What Should You Do When You Don’t Feel Right? (+9 Risky Red-Flags)
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OptimistMinds
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Author bio
The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
In this brief guide, we will discuss the meaning of the statement “I don’t feel right and discuss what you can do to figure out what to do when you don’t feel right and how to fix things.
“I don’t feel right”
I don’t feel right can mean that you don’t feel healthy and maybe something is wrong with your body, or it may mean that you don’t feel right mentally and that you may be experiencing anxiety or depression. The first step in the process of figuring out what is wrong is to figure out exactly what does not feel right and seek help if it is needed.
If it is a physical problem your body might be trying to give you important information about some bigger problem and ignoring these signs and symptoms may be dangerous.
How to know what is wrong if you don’t feel right?
To figure out what is wrong when you don’t feel right you can ask yourself some basic questions about your current condition. We will look at these questions according to physical problems and mental problems.
Physical condition
· Are you sleeping well?
· Is your heart beating faster than normal.
· Are you feeling too hungry?
· Do you have a weird, fuzzy feeling in your head
· Are you not feeling hungry at all lately?
· Do you have a mild nagging headache?
· Do you feel like your limbs are weak?
· Do you feel a general weakness all over your body?
· Do you feel like your limbs are trembling?
· Have you eaten something bad?
· Have you been drinking enough water?
Mental conditions
· Are you feeling anxious?
· Are you worried about something?
· Are you sad?
· Have you been sleeping and eating well?
· Has a major event happened in your life recently?
· Are you currently under the influence of some kind of substance?
· Do you generally take any substances like drugs or alcohol?
Some of the questions from the physical conditions section like a heart beating fast and feeling too hungry or not hungry at all can also apply to mental illnesses like depression or anxiety, so make sure to ask yourself all the questions either way, as that is the best thing you can do to ensure you get a reliable answer.
“I don’t feel right”, some symptoms you should never ignore
Here are some symptoms that people often feel when they say “I don’t feel right” and why you should never ignore them.
Chest pain
It goes without saying that chest pain is one of the symptoms that can be incredibly scary and should never be ignored, especially if it happens with a feeling that something doesn’t feel right.
Dr. Mary Albright says, “Any chest pain, especially accompanied by sweating, pressure, shortness of breath, or nausea, should be evaluated by a medical professional right away.”
Sudden Severe Headache
A sudden headache can be quite mind-numbing but coupled with nausea and a feeling that something just doesn’t feel right, it needs immediate medical attention.
Sudden, extreme pain in your head, especially if it feels worse than any headaches you’ve had before, is a strong indicator that you should see a doctor right away.
These terrible headaches could be a sign of a serious problem like an aneurysm or even a burst blood vessel.
The Cleveland Clinic says, “A sudden, severe headache could be a sign of a more serious, life-threatening condition. Up to six percent of the population could be living with an unruptured brain aneurysm.”
Sudden confusion or fogginess
If you ever feel like you are just suddenly not able to think clearly or your mind feels empty and devoid of any thoughts, and you can’t think of anything but “I don’t feel right”, it could be an indication of a serious condition.
If you have also had a large change in the personality of some kind along with this symptom, you need to get help immediately
Dr. David Bronson writes, “The mortality rate for severe confusion is pretty high. You have to figure out what’s going on.”
Weight loss
Another symptom to never ignore is unintentional weight loss, as it can happen from a variety of problems in the body, many of which can be quite serious if left untreated.
Dr. Julian Schink writes, “Colon cancer is commonly associated with unexplained weight loss.”
Seeing flashes of light
Suddenly seeing flashes of light or unexplained bright spots, or any other unexplained oddities in your vision, especially coupled with the feeling of something not being right, is a reason to see your doctor.
Persistent fever
A fever that doesn’t seem to go away with any medication and keeps returning, especially if it is a low-grade fever, along with a feeling of something not being right, is a major reason to see a doctor right away.
Dr. David Bronson writes, “Fever of 103 degrees and higher warrants a trip to the doctor — period.”
Constant shortness of breath
If you constantly find yourself winded after the littlest exertion, something might be seriously wrong and this merits a visit to the doctor.
It becomes even more necessary to see a doctor if this is accompanied by chest pain, a fever, circulation issues, wheezing, or gasping, you should see a doctor right away.
Sudden severe abdominal pain
If you suddenly start to feel severe abdominal pain and at the same time can’t shake the feeling that something doesn’t feel right, see a doctor right away.
Constant fatigue
If you find yourself tired all the time and nothing you do seems to alleviate these feelings, and at the same time you also feel like something doesn’t feel right, make sure you see a doctor right away, as it can mean anything from a serious illness to depression.
I don’t feel right, but medical tests are negative
When you constantly feel like something doesn’t feel right, yet all the tests are constantly negative, it may be time to explore the idea that you might have hypochondria, a mental disorder where the person constantly feels like something is wrong with them but doctors never seem to find anything wrong.
People with hypochondria tend to feel like they are seriously sick but usually have very vague symptoms like random aches and pains, weird feelings in the stomach, fogginess in the brain, and so on.
However, Hypochondria is only considered as a possibility when the medical tests are negative, and doctors will usually want to ensure that there is actually nothing wrong with you.
These are some of the symptoms of Hypochondria:
· Preoccupation with having or acquiring a serious disease or health condition
· Worry that minor symptoms or body sensations mean you have a serious illness
· Becoming easily alarmed about your health
· Frequently making medical appointments or changing doctors constantly, that is, “Doctor Shopping”
· Not being reassured after doctor visits or negative test results
· Worrying excessively about a specific medical condition
· Having so much distress about possible illnesses that you cannot function or focus on other things
· Constantly checking your body for signs of illness or disease
· Avoiding people, places, or activities due to health risks
· Constantly talking about your health and the possibility of being sick
· Frequently looking on the internet for causes of symptoms or possible illnesses
What to do when you don’t feel right?
If you don’t feel right, the first thing to do would be to check exactly what you are feeling, at least figure out whether it is physical or mental, so that you might take the appropriate course.
If you don’t have any significant symptoms as such, but just have a general feeling of malaise, you can try some of the following things to feel better.
· Drink water. Most of the time when you don’t feel right it is simply because you are dehydrated, and you have been forgetting to drink water.
· Don’t go online and search for random symptoms, as the internet is not a substitute for a medical professional and the internet will not be able to tell you what is wrong either because it cannot see you or hear you.
· Eat something if you have not eaten in some time; conversely, if you have just eaten and you don’t feel right, go for a walk or try to sit in comfortable postures; do not lie down as lying down right after eating is not healthy.
· Get some sleep; if you have just woken up or have had enough sleep in the past 10 or so hours, just try to change the task you are currently involved in.
· Get some exercise, play with your pet, or take a walk, just get moving.
· If you have a specific physical problem, ask a doctor what is wrong with you
· If you tend to suffer from depression, anxiety, or any other mental health issues, try to engage in something you enjoy, or talk to someone when you just don’t feel right.
Conclusion
In this brief guide, we discussed the meaning of the statement “I don’t feel right and discussed what you can do to figure out what to do when you don’t feel right and how to fix things. Please feel free to send us your questions or comments.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): I don’t feel right
What do you do when something doesn’t feel right?
When something just doesn’t feel right, make sure that you be still, listen to your mind and body, and give yourself some space to let your way forward become clear.
When something doesn’t feel right, you can assume that it probably isn’t.
Contact a counselor to honestly reflect and make sense of what you want to happen in a safe space.
Why do I not feel well all the time?
When you don’t feel well all the time chances are there is something wrong in your body, and you should get yourself checked out.
Feeling run down or tired, getting sick often, or being nauseous all the time is often explained by a lack of sleep, poor diet, anxiety, or stress.
In some cases though, it could also be a sign of pregnancy or chronic illness.
What does it mean when you can’t feel your body?
When you cant feel your body it may either mean that you are numb, or it may refer to a mental condition known as depersonalization, which is a combination of physical sensations, emotions, and thoughts all of which lead you to feel that you are disengaged from your environment as well as your body, making it feel like you are not even in your body.
Why do I feel like there’s something wrong with my health?
You might feel like something is wrong with your health because you have anxiety or something might actually be wrong with your body.
Health anxiety is a condition that affects many people and makes healthy people worry that they are sick, even in the absence of symptoms or minor symptoms like a scratchy throat.
“People with health anxiety, for the most part, tend to fear severe illness, such as HIV, cancer, or dementia” A Harvard researcher in the field comments.
Citations
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23501254_’I_just_don’t_feel_right’
