Practical hypochondria

Anyone who's had annoying medical problems knows that balance is hard to achieve. When to worry about your health? When to ignore it and hope for the best? What can you do that isn't going too far?

I obsess sometimes on minor medical problems. And every time I get a headache, I worry that it's brain cancer. I spend hours looking up obscure diseases if I get a really big zit. And you know what... that's okay. It means I'm overeducated, but if I find it comforting to assure myself I don't REALLY have brain cancer... it's not hurting me, and it's not hurting anyone else. The key is, judging what sources of information are reliable, and which aren't. There might be some quack-debunking - both for traditional and alternative medicine.

I would like to put a big priority on self-education and self-help, as well as cheapness. I'm not going to tell you to buy some product or vitamin or jog 20 miles a day. Ha!!! As if! No, I'm all about the common sense remedies, like gargling with salt water, or keeping your fingernails clean, or changing your lifestyle little by little to be healthier.

Here on Practical Hypochondria I will blog the history, in detail, of my experiences of my body and of medicine. You want to hear about my tonsil stones, and my sinuses, and how I got better from an anal fissure? And about all the rare diseases I worried it might be? You've come to the right place.