Paranoia
As my instructors calming explain the signs and symptoms of a disease, I silently freak out because I am convinced that I must have that very disease. It happens to me... a lot. This week, I am convinced that I have diabetes because I feel thirsty frequently. I have ovarian cancer because I feel bloated sometimes. I have pancreatitis because my stomach hurts sometimes. I have a brain tumor because I get migraines. I have hepatitis because one blood test showed that I had high serum bilirubin levels. Whatever we talk about in class, I can relate to myself. Unfortunately, we have been talking about pregnancy lately. I spent a large part of the last month wondering if I was pregnant. I did feel nauseous that one day. Luckily, it's easy to realize that you aren't pregnant. It's not so easy, on the other hand, to convince yourself that you don't have Gilbert's Syndrome. If I brought my doctor the list of what I think I could have, she would probably diagnose me with at least one thing... hypochondriasis.