Health anxiety (hypochondria) is when someone feels very anxious about their health. For these people the worries about their health becomes a problem in itself. Some people suffering from hypochondria have a medical condition that they are worrying about, some might have symptoms such as chest pain or headaches which they then worry about despite a doctors reassurance, and others will be anxious about any future health problems they might have.
In this post I will go over the basics of health anxiety and talk about life after hypochondria.
Is Hypochondria Curable?
Yes! Hypochondria is curable through therapy, medication and even lifestyle changes. The most popular type of therapy is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) which aims to change how you think by flipping negative situations on their head to give you a sense of relief and a lesser degree of anxiety, panic and worry.
As with all mental heath challenges, you must acknowledge that you have health anxiety and be committed to fixing it (Click here for an excellent 6 step video to ending GAD). By seeking professional help you will be able to get the help you need and also find a sense of relief that you are now getting help.
How is Life After Hypochondria?
During the recovery of hypochondria, sufferers start to feel at ease about their illness and their health anxiety. The therapy and medication they are offered makes their mind believe they are doing well and that gives them faith – having faith is the most important remedy to having any mental health challenge.
While some will still feel nervous for checkups, some will find that they are a whole lot more confident about their health and lifestyle. This could be because of therapy, medication or just doing basic exercises such as yoga so that you feel you are taking care of yourself.
This would lead to you being less anxious about what you health is like leading you to feel better about yourself because you have faith in yourself.
Some will say that when they started realising that worrying about death isn’t worth it and that in the end it is inevitable, you understand that you must do everything you can to overcome your health anxiety. This led them onto seeking help and eventually overcoming their hypochondria, allowing them to live a much a happier, peaceful and less anxious life.
Being a negative person my whole life, how do I go about changing the way that my brain is seemingly wired?
Re-wire your brain by learning about the brain. Many books out there on the connection between amygdala, pineal gland and anxiety.