1. Community
  2. Mental health
  3. Anxiety Disorders

Health Anxiety (Hypochondria) I think

Posted , 3 users are following.

jules98862
jules98862

(Non-native English speaker)

Good evening everyone,

I have some questions regarding something that has been bothering me for a while. I first try to give some context about my situation so that a more informed opinion/advice can be given:

I (22, Male) am a student and last year I had to catch up on a lot of courses to be able to complete my studies next year (luckily I succeeded!). This gave me a lot of stress (too much afterwards) which I put myself through to achieve my goal. At the last test around June 20, a burning sensation started in (especially) the right side of my chest. I had given this a few weeks before the test (around June 16) but decided to go to the doctor anyway, who unfortunately did not come out completely at the first consultation, but at least not immediate heart failure symptoms.

The fact that there was no immediate solution kept me awake many nights (also because of the still burning feeling). It made me quite anxious, since there are many heart ailments from a familial point of view. I'm afraid this has unleashed the inner hypochondriac in me because I'm unstoppable in terms of fear.

A few weeks ago I started to suffer from a neck injury, no wonder I had been in a terrible posture for reading for a while. At least that's what I'm trying to think as rationally as possible now. Unfortunately, this caused me to suffer from a lot of headaches and a little bit of dizziness when keeping my neck still. This has also been treated with my physiotherapist and is now at the time of writing Aug. 21 largely gone +-70%.

Before this pain went away, the hypochondriac in me started to sow fear again. Because the pain and dizziness are constant and is that normal!? I've been having a lot of trouble with bright light lately. And after a few (unfortunately) minutes of searching you come to ... brain tumor.

At the moment it's actually so bad that when I'm not doing something or when I lose concentration for a while, the 'What if' creeps in. This naturally causes a lot of fatigue, in addition, I also suffer from bright light, tired muscles (especially in the legs), poor short-term memory, difficulty concentrating and general fatigue. In my rational thinking head I know this is just the result of over stress and anxiety. But, you also feel weak (muscles) in fatigue, it might be ALS (yes I know the weather is extremely extreme).

So it's a constant battle in my head between what's rational and what's irrational. The stupid thing is that the irrational is a kind of cycle that can repeat itself constantly and has to be slowed down by rational thinking but then continues again.

My biggest concern right now is that I'm slipping a lot, it feels like I have to rebuild/substantiate every sentence 10x when I'm talking to someone.

My questions to you are as follows: Could this fear for my health affect my speech that much or am I just too focused on it or maybe it's both? And what can I do about this fear?

I don't let myself google the symptoms anymore and I try to say a kind of mantra of it's in your head, but further tips are always welcome.

Thank you very much!

p.s. I have a doctor's appointment next Friday where I will ask for an accompanying person for the more psychological side of my problem.

0 likes, 2 replies

2 Replies

  • ejc
    ejc jules98862

    Posted

    Hi there sorry you are suffering so much.

    I also have health anxiety , have done for many years. My experience with this has proved to me many times that it causes some awful very real symptoms, often worse that the original problem that starts it off! I'm struggling with it myself currently & I know the constant fight to keep your thoughts rational . I am no professional but I think health anxiety is capable of causing any symptom . All the best

  • Sofi4563
    Sofi4563 jules98862

    Posted

    Hi,

    I'm on the als panic train too, 28 female, and I've been here for almost 3 years. I felt weak and weird all the time. Had internal tremors that would wake me up at night and I felt as if i couldn't walk straight, and when talking my mouth felt full, like I was drunk for example.

    I'll tell you what my doctor told me and it actually made sense. You are checking certain movements in your body that you shouldn't. Because these go unnoticed like talking, when you start checking it looks odd, and as if you can even talk properly. I know it's hard but as soon as you stop chrcking yourself the anxiety will subside and the symptoms will decrease. As for your tumor fears, usually if your headache goes away with over the counter soft painkillers then it should be OK. Unfortunately I know 2 close people diagnosed with brain tumors, and one had a random epilepsy attack, and the other crippling headaches 24/7, so it will be OK for! you I'm currently fighting a crippling fear of pancreatic cancer. I've been having a dull pain on my stomach and it's consuming me.. I've been having gastric issues my whole life, but I always expect the most deadly diagnostic.

Back to top

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.