Welcome to the anxiety board at DS.

You've taken the important first step in writing it out.

Anxiety affects you in all the ways you shared here.

Practice even breathing, stay hydrated, and write daily in a private journal.

And that research and thinking of everything you could have is common in high functioning anxiety state.

Every time you find yourself following that, focus on the current and knowledge that all is well - your brain has to catch up to the physical changes.

Best wishes as you find your better balance.

I do need to start writing in my journal again.
I don't know why they say bad people go to hell... I'm a good person, and every day I feel this way, I feel like I'm living in the depths of my own hell.

Thank you so much for your response

I feel with this a lot. Starts off as just me feeling a bit unwell but then once I let myself slip and Google the symptoms it gets worse. More symptoms tend to show up after I freak myself out. I think the brain is capable of tricking you into thinking you're dying when in reality it's just anxiety. So many aches and pains actually come from anxiety it's kinda crazy. I never believed it I always thought a mental health issue couldn't cause this much physical pain/stress but lately ive been making connections from my body pains to my anxiety. If you've been to the doctor and they did all the tests you're okay just stay away from Google it's the worst thing ever for health anxiety. It always gives you worst case scenario first. I find that when I Google my symptoms I usually have to do a lot more digging to find the best case scenarios and what my problem most likely is. I slip a lot and let myself look it up, it's honestly hard to not do it when you just want answers and feel like you're losing it. Something I've started doing is telling a trusted person about my symptoms. They do the searches and find the best case scenarios and send me screenshots of it. That way I don't have to see all the scary health conditions that I absolutely don't have but will still convince myself I do.

Hello Kara. Welcome to DS. Sorry for what brings you here, but glad you are here.

I'm far more skilled in engineering than nursing, but I seem to recall a medical adage that a doctor who treats him/herself has a fool for a patient. An objective, professionally detached eye can make all the diff in accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. So I've heard. . . Am I only flaunting my ignorance?

Setting that wonder aside for more highly trained management. . .

The understanding of anxiety which has been forced on my engineered ignorance has me utterly convinced that support from fellow sufferers can be even more helpful than professional detachment. Here we are, offering proof that you are not alone with the psychotic weirdings of anxiety.

Welcome aboard. Vent freely. Vent often. Listening. . .

Arfie,

I 100 percent agree... I have no business trying to diagnose myself. With myself I am not rational, or objective.
Could you imagine if I had a patient with my syptoms, and I decided to tell them they must be dying??.

I have no business with any of my anxiety/OCD symptoms, but they keep popping up, whether I have business with them, or not. Logic and anxiety are not the happiest of bedfellows and yet another reason to lean on my therapy support peers rather than attempt to sort the related psycho snot knots on my own. Reality checks needed.

Unfortunately, I *can* imagine a doctor deciding to tell a patient with good insurance that they are dying so they can file all those extra insurance claims. That very angst is on the list which has had me medical distancing since 1995 when I became old enough to qualify for the first wave of age related tests.

I have just decided to believe every ache and pain is due to the anxiety--because normally it is. my bp is also pretty stinkin' high right now--going to the doc about that--I know it goes up with my anxiety--which I thought was nice and low--but apparently it isn't-physically. amazing-that mind/body connection. Last night I found this binaural beats video on lowering your bp, and played it while I slept! it lowered my morning bp tremendously!! systolic has been running at 170s in the morning--this morning was 159!!!