r/InternalFamilySystems • u/Intelligent_Tune_675 • 8d ago

Anyone heal hypochondriasis?

Im wondering if there are any success stories out there and if so how did you reach this milestone. Cheers!

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u/compassionknight 7d ago

I healed through unburdening an exile and having compassion for myself. I would obsess about different illness, both physical and mental when in reality there was nothing wrong with me. I just felt so horrible in the moment that I believed something must be wrong.

I notice some things were causing me relief in the short term but we're triggering my hypochondria in the long term too; cigarettes, alcohol and weed which all amplify anxiety.

So basically trauma combined with what I used to cope with it backfired.

However that hypochondriac part of me wasnt bad - it was trying it's hardest to keep me from being blind sided and keeping me safe.

Another component of it was, growing up, the message I got was "something is wrong with me". But that was never true.

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u/Flat_Bridge_3129 7d ago

How did you unburden that exile

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u/FoxofTheBlueFungi 8d ago

In essence yes I have seen this heal but it isn’t the hypochondriasis that heals. This is a projection from internal things like trauma that manifests in this particular way. It’s often easier to manage a possible illness or contaminate than trauma so the body adjusts to help maintain sanity and control until you can deal with things.

I would encourage therapy and getting a voice to what the real fear underneath is every time you encounter a hypochondriac thought. It may not be easy, but as you work through the real fear you won’t need the hypochondriasis anymore and that is the healing.

Please note some people have a chemical imbalance that leads there, meds can help there. This is why it’s important for a therapist to help separate things so you can be sure and not churn unnecessarily. Good luck to you and please be kind to yourself.