How to control health anxiety?

[BamaGirl]

Hey everyone. I've been anxious and panicking about my health for a while now...every pain or symptom sends me to Google...of course cancers and things come up. Currently I'm convinced my kidneys are failing because about an hour ago a sharp pain went through my back...both sides feel achy but also my period will be starting soon and it's now feeling like pains from that...literally just broke down crying about my kidneys...I have a chronic vestibular disorder but I'm always thinking it's a tumor or I'm gonna have a stroke...literally can't stop thinking I'm dying...even though I feel energetic and am a goodweight for my height and I'm young. How are we to control health anxiety!?

[AMomentofClarity]

First and foremost, stay off google! Nothing good ever comes of it! I’m quite sure in the history of the internet, nobody has ever researched a symptom and come away feeling better.

[BamaGirl]

First and foremost, stay off google! Nothing good ever comes of it! I’m quite sure in the history of the internet, nobody has ever researched a symptom and come away feeling better.

Yesss very true!! Ughhh

[jray23]

Indeed. Cross Google off your list of things to do!

I'm sure your vestibular disorder isn't doing you any favors. I've developed one (hopefully not chronic) this year and for the first (and worst!) couple of months it sent my HA recovery back into a hellish downward spiral back to square one for awhile (which brought me back to NMP!). From my understanding of vestibular problems, increased anxiety is often a normal "complication".

What's helped for me are a few things:

- Reminding myself that I've been checked out and a "benign" cause has been found (vaguely anyway), not any tumor or serious stuff

- No negative self-talk about 'failing' to manage my anxiety. It's a normal side effect of the physical condition I have, it isn't my "fault"

- Walking. Even, and especially, when it's physically harder to do due to symptoms.

- Self care, i.e. sleep well, no caffeine, try to reduce stress, etc.

- Although I haven't gotten in the habit yet, meditation has helped

- And lastly and possibly most importantly, I've come to accept that I don't need to have an explanation for every symptom I feel. It may be hard to get to that point, and I'm sure there are certain symptoms that will be tougher for me to accept than others, but this is an important realization

On a vestibular note, if you don't/haven't already, ask your doctor about doing Vestibular Rehab Therapy exercises (VRT). If it reduces your "real" symptoms, that should also reduce your anxiety.



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[BamaGirl]

Indeed. Cross Google off your list of things to do!

I'm sure your vestibular disorder isn't doing you any favors. I've developed one (hopefully not chronic) this year and for the first (and worst!) couple of months it sent my HA recovery back into a hellish downward spiral back to square one for awhile (which brought me back to NMP!). From my understanding of vestibular problems, increased anxiety is often a normal "complication".

What's helped for me are a few things:

- Reminding myself that I've been checked out and a "benign" cause has been found (vaguely anyway), not any tumor or serious stuff

- No negative self-talk about 'failing' to manage my anxiety. It's a normal side effect of the physical condition I have, it isn't my "fault"

- Walking. Even, and especially, when it's physically harder to do due to symptoms.

- Self care, i.e. sleep well, no caffeine, try to reduce stress, etc.

- Although I haven't gotten in the habit yet, meditation has helped

- And lastly and possibly most importantly, I've come to accept that I don't need to have an explanation for every symptom I feel. It may be hard to get to that point, and I'm sure there are certain symptoms that will be tougher for me to accept than others, but this is an important realization

On a vestibular note, if you don't/haven't already, ask your doctor about doing Vestibular Rehab Therapy exercises (VRT). If it reduces your "real" symptoms, that should also reduce your anxiety.



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Oh thank you so much! I'm glad you understand vestibular disorders. And yes I have exercises to do for vrt I just forget to do them sometimes :( which is probably why everything is bad again as far as the panic. I really need to get in the habit of doing them.

[MagpieWitch]

I also found that if I can't stop myself from googling, I should read up about my disorder, about anxiety in general or health anxiety or depression instead of looking for illnesses and symptoms.

[Pea Tear Griffin]

I have made myself worse every time I have Googled my symptoms

[BamaGirl]

I have made myself worse every time I have Googled my symptoms

Yess me too! I start reading and then rare diseases come up...then I start to really worry...

[AMomentofClarity]

Yess me too! I start reading and then rare diseases come up...then I start to really worry...

That’s the thing, on Google a headache is NEVER just a headache....even though in real life a headache is pretty much ALWAYS just a headache.

[Pea Tear Griffin]

That’s the thing, on Google a headache is NEVER just a headache....even though in real life a headache is pretty much ALWAYS just a headache.

Yup I googled morning headache and now I have scared myself shitless that I have a brain Tumour