PDA

View Full Version : Heath anxiety advice


jhopley
15-05-17, 14:50
Hey guys,

Over the past few months, i have experienced a very high level of health anxiety that's affecting me pretty bad. It all started with me getting shooting pains in the back of my head when I would cough or lean over, which i, of course, googled it and it came back saying some pretty scary things.

Since this, i have accumulated multiple symptoms of which the doctor refers to as heath anxiety. I am finding it really hard to come to terms that this is the case.

My symptoms have been
- Headaches around front and back of my head (mainly back)
- Clicking throat when swallowing
- Pains in jaw
- Pains in chest
- Tingling feeling around my head
- Crazy muscle twitching
- Pain in back of head when coughing and leaning over
- Most recently get visual snow in bright light

I can not begin to explain how badly this is affecting me - I have never experienced this before. I really need a way of controlling this i am constantly thinking there is something seriously wrong with me.
SLA
15-05-17, 15:14
What is your overall fitness/wellbeing like?

What is your diet like?
jhopley
15-05-17, 15:16
My diet isn't great I guess - my fitness is ok at the moment but I could do more in the gym, why?
SLA
15-05-17, 15:17
Diet plays a huge part in all of the things you list as symptoms.
jhopley
15-05-17, 15:20
Are all my symptoms common with anxiety?
SLA
15-05-17, 15:26
Anxiety is a state of mind. With health anxiety you become hyper-focussed on bodily sensations, which often makes them seem 10x worse.

So yes, these are "symptoms" that become more prominent when you are anxious.

Getting fit and eating healthy stops a lot of these bodily sensations, and boosts your feeling of wellbeing. Which makes anxiety disappear.

So your options are: Stop focussing on them or improve your overall wellbeing by eating healthily and getting good exercise.

For best results, do both!

(Speaking as someone who has had chronic health anxiety.)
jhopley
15-05-17, 15:35
The one symptom that it all originates from is my head pains when bending over or coughing that's what kicks it all off.
SLA
15-05-17, 15:45
Most likely muscular.

I had a similar thing which caused me serious health anxiety concerns. I stretched a muscle in my jaw while yawning to hard. (No joke!)

It caused a joint disorder:
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/temporomandibular-joint-disorder/Pages/Introduction.aspx

Initially, I didn't think too much of it. Over the coming weeks and months I had a persistent dull ache in the side of my head. Which caused a load of stress and worry.

Occasionally it comes back and says hello.

Try and be an expert in your body by doing research. Sometimes all it needs is a little education to solve your worries and concerns.
jhopley
15-05-17, 15:49
Did it happen when you would cough and lean over?
SLA
15-05-17, 15:52
Yeh. Coughing in particular.
jhopley
15-05-17, 16:00
I keep going crazy with it all thinking i have a tumor and with all the other symptoms that followed it's drove me mad

---------- Post added at 16:00 ---------- Previous post was at 15:56 ----------

It's drove me mad thinking i have a tumor or something like that.
SLA
15-05-17, 16:12
Did for me too for a while.
jhopley
15-05-17, 20:35
What did you do to start feeling better?