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!]

"The best online platform I've tried"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Good service. Very helpful"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"So far, so good! I'm really hoping my therapist can help me. Also, the costs for this program are a lot better than others online, so that was a plus."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"This so far has been an easy quick set up to start therapy."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"This program has helped me look alot into myself, made me ask myself questions normally I'd never even think about. Allowed me to accept how some parts of me are while allowing me to change other parts. I can confidently say I'm doing much better than when I entered the program and am doing well."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I deeply appreciated the comments that were made on the worksheets. I can already feel the way I think slowly shifting and becoming kinder to myself. This made me realize how many thought traps I fall victim to, and also made me realize that I had some measures before to counteract the negative thoughts. My therapist was really kind too and it was nice to read comments in my free time and not be restricted with when I filled out anything. I liked the journal because it would guide my thoughts and give me a glimpse of my day that I can look back on. As for the activity plan, I treat it more as a tentative schedule as my schedule and energy shifts throughout the day. Overall, I don't have any regrets choosing this platform to receive treatment and it was a nice first experience at therapy! Thank you for everything and I look forward to working on myself more with your help until I no longer need it."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Really helpful to me. Helps me be a better person."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Very helpful, would recommend this site to anyone looking for therapy."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I was not sure about online therapy but I love it and I really love my therapist who has helped me a ton just in the first month!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"TJ is a great therapist with lots of experience. I've gone through a few therapists in the last year trying to find the perfect fit, and I'm so grateful that I finally found it."

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