I have a fear of getting cancer or any type of illness, I need help.

Hi there

I've just found your entry on here and I'm just like you. I know it's over a year ago that you posted this and I hope you are feeling more in control now. Feel free to contact me. Rosemary

I understand how you feel. I've been doing the same prodding and poking myself, on Google 24/7.

I've had to move back home with my parents as I can't cope anymore, I've isolated myself.

I also have a little girl that I want to enjoy but I can't.

I've suffered with mental health problems my whole life BPD I thought that was bad but this. Effects me physically. I keep thinking this is my last Christmas with my little one

Convinced I've got this and that. Been to a&e in last 2 months countless times.

Had a fbc, thyroid, liver, kidney, potassium/sodium blood test, a blood test to check the oxygen in my colon, countless ECG, chest X Ray, blood pressure sitting/standing, temp. Only thing found was a borderline b12 but it's nothing really. I'm really convinced they've missed something.

I'm having loads of physical symptoms that I have never expirenced before

I'm having my Pap smear soon cancelled it for Dec as I just haven't got the strength to deal with it at Christmas and have it in January.

I really can't give you any advice as I can't even get a grip of myself right now but just wanted to let you know, you really aren't alone and not the only one xxx

Hi, can somebody please help me?? So my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer 4 years back. Two years back,she progressed to stage 4.her cancer spread to liver. But i have always been pretty strong. Handled the things very well. Got married a year back. Amazing, mom, sister, husband, in laws. Here, comes the turning point. I got severe spine pain 7 months back. With tenderness on a vetebrae, i dont know how, i convinced myself that i had some form of cancer, bone, spine, blood, pancreas nd what not. Got throught spine MRI, CT, bone scan. Everything is normal. The tenderness doesnt go away. Tried all sorts of treatment for 7 months. Now i m scared to death, i get bad panic attacks. I read posts related to cancer. I hv heard cancer strikes every third person. I m just convinced if nt now, it might strike me soon. I cry all day. Not able to eat, sleep, left job. Help me please

You are not alone!

I have exactly the same health anxiety as you. As do many more people on this forum AND out there in the world. In fact I believe numbers are rising. So don't feel like you are bonkers at all

I have had an ongoing obsession with thinking I have one form of cancer since August and have all the things you say you've had like not wanting to go out, not eating, feeling reliant on other half and so on.

I have started to do a few things that I hope will help me through this...

1. See a counsellor I've only had 3 sessions but I hope it will help

2. Don't google symptoms! DO NOT DO IT it makes it worse and I am sure this is why so many people seem to be getting health anxiety! For me it was googling stuff that made me so bad this time I am sure of it. It feels like a bit of an addiction googling symptoms so I totally get why it is hard to stop but it really really is the main reason I think why health anxiety is on the up

3. Don't read news stories about people with health problems. There seems to be a new one every day at the moment. Whilst I totally get that it is good to raise awareness of health conditions and also to raise money for different causes that help to find cures if you have a health anxiety the stories really do not help! Again I am sure another reason why health anxiety is on the up! Plus they always seem to be the heart wrenching stories and never the survival stories!

4. When you feel negative thoughts creeping in, especially first thing in the morning try to push them aside. Put some music on or the radio or something to distract you. The more you try to analyse yourself and your thoughts the more aware you will become of little twinges or bodily sensations that you will then interpret as the next 'big problem'. Again this is really hard and I think the hardest part of all because it is hard to control your mind and thoughts. This is why I am doing counselling!

Sorry for long reply but just wanted to say we are out here too. Struggling but getting there (hopefully) there will be blips and times when it all comes back but talking really helps to get you through.

Hi

Well there are good news and bad news , let's start with the good news , cancer is linked to many factors , most importantly genetic factors , if you have a family history of cancer you may get it , we all have cancer , Yes we all have cancer EVERYDAY, but our immune system fight it (killer cells in our body ) , we need a strong immunity to beat cancer every single day , that does not come with negative thoughts, it comes with healthy eating , nature got us everything we need to be strong , you could search each kind of fruit and vegetables to increase you immunity. The bad news are , as we live in a world that's full with poisons, e.g they spray our fruits and vegetables with chemicals to produce big amounts , and inject animals with antibiotics to keep them from infection, we digest all that and it decreases our immune system , so what we can do ? We can try to wash our vegetables and fruits well , peel them , buy organic if possible, make garlic and other cancer fighters foods part of our daily food intake. Also when you think about cancer , try to be logical , say to yourself what are the evidence that make feel I have it , cancer at early stages can be cured , so you can make full tests and X-rays every second year to make sure you are fine . To be honest with you , I used to think your way , but it's tiring so much and being worried will not solve any problem, it may make them bigger and bring illness to you , so try to send positive message to your self everyday, say I feel well and healthy , I know nothing is wrong with me , you will start to feel better everyday more , then when you have pain ignore it , if the pain or discomfort lasted more than 3 weeks, see a doctor.

Hi

Firstly i'm just so grateful that i came accross this discussion. I thought i was miserably alone, left to deal with my mental issues that i somehow dont seem to come accross or share with people around me. The very idea of mentioning a fear, is life threatening or there is a fear of getting ridiculed like recently when I tried to discuss my fear of getting cancer with a friend she just cut me short and said 'dont think about it or you will manifest it'. That even made me more nervous and i panicked and made me take a mental note of not speaking to her again. I have been battling mental issues of depression coupled with anxiety and anxiety disorder all alone for the last one and half year and it's been a year since the fear of cancer also started playing along. (one night I discovered a lump in my breast...took me 2 months of mustering the courage of going to a doc for check up) it's fibrodenoma, a malignant condition, but it was enough to stir the fear of cancer. Even after the doctor's visit there was no respite because basically it was hard to digest 'THE LUMP' And since then everyday I get the anxiety.it begins its dances around and creates panic and havoc. I relate to so many of you here and I'm glad that today I actually (after another panic attack) i google 'fear of cancer' and came accross this discussion. My scared little heart and trying to be strong mind is so deeply grateful for each one of you here who has shared their experiences of this fear. It takes so much courage you guys to even talk and accept that this fear exists and you are all so brave. Today as i connect with you all i feel courageous and happy and so relieved that I can express myself without getting ridiculed for my condition. I can talk openly because there are people like me and that i am not alone in this and no one would label me crazy. For the entire duration of my depression or dealing with anxiety I have never felt so hopeful as I feel today after reading everyone's shared experiences. 

During my self help phase i read plenty of books or just anything that could help me. One such book that made an impact on me is 'Heal your Body' by Loiuse Hay. I also got into meditation and yoga and sometimes it helps me a lot to remain calm in the middle of chaos and panic. Trust me i have imagined everything to end with cancer and visions of me dying alone (i got into depression becuse i realized all my friends and family just left me, abandoned me or simply betrayed me after they took whatever they wanted) I was left all alone wondering where all my happiness went and hit such a low self esteem phase. I also lost weight. Initially I was passionate about fitness but due to depression a lot of lean muscle loss happened. People around me were least helpful as they would always comment on how thin I looked and that I needed to eat. Everyone to say something but no one to listen to my plight made it miserable. I had completely closed myself , stopped meeting people, (not even my family talked to me)out of extreme fear of being judged. Fear of being alone, dying alone, haunts me every night, mornings are sluggish and while somedays are good there are always those hours where the fear would creep in. It's like the fear was trying to be my friend and helping me find a purpose. Sounds crazy right. Today i feel grateful that my fear led me to this blog post and it is so comforting for me to share this fear with so many of you exactly at the same level of intensity. We are all victims of our most prized possessions - our mind. I'm scared of doctors too and the waiting is even double the anxiety. But atleast i'm not alone. you have no idea how comforting that feels...that I AM NOT ALONE!. I have support of like minded people. Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who opened there heart out allowing me to also do that. So does that mean my fear has dissipated? I dont know yet because there is always tomorrow and our habits which need monitoring and changing but by grace and through faith i'm sure we all are okay. There is a strong feeling, a strong voice that says everything is okay. or we all are going to be okay. I wish you all so much love and strenght from the core of my heart. Keeping you all in my prayers everyday. Thank you. 

I have the same fear I had it since I was little .

I also can't tell anyone because when I was young people would tell me I'm stupid so don't listen to people it's real and people just don't understand.

if you have any movies or tv series you like watching it or listening to an audio book out loud helps me

Hi,

I used to feel like this until I rationalsed it in my mind and now I give myself a full body check 2x a year once every 6 months.

That may help you...

I'm just the same. Thank you so much for this post, before this I thought i was the only person like this and I waz just going crazy. The worst part of it all is that I can barley fall asleep, then once I wake up i get myself worked up again and can't fall back asleep.

I know this is way late to reply but it seems a lot of these discussion boards are old  

I have health anxiety, social anxiety and depression. I can relate to a lot of you. I always fear i have a disease and im constantly checking my body for lumps and bumps. I'm going crazy. I hate being like this.

I hate to hear that you deal with this, but it does provide some comfort to hear that I am not alone.

I had testicular cancer shortly after my dad died of cancer and now my mom has cancer. In the 10 years since my diagnosis and "all clear" I have worried that every ache and pain represents my next bout. I've gotten better, but at this moment I'm in the middle of a bad one. I'm getting some small twinges and I've let the fear that they are cancer take over. Can we really psychosematicly be hyper focused on an area and "create" sensations? I feel as tho we can, but believing that would also be to dismiss that what I am feeling isn't actually cancer. If i allow myself to believe it's in my head I may miss getting checked and miss catching it early. Vicious cycle.

Sorry all. So wish I had the answer for all of us. So we can all get back to the real world. Back to reality vs this sub reality filled with fear. I miss the other world. I miss my wife and kid. When I'm with them, in not really with them. I'm somewhere else worried.

Oh and I too have a great wife, but I feel like I've become a burden on her.