Hello fellow forum members. Allow me to first introduce myself. My name is Jake and I am 14. I have had health anxiety or hypochondria for around 2 months now, and it takes a toll on me. My anxiety sparks from the headaches I get and I recently read on google about brain tumors having headaches as a symptom. I have gone to the doctor, been tomd it was just anxiety fooling with my mind, and then was referred for full CBC blood test done only last month, but upon my own research using google, it seems that blood tests really don’t show tumor markers often. My headaches are all around my head, with some occasional throbbing in one spot (so a migraine or tension headache basically. It is constant and happens to me two thirds of the day, but they are mild, and do not get worse, just are very annoying. The throbbing occurs in the middle of the head mainly. Wondering if I should go to the doc again and see about an mri to reassure myself I am fine. Keep in mind I don’t really exhibit other tumor symptoms, which leads the logical side of my brain to think I am just lacking in one of the many places that can cause headaches; Lack of sleep, dehydration, Eye strain from technology (for school there has been an increased amount of this), Maybe something is out of alignment, etc... This self diagnosis or thought of having such a rare thing may sound dumb, but the symptoms feel very real to me. Few things to note; - I am on screens almost all day between school and leisure time - I go to sleep later at night daily (11-12ish) - I don't interact with others outside of my house much so to quarantine Adding onto that, a loved one of mine has cancer. All this is adding stress to my plate. Could this all me pushing down on me all at once? Before two months ago I had never thought or heard of hypochondria. How do I deal with something like this at home? I have tried getting a therapist for CBT, but no one is available right now with quarantine. I feel alone and in need of help. I don't want to keep living life stressed about the future and know i need to live in the present, but my mind just doesn't feel capable of doing that. Could my anxiety be due to something underlying, or is it truly just my bad hypochondria? Do you guys think I should get an mri to be sure, or its not worth it. Thanks guys! - Jake
I am sorry you are going through this Jake. These are very stressful times. The first thing to do is fact check. That’s because our minds tend to overthink things and go to the negative when we have anxiety. . So,
- headaches are so common and most of them are due to stress. One reason you might be getting these headaches is your screen time is too much. It causes strain on the eyes which in turn causes headaches. Try to reduce your screen time. headaches can also be caused by dehydration. Make sure you’re drinking plenty of water throughout the day.
- have you ever considered having virtual counseling? Instead of going to a counselor you can just do it at home. You can always get on a waiting list if they are full. I am doing that from home and it works great! Talk to your parents about that.
3.you are young and sounds like you are very healthy. Remember, 99% of everything we worry about never happens. If I were to guess I would say you’re getting headaches and anxiety from being inside too much, too much screen time, A family member with cancer, overthinking, and also googling too much health information. What you find online is not going to pertain to you at all. It will increase your anxiety for nothing. I would suggest getting outside at least once or twice a day and going for a walk. We need to move our bodies and that will help decrease the anxiety and stress. If we sit all day long everything gets tightened up and that can also cause headaches. Our bodies were made to move! you might want to apply a nice warm moist towel around your neck to help reduce the headaches. - when you are feeling especially anxious, take some time to do some long slow deep breathing. You can find some great help on YouTube for anxiety also! There are some really relaxing meditations on there and there was also some great talks about anxiety.
- remember, take time out for yourself. Away from the screen. Get a little exercise. Be good to yourself. try these things to reduce your anxiety before you ask for an MRI. but I do think that some counseling would help you. You’re going to be OK! And you are definitely not alone. Millions of people have health anxiety but you can definitely learn how to manage it better! Take care
Hi there! Thank you so much for your response. Sometimes I complete forget that we still need to move around in quarantine lol. I take the occasional walk and lift a little, but probably could do more than that. I stay well hydrated, but as you said I could cut back on screen time a lot. School on top of leisure time, lots of screens and not a lot of real mother nature lmao. I will apply what you have suggested and see if it works for me. I know there are many other things you could be doing, so I truly appreciate you responding to this. Thank you so much! - Jake