So I've been told I have health anxiety (I don't know whether that's a diagnoses or what), down to the (as they put it) 'Many real Life-Or-Death, situations/being told I was about to have a heart attack/negligence of my GP surgery/nearly dying a few times', & now its confirmed I have it, I'm worrying that everyone will just say 'Oh its your health anxiety' or, think I'm a hypochondriac. The professional who told me I had it did say I'm not a hypochondriac & that its a real fear etc. but I can't help but feel like I am.
I don't know... I was just hoping someone could relate to feeling this way after they've been told they have health anxiety? & that I'm not alone.
Health Anxiety is another word for Hypochondria, but a lot of people get it due to unexplained physical symptoms which they worry about obsessively. It's kind of a form of OCD. I've not been diagnosed with it, but every time I get aches and pains I worry about it to the extent of googling my symptoms and worrying it's something fatal.
I guess it's a lot harder when you do have a lot of physical health issues going on because you don't really know which symptoms to get concerned about, and which ones to ignore.
Can you go back to your GP and discuss how you might manage this together?
Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes but when you look back, everything is different…
you once called your brain a hard drive, well say hello to the virus.
I've not heard of it Helen, but I can relate and go through periods of being quite worried about symptoms and even times when I can't even drink or eat at my work because I'm concerned about germs. Given that I work in disability group homes these concerns sometimes aren't founded but it doesn make you question and I'm always second-guessing whether anything is actually wrong when I go to the doctor. I don't know if this is how it is for you, but feelings are real to us inside and as such you're not making it up
So she lights up a candle for hope to be found
Captive and blind by the darkness around
Each wave a promise, a new hope reborn
Sunrise consoles at the break of dawn
I can relate to this. About four years ago I suddenly thought all sorts of things were wrong with certain areas of my body. I swore I could feel lumps, but nothing was there, and a variety of other things. It got to the point where I would go to my GP and she would ask, "when are you seeing your psychiatrist next?" before even examining me, though she would always tell me to schedule an appointment so I wouldn't panic even more if I thought something was wrong.
They told me it was anxiety manifesting itself in physical form. So basically, my mind was telling me I was anxious about something, but through "imagined" physical symptoms.
They feel extremely real and extremely frightening, and I have expressed to them that someday something really will be wrong but no one will believe me or know because of the "hypochondria".
I never had the real life or death experiences you had to precedent this, so I'm sorry if this isn't helpful. But you're not alone - it's extremely scary and frustrating and I often find myself questioning if any sensation at all that feels odd is something harmless or whether it is actually something after all.
I used to struggle with health anxiety/hypochondria so badly that I could barely leave the house for a while, so I understand how hard it can be. The best advice I can give is to rationalise things in your head and not let it get out of control because the more you panic, the more you will notice symptoms which will be being caused by the anxiety itself. It's a horrible cycle but one which you can cut into early on & stop before it goes into a full on panic attack.
Also, don't beat yourself up about it being 'hypochondria' - it's got such bad associations & sounds like attention seeking or whatever, but I know exactly how terrifying it can be & it's a real condition which can be incredibly hard to deal with - especially alongside everything else you struggle with.
I imagine that it's really scary where you've actually had the health risks previously, but I'm sure that if something really is wrong then somebody else will be able to pick up on it pretty quickly as well.
If you want to talk about it, feel free to message me on here or the book of face.
Take care hon. x
Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply.
I can really relate to the Anxiety manifesting itself into a physical symptom, I'm going through pretty heavy therapy at the minute & afterwards instead of feeling anxious about the therapy, I'll become anxious that I'm going to die. & its defiantly the physical symptoms making me anxious - I'll become short of breath before I even realise I'm anxious, & so when I'm short of breath, I'll become anxious about it & its all just a vicious circle!
Its defiantly a relief to know I'm not alone in this though,, thank you so much
It's an awful feeling Helen- I hope that you can break through it soon with the therapy. Sending love <3
So she lights up a candle for hope to be found
Captive and blind by the darkness around
Each wave a promise, a new hope reborn
Sunrise consoles at the break of dawn
The important thing is that you can relate it directly to the therapy & so know the cause of it, which will make it MUCH easier to rationalise I imagine.
Keep fighting & I really hope the therapy helps - you deserve it. :) x
I just wanted to add to keep mindful that whilst some symptoms (both physiological and psychological) will be manifestations of anxiety, you do also have very real health issues so don't disregard everything as health anxiety.
I don't know what sort of therapy you're having, but it might be worth spending some time identifying which of your experiences are due to health anxiety, and which are indicators of something that needs physical treatment.
