It is normal to feel anxiety and/or fear when facing routine scans, screenings and medical tests.   

This is likely not a surprise when it comes to screenings for the cancer we had. What I did not expect was the anxiety that I experience with most tests, scans, screenings.

The age for colonoscopy screenings was lowered in 2021 to 45. When I did that test last summer, I was really surprised how worried I was. Not because I thought something was wrong, because I didn’t. Being a cancer survivor puts you in a new category of risk.

Every doctor wants to make sure you have all the right tests to keep you healthy.

Which I appreciate, I recently went through another series of tests. Where again I wasn’t thinking everything was “normal” because when you have chemo that messes with hormones, normal is now kind of off the table. I wasn’t thinking anything was really wrong. Turned out it wasn’t totally ok. The doctor was very concerned because of my history. A friend said, “ugh, our history…. of course we are at increased risk for everything.” Fortunately, while everything wasn’t totally normal, what did come back was benign so it is ok.

I know the next time I go in for tests or a screening, the anxiety will be back. It doesn’t mean we don’t do the thing. It may just mean we need to be understanding with ourselves and be honest about what we are experiencing. The more we talk about it, the more others will see that maybe they are not alone either. 

Have you experienced something similar?

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