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Original poster

Severe anxiety.

34 replies

Vi37 · 19/10/2019 10:28

Hi, I have very severe anxiety mostly about health, my health and my 1 and a half year old son. My major MAJOR fear is cancer. My current fear now is that about five years ago I bought some Tefal pans from groupon. They’re scratched and I’ve still been using them for at least a couple of years. Now I’m in a massive panic because I think that chemicals have been leaching into our food and I’ve given my family cancer when I should have thrown them out. I’m so angry with myself for not throwing them away. I’m sat in tears, I’ve had to take diazepam.

OP posts:
Tableclothing · 19/10/2019 10:31

Everything I can see online says Teflon plans are perfectly safe.

AllStarBySmashMouth · 19/10/2019 10:38

Hi OP. I also have health anxiety and it fixates on cancer. I know exactly how you feel, and you are not alone.

To be honest, though, I've never heard of tefal/Teflon contributing to cancer. By all means get some new pans to make yourself feel safer! But I highly doubt it would make any of you ill. Also it has probably been chipping off when you are cleaning them - not when you've been cooking.

Be kind to yourself. I know how tough it is. Thanks

Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 12:15

Thank you, I’ve researched for hours and convinced myself that the pans will be fake as I’ve bought them from froupon and they’ll have some other nasty chemical in them instead. I’m so stupid and I hate myself.

OP posts:
Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 12:42

I’ve actually messaged the Samaritans now, I can’t cope with this .

OP posts:
Tableclothing · 19/10/2019 12:53

Are you on your own with your DS?

Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 13:05

No I have a partner, I can’t talk to him about anything he doesn’t understand and gets annoyed so I do feel like I’m on my own.

OP posts:
Gimmechipschocolateandcake · 19/10/2019 13:21

I've had anxiety in the past. It's awful. I hope Samaritans offer some good help and advice op

Imreallytrying · 19/10/2019 13:37

So sorry you are suffering, anxiety is a bitch of an illness.

Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 13:47

Thank you for your replies.

OP posts:
Imreallytrying · 19/10/2019 14:22

Have you spoken to the Samaritans?

Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 15:12

I’m emailing them now, I’ve had two replies already.

OP posts:
user1483387154 · 19/10/2019 15:30

honestly you are too. I suffer from anxiety too and know how hard it is. Please get some counselling that can help you put things in perspective

Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 15:34

I don’t know what else can help. I’ve had counselling and I’ve been on numerous antidepressants. They keep throwing cbt at me but it doesn’t work I can’t take it all in at all.

OP posts:
Lindsey84 · 19/10/2019 17:04

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ as the OP has started a thread elsewhere

Fallofrain · 19/10/2019 17:08

@Lindsey84 youve posted on a thread rather than the board if that makes sense.
It definately sounds like the mental health board was the right place, but usually its better to start you own thread, so that you can get replies and the poster of this thread can have replies and keep them seperate?

Hope that makes sense

Longlongsummer · 19/10/2019 17:12

OP me too! I think that there must be thousands of us!

I also did not throw out Teflon and they were scratched etc...
That fear ebbed. To be replaced by another... which I won’t say in case I start you on another one!

Just for fact checking, I do know about cancer. I do know that Teflon and scratched pans is not going to give us it. But anxiety will affect our daily lives.

Just... you know you are not alone.

JenniferM1989 · 19/10/2019 17:58

Vi37, I know how you're feeling and it's torture. Please try kalms lavender capsules and have regular baths with lavender bubble bath. This is the only thing that helped me. I used to panic that my husband would die on the way home from work and used to convince myself everyone disliked me! I've got it all together now thanks to lavender. Literally nothing bothers me (well, just the usual stuff)

Original poster
Vi37 · 19/10/2019 20:46

Thank you everyone, it’s not nice other people feel the same but it is nice to know I’m not alone. I came on here and thought oh it’ll be fine other people would have posted about something similar but they hadn’t and it panicked me. Seems no one uses non stick pans on mumsnet and some of the ladies seemed disgusted by the sound of them.

OP posts:
Original poster
Vi37 · 20/10/2019 12:40

Thought I felt better last night but it’s back again this morning.

OP posts:
Imreallytrying · 20/10/2019 16:50

I’m so sorry you are still suffering. Can you get the your GP this week?, they can help you Flowers

Original poster
Vi37 · 21/10/2019 12:34

Have to try again phoning for an appointment there’s none left today. I’m absolutely petrified I’ve hurt my family cooking with these. Apparently this chemical only stopped being used in 2013 and I had Tefal pans before then for years too. Please tell me other people use them.

OP posts:
Original poster
Vi37 · 21/10/2019 16:57

Got a letter today to tell me to self refer to the mental health service in my area, Leeds IAPT for CBT. Even though I’ve had it twice and it’s not worked.

OP posts:
Tableclothing · 21/10/2019 20:15

I still use scratched non stick pans because they aren't harmful.

The CBT that you've had in the past. How many sessions did you have? How long did each session last? Was it individual or in a group?

When you say it didn't work - was there never any improvement, or did you get better for a bit and then have the anxiety come back?

Original poster
Vi37 · 21/10/2019 20:44

Thank you Tableclothing, I think they were 8 sessions each, I completely understood the concept of CBT. I understood what they were saying to me but the first one was a young man and every session, stood at a whiteboard and drew things for me on it, I just didn’t get what he was saying at all, along with giving me enough worksheets to fill a folder, he once had be hold a set of keys and stare at them, I’ve no idea why. The second set of sessions I had when I was pregnant, he made me feel uncomfortable every session because he asked me questions that I didn’t know how to answer and there was a lot awkward silences in a red hot room because he had the heating on full. At the final session he asked if I wanted to continue with more but I said no and apologised, I was shattered being 8 months pregnant. I felt I’d wasted his time and I felt awful that someone else could have had my space, he said that’s fine, then said maybe the next client he had will be more motivated.

OP posts:
puremagic · 21/10/2019 20:49

You're anxiety is displaced from another time in your life. It's tricking you into thinking this is a huge risk (it isn't) and that you wouldn't be able to cope ( you would).

It's shit. But it is the trick of anxiety and not a real risk. Can you do an hours exercise a day to manage it?