Would like advice - praying for the sick

[DL82]

I have always had an obsessive health anxiety, where I worry about becoming ill to the point where I make myself ill, and whether I am ill or not I always imagine the worst. This problem revolves especially around fear of lumps and fear of cancer.

I have been to a secular counsellor, who gave me some strategies of how to cope, and this works to a certain extent.

At the same time, I still have this fear deep down, I just know not to dwell on it. I know that the fear itself comes from losing my mother to cancer when I was very young. I also know that what I fear more than dying is that my dad lost his faith when my mum died. I feel like I can’t really witness to him until I’ve either lost something as dear to me as he did, or been through some similar amount of suffering.

I have been thinking, perhaps the best way to conquer my fear, and to unite with the suffering I feel I need to to be able to witness to my dad without being ill myself, and to help others, would be to pray for and visit the sick, particularly those with terminal cancers, to help and pray for them and their families. Perhaps seeing others who are experiencing this loss and not losing their faith would be helpful.

At the same time, some of the advice I was given by my counsellor was not to dwell on the thing that causes this fear, but that was more in the context of my own symptoms. To see others suffering and know that their symptoms are not mine would be different, I think. It would be easy to fall into even deeper anxiety, becase listening to others’ stories might have the same effect as googling symptoms or reading a medical encyclopaedia would for someone like me. I think I’d need to have someone pray for me while I pray for the sick and dying.

I’d be interested in the experience of others in visiting and praying for the sick and dying. Do you think this would be helpful? Not just helpful to me, but helpful to them. I don’t want to be a burden to these people when I’m trying to pray for them. Even if it makes my own anxiety worse, maybe that’s just a cross I have to bear in carrying out this ministry.

Let me know what you think.

DL

 

[InLight247]

It sounds like you have cancer phobia. Many years ago I have experienced a similar thing. Reading about how many people in this country got cancer, I was afraid. Then I realized this negative effect of phobia was a disservice to my health. I was determined to overcome the fear. What I did was to turn my faith to Jesus. The fact that our God is a good God and our Lord Jesus is a healing Jesus puts my heart at ease. If I take good care of myself – eat healthy, take supplements, have annual physical check up, exercise (need more efforts there), keep a joyful heart, have close communion with God and constantly stay in His divine mercy and grace, I really have nothing to worry or fear.

I suggest you not to dwell on disease but on health. Create a healthy mental picture about yourself. I would not visit cancer patients and be around with them. I am not telling you not to show your love to them. But In order to get over your phobia, it is better not constantly remind yourself how terrible cancer is and how painful those patients are to further scare yourself. You can still pray for them, you can pray the Rosary intention for them in your daily prayer. But in your case,I don’t think it is a good idea to visit them in person.

Whatever is good, whatever is healthy, whatever is joyful, whatever is hopeful, whatever is happy, dwell on them. And know that Jesus died for you, by His stripes, you are healed!!

God bless!

 

[archangel63]

Pray to God to heal you of this problem.
When you feel the anxiety creeping in (and ruining your day), drop what you’re doing, go into your bedroom and pray. Pour your heart and soul out to God and tell Him, “Please take this anxiety away from me now Jesus. I need you and I trust you can heal this in me.” Say some other prayers and don’t get up until you feel that anxiety slipping away. I promise you that if you do this IT WILL GO AWAY.

I have a similar problem in that when I come down with something, I always think it’s the worst case scenario, which leads to horrific anxiety and maybe even panic attacks (which I had never experienced til a couple years back). I had always lived with people around me until 12 years back and I think alot of my fears stemmed from living alone (I’m gay celibate), so it’s tough. But when I feel that scary feeling coming on, I drop what I’m doing, go into my bedroom and say the rosary. I do a long rosary though. I have a book that covers all the mysteries, so you really start focusing on God. Between each Hail Mary I recite a verse from the OT and NT pertaining to the mystery. It takes about 40 minutes to recite it, but by the time I’m done it’s always miraculous because my worries dissipate. God always fixes me and I can go back to life feeling better, knowing He’s taken care of my worries. Eventually, if you get into a habit like this your fears will die.

Stay close to God through prayer and your fears will die.
Offer your fear up to Him in your prayer.