Re: ocd - pure o - medication
It's always good for me to read threads from our American friends. We very rarely use branded drugs in the UK anymore. We only use brand-specific in cases where the drug must be a certain brand (e.g. anti-epileptics) - so you're keeping my "brand name" knowledge up to date. Thanks!
Anyway, enough rambling from me
IMHO, the benefit outweighs the risk here. I think you should make an appointment with your doctor and request to start treatment. A combination of an SSRI + CBT etc. And don't forget No More Panic!
Unfortunately, part of health anxiety management (it's not something we're taught, I'm reading into it however) comes from managing "the unknown". Nobody knows what is around the corner and part of dealing with health anxiety is accepting that fact.
Good luck
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Healthcare Professional with Health Anxiety
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle