Model Abbey Clancy reveals source of crippling groin pain

NZ Herald

9 Jan, 2024 07:56 PM3 mins to read

Abbey Clancy attends An Audience With Kylie at Royal Albert Hall on December 1, 2023 in London, England. Photo / Getty Images

Abbey Clancy visited her doctor, sure that that she was gravely ill, only to find out her jeans were just too tight.

The English model got candid about the health scare while chatting on a podcast this week, reports news.com.au.

Clancy, 37, revealed that she had seen “like five doctor friends”, as well as parents at her children’s schools, due to her non-stop worrying.

Her symptoms included an aching numbness in her groin area that she was convinced was multiple sclerosis (MS), a medical condition that affects the brain and spinal cord and can impair one’s vision, cause problems with arm and leg movement, as well as sensation and balance.

When she started to experience numbness in the lower part of her body, she looked up her symptoms on google and became concerned when they all led to MS being the diagnosis.

Clancy got in contact with a “top MS doctor” to find out if she really had the illness. However, the news she received was not what she was expecting.

Abigail Clancy at the Brit Awards 2008, At Earls Court In Central London. Photo / Getty Images

“I’d been holding [anxiety] in so much that when I got to the doctor, I went hysterical and couldn’t stop crying,” she said.

“He was like, ‘You haven’t got MS but you’ve got a mental health issue’.”

Health anxiety, or hypochondria, is a mental illness which has many similarities to obsessive compulsive disorder. Those affected by the illness tend to spend a lot of time stressing out about conditions or diseases they may have, sometimes to the extent where it is overwhelming and takes a hold of their life.

Symptoms of the illness can include worrying and checking your body for indications that something is wrong, such as lumps, tingling, or pain.

People with hypochondria might look for reassurance from other people that they are not ill or convince themselves that a medical professional or test may have missed something. Hypochondriacs might obsessively look up health information online or avoid going outside due to their fear of catching or spreading diseases.