5 tips for managing health anxiety

1. 5 tips for managing health anxiety

2. People with health anxietyfind themselves worrying a lot about getting ill, or that they might already be ill. In particular, they often have concerns about any physical symptoms they have and what they might mean. Anxiety is a natural response to a threat, or to something we believe is a threat – so it’s no surprise that the coronavirus outbreak has led some people’s health anxiety to get worse. It’s also caused others who’ve never had it before to start experiencing problems. • If you have health anxiety, you could be having a lot of negative or scary thoughts at the moment – for example, ‘everyone I care about is going to get ill’. You might notice that you’re constantly searching online for more information about the illness and the latest statistics. Anxiety can also have physical effects, such as a racing heart or nausea.

3. 1) Acknowledge how you’re feeling. There’s no right or wrong way to feel at the moment. The simple act of naming the emotions and feelings you’re experiencing is a really effective first step to reducing their intensity. • 2) Avoid health-related news. This might seem ‘easier said than done’! But constantly searching news websites and social media, trying to soak up every bit of information you can about the coronavirus, is probably an unhelpful behavior, and is likely to fuel your anxiety rather than reassuring you. Limit the number of times you look at the news to perhaps once a day, and make sure you’re only checking news from trusted sites and sources.

4. 3) Stop Googling your symptoms. If you have health anxiety, Google is not your friend! An anxious mind will scan for worst case-scenarios, so you’re probably only taking on board all the scary stuff that’s out there. This means you’re not getting a balanced perspective on things. • 4) Manage unhelpful thoughts. A common thought we’re currently seeing among people with health anxiety is ‘everyone I love will die from the coronavirus’. Thoughts like these can be really disturbing and distressing, but there’s a really good cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) technique that can help.

5. 5) Maintain as normal a routine as you can. Make sure you go to sleep and wake up at a regular time – and do get out of your pyjamas! Have something to look forward to in the day; find a way to treat yourself. Contact friends and family. Social distancing doesn’t mean emotional distancing – we’re social creatures, so find creative ways to keep in touch.

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