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View Full Version : Health anxiety at 16 weeks



gracesophia
21-02-16, 20:40
Hi everyone, I used to be a regular on the Health Anxiety boards but had made quite a good recovery, with the help of some Cognitive Analytic Therapy and 20mg of Citalopram daily.

I'm now 16 weeks pregnant (after an early miscarriage at 7 weeks in August) and my anxiety is horrendous. I keep obsessively googling (for hours at a time) and having sobbing panic attacks. Current worry is that baby will have spina bifida, and it will be all my fault because I didn't take folic acid early enough, or because I stayed on Citalopram and should have come off it.

I don't know how to stay sane until my 20 week scan. And then after that I'll worry about still birth, and then when the baby is here (which I still can't believe will actually happen) there's just more and more to worry about..

I have been referred to see the perinatal psychiatrist in 2 weeks time, and am going to yoga, which does help. My life is quite stressful for other reasons at the minute, and everything just feels really overwhelming :weep:

Theophania
21-02-16, 21:12
I am so sorry you are feeling this way. First pregnancy can be scary, its new and foreign and none of us know what to expect, and having health anxiety on top of that just makes it a million times harder. I think going to see the psychiatrist is a great idea, also going to yoga is a really great idea. All any of us can do is take this thing one day at a time. For me once my anxiety takes hold it is almost impossible for me to regain that control, so maybe if you just take some time to think back to how you did this with the cognitive analytic therapy and try including some of those strategies into your day now?

ninz94
03-01-17, 16:53
I had panic attacks 2 months prior to my pregnancy, and had really bad anxiety ever since. I also have HA but its the fear of losing control. I also developed bad concerns about my pregnancy because I only received prenatal care at 13 weeks, I was also on prozac and beta blockers just before finding out I was pregnant. As my pregnancy progresses my anxiety elevates as I get closer to my due date, the only thing that helps is my ultrasound appointments when I see my baby progressing and healthy it gives me hope. This is my second pregnancy, with my first I also worried about complications but was proven that mostly "99% of the things we worry about NEVER happen." I had a healthy and beautiful baby girl. I seriously plan on a vbac with but don't know how it may turn out, I am scared of doing this, and I find it hard to even imagine my son finally "in my arms" but there is some hope. I'm sure you'll be fine, seeing a psychiastrist and yoga really does wonders good thing you're getting help also eating healthy and drinking plenty of water and resting as much as you can. Pregnancy does cause a lot of worries and anxiety, our hormones are out of control, do keep in mind that your concerns are completely normal. Seeing your psychiatrist may also help prevent PND/PNA.