Health Anxiety - Please Help

[MrsDavies]

I'm so sorry if this post is going to be a long one but I really need some help.
I've had Health Anxiety & Panic now for around a year. I've convinced myself I've had every illness under the sun including - Cervical Cancer, Bowel Cancer, Melanoma, Heart Attack/Disease, MS, Brain Tumour, Aneurysm, Blood Clots, Dementia, Serious Ear Problems, Eye Cancer, Oral Cancer, Stroke, Spinal Cancer, Menigitis, Lymphoma and finally Bikini Line Cancer (I'm not even sure if such a thing exists). This is taking over my life. I'm sick of thinking I'm dying all the time. Yesterday is a pure example of how bad I can get, in the morning, I was worried about having DVT in one of my legs, by dinner time I'd swapped to thinking I had Dementia and by bedtime it was Oral Cancer. Plus, this week has been even more stressful I have loads of Anxiety Symptoms to cope with too which only add to certain worries....
My Grandad came to see us on New Years Day and within an hour or two of him returning home, he had a heart attack, he is now in intensive care on life support with a slim chance of making it. This has led to even more Anxiety & Worry and I'm truly, quite possibly at my worst. My heart feels like it's in my mouth all the time, my stomach is turning in knots, I feel sick...... How can I cope with this added worry when I didn't think I could get much worse? I'm not on medication as it didn't really make to much of a difference and I received CBT last year which did help but I relapsed within 5 months or so.... Plus there's a waiting list even if I decided I needed some help..... Please help!

[Pigeon]

First of all, I'm really sorry to hear about your Grandad. That must have been such a shock and though things sound tough at the moment, here's hoping he makes a full recovery. :hugs:

I remember trying to cope with my dad's failing health (dementia) until his death last year. Like you, I wondered how I could cope with it, plus the HA and all the other strains and stresses of daily life. But I did, and so will you, I'm sure of it.

Your description of the various illnesses, especially the part about the three different ones in one day, sound just like me. In fact it's typical of most HA sufferers and is a terrible thing - like a form of mental torture. But it's not real. The symptoms are, but what you believe to be the cause isn't.

I'm not sure if I have any real answers for you but I would certainly try again with the CBT. If there's a long waiting list, you might want to try on-line resources as a temporary fix. Today I stumbled across a site that offers free on-line counselling for anxiety. It seems genuine but you might want to check it out first. It's at www.haveigotaproblem.com

I hope this helps. Take care.

[Fishmanpa]

Sorry about your grandfather... sending positive thoughts and prayers for him and the family.

Concerning your anxiety? Definitely get back on the CBT list and as suggested, find an online resource and get back on the CBT wagon. Having used some of the techniques myself, I say that CBT is like taking your mind to the gym. And like going to the gym and working out for your physical health, one must continue to practice the techniques learned in CBT to stay in mental shape. Stop working out and you lose what you gained.

Positive thoughts

[MrsDavies]

First of all, I'm really sorry to hear about your Grandad. That must have been such a shock and though things sound tough at the moment, here's hoping he makes a full recovery. :hugs:

I remember trying to cope with my dad's failing health (dementia) until his death last year. Like you, I wondered how I could cope with it, plus the HA and all the other strains and stresses of daily life. But I did, and so will you, I'm sure of it.

Your description of the various illnesses, especially the part about the three different ones in one day, sound just like me. In fact it's typical of most HA sufferers and is a terrible thing - like a form of mental torture. But it's not real. The symptoms are, but what you believe to be the cause isn't.

I'm not sure if I have any real answers for you but I would certainly try again with the CBT. If there's a long waiting list, you might want to try on-line resources as a temporary fix. Today I stumbled across a site that offers free on-line counselling for anxiety. It seems genuine but you might want to check it out first.

I hope this helps. Take care.

Thank you and thank you for sharing your experiences with your dads health, I'm sorry to hear of his passing. I just feel so overwhelmed right now, everytime the phone goes I'm worried it might be 'the call'. It's reassuring to know I'm not the only one who conjures up so many illnesses at once. I'm currently sat here worrying about Cancer still :(
Thanks for your advice about CBT, I have rang my health visiting team and luckily, the mental health nurse had a free slot and is coming to see me at 3pm today so I might not have to go on the NHS list after all. Thank you for the website, I'll be sure to check it out. Here's hoping I might be able to get better again as I can't go on like this anymore!

---------- Post added at 13:39 ---------- Previous post was at 13:36 ----------


Sorry about your grandfather... sending positive thoughts and prayers for him and the family.

Concerning your anxiety? Definitely get back on the CBT list and as suggested, find an online resource and get back on the CBT wagon. Having used some of the techniques myself, I say that CBT is like taking your mind to the gym. And like going to the gym and working out for your physical health, one must continue to practice the techniques learned in CBT to stay in mental shape. Stop working out and you lose what you gained.

Positive thoughts

Thank you for your kind words. Yes, I think your right. CBT has worked for me in the past so I'm sure it will help me again. I think i just thought that I was better and didn't need to do it anymore but I can see now that perhaps I should have carried on, even when I did feel better. I really hope I can get through this :(