Hi all,
I’ve been suffering from health anxiety (and general anxiety) for quite some time. MS, cancer, stds (when I was still a virgin 🤣
, you name it. About 7 months ago, I had an accident and suffered a mild concussion that resulted in some vision issues. Nothing major, I had my eyes checked multiple times in the last 7 months and everything came back ok. At my last (and final) appointment, the ophthalmologist said everything looked normal but that some of the vitreous in my eyes got shaken as a result of the impact and caused more floaters (why I went to see an ophthalmologist in the first place). She said that although this is rare, I should go to A&E if I get an increase in floaters, flashes and a dark curtain coming over my vision as this could mean “retinal detachment” which is sight threatening. As I left, she said “it probably won’t happen”, in a reassuring way. But she triggered me. MASSIVELY!
I didn’t think anything of it, but when I got home I googled retinal detachment and basically started driving myself mad. One of the main causes is vitreous traction from trauma. I convinced myself that it will happen. A few weeks after my concussion, I managed to ignore the floaters so much that my brain filtered them out. Now I see them again and I obsess over them. Was that one there before? What if my retina is detaching? What if it will happen when I’m asleep and i won’t notice? Will I go blind? I’m only 28, what if this concussion ruined my life?
In time, I got better at dealing with these anxieties, but this one seems to have knocked me to the ground. I posted on a couple of eye forums and one doctor said “it’s fairly unlikely”, while the other said my risk is small, “certainly less than 1 in 1000”. The reassurance keeps me going for a few days but then I notice the floaters again and I think my eyes are ticking time bombs ready to explode. I don’t know how to ignore the floaters anymore. I had my last eye check two weeks ago and I’m already debating if I should make an appointment at specsavers for peace of mind. I can’t keep living my life like this.
I’m not really sure what I’m hoping to gain from posting this, maybe I’m just venting. But if someone has anything reassuring to say or if anyone else has had this particular anxiety before, please let me know what helped. I feel like I’ve fallen down a very painful and scary rabbit hole and I’m losing my mind.
Thanks in advance.