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 2510 reviews and the average rating is 4.7 out of 5 stars.

Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Great, affordable therapy."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Super convenient. Late evening and weekend appointments help me schedule around my work, my children sports ect. I can get the help that I need without adding another stress of how to fit into the all ready crammed workweek. The daily check-in and feedback are so helpful. Even though I only have sessions once a week the messaging aspect makes me feel supported on the other days. Caring therapist that listens and helps you understand the root of your issues."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Useful"

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"The steps in this program are great but not tailored for everyone's needs. I found some of the things helpful and some of it, not so much. That being said, I can see the effort put into this and with help, this can help people get out of their funk and back on track! I hope someone reads this and gives it a try...may change you life!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Great, I feel the therapy is very beneficial in helping to recognize my thoughts and emotions."

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"I think it’s amazing that I got such quick responses each day; it was nice to know that I didn’t have to wait weeks to hear back!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I did extensive talk therapy as a young woman, which was extremely useful. I recommend it. But in my current situation, I wanted to find ways to deal with my anxiety, which had become disabling. I wanted concrete steps for now, and not so much a deep dive into my past. This program, and CBT, turned out to be the right way for me to go at this point in my life. I feel like I have the information and the steps, and although it will be a process to re-frame my thoughts and emotions, I believe it can be done. My therapist had insightful comments and a sense of humor, which I appreciated. I'm glad I did this program!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I’ve never imagined myself as someone who would go into therapy, preferring to work through issues on my own. This has completely changed my outlook and I’m glad I made the decision to start with this platform. It has helped me so much."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Thank you for giving me the tools to examine and change my life and way of thinking."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I have thorouhly enjoyed the worksheets, it feels like a more involved regiment"

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