Health Anxiety Triggers

[Darlopou]

Hi all,

Newbie here in the middle of a HA episode and wanted to share some thoughts I had one where they come from, and see if you guys had similar thoughts?

My health anxiety came to a head about 4 years ago when I sought counselling and that actually really helped me control it. It still do flare up though. In the past my episodes have been triggered by:

- learning about a new symptom / disease on a TV programme;
- generally feeling stressed or worn down (often work related), which then somehow led me to overly focusing on my health.

This time though, the trigger is totally different. My Dad has just been diagnosed with cancer. We are of course all praying for him to recover and the treatment will start shortly. In amongst the worry for him I then started to feel gassy and other symptoms related to my throat and stomach, and you all know where that led me....

I feel really guilty that at a time when I should be dedicating all of my thoughts to my Dad I am myself now focusing on my own health. Has anyone else ever been triggered by someone close to them becoming ill?

Cheers,

DP

[emmelyne]

Hey DP, welcome to NMP. :)

I totally agree w/ you on the triggers etc, a close friend of mine suffers from epilepsy (but has not had a seizure in over two years now! woohoo!)

she was telling me about what its like to have a seizure, and the more she spoke the more i felt the symptoms. Thankfully I recognised that I was having a panic attack, not a seizure, and went straight to my college nurses office to calm down.

The more details you know about an illness, the more the stress convinces you psychologically that you have it. At the moment stress is getting to me so much that every evening I feel like I'm about to have a heart attack when I know full well that I am a healthy 19 year old!!!!!

I find that what helps is doing something you love to keep your mind off the supposed "symptoms" - eg exercise, watching a lush film, having a lovely meal with friends, or in my case, writing. Even writing this reply is taking my mind off my "aching" arms, which I am sure now is due to stress. ;)

Good Luck in all you do, and your Dad is in my prayers and thoughts too - I know you may feel selfish but in a situation like that, friends and family will all be affected in different ways and I am sure you are being a supportive and loving son.

[Darlopou]

Thank you Emmelyne, I really appreciate your thoughts and the example of your friend is one I can obviously relate to.

I am trying try my best to help my Dad and when he talks about his symptoms I do listen intently, but inside it is freaking me out. Firstly, because I do not like to think of him in pain (who would?), but then secondly because I know fine well what my mind will do with that information at a later date.

You are so right about keeping busy - I was on a train for a long time today, sat doing nothing but dwelling on pains and body sensations. When I am busy I do not really notice these things. I was at the pub last night and I barely gave them any thought, but I don't think that is healthiest distraction out there!

[bulan]

Firstly, I'm sorry to hear about your Dad's diagnosis, but I'll pray with you for his recovery!

Secondly, I totally relate. I even have a hard time reading your triggers, because they could also trigger me.

In my case, I have cancer phobia, so I'm often triggered by stories about a new cancer diagnosis or death. Friends of friends seem to be getting diagnosed and dying from cancer far too frequently. And of course, the stories from the news don't help either.

Trying to ignore the nervous knot in my stomach doesn't usually help. Distraction helps, but only to a degree.

I recently found a new way to combat my fears, namely to focus on cancer survivors, new treatments, and breakthroughs in research.

Example #1: I read a statistic the other day showing that the number of people surviving cancer is increasing.

"As of 2012, there were 13.7 million cancer survivors in the U.S.. By 2022, that number is expected to reach 18 million."

Example #2: This article titled, "Cancer-killing dandelion tea gets $157K research grant" Here's the link: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/cancer-killing-dandelion-tea-gets-157k-research-grant-1.1248382

Another way I combat health anxiety is by taking control of everything I can regarding my health. I've changed my diet as a result of my health anxiety... For instance, while I was eating a decent amount of fruits and vegetables before H.A. hit, I'm now eating about 75% fruits and veggies, supplementing with fish, chicken, tofu, whole grains, nuts, a variety of organic teas, etc., and the very occasional treat. I've also limited my dairy intake and introduced almond milk. I don't need to give a total rundown of my new "health anxiety' diet, except to say it's bolstered by research findings about foods that fight cancer, and that brings me a little peace of mind.

Lastly, the ultimate way I'm dealing with H.A. is to face my underlying fear of death, especially of dying while I'm still young and before I get to see my son (1.5 years old) grow up. It's forcing me--in a good way--to ask questions, to think and read a lot, to spend time doing meaningful things, and to make sure I take pictures, videos and record my family's memories as they happen. :)

[Darlopou]

Thanks Bulan!

How you have taken the fear and made something positive of it in terms of lifestyle is very inspirational. Keep it up! :yesyes:

[dezy numb fingers]

I think if you're close to someone and can see at first hand their symptoms and start relating it too yourself. I've often wondered if I've got some muscular diseases (probably due to the diazapam I'm on relaxing my muscles), but look at people from my work that have muscle wasting disseases and can see myself as having this as well. It scares me to hell, but I can't help it.

[bulan]

Glad to help! :)

Thinking about the question in your first post, strangely I find myself un afraid of my Dad's diagnosis, which is dementia. It was brutally difficult on him and on the rest of us, and yet I can't find in myself any spark of fear about being diagnosed with it myself.

Now, Cancer is the equivalent of my 'boogeyman', even though no one in my immediate family has died from it at a young age. My uncle, at 65, died of surgical complications after they tried to remove cancer. My grandpa, on the other hand, beat colon cancer years ago and he's still cancer free, living independently, and turning 90 this May! :)