4 Ways to Overcome Anxiety and Learn to Love Your Doctor Visits

You're reading 4 Ways to Overcome Anxiety and Learn to Love Your Doctor Visits, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you're enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles. Fear keeps many people from going to the doctor — fear of the unknown, fear of a bad diagnosis, fear of feeling vulnerable, etc. But for about 3% of the population, going to the doctor is an actual phobia. Whatever the reason, fear of physicians causes far too many people to take a reactive, hands-off approach to maintaining their health. Before I had a major health scare, I was one of those people. I made every excuse to avoid visiting the doctor. I was a 37-year-old CEO with young kids. I didn’t have any chronic or debilitating conditions. I would have plenty of time to prioritize my health later in life. I ended up in the hospital with chest pains and was confronted with reality: I wasn’t taking care of myself and was on the same path as my father, who had his first heart attack at 45. Over the next few years, I did everything I could to improve my lifestyle. I changed my diet, lost 40 pounds, and ran three marathons. But one of the things I’m most proud of is my commitment to learning more about health. Becoming a Better Patient When I started showing up to doctors’ appointments prepared, I became a better patient. Doctors spent more time working to improve my treatments with me. I developed the confidence I needed to...
Source: PickTheBrain | Motivation and Self Improvement - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: featured health and fitness self confidence self-improvement courage fear fear of the doctor illness pickthebrain self improvement sickness Source Type: blogs