To ask if you have health anxiety, has anything helped you?

[healthanxious]

I have health anxiety and it is so frustrating and upsetting, there is always at least one type of disease I am worried I have.

Recognise it as just anxiety. You just have to make yourself not check symptoms and get on.

Also remind yourself that your quality if life is ruined by being anxious. You are stressing about being ill but you aren't fully living life anyway life this.

A year of cbt; I would recommend it asap. Also anti anxiety medication.

I can identify with a lot of what you say. Particularly the part about not wanting to go to the GP but then feeling better when you have been. Also, any tests make me feel on tenterhooks every time an unknown mobile number rings as I start to worry it's bad news.

Strangely my anxiety is mainly cancer based, I'm not worried about heart disease or pretty much any other illnesses (irrational I know). Mine also manifested itself after giving birth and was mainly around leaving my children without a mother.

I've done a course of CBT. Helpful to some extent but sadly not a complete cure. A few things I've stuck to:

• Not Googling symptoms. I once saw a poster up (I think half tongue in cheek, half serious) that said "What makes you think your google search beats 7 years at medical school?". I also try not to read articles about people with terminal cancer. If ever I need to find out something, I ask my husband to have a look for me instead.

• Not "monitoring" your worry areas. So not touching it, looking it in mirror at it etc etc. I was told that perpetuates the anxiety - you feel better for maybe a minute and then you want to look again.

• Sometimes a bit of avoidance. For a while, I used a sponge in the shower as it stopped me worrying about lumps when I washed in the morning. Bizarre I know but made me enjoy showers again. I also don't have bright lights on when I have a bath. I'm sure none of this is probably recommended by experts but it stops me looking for symptoms and being able to relax.

• Distraction. Think of something nice or get up and do a chore that keeps you busy.

Mine is definitely better than it was. Some weeks are better than others. I also try to remember that I've had symptoms that looked sinister but transpired to be completely innocent. And that there are loads of non life-threatening medical conditions that we don't know about but share symptoms with cancer.

Really hope you find some helpful suggestions from other posters, I know that health anxiety can be challenging to live with.

Just to add my GP also recommended reading Mind over Mood by Greenberger and Padesky

Getting a serious illness!! Seriously, I am still here, still chugging along and enjoying life!
If you did get sick, you would cope, or you would die. Either way you just get on with it! When something is actually happening to you, you do just find a way to battle through. Try to live for today as much as you can, repeat “I am ok now, right at this moment, I am ok”. OP, hope you find a way to stop the worry!

Similar to @Lovely1a2b3c suggestion - I started consciously thinking about all the times that I've been absolutely CONVINCED that XYZ was happening. My biggest fears involve sudden onset or degenerative illnesses and unfortunately stress and anxiety can produce some similar symptoms. I've slowly come to terms with the fact that if I had everything I thought I had I would be the most unique medical case ever seen. Thankfully both times I had serious concerns I also had exceptional medical care from specialists who ran the relevant tests before gently suggesting that stress and anxiety can be really debilitating. I think being taken seriously really helped.

Also - reducing my alcohol intake made the quickest and biggest difference. It was hard, because I was convinced a glass it two of wine at night helped calm me down, but that really wasn't the case.

I'm definitely not over it, but I think I'm getting it more under control.

Thank you so much for all of these replies and advice. They have made me feel better already knowing I am not alone.

I will definitely check out the book recommendations (Overcoming Health Anxiety and Mind Over Mood). Last week I bought "
Stop Worrying About Your Health" and have just started reading it so I will finish that one first.

I will definitely try and avoid checking for symptoms as I think you are all correct in saying that that just reinforces the cycle. I feel like I have to be super diligent in checking my body incase I miss a symptom of a disease but I saw something that just said you need to just accept you are healthy and stop looking for symptoms. I guess I need to try and do that.

The thing that I find most upsetting is I'm only in my 20s. Statistically this is when I should be at my healthiest. People my age tend to be at the other end of the spectrum to me and feel almost immortal and invincible.

Hi everyone, I’m know this was last posted on last year but i thought I’d join this site and start posting in hope that it helps me. I’ve been suffering with health anxiety for years but the extent of it now has got out of control. In the past couple of months I’ve convinced myself I have ovarian cancer, bowel cancer, mouth cancer, lymphoma and now leukaemia. When one symptom disappears another one pops up. I currently have a couple of lymph nodes I can feel in my neck, I’ve had them checked by a doctor who said they have absolutely no concerns. The dr reassures me but it only lasts for a couple of days. At the moment im worrying over a bruise on my leg and I can’t remember how I would’ve got it so as im sure you can imagine im thinking the worst. Every unexplained ache and pain I get I convince myself it must be linked. I have an ache in one of my thigh/(sometimes groin) and I’m telling myself it’s linked, but I don’t know what that could be. Like others I google like crazy looking for reassurance but then end up scaring myself crazy. I’ve been on the waiting list for CBT for over a month so I’m hoping when I can start that I will start to feel better. In the mean time I’ve decided that reaching out to other in my situation may help me (and potentially others) as we know we’re not alone. I’m only in my 20s with a daughter and I feel like it’s completely taking over my life. If anyone has any tips or books they’d recommend please let me know.

For me the thing that helped was realising what the underlying core fear was, which for me was a fear of dying because I felt like I hadn't started living yet. My health anxiety was really bad during lockdown as I had too much free-time and no sense of purpose or direction as I was unemployed.

I now have a full-time job and socialise more often and the health anxiety has pretty much gone.

Oh my gosh! I just realised this is my thread from last year! I didn't recognise it. It's so sad to read back, I forgot how bad things had gotten for me last year. :(

Thankfully I have pretty much no health anxiety thoughts anymore.

I had dreadful health anxiety. I've had MRIs, scans, xrays, ambulances etc etc. CBT x a million, anti depressants etc.

Turns out that it was undiagnosed ADHD. 20 minutes after taking my first ADHD pill my HA dissappeared only to return mildly when super super stressed.

I know this thread is old, but may help give some hope.

CBT, no googling, stopping constant reassurance seeking, acceptance of uncertanty and time helped me.

I was reflecting on this today. I have a thing on my head, and it is looking likely I will need to see a dermatologist. I am concerned, but in a 'normal' way. Two years ago I would have been a complete mess and would have been calling my GP surgery daily in tears. My health anxiety was horrendous and at one point that I could barely function. I was very unwell.

I know I could have a flare up again at some point. I know how to keep on top of my anxiety though. There is hope

@hgftyujnbvghyuj

Oh my gosh! I just realised this is my thread from last year! I didn't recognise it. It's so sad to read back, I forgot how bad things had gotten for me last year. :(

Thankfully I have pretty much no health anxiety thoughts anymore.

I'm really happy to hear that!

Really happy to hear your anxiety has calmed down. I really hope that happens for me to. I’m getting the slightest pain under my arms today and now feeling for swollen lymph nodes ect. I don’t know what to do.

@hgftyujnbvghyuj that's brilliant news.
I get health anxiety sometimes and it's debilitating.
I don't trust my doctor so I feel I have to google.
I like the ideas on this thread of asking other people to filter google or waiting a few days for the symptoms.
Some things I'm ok with and don't worry at all whilst others I lose my mind.

Recently I’ve been feeling every single little symptom and putting 2 + 2 together and (most likely) getting 5.

My partner describes me as a hypochondriac it drives him up the wall. I always have something that I think is wrong with me. I have always felt like I will die young for some reason... whether it be a total freak accident or cancer. For me it’s i get triggered when I see something on tv or when I hear stories about how people were told they are fine but turns out they had 2 months left to live. I’m in my mid 20’s and realistically should be at my healthiest but this still doesn’t fill me with confidence. I tend to bottle it up and not talk about my worries because people just laugh and think it’s ridiculous. I hope I snap out of it.

Oh wow I’m exactly the same. I’m also mid twenties and like you say we should be at our healthiest. I almost always think I’m going to have cancer and die leaving my daughter behind. The thought of it is so scary and the symptoms don’t help either. I was okay a few days ago and now I’ve these little random pains it’s so confusing. I hope you’re okay though it’s nice to speak to someone in the same boat!

@ACCx I hope you are ok too! I am sure everything is absolutely fine with both of us but I know saying that makes no difference to how we feel!!!

I find keeping myself really busy helps. When I was on furlough for over 2 months I was at my worst. I had literally nothing else to think about and was adamant I had a tumour cause I had such bad headaches everyday... but now thinking about it when I went back to work I didn’t have them anymore! It’s so crap isn’t it, we are so young yet wasting our time worrying about what could be wrong. I’ve been to the doctors twice about a pain in my breast. They’ve checked me throughly and told me I am fine. Once I leave I feel so good. But then it creeps back again after a while. Only recently felt a small pea sized lump on my neck... now all I do is keep feeling for it and googling the shit out of it!! Ergh

Yes! I’ve been working from home and felt really isolated which hasn’t helped. I’m actually due to go back to work next week. I was soo looking forward to it as I thought ahh finally I’ll have something to take my mind off things. But now I’ve got these random ached and pains I’m dreading it. It was thigh pain then today pain under my arms, internet is telling me swollen lymph nodes but I can’t feel anything. Also I have a lump in my neck which actually is a swollen lymph node, had reacted to an infection and never went back down which can happen apparently. Had the dr check it and wasn’t concerned at all. Yours is probably the same, they seem sooo common but one thing I’ve noticed is that google has very little positive about reacted lymph nodes annoyingly. So nice to know I’m not alone though.

Going back to work will make you feel so much better, like I say keeping your brain busy definitely helps. Thanks for the heads up on the swollen lymph nodes. I had no idea that they can stay as a lump and not go back down so that’s good to know. I am sure the pains you are feeling are nothing serious. It’s crazy how much you can feel every slight change in your body when you’re over thinking it. Our minds are our own worst enemies I swear!!!

I’ve recently finished CBT for health anxiety. For me what I need to try to stop is the checking and reassurance seeking. Trying to avoid news stories that will trigger an anxiety spiral. Stop catastrophising. One helpful thing the therapist said to do was a pie chart of what something could be. Eg a headache. Breakdown all the different things is could be (dehydration, tension, stress, hormones, hay fever, lack of sleep, brain tumour, blood clot - endless list!) and give a rough percentage of what it might be. The really serious things were always the tiniest percentage. This helped me get perspective on my worry

@TwinkleToeMatilda yes I hope so! I’m so nervous now but we will see how I get on today. I’m going to try and not google anything all day and just get on with it. You’re right it’s crazy how much we notice things when we have HA, it makes us analyse every little thing doesn’t it. x

@DarceyDashwood I’m really looking forward to starting CBT. I’m glad it has helped you! The pie chart is a good idea. Like you say the chances of it being something serious are really small when you think about it. Thanks for sharing your tips, honestly I’ll try anything at this point. x

@ACCx I’m glad the pie chart might be of help. It’s one of the things I have found helpful in terms of jumping to “worst case scenario”. If you have a Talking Therapies service in your area please do get in touch with them. You can go directly to them rather than via your GP. I did a 6 week general anxiety CBT course last year but then did a more in depth health anxiety specific one this year which was weekly hour-long sessions on zoom for about 4 months. Can’t say I’m “cured” as probably will always have issues but do have perspective and the tools to deal with it better. Hope you manage to get some help as know how exhausting it can all be x

I’m waiting for CBT but it’s taking a while for my name to be at the top of the list. But Thank you so much. I hope so too! X