Understanding Health-Related Anxiety
Almost everyone worries about their health at some stage.
Any worry or anxiety about health is necessary to our survival because it motivates us to act to preserve the safety of our physical body. Without feelings of anxiety or worry being triggered when our health is at risk, we would not react to signs of health problems and take action. However, if worry and anxiety associated with health occurs over a long period of time, or if the worry is in excess of the actual threat, then health-related anxiety no longer serves the purpose of sustaining survival and instead can be detrimental to health.
Triggers of Health-Related Concerns
Sometimes, health-related concerns are triggered by life events that happen to ourselves or to a loved one, such as a health scare (e.g., sudden illness or pain), an upcoming medical procedure, awaiting test results, or even before or after a doctor’s appointment. These circumstances can be a trigger to people to worry about their own health.
So, how do we know where to draw the line between useful worry versus excessive concerns about health? Aside from the anxiety and worry being in excess of the actual threat such as, for example, getting a headache and believing it is a brain tumor, other indications include becoming easily alarmed by any changes in personal health, repeated checking or self-examination of the body, avoidance of medical appointments or excessive attendance at the doctor and frequent thoughts about health or an illness that are distressing and anxiety provoking. These symptoms are all indications that health-related worry is not an isolated event triggered by real health stressors, but instead involve the person worrying about health issues that can or might happen.
Future-Focused Anxiety
People who experience any type of anxiety, including health-related anxiety, are focused mentally in the future. What this means is that rather than experiencing their life in the present moment and living events that are currently happening, they live ten steps ahead and their minds are continuously preoccupied by the what if’s of the future. This worrying about future events, for example, coming down with a terminal illness, gives the person with health-related anxiety a sense of control because they feel that if they can think it or anticipate it then they can somehow prevent it from happening or at least mentally prepare themselves for the frightening or terrible news of a health problem.
Breaking the Cycle
The underlying reasons for health-related anxiety are often related to the person having experienced events, health-related or otherwise, where they had little control over a situation,. After such an experience (or multiple experiences like this) in a person’s life, those who develop health-related anxiety do so as a way to protect themselves from a future threat. A negative cycle begins whereby the person tries so hard to prevent a future catastrophe that they become trapped in a constant state of worry and anxious preoccupation, which, in turn, makes the health-anxiety worse with time.
Getting Help
Health-related anxiety and worry can occur even among people who are educated about health. Regardless, it is still important that individuals with health-related anxiety receive education on health issues, as this often addresses any misconceptions about health risks that the person may believe. However, despite being informed about health, some individuals with health-related anxiety may still have fears and worries about health, believing that although a health issue is uncommon, they represent the one in a million who has a particular health issue.
The majority of individuals with health-related anxiety benefit from psychotherapy. If you believe you or someone close to you is excessively concerned about their health and you would like to discuss it further or seek treatment, please contact me.
