Health anxiety

Glad I found this site. I suffer from health anxiety every day. Right now i am worried about how my heart starts racing after the littlest exertion. Had a CT Scan of heart a few years ago, and it was fine, and now i am worried i have exposed myself to equivalent of 500 xrays. Am in my 60s. Sometimes i have good days without worry, but mostly i keep thinking of worst case scenarios. I've been told to meditate etc, but can't sit still long enough. Just had a friend breakup and it triggered shingles, so now on Acyclovir, and can't get off it otherwise it will reoccur. Today i saw the husband of the ex friend and he acted really strangely around me, and that triggered more anxiety. Don't know how to control my thoughts and stress. Any idea?

I have been having this problem a lot lately, i have been suffering with depression for a couple of years now, but this year has been my worst so far, but going back to your question, i fully understand what your going through if my boyfriend says somthing to me because iv done something wrong because he means loads to me i get a pain in my chest and i cant swallow or breath easy, feels like your going to have a heart attack. I dont know why iv been getting so uptight about small things but im glad im not the only one who feels like it  

Hi Laura,

I'm off the Acylovir, but last night I had  a dream about my ex best friend, the one I had the friends' breakup with...and it triggered the neuralgia again! I read that it takes 14 months to get over a heartbreak. And I can sympathesize with how you feel about your boyfriend. My sisters can do that to me. I am supposed to go visit them but they are acting weird, and it sets me back again. I feel I need more community and more friends. Isolation is not good for health anxiety.

hello ever one my name is majid as u guys can c i have a issue . about heart rate and im scared that may b i will gt heart attack and i almost did every eco and acg and all the thing i change 3 to 5 doc and i went to diff doc in dif countries and every one told me that u heart is normal and in my eco they show the heart power and myne was 78 which is realy best as a final result still lolz im worried about it i scared to have heart issues u know ever 5 mints i count my heart rate lolz its 75 to 89 its normal but my heart doc told me dnt take beta blocker u have no heart heart issue and u have stomatch issue which make u have panic attack anxiety attack. but still im not ok .. so now let me know how its beging . 5 years back whn i was 27 im muslim i was fasting . after break my fasting i feel fever and i to normal tablests for fever and still it was there thn i go to the doc he inject me some thing and i came back home n my heard weas painting so my grand mom check my bp with digital bp monitor. my bp was normal and heart rate 142 . i sad what is it true i just hold my cheast lolz and b4 the bp monitor i bacame too much panic and they tuk me 24 emergence doc say i cant fine any heart issue may b he is scare of panic or may b monitor shows wrong and he bcame panick bit i will give u some tests . eco n acg , thoride glind . and all result was normal but that thing is in my mind til 5 yeart still till today im like that i think i mad and i will die and my is like hell coz of this i dont know what to do . im not geting married coz of this i feel i will die in my married day if my heart race faster who will safe me  i wish i will b always b with doc . coz i feel doc can safe me that is my story  

if my heart is 120 and i will b near to hospitel i will be normal n heart rates come to 90 but some time i feel its 90 why its 90 why noyt its 75 and may b its about be b faster and i will there is no one near me i will die  

any one can tell me what to do my doc stop my beta blocker he sad i have no heart issue max i can take a tablet of anxiety stay bless every one allah bless u all ameen

Hi guys very new to all this, I have suffered with anxiety for at least 10 years on and off but I could control it but since December 2014 the anxiety is controlling me. I've now been told that it's health related anxiety and to be honest I think that's a cheap cop out. Everything now days is due to stress and anxiery but again my gp says that's exactly what health anxiety is. No matter what the issue we as health anxiety sufferers will always believe the worst case. For me in January I was at work and just came over with a feeling of doom went dizzy then chest arm and shortness of breath started. Went straight to A&E where they checked me over heart rate was high but nothing to worry about ecg was normal chest x Ray clear and all blood work normal so sent home thinking well I must be ok well no daily chest pain again I think all heart related seen 5 doctors at a&e and all 3 doctors at my practice none of them even suspect a heart problem. I have read hours and hours of internet about heart problems. Heart attacks survivers stories ect and in every single instance they were originally mis diagnosed so how the hell do we as NHS patients trust these doctors as women show very different symptoms to men. That's why so many women die. I had a row with an a&e doctor about the fact he said I was 2 young to be having a heart attack I'm a 30 year.old female. I theneed showed him 6 articles about women my age having heart attacks so he kindly pointed out that 1 the Internet is full.of lots of rubbish a lot of sites are not regulated by doctors or health professionals ect and anyone can make up anything also there is normally always a reason why someone so young to have a heart attack but theses stories never revealed the cause. I'm petrified of having a heart attack of habing to be in hospital alone. My gp is so sick of hearing me complain about my heart he has referred me to a cardioligist just to see if that will ease my mind at all but have to wait 6 weeks I.could be dead by then

I like to share my story ... I also had an anxiety episode for over 5 months ago and it all started because I lost control. I never had a problem handling a situation. However about 2 years ago I had ACL surgery, I bounced back in 9 months and started back to playing soccer ... But in March of 2015 I started getting pains in my knee ... Had an MRI done and DR said it was tendinosis ... it would get bad because instead of resting I continued to play yet while doing my therapy again ... I retore ACL in May 2015 and I went to my Doctor he did an MRI again and they noticed I tore ACL but he found that a node in. Back of knee grew to 1.3 cm ... So the Doctor says to check it with another MRI ... He wanted to make sure it was not something cancerous ... He pats me in the back and ask me "have you had any night sweats, fever, weight loss?" ... I had none ... In fact, I was upbeat and ready to play soccer ... So he says "it should all be okay then" ...

That day my head went all out ... I was left off base...the wort thing I did was google the lymph thing and KABOOM ... I went down hill ... I was very active and always in the gym ... I was still taking care of myself but I was always lost ... Asking things three times, surfing the web, driving myself nuts and my wife...I went to a new orthopedic and he was awesome ... We did an MRI arthogram and nothin came back abnormal ... The little node is still there ... It was now said to be a cyst ... But the doctor asked me to relax ... It's all because your knee has had issues don't worry ... He did a CBC as all came back good ... I went to an oncologist and she was very relaxed and said not to worry ... I have her my CBC and she liked the numbers ... All good e said ... I had surgery just 3 weeks ago to repair ... And she asked me to have my orthopedic check my knee before operating ... My orthopedic was not gonna be in the back of my knee during surgery to check whatever was behind my knee but rather was going to make sure that he took samples of my knee and tissues ... The surgery was successful ... When I woke up he says "you have no malignancies at all around your knee, bone or tissue ... And your ACL was a success... Great guy ... He suggested to just see my oncologist and take the paperwork to her but that it was nothing more to stress about ... My dad is a doctor in Peru and he also said to me that I had no symptoms and to stop having these stress moments and anxiety moments ... I am taking my paperwork to my oncologist Monday ... I feel great ... I still will keep my eyes on the cyst and make sure it is just that.

However, do not go into the Internet for anything...it will make your anxiety shoot out the roof, you will drive your partner crazy, you will end up showing a side that is not you to that person and you may lose the positive view they may have about you (this is true to us guys). One time is enough of consulting someone. I was calling my dad who is a doctor, my friend, my ortho, got Blood test, had samples take. But they were not enough ... In my mind I was going crazy ... Please relax and think positive ... No matter what the issue is ... Positive positive positive... It brings positive results ... keep yourself busy ... But never do what I did of going online

Hi there laura, sorry to hear. I too believe that I suffer from health anxiety. It started with a panic attack. My doctor put me through several cardiac tests and with the test came the waiting and with the waiting came the anxiety. I received a clean bill of health as it relates to my heart, but since then I am constantly worrying and find myself searching for info on daily ailments. When one subsides another sits in the shadows.....it's been 6 months and the hardest part for me is my family trying to understand how I became so quiet and out of character....which triggers other anxiety-like symptoms. It seems like I come full circle often and a clean bill of health isn't good enough. Sorry to ramble on.

Hi, I know this discussion is quite old but I totally get how you're all feeling right now. I'm pretty sure I've suffered with health anxiety since the birth of my son, I never associated my thoughts with that but after reading all of these posts I can totally relate. Slight aches and pains scare the crap out of me as I think something is seriously wrong, cancer, life threatening illness etc. So around a month ago I was admitted to hospital with an svt, ( it's a cardiac arrhythmia caused by an electrical fault in the heart) my heart rate was around 235 bpm for 4 hours before the drs managed to get it back to normal. I'm 27 and have had no prior heart problems and hope to not have any again, it was one of the scariest times of my life! I'm pretty sure I've had 2 panic attacks since but both times I have had different symptoms, trip to the drs tomorrow as the most recent was today. I can only guess that I was so traumatized by having a problem with my heart and thinking I was going to die that it's caused these panic attacks. I suppose what I'm trying to get at is I know how you're feeling and that you're not alone. Really need to get a handle on this as its affecting my life but I won't let it beat me! I have a heart rate monitor so I'm constantly checking my rate and during my panic attack today it was at 158 bpm, I'm on beta blockers too which are supposed to stop this. Dr thinks the heart rate monitor will make my feelings of anxiety worse but to be honest if I don't check I'll panic even more not knowing what my HR is. Sorry for the long post, I'm just relieved that there are other people out there that are going through the same as me

please can anyone help i am having upto 3 attaks a day and feeling short breathed 24/7 i am not getting any sleep my gp wont give me any benzos has anyone got any ideas how i can get some for some relief or can somone send me some to try i cannot go on living like this

Hi I'm in my 30s. I think I have every illness going wen i have pain. But I won't see a doctor because I won't be able to take bad news. So I look on the Internet instead. Then worry even moor to the point I won't to kill my self.

Hi Laura, I know you posted this over a year ago but I only just joined the group and read it. I thought to myself "Wow" this is exactly what I am going thru. It all started with my heart as well, I had an AF epsiode and now I feel panicky all the time about every little thing that happens to my body, I have been to the Hospital, Cardiologists, all the tests doen over and over and nothing is wrong apparently, which is a good thing but in my mind something must be wrong, I constantly feel little flutters etc, and have become so aware of my body and almost feel the blood surging thru my veins. I am driving my wife nuts, she keeps saying theres nothing wrong with me, relax, etc, but I never bleive it, I keep having these flushes of panic rushing over my body, I can hardly sleep anymore, I always feel like theres something wrong we me, as if something is going to happen, I feel anxious when on my own, I just cant relax anymore. I dont understand whats causing this because I was never like this years ago. I feel so vulnerable like any sec something is going to happen.I take the odd Valium when needed to calm me down, but I dont evenlike taking meds cause I fear they will do something to me. My heart anxiety is the worse though, its as if I feel every single heart beat, and the more I think about it the worse I feel, I sometimes get so anxious about my heart that I get palpatations and then that makes things even worse. I have been to specialists, doctors, hospitals, you name it and all the tests come back perfect, so why do I feel like this? I dont know, but its horrible, Its like taken over my life, my worrying cosntantly affects everything we do, I am so nervous about my health I dont even like leaving home just incase something is going to happen. I know it might seem stupid to most people but i cant help these feelings i get.. I really understand what you are going through, and feel for you. If you ever need someone to talk to feel free to message me.     Cheers Peter.

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Hello Laura, i have the same as you but i feel all the time like stings in my heart and chest and thinking something is going on after i though i´ve got a heartattack was burning in all my chest and up to my throat and like someone was tickling my heart i went to ER and they took test on my heart and said nothing is wrong and took blood test to and nothing was wrong i dont understand i still feeling stings in my heart and chest so annoying like something is there ... 

Hi, are you still suffering from this or have things gotten better?

Yes, for a whole month I worried constantly about my heart because it was at 150bpm all day long. It made me super tired and I felt horrible because it was racing so fast. That was the root of my health anxiety for a while but the best thing to do, and I know its very difficult is try your best to stay relaxed and not think too much about it. Also, if you have insurance/the money, schedule yourself an ECG. When I had one done and it came back healthy, I felt 100x's relieved. I still stress over it but not nearly as bad. I hope everything turns out okay. Health anxiety can really be something horrible!

goodness, me, reading all these posts you realise how many others suffer with very similar things. the panic fear anxiety depression has been so severe it is constantly driving me to die, to end my life. you just want to die the suffering is so debilitating. and the heart palpatations, pains in the heart and intensity of anxiety and panic centred in the heart area all make for for some extreme suffering and worrying.

i think its REALLY important to make it clear to yourself what is actually happening in the heart/chest area. and to clearly discern what is actually going on. we need to unpack the situation carefully and clearly so we can clearly show ourselves what actually is happening.

there are a few things going on there if we examine the situation carefully and take it apart.

1. there are heart palpatations in the chest, these in itself will produce anxiety about ones heart health and basic health etc.

2. there is a heightened intensity of anxiety/panic in the chest (which is not in the exactly same location as the physical location of the heart).

Our heart chakra, which is where all the anxiety/panic/stress is experienced, is located around the centre of the chest. remember-the physical heart is located not in the centre of our chest, but slightly more to the left. Never-the-less, these 2 separate locations are very very close to one another, just a couple of inches apart. its very very important to remember that it will always be very confusing to tell each one apart, because they are so close together, to distinguish what is going on where, and difficult to feel where which symptom is coming from. which location.

Very important to understand this, as having an awareness about this, about where your heart is located and what it is doing, and an awareness of our heart chakra, where the heart chakra  is located (in the centre of the chest) which is where our anxiety/panic/stress is experienced. Being aware of this is helpful. Why? -  our physical heart and our heart chakra, although 2 separate locations, because they are so close together, it is natural that some anxiety/panic will spill into and effect the heart because they are so close together, like neighbours, thus maybe causing some pain in your heart, maybe bringing some strange effects into your heart, like palpatations, heart skipping a beat, pain etc etc. for example, in the same way that 2 neighbours living side by side, one neighbour can effect the happiness of his other neighbour by his good or bad behaviour.

so, all this means is that it is natural what is happening to you, and it is nothing to be worried about, this kind of thing is bound to happen because as the anxiety panic is so bad it naturally will have some physical effects on the heart (palpatations, funny wierd feelings, sensations, pains) because they are neighbours, but the heart is fine and can cope with this. what you need to know is that your heart is fine and healthy, it is the anxiety that is the problem, it is spilling everywhere and creating  much suffering.

so , you need to re-affirm to yourself  "my heart is fine, my heart is healthy, whatever strange physical symptoms i am experiencing with my heart are all purely anxiety created. My heart is strong, it can handle this, it is strong enough to cope with the anxiety which is spilling in from next door."

"It is the anxiety which is the problem and is what needs to be addressed"

my doctor told me that there are hundreds and hundreds of reasons for having heart pains, palpatations, and other strange symptoms with the heart. but there are only 3 kinds that are serious and which need emergency help.

so the majority of the worrying heart concerns are all anxiety created.

i think when you have something really serious with your heart then you will know about it. I do think, particularly myself included, that we are highly sensitive people. its really hard being sensitive.

vigorous excersize is very good if you can manage it. it can really shift anxiety.

i'm amazed i have had the strength to write this comment. I am so ill with anxiety and depression and just wanting to die that i can barely do anything or concentrate on anything. i really do just want to die, i've had enough. i 've battled for almost 20 years, and this is the worst it has ever been, the worst it has ever been by far. crazy. why don't things get easier as you get older.

My heart goes out to you all. we are all suffering together like brothers and sisters of a same family, how much we would all have in common if we could all be together. shame we have to live our lives so separately, in this very separate world. how much we could help each other a little by just being together and sharing our pain, that in itself would move things a little for us.

I've lost so many friends to this. even though i wish to die I'm scared of future lives, of having to meet this same suffering in a future life if i don't face it and overcome in this life. why do i have to keep on facing this every day. its dreadful and i wonder what the omniscient heavenly beings are thinking and feeling when they consider us and the pain we go through. i 

i wish there was a self help group in brighton but due to cuts they have mostly all folded

i really want to stop smoking as yes, its true, this brings heart palpatations.

my friends, also are so kind and offer such kind loving support, but how long can they put up with my relentless complaining about my suffering. surely it is driving them mad i think.

god this pain never ends, why doesn't it end, why doesn't it **** off. i have to seek some medication soon, but tired of going on another round of treatment, i think i have tried them all. i don't hear many people talking of suicide in these posts, maybe the suffering is not too debilitating for you guys, i don't know. that's a good thing for your guys and i'm glad you don't have it as bad as i do,  i don't know many people who could tolerate this level of suffering for this long

its ridiculous

thanks for listening

alex