Worrying about asbestos

[blondietraveler]

Hi, I’m working in construction, I love my job and everything but I have one problem, my biggest fear is asbestos and the other day I went to a site I was wearing all PPE but think I breath little bit of asbestos the site was clear of a asbestos except the items that I had to touch it has asbestos I’m really worried about that disease I have breathing issues and feel so scared about cancer, I can not stop think about  it :,( 

[Sophie_M]

Hi blondietraveler,

Thank you for your post tonight and welcome to the forums.

We're sorry to hear that you're struggling with anxiety since coming in contact with asbestos and you're feeling like you can't stop thinking about it.

As we can't offer medical advice on the forum, we suggest that you book in an appointment to see your GP and make sure you share your concerns/fears with them.

As you have been exposed to Asbestos, you may wish to register on the National Asbestos Exposure Register here. There are also fact sheets information and state contacts for you if you ever need them.

However, if you would like some feedback on how to deal with your anxiety and or to connect with others who have experienced similiar feelings of dread around health anxiety and related issues, we hope you will get lots of wonderful community interaction and feel a little less alone...

If you do wish to talk to someone about your anxiety, please don't hesitate to call us here at BB on 1300 22 4636, or try out our webchat service (link here). We're available 24/7 and no issue is too big or too small. 

We care about you and your wellbeing!

Hope to hear from you soon,

Kind regards, 

Sophie M

[geoff]

Hello blondietraveler, asbestos is certainly something we all need to worry about, but it needs to be circulating in the air to cause any harm, which means it has to be broken, sawn, drilled, sanded for fibres to be airborne to cause any harm, just touching it should not cause any worry as long as you wash your hands, but it's the floating fibres people have to be concerned about.

If you were wearing PPE equipment then all precautions would be in place.

Geoff.

Life Member.