why is health anxiety so common

[beauty2010]

Hi everyone
Why is health anxiety the most popular part of this forum.
What is it about our society that is sending us here.
Is it the media, health prevention campains, our attitude to death, a feeling that we should be in control of our lives, decline in religious belief, the internet?? Do advances in medical science make us feel that illness and death can be 'avoided'. I am less worried about things that I could not have avoided than things I could avoid if I was vigilant (eg the first signs of cancer), and I have a heightened sense of responsibility for myself and my family (my kids mainly). BTW I have never examined my breasts as it freaks me out that I might find something. I once read that you should check your childrens' skin monthly for moles, etc, and I really wish I had never read it, as it all gets out of proportion and anxious. But because it relates to my kids I can't not do it because I am responsible for them.
Any thoughts.
Bxx

[Apple81]

I think it's partly because we're bombarded with information about our health and what to look out for. I am in a tailspin at the moment over my breasts. And googling has not made it any better. I know this and yet I still do it.

[beauty2010]

Hi
thanks for replying. I am in a tailspin about my kids moles. I never, ever examine my breasts as I know what would happen - mega stress. BTW I don't think that breast self examination has been shown to reduce mortality??
Bx

[Apple81]

That's been in the news hasn't it? Am obsessed at the moment with Paget's cancer of the nipple (lots of dry skin) and have really been frightening myself by looking on google. Had never heard of it until the summer when I had my original scare.

[beauty2010]

Hi Apple
Are you at a risky age for breast cancer. Scaly skin is most likely to be dry skin, or a bit of ecsema. I had a breast scare a few years ago, and it turned out to be an axillary breast (so I have three). It was scary though at the time. I read an article by a GP who said that as a society we have lost our assumption of good health by constant surveillance because of preventative medicine. Checking for things is all well and good, but it puts into your mind the idea of serious illness, and once an idea is in, it is difficult for some of us to lose it.
Bxx
PS - don't google

[Apple81]

Hey

Am 31. GP said I wasn't of the typical age for it. That doesn't stop the worry though! Am trying to keep off google. I know it's a rare cancer but my irrational brain can't focus on that!
X

[lo89]

Brilliant post!
I think media does play a big role in it - in various ways. Firstly, the internet is easily accessable by almost everyone nowadays, and we all consider ourselves keyboard doctors - when really we know very little about the medical profession.
TV shows and magazine articles also have a big impact - I read a magazine article a few months ago about a 23-year-old girl who was at university, always covered up in the sun, was fit and healthy until she passed out one day - doctors discovered she had melanoma which had spread to her brain, hip, liver, kidneys, spleen and lungs. She was dead within 4 months. I had a sore hip the next day and was convinced the same had happened to me, as she was the same age as me and we were both at uni - how ridiculous? It is the same with people from soaps etc.
Also, people are living longer so our chances of becoming exposed to these diseases is proportionately greater than previous generations - we are also more likely to survive these diseases then before, so we know more people who have had these illnesses in the past - I constantly say "that is what happened to such and such a person and they had such and such an illness"
With previous generations, there was an assumption that if you had certain diseases you would die. We now have far better survival rates, and are forever being warned to look out for the early signs of various illnesses, therefore we have become hyper vigilant about our bodies.
interesting point about religious beliefs, I had never really thought about that but it makes sense!

[beauty2010]

Re religious beliefs
I've started to go to meditation classes with a friend who just lost her husband to cancer. Their view is based on the Buddhist one that you should meditate on the fact that life is transient, and everything changes, and death comes to us all unpredictably. Sounds depressing, but somehow accepting that is helpful - at least it is realistic. You are meant to meditate to find an inner peace which is sort of outside all of that. (Obviously I am not an expert or I wouldn't be on here! :whistles:)
Bx

[Toffeeapple]

I would say my HA started the day I got the internet and started googling "Parkinson's disease" as I had a twitch on my finger (probably tiredeness).
I was an anxious person to begin with but Google has DOUBLED my anxiety I would say.
I don't google now, or if I do I google the least scary problem related to my symptoms, or post on here to hear of any experiences.
But still even with doing that, Google does me more harm than good.
I agree Beauty, and no it doesn't sound depressing at all, in fact I'm reading a book by Dr Raymond Moody at the moment which is called "Life after life" and it talks about people who had a near death experience and "saw the light" so to speak.
It's an amazing book especially because it's written by a Psychiatrist.
It says that nearly all the people who "went to the other side" were not in the least scared of death after their experience, even children.
Funnily enough change is the very thing that freaks me out, although I think it's a beautiful thing, I always get anxiety when something changes in my body, face etc. It's the "But... I never used to have that!" syndrome.

---------- Post added at 21:38 ---------- Previous post was at 21:35 ----------

P.S: Apple you scared the s..t out of me when you talked about that paget's cancer. I had some dry scaly skin on my nipples a few months ago, right on the ends.
I've just had to check now and it's back to being smooth, does that mean I'm ok?

[beauty2010]

Hi Toffeeapple
I have also read about NDEs.
In fact, I had a stillborn child (hence the anxiety about my kids) and although I was absolutely devastated, I kind of 'died' metaphorically with him, and felt this tremendous joy and knew that 'Love' was the only real thing, that we were all part of that Love and nothing could ever separate us from the Love. Its just that most times we can't focus on it - we are looking away. There really is nothing to fear - so why am I afraid.
Bx

[almamatters]

My health anxiety started 15 years ago after I diagnosed myself with a tropical skin disease and told my GP. Shortly after told him I had a blood clotting disorder due to the fact my veins stuck out on my hands (yes I know) This has been the general idea since then, earlier this year it was a brain stem tumour where I visited the surgery weekly and cried that my prognosis was 3 months. I have not improved since then as currently am obsessed with lymphoma and all types of cancer. My family despair and I am sure my GP does as well. I think we all have a real fear of dying and leaving our loved ones and it is just amplified in anxious people.

[beauty2010]

Hi almermatters
I agree - for me it is the threat of loss that is most acute. I do not fear death, but I fear separation from loved ones, either by my own death or theirs
Bxx

[lo89]

I am also not scared of death, but I hate the idea of my family having to cope without me (how big headed is that?) mind you, I am also petrified of the people close to me dying! My dad, who is 51 so not old, has got back pain near his kidneys. He has been to the doctors and did an urine sample, which he has to get results from tomorrow. My mind is working overtime! My dad also has a touch of health anxiety.

[Apple81]

Hi Toffeeapple

Sorry to frighten you! Bearing in mind I haven't seen your nips, I would've thought everything's ok. It's a very, very rare cancer and even rarer for it to affect both nipples. My HA is very bad at the moment which is why it's on my mind. That and my moles! Have used sudocrem which just made everything worse so I don't recommend that! Or google, which is an absolute nightmare and the work of the devil according to my friend who trained as a doctor.

Please don't worry x