mole on my face that had different colors in it. Of course I was convinced it was melanoma. Doctor also wanted to be sure and sent me to a skin specialist. This heightened my fears since even my GP wasn't sure! The specialist took one look and said ' moles can change with time'....That was 30 years ago. The mole is still there and I keep watch on it. But the fears have subsided. I would trust your doctor's experience. Take a photo of the mole. Any new changes should be checked - but from my experience, you needn't be overly concerned.

My wife has had similar problems with her periods off and on for over 20 years. Birth control has helped in her case, but even then, stress and the occasional cyst still create an irregular, heavy, or longer cycle. Always good to get it checked for your own peace of mind, but not something to panic about. Obviously, if there is SEVERE bleeding or SEVERE pain go to the hospital.

Heart valve defect Diabetes ( though this no longer keeps me up at night) Bladder cancer Prostate cancer Testicular cancer Brain tumor Bone cancer Sinus cancer Mouth cancer Throat cancer Leukemia Lymphoma Multiple myeloma Eye cancer Pancreatic cancer Liver cancer Melanoma Colorectal cancer Stomach cancer Plus all the additional female cancers when I worry about my wife.

The fact that you've had severe panic attacks to the point of abdominal spasms would seem to indicate the physical musculoskeletal symptoms are anxiety driven..Not sepsis or parasites. An infection would more likely raise your temperature. Get your temperature checked by a nurse or doctor for an accurate reading if you can. If your temp is truly lowering than you may need to have thyroid levels checked. But, IMO, and I must reinforce I am not a health practitioner, these are classic anxiety symptoms and not life threatening.

I've been going through similar, but not exact, things recently, especially since my wife is going for tests. The thought of the phone ringing from the doctor terrifies me. At night i will actually look up the different ages people have died to reassure and comfort myself that no matter what the diagnosis, we still had a good life together.....but I don't even know the results yet and it drives me into exhaustion. I do know that not googling symptoms, and keeping yourself busy with projects (non medical topics ) helps. Honestly though I have yet to conquer my fear. It's possible my fear is more related to loss of a loved one and being alone or not being able to accept that death is natural.

Came across this wonderful forum while doing research to calm my fears of cancer due to new unexplained symptoms. My first recollection of illness phobia came around 8 or 9 when a heart murmur was found during a physical. The doctor was suprised I even knew what it was, but such is the life of one in fear of disease. Fortunatley, no google at the time, but a very scary medical book was at my fingertips in the family library to research every ache, pain, or symptom. I have always jumped to the worst conclusions. Convinced in my imagination only, of course, I have had brain tumors, sinus cancer, lymphoma, leukemia, stomach cancer, mouth cancer, pancreatic cancer, melanoma, testicular cancer, colon cancer, bone cancer, eye cancer, and after marriage have transferred those beliefs onto my wife's various symptoms over the years. Ovarian, cervical, breast and secondary lung cancer, plus most of the above. None of these have yet come to fruition. As can be seen, one word reappears in all my anxieties - cancer, the word that leaves me lying in bed with overwhelming worry when I should be living life or being a strong husband when my wife is awaiting test results. So, here on the forum I'm hoping to find a place to share some of the ongoing struggle and help others through such shared experiences. Thanks, Hippo