Friday, August 20, 2010

Is It Just Me? Or Are We All Hypochondriacs?

So I got an email recently from someone who (allegedly) reads this blog. That happens sometimes, and I'm always happy to hear from people and I appreciate when y'all comment or give me advice via the blog or email.

Well, except when someone tells me I'm a boring whiner. Or, in this case, implies that I and my blog's readers are hypochondriacs. 

Yep. She not only insinuated that I was a hypochondriac, but that all of you are too. Nice, huh?

Mostly, I think, she was hoping I would post a link to her article that might drive up her traffic. 

Can I just say it's not happening? You might be able to find it, if you want, by googling the title, "10 Signs You're A Hypochondriac." But I hope you won't because I'd hate for her to profit from her advertisers based on page hits.

She thought, and I quote, her article on identifying hypochondria "dovetails well with your (my) audience."

Apparently believing one has an undiagnosed illness/condition and going to doctors frequently are some of the top signs of hypochondria.

Sigh.

Of course, they're also signs of being someone who is sick with something that's challenging to diagnose, which happens to a lot of people from what I have gathered over the past few years. 

 

5 comments:

SharonMV said...

Oh yes, my "hypochodria" went on for 16 years. never mind that I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, asthma, Grave's disease, diabetes type 2 along the way. I knew there was more. Then I was finally diagnosed in 2006 with Lupus and CVID, a rare primary immune deficiency. And more recently I was dxed with Addison's disease (adrenal insufficiency) which has been going on for at least 4 years. My doctor thinks there are more diagnoses to come.

Sharon

Anonymous said...

Sick Momma, Yes I am a hypochondriac also. I make things up so I don't have to work and so I can lay in bed all day. I love to see laundry and doctor bills pile up. I really enjoy it when I get so nauseus that the room spins, and the countless painful hours in the bathroom is the best. Debilitating fatigue is my favorite because I can spend my day in bed watching TV!

This woman is a jerk. I did not read her ridiculous ramblings.
Don't let people like this get to you. They always have their own agendas.

xomo

Aviva said...

Oh Mo, I (heart) you! Thanks for making me laugh so hard it hurt. I wasn't sure when I first got the email whether I was being overly sensitive by being offended. I'm happy to get confirmation that is WAS an offensive thing to send to someone who has health problems even if the doctors don't know what's wrong with her.

Christine said...

Mo- You're confusing malingering and hypochondria. Malingering is faking sick to avoid responsibilities. Hypochondria is truly believing you're sick when in fact, there is no discernible illness present.

Aviva said...

Christine-Megan: I can't speak for Mo, but it's really hard to say from outside a person's body whether they're simply malingering or if they really believe they're sick when they're not, or whether they're truly sick even though the doctor(s) aren't sure with what.

I'm lucky that I've always had doctors who agreed I was clearly ill even if they couldn't make a clear diagnosis. I've met too many people since I found myself in this position who haven't been as lucky with their doctors. :-/