How to move past anxiety and get on with life?

Let me give you the rundown on what has been going on. My sister got married a month ago (September 18th) and I got really drunk at the reception. I puked a couple of times on the way home, but the next day all seemed fine. Well, the next week while at work I wasn't feeling quite 100% and began to research things on the internet. (BAD MISTAKE I KNOW!) For some reason I had convinced myself that I had M.S., and began having some anxiety attacks. It really didn't effect me much (at least I didn't think so) untill I went to the doctor. The doctor weighed me and I had lost 5 or 10 lbs. (I don't weigh myself very often). He said I had a frontal sinus infection with some fluid behind my inner ears. He perscribed me some antibiotics and sent me on my way. I got the prescription filled and did nothing but rest that weekend. This was 2 weeks ago. Since I did nothing but sit around, I began to cruise the internet, again. AGAIN BAD MISTAKE! I began researching different diseases and managed to convince myself that I had HIV. This is when the real anxiety/Panic set it. I got to thinking about a relationship with a girl I had 11 years ago, and she was very permiscious while we were together. I was thinking that If I have that my current wife has to have it. I was so shaken up that I really could not function properly. I was not eating hardly at all, I was not drinking hardly any liquids, I would sleep for 3 or 4 hours a night and wake up wide awake with my heart pounding. It has even effected my bowel movements, and since all this has happened I seem to be really gassy. I have been to 2 differnet doctors who both told me that they were 99.999999% sure that I am a healthy 31 year old since I have had no signs of any illness in the 11 years since I last was with this girl. Both doctors assured me that I would have seen some weird infections and some diseases that people who are healthy don't normally get. I have seen no signs of anything. My wife (of 10 years) had her yearly checkup this spring and had general bloodwork done and the doctor told her she was very healthy. Everyone I talke to tells me that I don't have anything to worry about and that I need to move passed this and get on with my life. I will forget about it for about a week and my appetite and everything will return to normal. And then for no reason I get to thinking about it again and the cycle starts over again. I am currently on anxiety medicine and have a wellness checkup with my doctor next Friday. I guess my question about all of this is, how do I get all the stupid thoughts to stop? It is effecting everything in my life. Even the doctors I have seen had told me to comepletly forget about being sick. They said they would bet their paychecks that they could run any test I wanted and it would come back normal. Like I said I have lost about 10 or 15 lbs, my appetitie comes and goes (depending on my anxiety level) and my bowel movements have changed. The went from big solid bowel movements to small, loose/diareha gassy movements. Is this normal for anxiety? I need to know so I can get passed this and go on with life. Thank you to anyone who is kind enough to respond to this

jrdegitz
Hello and welcome to HealingWell. I am sorry you seem to be going through some health anxieties but as you read through the forum you will see that many of the members exepriece this same problem so you are not alone.

Regarding your question, how long does it take to go from HIV infection to a diagnosis of AIDS?

There is no one answer to this question because everyone is different. Estimates of the average length of time for progression from HIV to AIDS are being developed. Before antiretroviral therapy became available in 1996, scientists estimated that AIDS would develop within 10 years in about half the people with HIV. Since 1996, new medical treatments have been developed that can prevent or cure some of the illnesses associated with AIDS, though they cannot cure AIDS itself.

Various factors, including your genetic makeup can influence the time between HIV infection and the development of AIDS.

When you see your Doctor for your wellness check up tell your Dr. you want the ELISA antibody test for AIDS. If the test is negative then you can forget about your fear of AIDS. If this is the problem that is really set you off the test should give the answer.

If all this anxiety has suddenly come on over a months time, do try to stop it now. Don't google symptoms. Try not to catastrophize symptoms and remember anxiety can cause all kinds of sx. I will also suggest seeing a counselor who can help you learn how to dealwith Health Anxiety.

Kindly,

Kitt

I am sorry I thought you were worrying about having AIDS or MS. idea I am not a Doctor so I cannot tell you whether or not your sx are from anxiety, however, I can post the link that will list all of the anxiety sx you will ever want to read.

Anxiety Symptoms, Anxiety Attack Symptoms (Panic Attack Symptoms), Symptoms of Anxiety:

http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-symptoms.shtml

The best think is to talk to your Dr. to receive a medical screening exam to rule out other causes of your sx. If it is all anxiety you can learn to control it through help.

Kindly,

Kitt

Just wanted to post that last friday my doctor ordered a blood screen for me to put my mind at ease.  He called me with the results and said everything came back normal.  Even the hiv screen.  The only thing that came back a little high was my potassium levels.  He said he wasn't concerned about this, and told me to get re screened in a couple of weeks and he's betting it will come back normal.  This is a big relief.  Now hopefully I can move on from all of this and get my head straight.  I'm just hoping my anxiety level will decline