Of course, it's natural and normal to be conscious of your personal set of health risks (and, sure, a late-night Googling sesh every once in a while is part of that). But for those with health anxiety, the messages we get from the medical community are particularly significant and urgent. "[Patients] believe that, if they are vigilant about their bodies and pick up the first indication of a disease they’re afraid of, they’ll be able to save their lives," Dr. Diner says. "And medical culture reinforces that view to some extent." For instance, we're all told that keeping our blood pressure at a healthy level is a good thing to do, so we get it checked during our regular appointments. But someone with health anxiety might purchase their own blood pressure cuff and measure themselves several times a day.