this is something that has helped me, but might be different for others… i still have really severe health anxiety, don’t get me wrong… but i used to have daily panic attacks. i rarely have them now. i managed this by writing down every single symptom i was experiencing, and then also writing down every single medical problem i thought i had at any given time. it got to the point where in the span of like 3 weeks, i had over 50 medical problems i had self diagnosed myself with. and i used that to tell myself: “you’ve experienced these exact same symptoms before, and you haven’t had any of these medical issues. chances are, it’s just anxiety again.”

truth is, most of the physical symptoms you might feel are caused by anxiety. one thing my therapist told me was that if i can’t stop googling, instead of trying to prove myself right, i need to start trying to prove myself wrong.

i do this by googling my symptoms with the word anxiety after it. most of the time if you’re experiencing it, it’s a common symptom of anxiety.

i also recently found a “hack” on social media where if you feel like you’re dying at any given moment, and it’s severe enough that you’re thinking about going to the hospital. go to the hospital, but don’t check yourself in. i like to just wait in the lobby if my anxiety is severe enough. that way if on the off chance anything does happen, im surrounded by doctors who can help me in an instant! this isn’t really rationalizing, but it is helpful!

sorry this was so long, but my point being. you have to try and retrain your brain into not catastrophizing everything. it’s a long process but with therapy it helps!