Hypochondria, do you or a loved one suffer from it?

[Toto'sDad]

When I was a lad, I had a sudden onset of Hypochondria. I was about nine years old, and went down to my uncle Harmon's place and watched the tv with him and aunt Ann. They had an old tabletop b&w tv, but it was wonderful to me. This time though, instead of a nice variety show, or western, they had a medical show on about a guy who had cancer. Man, it was gruesome to watch. In fact, after the show was over, I headed home as fast as I could.

By this time, it was dark, and I felt something wrong in my chest, by the time I got to the house, I knew I had cancer! I would be lucky to live through the night and see the light of day! Of course, I didn't die, and being a kid, I soon forgot the episode.

My experience did however make me a little more sympathetic toward hypochondriacs in general. We know a guy who many of us, (behind his back) have dubbed the sickest man in the world. He has been dying of one malady or another for close on to fifty years that I know of. Still, he slogs on through life bravely, and he's past his mid-seventies!

My question is, do you or someone you know suffer from this malady? Are you sympathetic to their plight? Or do you turn a deaf ear to their (imagined) suffering?

 

[Toadtele]

Nothing extreme. But every time I realize that I have been around somebody who is sick I immediately convinced myself that I am ill. My throat gets scratchy I feel stuffed up. It all goes away as soon as I quit. Thinking about it.

 

[brookdalebill]

I don’t, but my friend Kelly lives in a constant state of hypochondria.
Poor guy.

 

[StoneH]

Just the opposite.

Wife:

Week one - "It's just a cold"
Week two - "I'll feel better tomorrow"
Week three - "I'll feel better in a day or two"
Week four - "I guess I'll go to the doctor, but it's nothing"

Doctor:

"You have pleurisy"

 

[KeithDavies 100]

Just the opposite.

Wife:

Week one - "It's just a cold"
Week two - "I'll feel better tomorrow"
Week three - "I'll feel better in a day or two"
Week four - "I guess I'll go to the doctor, but it's nothing"

Doctor:

"You have pleurisy"

Me - I feel poorly.
Ex-wife - Man flu. Get over it.

A few days later, when ex-wife comes down with the same symptoms.

Ex-wife - I feel poorly. Leukaemia runs in our family. I wonder if that's what this is.

True story.

 

[Nogoodnamesleft]

I had a bout of that as a kid. My mom is like that, pretty dramatic too, and I think that had some influence.

However, later in life I was diagnosed with OCD. Not the "cute" version people joke about when they think of sorting their soup cans alphabetically. But the real anxiety disorder. It manifested after an incident with my then wife when my daughter was a week old, focused around contamination. Mine is severe, brought on by a few factors. There are many conditions I'd much rather have.

From talking with others who are afflicted by OCD, health is often a theme. The anxiety of it can really drive people around the bend. It ties in with a bunch of cognitive distortions around anxiety in general - catastrophizing, polarized thinking, intolerance of uncertainty, etc. The last one - intolerance of uncertainty - is probably the worst.

One of the sucky things about having a diagnosis like that is some people not taking you seriously, instead writing off your concerns as "it's your disease". The truth is sometimes it isn't. I brought my then wife to a cognitive behaviour therapy session where the therapist told her my particular concern at that moment was not OCD, but legitimate. The therapist made a plan with me where I could contact the health authority about this particular issue (once) and get more information. My wife insisted my concern was nothing but the therapist AND the people at the health authority told me the concern was legitimate. The latter even told me about things I hadn't thought of (regarding a contaminated water supply that they - my wife and inlaws - wanted to bathe my infant daughter in). But I digress...

Whether the person is anxious or delves into one of the disorders like OCD (adding the obsession and resulting compulsion to mitigate the anxiety elements), it gets really difficult to manage sometimes. I remember thinking it was funny to see people like that as a kid. Karma, however, paid me a visit and left a huge package.

 

[uriah1]

Not until I got older.
Now I think every hip hurt is hip replacement
and every extra heart beat a heart issue.

 

[Old Deaf Roadie]

Don't tell my wife about hypochondria or else she'll think she has that, too!

 

[ISmellSmoke]

I don't know what hypochondria is, but I bet I have it...

 

[Toto'sDad]

I don't know what hypochondria is, but I bet I have it...

You should immediately lie down and check your temperature. If your temperature is normal, don't be fooled, you could have the kind where you don't run a temperature!

 

[arlum]

If Debi ain't got it she feels left out of the loop.

 

[Blue Bill]

I know some good hypochondria jokes, but it's no fun to tell them to a hypochondriac...

They think they get it, but, they don't.

 

[Marc Morfei]

My sister.
Unfortunately she has transferred her neuroses onto her 6 year old who has become a nervous wreck. Every time he coughs she runs him to the emergency room.

 

[StoneH]

Me - I feel poorly.
Ex-wife - Man flu. Get over it.

A few days later, when ex-wife comes down with the same symptoms.

Ex-wife - I feel poorly. Leukaemia runs in our family. I wonder if that's what this is.

True story.

Ever since we watched "Kindergarten Cop" 32 years ago, if one of us mentions a headache, the other one says, "It's a tumah".

 

[24 track]

its easy ,when some one is going through a chronic complaint daily to dissmiss it as, "Oh here we go again" , untill you realize its part of a more serious issue that there is no control over, or healing from. Indicators show a much more serious issue , then add progressive age disorders , Arthritis, weight gain , lack of exercise etc to the equation and it can get very serious, very fast .

I can imagine a true hypocondriac is scared and either looking for attention or seriously cannot distinguish when areal issue has arose.

to answer @Toto'sDad 's question I dont feel the average person is equipt to handle this type of Nuerosis so the tendency is to ignore it .

 

[Knows3Chords]

I wasn't until I got the big C back in 2015. Now any ache or pain I feel my mind immediately goes into "worst case scenario mode". I actually get a rush of adrenaline and my face gets all red. It usually takes me a few minutes to calm myself down. I hate it. It's very stressful.

 

[Toto'sDad]

I wasn't until I got the big C back in 2015. Now any ache or pain I feel my mind immediately goes into "worst case scenario mode". I actually get a rush of adrenaline and my face gets all red. It usually takes me a few minutes to calm myself down. I hate it. It's very stressful.

I'm sorry for your situation, I sincerely hope my post didn't cause you further discomfort and stress.

 

[Knows3Chords]

I'm sorry for your situation, I sincerely hope my post didn't cause you further discomfort and stress.

No worries. I'm good. They say it's part of being a "survivor".

 

[schmee]

I know people I suspect of having some level of it, but how would you know? Is their pain real or not? I don't think most Hypochondriacs have a "I have cancer!" thing, maybe the truly mentally ill do, not sure. But they have symptoms like pain, nausea, itching etc which are either made up or real. Right?

 

[Toto'sDad]

I know people I suspect of having some level of it, but how would you know? Is their pain real or not? I don't think most Hypochondriacs have a "I have cancer!" thing, maybe the truly mentally ill do, not sure. But they have symptoms like pain, nausea, itching etc which are either made up or real. Right?

Here's the test. If you tell a guy you have a headache, and he begins telling you, yeah but it ain't nothing like the headache I've got, why it's gotta be at least ten times worse! Well...