Show Notes
In this episode of The Panic Pod we look at health anxiety. It is extremely common and often driven by doubt, especially in people with obsessive and compulsive traits. Health anxiety tends to pull people into cycles of checking, researching symptoms, consulting Dr Google, seeking reassurance from AI or loved ones, and going down repeated research holes. We unpack these compulsive behaviours and explain how they keep the threat response switched on, even when the intention is to feel safer. We also mention our book on the subject, The Disordered Guide to Health Anxiety by Disordered Press, available on Amazon.
More from The Panic Pod: Anxiety Help
In Episode 22, Existential Anxiety, we explore how anxiety latches onto the big, unanswerable questions about life, meaning, existence, and identity. These are thoughts that may not have once felt particularly bothersome, but once the threat response gets involved, they can begin to feel urgent and deeply unsettling. In this episode, we look at how anxiety drives a need for certainty, and how that need becomes a problem when it is directed at questions that simply cannot be resolved. The search for a definitive answer triggers a loop of rumination and checking, hijacking attention and keeping the threat response active. The more we chase certainty, the more the questions grow.Drawing on both my work as a therapist and my own experience with anxiety, this episode helps you understand why existential anxiety is not a philosophical problem to be solved, but an anxiety pattern to be recognised and stepped out of. Keywords:existential anxiety, need for certainty, rumination, intrusive thoughts, OCD recovery, Pure O, anxiety disorder, anxiety recovery, panic attacks, threat response, overthinking, anxiety therapist, anxiety podcast, existential OCD, checking compulsions
In Episode 21, Somatic OCD, we explore the experience of becoming hyper-focused on physical sensations, bodily symptoms, and automatic processes such as breathing, swallowing, blinking, or heartbeat awareness. We look at why these sensations can begin to feel intrusive and distressing, and how attention and monitoring magnify the obsession over time.
In Episode 20, we explore perfectionism in anxiety recovery and why trying to recover “perfectly” can keep you stuck. Many people approach desensitisation with rigid rules, constant self-monitoring, and pressure to get every step right. Ironically, that perfectionistic mindset often strengthens anxiety rather than weakens it.
In Episode 19, we look at sleep anxiety and the question of how to fall asleep when you feel anxious. Many people with anxiety disorders become preoccupied with sleep, trying to optimise it, worrying about not getting enough, or fearing that poor sleep will make anxiety worse.
In Episode 18, The Best Technique for Anxiety, we look at why many popular techniques from the wellness space or general therapy approaches can become unhelpful when applied to anxiety disorders. What often starts as a tool can quickly turn into a compulsion or a quick fix behaviour that keeps the cycle going.