Christy,
While you have gotten a lot of good info on things to check out, you keep
wondering about antenna problems. If you have $150 to drop, the TW-2
talking swr/wattmeter covers these bands and could help you sort out this or
future antenna problems without sighted help.
There is also the TW-1 for HF and 6 meters which would be a huge help in
your future HF station. Of course it's another 150 bucks, but nobody said
it was a cheap hobby.
Perhaps moving your antenna to a different location in the apartment would
help. You seem very concerned about RF exposure, perhaps a longer coax
between radio and antenna will allow you to move the antenna around a bit
and keep enough distance so that you can increase power and still keep your
mind at ease about RF levels.
73, Steve KW3A