Foreign body!!!

Question

Hi,everybody.Im a medical student...My problem is that..I have anxiety when i have foreign body in my mouth ex toothpick or chew gum ..
Example:After having lunch,usually i pick a toothpick to "clean" teeth..and if i dismiss in basket without consciously... Im worrying a lot,because I think i have aspirated it(Going in lungs).The same case happens with chew gum or something else when i dismiss without consciously.I am in this mood for about 4 months.
I cant learn a lot as I do,reasons of this.
When I was in primary and secondary school i dont have this problems.By the way im first year in med school..
Im worrying if i continue in this mood ..Im going to have huge mental problems!!!Is this to be CONCERNED???
I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO???
I AM IN BAD MOOD
PLEASE HELP ME!!

nursegirl6572 · Accepted Answer

Hello and welcome!  Let's see if we can sort this out for you a little bit.

Are you still worried even after you remove the object from your mouth?  Do you have "what if" type of thoughts, like "what if I didn't really spit it out and I aspirated it?", or "what if I forgot the toothpick is there and I aspirated it?"

If so, you may have OCD or some OCD like tendencies.  The kind of thinking I described above can be present in someone with an anxiety disorder, or OCD.  Most people with OCD demonstrate compulsions or "checking" behavior (some OCD patients do not present with the compulsions, that would be called "pure -O").  For your situation, a checking behavior would be to continually return to the trash can to check for your gum, toothpick, etc, or checking your mouth, being hyper-aware of your breathing, checking for a cough, etc.

I don't know how far along in med school you are, but I can promise you that aspiration isn't something you would typically miss.  Unless you're talking about a silent aspiration in someone who is neurologically impaired (a CVA pt for example), aspiration is violent and very obvious.  Everyone has swallowed a beverage "down the wrong pipe".  That's aspiration.  You cough and gag violently until you clear the liquid.  Coughing to the point of throwing up sometimes.  You wouldn't have to wonder if you had aspirated a toothpick or a piece of gum, the symptoms would be very significant.

With your situation, being in med school, I would recommend seeking an evaluation by a psychiatrist, who can better nail down what's going on with you.  Whether it be anxiety or OCD, you would want to get some help to learn how to manage these intrusive thoughts because if you don't, it's possible that you will just keep experiencing various intrusive thoughts.  If you learn about brain tumors, you then might start worrying about that.  You will be surrounded by lots of frightening info, that, for someone with anxiety, may be hard to process and then dismiss like you would do for a learning environment.  You may just be under a lot of stress and not handling the anxiety well.  Either way, it's important that you get some answers from a mental health professional.

Get yourself assessed and see if you're contending with a certain mental illness and if you are, then discuss appropriate treatment modalities with the doctor.  These conditions are common and can be managed, and it's very important that you do that if you are dealing with something.  Anxiety can be debilitating for anyone, but as a physician, you're going to be expected to work very long hours and you have a long school career ahead of you.  Something like an anxiety disorder or OCD could be a threat to your schooling and career plans easily.

Good luck, update us when you can!

Durim · Answer

Uaaauuu,YOUR ANSWER IS JUST BRILLIANT...THANK YOU A LOT!!
Are you still worried even after you remove the object from your mouth?  Do you have "what if" type of thoughts, like "what if I didn't really spit it out and I aspirated it?", or "what if I forgot the toothpick is there and I aspirated it?"

YES THESE ARE THE QUESTIONS THAT I MADE FOR MYSELF!!!
I know that i did not aspirate nothing(I do not have any symptoms),but my mind create negative thoughts,and always i made that questions that you have mentioned.

I am second year of medicine faculty ,sometimes i think that cause is medicine.In the past ,exactly in primary and secondary school i did not have these thoughts.

I think that i should not spend a lot of time thinking for these thinks,in past i did(3 months ago)And still i think,but sometimes.As i mentioned this anxiety i have for 4-5months and for these period in university did not arrive as supposed.

By the way, i am excellent student with high average grade..and i wanna be excellent physician.Sometimes i scare that this anxiety affect my path.

I think i should make a chest x - ray and visit psychiatrist as you recommended.
Why should I do chest x ray ?I think to eliminate every doubt in my mind.
IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING MORE TO SAY FOR MY SITUATION AFTER YOU READ MY MESSAGE,I THINK IT IS GONNA BE VERY HELPFUL FOR ME.
OTHERWISE , I WANNA THANK YOU A LOT FOR YOUR TIME,SPENDING TO ME!

loosinghope535 · Answer

first of all you ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE MENTAL PROBLEMS. NO. just dont overthink to much take it easy just no if u have swallowed something you would instantly know. you just need to relax and not think about it to much because you wouldnt want to start worrying about other things and make it worst for yourself, enjoy your life think positive, youll be fine. we all go through things sometimes and i prefer to go through what your going because i have full blown anxiety but positivity is key and overthinking needs to go out the window

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