Coping with Health Anxiety: When Worry About Illness Takes Over

What is Health Anxiety?

Everyone worries about their health from time to time. However, when these worries become constant, overwhelming, and hard to control, it may be health anxiety. People with health anxiety often fear they are sick even when medical tests show otherwise, and this cycle can become exhausting.

Signs of Health Anxiety

• Constantly checking your body for signs of illness

• Googling symptoms repeatedly

• Seeking frequent reassurance from doctors or loved ones

• Avoiding medical information out of fear

• Feeling anxious after hearing about someone else’s health problems

Why Health Anxiety Happens

Health anxiety can be linked to past medical trauma, family illness, or general anxiety. It may also come from a need to feel in control when life feels uncertain. The mind tries to prepare for the worst, but this only increases stress and fear.

Therapy for Health Anxiety

Therapy for health anxiety helps you understand your worries and break the cycle of fear and checking. In therapy, you can:

• Learn how anxious thoughts fuel the cycle of worry

• Practise techniques to calm your body’s stress response

• Explore underlying fears about illness, loss, or uncertainty

• Build trust in your body and its ability to cope

• Develop healthier ways to manage stress and uncertainty

Final Thoughts

Health anxiety can feel overwhelming, but you do not have to live in constant fear. With therapy and support, you can learn to quiet the noise of worry, feel more grounded, and regain peace of mind.