Health anxiety

[Mel78]

I'm a 45 year old woman with health anxiety, it started when i was about 22 years old i had a very traumatic experience with a family member passing away from a horrible disease and i went from never thinking about death to thinking about it constantly. I worried about my children and my husband and how they would cope without me around and would they be ok, i started to get lots of different symptoms and was very scared what was happening, i saw my doctor and specialists and everytging came back normal it was then that i became very sick i couldnt eat or sleep i lost heaps of weight and i couldnt function or get out of bed i felt like i was going crazy and loosing my mind. The doctor diagnosed me with generalised anxiety disorder and somatic delusional disorder and for a few years everything was getting better with the medication i was taking, i relapsed a few times but was able to overcome it each time so instead of it taking me weeks to get over it it became days instead and i was able to get on with my life. But in the last few months it has started creeping up on me again im convinced i have MS because both of my pinky fingers go numb every night while im sleeping and i have night sweats. Im seeing my doctor today to talk about my concerns but i took the day off work because i cant think about anything else its getting a real hold on me and i dont want to feel like this , is there anyone out there who feels the same or can put my mind at ease about my symptoms because i dont want to consumed by this again i just want to enjoy my life. 😔

[Sophie_M]

Hey Mel78,  

Thank you for your post to the forums today and for sharing with us how you are feeling right now. We are so sorry to hear about the experience that you had with your family member and can only imagine how tough it must have been. 

Health anxiety is incredibly challenging to manage, and it sounds like you are doing lots of things to help support yourself on your journey to feeling better.  
 
It’s good to hear you have reached out and spoken to a doctor about these symptoms, we think it’s always really good to keep your GP updated with health anxiety and physical symptoms. 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