• Question: why are some people paranoid about getting ill?

    Asked by rachael10 to MarkF, Mark, Michael, Panos, Sarah on 18 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Panos Soultanas

      Panos Soultanas answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      Rachael,

      I guess they are called hypochondriacs..!

    • Photo: Mark Fogg

      Mark Fogg answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      It’s good to be careful, but not to be obsessed, some people don’t understand what really makes them ill.
      At the extreme, some have serious psychological problems that make them want to pretend they’re ill, to get attention from people they see as important, like doctors, it’s very sad really.

    • Photo: Sarah Burl

      Sarah Burl answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      Because no one wants to be ill and the media seems to think that all bacteria is bad and so people get paranoid about being clean.

    • Photo: Michael Loughlin

      Michael Loughlin answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      many reasons perhaps in their past a loved one died from an infectious disease all their parents brought them up to be very clean…or they are affected by all the media about allegedly filthy dangerous hospitals and the desparate need to be as clean as possible.
      you would be very ill if you did lose your bacteria…and quite sore if all were taken off your skin

    • Photo: Mark Travis

      Mark Travis answered on 18 Jun 2010:

      One explanation may be some kind of pychological thing based on early experiences…. if they have seen someone be ill in their childhood (especially if they die) this may make them very wary in later life…. Or some people are just more cautious by nature, therefore are more concious of the potential risks of disease.

      My advice would be to live for today- don’t worry to much about getting ill, if we worried all the time this would probably make us more ill!

Comments

  • Photo: Marianne

    Marianne commented on :

    Yes, Hypochondriacs are strange.

    Sometimes it’s an attention thing; people want others to feel sorry for them, to fuss over them.
    Some people read too much about illnesses and decide they probably have them. I don’t really understand it; have a few friends always stressing and it can get a bit annoying! But we all get a bit paranoid sometimes I think.

  • Photo: Panos

    Panos commented on :

    Beautifully stated, Marianne. I could not have put it better than that. You seem to be a very thoughtfull girl with very good opinions.

  • Photo: MarkF

    MarkF commented on :

    It’s seems you’ve given this some serious thought. Far better to live your life and stop worrying too much.