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 3298 reviews and the average rating is 4.8 out of 5 stars.

Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Been in therapy since my first autoimmune desease appeared. In 2002. Have had different therapist n some helped more than others. Been w this online-therapy for about two months. Love therapist I started has been a great fit for me. Not only therapy, but other tools like yoga and journaling. Have great hope."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Janet is absolutely amazing!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"It is a very interactive website with genuine and caring psychologists."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Great therapy !"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I'm so happy with my therapist, Shelly. I look forward to our weekly sessions. She remembers so many of the details that I spoke about in prior sessions and challenges me to stretch myself. Since working with Shelly my mental and emotional state of mind has great improved. I value her insights, knowledge and generosity."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Really good,"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I have found a lot of value in how the worksheets have been directing my thoughts. My therapist has been commenting and giving me tips from the worksheets too and I have seen drastic improvements in the way I think and my energy overall! The journal is nice to have since its not mandatory but it is nice to keep track of my day and be grateful for the things I did during the day!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I'm enjoying Dr. Vicki's approach a lot. We're still building but so far I'm feeling we're on a very beneficial track."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I found online-therapy through an extensive internet search. online-therapy seemed to provide the services I wanted with consistant positive reviews, and the price was more competitive than some of the ones I had already heard about.

I signed up and was pleased t see I qualified for a temporary discount due to my financial situation.

My subscription includes one 45 min session with the therapist i was paired with, Karen Coupe (LPC). Our sessions have been helpful. She is kind and very easy to talk to, she listens to all I have to say, sifts through it all and offers suggestions, advice and even explinations as to what might be causing certin things. She asks additional questions additional questions to better understand and follows up on topics we discuss.

She responds to messages and worksheet entries in a very timely manner.
I use the worksheets and am catching up on the videos. I plan to start using the activities calendar and yoga as I get more involved in my therapy journey.

I am very happy with my decision to subscribe to online-therapy.

Video sessions work on my laptop and my cellphone.

Online-therapy sends me reminders for scheduled appointments and offers outlets for me to give feedback.

I am so happy I decided to start my journey with this program and can imagine a brighter future for the first time in a long time"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I Love Mina So Much! She is very helpful and easy to WITH. She gives me ALOT of ways to EXAMINE MY LIFE SO THAT I CAN FIND HAPPINESS FOR “ME” FIRST. You don’t see that in a lot of therapists. Also, I don’t see her choosing sides. I would NEVER WANT OR ASK FOR ANOTHER THERAPIST.
Thanks Mina🩷"

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