[chocolatelover]

im a hypochondriac and i was wondering if there are any others on VB so we could like support each other and stuff. for those of you that dont know a hypochondriac is defined as<br><br><br><br>
"somebody who is excessively preoccupied with health and persistently believes that he or she is ill or in danger of becoming ill"<br><br><br><br>
im always afraid i'll get sick and i think that i am sick alot of the time, my entire family thinks im insane and gets so annoyed with me. my mom gets mad at me whenever i check my temperature or ask her if i have a fever (which i used to ask alot but not so much anymore)<br><br><br><br>
anyway i was just wondering if there are any other hypos out there cuz im going through a hard time right now with my cousin being sick and i had to be in the car with him for 4 hours while he was throwing up most of the time.<br><br><br><br>
so this is like a support thread share your stories and we will try to help you out, and give you support and encouragement.

 

[Lothar M Kirsch]

Sorry, I'm not a Hypochrondriac. I think the term is overrated. I have, however, quite a lot experience with people telling "I felt like a hypochondriac". And so it might be that people don't like coming out.<br><br>
Hope, you'll get support group going.

 

[chocolatelover]

basically its just really bad anxiety about getting sick, mayebe the term hypochondriac is intimidating?

 

[jeneticallymodified]

i used to be obsessed with getting sick in my teens, but i think it was mainly because i was actually sick a lot (constantly run down and picking up ear nose and throat infections, and every cold and virus that was going round at least twice, lol) and the idea of catching anything else just filled me with pure dread- cos being sick isn't fun, especially over and over, everyone knows that.<br><br><br><br>
i think what helped me not worry and obsess so much anymore was getting my immune system back on track, as once (i guess about a year after, realistically) i stopped catching a cold from what seemed like every single sick person whom i so much as walked past, the fear slowly dwindled and i calmed down a lot. i haven't caught a cold or had a virus etc for at least a year now, and when i do get one, they're gone in under a week, cos i treat them fast, so i haven't got so much of a rational reason for my fear anymore.<br><br><br><br>
i do get headaches and stomach aches quite a lot, (but i know why, its cos i have screwed up sinuses and a pathetic excuse for a stomach!) and i moan and wail a bit about it,(cos yeah, feeling ill sucks and sympathy helps!) and the irrational idea that it could be a brain tumour or gastroenteritis does pop through my head, but i don't let it stay there, or pander to it, cos its not realistic, and worrying without cause doesn't serve me any purpose apart from giving me a bigger headache or stomach ache!<br><br><br><br>
i do relate though- but i think when i get irrational and not useful thoughts about my health, it's important for me to keep perspective, and focus on things that i can change/do to make my body more able to deal with illness, and less likely to fall foul to germs. taking your temperature won't change much- and you'll know if you're actually really sick soon enough, temperature or not, cos you'll feel it, like being hit by a tonne of bricks. getting your body to a state where it is ready to fight illness effectively, and more likely to protect you from becoming ill so much, and give you the ability to recover quickly, makes more sense to me, and when it works (which it does for me), i worry less, i'm too busy feeling ok and enjoying myself, you know?<br><br><br><br>
good luck with it though! i used to ask my mum if i had a temperature all the time, lol. she'd say that she really didn't know, but that if i didn't, she could probably arrange it for me, if i'd like to have one. (i think she was offering to slap me round the head to warm it up a bit, but i wasn't paying enough attention to ask, i was too busy worrying about my possible oncoming toxic shock syndrome or ebola, or whatever i thought i might have at the time, that was really just caused by wearing a heavy sweater and standing next to a radiator.)

 

[Lothar M Kirsch]

Sometimes moms can't be beaten! <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/smiley.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="">

 

[jeneticallymodified]

my mum is a saint for putting up with me, i'm suprised she didn't crack up with what i put her though hahaha! <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/smiley.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="">

 

[VegHead29]

I too spend far too much time obsessing about being ill! Your story about the 4 hours in the car would be mortifying to me and I too would spend the week worrying about getting sick! Especially vomiting, that is my biggest phobia. I've been dealing with a colitis issue and for 3 months I felt horrible every single day. But the panic about being sick, I believe was making it worse. I have found that if I just get myself to relax, I'm not nearly as sick as I think I am. I'm certainly not cured, but I try to look at the situation realistically and realize that I'm not going to die even if I do get sick. Two days ago I was in a panic because I thought for sure I was going to puke. But once again, I was talking myself into something that wasn't there. I did have gas and cramping (that was real), but I blew it up to be the next stomach virus! So, I feel your pain and I'm with ya! Good luck and write if you need someone to listen!<br><br><br><br>
Gail

 

[jeneticallymodified]

apparently stress is bad for your immune response, so thats another reason to not panic about getting sick.

 

[chocolatelover]

yah my parents give me all these reasons not to panic and stuff and it makes sense and stuff but i dont think rationally or something...

 

[chocolatelover]

<div class="quote-container"><span>Quote:</span>
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by <strong>VegHead29</strong> <a href="/forum/post/0"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style=""></a><br><br>
I too spend far too much time obsessing about being ill! Your story about the 4 hours in the car would be mortifying to me and I too would spend the week worrying about getting sick! Especially vomiting, that is my biggest phobia. I've been dealing with a colitis issue and for 3 months I felt horrible every single day. But the panic about being sick, I believe was making it worse. I have found that if I just get myself to relax, I'm not nearly as sick as I think I am. I'm certainly not cured, but I try to look at the situation realistically and realize that I'm not going to die even if I do get sick. Two days ago I was in a panic because I thought for sure I was going to puke. But once again, I was talking myself into something that wasn't there. I did have gas and cramping (that was real), but I blew it up to be the next stomach virus! So, I feel your pain and I'm with ya! Good luck and write if you need someone to listen!<br><br><br><br>
Gail</div>
</div>
<br><br><br>
fear of throwing up is my biggest phobia too. it has got to be the worst feeling in the world...

 

[VegHead29]

Well, I will say that the Fear of throwing up can be the worst feeling in the world! I don't know about you, but when I think it might happen, I become irrational. I too cannot think rationally to tell myself all of these good things! All I can think is, OMG, gonna die, need to get away from this feeling, blah, blah, blah. It's a horrendous feeling, because as we all know, if you're going to throw up, there's not much you can do to stop it! But, I do try to calm myself and decide if it is truly a horrible stomach ache (one that could actually make me barf) or me blowing a grggle out of proportion! I also try to tell myself (when it's true) that I am not sick, haven't eaten anything bad, and haven't gone on a roller coaster, therefore, the chances of it happening are pretty slim. Finally, I do try to be reasonable and realize that I have thrown up in my life and survived to tell about it, so I will survive again. I was thinking of trying yoga to see if that helped with focusing and relaxing. I'm pretty anti-meds (another evil of the panic) and don't want to use them to get better, so I will continue on my search for a natural "cure" to this!

 

[chocolatelover]

i read the books,listened to the tapes, saw the websites, joined the boards, tried yoga, meditating, calm music, loud music, snapping rubber bands on my wrist, journaling, reading the Bible etc etc etc and practically nothing can distract me from panicking about throwing up except falling asleep (and even then sometimes i dream about it). and for some weird reason, lexapro seems to be helping me with all my other anxiety except about throwing up...

 

[Ludi]

I worry about my health a lot, for instance today I went to the doctor about foot and lower leg pain because I thought I might have blood clots or something. But she said it is probably Nervous Leg Syndrome or >>>> B12 deficiency! And this was without me mentioning I'm eating mostly vegetarian foods (this wasn't my regular doctor). She didn't seem very worried about it and told me to keep taking aspirin or Aleve and let her know if it gets worse...<br><br><br><br>
I worry about my health in the way of not thinking I will live very long, that I will die of some health problem. I hope to live to age 60, but don't expect to live much beyond that.

 

[veggiebelly]

I know where you're coming from. I was at my worst last summer - at the doctor almost every week and even in the hospital. After getting every test in the world done on me and after the doctor banning me from looking health conditions up on the internet and telling me that I do more for my health than 90% of her patients, I am doing much better. But it took therapy and medication. It comes from anxiety and you need to figure out the best way to deal with it. Maybe it's not meditation, maybe it's not yoga. That stuff doesn't really appeal to me, either. I just keep myself busy, take a lot of walks and have a lot of hobbies.<br><br><br><br>
A lot of people think it's really silly and stupid, but when you have the problem, it's not so amusing.

 

[sky22]

i guess i could be termed as ahypochodriac. but only difference is that i wont speak out my fears about all those illnesses-they will shut me up in an asylum! i have the same feelings as u.