Something i found in health-anxiety research that finally made things click for me
Every time we seek reassurance - googling symptoms, going to the doctor "just to check" - we get temporary relief. But that relief is exactly what keeps the circle going. Your brain learns the only way to feel okay is external confirmation. So the threshold gets lower, not higher.
The thing that feels like help is actually feeding it.
Randomized controlled trials on CBT are pretty clear: the path out isn't finding reassurance - it's learning to sit with uncertainty without resolving it. Sounds awful. But apparently it's the only thing that works long-term.
Has anyone here experienced this click? What made it finally make sense for you ?
u/Hopeful-Media-2071 — 19 hours ago