Do you know people who always feel sick, they are actually healthy? Or perhaps you experience it? Excess anxiety and fear that suffering from a dangerous disease called hypochondria. In medical terms, this condition is called also with illness anxiety disorder or somatic symptom disorder. Usually, the Hypochondriac characteristics will be seen specifically from the attitude shown daily.
The characteristic of people who feel sick, but really healthy.
You can be diagnosed by a mental specialist (psychiatrist) with hypochondria if you experience a variety of symptoms in a time of more than six months. Among the many symptoms, here are a few Hypochondriac characteristics that you may have unknowingly.
Hypochondriac characteristics
- Always looking for justification of allegations about their health.
People with hypochondria have excess anxiety about their health. When checking with the doctor and said that he /she is healthy, they will deny it and feel there is something wrong with their health. Therefore, they will continue to go to a different doctor, but all the doctors said the same thing: “you are healthy.” If this happens, the problem may not in the physical but mental. Therefore, to cool down, for example, ask yourself, “what evidence I have a disease but doctors declared healthy?”. If there is no proof, keep in mind that it is just excessive fears.
- Like to check their health improperly
People who often feel ill will probably always carry the thermometer anywhere. A little bit they would instantly check the body temperature with the thermometer because it feels restless. Whereas, in fact, there is nothing wrong with their health. They also probably “collect” various medical devices such as tensimeter or blood sugar test kits even though there are no signs they had certain diseases that must be monitored on a daily basis.
- Mild symptoms associated with serious diseases.
Forrest Talley, PhD, a psychologist and therapist from Invictus Psychological Services in California, the United States stated that people with hypochondria usually like to exaggerate. Symptoms of mild illness that can be associated with dangerous diseases. For example, they experience an itchy throat, it is associated with the possibility of pneumonia and a series of other acute respiratory illnesses. This fear is ultimately put aside their logic. They always assume a trivial symptom as major disasters which will threaten the health or even lives.
- Always feeling sick
People with hypochondria of a mind filled with the fears of the health condition which is always bad. They’re always giddy thinking of the worst possibilities that appear on the body. In fact, their mind will move from thinking of one disease to other diseases. As a result, they always feel that they are seriously ill and must see a doctor. No wonder if people with hypochondria almost always spend the time and money to see a doctor.
Although sometimes periodic health checks can detect the disease early, but if done excessively for no apparent reason it is also not good for your mental health.
- Do the same health tests many times
Other symptoms of hypochondria are always doing the same health tests repeatedly. They are usually difficult to trust the doctor’s examination results and the results of the test so they will continue to ask for additional tests or performing similar tests in other places. In fact, the test results are the same is stating that they are fine. It is very tiring because they keep pursuing the verdict or the diagnosis of doctors which actually does not exist.
- Avoid the appointment with the doctor
Although impressed, some hypochondria chooses to avoid the appointment with the doctor. Usually this is done because people with hypochondria feel very worried to hear bad information about their health. It is not seldom they ignored the appointment for a routine medical check-up just because of a sense of fear. Whereas, if they turn out to have health problems that are really serious, avoiding the examination will actually worsen the condition.
- Continue to talk about the condition of their health.
According to Lauren Mulheim, a psychologist at the Eating Disorder Therapy in Los Angeles, one of those Hypochondriac characteristics is always talking about health problems. Because, people with hypochondria have a mind filled with various things that don’t focus on the other things outside of health. Often people with hypochondria always dominate the conversation by continually talking about health problems complete with worries that they think about as if his condition is very poor and slumped.
Thank you very much for reading Hypochondriac characteristics, hopefully useful.
