Covid 19 update…. Health Anxiety is out of control!

Who out there can say they don’t worry?! We are wired to worry. It helped us escape danger in the past and seek shelter from our enemies.
But today we worry about our families, our health…about worrying.

Covid 19 has sparked a new worry. We fear for the capacity of our healthcare, the economy and our lives. Despite concerns potentially being exaggerated by the media, some people are in a spin about the ‘what if’ of contracting the disease.
Coughs and colds that we previously would not have thought twice about, are creating serious anxiety issues for those who are generally predisposed to being a little health anxious.

But what is health anxiety?

Health anxiety is the preoccupation that you are, or are becoming, unwell. It can spark desires for inappropriate testing, frequent trips to the doctor and symptoms of typical general anxiety disorder including difficulty sleeping, palpitations, disorganised thinking and nervousness.
Hypochondriasis is a type of health anxiety regarding the fear that you have, or are developing, cancer.
Both are very real fears. And unlike the fear of most British house spiders, are not something that can be more readily relieved (or not in my case..spiders are horrific!) with reassurance that ‘there is nothing to worry about.’

People do get unwell. Covid 19 is spreading. But we this doesn’t mean that we have to suffer with incapacitating anxiety regarding the condition. We have got to take a pragmatic approach regarding our health.
Make healthy decisions, exercise, eat well, sleep well and live life to its fullest. Seek counselling regarding your anxieties, open up and talk about them, off load yourself of these fears.
Our bodies are incredible machines programmed to heal and cure itself. We have got to give it a little trust, but also support it, in its quest to keep us well.

Don’t live with burdensome health anxiety. See your doctor (in order to stop seeing your doctor so much) and explain how you are feeling. Covid 19 is one of many health conditions that we should tackle, but not live our lives in constant fear of.

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