Cancer Phobia/Severe Health Anxiety

[CrazyCool]

I have severe health anxiety - whenever I have any ache or pain - I always run to the doctor or emergency room - because I am convinced it's cancer.

I have a tooth that has a failed root canal, so I was put on antibiotics to clear up the infection - I started feeling hot during the course of antibiotics - so I did the worst thing you could possibly do, I searched the internet and yes it could be a sign of various forms of cancer, I also read for Hodgins you would itch all over - so yestereday I started itching... deep down I know it's anxiety, but my logic doesn't prevail when I feel like this. This month I have thought I had leukemia, breast cancer and now Hodgkins - I feel so helpless.

[nomorepanic]

Welcome aboard the forum.

Health Anxiety is a nightmare and most of us at some time or another do the fatal Google search and end up with all kinds of illnesses.

Start by reading these pages ..

www.nomorepanic.co.uk/healthanxiety
www.nomorepanic.co.uk/symptoms

It may reasssure you somewhat.

Nicola

"Nearly all happiness comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open"

[dizzydruid]

Hi,
sorry cant offer much advice on this one but you are definately not alone. I am like you I think the worst with every little pain I have. It started mainly with throat problems I convinced myself it was cancer but it turned out to be anxiety causing the problems. I still get thraot problems every now and then and it is a struggle to not allow myself to start thinking its cancer! In the last 6 months I have been convinced I have had throat cancer, brain tumor, stomach cancer, any form of pain in my legs makes me think I'm about to drop dead from thrombosis. At the moment I keep getting a pain in one of my breast and I'm trying hard not to convince myself its cancer.
I am slightly better than I was in that I dont immediately panic at the first sign of pain and I try my hardest to resist internet searches on sypmtoms now. This site has been a great help in helping me make the first steps out of my anxiety hell.
At first I put up loads of posts saying I thought I had some terrible illness and got loads of friendly advice and support. When I first came on here I thought I was helpless too but now I feel a bit more in control.

lucy x

[strawberrie]

hi crazy,

welcome to the forum, like lucy i havent really got any advice as i don't seem to be able to overcome this problem either, but just to let you know that other people feel exactly the same as you.

I also obsess over my health and think every symptom is cancer, it really gets me down, and i have had times when i have felt that i am worrying my life away. The only thing that has helped me a little was to make a list in my head of all the symptoms i have had that i thought were cancer and whenever i get a new symptom i do my best to tell myself that it never was cancer before. As i'm sure you can imagine my list was so long i had huge difficulty remembering all of my various symptoms! [:I]

I have also felt a lot better coming to this forum and going to chat too and realising i'm not the only person that feels this way. It would be nice to see you in chat sometime. :D

take care,
mag xxx

[gem]

Hi, you are not alone in feeling like this. Every time somethings wrong with me i think the worst and think i have cancer, if i get a headache or my eyes hurt i think it's a brain tumor.

Have you seen a councellor about your fears?

[Meg]

contiuously obsessed with dying (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2691)
'what if this is it this time thoughts' (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4694)
CONSTANT CHECKING (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4795)
can someone reasure me? (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=3931)
Fear of tumour... (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4890)
25, new to the site & would LOVE SOME ADVICE ! (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5171)
Holiday broke the vicious cycle (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5181)




Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

Your anxiety is the human representation of the pictures that you paint using your many vivid colours of revolving and reoccurring thoughts.
How big is your gallery ?

[daisy6]

hi there, i am just new to this site. Like yourself, i worry constantly about my health, and have for years, i also feel im worrying my life away, and i get extremely frustrated, depressed and fed up, but no matter how hard i try i cant seem to get a hold of it. Have tried various treatments, but am even to scared to take too many pills or try new ones. I worry alot about cancer, brain tumours, heart attacks etc etc. It is nice to find this site and feel like i am not the only one, it is somewhat of a relief. I have been to the emergency room often too, and my doctor knows me too well. I do now have some health problems like IBS and gastritis, tired alot, headaches, period problems, and that is all evidence to me, that im falling to bits. Do you get health problems too that are made worse by your anxiety?

[Meg]

Yes you do Daisy and no its not you falling to bits, its mainly exacerbation due to anxiety, if you could lower your anxiety levels these health issues would improve too.

http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/symptoms.htm
http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/healthanxiety.htm




Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

Your anxiety is the human representation of the pictures that you paint using your many vivid colours of revolving and reoccurring thoughts.
How big is your gallery ?

[nomorepanic]

Daisy

Just wanted to welcome you to the site and I hope we can be of some help.

Nicola

"Nearly all happiness comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open"

[smerin]

Hey guys, wanted to post my own experiences on
this thread because health anxiety is a subject very close to my heart :) and if i can help or ease one persons symptoms or anxiety ill be happy.
Ok so first a little about me, im a 29 year old female with a fabulous husband (got married in sept) and 2 gorgeous kids. We live a comfortable lifestyle and i have a great support network that affords me a great social life. Sounds like i have no cause for concern right ?? well for me this is not the case. My problems started after i had my first child 4 years ago, before this point i can not remember ever being overly concerned with my health at all quite the opposite in fact! After having my son i remember just "not feeling right" my throat muscles felt sore and i had a slightly hard gland in my neck then the magic thought "oh no how awful would it be if i had cancer" bang it was like flicking a switch. My symptoms intensified until i felt like i was choking every time i ate my neck muscles felt constantly sore (now i realise this was from tension.....a huge problem for me) i went to the doctors lots and was prescribed antibiotics over and over i googled constantly and was convinced that i had something so seriously wrong with me i only had months to live. Then the thoughts of i don't know if ill be here this time next year? what will my partner do without me and so it goes on. After a period of around 4 month the symptoms eventually faded away (almost feel like my brain gets bored of thinking about it) only to be replaced with another weird symptom. This new one was an over awareness of my ribs on one side (i know that sounds weird but people with health anxiety will know that symptom description is often ambiguous at best) i realised that my ribs on the left side stuck out more than the right side. Cue an obsession, i prodded felt them and made them incredibly sore was sent for an x ray only to be told everything was fine. This calmed my anxiety some what. Then i got a urine infection, even after i had finished the antibiotic course the feeling of needing to urinate often was still there and a stinging in my urethra. 7 courses of antibiotics later (googling every half hour to see if it was bladder cancer) i was refereed to a specialist, kidney scan internal bladder exam (ouch) and guess what??? nothing! as you would expect my checking behaviours and anxiety levels were through the roof whilst waiting for my bladder exam ect...... which intensified my symptoms making my anxiety worse (seeing a pattern yet?).
Over the last 4 years including the 2 detailed things i have mentioned above i have either been utterly convinced or extremely worried that i have had.
* skin cancer (numerous occasions recurring worry for me)
* M.S
* brain tumour
* horrendous muscle wasting disease
* bi-polar
* d.v.t
* throat cancer
* hodgkins lymphoma
* stomach cancer
* bone cancer
* congenital heart defect
* glycoma
* breast cancer
* cervical cancer
and there have probably been more that ive forgotten about. Along with this and the constant seeking reassurance from family members, internet and doctors is it any wonder that around 6 months ago (as i was in the middle of planning my wedding a factor which i am sure contributed to the episode) i had a huge panic attack and ended up sobbing to my partner. It started with a tiny red mark on my arm, i obsessed about the mark for weeks checking and re checking googling moles and skin cancer avoiding going to my doctor as i was convinced he would give me bad news!!!
It got to the point were i was so distressed by the mark i had a high level of anxiety all the time was crying at the drop of a hat. My partner came home from work one day and i just crumbled, i was crying hysterically and hyperventilating. Eventually after a lot of coaxing he got me to make a doctors appointment. Along i went feeling stupid and sick with nerves, i sat and it all came tumbling out along with a lot of tears! My doctor referred me to a cognitive behavioural therapist and i cant begin to tell you how much this has helped.
She has helped me understand my anxiety and the triggers for it, just understanding the reasons i feel the way i do has helped immensely and also helped me to be objective (something that anyone with anxiety struggles with) I would also like to say that although my anxiety is predominantly health related i do also get anxious about other things. Money relationships my kids ect.......
So the main aim of me writing here was to tell people that there is help out there! i have been in therapy for 5 months now. Its hard work and i still have the anxiety just not at the same level it was before and i cope so much better with it!! At the moment im anxious as i have pain and weakness in my leg and back (doctor says its syatica) obviously my first worry was muscle wasting, however yesterday i had a completely anxiety free day :) something that has not happened in a long time. Anyway getting better takes baby steps but you will never know till you take that first step! please don't suffer in silence there is so much help available.....i could go on for hours and hours but i think you would get bored eventually lol
Hope this helps people or they at least identify with it and realise they are not alone .....peace and love xxxxx

[Fred Speed]

Hi everyone I'm afraid I'm the same. At the moment it's lung cancer ( I'm 32 and a former smoker otherwise in good health so unlikely!) last month it was bowel cancer ( had one episode of mucus in my stool) and the month before it was breast cancer (pain in left breast although i was due on my period). Went to see my gp on Friday who has referred me for some CBT so I'm hoping there is light at the end of the tunnel

I try to have a moment of calm every now and then where I tell myself it's not cancer it's anxiety and that seems to help.

I also have just got married and have a great hubby and life so who knows where it comes from!!

Xx

[Worrymummy]

This is me!!!!! All of it! It's like reading something I wrote! Thank you x:hugs:

[Nicola70373]

Hi, I know this is an old thread, I've just read your story and mine is so similar it's freaky, I've been given the number for a behavioural therapist and I'm inspired to call them, thank you for making me feel I'm not alone. X

[ktdid2000]

OMG, I could have written your post!

It seems like a lot of us on here struggle with the "Big C" fear. I'm glad you called it a phobia because its really starting to feel like that for me.

When I started out with health anxiety almost 16 years ago (!) I had frequent panic attacks and I focused more on those body symptoms - the tingling, numbness, feeling "out of it", hard breathing, etc. I went into remission for a good 5 years or so and sort of felt like I had put it to rest. I got busy with moving and grad school and my first baby and worried about stuff other than my body.

Then a few years ago I started having health anxiety again but this time about chronic/terminal illnesses, mainly cancer. I don't have the panic attack symptoms for the most part anymore, instead I worry about what might be "lurking under the surface" waiting to show its ugly head and kill me. Around this time I noticed I had an extreme uncomfortableness with uncertainty of any kind, so I guess that's why my HA now takes this form. Either way, it sucks.

I keep reading cancer blogs and stories about people being diagnosed with cancer or fighting cancer and they all scare me. I also makes me feel terrible since other people want to help and here I am basically just glad it isn't me but worrying that one day it might be! It's like rubbernecking a car accident. I haven't gone to the doctor too much so far - but I have had a chest x-ray after being concerned about lung cancer and a breast ultrasound worried about breast cancer. I usually sneak it in by going in complaining about an actual symptom (coughing, pain) so they'll check it out and not ignore me. I can see this escalating though - I'm already worried about breast cancer again since my baby bit me while breastfeeding a week ago and my right breast hurts so bad! (of course its not the biting, right!?)

Anyway - just know you're not alone! I found CBT to be immensely helpful in getting me to remission for those 5 years and I think I might have to go back. I've fallen off the wagon again. :(