OLIP Therapy · Fareham, Hampshire
Health Anxiety Therapy
Break the cycle of worry and checking, and trust your body again.
CBT, hypnotherapy & counselling in Fareham, Hampshire, and online
Health anxiety therapy, so the worry stops running the day
When worry about your health takes over, it is exhausting and frightening. You are not being dramatic, and you are not alone. In person in Fareham or online across the UK.
Fareham, Hampshire, plus online therapy UK wide
Free · Confidential · No obligation · You set the pace
Understanding it
What is health anxiety?
Health anxiety, sometimes called hypochondria or illness anxiety, is when worry about your health becomes overwhelming and persistent. Ordinary bodily sensations get read as signs of serious illness, and reassurance, even from a doctor, does not settle the fear for long.
There is a particular cruelty to it. Anxiety itself produces a racing heart, chest tightness, breathlessness, dizziness and stomach trouble, and those are exactly the sensations that then get interpreted as illness. The worry produces the symptom, the symptom confirms the worry, and round it goes.
It is a recognised difficulty, it is far more common than most people realise, and it responds well to therapy.
Why it keeps going
The cycle that keeps health anxiety alive
Understanding this is often the moment things start to shift, because every part of the loop is something that can be changed.
Checking
Examining the lump, taking the pulse, pressing the spot again. Each check brings a second of relief and then more doubt, so you check again.
Searching
Looking up the symptom, and reading until you reach the worst case. Search engines are not designed to reassure you, and they never do.
Reassurance
Asking a partner, a doctor, a forum. The relief is real and it is short, which is why you have to ask again tomorrow.
Avoidance
Not watching the medical programme, not booking the appointment, not reading the letter. Avoiding keeps the fear intact.
Every one of these makes complete sense in the moment and makes things worse over time. That is not a criticism of you, it is simply how anxiety works, and it is exactly what therapy targets.
You might recognise this
How health anxiety shows up
You may notice a few of these, or many. Read them gently, and without alarm.
- Checking your body for lumps or changes
- Worrying about your health most days
- Searching symptoms online
- Needing reassurance that never lasts
- Taking your pulse or blood pressure
- Booking repeated GP appointments
- Avoiding doctors in case of bad news
- Avoiding medical programmes or articles
- Health scares in the news pulling you in
- Fixating on one particular illness
- Trouble sleeping because of it
- Family finding it hard to know what to say
If several of those feel familiar, that is not a diagnosis and it is nothing to be alarmed by. It simply means talking to someone would probably help.
The modern version
Cyberchondria, or why searching never helps
Cyberchondria is health anxiety fuelled by internet searching. It feels like gathering information, and it feels like it should be reassuring, and it almost never is.
Search results are not sorted by likelihood. They are sorted by what gets clicked, and the frightening explanation always outranks the boring one. So a common, harmless symptom takes you somewhere terrifying within about four results.
Then the anxiety produces more symptoms, which get searched, which produces more anxiety. Reducing this habit gently, rather than by sheer willpower, is usually one of the first things we work on together.
An honest answer
What actually helps with health anxiety?
CBT has the strongest evidence base for health anxiety by a clear margin, and it is usually where we start. It works directly on the checking, the searching, the reassurance seeking and the avoidance, and on the way ordinary sensations get interpreted.
Hypnotherapy is used widely alongside it and many people find it genuinely helpful, particularly with the physical anxiety itself, the constant alertness and sleep. The research behind it for health anxiety specifically is thinner, and we would rather say so.
EMDR fits where the anxiety traces back to something that happened, such as a serious illness in childhood, a frightening diagnosis, or losing someone. That is more common in health anxiety than in most anxieties.
Counselling gives you room to say all of it out loud to someone who will not tell you that you are being silly.
Where it comes from
What can lie behind health anxiety
There is rarely one simple reason, and you do not need to know yours before getting in touch.
A serious illness in childhood, your own or someone close to you
Growing up around a parent who worried a great deal about health
Losing someone to an illness, particularly a sudden one
A frightening diagnosis or a near miss of your own
A missed or delayed diagnosis that left you unable to trust reassurance
General anxiety that has found health as its subject
The approach
How we help you manage health anxiety
We draw on several approaches, matched to you, and build a toolkit you can use whenever the worry starts to rise.
CBT
Practical, structured work on how you interpret sensations and on the checking and searching that keep it going, with tools you can use straight away.
About CBTHypnotherapy
Eases the physical anxiety underneath, and teaches deep relaxation and self-hypnosis you can use on your own.
About hypnotherapyEMDR
Where a frightening illness or loss sits behind the anxiety, EMDR helps the brain process it so it stops driving the present.
About EMDRCounselling
Space to say all of it to someone who takes it seriously, which for many people is the first time that has happened.
About counsellingCalming techniques
Breathing, grounding and self-hypnosis for the moment a sensation appears and the spiral begins.
A toolkit that stays
The aim is that you leave able to handle the next health worry yourself, rather than needing us for it.
Worth knowing
One thing your therapist will not do
They will not tell you that you are fine.
That may sound unhelpful, and it is one of the most useful things about therapy for health anxiety. Reassurance is the thing you have already had, from doctors, from partners, from the internet at two in the morning. It works for about an hour, and then the doubt returns, slightly stronger for having been fed.
Your therapist will take your fear entirely seriously without becoming another source of reassurance, because that is the only way the cycle actually loosens. They will explain this to you at the start, so nothing feels like being brushed off.
An honest, hopeful word
Health is part of life, so the aim is not that you never think about it again. That would not be health, it would be denial. The aim is that a twinge stops costing you an afternoon, and that a health scare in the news stops costing you a week.
No surprises
What happens when you get in touch
- 1
You send a message or call
A line or two is plenty. You do not need to list symptoms or explain the whole history.
- 2
A free 15 minute call
A relaxed, confidential chat with an experienced therapist. No cost, no obligation, and nothing frightening on the call.
- 3
We match you with the right therapist
We suggest the approach and therapist we think fits, in person in Fareham or online, and you decide whether to start.
Counselling from £72 a session. CBT, hypnotherapy and EMDR from £90. See all fees
Your questions answered
Health anxiety questions, answered
Is health anxiety a real condition?
Yes. Health anxiety, also called hypochondria or illness anxiety, is a genuine and recognised difficulty. It is far more common than people realise, precisely because almost nobody mentions it. It is nothing to be embarrassed about and it responds well to therapy.
What is the best therapy for health anxiety?
CBT has the strongest evidence by a clear margin, and it is usually where we start. It works directly on the checking, searching and reassurance seeking that keep the cycle going. Hypnotherapy helps many people with the physical anxiety and sleep, though the research behind it is thinner. EMDR fits where something frightening happened. Often a blend works best.
How do I know if it is anxiety or something actually wrong?
You do not, and neither do we. That is a job for your GP, and therapy never replaces it. If you have a new, persistent or changing symptom, get it checked. What therapy addresses is what happens after that, when the check comes back clear and the fear does not go away.
Should I stop searching my symptoms online?
In the end, yes, but not by sheer willpower on day one. Searching reliably raises anxiety rather than easing it, because results are ranked by what gets clicked rather than by what is likely. We reduce the habit gradually and replace it with something that actually settles you.
Will therapy make it go away completely?
Health is part of life, so the goal is not that you never think about it. The goal is that a twinge stops costing you an afternoon. Most people find the worry becomes something they notice and move past, rather than something that runs the day.
My GP says there is nothing wrong. Why do I not believe them?
Because reassurance is a short-acting drug. It genuinely relieves the anxiety for a while, which is why you seek it, and the relief wearing off is not evidence that the reassurance was wrong. Understanding that pattern is often the turning point.
What if I have a genuine health condition as well?
Many people do, and health anxiety is common alongside a real diagnosis. Having a condition does not mean the anxiety about it is proportionate or that you have to live with it at this intensity. We work alongside your medical care.
How many sessions will I need?
It varies with how long it has been going on and how much of your life it currently occupies. Focused CBT work is often a defined course. Where there is a frightening event underneath, it can take longer. You will get an honest idea after the first session or two.
Do you work with young people?
Yes. Health anxiety appears in children and teenagers too, sometimes after an illness in the family. If you are a parent, the free call is a good place to start.
Can I have sessions online?
Yes. You can be seen in person at our Fareham practice or online from anywhere in the UK. Both work well for this, and many people find starting from home easier.
You deserve to feel calm again
Start with a free 15 minute call. A relaxed, confidential conversation with an experienced therapist about what has been happening and what would help, with no cost and no obligation.