Feel like I'm dying
Posted , 3 users are following.
Hi there, I feel like I'm dying. I have a history of health related anxiety and ocd. I was on meds for it but stopped about 1 yr ago because I felt like I was doing good. About 13 days ago I had a panic attack and thought I was having a heart attack. I went to the er and they ran 2 ekgs and checked my troponin levels twice to make sure I wasn't having a heart attack. I was released with no answers other than I did not have a heart attack. Since then my anxiety has been so crippling. I couldn't leave the house, couldn't sleep, focus.. Etc. I made an appointment with my pcp to discuss meds and a referral to a psychologist but before I made it there ended up in the er on Thursday thinking I was having a brain Aneurysm. I wasn't. It was a migraine. The Dr treated me with what the hospital calls a "migraine cocktail" and was released after 1hr. Thank God. I saw my pcp on Friday and he put me on a med I was on for my ocd called fluvoxamine and Buspar for anxiety and he ran a panal of labs on me, the results will be in on Tuesday. I just can't get it out of my head that I'm dying. Every pain and any feeling in my head means death and I don't know how much longer I can take. The feeling of impending doom has completely consumed me.
0 likes, 4 replies
jan34534 jennyss2159
Posted
i’m so sorry you are going through this Jenny. Health anxiety as we all know here, is a horrible thing to have.
It’s important to be aware that health anxiety causes fearful and negative thoughts that are not based on reality or fact. They are based on emotion which is fear.
When we become aware of that we can then start to alter the way we react to sensations in the body. yes they are scary I know that for sure but it’s important to remember the facts.
up to this point your testing has all been normal. That is a fact.
The head pain was a migraine. It was not an aneurysm. So far there is no reason to believe you are dying as you say. Keep reminding yourself of these things.
remember panic can cause the feeling of impending doom. Once again that doom is not based on reality or fact.
i will bet that your labs are going to be normal also.
another fact is that people have all kinds of aches and pains all over their body with the vast majority being absolutely not serious.
you can’t live your life with this type of fear. It’s just too miserable. What I had to do is I had to just let it all go and trust that I am healthy enough., Even with an ache here or a pain there. I get my yearly physical check up and when that’s OK, I just get on with my life. Any day you spend with worry is it day lost forever!
are you having any kind of counseling? If not I would recommend that.
listen to some meditations for over thinking, anxiety, etc. they are on YouTube. Get some support for this.
Life is too short to spend in fear.. Don’t miss out on the beauty of your life. Enjoy the present moment!
jennyss2159 jan34534
Posted
Hi Jan, thank you so much for responding. You're absolutely right about what I know for a fact. It does give me some piece of mind knowing what I am negative for, it's the many many other things that I can possibly have. I just feel like if there is any chance of me having some terrible 1 in a trillion disease, it would me to have it. I pray all of my labs come back OK. I'm supposed to be starting my fluvoxamine today for my ocd which has been extremely useful in the past but I'm nervous about all of the negative side effects that come along with starting an ssri, those side effects would just add to the laundry list of ailments I have now that make me feel as though death is in my near future. I'm laying down right now talking to my sis as she struggles with the health anxiety /ocd just not as severe as I do and while I'm laying here I feel like my chest is hurting, I'm having shooting pains in my head and a weird pain in my left leg. Nights are definitely the worse and I've found myself getting less and less sleep ever night but when I wake up in the morning I am relieved that I made it another night I wish u had the courage you do to just be confident in your clean bill of health and actually be able to enjoy these beautiful days of life. I want that. I pray it will be mine very soon!
lee59447 jennyss2159
Posted
i have been going through the same thing recently 1st i thought i was having a heart attack tests came back fine then had bad headaches so thought it was a brain tumour or Aneurysm but test s came back as severe health anxiety i wasnt sleeping because thought i was going to die in my sleep wasnt eating it was draining me now i am on propanol and sertaline which at 1st made things 10 times worse but now they are slowly helping me each day gets better its still a struggle with bad side affects but i just keep telling myself its anxiety and side affects i hope u feel better soon im here if ever need to talk
jennyss2159 lee59447
Posted
Hi, looks like I made it through the night. Thank God. I hate the nights, they are the best/worst. The worst bc the falling asleep process lasts forever and I'm convinced I'm not going to wake up the next morning yet the best bc when I am asleep, I don't have anxiety. So far my day seems to be off to a better start than yesterday but it's still early. I am supposed to start my luvox today but as you stated, it made ur anxiety worse at first which I'm so afraid of. I feel like it's already a 10/10 I don't know how much more I can endure but I know how much the med helped me in the past. I hate this. I am supposed to get my lab results back tomorrow,i hope that gives me some reassurance. I hope your day is great!