Can health anxiety make you think you have a mental illness??

[Sugarplum1811]

I know what you’re thinking, it’s a bit of a weird question because health anxiety itself is a mental health condition.

For this past year I’ve been suffering from terrible health anxiety triggered by a scare in which I thought I was going blind (when my eyesight was merely just getting a bit worse) and since then I’ve been obsessing over my health.

Majority of the time I think I have a real physical illness because of the symptoms etc. But sometimes I think about if I have mental illnesses too and then do extensive googling about them and relate my symptoms to those illnesses and convince myself I have them. In the past I’ve convinced myself I have schizophrenia which then I was able to snap out of once my anxiety calmed down and I thought logically.

This time I am fearing I have OCD because I stumbled upon it once when googling about anxiety. Now I know OCD is not something that should be seen as scary but every time I think about it, I have this fear that I do have it and it’s going to take over my life. It’s always at the back of my mind now and have started questioning everything about my life that may reflect OCD. What shall I do?? I’m so sick of feeling so anxious all the time

[Dolphin14]

Have you gone to a psychiatrist for evaluation?

[Sugarplum1811 in reply to Dolphin14]

I have not gone to a psychiatrist but I have been to therapy for it

[Dolphin14 in reply to Sugarplum1811]

Has the therapist confirmed any diagnosis?

[Sugarplum1811 in reply to Dolphin14]

All they have said is that it’s apparent I do suffer from anxiety and mainly focused on the health anxiety aspect. I just had a moment of realisation yesterday that I had an intrusive thought and then reacted to it with severe anxiety. I then Googled about it and it lead me to OCD

[Dolphin14 in reply to Sugarplum1811]

I'm glad you are in therapy. It's very helpful in our recovery.

Maybe have this discussion with your therapist next session.

They can help you look at this.

[Want2BHappy3]

I think anxiety can make you feel any kind of illness? You mentioned blindness? I was told I have a disease that will eventually render me Blind “Macular degeneration”. So sometimes Im afraid to close my eyes. So unless you see a eye doctor and they tell you that? You probably don’t. I have been referred to a eye specialist. I’m afraid to tell anyone because they’ll be afraid to ride in my car or my kids might be afraid for me to drive? I’m honestly good, I passed an eye exam, I don’t even have to wear glasses all the time just when I drive or read. Macular Degeneration is a slow progress decease. Happy Holiday 🌲

[Charbey]

Hi - my health anxiety/panic attacks started with my eyes. I've posted a few times about it. But like most I jumped on Google and opened the door for health anxiety. From that moment on it took up residency in my life. My neck got so tight from my trap muscles all the way up. I went to the eye specialist, my primary doctor, routine eye exam and neurologist. My eyes were find with the exception that I'm getting older the fact that I work on a computer 8 hours a day for the last 15 years the computer vision set in. But the neurologist is one who found how bad my neck was. So we've all been there I learned coming on here helps because you don't feel so alone.