Fighting the Urge...

[str8trippin]

Fighting the urge to Google. It's a habit I had kicked, but I'm having a rough weekend so far. My anxiety started coming back around Wednesday night or Thursday at some point,and slowly it's gotten worse and worse to the point of feeling physically not well again. Have had a headache (left side front/top) that I can't kick since sometime yesterday and getting little zappy feelings or buzzes in my head, feeling a lot of tension in my neck, dry mouth and having a hard times swallowing, and just generally feeling horribly paranoid that something is really wrong with me. Also feel a bit feverish, which seems to happen to me frequently, but I never have a fever...my oral temperature is always between 97.6-98.3. Trying to take a deep breath and remind myself that in all doctors I've seen and tests I've had done (three doctors, two nurse practitioners and multiple nurses...three rounds of blood work, EKG, audiology test, neck x-rays, women's health exam) there's been NO indication that anything is wrong...but it's not settling me as much as I'd like. I'm back to going to bed every night worrying that I might not wake up, which kicks insomnia into high gear because I'm afraid to fall asleep, and the more tired I get the more disoriented I feel and go back to wondering what is wrong and thinking maybe I'm dying. I just want to stop feeling like this for good.

[raggamuffin]

If you must put "anxiety" followed by a symptom or pain.

Ed

[Applecherry]

You're all freaking out because anxiety makes you afraid of everything, so you can be on guard and "prepared" for the danger, your brain is SUPER aware during this time, and super over-stimulated, it's analyzing, and doubting everything in it's surrounding and ready for attack, it's the part of your brain, the basal ganglia (if I remember correctly) that is stimulated during anxiety. So you have to keep in consideration though it is hell, that is what is going on.

You're obviously anxious about something in your life on a bigger scale, so that's what is causing the anxiety. Even if you can't fix the bigger problems, you can learn to accept and become better at dealing with anxiety symptoms from day to day.

When I can't sleep, I curl up on the bed on my side, kick my legs a bit, then I start to drift off to sleep. Hope I helped a bit. in any case, good luck.

[majored]

Hi, when im stressed and the anxiety starts to take over i ask my OH ....ive got a pain here , it hurts when i do this, its not going away, why do you think it hurts here? If i get the reply dont know, not sure,dont worry etc. Its not the answer i want to here he knows less than i do. I want to know its normal, its ok, its something i shouldnt worry about or it will go away. So i go to Google it will give me answers BUT it will also scare me and make the anxiety go sky high. I need reassurance and i want it now to stop the anxiety. Not wait for a week to see the doctor which means in the ean time the anxiety gets worse.

Sometimes i must admit Google has helped when ive been worrying but all the bad things seem to come out first. I know i must not do it but i need to know if i should go to the hospital or be worred about something. After all thats why most of us are on here to be told its all part of anxiety and get some reassurance . When i first started to use this forum there were a few of us that were all in the same boat with google. So we all worked together and supported each other. We all tried to keep off Google and i did manage to it but i was getting the support i needed from here.

Id be ok for a few weeks then i would cave in and have to google . Even though google is a great help with most things it does seem to fuel anxiety i know it does this and yet i still have done it. The doctors, family, friends and the hospital have told me not to do it .

My worse time was when i kept getting headaches and needed to check to see if i was dying!. Well google 9/10 told me i was. I would go off to the doctors ...i dont know how many times and they asked me questions then looked into my eyes did my obs etc and would tell me i was fine. How could i be fine when i have this headache that ive had for 12 weeks every day,all day. So i would come home and google which made me panic, which made the headaches worse, so i would end up going back to the doctors again.

I have to try and believe the doctors at the end of the day they are a expert , i am not and im going to them for advice and reassurance and then im not taking it. My thoughts were allways how are they 100% sure they have done no tests they are just using their experience going on someone else.

At the moment in time im going through all this again. The doctor said im fine but i think there is something under- lining...so now waiting for the letter to go to the hospital which im sooooo scared of. Now normally i would google it just to see if i can justify my thoughts and in turn my worries . However im NOT because if i did google i would start make the anxiety go through the roof.

A book is a good idea, or talking to someone else who has gone down the same path. Use this forum for support but try not to google. ;-)

[tailspin]

This is so hard......I really empathize for all of us going through something similar. Hope you're feeling a bit better today str8trippin. What I find is that even if I get reassurance from the doctor I still don't feel better. I just feel like the doctor has missed something. I actually would like the doctor to find something wrong so it could be treated. I hasten to add that, obviously, I do NOT want the doctor to find cancer or anything fatal. But I would welcome it if, for example, the doctor found something treatable. Something out of balance, or some deficiency that could be treated. It sucks so bad to constantly be told it's "just" anxiety, when that does NOT make the symptoms go away!

[str8trippin]

Thanks everyone; I'm feeling better the last couple of days, but the end of the week/beginning of the weekend was rough. I went on a camping trip with a friend and am honestly surprised I was even able to make it through the night. I had horrible insomnia and lay there tossing and turning and thinking about all sorts of things for hours it felt like. I had no clue what time it was, and on top of it, the moon was out and every time I'd look outside the tent I'd feel extremely disoriented because it was so bright and I couldn't figure out what the time might be. I must have drifted off eventually but I kept waking up and finally got up for good around quarter to eight...had an okay day except for a nagging headache, and was totally exhausted by like 2 PM. I did get some sleep the following night but was just dragging all day Sunday and now I'm back at work. Feeling decent at the moment. I did talk to a friend of mine a few days ago that set up two counseling sessions for me with this woman who I had really wanted to see but couldn't afford; he called her and arranged it for me, paid for it, everything...that meant a lot and really reassured me that someone actually gives a crap about what I'm going through. So I'm going to try that...my first round of counseling was useless...and hopefully this time it will be more beneficial. Hope everyone is feeling great today!

[tailspin]

Glad you're doing better! And well done for making it through the camping trip! Going away on trips is a trigger for my anxiety and I sometimes make the mistake of avoiding doing things, but that is a downward spiral to be sure.

Great your friend set up some counseling for you. Really hope it helps.

[JustAnotherAttack]

When I'm in panic mode I google "panic attack symptoms". When I do that and see my symptoms listed then I get confirmation that what I feel is panic. I don't go on a wild search and try to find new things that are wrong with me.

I've been to the doctors and had the same tests as you have and I'm also healthy. There is nothing wrong with me other than the chemical imbalance in my brain which is not threatening my life...its just causing my panic attacks plain and simple.
The feelings pass...eventually. You may feel like they are lasting all day and realistically they might, but you're not going to die. The doctors didn't miss anything and you're going to be fine. :)

[Danny1986]

these symptoms are very tough to deal with : ( i recently went back to work after a 2 month break and the symptoms have been causing havoc with me too.I feel for ya buddy and the above advice with adding 'anxiety' before googling is DEFINITELY one i am stealing!!! Sometimes ya don't feel well plain and simple i hope the councelling helps,I am trialing meds at the moment? not sure if you have tried them yet,some people find great relief from the physical symptoms.

[AnFiach]

Dr. Google is great at feeding anxiety/paranoia.