Overcome Health Anxiety with Online Therapy

Category: Health Anxiety Online Therapy | Last updated: February 1st, 2022 | Reviewed and approved by:
Dr. Steven Gans, MD
Dr. Elizabeth Lombardo, PhD

Are You Health Conscious or Health Anxious?

Almost every one of us gets concerned about our health and well-being. And that concern can motivate us to try to optimize our eating, sleep and to lead a healthy lifestyle. Being health conscious can be great. It helps a lot in leading a healthy, happy, successful and meaningful life.

However, problems arise when this health consciousness gets transformed into “health anxiousness”. If you become too obsessed about your health and if you get too apprehensive that you are suffering from a severe illness (without the presence of such medical symptoms), then you may be experiencing health anxiety. In the past, psychologists referred to this as “hypochondria”. However, it is now called Illness Anxiety Disorder.

Illness Anxiety Disorder is a somatic symptom disorder in which the person suffering from it gets overly anxious or obsessed over his/her physical conditions. They see even a minor problem as an exaggerated severe illness. People suffering from Illness Anxiety Disorder often require continuous care, support and assurance from health service providers, family and acquaintances.

See if you recognize yourself in the symptoms of health anxiety:

Being preoccupied with having or developing a serious disease or health condition
Worrying that minor symptoms or body sensations mean you have a serious illness
Being easily alarmed about your health status
Finding little or no reassurance from doctor visits or negative test results
Worrying excessively about a specific medical condition or your risk of developing a medical condition because it runs in your family
Having so much distress about possible illnesses that it's hard for you to function
Repeatedly checking your body for signs of illness or disease
Frequently making medical appointments for reassurance — or avoiding medical care for fear of being diagnosed with a serious illness
Avoiding people, places or activities for fear of health risks
Constantly talking about your health and possible illnesses
Frequently searching the internet for causes of symptoms or possible illnesses

What’s more, people with Illness Anxiety Disorder can also experience additional mental health issues, such as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Clinical Depression, Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

Treatment Procedures

The good news is that Illness Anxiety Disorder can be treated. Effective methods of treatment include Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Exposure Therapy and support. You can receive these types of treatment here at Online Therapy.

Reviews

Our online therapy services have received 3286 reviews and the average rating is 4.8 out of 5 stars.

Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"My First experience with therapy , was very nervous going into it. Love that I can send messages to her as I need and my weekly phone calls are productive. The dashboard is convenient and very easy to use also. Very happy!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"The user interface of the website and the platform is very easy and straightforward to navigate."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I have been enjoying the service so far, the pricing has been reasonable and working with Karen, my therapist, has been very helpful. She has been very personable and professional and the online sheets have been helpful as well, something lacking in it other online services I used."

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"I like the experience and structure of the sessions. We seemed to have a miscommunication on the last meeting which was missed unfortunately. Besides that, it has gone well."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Helpful"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I would highly recommend this online therapy program. I found the worksheets very useful, in the way that I saw myself where I was making mistakes, and that there is a alternative, more often than not, more realistic point of view of my problems. The therapist is clearly highly experienced and professional, very helpful with his knowledge and insights. He would respond very often, making sure that I am staying on the right track. I feel free to discus my issues, without the feeling of being judged."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"great counsellor"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I really needed therapy but don’t have time to go in person since I stay at home with my two children. This has been the perfect solution for me and I love all the resources they provide. I talk to my therapist everyday and she is amazing! Definitely recommend"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Overall the services have been great.

I ended up switching therapists near the beginning and found my perfect match. I love that you can do that. I love that you can see people’s availability before switching to make sure they work with your schedule. My therapist is down to earth, acknowledges my experiences and feelings and then provides strategies or actionable tips to try to help me through it and it’s been exactly what I need.

As for the other aspects, I’m one of those people who loves worksheets, so all the worksheets they have you do were helpful. It also helped me feel like I could express what was going on so my therapist already knew and we could get to what I really need help with during our sessions."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"In the few weeks I have been a member, I have already noticed a marked improvement in both my mood and thinking. I have had two different coaches, my first was very good and I still think about her advice from time to time. My second coach’s therapy is based on REBT and I find it more suited to my learning style. I found both coaches to be knowledgeable, empathetic, and experienced by the way they spoke to me and guided me through painful memories or stressful situations. The site is also very helpful and comprehensive. The requirement to write down my thoughts and/or respond to worksheets helps to keep me focused on my personal goals. The website also helps to think through thought distortions on my own — although my second coach has really been wonderful. I am so glad that I found this site."

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