hypocondriac up again at 3:20 a.m.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat May 03, 2008 11:49 am

Hi Michele,
I am new to anxiety having only had for the past four months. But I focus on every little ache and pain. For example: I have this nasty symptom with my anxiety of constntly having to swallow. My ENT ordered a sinus and throat scan. I was not having any problems with my sinus druing this time, although my anxiety attacks started two month earlier as a result from taking over the counter medicine for sinus problems. When I went back to get the results my doctor got mad at me because he said that I had a sinus polyop and a deviated septum and needed surgery right away. When I told him that I wasn't going to have the surgery, he got mad and said that I would never breathe right or hear right again and then said that the swallowing problem was all in my head just lie the anxiety, and stormed out of the room. Ever since he said that to me I am obsessed withthe fact that I can't breathe through my nose and even have the sensation of something being stuck in my nose. I know it's crazy - I was feeling fine until he said those things. I also tend at times to obsess about this swallowing problem and seem to notice every little ache and pain. I figure it must be part of the anxiety and try to relax - soemtimes I'm better at it than others. I have a few friends wo have anxiety and they do the same thing. I too stay up at night obsessing and then my anxiety is worse the next day. It seems that there are quite a few of us going through the same thing. We just need to keep encouraging one another.

God Bless you,
Debbe

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun May 04, 2008 10:08 am

of all the horrible things anxiety has to offer this for me is by far the worst. It is simply horrible to worry all the time about your health and I know how you feel. I have since gotten so much better with the panic attacks and worrying about other stuff but I am constantly worrying about my health thinking every ache pain and twitch is the worst disease on earth and the more I worry the more symptoms I have. At the end of 2007 I ended up in the hospital six times because I was convinced I was having a heart attack or I had lung cancer from smoking. Lucinda says in the kit that anxiety can cause guilt and I think somewhere we anxious people so desire to be perfect that we carry feelings of guilt from something we have done, in a sense it feels good to almost think we deserve to be sick from some awful sin we have done. I think the hypochondriasis stims from guilty feelings, I could be wrong but at least I think that is what it is for me. I am trying to take on a more "whatever approach", I asked my husband who is so care free if he ever worrys about his health and he said no, I am so envious of him, he lives almost without a carry in the world. I asked him why he does not worry, and he said that if he sat and worried it would not change what was meant to happen. I hope one day I can take on that attitude, but for now I am trying my hardest when I start thinking about my health to go do something else on purpose like play a game, call a friend, read anything to say no to worrying about my health, I have only been doing this for 2 weeks so far I have noticed I don't think about dying as much maybe in a couple of weeks it will be much better, I will keep you posted and say a prayer for you.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon May 05, 2008 6:28 pm

I have been a hypocondriac most of my life. I have had a lot of sickness and death in my family so that along with being born nervous has made me a hypocondriac. My father and 4 of my dogs all died from rare cancers and it had affected me in a terrible way! I also found my mother dead last July and she had been completley healthy. So now I worry I may just drop dead. It's exhausting worrying constantly.
What has helped me is accupuncture and herbs. I have a great doctor I go to who understands everything I'm feeling. He doesn't judge or laugh at me like some doctors I've been to in the past. So if your open to alternative treaments/medicine I think it can help you. I'm a lot better than I use to be. Still working on it though.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue May 06, 2008 11:52 am

I must say that this is one of my major hurdles that I still struggle to overcome when I am having a stress attack. I completed the program about 3 years ago and have been doing great until about 2 months ago. A series of stressful events had triggered me again. Although this episode is no where near as bad as it was prior to the program. I must say that for me this program saved my life.

As I said I recently went through a time where I was helping a good friend get through a rough time (her husband had a surgery that went bad). I think I focused so much on helping their family through it that I set my skills aside and dove right in to help them get past this. Now, don't get me wrong, if I had to do it over again I would in a heartbeat but I would make sure that I take much neede time for myself. Since everything now is back on track for the most part I still falter when it comes to focusing on any little pain or twitch and yes- WEBMD is not the place for someone like me either. I should know better than to surf different conditions or to read an article on cancer. Before I know it- I am dead-lol.

I do find great comfort in going back to the program and the tapes and revisting the much needed reminders that in most cases it is stress and anxiety and that either way worrying will not resolve the situation (whatever it may be).

It is very hard to get out of that circular thinking but it is an awesome feeling when we can point it out and then jump out of our negative thought patterns. It does take some time but we have to remember that we can do anything that we set our mind to do. We just have to imbed our mind with positive, stress-free thoughts.

It helps to know that eventually "This too shall pass!"

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue May 06, 2008 12:06 pm

Dream- I'm right there that's exactly what happened to me, I'm everyone's friend at work so my one friend's mom surgery went bad and my other freind's mom is sick. I have developed the exact same symptoms as my friend's mom. And I have moments where I say "s$&*w it, if I die, I die." then other times I'm back to scary thoughts, one things for sure I'm driving myself nuts!

CarolynEd.Dir. · Post by **CarolynEd.Dir.** » Tue May 06, 2008 1:38 pm

Isn't it funny how we can put so much energy into something like that instead of doing things that are more productive?!?!?!?!