Pregnancy related hypochondria/anxiety?

[Smithy007]

Disclaimer I don't mean to offend anyone with this post.

Has anyone else experienced this?

I'm now pregnant for the third time, my first pregnancy was in 2005 and I had little to no access to the internet. I remember announcing I was expecting at 6 weeks! Had no concept of what to eat/what not to eat etc. I was totally ignorant and had no clue of the things that can go wrong. I had a totally peaceful pregnancy and a very healthy boisterous son.

In the years since so much has changed. I'm now a member of a pregnancy group (on another forum) and I'm regretting ever joining there. So far it seems like every post is a horror story. People rushing to hospital over their waters possibly breaking, hiccups being a sign of cord compression/fetal demise, fears over possible incompetent cervix, too much or little movement causing panic, bleeding and cramp scares. So far all of these have turned out to be ok in the end but it's really rubbed off on me.

I've since left it, but I'm now so anxious I feel like this baby can't possibly survive - despite the fact that I've had two children before now. I can't even look at anything baby-related, clothes, programmes etc. my baby had the cord around her neck in my last scan and now I feel like she is going to be strangled. I have excess discharge and ended up ordering a box of amniotic fluid pads, just in case. I ate Camembert and spent a week obsessing over listeria!

I'm so on edge I can't relax, I just feel miserable all the time.

Sorry to hear this. One of my friends has been suffering in a similar way and got referred to a maternity counsellor - perhaps you could explore whether this is available in your area? I can also really recommend NHS Talking Therapies which you can self refer to - have a look online for them.

does sound quite excessive. do u know ur being irrational but cant stop it? u seem yo have alot of negatitive thoughts try doing a diary everytime u have a 'bad' thought write it down in one column then challenge that thought in another column. everythin u have a bad thought try using distraction techniques. am pregnant myself and i know its hard not to think the worse. am a mental health nurse and since falling pregnant seem to hear all the horror stories of the day. ive personally have had to use mindfulness techniques and relaxation or id have went insane. try getselfhelp.com for some said techniques. good luck

Sorry you're feeling anxious. I really get it- been there.
Remember that when you see alarming posts online they are vastly over represented compared to in real life, because people discuss problems - they don't tend to discuss quiet, healthy times so much! So you get this completely disproportionate picture of how dangerous things are.

Echoing the wonderful advice above - talk to doc/ midwife about it and get referred if it's a persistent problem.
Also, try joining one of the ante-natal month clubs here. You get a much more real picture of how pregnancy is for women day to day.

Thank you ladies there's a lot of very helpful advice here and I'll be making use of it all. katatonicI'll definitely make use of some of those relaxation methods! and funnily enough have just ordered a kick count wristband.

I'm 22 weeks now so still have a way to go, I think being under the point of viability is exacerbating my anxiety slightly. I do recognise that I'm not being rational with my thoughts, I'm trying so hard to calm down and take things day by day. This is not usually me at all! Outside of being pregnant that is.

I will definitely talk to my midwife/doctor about it now because it's actually impacting my day-to-day life - wouldn't like to say how many private scans I've had just to make sure the baby is ok (eek!), and my OH and close family are getting fed up of my negativity.

Time for a cup of tea I think Thanks again.

Oh god I know exactly where you are coming from! I had a cold and thought I was dying of pneumonia, I had high blood pressure and convinced I would have stroke, I am convinced I will have a horrific labour! Etc etc. I can't settle, I am on edge all the time. Last week ended up in antenatal emergency ward with panic attack!! I have now been transferred to the enhanced midwifery team, they app offer extra support to women who are in need and need extra help. They will now offer me extra help when needed. I feel bit better about this now. Good luck xxx

I know how you feel, although would say I'm possibly worse! I've been having daily ctg's for about 7 weeks, scans every other at least and numerous trips to L and D worrying about movement (too much, too little, too soft, too hard!)

Educate yourself but stay away from horror stories. I've read so much and made myself hyper aware of every little thing, and once you learn something you can't unlearn it.

Try and trust the professionals. I've found that from building a relationship with a couple of the midwives and my consultant very helpful.

Don't ever be embarrassed about being overly concerned and asking stupid questions, do whatever it takes to get your fears abated. I have one midwife who will leave me on the trace until I've seen what I need to see, and then will go through every element of it with me to explain how it shows baby is ok (even though I know how they work now she knows I need to hear it from her!).

Honestly, I know how you're feeling, my anxiety has made pregnancy so so difficult, not just for me but for my husband and for other people in my life as I can't think about or do anything but worry about this precious baby. Unfortunately at about your stage I just had to accept that I'd remain this uptight throughout and that I'd just have to attempt to manage it. I strongly recommend making a plan with regards to your care though, all it takes is one helpful professional to get a plan in place. Good luck, I hope you find some relief!

(I have to say I'm unsure as to whether all maternity units are as accommodating as mine, they've taken my anxiety as seriously as any other medical condition, and I don't know whether all health care professionals do!)

Yes I have this really badly. Freaked out about bleeding at the start, stopped drinking diet coke as read bad things about the sweetner in it, they found ketones in my urine and I also majorly freaked out about that after googling. That's the problem, you can't unread something. It is horrible and it ruins the pregnancy because of constantly thinking about it. My anxiety got so bad I am now very depressed. ryTry to do calming things such as yoga, listening to music or going for a swim or even go for a drive if you find that relaxing. Definitely stop googling things as you will find negative stories and things you wish you'd never read!

Another one here. Dealing with gestational diabetes, Group Strep B and Hashimoto's in this pregnancy, I have done reading relating to each condition, and it seems I'm massively at risk for having a child with autism. I've tried to avoid googling as much as possibleand can go long periods where I live in blissful ignorancebut then something else seems to happen at one of my hospital appointments, and I'm back to googling and worrying myself silly.

CAnn - they don't.

I am the same as you OP. I feel like I am ruining this experience for DH and myself. Every week is a new thing I find to obsess about - this week it's leaking amniotic fluid and being scared my baby won't have enough. Completely irrational and I know it, but it doesn't kill the crippling fear that is keeping me at home, away from friends and anyone I have to make out like I'm okay to.

I have an appointment with my MW tomorrow and am going to really push for some help because I can feel myself getting deeper and deeper into a depression and actually enabling my behaviour (regular doctors trips to check heartbeat, numerous scans).

What's to blame? My need to know everything, which has led me to some pretty sad stories on forums, including this one. It's my fault, I should stop, but I feel like knowledge is power. It's not, ignorance is bliss. As I said to my doctor, a 1% risk of something going wrong does not feel small to me - why won't I be that 1? Yup, real help needed here.

So - you're not alone. We just need extra help to get us through is all.

(I'm usually a completely rational and normal person!)

It's really helped me reading all this coz at least I know I'm not alone! I was beginning to think I was crazy but I now I know I'm not! Plus my hospital has been great and really supportive with my panic disorder. Hope everyone else gets good support x

julie I thought as much. I think the midwives I see are highly commendable, although it's possible they enable me!

It's really interesting to see others in a similar state to myself, I've felt very isolated and like an odd ball during pregnancy, my friends who have had babies don't understand and the ones that haven't don't either! It sucks and it's very very hard, but we certainly care about our babies! As far as I can see, when you give birth you're expected to spend all your time and energy caring for your little one, I'm just doing that already.

(Aside: I know most people think I'm insane)

I agree, it's been nice to read this and know I'm not alone.