A health anxiety story that was emailed in:

"As a Cyberchondria-stricken individual, one of things that I find most comforting is living in close proximity to medical professionals that I know and trust. That hasn't been the case for me lately: I have been spending this summer in a foreign country, often spending time in places in which there is no quality medical care for many miles.

You'd think that under these conditions, my health fears might be elevated. "What if something bad happens and nobody is here to help?" Amazingly, although I'd be lying if I said such fears haven't briefly crossed my mind a few times, I've found my health anxiety to be less of a problem here than it is back at home. Although I’d be lying if I claimed that health fears don’t cross my mind here and there, there has been no point in these past few months in which these have consumed my thinking.

Why might be the reason for this decrease in anxiety? Each day, my mind is processing a seemingly endless amount of new sights and ideas. I genuinely believe that the decrease in health anxiety is a result of me experiencing all these new things: my mind simply doesn't have the time to dwell on health fears.

Although distracting your mind from health fears like so isn’t a long-term solution for Cyberchondria, it may be helpful during anxious episodes; in times in which your health fears run particularly high, it may be a good idea to find something other than “Dr. Google” to engage your mind. Obviously this doesn't have to mean traveling to a different part of the world: this could mean meeting up with friends, playing music, or participating in some other activity that keeps your mind busy."