Can illness make anxiety worse?

Does anyone else's anxiety seem to get worse when they're sick? I have been going through a really stressful time with my anxiety lately. It's one of the worst I've dealt with in a long time...mostly about finances and the not so distant (yes I'm going to say it) holiday season. To top things off, late last week and into the weekend, my grandson and son were both down with a nasty bug of some sort. I was with them Sunday and all was fine. I came down with it Monday night. I spent the night on the bathroom floor and Tuesday on the couch sleeping with fever and aches. I finally starting feeling somewhat human again Wed afternoon this week. The odd thing is my anxiety is amped and I don't know why. Though I'm eating fine again, I have random nausea and don't have my energy back all the way yet. The palps have been frequent too. I just want to feel like me again : (

Yes!! I fear gething a cold or when my sinuses start because it really sets the anxiety in motion.
Rest up and hope you feel better soon.

In June, my husband came home with what appeared to be (to his MD) mild flu symptoms - stomach upset, fever, although no higher than 100 degrees, and the worst symptom, a hacking cough. I began having the same exact symptoms shortly after he developed them,which surprised me,because I virtually never get sick - I take very good care of myself because I pay such an emotional price if I do get sick -

My illness ran its course, but then afterwards, I started having the most intense anxiety - I hadn't felt anxiety like this in years (I am on medication.) I have been on klonopin for 20 years,and for the last two years, I have been feeling that it is finally losing effectiveness, because I started having mild breakthrough anxiety - but the anxiety I felt after the illness was not mild - it was incredibly intense -

My question is: Can a brief illness in a person like myself, who tends to develop emotional problems when ill, and then afterwards, cause such a dramatic negative reaction and make a person feel so emotionally ill for over a month? I am only feeling better now because I saw a psychiatrist, who prescribed a medication to "boost" the klonopin. I have this feeling that I am walking around with viral activity,although my MD says no. it's just too much of a coincidence that this emotional crash occurred after the illness.

Sorry this is so long, but my MD and my psychiatrist do not seem to have any answers to this.

Scaredy Cat:

Thank you so much for your response. What you wrote was pretty much what I was thinking -

When I was younger, I was very susceptible to bronchitis. After I recovered, my anxiety,which had increased during the illness, lingered on for weeks, and sometimes months. But eventually, my level of anxiety receded back to where it was prior to the bronchitis.

Do you think this could be true in this case of my having developed an illness now, years later? In other words, will the heightened anxiety caused by the illness and the benzo tolerance eventually recede back to where it was before the illness? Or am I stuck at this new and worse level of anxiety permanently?

Any help with this question would be appreciated.

As far as ways that I cope with anxiety - I use music a lot, especially music that I very much love, as it distracts me from my anxious state. I also listen to audiobooks, which relaxes me. I like to have lunch with good friends, also, although most of my friends are still working (I am 63 years old) and so are not available, and I can't see them that often -

My relationship with God is the most important "thing" in my life, and I find that prayer and meditation is extremely effective in coping with my anxiety. I could not have gotten through a lifetime of anxiety and panic attacks without His help.

Thanks again, Janet

Thank you for all the helpful information! - Janet