Shaking and Health Anxiety

[kelseyt]

Hi everyone,
I'm new here but I thought I'd share my story as it may help me to hear other people I can relate to.

First of all I will say that my anxiety is fairly new, my first panic attack was about 6 months ago now. I was in a nightclub and I felt really ill and really thought I was going to pass out. I had to sit down in the toilets and I had never felt fear like that before. Ever since then I have had health anxiety. For fear of not ever wanting to feel like I'm dying again. (That's what I thought was happening in that club)

And here's the story as of now.
I'm a 19 year old female, I've recently noticed my anxiety getting so bad I can barely concentrate. I have also started to shake a lot. I feel healthy other than some pressure in my head and I've been to my doctor and she thinks the constant shaking is down to my anxiety. I get nervous a lot about getting seriously ill so any symptom I rush to the doctors. I have a slightly swollen lymph node on my neck and I cried for a week because I thought I had lymphoma and got 4 different doctors opinions. My anxiety seems to pass if I feel healthy, but as of right now my shaking is making me anxious because I'm always worried that the doctors missed something. Last night I suffered with two panic attacks and eventually fell asleep at about 5am because I was so exhausted. I went to college this morning and my anxiety was worse than ever. I was trembling and couldn't even concentrate, I also felt extremely faint so I had to leave.
I have done some research into anxiety and I know all the deep breathing techniques but they don't seem to help much.
I'm worried because it's affecting my college work now and I really want to do well. I will also get kicked off my course if I don't do well. Which is making me more stressed, it's like a vicious circle.

Any advice would be appeciated.

[farrah01]

Girl, I am right there with ya! I also suffer from health anxiety. Thinking back, I believe I have had it since I was a small child. For the longest I had bad headaches everyday ( I am low iron anemic) but I was convinced it was a brain tumor! I get chest pains

[farrah01]

So I'm certain it's my heart! It's a never ending battle going from one illness to another that I convince myself I have!

[Slammed Vdub]

Health anxiety... thats me. I had it for around 2 years before i finally shook off the majority of it. I paid attention to every detail and every pain throughout my body. Anything out of the ordinary i immediately thought it was cancer, or a tumor. The basis of my anxiety was throwing up. Anything, and i mean anything that made me feel like i was sick, would start a vicious anxiety cycle.

[farrah01]

When mine first started, I did throw up a lot... That was usually the peak of my anxiety attack. I would shake uncontrollably and then throw up... Now it's a little different.. Although I still have panic attacks and anxiety, I know what it is.. Back then I didn't. I had never even heard the term "panic attack" till years later when I finally went to a dr, convinced something was seriously wrong with me. These forums actually help a lot. I am un-medicated, and try to stay that way. I also have a huge phobia of medication side effects and the thought of taking a pill daily makes my anxiety worse. Meditation helps me, I have an app on my phone, and talking to other people who have the same issues that I have, helps me realize I'm not just crazy. Lol

[kelseyt]

Health anxiety... thats me. I had it for around 2 years before i finally shook off the majority of it. I paid attention to every detail and every pain throughout my body. Anything out of the ordinary i immediately thought it was cancer, or a tumor. The basis of my anxiety was throwing up. Anything, and i mean anything that made me feel like i was sick, would start a vicious anxiety cycle.

That's the same as me, any slight lump or pain I think it's cancer and bother the doctors about it constantly. I check myself all the time for anything out if the ordinary and then google it if I find something. Which I know is a big no no for us hypochondriacs.

Im starting to work on fighting the urge to google symptoms as that only makes my anxiety worse. But I hope I can shake this off also one day.

[kelseyt]

When mine first started, I did throw up a lot... That was usually the peak of my anxiety attack. I would shake uncontrollably and then throw up... Now it's a little different.. Although I still have panic attacks and anxiety, I know what it is.. Back then I didn't. I had never even heard the term "panic attack" till years later when I finally went to a dr, convinced something was seriously wrong with me. These forums actually help a lot. I am un-medicated, and try to stay that way. I also have a huge phobia of medication side effects and the thought of taking a pill daily makes my anxiety worse. Meditation helps me, I have an app on my phone, and talking to other people who have the same issues that I have, helps me realize I'm not just crazy. Lol

Yeah it seems to be helping me also to be on here and read peoples stories. I've downloaded the app now too. I really want to look into meditation but I'm not quite sure where to start. I've also started running everyday to try to exhaust myself. But this however is easier said than done because my anxiety sometimes makes me worry that all the running will make me have a heart attack etc.

People often tell me that you're wasting the time you do have healthy worrying about being ill. I know that's true but it's an awful thing to try and put out of your head.

Haha I've felt like I'm crazy a lot. Glad being on here is helping us both.

[kelseyt]

Also something else that bothers me that if one of these times, god forbid I'm right and it is something serious. I don't want to look back at my life and it just be a constant string of worrying about the thing that eventually happened to me anyway.

Even though I have this thought it still doesn't stop my anxiety. :/