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HEALTH & MEDICAL OCD
HYPOCHONDRIASIS

OCD that focuses on medical and health worries is called hypochondriasis.  Hypochondriasis is an exaggerated obsessive worry about one's health (in the absence of supporting medical evidence, or out of proportion to an actual but non-urgent health risk).  People worry about COVID19, cancer, HIV, AIDS, heart attacks, germs, infectious diseases, epidemics, dementia, brain damage, stroke, asbestos, chemicals, unplanned pregnancy, and food poisoning, to name a few. 

Are you sick or is it just OCD? Find out by taking this test or asking Dr. Steven Brodsky, a specialist who treats all kinds of OCD.

Take the test to see if you're really sick or have Hypochondria, a type of OCD,  which is a treatable condition according to Doctor Steven Brodsky

You might not be erectile dysfunction, says OCD therapist Dr. Steven Brodsky.  It might be Hypochondria and doesn't require medical treatment.

Hypochondria can mimic many sexual health conditions from erectile dysfunction to STDs to pregnancy fears, explains anxiety specialist Dr. Steven Brodsky, and does not require medical treatment.  Find out by taking a test.

Find out if you have hypochondriasis.  Email a question to Dr. Brodsky or arrange a free consultation.  If you feel ready, make an appointment online instantly or call 212-726-2390.  In-person sessions are available in New York and New Jersey.  Virtual teletherapy is available nationwide in 40 states for OCD from Miami, Florida to Omaha, Nebraska. We're everywhere you are!

Dr. Steven Brodsky, Expert in Medical OCD

Read more and preview or order this book by a former client who suffered with Hypochondriasis about her therapy with Dr. Brodsky

They avoid people, places, and things that they see as a health risk--crowds, hospitals, public restrooms, school, certain ethnic groups, cleaning fluids, and certain foods.  They worry about themselves, loved ones, or spreading an infectious disease to others.  The sufferer might compulsively do endless internet research for medical information, visit multiple doctors (or avoid doctors), get multiple lab tests, adopt extremely restrictive diets, use new age alternative providers, consume a long list of "cures," take dozens of fraudulent online tests by unqualified authors, and seek reassurance from others.  Find out if you're actually sick or are experiencing OCD by taking a valid test.

80% of people search symptoms online yet never question it's reliability, warns OCD expert Dr. Steven Brodsky who treats it.

OCD sufferers search medical symptoms online, yet believe what they find unquestioningly regardless of reliability, cautions expert Dr. Steven Brodsky who treats Hypochondria.

With Hypochondriasis or health-related OCD, ordinary physiological sensations can be misinterpreted as cancer, heart disease, a stroke, ulcer, unplanned pregnancy, and numerous other major illnesses.  It can also be misdiagnosed as more severe mental illnesses, such as Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia, Borderline or Nacissistic Personality Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Autism, ADHD, etc.  The problem is worse because most of the following sensations are themselves classic physical symptoms caused by anxiety itself:

OCD specialist Dr. Steven Brodsky explains Hypocondriacs don't understand that "symptoms" might be ordinary sensations.

"Cyberchondria" is the updated version of Hypochondria, according to OCD specialist Dr. Steven Brodsky. In the internet age, sufferers mistake their symptoms for severe medical or mental health conditions,

  • tight chest, heart palpitations
  • abdominal pain, bloating
  • indigestion, heartburn, acid reflux
  • sexual dysfunction, impotence
  • vaginitis, painful intercourse
  • loss of libido or arousal
  • mood swings
  • Even intense physical pain can be produced by OCD without any medical cause and is often misdiagnosed for a medical condition, says expert  Dr. Steven Brodsky who specializes in Hypochondriasis.

    OCD anxiety can cause intense physical pain equal to a medical illness, explains therapist Dr. Steven Brodsky, but it's very treatable.

  • loss of usual interests, personality change
  • rashes, hair loss
  • itchiness, muscle tension
  • headaches
  • back pain, fibromyalgia, foot pain
  • rapid breathing, shortness of breath
  • difficult swallowing or speaking, choking, dry mouth
  • OCD sufferers with medical fears, have become hypersensitive to ordinary body sensations and fear the worst, explains specialist Dr. Steven Brodsky.  Thankfully there's very effective treatment.

    Dr. Steven Brodsky, a specialist who treats health related OCD fears, explains that sufferers constantly check their ordinary bodily sesnsations.

  • flu-like symptoms, cough, sneezing, teariness, colds
  • loss of appetite, dehydration, malnutrition
  • nauseau, vomiting
  • irritable bowel, constipation, diarrhea
  • incontinence, painful urination
  • faintness, dizziness, loss of balance
  • pseudo-seizures

  • Google is not a doctor, emphasizes OCD specialist Dr. Steven Brodsky.

    To see if you have hypochondriasis health related OCD, email a question to Dr. Brodsky or arrange a free consultation.  If you feel ready, make an appointment online instantly or call 212-726-2390.  In-person sessions are available in New York and New Jersey and teletherapy is available nationwide in 40 states for OCD from Jefferson County, West Virgina to Green Bay, Wisconsin.  We're everywhere you are!

    (Learn about Dr. Brodsky, the Treatment FAQ, other Types of OCD,  Insurance)