Do you Overreact to Symptoms?

[Sun Tzu]

I do occasionally. Now I'm not a germaphobe, or someone with OCD in the slightest bit. If anything I'm a bit <i>too</i> laid back...just ask the old lady. However every once in a while I'll have a sore throat, or stiff joints, or a stiff/sore neck, and I'll think FUCK I'M GOING TO DIE. It doesn't help that if you go anywhere online now and punch in "stiff neck symptoms" that it will tell you that you have either Bacterial Meningitis or Cancer. In fact I blame the internet for making people such worry warts about silly little things that shouldn't even raise an eyebrow. Anyways, I was just wondering if there are any others out there who will go off the deep end every now and again over what turns out to be nothing at all.

[MikeVic]

Yes, and I blame the internet too. The most recent was a lump on my lymph node. When I did a search for it, I was convinced I had cancer. The doctor said they're sometimes swollen when fighting off infection so don't worry about it.

[Honolulu_Blue]

I tend to under react more often than not. The only thing I overreact to is eye pain. Over the last 10 years or so, I have had iritis about 4-5 times. It's horribly painful and really irritating.

Once I had it so bad that they actually had to give me a shot of hormones into my eyeball (the needle sort of went on a downward angle through my eyelid and into my eye). Ever since that particularly bad case, my left eye often irritates me, so whenever it hurts, feels itchy, burns slightly, I almost always begin to panic about another potential bout of iritis.

[Mustang]

IOnce I had it so bad that they actually had to give me a shot of hormones into my eyeball

Unfortunately, I never heard of iritis, but after seeing this I'm sure every eye twinge I have with make me remember this.

Thanks

[Lathum]

I tend to under react. I have been having chest pains for about a year now and I am finally going to get an EKG.

[LloydLungs]

I underreact, big time. I assume everything will just fix itself. So far everything has, which just encourages me to continue to think so. So yeah, I'll probably die prematurely, but I'm saving myself some doctor visits in the meantime.

[JediKooter]

I under react as well. My pinky and ring finger on my left hand have been numb (well, they feel like they are asleep) for about two weeks now. I figure it will go away eventually.

[aran]

The problem isn't the internet, it's irresponsible sites on the internet that try to give out medical advice based on no real information. It's also the people that put too much stock in what they read about their own medical health from sites that know nothing about them.

[Lathum]

I under react as well. My pinky and ring finger on my left hand have been numb (well, they feel like they are asleep) for about two weeks now. I figure it will go away eventually.

I have had that happen. Mu uncle, who is a doctor, told me you can bang your elbow on something or sleep funny and it will effect the nerves all the way down there.

[spleen1015]

I underreact when it is serious and overreact when it's not.

[Pumpy Tudors]

No. I don't.

[Maple Leafs]

It doesn't help that if you go anywhere online now and punch in "stiff neck symptoms" that it will tell you that you have either Bacterial Meningitis or Cancer.
Not to mention that for all the really bad cancers, there are no early symptoms. So you're sitting there going "No symptoms? Shit, that's me! I'm dying!"

[EagleFan]

It depends on what it is. I tend to under-react to chest pains. I have had them before and the causes are never anything bad. I know that is a problem due to my condition (for which I am told that I should over-react to any potential chest pain). I am just hoping that I don't end up having the chest pains that could be a very bad thing because of my condition and am banking on them being so severe that I will know I need to do something.

Things that I am not sure of I over-react if I lose will power and look it up online. Had the flu recently and a follow up infection. During this time I had a problem with blood work. I looked the problem up online and most everything it said was either off the wall things that I knew I didn't have (due to the other symptoms) or deadly.

Went to my doctor for a follow up and she said "probably due to the infection and the medication you are taking, nothing to worry about".

Why the hell wasn't that even mentioned as a possibility on webmd?

The new webmd slogan - Oh shit, you're going to die!!!

[Karlifornia]

A few years ago, I suddenly got this pulsating pain in my head. I thought I had an aneurysm, and was gonna die before anyone could find me. Then, it went away.

Ever since then, I don't really worry too much about anything. I assume it will pass. If it doesn't, then I'm dead!

[INDalltheway]

Yes, and I blame the internet too. The most recent was a lump on my lymph node. When I did a search for it, I was convinced I had cancer. The doctor said they're sometimes swollen when fighting off infection so don't worry about it.
My roommate had a swollen lymph node so the first thing he did was go to web MD.. This convinced him that he was having an aneurysm. It has pretty much been the butt of all our jokes since then.

[terpkristin]

Depends what it is and what I've already done.

If I get a headache and it doesn't go away even after a day of taking decongestants and advil, I start to worry (and overworry) that it's an anyeurism, since I had a teacher in high school die when she had a wicked headache that didn't go away with taking Advil, etc. I haven't overworried yet to the point that I go see somebody about it, I just get very nervous/stressed.

With my genetic disorder, my ligaments and tendons are utter crap, so I tend to go to the orthopod when I sprain them (whereas in the past I didn't, would just "live with the pain"), to try to treat them with kid gloves, since I'm only 30 and have had more than enough surgeries and treatments to deal with joint issues and most of my previously-injured joints still hurt...I'd like the rest of them to not hurt. Of course, that's why I'm in a splint, 5 weeks after spraining my thumb (was casted for the first 4 weeks), and will continue to be in a splint for another 3....

Also, I've had some women-type issues that have caused concern in the past, so I worry a bit over them if they come back. But, my doctor is over an hour away, so at most I usually call if I've got concerns.

/tk

[CU Tiger]

Yeah, dern...kinda thought I was alone here.
Ever since my best friend got cancer and subsequently died that started as a bump on his cheek, now anything especially around the head and neck makes me crazy.

A few years ago I even went and had a MRI and cat scan done at my cost because I was convinced I had brain cancer...

Fun times