Hypercondriac is not an uncommon phenomenon. It is a kind of emotional or psychological problem in which the patient sinks in his own imaginary world of diseases and sickness. He is having a constant fear of suffering from some serious illness such as cancer, renal problem or AIDS and has fear of getting these diseases in future due to old age. The patient compares his health condition with that of others and if he finds someone suffering from these diseases, having the symptoms similar to that of his, he is fully confirmed that he too has the same type of sickness.
Mere physical symptoms like pain, tension, stress are considered by the hypercondriacs as some major health problems, which the patient considers may lead to death. It is more common among the learned people as they have the habit of browsing over the internet about various diseases and they read a lot of medical books. One in every 10 people who visit their family doctors has this type of anxiety disorder to some degree and three out of four patients have emotional problems that prolong their physical symptoms.
Hypercondriac is a serious mental illness that affects people from different parts of the world regardless of age and gender. The major symptom of hypercondriac is constant worrying over medical illnesses. Such mental worry leads to symptoms like headache, chest pain, nausea, fatigue, abdominal pain, back pain, constipation, dizziness, dyspnea, dysphagea, shortness of breath or indigestion.
This psychological condition usually begins in the 20s or 30s. The condition is common in both men and in women but is often considered as a woman’s disorder, because women can openly talk about their problems compare to men. Psychologists suspect that single people are more likely to suffer from this disorder as they spend more time alone.
Parental upbringing may be considered as another factor. It has been noticed that the children of the parents who suffer from this problem are more than likely to inherit this problem from them, as they watch their parent’s behavior right from the start of their childhood. These children are subconsciously following their parents’ footsteps.
It has also been observed that the children who are overprotected by their parents in their childhood are more likely to suffer from this psychological condition, as they grow up to be excessively health conscious. The emotional traumas like death of beloved one, divorce childhood, abusive upbringings are among other reasons for such anxiety disorder.
There is no need to panic for the patients who suffer from such mental disorder as there are many specialists available, who deal with the problems and give them proper counseling. Just a positive approach and a mentality to shed their negative attitudes will help the hypercondraics to lead a normal life.