Ever get scared about making future plans?

[kelseyt]

Since I developed health anxiety I've developed this weird sort of outlook on everything. Like whenever I get asked to do something a year in advance i get worried incase I'll be dead by then. Like my usual thought process is what if these headaches do turn out to be a brain tumour. Or what if this node on my neck turns out to be cancer etc.
It kind of gets me down aswell because I think of how lovely these plans I want to make would be if I actually make it to that point in my life.

It's really an awful way to live and think about things but I can't stop it. Anyone else have something similar?

[vonnhelsing]

It starts to become an obsessive cycle of thoughts. It is sooo hard to break out of it. It can take a week or it can take a year to train your brain back to thinking rationally. You mustnt let every minor defeat (meaning feeling great one day then feeling like s*** the next day) push u back to square one..

[KitahD]

I think we spend too much time on 'what ifs' that we let time pass us by. I'm afraid to go out and try something new because I fear people will think I'm acting out of character or that I'm becoming unstable. So, my fear is that I'll one day be too old to much of anything that I wish I
had done while I was younger. I'm setting myself up for a lifetime of regret yet why don't I just let go and stop obsessing about how I'll appear to others? :(

[kelseyt]

It starts to become an obsessive cycle of thoughts. It is sooo hard to break out of it. It can take a week or it can take a year to train your brain back to thinking rationally. You mustnt let every minor defeat (meaning feeling great one day then feeling like s*** the next day) push u back to square one..

Yes that's true, funnily enough my anxiety hasn't been too bad lately. (And by too bad I mean it's still there just nowhere near as bad as it has been.) but I still can't shake this thought process.

Mostly because I haven't had any tests on my had aches etc, so there's always that tiny little doubt in my head that I have something life threatening that'll kill me in a few months.

I do agree with you on not getting put back to square one though, anxiety is a constant battle everyday and it's easy to become depressed because of it.
I really would like some CBT to stop the obsessive cycle but unfortunately I can't afford it and there's a 6 month waiting list for people being referred by doctors.

[kelseyt]

I think we spend too much time on 'what ifs' that we let time pass us by. I'm afraid to go out and try something new because I fear people will think I'm acting out of character or that I'm becoming unstable. So, my fear is that I'll one day be too old to much of anything that I wish I had done while I was younger. I'm setting myself up for a lifetime of regret yet why don't I just let go and stop obsessing about how I'll appear to others? :(

Oh yes I definitely spend too much time on the what ifs.
Why don't you try going out and trying new things alone until you're ready to share it with people? I know nothing's as fun without a friend by your side but you could just do it for you.
Or you could sit down with just one close friend and explain that you're worried and why (if they're a good friend I promise they'll understand) and you could go from there. :)

That's also a big fear of mine though, looking back at my life and thinking that anxiety controlled it all.
But yes you should try to let go :) you have to remember lots of people try new things everyday, it's actually more normal to than not.

[mistiblue]

Yep, all the time.

[AnxiousPsychGrad]

7 years ago, I woke up out of a dead sleep to a sharp pain in my head. Since then, that one spot has been tender to the touch, and my migraines radiate from it. That's when my health anxiety started. My migraines have since made their way to other parts of my head which caused me to think I had brain cancer and it was spreading. I started to write notes to my family, thought about what my niece and nephew would think if they had to see me in the hospital, all of that crazy stuff. It 100% consumed my life. All of my doctors would tell me "you're fine!" But no one would order an MRI. I finally demanded one. I got the results just last week... No rumors... No cancer... Just a normal brain. I was finally at ease! Yesterday as I was trying to fall asleep, I felt a heaviness in my chest. I immediately thought: pulmonary embolism.. I'm going to die.
36 hours later... I'm still awake, but I'm still alive.
My point is that this is a NEVER-ENDING cycle. I truly believe those who have health anxiety suffer more than lots of people with actual physical illness. We just want someone to understand us. Someone to reassure us that our life will be long and not full of sickness.
I totally understand you. One of the ways I cope now is to actually plan dream vacations for the future. Plan out all details and before you know it, you've forgotten all about your anxiety and you're actually enjoying thinking about the future. :)