# Anxiety Disorders > Hypochondria (Health Anxiety) >  >  Food intolerance but worried about something worse!!!!

## Worrywort

Hello I've been having ibs symptoms for about 18months. I went through a phase a while ago freakibg that I had bowel cancer. This kind of went but recently I had bloating etc again.  This sometimes comes and goes and I'm pretty sure there is a link to wheat.  So just to make sure I went to the docs the other day. Now firstly he freaked me out because he said "well it's best to check because you are just out of the low risk age group but as you get older there is more chance of something nasty!" I'm 39 so this freaked me out. However he examined me and said there was nothing to worry about but seemed to make out that if my bloating continued I'd to go back. 

So I left initially thinking all was fine and then, you know, the doubt started! And I started thinking and googling. 
So I'm pretty sure I don't have bc. But my question is this.... if it was bowel cancer my symptoms would not recede and disappear for weeks and sometimes months on end Would they?  Also if I'd had these symptoms for more than a year I would think that I'd probably be dead by now if I had anything serious...wouldn't I? 
Im pretty sure there's a link to stress and wheat but so worried that it could be something else giving me these symptoms. 
I think I'm going to try counselling as this hypochondria is really annoying!

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## Otherside

I had something similar. I have IBS as well, but they checked me anyway. I had all the blood tests done and the colonoscopy. I was fairly "low risk" but it's one of those things where they'll want to make sure there isn't anything else. 

I might be wrong, but I don't think the symptoms of bowel cancer appear and then disappear. However (although this is not the case for everyone), IBS can come and go in episodes. For me, I'll months of symptoms, and then months of nothing, then months of symptoms again. Comes and goes. 

And yes, stress can make the symptoms of IBS worse. Wheat can also do it I think.

Also if you haven't seen this already/been advised by a doctor - http://www.ibsdiets.org/fodmap-diet/fodmap-food-list/ 

Fodmap diet can help reduce symptoms of IBS. It might be that you don't need to avoid everything on the list, and only a few things will trigger IBS. Only way you can really find out is by cutting things out of your diet, and seeing if symptoms improve.

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## Worrywort

Ah thanks for that. I really don't thInk the tests are needed and neither did the doc but yeh I guess they have to check. I have noticed patterns, certainly with stress and possibly with wheat and also with possibly tight trousers!!! One other question tho... if it was anything serious it wouldn't disappear after wearing looser pants would it? 
It's so crazy I know this is all health anxiety related. So daft!

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## Otherside

> Ah thanks for that. I really don't thInk the tests are needed and neither did the doc but yeh I guess they have to check. I have noticed patterns, certainly with stress and possibly with wheat and also with possibly tight trousers!!! One other question tho... if it was anything serious it wouldn't disappear after wearing looser pants would it?



I doubt it, but I'm not 100% sure to be honest. Tight trousers isn't an issue for me. 





> It's so crazy I know this is all health anxiety related. So daft!



I know the feeling, and a lot of us on this site will know what this is like.  :Hug:

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## InvisibleGuy

Welcome Worrywart  ::):  I feel like I've been through a lot of the same. I have stomach aches but mine are from stress and anxiety, that can get pretty bad at times. There are times when it stops me from doing what I want to do. I've been to half a dozen different doctors, and no one has ever given me a real diagnosis of what's wrong. It's not nearly as bad now as it used to be, but I used to get to where I couldn't hold down food, I couldn't eat sometimes. And, when it got really bad I couldn't even drink water, and that led to some ER visits because I'd get dehydrated.

Every test I've ever had has come back negative. The docs I've seen have all said it's probably just caused by anxiety. I also went through a time when I thought I had stomach cancer, or an ulcer (I still believe I might have an ulcer, Idk). I've had every test you can imagine....full body scans, EKGs, lower GIs, colonoscopies, Xrays, ultrasounds on my stomach, actually on everything from my heart to my waist. And all the tests come back negative thank the gods but it also means they can't find a cause.

I've decided it's got to be stress-related (for me) and I use some techniques to try to calm down when I feel symptoms coming on. Mostly meditate, or distract myself if that doesn't work. I try to give myself an "out" if I'm somewhere that's causing stress to the point of giving me stomach aches. I think your chances of having BC are probably infinitely low....your doc of course would've checked for something like that. But I understand the worry and the hypochondriac like stuff. I don't let myself google my symptoms anymore because I'll start believing I have whatever shows up on Google. I hope you feel better  ::):

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## Worrywort

Yup totally the same, well not as many tests but this is one in a long long line of things I've convinced myself I've got! It's always been anxiety! The one thing that usually works for me is meditation too! A real lifesaver! I still get bouts like today when I worry and google but meditation helps (I mean just how irrational is it to think me getting bloated cos of trapped wind is bc!! Honestly

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## Worrywort

Hey everyone... I'm a bit worried again about stomach c now!!! Crazy! Came on after googling and I now sometimes feel a bit nauseous but this goes off when I eat, I also have a bruised feeling in my ribs. I'm sure it's anxiety but still worried. I guess if it was this and related to bloating that has been going on for so long I would know about it by now wouldn't I??  I also keep getting back ache that comes and goes...any help appreciated.

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## Otherside

> Hey everyone... I'm a bit worried again about stomach c now!!! Crazy! Came on after googling and I now sometimes feel a bit nauseous but this goes off when I eat, I also have a bruised feeling in my ribs. I'm sure it's anxiety but still worried. I guess if it was this and related to bloating that has been going on for so long I would know about it by now wouldn't I??  I also keep getting back ache that comes and goes...any help appreciated.



Could be anxiety (anxiety does funny things and nausea is pretty common for those of us with anxiety), could just indigestion/Heartburn/acid reflux. Could try an Antacid and see if that helps with it. Should be able to get a bottle of it over the counter of pharmacy. 

And believe me, I am very much aware of the anxiety caused by using Doctor Google. It really can cause quite a lot of anxiety (I convinced myself once that the cause of some headaches I was suffering from was a brain tumour. I do not have a brain tumour, and upon seeing my GP, a brain tumour wasn't even considered as a possible diagnosis. I was actually having migranes.)  :Hug:

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