Techniques for putting aside testing anxiety?

[lofwyr]

So I had my annual physical last week, and doing the associated blood work tomorrow morning. Normally this would be no big deal for me at all. Go in, give the blood, head home and check my chart later in the day.

The thing is, just over a year ago, my routine physical turned into anything but a routine physical. I ended up with a very serious diagnosis that I will deal with for the remainder of my life. This diagnosis would have absolutely killed me had it not been caught when it was, so I swore never to skip an annual physical again.

So here I am, and I should say I have no reason to think my blood work will have anything wrong, but last year rattled the cage, so to speak. I hadn't expected anything to be wrong then either, and boy was that a surprise 😏

What I am wondering is how you cope with test anxiety when you don't necessarily have anything wrong, but have that nagging feeling in the back of your mind? I get loads of medical tests each year for the diagnosis and none of them bother me, because I know what to expect. The random screenings now, for the first time, bother me. Any tricks in your toolbox to get past test anxiety whenever you have no reason to really be anxious?

[ErinKC]

I think it's normal for you to be feeling this way based on your history. This is a rational, trauma-related reaction. First, don't beat yourself up for being scared. While a lot of health anxiety tends to be totally out of the blue/irrational (I'm guilty of this!), I think yours is a completely normal human reaction. Try to keep telling yourself that you're medical condition is managed, under control, and you're in regular contact with doctors. So, the chance that something new and unknown would pop up in routine blood work is not likely.

Anticipatory anxiety is so hard to deal with, so the best thing to do is just get the test over with ASAP. Make sure not to cancel or reschedule the appointment. And, in the meantime try to distract yourself with other things as best you can! Good luck!

[lofwyr]

Thanks, appreciate the answer, and it speaks the logic my brain needed to hear, so again, I appreciate it. As an aside, all results normal, save for another 10 points of cholesterol, but what are you going to do? ;-)

[ErinKC]

Great to hear!!

[coastgirl]

I am the same as you...I had a diagnosis "confirmed" so to speak although it wasn't as serious as yours sounds. Aka it wouldn't have necessarily killed me.


Anyway if I were you I would do the lightning doesn't strike twice thing. Like, if you hit the lottery for that condition, you're probably not going to hit another lottery for another condition, especially so soon.