ALL in the Mind?
So you’re feeling ill… again. You check your home-doctor book, then consider popping down to the surgery. But you only saw your doctor last week… and he told you then that it was nothing to worry about. But what if he’s missed something – what if your headache/ backache/swollen ear lobe is a symptom of something much, much worse? Perhaps another visit to the doctor wouldn’t be such a bad idea…
If you find yourself thinking along these lines – even occasionally – you run the risk of becoming a hypochondriac.
Mild cases of hypochondriasis are actually very common, and don’t usually require any treatment. As long as you’re aware of your behaviour, you should be able to get through life OK, despite your regular bouts of unnecessary worrying.
If you scored between 25 and 37, unless you are a medical student, nurse, doctor or connected in some work capacity to illness, you are unusually interested in general health, medicine and the workings of your body. You almost look forward to getting minor ailments, so you can go about investigating your symptoms! You probably spend hours poring over health books, and may even act as a sort of “intermediate” doctor for your friends and relatives. This is good in some ways – after all, you do know more about illness than the average man-in-the-street – but you must be careful not to worry the people who consult you: just because you enjoy dwelling on all the possibilities doesn’t mean they will! You’d be best advised to suggest what they might be suffering from (without mentioning anything you know will terrify them), then tell them to see their doctor. Under no circumstances try to treat them yourself – even if your medical cabinet is extensive!
If you scored 12 to 24, you’ll be happy to know that you’re quite normal. You may suffer from the occasional bug or virus, but you’re generally strong and healthy and rarely suffer from anything serious. You have a normal interest in health; you probably keep an eye on what you eat and how much you exercise (even if you eat all the wrong foods and never exercise, at least you’re aware of it!), but you’re not interested enough to turn it into a hobby. This isn’t to say that you never worry about your health – certain things niggle you occasionally, but you deal with them sensibly and efficiently without allowing any problems to get out of proportion. You’d do well, however, to pay attention to what’s going on around you in the world of health and fitness.
If you scored less than 12, you’re not a hypochondriac at all, but you’re at risk of becoming a bit of a health martyr. You hate anything connected to illness and disease and you have a tendency to carry on regardless even when you are feeling under the weather. You often avoid visiting your GP for fear of wasting his or her precious time. And, sometimes, even when you’re feeling very unwell, you may try to deny it, thus making yourself more ill. The lower your score, the more likely you are to turn a blind eye to any health problems you might experience. This could be due to a fear of illness, a reasonable and very common fear. It’s only when this fear starts to cause problems for you that it should be dealt with, via your GP. Many problems can be nipped in the bud, and you’re the sort of person who leaves things until they’re too late. Try to be sensible: you know you’re not a hypochondriac, so if any aspect of your health is bothering you, do something about it. No-one’s going to appreciate it – but you’ll most certainly regret it – if you don’t!
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