Anxiety, Health Anxiety, moving house, foreign holidays, plans in general...

[MissBetseyTrotwood]

I suffer from Health Anxiety.

We've always lived near a hospital in London with a paediatric A and E and knowing we live near it has helped me a lot. I feel reassured it's there when the DCs are ill and although I know that thinking about the 'worst case scenario' is part of the anxiety (and in itself not so healthy) it calms me a bit. My anxiety focusses on my 'missing something' when the DCs are ill and them getting really sick because I have not cared for them well enough.

We're moving to the countryside, a long way away from hospitals and other services. On anxious days, I don't want to make the move because I don't want to move away from the reassuring presence of our local A&E. On healthy days I'm really excited by it all and can't wait to go.

We have not had a foreign holiday for ages because of similar anxieties about health. We have friends coming on Christmas Eve and I'm anxious that if the DCs get ill I'll have to cancel.

I don't know why I'm posting. Just wondered if any HA sufferers had encountered anything similar.

I'll raise my hand to this one. I get anxious about booking a holiday in case we need to cancel, and I get the fear of missing something with my dd too.

Not sure I can help with anything ha ha but wanted to reassure you that you're not alone!

Def not lone ...yes i get anx to about well most things ...and always booking holidays ...

So interesting, thank you so much you two. Like I say, I don't really know why I started the thread - just wanted to get a feeling for how usual it was I guess!

So from both your replies, holidays are a real sticking point.

What is it exactly that you both find stressful? For me it's anxiety about having to make the decision to cancel or illness happening when we are there. Never accident though - odd.

Holidays are so stressful. We went to Tenerife once and I spent the whole time (lovely villa, outings etc) in a perpetual state of tension, just watching for signs of illness etc. I'd even booked a villa where the English owners lived downstairs so they could tell us where to go in an emergency .

DS went to a bowling party with friends today and didn't wash his hands the whole time (London Transport there, bowling balls full of grotty stuff etc) and I told him off when he got home! I told him to wash them before he ate but he forgot. Feel bad now…

Feeling quite well at the mo, so didn't want help exactly (but thank you EddieVedder ) just a bit of a muse.

Missbetsey, holidays are a problem for me as I worry about dd not being well enough for us to go and it's all ruined. I can transpose that worry over to birthday parties, Christmas, nativities, even if DH and I plan a rare night out together. Never accidents, always being too ill to make it all happen like the plan in my head.

I have struggled with anxiety for about 2 yrs now, but was making real inroads until last weekend when DD was admitted to hospital. She's home now, but I'm feeling the familiar need to check her symptoms, panic about missing something major and general terror at her being re admitted.

We live a fair drive from our local hospital which has not helped me over this last week at all, but we've always lived rurally and so are quite used to it taking 45 mins or more to get there. Which does make me more anxious about spotting things in good time, if that makes sense.

I have to take DD to the GP next week for a check and I plan to mention that I'm feeling the familiar pull again and see what she says.

EddieVedder, I didn't want to read and run. I have a lot to say to your last post; I have a works outing tonight but I shall return!

Your poor DD and poor you.

i completeley understand where you are coming from ! I suffer from terrible health anxiety, especially about the DCs, (who are 22 ,25, 21!!). A headache is a brain tumour, an ulcer is oral cancer, any ache or pain is cancer of some description, pins and needles is MS, i could go on and on.
What is odd is that my family always say they get no sympathy from me when they are ill, we never even have a paracetamol in the house, and are generally a healthy family. I never knew this condition had a label though. Unlike the OP, i worry about acciadents too. If they dont reply instantly to a text or phone call, i assume all sorts of dreadful things that could have happened. I think i must have a particularly overactive imagination !!

"My anxiety focusses on my 'missing something' when the DCs are ill and them getting really sick because I have not cared for them well enough"

yes this is exactly me (I am a hcp from a family of hcps & that makes it worse because I really shouldn't miss stuff), I've also had a really awful obstetric history which primed me to be so anxious about the children's health.

I'm lucky in that I have a very very good GP - I can always get a same day appointment for the children if I am particularly worried about a specific thing & that has kept me going.