Health anxiety :(

[Shanna123]

I started to become anxious around two months ago, for what seems to me absolutely no reason !! It came out of the blue and really put me under for a few weeks.i became addicted to searching my symptoms on Google (not a good idea) I thought my throat and neck were hurting, I visited my GP 4 times in a week for lumps under my armpits (turned out to be my ribs !!!!!!), sore back neck ribs I had him check my boobs even though I'm only 24. I couldn't concentrate on anything. I currently convince myself I am seriously ill with cancer on a weekly basis and am unable to rationalise with my own mind. I seem to be getting slot better but still a long road ahead !!!

[Jefner]

it's very difficult to not think the worst with anxiety, it's a typical symptom of it. I have problems too changing my mindset but it can be done with practice. Every time a negative thought pops in, change it to a positive one. I plug my headphones into positive affirmation vids on YouTube which help. I know exactly how you feel, I am the same but you CAN change the way you think; I am trying to do it. When I feel my anxiety coming on I try and laugh at myself for being stupid and TELL my brain that I control it, NOT the negative person that is in there fighting against the positive one

[Shanna123 in reply to Jefner]

Thank you, it's nice to know you're not alone !! I just wish it would all go away and I can return to my normal self. I change symptoms that often people think I'm going crazy, right now I've convinced myself I'm suffering with pancreatic cancer because I have an uncomfortable feeling under my left rib !! Would love it all to go away

[Jefner in reply to Shanna123]

Yeah am afraid checking our bodies for symptoms all the time is a big part of anxiety along with all the irrational thinking that goes with it

[Caddycat]

oh my gosh I'm doing the same thing right now too cause I have some conditions that still are going undiagnosed so I am trying to find my own diagnosis in the mean time on the internet and I can't seem to stop. So it's led me to this chat room and hopefully someone can share my same thoughts or give feedback. I think we both are going through a form of OCD (repeated unwanted thoughts). Shutting down all forms of internet use might be hard since we need the computer and our phones for other uses. My husband gets mad at me for doing this but all I want is answers. So I need to make a point to stop goggling my symptoms and leave it to the doctors. But in the meantime my anxiousness leads to anxiety which leads to over examining my symptoms...lol!

[Shanna123 in reply to Caddycat]

I'm just happy I'm not on my own with all this !! I am going to try counselling to see if that helps, it comes and goes for me but around my period I become completely irrational and panic to the point I'm in tears thinking the worst !! I find it helps to talk about it but sometimes feel people are either not interested or bored of hearing it lol. The Internet is a scary place, try and keep a diary of how many times your searching health issues in a day an try to reduce by 5 each day that's what I do but sometimes I feel I NEED to know right there and then !!

[Caddycat in reply to Shanna123]

I know what you mean about needing to know right there and then. Impatience in our case doesn't help with anxieties. My therapist suggest I get an adult coloring book to get my mind off the what if's. Also I decided going on these anxiety chat rooms for support is far better than looking for deadly symptoms.

Hormones are largely related to anxiety disorder I truly believe. I first recognized the start of OCD compulsions (later in life manifested into anxiety, panic disorder and at one scary point even agoraphobia) and migraine headaches at 15 around the time my period started. Well needless to say at 45 I might be premenopause now which causes your hormones once again to go whacky which is probably exacerbating my anxieties.

[Caddycat]

Great! I'm seeing my anxiety counselor and psychiatrist tomorrow cause I need someone professional to put me at ease. I still am on the Internet a lot but now mostly chat rooms like this. Slowly trying to give up looking for rare and chronic diseases. But still doesn't help when different doctor appointments leave me back to the drawing board. I thought maybe my thyroid levels since slightly elevated were the source of my initial undiagnosed symptoms but This morning my endocrinologist said highly unlikely. Recommended I up my Effexor dose just to get me through this rough patch. Ugh!

[Maybrooke16]

Does anyone wake up scared go to sleep scared and feel no end and asif nothing is real ? Or is this just me? I hate it it's so scary