Hypochondriasis

Hypochondriasis, or hypochondria, is an overwhelming fear that you have a serious disease, even though health care providers can find no evidence of illness. People with hypochondriasis tend to misinterpret normal body sensations as signs of serious illness. Most people occasionally fear they have an illness, but people with hypochondriasis are preoccupied with their fear. This fear is severe and persistent and interferes with work, as well as relationships. Complaints tend to focus on the head, neck, and trunk, often in the form of pain. Hypochondriasis is somewhat similar to obsessive compulsive disorder, because of the obsession with illness and the compulsion to do something to lessen their anxiety.

Source: University of Maryland Medical Center

Case Scenario:

A 45-year-old white male engineer presents to a primary care clinic armed with multiple internet searches on the topic of cancer. He states that he “just knows” he has a GI cancer, "probably the colon or maybe the pancreas." When asked how long this concern has bothered him he says "for years I have been concerned that I have cancer." You ask about relevant symptoms and he is a bit vague, saying "I get some pain or pressure right here (he points to the left upper quadrant) but it is not there all the time." Upon asking about prior workups he says “I have had ultrasounds and colonoscopies but they could find anything. I was initially relieved but a couple of weeks later started to think that they must have just missed something.”

When you ask about the patient's goals for today’s visit he is emphatic "I think what I really need is another colonoscopy and abdominal CT scan." His examination is unrevealing. When you suggest a less invasive approach, he shows the error rates of the other evaluations and shows literature endorsing how abdominal CT is the criterion standard. He is anxious at baseline and increasingly irritable when you propose less invasive evaluation. He ends the encounter by stating that he will “find another doctor who sees my point and will get me what I need.”

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Okay. This is me typing now. You may be wondering why did I post about this. . . Well I kinda am suffering with this kind of disorder for years. Yes I do. I'm serious. Honestly, this takes a lot of courage for me to admit this one. So don't laugh your ass out there! I don't know how my mind gave birth to this weirdo stuff. But let me try to recall. . . Pardon me for some loose associated thoughts. =P

When I was in grade school, I suffered from dermatitis. Something like that. My hands and fingers became very red and itchy that I could not write in class. My doctor told me that I got that from the foods I eat. So he gave me a list of foods that I couldn't eat. Basically, he excluded my favorite dishes on my diet, such as chicken and seafood. And I hated that doctor. I even blamed my dad for that (also hereditary). At a very young age, I was deprived of the food I like. That was the selfish kind of thinking I had then. After I got healed, I became paranoid each time I notice an abnormality in my skin's appearance. Then some red spots in my hands started to appear (which I still have until now). That was way too stressful to handle for a 10 year old girl who knows nothing but to play.

Fast forward in high school. I suffered from yet another minor condition. . . Ear pain!!! I've had my ears checked for more than ten times by 3, 4, or 5 different doctors. I'm serious about this. Doctor-hopping became my bad habit. And sadly, this otometrist-hopping persisted even after college (my last checkup was May of 2011). =(

College years, and I haven't yet recovered from this hypochondriac condition. . . This time, I found my eyes as a good source of my anxiety. I've had it checked for 3x, if I'm not mistaken. Just because I felt a sac forming, "kuliti" in short. I came to a point when I was thinking of seeing a psychiatrist. I know and I could see how hypochondriasis bothers me a lot.

There are still many other unmentioned things I've contributed with my doctors' wealth. The most recent one was this:



For a couple of months, I noticed a mass forming on my left dorsal foot. And for a hypochondriac person like me, you might guess how I overreact things such as MASS (bukol or swelling). Giving a benefit of the doubt, I waited for weeks for it to subside or at least decrease in size, but to no significant changes, I sought medical assistance after some time. I thought the doctor would laugh at me if I show him where that bukol is. But when he assessed (and touched) it, he said I need an Xray (but at the back of my mind, I need a biopsy. Lol). After two days, I got the result which says:

Yup. It read NORMAL FINDINGS. But shall I be glad about it? Uhm as a nurse by profession, I know what does this mean. No abnormalities on my bones. I was really hopeful that a fracture or some kind of malformation would be revealed. Because that would mean a very minor dislocation. But the findings revealed NORMAL. Normal on my bone. So could it be something worse than a fracture?

Then the doctor finally gave his word. It was a tumor. A fluid filled cyst. A tumor. A tumor. It kept on ringing in my ears when I heard that word. I thought about the remaining month I'd be able to live. My plans. My last will. My things. My life group. Then I realized the doctor was still talking, I shook my head to get back to my senses. "No need for an urgent surgery. It's benign." What a relief. Benign.

When the doctor said it was benign. I believed it with all my heart and soul. No doubts. Praise God for that! I guess this one freed me from my disorder. I can't imagine what other tests I'd be requesting should my somatoform disorder (hypochondriasis) not yet healed.

♥