catwithnotail
30-03-11, 00:06
Hello,
Just discovered your site on one of a frequently-occurring "i'm dying" symptom searches. Just going to jump right in with myself here, and hope that maybe I might get some helpful advice or support.
I'm a 37 year old man and I've been plagued with hypochondria and anxiety for most of my life.
Normally this comes out as a constant nagging phobia of cancer - I smoke, gave up once, but ended up smoking again after a year. I dwell on mortality far too often, and last year after a really quite bad attack of thinking about death on a daily basis I had a very brief course of Citalopram (20mg). This sorted out the immediate issue which was starting to really dominate my thoughts - since coming off I haven't been as bad again, but the nagging thoughts often pop into my mind. The negative thoughts make me more stressed which just makes me want to smoke more (I've read Alan Carr, and I know this isn't really helpful thinking!)
Looking at the sidebar here, I've got a fairly standard range of side-effect type problems. I have IBS, which started when I was about 15, has occurred in bouts through my adult life, and now seems to be a near constant presence of bloating, wind and morning uncomfortable cramping. Oddly the cramping is much worse if I'm not sleeping in my own bed or I'm sharing my bed with someone. That really makes holidays difficult.
I've had panic attacks throughout my life and night terrors during one really stressful time of my life - but it's the constant fear of cancer and death which really get me down. I wouldn't class myself as depressed, and other than the troubling thoughts and hypochondria, I actually think I'm quite a cheerful person.
Just as a bit of background, I lost both my parents at a fairly young age - my Dad died of a heart attack at 41 and my mum 9 years ago at the age of 61 of complications from gall stones (acute pancreatitis). I don't dwell too much on their deaths, but the closer I get to my Dad's age, the more scared I get. That fear is becoming self-reinforcing, as I'm getting more and more worried about how I will cope when I turn 40.
Anyway, just putting this out there as a bit of catharsis - it'd be nice to hear from anyone who has gone through similar things and has any advice on ways to manage or alleviate some of the underlying problems. I should say I'm a bit of a skeptic when it comes to alternative therapies though!
Thanks for reading.
Just discovered your site on one of a frequently-occurring "i'm dying" symptom searches. Just going to jump right in with myself here, and hope that maybe I might get some helpful advice or support.
I'm a 37 year old man and I've been plagued with hypochondria and anxiety for most of my life.
Normally this comes out as a constant nagging phobia of cancer - I smoke, gave up once, but ended up smoking again after a year. I dwell on mortality far too often, and last year after a really quite bad attack of thinking about death on a daily basis I had a very brief course of Citalopram (20mg). This sorted out the immediate issue which was starting to really dominate my thoughts - since coming off I haven't been as bad again, but the nagging thoughts often pop into my mind. The negative thoughts make me more stressed which just makes me want to smoke more (I've read Alan Carr, and I know this isn't really helpful thinking!)
Looking at the sidebar here, I've got a fairly standard range of side-effect type problems. I have IBS, which started when I was about 15, has occurred in bouts through my adult life, and now seems to be a near constant presence of bloating, wind and morning uncomfortable cramping. Oddly the cramping is much worse if I'm not sleeping in my own bed or I'm sharing my bed with someone. That really makes holidays difficult.
I've had panic attacks throughout my life and night terrors during one really stressful time of my life - but it's the constant fear of cancer and death which really get me down. I wouldn't class myself as depressed, and other than the troubling thoughts and hypochondria, I actually think I'm quite a cheerful person.
Just as a bit of background, I lost both my parents at a fairly young age - my Dad died of a heart attack at 41 and my mum 9 years ago at the age of 61 of complications from gall stones (acute pancreatitis). I don't dwell too much on their deaths, but the closer I get to my Dad's age, the more scared I get. That fear is becoming self-reinforcing, as I'm getting more and more worried about how I will cope when I turn 40.
Anyway, just putting this out there as a bit of catharsis - it'd be nice to hear from anyone who has gone through similar things and has any advice on ways to manage or alleviate some of the underlying problems. I should say I'm a bit of a skeptic when it comes to alternative therapies though!
Thanks for reading.