Online Therapy for Health Anxiety

Category: Health Anxiety Online Therapy | Last updated: March 11th, 2026 | Medically reviewed by:
Dr. Steven Gans, MD
Dr. Elizabeth Lombardo, PhD

Are You Health Conscious or Health Anxious?

Almost every one of us gets concerned about our health and well-being. And that concern can motivate us to try to optimize our eating, sleep and to lead a healthy lifestyle. Being health conscious can be great. It helps a lot in leading a healthy, happy, successful and meaningful life.

However, problems arise when this health consciousness gets transformed into “health anxiousness”. If you become too obsessed about your health and if you get too apprehensive that you are suffering from a severe illness (without the presence of such medical symptoms), then you may be experiencing health anxiety. In the past, psychologists referred to this as “hypochondria”. However, it is now called Illness Anxiety Disorder.

Illness Anxiety Disorder is a somatic symptom disorder in which the person suffering from it gets overly anxious or obsessed over his/her physical conditions. They see even a minor problem as an exaggerated severe illness. People suffering from Illness Anxiety Disorder often require continuous care, support and assurance from health service providers, family and acquaintances.

     

See if you recognize yourself in the symptoms of health anxiety:

     
Being preoccupied with having or developing a serious disease or health condition
Worrying that minor symptoms or body sensations mean you have a serious illness
Being easily alarmed about your health status
Finding little or no reassurance from doctor visits or negative test results
Worrying excessively about a specific medical condition or your risk of developing a medical condition because it runs in your family
Having so much distress about possible illnesses that it's hard for you to function
Repeatedly checking your body for signs of illness or disease
Frequently making medical appointments for reassurance - or avoiding medical care for fear of being diagnosed with a serious illness
Avoiding people, places or activities for fear of health risks
Constantly talking about your health and possible illnesses
Frequently searching the internet for causes of symptoms or possible illnesses

What’s more, people with Illness Anxiety Disorder can also experience additional mental health issues, such as Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Clinical Depression, Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

Approaches That Can Help with Health Anxiety

The good news is that health anxiety can improve with the right support and practical strategies. One of the most commonly used approaches for health anxiety is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), which focuses on identifying and changing unhelpful thought patterns and behaviors that reinforce anxiety.

CBT often includes techniques such as cognitive restructuring, gradual exposure to feared situations, and learning healthier ways to respond to bodily sensations and health-related worries. These approaches can help reduce the cycle of constant reassurance seeking, symptom checking, and excessive worry.

Through our online therapy program, you can work on health anxiety using structured CBT tools together with therapist guidance through messaging and live sessions. Over time, many people learn to manage their health concerns more effectively and regain a greater sense of balance in their daily lives.

Reviews

Our online therapy services have received 4725 reviews and the average rating is 4.8 out of 5 stars.

Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Kat has been fantastic! Not only was she attentive to my needs , she really listened and guided me accordingly. I would strongly recommend Kat to anyone who needs a empathetic , kind and professional counsellor! Thank you so much Kat!"

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"OnlineTherapy is a great way to get immediate access to high quality therapy. For me this has been a wonderful opportunity to start with therapy. Therapy has been very helpful for me. I am learning new tools and techniques to help myself, gain new perspectives and insights about myself and the world around me. I have the best therapist in the world and am so grateful for her highly valued support. The only challenge I have encountered so far is getting support with the platform when you need support. That proved to be complicated and I need to wait long and keep writing emails until a solution can be found. For therapy and the great platform itself I would totally give the full five stars! Thank you for this opportunity, I guess it was my only way of getting help soon and simple!"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Genuinely I find the therapists here pleasant to talk with."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"I am excited to keep working on bettering myself"

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Dr sacco has been a very good therapist and provides excellent perspective and challenges me in the right ways"

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"I am happy with the services so far. I very much like my therapist."

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"Navigating a comprehensive workbook like this requires a massive amount of mental energy, vulnerability, and honest self-reflection. It has really given me a lot to think about and has given me a different perspective on day to day life."

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"This service is helping me to think about how I think, and how I can use my thoughts to manage my mood swings better"

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Rating: [4 out of 5 stars!]

"Worksheets and videos have been really useful. Therapist had been great. Sometimes the conversations through the message app can get confused as you only have one long thread of messages I.e. you can't start a new message on a new topic."

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Rating: [5 out of 5 stars!]

"Therapy has been very insightful. I have learned alot about myself and have been making progress."

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