What Is Health Anxiety?

According to the Mayo Clinic, a health anxiety, otherwise known as hypochondria, is a mental illness in which individuals have a fear of a life-threatening or undiagnosed serious disease. Hypochondriacs believe minor pains and vague symptoms are the result of an underlying disease. Many hypochondriacs seek multiple doctors in search of a diagnosis, when in reality, no serious diseases or conditions exist.

Symptoms

• Symptoms related to health anxiety, or hypochondria, include excessive worry about having a serious illness, frequently switching doctors, seeking repeated medical exams, lack of social relationships, excessive health research and emotional distress, the Mayo Clinic reports.

Causes

• There are no known causes of the health anxiety, according to the Mayo Clinic. Some doctors link hypochondria to obsessive-compulsive disorder. Others suggest a person's fight-or-flight response may be responsible for health anxiety, the Mayo Clinic explains.

Risk Factors

• Some risk factors associated with hypochondria include having family members with health anxiety, having some kind of anxiety disorder, feeling vulnerable to disease, having a serious illness during childhood or even the death of a loved one due to a disease or illness, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Complications

• The Mayo Clinic explains that complications associated with hypochondria include depression, substance abuse, work problems, financial problems related to medical costs, relationship issues and excessive anger and frustration.

Treatment

• After undergoing psychological tests and examinations by a medical doctor, the patient suffering from hypochondria may be prescribed medication that alleviates anxiety, according to the Mayo Clinic. Physicians also may suggest that the patient participate in psychotherapy or counseling.