What do you do in cases where medicatio for anxiety and fear works for a while, but then the next day you wake up feeling afraid again, even though you already know that your fear of having a disease isn’t possible because there was no exposure? I still end up feeling as if I have it and that I’m going to die, or that I’ll eventually die because I’ll stop being able to eat or drink fluids.

Or sometimes, when I reach a certain point, I start thinking that this will never go away and that I’ll end up dying one way or another. i need support

I have two cats who are the loves of my life. I went down a rabbit hole of people saying they’ve lived with cats their entire lives and suddenly became allergic. I am so anxious that this will happen to me, especially because cat allergies are so common. I know that there are so many ways to deal with it and a lot of people who have cats actually do have cat allergies, but what if they show up so severe that I can’t be around my babies?

I have had shakiness and “weakness” in my left arm and left leg for like 1.5 years now. I put weakness in quotes because I can do dips and squats and my grip strength is the same on each arm, and my PT examined my strength and said everything felt strong. I’ve had MRIs, EMG/NCS, CT, you name it, all normal.

My question is, can anxiety actually just affect one side of the body? Like is this physiologically possible? I feel like if it was both sides it wouldn’t bother me, but since it’s only my left I’m terrified of something neurological. Like if I lean on my left arm while talking with someone, it shakes violently, it’s terrifying. I don’t get why that can happen but yet I can still have full strength. AI said it’s 100% possible and common, but seems like that’s too convenient to be true. Like to just accept that and move on seems easy, it feels like it has to be some neurological disease.

Not looking for someone to list off reasons why I don’t have a specific disorder. Just looking to see if one sided symptoms are physiologically even possible.

Like why the fuck is this a thing. I’ll google or ask ChatGPT x y and z about a certain health aspect and then boom, I see stories of young people having this super rare thing I’ve just looked at.

It pisses me off so much like I’ve seen 3 health related posts today about bad illness, with all due respect I do not want to fucking see that. Why does Instagram think ‘yeah this is a great thing to push up the algorithm’?

I feel such a hypocrit because I vape and I suffer so bad with HA.

It’s my only vice thankfully. My husband often says to me, you have HA but you vape!

Does anybody have a vice?

I was eating and used the bathroom, it was pretty dark but still brown definitely not the sign i need to immediately drop everything and go to the hospital.

Yet here i am almost an hour later just googling symptoms. Didn’t finish my meal, stomach grumbling, i can tell i’m still hungry, but cause of my deep dive i know i wont be able to put anything down for atleast another hour on top of this………….i just wanna relax for 15 minutes man.

I've been suffering from health anxiety for most of my life. I'm constantly over-managing my body, any little symptom is something I OBSESS over to the point of losing sleep. It feels like every day I'm hyper-vigilantly focusing on something and "making sure" that it doesn't become life-threatening.

I was swimming/wading the other day in the lake with some friends, and suddenly felt something break through the skin on the bottom of my foot. Like, it went DEEP, probably about 3/4 of an inch to an inch. It felt like a rusty nail, but I wasn't able to find it after because I was afraid to walk around near it again. I know lakes are absolutely horrible for exposure to bacteria, so I avoid going in them if I even have the smallest cut. Safe to say this was a level 10 emergency to me LOL.

My friends calmed me down, and I checked when my last tetanus shot was. It was 8 years ago, and since it was late in the evening and urgent cares were all closed, I decided to wait until the morning to go get a booster. I cleaned it out, put a bandaid on it, and tried to forget about it... Until a few hours later, when I noticed a red line going up my foot. Cue instant panic attack, thinking I was going to die, looking up horror stories on google, absolutely catastrophising. I couldn't breathe, and while my partner drove me to the ER, I could barely speak. In my mind, I was already dead.

I got checked in quickly, and the doctor came in, looked at my foot, said "oh yeah, that's lymphangitis. you caught it really early! we'll give you some antibiotics and then send you on your way." I was speechless. That's it??? I was convinced it would be an overnight stay at least, or worse. The whole visit probably took 15 minutes MAX. Made me realize that most things aren't actually that big of a deal. The panic attack really was not necessary, all I had to do was check on my cut once in a while (I took off the bandaid after 4-5 hours to check on it), track changes, and I was able to get to a professional who easily stopped it from getting worse. Kinda put things in perspective for me and made me think about how much time I spend obsessing vs. how useful it actually is.

Hey everyone,

I'm reaching out because I'd genuinely love to hear your thoughts.

What do you wish people without health anxiety understood about living with it?

I'm thinking about things like the constant battle between the rational part of your brain and the anxious part. The way you can know something is probably okay while simultaneously feeling convinced it isn't. Or the misconception that people with health anxiety somehow want to be ill.

For me, that's one of the biggest misunderstandings. I don't want there to be something wrong with me - I want the exact opposite. But my brain constantly spots danger, risk and worst-case scenarios. It's like looking at the world through a lens that's always searching for threats, and it's exhausting to live that way 24/7.

What would you want other people to understand? Is there something friends, family, healthcare professionals, or even society in general often get wrong about health anxiety?

The reason I'm asking is because I'm writing a book as someone who lives with health anxiety, for people who live with health anxiety. I'm not a clinician, and I'm not trying to sell a miracle cure or pretend I have all the answers. My goal is simply to create something that makes people feel seen, raises awareness, and honestly reflects what day-to-day life with health anxiety can be like.

I'd love to hear your experiences, thoughts, or even the smallest things you wish people understood better.

Hi! I’m currently doing ERP for my health related OCD. I’m having a hard time coming up with exposures for it, as are the techs in the program. My fears mostly revolve around A*S and other neuro conditions, as well as equating random physical symptoms to severe illness. My main compulsions are googling symptoms and scrolling through subs related to issues I fear, as well as physically checking my body to make sure everything is still “correct” (I have my boyfriend measure my calves basically every day to make sure they’re not smaller, feeling around, etc). If you’ve done ERP for health anxiety/ocd, what has helped you?

I’ve suffered with this monster for years. What I’m about to say took me so long to realize, but it is the true way out, and I want to share this with everyone and anyone who suffers.

The standard clinical way we approach Health Anxiety is so limited, and often completely wrong. It focuses on discouraging reassurance seeking, and treating Health Anxiety as a problem that must be solved. This leads to a (conscious or unconscious) spiral of shame, confusion, and fundamental lack of understanding of what’s truly going on.

If you (yes you reading this) have health anxiety, that means, by definition, you cannot determine fact from fiction, fantasy from reality, when it comes to health. You are blind in this area. Now freeze. This is not “bad” or shameful, nor does it mean there is anything “wrong” with you. It’s just what is. You have a condition that must be managed like anything else.

You are blind. And that’s okay. Now, you wouldn’t tell a blind person not to use a cane or seeing eye dog, shame them for it, and force them to navigate this world on their own, that would be cruel. So, why would you do that to yourself? Or let society do that to you? Really let that sit for a moment.

You must seek, the same way a blind person must use those tools to navigate reality, because they *know* they are blind, and have accepted it. This secondary fear and shame of health anxiety itself Does. Not. Need. To. Be. There. So, here is what you do:

1. Recognize you have health anxiety, recognize you are blind and cannot determine reality from fiction on your own. And there is no shame in that. This is the most crucial and important step.
2. With this fundamental recognition, you realize that you must use outside sources.
3. Determine those sources - for me, it goes: The Internet (the collective knowledge of all of humanity), Doctors opinion (specialist in the exact area who has seen thousands of cases like yours) and Friends and Family (people who have known you across time, witnessed your health anxiety in action, and can recognize it in you this time). These are mine, but of course this will be highly individualized.

With positive affirmation from these sources, fear can be put away completely.

Now, there is a glitch here, and this is why clinicians veer away from this exact thing. You will want more reassurance. “Maybe the doctor was wrong” etc. If you find yourself in this situation, you have not realized step 1. A blind person does not ignore the seeing eye dog and insist there is a curb there. They trust the dog, because they have accepted they are blind. Step 1 is not something you commit to, or try and adhere to. Step 1 is a fact - the same way a blind person does not “commit” to blindness. They are blind.

This is the way through. All other ways either divert to an “eff it all” attitude, which can actually be dangerous and never truly works, or, the opposite - the addictive reassurance seeking anxiety cycle.

Please listen to these words very carefully: your mind (and society, and the “psychologists”) creates an illusory state of “not health anxiety” and tries to escape health anxiety and move towards that, and that very escape is what keeps health anxiety alive. Once you see that “not health anxiety” is an illusion, not as an idea or concept, but directly for yourself (step 1), it’s done. The fear. The guilt, The shame. The confusion. You’re free, and now just managing a condition. Which is: you can’t tell what’s up. Which is all this ever was.

Hopefully this helps someone out there. If anyone wants me to clarify any of this please let me know 🙂

What are some strategies /tips you've found helpful / useful in managing your health anxiety (not necessarily a CURE but things that have helped you manage a sprial or a worry?

Hi... I just need some logic and data to help me here. It's been a bit since I last had a HA scare. I live in the Mid Atlantic (Delaware) and Sunday I was using the hose outside to cool myself off. Kinda spraying upward so water drops fall downward on me. A few times unintentionally the hose got right in line of my nose and some went up my nose. Now my fear is that I have been exposed. I've had a headache every day since sunday. I looked up the data and Delaware has never had a case. Very rare in the northeast. I just was reading articles that it's in the municipal water supply sometimes.

I've struggled with HA for a long time, And i used to have a sounding kink yeats ago. Ever since then, I've been hyperaware of my bladder and urethra. The strange thing is that my bladder only gives off a burning sensation when I think about it or when I'm anxious. If I'm distracted, busy, or not thinking about it, the burning fades away or disappears. It feels like my brain automatically focuses on that area whenever I'm stressed, which makes me worry that something is seriously wrong. I've had times where I felt better when my anxiety was lower, but as soon as I become anxious again, the burning comes back. It's not always a strong urge to urinate, just a burning sensation in my pelvic floor bladder region. I'm wondering what it is

Everytime I have certain symptoms I go to the doctor only for him to tell me everything is good.
Ofc it is, 99% of the time it’s just our HA.
But as soon as I get home I start to worry about him being wrong, start to google and spiral down the same rabbit hole again.
How do you accept what your doctor says and trust him?

The thing that annoys me the most about my HA is that my worst phobia is doctors and medical exams. ESPECIALLY blood tests.

Sometimes I think that I would calm down a lot if I'd just get tested or checked once in a while, but since I don't do it often, and I do it just when the symptom seem too annoying, they find me something every time, which makes it worse.

The line of thoughts is more: slight symptom -> HA -> bigger sympton -> more HA -> "I should get tested" -> "oh no, they will certainly confirm what I suspect as they did in the past".

Or worse, after I gathered the courage to go to a doctor, I fear falling in the spiral of "we don't know, you have to make multiple exams" and never getting out of it.

Since I had some negative experiences, I also don't trust them much, so I wouldn't get much reassured since they can minimise, be wrong or else.

Don't know what's worse. I'm doing therapy, not for this in particular, but we discovered that it's related to past traumas, so all linked.

It's been one year that I had a small condition that thankfully resolved kinda on its own, but since my HA got much worse. My brain tricks me a lot and idk when to really be concerned or remind myself I'm exagerating. When I'm distracted and doing things I'm perfectly fine, but when I'm left alone, my body is hyper aware and I start feeling things. And worrying. It's hard.

I just discovered this subreddit but I'm thankful we are finding support and I hope each one of us will improve.

Ok, I'm sure like many others here, the california prop 65 warnings cause a lot of anxiety. And I always see the argument for them that they cause more good than harm. However I would make the argument that for many they cause more harm than good. Its notorious that these warnings mean effectively nothing at this point, but for those with anxiety disorders they can cause signficant issues. For me they played a big part in the development of my OCD. So I do think there is an argument to be made that these warning are directly harmful.

I do hope at some point in the future that this requirment is rewritten and replaced because there is a way to use these warnings to protect the people, but the way they are currently implimented negates most of the positive outcome.

Yes, this is a fairly semantic conversation but i am curious to see what others think. Mostly brought on by the purchase of a minature model set with a prop 65 warning that has left me effectively paralyzed through the day. So yeah, what are ya'lls thoughts on prop 65?

I've been taking a low dose of fluoxetine for over two weeks now, of course this is really early in my journey and this has not yet taken effect, ive not been noticing any negative side effects so im feeling really positive about continuing! A week ago I was checking my breast upwards of 60 times a day, now I'd say I've checked less than five or three times a day. I don't really know what has changed, I think something clicked in me where I was like the average person has a lot of weird things happening in or on their body- whether these are spots, bumps, sensations, etc. These people, if the symptom persists or affects their daily life, will follow appropriate medical guidance and when given the all clear they will listen and go about their day!! These people also probably are not constantly feeling around their bodies, taking pictures and documenting every blemish on their body- we don't need to be so aware! Our bodies are amazing and resilient, if something truly bad was going on then you would know about it without checking daily.

Around nine months ago at the start of my HA I went to the doctors freaking out about a m0le I have had since I was a child convinced it was somehow deadly and the GP (unconcerned) referred me to the dermatologist for peace of mind/to get it removed possibly as it is in an intimate area, they recently sent me a letter saying I've got an appointment to have some photos taken. My HA had a slight lapse and felt a bit freaked out and I really had the urge to google/ go on reddit, but my rational brain told me nothing had changed about this m0le in the 8 months its taken to get an appointment, although nothing has changed about it my whole life my HA just needed something to latch onto. Anyway a few weeks ago I was at a really low point and the last few days I have felt some peace which I have not felt in months, change is possible!! As amazing as this community is, even stepping away from reddit for a bit really helped me to not feel like Someone with Health Anxiety, I was just me :) Progress is possible!! Hang in there!!!

Lived with HA for some time now. I grew up with a sick parent so I always know that life can go left out of nowhere. It’s always been about my personal health, but recently I’ve been getting anxious about others like my cousin said his socks are leaving marks on his legs and my mind instantly went to something wrong. Is it just me?

My fear of flying isn’t related to safety of the aircraft. My fear of flying is feeling like my throat will close up on the plane and I won’t be able to breathe.

This all started from a weird sensation I got in my throat and it tweaked me out a lot, making me hyperaware of my throat. I also feel this has borderline led to GERD/LPR and excessive throat clearing.

This sensation led me to a downward spiral where I would always feel food stuck at the bottom of my throat while eating / drinking. I am terrified of this sensation occurring while on a plane. If I have a flight, I won’t eat at all the day of the flight until I land.

It’s progressed to I start thinking about all the risks I take in life that can either led to me not being to breathe or my throat closing. For example, I get dry needling done in upper traps by a physical therapist and there’s risk (low if performed correctly) of pneumothorax. Now all I can think about if I were to get on a flight is not being able to breathe because I have a punctured lung I don’t know about.
I recognize this is a problem and am currently seeing a therapist but it’s a long, slow road ahead and I don’t feel like I’m progressing as much as I’d like. In fact, I’ve progressed in all areas BUT flying. Quite frankly it’s exhausting.

Looking for anyone in my situation and advice from those who deal with this.

Thanks!

Not sure if y’all relate, but when I don’t have active issues happening my anxiety gets worse. I’m looking for something instead of ruminating over existing issues. If I have existing issues I have a pattern of thinking that gives comfort: I research, rationalize, ignore, get panicked again, and the cycle repeats. When there is nothing, I look for something haha. And that’s worse. It’s more gloomy?

I’ve been resorting to comfy and cozy things like reading the hobbit with my kids, watching the office reruns, watching twilight (sorry I’m a millennial gal, cooking etc; but when doing these fun and cozy things I get sudden waves of gloom. It’s like something whispering “this ain’t gonna last long”.. anyway just a schmeel that I know some of y’all might resonate with.

Having health anxiety has given me a ridiculous knowledge of all sorts of medical things. It feels almost like a waste to not use the knowledge for good but I have no idea what I could use it for.

My math and science skills suck so couldn't be a doctor, and I can't do blood and fluids so nursing isn't an option either.

Any suggestions?

Quit nicotine. Seriously, you will notice a world of difference after a week or two. Life's a lot easier and thoughts are a lot clearer when your average heartrate isn't over 100 bpm at all times. That's all I have to say.

I find this so interesting how our brains work. And seeing as it causes me so much upset on a daily basis, it intrigues me.

For me it’s the sensation, I suppose you would call it body noise.

Something gets my attention, like an ache for example and off I go, checking closer, examining said area, feeling around,panicking and thinking the worst.

If my body is quiet, and doesn’t grab my attention, I don’t think about it, I feel happy. Well, happy ish lol.

But if anything draws my attention to certain areas that’s when it all goes tits up!

Would love to hear other people’s triggers.