Constantly in fear of dying

[Louise1993]

I’ve been really struggling with the fear of dying since moving to Australia from the UK. I never had this before then. I’ve had a lot of health issues since being here (nothing life threatening) but out of nowhere I will have these debilitating panic attacks where I feel like I’m going to die. It’s terrifying. I genuinely believe that I’m not going to make it home. I’m constantly Googling my symptoms, and body checking. I’ve become so hypersensitive to my bodily sensations. 

To make it worse, I witnessed someone who died in a motorcycle accident the other day where I was heavily involved (called the ambulance, checked for a pulse etc). I feel awful for him and his family, and I can’t help but feel that this has confirmed that I could just die at any moment. It probably sounds ridiculous and I know my partner doesn’t fully understand. I’m going back to the UK in a couple of weeks time, but even getting on the plane is scaring me in case something happens. I haven’t been able to get therapy due to not having Medicare or the money to afford it so feel it’s gotten worse.

I guess I’m just trying to get my thoughts down and see if anyone has any advice, or has similar feelings to me? 

Thanks so much in advance x 

[Sophie_M]

Hi Louise1993,
 
Thank you for your post to the Forums and for sharing with us how you are feeling right now. Anxiety around health and/or illness is incredibly challenging to manage, but one of the most important steps is acknowledging it and seeking support.   
 
If you ever want to talk, please know that the Beyond Blue counsellors are here for you as well and you can call us on 1300 22 4636 any time if you feel like talking it through.   We’re sure we’ll hear from our lovely community here soon, but in the meantime here’s some resources and conversations on managing anxiety you might find interesting: 

• Some strategies for managing anxiety  
• This previous thread where community members shared some of their Beyond Blue’s anxiety management strategies 
   

Thanks again for posting here. It must have taken a lot of strength to share this, but you never know who will read this post and feel less alone in their own experience. 
 
Kind regards,  
Sophie M 

[46Polly-grace]

Hi Louise I have had fear of death many years and it’s particularly terrifying when getting on a plane, so I understand those intense feelings and how hard they are to manage. I think it’s amazing you were able to act so responsibly to the accident and that would have been a terrifying experience. I have variously used breathing, meditation, some meds, prescription and herbal and had counselling. This has helped to some extent. Anxiety is so prevalent at least we can talk about it these days and recognise it as a common human condition. All the best xx