Nader, the best person to seek an answer from about that question is your doctor. But I can tell you this ... if you had an on-going infection, it would have shown up in your earlier CBC. Your doctor would have detected signs in your recent exam such as fever or swollen glands or bad color in your skin. Although your temperature was slightly above normal, it was not high enough to cause a doctor to worry. My normal temperature is often similar to the one you reported and blood tests show I have no infection.

The CBC test would also be able to determine if your blood did not have proper clotting factors. But the test was normal and the doctor is testing again. My doctor tests my blood every 4-6 months.

Some auto-immune disorders can be very severe and life-threatening, but the dangerous symptoms show up on blood tests and your doctor can also recognize dangerous symptoms just by examining you. They can recognize symptoms sometimes just by looking at you, without even touching you or using a stethoscope. They can see obvious signs of danger in your eyes, neck, hands and even in the smell of your breath and body.

Because you've just seen your doctor, one you know is competent and trustworthy, it's highly unlikely that you are currently in danger of dying from having a very severe undiagnosed disorder. I am impressed with the tests he's running on you. He is taking a thorough approach.

From what I know, people get into trouble medically when they ignore their symptoms, refuse to seek medical help and when they tax their bodies by doing things that are not good for them, such as excessive drinking or drugs or staying up for several days or not eating or eating very bad food. Severe emotional stress can also make auto-immune disorders worse, so it's important that you use all of your skills to remain calm.

Because you just saw your doctor and because you are doing your best to take care of yourself, it's unlikely your life is in danger while you're waiting for your test results to come back.

I know from my own experience how dreadful it can feel to have these unexplained symptoms. I felt very sick. It scared me. But as bad as I felt at the time, my life was not in danger. It was the quality and enjoyment of my life that was suffering.

The feeling of having the flu is a good description. I often felt that way and the feeling lasted for extended periods of time.

If you are feeling very uncomfortable in the chest area, you might ask your doctor to prescribe you a drug called a beta blocker.

The feelings you described in your head, neck and chest might respond well to this type of drug You might talk to your doctor about this. Beta blockers are relatively safe drugs. They are not controlled substances or drugs that most people would choose to abuse, so doctors are usually not reluctant to prescribe them.

The symptoms you described can be direct symptoms of auto-immune disorders, but they are also symptoms of anxiety. Fortunately, beta blockers work on both kinds of symptoms. Beta blockers work quickly, within half an hour, to relieve those particular symptoms. They probably won't help the flu-like symptoms. If your doctor says it's okay, you might try taking a NSAID drug like ibuprophen, but get your doctor's okay first just to be on the safe side.

If your doctor agrees, it might be worth your while to experiment with beta blockers to relieve the odd feelings in your chest, neck and head. I take a beta blocker called atenolol, but there are many others that are good. He might also recommend a NSAID drug for the flu-like symptoms.

Please let me know how your tests turn out. My thoughts are with you!