Engineering Student, Politecnico di Milano
Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Stress
Milan, Italy
“I have always thought that traveling is important: for many, it can be as valuable as a dream kept in a drawer. For many people, traveling helps to rediscover that hidden pleasure, just like having a dream, and the beauty lies precisely when, with the mere hope of having protected it over time, it finds the capacity to become reality. Traveling helps one grow by acquiring experience, but for now, it hasn’t been for me. I’ve never visited America, but I would love to own a house there too.
I am a recent engineering graduate from the Politecnico di Milano, now completing a master’s degree at the same university. I was in the Netherlands not long ago, visiting a friend who had moved there from Milan. Horizontal rains and violent, annoying winds made me miss Milan. After all, the weather in Italy isn’t so bad. At this moment, though, I am waiting for someone. There are always those who arrive very early and those who arrive very late, right? Well, I am the first of these, always on time, very early to be precise. It’s frustrating to wait when you know time should never be wasted.
On two occasions about three years ago during the January and February exam session, I suffered from epigastric/sternal pain that exacerbated, like gastroesophageal reflux pain, during post-laying periods and in the mornings right after getting out of bed.
Not understanding the nature of the symptom, I consulted my general practitioner. Taking Omeprazole (a proton pump inhibitor for relief from acid-related diseases prescribed by my doctor) in the morning before breakfast, I noticed no change in my quality of life even diligently following the prescribed treatment. In short, nothing seemed to make me feel better.
Accepting the fact that the problem was not understood, by the time spring arrived and the exam session ended, I noticed that the symptoms improved over time, disappearing completely towards the end of April.
I had no more issues related to this pain for a long period, until something similar happened about two years ago. On that occasion, the same symptoms appeared, which in my opinion seemed to have worsened. Epigastric/sternal pain was associated with febrile episodes of an undefined nature. In a new consultation with the general practitioner, I understood that the symptoms, in a few words, were all in my head. That sensation that debilitated me terribly was of psychological and psychophysical origin.
Learning to ignore and live with this discomfort, which gave me the perception of pain and illness when in reality I was fine, my health situation changed completely for the better. And I was also much happier.
Through this experience, I learned that psychological health plays a fundamental role in the health of every person because it radically affects our lives both positively and negatively. We must learn to take care of our mental health by listening to our bodies in the best way possible.
Never underestimate the power of psychology and our thoughts capable of altering our physical health in the short and long term.”