Hi,
I just wanted to leave a message to any health anxiety sufferers just to let you know that it CAN get better. About two months ago I was on the verge of a complete mental breakdown. I was totally obsessed with having a self diagnosed illness (in my case a neurological one) and had intrusive thoughts about this relentlessly all day. I was totally convinced that I was dying and it got to the point that I couldn’t even bear the sound of my baby crying because all I could imagine was him crying because I’d died from this illness.
It all came to a head an I eventually started to take medication (in my case, Clomipramine). I felt even worse for about a week but now I can say that I’ve got my life back. I’ve gone from obsessing about this illness hundreds if not thousands of times a day, to it barely crossing my mind. If it does, I can easily dismiss it.
If you’re suffering, please don’t lose hope and please consider trying different medication options.
I hope this gives you some hope - I had none for a very long time