SADS
Posted , 3 users are following.
hi, i suffer with health anxiety and have had a bad bout of it this past few weeks. which has been made worse by the fact i recently found out that my cousin has passed away at the age of 29. an undetected heart condition (sudden adult death syndrome) my question is does anyone know if i could inherit this? she was my 1st cousin. i had a heart monitor on for a week and a heart scan 5 years ago as i was experiencing a skipped beat but doctors said my heart is normal but im still constantly worrying about this as i have read that it can go undetected.
0 likes, 3 replies
kathy219 leahhj1990
Posted
Hi Leah!
Sorry about your cousin!
I also suffer from health anxiety so I can relate to how you are feeling!
I am alot older than you, but I also worry about sudden death from an undiagnosed heart problem. Heart disease runs rampant in my family, and my 53 year old brother died suddenly from a heart rupture.
But we learned from his autopsy results his heart was enlarged from high blood pressure from his smoking.
So my suggestion would be to discuss your cousin's cause of death with your doctor so it is noted in your family history. If you have risk factors for heart disease like obesity, smoking, diabetes, poor diet or if you are sedentary ask your doctor if some baseline testing might be a good idea so they can record any changes as time goes on...
See a doctor regularly!
My brother seemingly had no risk factors for a heart event EXCEPT smoking so he seldom went to the doctor. A simple pill a day regimen might have kept his blood pressure in check and his heart from enlarging!
Best of luck!
Kathy
leahhj1990 kathy219
Posted
thank you so much for your reply. im sorry to hear about your brother. yes i probably should go ans speak to my doctor. i feel like i am
always at the doctors with certain health problems that always end up being nothing. i found that medication did help with my anxiety loads but im hoping to stay off them this time and hopefully this wave will pass!
kathy219 leahhj1990
Posted
Thank you Leah for your condolences...
I have learned in my 62 years 'better safe than sorry' in terms of my health. I went thru a long period of avoiding anything but yearly check ups bc of my health anxiety issue. I was afraid of them finding something wrong so I stayed away.
But a couple years ago I became deathly ill with sepsis due to a UTI that got in my bloodstream. I had seen the doctor twice and gotten 2 rounds of antibiotics so when symptoms went away I never went back for my follow up to make sure the infection was gone. It wasn't!
Maybe they would have caught that if I had gone back...I'll never know now.
But my point is don't feel bad or stupid if you go in & nothing is found. It could save your life!
I take an antidepressant that also helps with anxiety. But I often take a zanax for dr. appts., any testing, etc. It helps take the edge off under those conditions that make me most panicy!
Best of luck!
Kathy