Care-avoidant: You avoid doctors and medical care. You might not trust doctors or you think they don't take your symptoms seriously. This can create more fear and anxiety.
Their fear of having a serious illness can cause a person to repeatedly visit their doctors for tests and examinations. They are often not reassured by the positive outcomes of these tests, though. Instead, they fear that the tests missed something or that their doctors are mistaken.
It is also known as health anxiety, or illness anxiety disorder, or hypochondriasis. It is normal for people to worry about their health now and again. But people who experience hypochondria get very worried that they are seriously ill, or are about to become seriously ill.
Patients with hypochondriasis often are not aware that depression and anxiety produce their own physical symptoms, and mistake these symptoms for manifestations of another mental or physical disorder or disease.
People who have hypochondria actually believe they are ill, but do not manipulate test results. People who malinger pretend to be ill to gain some sort of benefit, such as avoiding military duty or trying to obtain compensation.
Contrary to the idea that "hypochondriacs" are simply looking for attention, the origins of someone's illness anxiety are often highly specific. "There's often a trigger," says Helen Tyrer, a senior clinical research fellow at Imperial College London and author of the book Tackling Health Anxiety.
Hypochondriasis may occur in an individual who had a childhood illness or had a sibling with a childhood illness. May be related to another psychiatric disorder, such as anxiety or obsessive compulsive disorder. Hypochondriasis may develop from, or be a sign of, one of these other disorders.
Illness anxiety disorder is a long-term condition that can fluctuate in severity. It may increase with age or during times of stress.
Hypochondria is itself a form of mild psychosis. The hypochondriac has a deep and ungrounded worry about having or developing a serious mental illness. Paranoia and suspiciousness are classical traits of psychosis but they can be subtle.
But here's the irony: People who are overly worried about their health are also more likely to actually develop some serious health problems, according to a large new study out of Norway, published this month in the journal BMJ Open. Sometimes being right does indeed suck.
Suicide among hypochondriacs is rare unless they are also seriously depressed, in which case the hypochondria increases the risk.
Scrupulously controlling for as many variables as possible, this research team found that individuals who complained about their health were three times more likely to die in the next 30 years than those who perceived themselves as more able-bodied and hearty.
Medications. Antidepressants, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), may help treat illness anxiety disorder. Medications to treat mood or anxiety disorders, if present, also may help. Talk with your doctor about medication options and the possible side effects and risks.
If left untreated, this condition can lead to an obsessive preoccupation with the idea of being unwell and it can interfere with person's daily life. Hypochondriasis is not about the presence or absence of illness, but the psychological reaction towards it.
Don't dwell on illness. Encourage them to verbalize fears about their health, but don't join in. Be supportive, but don't show too much concern and try to stay neutral in your answers. Express that you understand their struggle, without encouraging their obsessive thoughts.
Hypochondriac comes ultimately from the Greek word hypokhondria, which literally means “under the cartilage (of the breastbone).” In the late 16th century, when hypochondriac first entered the English language, it referred to the upper abdomen.
5 Signs of an Introverted Narcissist: Hypochondria
An introverted narcissist often suffers from hypochondria. They use sickness and disease to garner attention. Introverted narcissists do not usually get attention for accomplishments or achievements, because they never try.
People with illness anxiety disorder -- also called hypochondria or hypochondriasis -- have an unrealistic fear that they have a serious medical condition or fear that they're at high risk of becoming ill. They may misinterpret typical body functions as signs of illness.
According to Columbia's Brian Fallon, there are three types of hypochondria. A person with the obsessional-anxious type repeatedly worries, repeatedly asks for assurance, and cannot get out of his mind that something serious may have been missed by the doctor.
Antidepressants are most commonly prescribed medications for illness anxiety disorder. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) are typically the first-choice antidepressants. SSRIs include medications like: Fluoxetine (Prozac)
You may be wondering what triggers hypochondria. Although there really isn't an exact cause, we do know that people with illness anxiety are more likely to have a family member who is also a hypochondriac.
It is also quite common for medical students to become hypochondriacs after studying different kinds of rare and serious diseases. It may also be inherited genetically. Hypochondriacs many times have been cautious, anxious, or fearful of diseases all of their lives. It is just a condition that they are born with.
“Many of the symptoms that hypochondriacs feel are often physical sensations caused by anxiety or depression that can go along with hypochondria. The constant worrying can release harmful stress hormones and do real physical damage.”
Conclusions. Bipolar disorder, especially BD II, is associated with greater hypochondriac concerns, which relates to personality disorder functioning styles and concurrent affective states.