skippy66
22-03-20, 10:19
I heard someone on TV yesterday saying that health anxiety is increasing rapidly due to the current crisis.
Health anxiety in itself is a harmless condition - but it's knock-on effects are debilitating and cost the UK NHS (and health systems across the world) MILLIONS every year.
At this time, the last thing we need is our health service being further burdened by an increase in health anxiety cases which leads to many unnecessary doctor's appointments and expensive tests.
We need to pull together and stop this.
As someone who suffered from health anxiety for many, many years, and completely recovered without needing either therapy or medication, I can tell you that..
YOU CAN BEAT THIS.
And you WILL beat this. Because right now as a country (and a civilisation), we need to be doing all we can to free up time and NHS/health service resources for people who really need it.
"But I really need it" I hear you say..."I am convinced I have a brain tumour/ALS/insert deadly illness".
I absolutely understand your mindset right now, because I have been there. And right now I know you are terrified about maybe catching the virus, or even worse, not being able to receive hospital treatment for your brain tumour/whatever.
So anything I write here is not going to convince you that you just have severe health anxiety. I understand that. It took me roughly 7 years to realise that I had health anxiety. I ignored doctors and forum posters for years.
All I am asking is that you open your mind to the possibility that what you have is health anxiety, and that you are prepared to try one thing to help both yourself, and the world, right now.
I have written a book on how I recovered. The link is in my signature & it helps pay for my livelihood. But I am going to start posting extracts/chapters from the book on this forum thread so that I can try to help alleviate your fears and worries, without you having to buy the book.
All I am asking is that you give this a try.
I am also happy to answer as many questions as I can via PM or on this thread. I hope older forum members will vouch for me, although I am NOT a medical professional and I will not be doling out any kind of medical advice whatsoever. I am just going to share how bad my health anxiety was, and how I found a way out of it.
Thanks for reading, and best wishes in these troubling (but manageable) times.
Health anxiety in itself is a harmless condition - but it's knock-on effects are debilitating and cost the UK NHS (and health systems across the world) MILLIONS every year.
At this time, the last thing we need is our health service being further burdened by an increase in health anxiety cases which leads to many unnecessary doctor's appointments and expensive tests.
We need to pull together and stop this.
As someone who suffered from health anxiety for many, many years, and completely recovered without needing either therapy or medication, I can tell you that..
YOU CAN BEAT THIS.
And you WILL beat this. Because right now as a country (and a civilisation), we need to be doing all we can to free up time and NHS/health service resources for people who really need it.
"But I really need it" I hear you say..."I am convinced I have a brain tumour/ALS/insert deadly illness".
I absolutely understand your mindset right now, because I have been there. And right now I know you are terrified about maybe catching the virus, or even worse, not being able to receive hospital treatment for your brain tumour/whatever.
So anything I write here is not going to convince you that you just have severe health anxiety. I understand that. It took me roughly 7 years to realise that I had health anxiety. I ignored doctors and forum posters for years.
All I am asking is that you open your mind to the possibility that what you have is health anxiety, and that you are prepared to try one thing to help both yourself, and the world, right now.
I have written a book on how I recovered. The link is in my signature & it helps pay for my livelihood. But I am going to start posting extracts/chapters from the book on this forum thread so that I can try to help alleviate your fears and worries, without you having to buy the book.
All I am asking is that you give this a try.
I am also happy to answer as many questions as I can via PM or on this thread. I hope older forum members will vouch for me, although I am NOT a medical professional and I will not be doling out any kind of medical advice whatsoever. I am just going to share how bad my health anxiety was, and how I found a way out of it.
Thanks for reading, and best wishes in these troubling (but manageable) times.