Anyone else become a hypochondriac after health scare?

[DaisyMooSteiner]

I had a horrible health scare almost 2 years ago, when it was thought I may have a genetic disease which causes multiple tumours which basically end up killing you and gets passed on to your children. I had genetic testing and it came back negative, but was told this was no guarantee as occasionally the genetic defect can't be located

Since then I've tried to get on with my life and most of the time I'm fine, but I have these occasional awful panics where I'm convinced that I've got a symptom (particularly of cancer). So far over the past year I've 'had' motor neurone disease, CJD, lymphoma, bowel cancer, stomach cancer, cervical cancer and I'm now fretting that I've got lung cancer because I've coughed up a bit of blood (although I've got a bad cold)

Reading all that back it sounds utterly ridiculous, but I just can't seem to shake the fear that I'm going to die early. I genuinely get scared at Christmas that I'm not going to see another one

I don't think I'm depressed, although obviously very anxious, and I wondered if anybody else has been through anything similar and if so, how did you get past it and start to live life more normally?

My sister almost died when she was about 16 (she was within days of heart failure) and she is so bloody laid back now!

i can sympathise with you dms, i am exactly the same, ive been put on tablets which i find do help

Daisy that sounds hard. Can you talk to your GP? They might be able to refer you to a counsellor. That level of anxiety is not good for you.

This is so difficult. I had a DVT nearly 6 years ago now and of course for a while afterwards every slight twinge was bound to be another one and a pulmonary embolism. I also have had anxiety issues in the past and a tendency towards hypochondria .

One thing which helped me was to tell myself (sternly) that unless I had worried about the same symptoms for more than a week, it was clearly nothing real (so if it was chest pain on Monday, an oddly-shaped mole on Tuesday, and a lump in the breast on Wednesday, these were clearly figments of my over-anxious imagination!).

I think in the end it just gradually went away, although sometimes I've had to make a doctors appointment for sometime in the future (say a week hence) and then cancel it once I've stopped worrying about whatever it was . I remember reading that John Diamond book that was serialised in the Observer years ago (he had throat cancer) and he said that he'd always been a bit of a hypochondriac, needing chest pains checked out etc, but if there is something really wrong with you it's totally different and you know it's really a problem.

Thanks for all your replies. I went to see the doctor today (it turns out I don't have lung cancer or bladder cancer, but bronchitis and a UTI ) I confessed to being a hypochondriac in the hope that he might suggest counselling or something, but he didn't.

I dunno, maybe it will get better as time goes on and I'm OK (well, hopefully OK!) Interesting about John Diamond 'knowing' there was something really wrong - I'll try and remember that.

I am exactly the same as you, i have health anxiety. In my mind i have also had many life threatening illnesses, mainly cancer. I also worry very much about my children and always overreact to any symptoms that they have. I found that this was taking over my life so went to my GP and begged for help. I was already on anti-depressants for PND so i was referred to a counsellor for cognitive behavioural therapy. I have been for a few sessions so far and have found it helpful to talk about how i feel and i've been given things to do to help me when i feel very bad.

You should ask your GP for help, you don't have to live with the constant fear if there is something that can help.

Good luck and i hope you can get the help you need with this.

It's really good to know that there are other people like me and I'm not alone in my neurosis

CBT does sound like a good idea and something that I have wondered about over the years (I do have anxiety 'issues' generally, and have done for as long as I can remember) Does anyone know if there any good books on the subject, as I would find it quite difficult because fo work and family commitments to get to any regular counselling sessions?

I get what you're saying bb about worrying making no difference - if I'm honest, I think that deep down I reckon that if I worry about stuff enough it won't happen , pretty silly I know.