View Full Version : Health anxiety and finding happiness in life
As some of you may know I have been spiralling pretty badly. I do think this is the worst it’s ever been. First it was ovarian cancer, then lung cancer then chondroma and now it’s lung cancer and brain cancer. Honestly, I know that how I feel is incredibly silly and unproductive. I am wasting away my youth constantly worrying about rare illnesses. I am always googling symptoms and looking for reassurance. Even right now as I sit on my phone with a headache (worried about a brain tumor ofcourse) my poor husband is downstairs watching tv by himself. He asked me to join him but I just can’t make myself go, sit down and actually enjoy a pleasant activity. I keep worrying about mortality and keep thinking about cancer, rare diseases and dying. It’s such a depressing and dark place to be in. I want to stop so badly. But how do I stop if I keep having these symptoms? How do people move on and just enjoy life if they are having symptoms? This is something completely incomprehensible to me. If I am having any sort of pain or discomfort I start worrying. I would love for people who have overcome their fears, anxiety and hypochondria to share how they got over it. I really really really want my life back and I want to be happy. Genuinely happy. Not the fake happy I show others.
Please help
willieverbefree
03-07-18, 12:24
Unfortunately health anxiety can be all consuming - and googling just fuels the anxiety and can make us imagine the worst....There are no easy answers for us sufferers of H/A - its a condition that we have to try to manage as best we can, sometimes keeping busy and distraction takes our minds off ourselves and our thoughts - but its is not always possible to apply/do that 24/7 ...I assume that you have spoken to your doctor, and they have given you advice -referred you for CBT or some other therapy, and maybe suggested some form of medication to help cope/deal with your H/A.... I wish you luck - I know how debilitating it all is, and how difficult it is to enjoy life when you are always anticipating an illness/ailment ....The sad thing is some ( a lot) of people do not understand the intensity of it - and there are those that genuinely do have serious illness, and they appear to cope - and that can make us feel worse for worrying about whatever it is we dont/may not have...It is a truly frightening form of anxiety - and not easy for a lot of people to understand or be sympathetic towards ...
Well, you have taken the first step because you REALIZE that you are getting in the way of your own life. I have found myself in that place a few times along this stupid HA HIghway. One way out of it is to just start doing things. Even if you don't want to, force it.
The other thing is finding something that INTERESTS the heck out of you. When I find something incredible to dream about, HA can't compete. I really think a large chunk of HA is that sufferers are creative or imaginative people but also kind of bored. If you can find THE THING that interests you and gives you lots to mull over, plan, and do, IME HA subsides quite a bit.
Thank you for your responses. I am just having a hard time these days. This whole year has been so ridden with anxiety. Before I was able to get over it somehow or another but this time I do feel like I need therapy - having said that, I do want to cure this myself first. Can I actually do that? Or is therapy the only way? I want to stop thinking about hospitals, illnesses, doctors and death. It’s not all the time. But it is most of the time, especially when my toddlers are in bed and I have time to myself. Before I would read (which I absolutely love) but now I can’t bring myself to do that. I would much rather google to seek reassurance. It’s a horrible cycle. Even now, my toddlers are napping and instead of going into the garden to do some gardening, I am sitting here googling because I have that same headache.
---------- Post added at 18:07 ---------- Previous post was at 18:03 ----------
Unfortunately health anxiety can be all consuming - and googling just fuels the anxiety and can make us imagine the worst....There are no easy answers for us sufferers of H/A - its a condition that we have to try to manage as best we can, sometimes keeping busy and distraction takes our minds off ourselves and our thoughts - but its is not always possible to apply/do that 24/7 ...I assume that you have spoken to your doctor, and they have given you advice -referred you for CBT or some other therapy, and maybe suggested some form of medication to help cope/deal with your H/A.... I wish you luck - I know how debilitating it all is, and how difficult it is to enjoy life when you are always anticipating an illness/ailment ....The sad thing is some ( a lot) of people do not understand the intensity of it - and there are those that genuinely do have serious illness, and they appear to cope - and that can make us feel worse for worrying about whatever it is we dont/may not have...It is a truly frightening form of anxiety - and not easy for a lot of people to understand or be sympathetic towards ...
I have never spoken to my doctor about it. My doctor does see that I can get anxious at times but otherwise I rarely ever go to see her. I end up putting my symptoms off for as long as I can and then go to the ER when I start panicking. Again, ER trips are few.. I ended up in January this year and saw my doc after 2 years. So I guess that although I am a typical hypochondriac I am not a typical hypochondriac patient because I don’t actually see my doc a lot at all. And when I do I usually mask my anxiety.. but I’m sure she figured it out by my two ER visits this year
The other thing is finding something that INTERESTS the heck out of you. When I find something incredible to dream about, HA can't compete. I really think a large chunk of HA is that sufferers are creative or imaginative people but also kind of bored. If you can find THE THING that interests you and gives you lots to mull over, plan, and do, IME HA subsides quite a bit.
I find this is so true...I'm suffering from stomach pains at the moment that have me worried about stomach cancer/pancreatic cancer and it's been rough for a few months now. I also find myself distracted when I'm with my family and kids and it sucks.
The only thing that helps (and somehow magically makes the pains go away!) is to get something to totally occupy your mind. For me it's roller skating because I just started and when I'm trying I literally can't think about anything else because it's so hard! :huh:
But distraction I guess is just the first step to this process. I still haven't dealt with the things causing my anxiety/HA.
For me it's roller skating because I just started and when I'm trying I literally can't think about anything else because it's so hard! :huh:
Excellent! I am a child of the 70s so roller skating is where it's at for me lol! I rediscovered roller skating in my early 40s and I have seriously still got it out there in the rink, forwards, backwards, circles, leg extentions. Once you get it, you never lose it...so...keep going!!!!!
Trying to get over my HA is what led me to start a business!! It was slow at first, and didn't make a ton of money, but I loved it anyway. Then, today, I just found out I just scored a big client....so, THANK YOU HEALTH ANXIETY, lol
Excellent! I am a child of the 70s so roller skating is where it's at for me lol! I rediscovered roller skating in my early 40s and I have seriously still got it out there in the rink, forwards, backwards, circles, leg extentions. Once you get it, you never lose it...so...keep going!!!!!
Trying to get over my HA is what led me to start a business!! It was slow at first, and didn't make a ton of money, but I loved it anyway. Then, today, I just found out I just scored a big client....so, THANK YOU HEALTH ANXIETY, lol
Awesome!
I'm an 80s child and went to rinks as a kid and was comfortable but never really that good at it. Always wanted to be though. Never too late right?:)
Lately I find my HA or maybe my age just makes me want to go for stuff: roller coasters, check; dye hair crazy colors, check; get up at 4am with the kids to watch a rocket launch, check; start archery,check.
It's not what I've spent the last 18 years doing, consumed with scary thoughts and terrified of changes. I'm not gonna go nuts, but I feel like the less you let the fears of anything get the better of you maybe the more you can apply that to HA. I'm definitely a work I progress though.
My kids now want me to ride Kangda Ka at six flags New Jersey. :ohmy:
Hi Katniss I've had HA most of my life and I'm 64 now!!! BUT I've finally started thinking that all the illnesses etc I thought I had for all those years I never had!! Which helps me now and ironically I am at an age when I may well have reason to think I have illnesses starting! (Though am currently terrified of dementia having said that!!) Try to engage with your family I do know how hard it is to tear yourself away from your constant thinking but it will help and, take it from me googling will just terrify you and it gives very general and biased information. I'm probably not much help but please don't make the mistakes I made during my life by letting this take over your life I missed out on having children as I was convinced I would die after childbirth and never had them.
:)
Thank you for your responses. Lancslass, thank you for such a genuine and open message. I think about that as well and it scares me that I’m wasting my youth worried and anxious. Anything can happen to anyone but we don’t have to stop living because we are afraid of it happening to us.
I recently opened up about my issues to my husband and mom. They had known I was a worrier and could see that I would get anxious about my health whenever a symptom went on for too long, but they didn’t know the extent of my anxiety. The conversation with them really helped. I guess I have always kept the nitty gritty to myself because I was too embarrassed to share my weakness. But it helped to hear their thoughts. Both agreed that I would benefit from professional help. Is there anything else that can be done before that? I’m not embarrassed to see help or anything. I just wanted to try curing myself before I go out of my way to see someone.
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