Is this anxiety

[Salmon_Cake]

Hey I've had some things happen in the past but I'm not sure if it's anxiety or something else.

I can remember back to when I was maybe as young as 5 having a lot of painful stomach aches and thinking A LOT about everything in the world. And maybe from when i was about 8 I would have little panic attacks. Like at musicals, information nights, basically anything where you 'cant get out' I could start feeling hot or short of breath. My family and i went to see the musical Cats and I had to leave about 10 minutes into the show and sit in th foyer and drink a bottle of water (and eventually leave) because I felt like I was choking. And a lot of the time when I go to the mall even, I'll feel like I'm really weak and need to pass out though I haven't ever passed out from the feeling.

My head is always running with thoughts and I have a really bad tendency to over analyse things and overreact to situations. And as soon as there's the slightest chance or thought about something bad or stresfull starting up (in terms of how I think about something, eg I might be like "I could start feeling really uncomfortable around this person" or "I could react badly to this"), it prettymuch does. I seem to have very little control over how i percieve and react to situations around me.

Another thing is that I'm about 90% sure I'm a hypochondriac. When I was little I was convinced every time I had a mark on my arm or leg that wouldn't go away that I had meningococcal. I thought I had prettymuch every type of hepatitis, diabetes, hypertension (though I probably do have that from all the stress) and a few other things. I read through medical books and search symptoms and say 'I could have that'.

So yeah what do you think it is, just anxiety? How might I be able to help myself with this?

 

[Megadeth]

Ive had some of the symptoms you have had such as panic attacks and feeling like i am choking i also sometimes think i have some illness for some some stupid reason. I have had numerous blood tests at my doctors and they always say there is nothing physically wrong with me its all in my head.

 

[workingonit]

After my sister had a seizure when I was 7, everytime i got a stomach ache i would get really scared that i would have to go to the hospital. To me it sounds like anxiety. When you feel like you can't breathe, take a deep breath in and then let it out when closing your eyes. It ALWAYS works for me, when i feel really tense and get that i feel like i can't breathe. But always know that you can breathe. I started going to a social worker to not get so upset over little things and physical symptoms. You might want to look for a good social worker around you, and find some books on anxiety. Oh and if you get the feeling that something bad or stressful is gonna happen, you need to counteract the feeling with a positive one. Example: - Woah, I am not going to be able to sit through that 4 hour meeting today. I'm gonna get way too stressed out.
+Well I might not be able to sit through the whole meeting, but I can always get up and go to the bathroom, there is always the option to leave, but lets just try for a little bit. I can try to manage my stress and take deep breathes.

Hope this helps.

 

[pinkputter]

Ive had some of the symptoms you have had such as panic attacks and feeling like i am choking i also sometimes think i have some illness for some some stupid reason. I have had numerous blood tests at my doctors and they always say there is nothing physically wrong with me its all in my head.

You are not alone with that kind of feeling. Most all people with anxiety think that there's something physically wrong with them, when really the core problems anxiety. But its no wonder we feel like this, b/c anxiety can make you feel physically sick. I remember waking up with these horrible sick stomach feelings. I thought I had mono or something. I had every test run, blood work and all, and I was just waiting for my doctor to tell me what was wrong with me. But she said "I was healthy"??!? To any other person they would have loved this answer, but NOT ME. I wanted to know what was wrong, b/c i knew some thing was.

Maybe this makes us hypochonriacs (sp?) But I think its just anxiety at its highest. Focusing on the core problem (ANXIETY) will relieve all the secondary things like physical symptoms.