Not really HA but hope someone can advise :)

[jellybean43]

Hi
As some of you may remember I suffered really badily early in the year with HA.That is not to say i am ok now but i do have good and bad days whereas before they were all bad days!!
Anyhow, i am having CBT now and it is really helping! I still do have days when i feel my neck, groin, armpits etc etc and imagine the worse but I am trying my best not to check(and it is working) as often as i did. Also, I dont google anymore which has made a huge difference.
Right, this might sound stupid but I now realise(through the CBT) that I do also suffer from general anxiety too-----and this has been a part of my life since i was a kid. Something, I now understand was learnt from my parents and it isnt my fault(as i thought) that i suffer from anxiety!!
The thing is, I have been coping quite nicely with things---doing my own thing and just plodding along---til i get an invitation to a social occassion.
I totally hate eating meals with people i dont feel at ease with(that is why i dont go, if at all possible, to weddings, christening and things) and my bro, whom i dont see very often and to be honest dont really know, has invited OH and I out for lunch tomorrow. Also, our parents, who, as i explained when i first joined the forum, i havent had much to do with in ten years til this last year(probs a reason my HA kicked in again!!!!).I am soo dreading going!!I get "red, blotchy neck" when I am stressed and really find the whole thing very uncomfortable. My mum keeps saying that i am going for her and she wants me there(a long story but suffice to say she hadnt bothered with my family for ten years til last Xmas!) and i feel i have to go.
Any tips please to help me get through the day!!I am already feeling really tired just thinking about it all!!
Thanks in advance xx

[RosieXXX]

Hello jellybean,

It is great to hear you are doing so much better with your health anxiety; reducing the checking and googling definitely seems to help.

I can understand how you must be feeling about the lunch with family, but i think the anticipation is sometimes worse than the actual event, and you will probably find it will go much better than you imagine; i expect everyone will be wanting it to go well. Try to look at it as another step in your road to recovery - if you manage to have a successful meal out with family - even if you do feel a little bit uneasy - it will be a great confidence boost for you because you will have managed to control a situation which perhaps you feel might be out of your control. Sometimes when we run away from uncomfortable situations we feel worse than if we had faced them.

Hope all goes well for you.:hugs: