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Health anxiety

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marc91925
marc91925

Hi, my name is marc. I have been dealing with health anxiety for sometime now. About a year and a half ago my grandmother passed away and two months later had a major panic anxiety attack. I ended up in the hospital thinking I was having a heart attack but of course I wasn't. I was on medication for six months but got off of it because it made me feel just as bad as being off the meds. I've been able to deal with it and cope with it and do have my bad days. It's funny how it works anytime I get any odd pain I automatically think the worst even though I know it's probably a pulled muscle or just a headache. My mind goes to the worst possible scenario. Like last night for instance I had been asleep about an hour and all of a sudden woke up and felt like I couldn't breathe my shoulders got tight started to get lightheaded and knew I was having an anxiety attack but your mind goes to well you're probably dying. I know it's all a mind game but it's very tough to win over your mind. I found that exercise helps but I wonder sometimes if I will ever be able to feel completely normal again. I'm only 31 years old and don't have any family history of serious heart problems or stroke. This is been the toughest thing I've ever dealt with I'm never had any major surgeries or any kind of serious illness. Is there anybody else out there that feels this way.

1 like, 25 replies

25 Replies

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  • bambi0781
    bambi0781 marc91925

    Posted

    Hey Marc,

    You're not alone....I'm exactly the same, I have been suffering with health anxiety for about a year now.

    I fell of my horse and broke my wrist, but suffer with headaches and automatically assume that I've got a tumour. Before the accident I never ever used to worry about my health but now it's all I can think about.

    I'm 33 and like you wonder if this is my life now!

    • marc91925
      marc91925 bambi0781

      Posted

      Exactly. You wonder if when you feel pain if you're mine will just say that's just pain not something is going seriously wrong with you. When it happens I get head rushes I feel kind of week and it's pretty discouraging. Seeing as how I still work out a few times a week run a mile and know that if I had a serious heart problem I wouldn't be able to do those things. But yet my brain wants to tell me otherwise. It can be very debilitating and ruin some parts of your life like going out with friends having a beer that sort of thing. Because you don't want anybody else to know what's going on.what I hope with time and working on thinking positive this will eventually go away
    • bambi0781
      bambi0781 marc91925

      Posted

      Truthfully I don't think that anxiety is something that goes away, but we just learn how to manage it and not let it consume our every thought.

      Just make sure you remain strong, don't let it not do things you want to do, as much as you don't feel like doing certain things sometimes force yourself you will feel better for it.

      I have actually found that talking to friends has helped so so much, and what I've really been surprised about is just how many of my friends have experienced anxiety in one way or another.

      Have you had CBT?

    • marc91925
      marc91925 bambi0781

      Posted

      No I have not had CBT but I've heard about it. I may look into it further. Yeah I am finding out it is surprising how many people have some form of anxiety. Yes I do need to push myself.
  • emily72720
    emily72720 marc91925

    Posted

    HI mark, I'm 29, I know exactly how you feel, I'm. Sat here now my heart is beating so fast (palpitations) I feel out of breathe because I'm very anxious and Im scared I'm having a heart attack, the only thing that is stopping me from having a full blown panic attack is that I my head I know i have felt like this before, I have my good days and bad day mines worse at the min as I'm nearly ready for.my women time of the month lol, we need to stay strong,everyone has anxiety but it depends on the severity of it, we will all learn how to control it and hopefully beat it xxxxxx
    • marc91925
      marc91925 emily72720

      Posted

      Yes I too have had the racing heart that is not fun at all the sweaty palms the headaches the feeling that you're not in control of your body. I hope you feel better and hopefully with practice this will get better
    • emily72720
      emily72720 marc91925

      Posted

      Yeah I've calmed down now thanks Marc, but you are not alone remember this, it's normal to have anxiety and we are not going mad with it lol even though it makes us feel like it, when u read other people comments it makes you feel better, Its always good to talk xxxx
  • greavsie7
    greavsie7 marc91925

    Posted

    YES ... COMPLETELY you are not are alone, there are many of us on here, some worse than others but we all relate in one way or another, I didn't suffer with health anxiety until 2 yrs ago, I found a mass in my breast and just well I can't explain it as it just happened so quick, my mind was doing over time always on Google thinking its the big C and what if this and that, until I had the scan and it was fine, normal tissue, then almost exactly a yr this yr I found a lump!! So of course it kicked of again with all its other ailments indigestion, aching, headaches the list goes on, anyway thankfully its was OK a well known medical condition, called a fibroadenoma, very common, I to am 31, but I have 2 children, so mostly this helps, they keep me occupied, I think we each have to find our own coping mechanisms, be it meds or natural, I'm more natural I think you can help yourself and have to keep telling myself this, eventually it gets me through, and I did have diazepam when it was at its worst, just to turn off for a little bit, but only at night just to sleep and only for about 2days, to each there own regarding meds, but just know your not on your own .😊
    • marc91925
      marc91925 greavsie7

      Posted

      It's nice to know that you're not alone. I've been to the doctor a few times over the last year and each time they tell me I'm healthy my heart sounds fine they done bloodwork. But for some reason my brain always comes back to there something wrong. Funny how that works.
    • marc91925
      marc91925 greavsie7

      Posted

      Do you get phantom pains in your chest, arms or headaches etc?
    • greavsie7
      greavsie7 marc91925

      Posted

      Yes all of that and more, it manifests in so many ways, I'd always think oh god something else, and went Dr's had bloods and a ct, but all good, the mind is a great healer keep telling yourself your OK, and find a way of dealing and coping with it, there's always some1 on here to chat to, if things get too bad .
  • christine46281
    christine46281 marc91925

    Posted

    Dear Marc.

    Yep you are not alone.

    I have had health anxieties and panic attacks for many years. They started when I was 18 years old and I am now 62.

    I have been in and out of troubles.

    I have just had a very bad attack triggered by bereavement and health problems of my own.

    I am now at an age where my fears are more liely to beccome real though and that is even harder.

    Take Care do not spend all of your life worrying it is short enough.

    Best Wishes

    Christine.

  • archemedes
    archemedes marc91925

    Posted

    I'm 70 marc and in my 30s I used to suffer from major anxiety/ panic attacks, so I do sympathise with what you are going through.

    Obviously I cannot tell you how to handle your particular problem, but in my case I did quite a bit of soul-searching to try and uncover what the trigger was, and why my mind was playing tricks on me.

    In my case I discovered that my problems were associated with the brutal treatment I received at the hands of my father when I was very young. He died in his early 60s, so by the time that I realised what the problem was it was too late to ask him why he had behaved in that way.

    As soon as I realised what the roots cause was the panic attacks subsided and have never reoccurred.

    I am definitely not saying that this situation is the same for you, but if you throw enough thought into it you might just uncover what is today causing these anxiety attacks.

    Good luck

    • marc91925
      marc91925 archemedes

      Posted

      Thank you for reply. Did you get phantom pains in your chest, arms, headaches etc?
    • archemedes
      archemedes marc91925

      Posted

      At one point I was dragged into hospital and put into intensive care for suspected heart attack, and my blood pressure went through the roof.

      Such were the anxiety attacks that I suffered with.

      I had lots of time to think while I was in hospital, and everything returned to normal once I uncovered the real reason for my stress.

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