Can hypochondria be linked with anxiety? I am a hypochondriact and am feeling really ill at the moment and although I usually think the worst I was wondering whether infact it could be anxiety? I am feeling really tired, depressed and looking at the future in a negative light, kinda having hot flushes and pains all over my body. I am currently worrying about over HIV and of course am scared that I might have this but reading some of these replies makes me think it might be anxiety instead.

Hypochondria is anxiety itself...health anxiety.

Doh! I feel like a nut now. :P

Do I have to have been diagnosed with hypochondria though to actually go to my doctor and ask if he can help me? I have been obsessing over my health for years now and really want to get it out to way.

When you ask if you have to be diagnosed to go ask your doctor for help, what do you mean? Do you mean that you want to go ask your general practitioner for medication? Any MD can prescribe anxiety meds if you tell him that you've been experiencing anxiety, specifically surrounding your health, if he/she agrees that you need them. However, I think your search for help should begin with a psychiatrist. The answer to anxiety/hypochondria is not simply drugs, it involves therapy as well.

I was talking about therapy, not meds :)

I was hoping he could refer me to a councillor or psychiatrist.

Oh okay, good! Sorry for the misunderstanding. Yes, I'm sure he could refer you to the appropriate source.

Best of luck to you!

Yes, hypochochondria can be related to anxiety, in fact it is a sort of anxiety. I was the diagonosed 3 years ago with hypochochondria, after thinking for 6 months that I had some sort of dangerous nerve disease. After getting a cat scan done as well as blood tests and found out that I had absolutly nothing wrong with me, I decided to somewhat cure my hypochochondria alone. To tell you the truth it wasn't easy, but try reading, spending alot of time with the people you love, anything that will get your mind off "health problems". Helped for me:) Anyways hope it works for you as well.

- mary

Can hypochondria be linked with anxiety? I am a hypochondriact and am feeling really ill at the moment and although I usually think the worst I was wondering whether infact it could be anxiety? I am feeling really tired, depressed and looking at the future in a negative light, kinda having hot flushes and pains all over my body. I am currently worrying about over HIV and of course am scared that I might have this but reading some of these replies makes me think it might be anxiety instead.

Hypochondria always goes with anxiety. I know only deviaton on social anxiety, general anxiety and anxiety with panic attacks, and the expresion "health anxiety" is unfamiliar for me.

Hypochondria at the most cases comes as a consenquence of unsecure self indentity - which is anxiety, so the hypochondria is practicly consenquence of anxiety.