googling again,when will i ever learn

[crunchie01]

hi all,
ive been googling again,i really try hard not to but i just cant seem to help it.
ive been looking at nail cancer again and yes i have convinced myself i have it,even though the dr and 2 nail technicians have told me i havent,ive even rung cancer helpline and she has told me it is unlikely but im still convinced,why cant i trust my dr??what it is wrong with me,everyone keeps telling me to pull myself together but it is not that easy.on top of this ive also convinced myself ive got hiv from an incident 5 years ago.please help,any advice please.i am really making myself poorly with these worries

jennie xx

[Whiskers]

Hi Jennie,

As I sit here writing this I am wishing I was out enjoying my Saturday but I am the same as you - convincing myself I have one thing then another and so on. It's driving those around me up the wall and makes me feel like a real burden.

I know just what you mean about not believing professionals as well. I find I feel better for up to 24 hours and then I am back to square 1 again!

Please don't google (says the girl who has spent the last half hour doing just that). It's so easy for us to look in and tell you it's fine but I know how hard it is for you to believe.

If your doc has said not then you must listen to them as otherwise you will continue to give yourself a whole host of symptoms and move on to panic about something else!

Have you spoken to anyone about your HIV fears (a professional) who can help to reassure you?

Take care,
Sharon xxx

[crunchie01]

hi,
i have spoken to the terrence higgins trust who has told me that it is highly unlikely to catch hiv through one incidence she says its not impossible but it is unlikely and that it is not as common and 'catchable' as everyone seems to think because if it was then a lot more people would have it,she also said i would have had unusual symptoms by now which i havent,but these past few days ive had earache and a funny throat and ive started to wonder is this the start of me having symptoms.
i keep googling hoping that something will tell me im ok,but the drs have told me im ok and i dont believe them.
do you worry a lot about your health?
jennie xx

[amandaj]

hi jennie its the great wonderful health anxiety unfort playing games with you , im exactly same 24 hours a day you are fine anxiety is horrible with tricks it plays with pur head you ever need to talk feel free to pm me im always about

amandaxxxxxx

[crunchie01]

thank you so much,if you need to talk too pm me,im never far away.
drs can tell me im fine and then im ok for a couple of hours then it just starts again,the best time of day is as soon as i wake up because i have no worries but then a few minutes later it all comes back,this health anxiety is a nightmare
jennie xxxx

[skutter]

Ive just posted a message about google, it should be banned. Try not to worry i know its hard and no more google. i'll try too.

[Whiskers]

Hi Jennie,

Yes I worry a lot about my health but this obessiveness has mainly come on in the last few months or so. I know what you mean - we google hoping we will find more to feed our calm side and allay our fears but inevitably we see things that worry us more. The mind has this clever way of focusing on the negative points we see when we are googling and filtering out all the positive things.

It's so frustrating as when you step back from it you can see it all so clearly BUT it's so so hard to step back from!

xxx:)

[marie1974]

hi jennie noooooo googling, you will drive yourself mad honest. you are fine but i understand how u r feeling sending u big hug and mail me anytime xxxx

[kazzie]

Hey:D

When was the last time good news made the headlines?????:shrug:

Google is like the news will only show you the worst possible case scenario:ohmy:

Dont do it peeps:lac:

Kaz x x x:hugs:

[Alisonj]

It really is a horrible thing to health anxiety sufferers. My phychiatrist wants me to get rid of my internet connection so I wont google anymore. Thing is, there are always books etc.
Too much information can be a bad thing and an overload that we dont need. Try really hard to distract yourself anyway you can,

[AcroSplat]

We should really put a ban on googling symptoms. Some people have swear jars..... We all need a google jar ..... where you have to place a large amount of money into the jar each time you google a symptom.

Im pretty sure googling has made me worse .... Ive never realy had twitching muscels untill 2-3 weeks ago when i started googling. Ive even started to get fake twitches which i dont think are real. Think anxiety is playing tricks on me.

[mtatum4496]

One thing all of us must keep in mind when we sit down at the computer and begin to type in search criteria is that we can come across all sorts of data that may not have any relevance whatsoever to the purpose of our search.

When it comes to various health symptoms, I think I am safe in saying that unless the symptom happens to be a stab wound or a bullet in the tummy, there is a pretty good chance that the symptom in question can be connected to at least a hundred different causes.

Even when conducting a multiple keyphrase search, one is still likely to come up with dozens of possible ailments. That is simply the nature of search engines.

I understand the predilection to try to do for oneself and find helpful information. But when it comes to health matters, it is always best to find a doctor, have tests ran, get a solid diagnosis, and THEN take to the Internet to learn what you can from a qualfied source (such as the web site of a medical center) about your specific diagnosis.

I can't be too hard on search engines. After all, I found this messag board via a search engine, which I consider to be extremely good luck for me. But I can try to fight my urge to conduct searches that might lead me into diverse and unproductive paths, tempting though it may be. I think the idea of setting up our own "google jar" is an excellent one!

[iworryallthetime]

IM in a twiz today big time,.Im like a dog with a bone , have been googling and got myself in a state .
want to cry , i hate this feeling .......
iv convinced myself i have something very bad .....

[stanew]

Oooo I'm new here and am also a google-er, can get myself in a right state sometimes, which doesn't help with health anxiety - a little bit of knowlege can sometimes be a dangerous thing. But I keep telling myself in the long run leave it to the proffessionals they know what they are doing, you cant believe everything you read.