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 3285 reviews and the average rating is 4.8 out of 5 stars.

Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Everything has been great! Tina has been very supportive and helping me work things out. Learning how to improve my communication and realizing what I need to do to grow as a person."

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"I've felt the curriculum has been very helpful for me to work through and reflect on my own time. The structured nature and step by step process makes it easier to tackle bigger feelings by breaking it down."

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"I originally subscribed only for Insomnia & Sleep problems, but within the first two weeks of CBT, my therapist and I still haven’t even discussed CBTi “for Insomnia”, as he was able to help me understand that Insomnia was largely just a symptom of a much more deep rooted mental health issue, mainly Anxiety. Buy focusing our efforts of the root problem, and learning methods to reduce my anxiety, I’ve been largely successful in improving my sleep within a short period of time — and to top it off I feel comforted knowing that this will be a long process, but fezivle and at a pace that suits my budget and needs. Highly recommend it!

* the only issue I’ve experienced so far has been technical difficulties which have taken up valuable time with my therapist."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Vanessa is so easy to talk to and helped direct me forward. The worksheets are helpful."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Marie Chisholm is amazing. I have only had a few sessions, and so far, things are amazing. She’s helping me a lot. She’s so sweet and caring, and her voice is so calming."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"She has been amazing at helping me think differently about things. Helping me deal with situations in a healthier way."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Perfect."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Very happy with the experience so far. My therapist is very helpful and compassionate. I recommend this subscription for anyone needing to start a journey of healing and better understanding of self."

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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: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"my therapist has been a very good aide in asking the right questions to kick start my introspection on my current problems and issues. Very patient with my slow responses and a wonderful source of advice for corrective behavior."

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