HYPOCHONDRIA

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WHAT IS IT?• Hypochondriacs have the constant belief that something is medically

wrong with them or that they have an illness or disease that they don’t really have.

• Hypochondria is a long-term illness that can cause significant problems with work, family and other aspects of your life.

• They also often have another underlying disorder such as anxiety, or depression.

SYMPTOMS• Fear or anxiety that you have a serious disease or health condition.

• Constant worrying or anxiety about minor problems. Any bodily sensation might indicate they have something wrong with them.

• Seeing doctors on a frequent basis and/or having exams done more than regularly.

• Switching doctors or asking for second opinions over everything.

• Obsessively researching symptoms.

• Checking their body of lumps, or sores more than normal.

• Obsessively checking vital signs.

• Believing you have an illness or disease after hearing about it.

RISK FACTORS• Family history of illness or sudden death.

• A serious childhood illness

• Existing mental health disorders (Depression, anxiety, personality disorders)

• Childhood abuse

• Witnessing violence

• Personal traumatic history

• Stressful experience with illness

DIAGNOSIS• Medical history is looked at

• Physical examinations (CT Scan, MRI, X-Rays, blood work. Anything they can do to rule out believed illness)

• If your fears last more than six months and does not improve or go away

with reassurance and negative testing and elimination of any other psychological disorder

TREATMENT• It is important to receive care and treatment from one supportive doctor

and a mental health professional that you can trust.

• Scheduling of frequent visits and regular check-ups to keep the fears at bay.

• Psychotherapy and Behavioural Stress Therapy

• Anti-Anxiety medications to help relieve the anxious feeling that you’re ill.

• Anti-depressants such as SSRI’s (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) and TCA’s (Tricyclic Anti-depressants) may be helpful to relieve the symptoms but it isn’t proven.

• (SSRI’s are a more tolerable form of anti-depressant as opposed to TCA’s. They’re used to treat mild symptoms, and have less harsh side-effects)

• According to the National Institute of Mental Health, your psychological treatment will involve:

• Recognizing what seems to make the symptoms worse

• Developing methods of coping with the symptoms

• Keeping yourself more active, even if you still have symptoms

PREVALENCE RATES• Equally common in men and women.

• According to the DSM-IV it is common between 1 and 5% of the general population, and 2 to 7% of the medical population. (Med students believing their ill with the constant research and learning about new illnesses)

RESOURCES IN NIAGARAUnfortunately there are not a lot of resources in Niagara that deal with Hypochondriacs, but your family physician is a great resource in getting help. It’s important to stick to one doctor and trust him or her.

Canadian Mental Health Associationhttp://www.ontario.cmha.ca/index.asp/ St. Catharines15 Wellington Street St. Catharines, ON L2R 5P7 E: info@cmhaniagara.caP: (905) 641-5222