I started experiencing some minor pains in my chest and arms. The pain is very slight and hardly noticeable. At the same time I started experiencing these pains I start to get severe anxiety attacks. I do have a history of anxiety but I had been "cured" and off my meds for about 4 years.

I decided to go to my doctor and she checked me out. My blood pressure was a bit elevated probably due to the anxiety. She listened to my chest and said it sounded clear and good and she decided to put me back on my anxiety med (zoloft) and also added Buspirone to help while the zoloft built up in my system.

She told me that if it made my anxiety less that I could go get a chest x-ray to make sure my lungs were fine. She seemed convinced that they were but peace of mind is worth the extra effort.

I'm planning to go get the x-ray next week and I'm terrified they will find something. I'm so terrified I can't eat, I don't sleep well and I'm generally just in a terror driven panic all the time.

I want to trust my doctor and believe that it's not cancer but my mind won't let me. I just keep thinking of all the horrible scenarios that could happen. I'm so scared and there's almost nothing I can do.

Why do our brains torture us like this?