If You Experience Health Anxiety, You’re Not Alone

Do you find yourself jumping to catastrophic conclusions when you experience this or that random symptom? If so, you’re probably no stranger to health anxiety.

You may be especially prone to health anxiety if you live with a chronic condition.

Here’s a hypothetical example: You’re feeling tingling and numbness in your arm, and you’re not sure why. What could it be? Your thoughts quickly spiral, and slight panic begins to mount.

You fall down a rabbit hole of Googling what the problem could be, and by the end of it, you’re a wreck, imagining the worst.

Health anxiety is common in people with serious and chronic conditions. One large research review of cancer patients and survivors found that 59% had moderate to high fear about their cancer coming back.

“Honestly, it feels like the classic ‘dark cloud’ — hanging around, unwanted, casting shadows where there shouldn’t be any,” says Lynn Prowitt, an editorial director at Healthline Media.

She received a breast cancer diagnosis at age 31 (4 months before her wedding day) and went through 6 months of chemotherapy, followed by a lumpectomy and then a mastectomy. This year marks her 25th as a breast cancer survivor.

“My health anxiety is triggered by a pain or other physical sensation that seems like it could be cancer, however remotely,” Prowitt says. “I know a lot about metastatic breast cancer. I wrote a book about it and have a dear friend who died from it. Her first symptom was back pain. So, when I have any back pain or bone pain of any kind, my mind goes there in a nanosecond.”

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What is health anxiety?

Health anxiety may be severe and chronic, or it may be mild and come and go. And when you’re already extra vigilant about your health because you have a health condition, you can be especially vulnerable to anxiety.

You might experience fear, dread, or other distressing emotions; thoughts of danger; and heightened stress levels.

Like other anxiety disorders, health anxiety disorders are marked by anxiety that sticks around or gets more intense over the long term. Some of the symptoms are the same as those of generalized anxiety disorder, including frequent feelings of anxiety or dread.

But unlike those in generalized anxiety disorder, the feelings of anxiety in health anxiety disorders are specifically about your health.

Health anxiety in people with chronic conditions

If you have a chronic condition, symptoms of your condition may make you worry — and that’s normal. After all, you’re coping with real health issues that are persistent and can be unpredictable.

Some researchers believe health anxiety is a normal response to a chronic condition that presents a real threat to your health and well-being.

People with chronic conditions often report feeling concerned that their illness or symptoms will come back or get worse.

“I’ve gone several blissful years without much anxiety,” says Prowitt. “But every now and then, it’s back on the front burner when some health thing crops up that could be cancer (a lot of things could be cancer).”

She’s had two major health scares in recent years. Both resulted in negative cancer diagnoses, but only after months of tests and lots of stress.

“You do live waiting for the other shoe to drop,” she says. “I have been so, so lucky to keep that shoe hovering for 25 years.”

In one 2020 analysis of 401 studies, researchers looked at health anxiety in several different chronic conditions. More than 20% of participants in these studies showed clinical (high) levels of fear. But the researchers didn’t agree on the point at which the fear became “excessive.”

Some studies mentioned in that analysis found that fear in chronic conditions is highest after diagnosis and slowly decreases over time until it stabilizes at a lower level.

Researchers also debate whether people with a chronic condition who experience health anxiety should receive a diagnosis and be considered “mentally ill” when their fear is based on a diagnosed disease and, often, realistic concerns.

If you’re experiencing health anxiety, you’re not alone, and your concerns are understandable.

Tips for reducing health anxiety

Living with a chronic illness can lead to anxiety, but it also works the other way around: Chronic high levels of stress and anxiety can exacerbate symptoms of your chronic condition.

When you experience psychological stress, you may also develop increased levels of inflammatory markers in your blood. This can worsen inflammatory conditions such as psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and rheumatoid arthritis.

That’s why learning how to bring down your anxiety levels and cope with stress is key. Here are some expert recommendations to try:

• Find the facts: Sometimes, the thing that causes the most stress is not knowing. Inform yourself about your concerns, ask your doctor all about them, and you might feel a whole lot better. But remember that not all sources of information are accurate. Filter out the noise and consult only reliable sources, such as the doctor who manages your condition.
• Follow your doctor’s recommendations: You can help keep your condition stable by following the precautions and actions your doctor recommends.
• Seek out social support: Talking with people you can confide in can make a world of difference. For example, research has shown that people with more social support experience less fear that their cancer will come back.
• Track your body-checking behaviors: While it’s a good idea to ask your doctor about your concerns, hyper-focusing on sensations and checking your body for issues can increase your anxiety. If you’ve become overly preoccupied with checking your health, it may help to keep a diary. Record how often you speak with healthcare professionals about your concerns and how often you check your body every week. Try to consciously reduce the frequency of the checks over time.
• Consciously counter your worries: When you’re experiencing health anxiety, try this exercise. On a piece of paper, make two columns. In the left column, list your worries. In the right column, write the most realistic explanations for them. For example, if you have a headache and you’re becoming stressed that it’s a serious illness, you could write: “I’m stressed right now, and stress can cause headaches.”
• Get distracted: When you start to feel dread and worry escalating, take yourself out of the situation you’re in and do something different, such as going for a walk or texting a friend.
• Try meditation: Deep breathing can take your stress levels down within minutes. Meditation and other mindfulness practices can help reduce anxiety.

When to seek professional help

If health anxiety is preventing you from doing everyday things or enjoying life, consider consulting a mental health professional.

They may recommend medication, therapy, or both.

A type of talk therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown to be effective in treating anxiety disorders, including health anxiety.

The takeaway

Health anxiety seems to be much more common in people with chronic conditions. That’s completely understandable since you’re already dealing with a serious diagnosed health condition that might flare up unexpectedly.

Recognizing that you’re experiencing health anxiety is an important first step.

Then, talking with a mental health professional and taking steps to reduce your stress and anxiety each day can go a long way.

If your health anxiety is affecting your ability to function or enjoy everyday life, a mental health professional may recommend medication, therapy such as CBT, or both.