Health anxiety is through the roof after booster

[LifesTooShortYOLO]

I know I'm going to sound silly but I struggle with health anxiety and have been worried about getting the vaccine initially and reluctantly got two doses.
I debated whether to get the booster and today got it but now my anxiety is making me feel really panicky like I've made the wrong decision and I keep thinking of the possible side effect 😩😢
Everywhere I look there's conspiracy theorists saying things like 'we don't know what's in the vaccine or what the long term effects are'
Stories of people in the daily Mail who had a heart attack or blood clot after their vaccines.
People saying it's suspicious that the government are pushing so much for people to get vaccinated and it's suspicious that they want people to have the vaccine so much.
Some kind of agenda etc etc
I just can't calm myself and have all sorts of things going through my mind.

Well done for getting it despite your anxiety. You are now less likely to get severely ill from Covid. You are safer and we are all safer. Take deep breaths and remember that a lot of people talk a load of old rubbish about vaccines.

Sometimes going over some known facts helps a bit. For example, more than 8 billion doses of Covid vaccine have been given worldwide. Almost every person has been fine after their shot. The brief side-effects of the shot, which are often minor, are far better than the potential side-effects and longterm effects of getting Covid itself. So you've done a good thing for yourself.

Don't look at or think about conspiracy theories or antivaxxer's opinions, which are not based on facts. Try and distract yourself, and be kind to yourself. Watch a funny movie, have a nice snack, a warm drink, a hot bath, whatever you find soothing.

People talk a lot of shit. The vaccines are to save lives and protect against disease effects that can be long-term. I feel really sorry for the unvaxxed in the coming/current waves.

It's not suspicious that the government want us to have boosters. They want as few people as possible to be hospitalised and off work. They don't care about deaths particularly but they do care about the NHS getting overwhelmed and about people being off work sick as that affects the economy.

Having the vaccine is significantly lower risk than having Covid.

Again, a massive well done for doing this with health anxiety 💐💐

You are awesome.

No one died of a heart attack ,blood clots after vaccine were people who had a blood disorder. People who die of heart failure or cardiac arrest are sick. I knew a lot of people who have had Covid and effects after jabs and assure me the latter is definitely preferable

I have anxiety like this too and reading the side effects after a vaccine sent me scatty not going to lie, even though I am ardently pro vax. What helps me is sticking to the facts, using grounding techniques and mindfulness, and applying occums razor to conspiracy theories.

Is it possible that the 5G networks created a bat spread novel coronavirus? Well anything is possible. But why would I chose to believe that when there are more likely explanations? Could I believe that the government is performing a mass sterilisation program to prevent overpopulation by making all the sheeple infertile? Well I could believe that, or I could believe that they want us to get boosters because it is in the best interest of public health in preventing the spread of and limiting the severity of a known virus. I find facts and logic very reassuring in the face of anxiety and uncertainty. That and remembering that my feet are on the floor, I'm breathing in and out and everything is ok and will be ok, and if it's not I will handle it

I also suffer from health anxiety, and am crapping myself about my booster next week. It's the "what if" thoughts that drive you mad, isn't it?

It's best to get through it hour by hour. You've had the booster (well done!!) so honestly no point even thinking about it now. And if you're anything like me, just reading about a symptom will cause it to instantly appear in your body. So it's really just best to think about other things.

Every time a health worry pops into your mind, say to yourself, "I'm not going to think about this now." And force yourself to think about something else, something fun and happy.

It does work. Or use mindfulness. "I'm not currently dying from a heart attack brought on by my booster, I'm actually just reading Mumsnet. All is well."

I use these techniques ALL THE TIME and they help.

xxx

I find compiling a list of positive affirmations helps when I'm getting stressed about something. Get them from here on MN or elsewhere as just DO NOT go down the rabbit hole of googling side effects etc.

e.g.
X million have had this vaccine safely
My friends x,y,z etc have all had this vaccine
I am now x% protected against covid
I am unlikely to be hospitalised
etc
etc

And keep busy with something else. Step away from the News!