Do you find your anxiety is causing you to 'invent' medical issues all the time?

[DN129]

I think I've dealt with this most of my life and only recently acknowledged it. I never really confronted my anxiety until I started to get panic attacks, but the more I look back the more its always been there to some degree.

I think for me one of the hardest hit symptoms I've always faced is 'health anxiety' or 'inventing' medical issues. To me, in my mind they're real. I can even feel the symptoms. But to doctors, they seem inexplainable, vague or simply excessive relative to the 'injury' or my general health.

Now this isn't to say that doctors are always right or what you're feeling isn't necessarily true. But I've always found I suffered from the type of illnesses that have symptoms overlapping with anxiety. For instance I've had stomach and IBS issues my whole life. This started when I got punched in the gut and started obsessing about it. It seems very possible to create mental situations.

[Egh]

These posts were so comforting to read. I am literally suffering through something that I felt no one else was going through and I felt as though I sounded stupid talking about it. I felt so alone!

I recently just started the contraceptive pill and reacted to it with tingling over my entire body. I went to my GP and she said that I was fine but she'd give me a CT scan just to be precautionary. That was it - I went into panic mode because i thought I had a blood clot that was going to pass into my brain and kill me. Most likely not going to happen but, still, 6 days on from that doctor visit and i'm still covered in those tingles and still panicking my butt off. It's all I can think about. It's encompassing every thought I have and I just DON'T FEEL LIKE MYSELF any more. I'm longing for the days of peace and calm. I am a Christian so I have been praying constantly for health and peace and this has helped me on multiple occasions.

When I read a few posts on here about dizziness and tingling I felt as though I finally have found a place where people understand. Thank you for your support.

[Annie1974]

Thank you so much for posting this is me too but I'm too scared to go to dr all the time for tests as just the dr appointment causes me anxiety, sometimes just using the phone to make the appointment can cause the anxiety but it helps so much knowing it's just not me that obsessives about these things. One part of me knows I don't have anything wrong as I have felt like this for years and I know I would be already dead and I don't get the symptoms when I'm busy and my minds engaged In an activity. It's only when I'm alone with my own thoughts that it happens.Thank you again.

[blondguy]

Hey Annie1974.....please see your GP, being scared is normal......you have everything to gain and nothing to lose 🙂

(Excuse me for butting in to your thread DN129)

My Best

Paul

[Ace6913]

Thanks mummybee for adding your list of illnesses I to have had along list of illnesses and my current one is Breast cancer I even went to the extent of getting an ultrasound and of course came back clear but because I had obsessively googled I've talked myself into the ultrasound has missed something because there not as good as other scans but I'm currently pregnant so I have to stick with that scan I've had no lumps or anything I'm just convinced something's not right 😡 sorry correct myself my anxiety is convinced and my other physical symptom is dull ache in shoulder neck and arm all due to the stress I put my body through . I'll ride this current wave of fear out with you your not alone none of us are 😄

[MarkJT]

DN129, absolutely it does. I previously self diagnosed with whole range of medical issues but the better i have got at controlling my anxiety, the better i have become at dispelling these "illnesses".

This is why it is so important to stay away from "Dr Google". If you genuinely think you have an illness, go to the GP and get it checked out. Most of the time it will be nothing but your anxiety and then you can put your mind to rest.

Cheers

Mark.