Let me start by saying I've got a touch of hypochondria. If I have a headache, it's a brain tumor. If I have a stomach-ache, it's intestinal bleeding. If I have pain in my chest from slightly inflamed rib tissue, it's a heart attack. My wife is a nurse, so imagine how lovely her life is when I get into one of my moods.

As I said in a previous blog post, my doctor recently discovered that I have an issue with high blood pressure. He prescribed a few tests - blood and urine. The blood test came back fine - good cholesterol, glucose and such. The urine, though, had some microscopic traces of blood in it. That really didn't seem like a big deal to me, but my doctor told me it could be evidence of kidney disease, or...er...a tumor.

To a certain extent, being told that you have a minor symptom that may suggest a major issue is like catnip to hypochondriacs - 'See, I worry for a reason! Vindication!' On the other hand, though...cancer.

So another battery of tests was prescribed - a 24-hour urine calcium and a CT scan of my abdomen. The urine calcium was more inconvenient than unpleasant. It required me to relieve myself into a giant jug for a full day. To make matters worse, I had to keep the 'sample' in a bucket of ice water, as though it was a bottle of champagne.

I didn't really like the CT scan at all. I had to get a contrast scan, which means they injected some sort of dye into my system. That was a strange feeling. The dye made me feel warm and like I needed to use the bathroom, right now. I was then told to drink plenty of water after the test to make sure I flushed out all of the dye.

That begs the question - if this stuff is so bad that I should try to get rid of it as quickly as possible, should I be concerned that they just injected a bunch of it into my veins?

The CT scanner itself was a bit intimidating:

Okay, that image might be slightly altered. Still, there were a lot of spinning parts, some noise and a recorded voice with a British accent that told me when to hold my breath. As far as I'm concerned, there's nothing that makes one feel more sick than laying down on a table while other people put you through tests that you don't completely understand. Don't get me wrong - everyone was friendly and pleasant, but it wasn't all that much fun.

Also, it's a little disconcerting that right after reassuring you how safe this CT scan is, the nurses and techs hide in the other room and leave you alone with the radiation-belching monster.

The test itself led to a good 24 hours of pure stress - what if they saw something, what if I have cancer, what will happen to my family, etc...etc. Even though I tried, the thought was always in the back of my head. Made it hard to concentrate on other things, like writing.

The end result, though? CT scan was clear, calcium levels were normal. I don't have cancer or kidney disease. Thank God. This was only a health scare, not a health problem.

Now I can get back to worrying about whether that slight pain in my leg is deep vein thrombosis.