Hi
So a month ago I got a chest infection. I still have it… it has caused me a lot of grief and anxiety. Feeling like I couldn’t breath. Struggling to sleep for weeks. Now my kids have covid and that’s freaked me out.
Only thing is since this… I go into abit of a freak out where I wonder if my bronchitis is more then bronchitis… then I start freaking about about getting a chronic illness or terminal and dying. I even worry about how I’ll die.
I just wish I mentally was back to normal without freaking out over it. Even if I see people on tv acting dying it freaks me out.
Dear Brendan
This sounds a really hard time for you. I have used therapy to help myself with panic. However you may not choose the therapy path. I have also used medication from my GP. I would talk to Gp or do an econsult.
Seek urgent help if you feel desperate.
This forum is for carers of people in need of care so you may want to look at MIND or Rethink mental illness.
Please seek help you sound really low and I wish you well. Ula
I had this really bad after the birth of my second kid. I ended up having my first panic attacks brought on by the physical symptoms anxiety was causing me. I had an ultrasound for a persistent pain in my abdomen, complete blood work done to rule out thyroid issues, an EKG and 24 hour heart monitor to prove my heart was healthy… Plus those same intrusive thoughts about what if I or my husband die in our sleep, what if one of us died while we were alone with the kids, what would the kids do, how horrible and scared they would feel if we were unresponsive. It got much better around 6-12 months out right when I was considering getting extra help for it, but I still get derailed by intrusive thoughts when I am tired or stressed, and I still get over-the-top about minor health issues anyone in my family is suffering. It’s awful but it definitely helps me that I KNOW it’s all in my head.
I go through this from time to time, mostly focusing on losing family members. I’ll have intrusive thoughts about actually attending their funerals and then break down in tears. I’m sorry, it’s so stressful and just plain sucks. With therapy and medication I have gotten better.
A few things:
Everything in moderation. I have absolutely no problem with someone who smokes an occasional cigarette, gets wasted at a bar every once in a while, smokes the occasional bowl, and sometimes pigs out on a massive plate of fries. These things are a lot of fun, and doing them is not bad. But when you start smoking two packs a day, or a bowl three times a day, or drinking a 12-pack every night, or eating a pint of Ben & Jerry’s every night, it’s not a good thing.
Being healthy makes me feel good. Sure, there are times when I’m hurting while in the gym or not being able to eat the unhealthy things I want to eat. But when I look at myself in the mirror, I feel good about myself. It’s important to me. I would feel a lot worse about myself if I ate whatever I wanted and wasn’t healthy.
The human body is very resilient… in your twenties and thirties. When you get older, your body starts falling apart. I know a lot of people who partied really hard in their twenties, and they’re miserable now because of medical issues. They can’t do basic living, they’re forced to take uncomfortable medications, they have a bad living situation due to medical bills. I’d rather avoid that.
But yes. Relax. Enjoy life. Just remember - everything in moderation, and remember that you can have a good life and still indulge every once in a while.