Dealing with hypochondriacs

Worked in a&e yesterday, seriously people need to know when to bother a GP or come into hospital. The usual I've had a headache for two hours brigade were in full force yesterday :rolleyes:
 
As others have said sounds like health anxiety. Maybe try and get her some information on it so that she can understand that she has a problem and is not alone with it. Then maybe suggest talking to her GP about it who should refer her to a psychologist.
 
Münchausen syndrome.

Sounds a bit more serious than Health anxiety. After all her illnesses she thinks she has are all pretty much death flags.
 
Mrs Smith is a hypochondriac and her doctor – fed up with her constant complaints about nonexistent illnesses – starts palming her off with a mild sedative to keep her happy. One day Mrs Smith complains of chest pains and is prescribed her usual treatment. However, this time the pain is real and Mrs Smith dies of a heart attack. The doctor hears this and is so upset he dies of shock. Mrs Smith and the doctor are buried in adjoining plots. Next morning, the doctor hears a tapping on his coffin. A muffled voice calls out, ‘Doctor, this is Mrs Smith! Do you have anything for worms?’
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BlairH said:
Hey folks,

I've been dealing with my hypochondriac mother for years now,
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Welcome to my world.
My mother started about 25 years ago and has never ceased. She does have COPD but 100% plays on it. For instance I will sneak into her bungalow and be listening to her for a minute, I'll then shout I'm coming in and she will start her breathing pantomine. Sometimes when we're out I'll say 'I struggled getting up those steps' and then she suddenly realises she isn't in character and starts her performance.
About 6 years ago my wonderful non moaning Mother In Law who was blind & wheelchair bound got breast cancer but she had hid it for years and was now a couple of months away from dieing, my Mother turned round and said 'I know how she feels' :eek:
No you ******* don't.
Three years later she said exactly the same thing when my non moaning Father In Law got cancer and I had to keep that statement away from Mrs Dimple.
My Sister gets the worst of it, my Mum will ring her saying 'I just need someone to come round and make me a cup of tea' so my Sister will travel 5 miles and my Mum will be performing on the setee. When she leaves the bungalow she will wait a minute, turn round and my Mum will have the Hoover out.
She's a horrible woman.
 
Is there anything you can even do for somebody in this situation? Can somebody be legally forced to seek mental health treatment against their wish? Doesn't sound like a GP would help here, I would have thought a psychiatrist.. but how would you make her go?

- GP
 
My wife had a severe bout of hypochondria a few years back. I just drummed it into her in the nicest possible way that she was very likely a hypochondriac, and she eventually realised that she was wasting her life worrying about something that was nothing.
 
JonJ678 said:
She's a moron. Can't fix stupid, sorry.
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The seething PC's hordes will be on you in a second, but yes, you cannot fix stupidity. And this woman sounds stupid. If you cannot figure that out for yourself nor want to listen to advice about seeing someone that can take a look into whatever goes on in your head, go ahead and suffer.
 
Take a look back on this forum when threads such as 'Do you have any illnesses or allergies'.

It runs into tens of pages. Got many of them on here too.
 
Dimple said:
Anorexia/bulimia, I'd gone past that point of no return
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They would most likely still section you today. You have to be a danger to yourself or others to get sectioned. While I was sectioned a lot of the Anorexias would sign themselves out still very ill but weren't ill enough for the court to let them get sectioned.

Hypochondria could get you sectioned but it doesn't just happen on a whim. The doctors would need to prove she was harming herself because of it.

It might have been different in Dimples time but you don't get people sectioned. Only two doctors can do it. They will listen to what your family is telling them but after the 72hr section is over they are unlikely to get a month or 6 month one if the family were lying.

Edit: Being sectioned is always against the persons wish. If you wanted help you wouldn't need to be sectioned.
 
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