Online Counseling for
Health Anxiety and Medical Trauma
in New Orleans, Louisiana
Every morning, you wake up wondering if it will be a “bad” day or a “good” day knowing that your anxiety, your body, will make that decision. Online counseling can help.
Online Counseling for Health Anxiety in New Orleans
Maybe you’re overwhelmed with managing a chronic illness, organizing doctor’s appointments, and keeping track of symptoms. You get embarrassed at the thought of feeling bad when you go out - so you just don't go out. You’ve become obsessed with “eating clean” or you have lost the ability to tell when you’re full or hungry because you feel so disconnected from your body and your cues.
In New Orleans, we are all about celebrating the good times whether it’s a Mardi Gras parade, a Saints game, or a small get together that turns into a crawfish boil. When you have health anxiety, it can stop you from enjoying these celebrations - or even going altogether.
Health Anxiety Can Cause Panic Attacks
Panic attacks, sometimes called anxiety attacks, are intense sudden, physical and psychological responses to feelings of fear and anxiety. Due to the nature and symptoms of panic attacks, you might feel like you are having a heart attack or dying. For someone with health anxiety, the fear of your body not working “correctly” or the fear of dying can be even more concrete and can result in additional anxiety of future panic attacks.
While anxiety can be a perfectly normal response to a stressful event, for some people, their levels of anxiety and panic can be so intense that it prevents them from experiencing meaningful changes in school, work, and relationships. Intense anxiety can result in panic attacks which can have effects on your mental and physical health.
Health Anxiety Can Affect Every Part of Your Life
Health anxiety, or illness anxiety, is the fear that you may develop a terrible illness despite reassurance from medical providers or tests. If you have a chronic illness, you might experience anxiety directly from this illness or the symptoms.
For example, if you experience chronic pain, you might have thoughts like “I’m afraid I’ll have a flare up during this important event” or “I fear that I will never experience relief, and this is what the rest of my life will look like”.
Health Anxiety Can Have Many Causes
If you have health anxiety or have experienced medical trauma, your anxiety triggers might be more related to a specific event, situation, smell, or sound. For example, you might find the following causes your health anxiety or your panic attacks:
Going to a medical appointment or to the emergency room
Feeling ill - stomach ache, changes in heart rate, etc.
Hearing medical scares in the news
Learning that a celebrity or a friend/family member has been diagnosed with an illness
Receiving inconclusive test results
Online Counseling for Medical Trauma in New Orleans
If you’ve had a distressing medical experience, such as a traumatic childbirth, complicated surgery, or medical emergency, your anxiety can prevent you from feeling fully connected to others and even to yourself.
You might feel anxious about an upcoming medical procedure or test. This can include a fear of needles, anxiety related to an upcoming surgery or even childbirth, or the fear of being in an enclosed space for an MRI or other type of medical test. This medical anxiety might affect your mental health, mood, and relationships.
Your Online Counselor in New Orleans Can Help Identify Signs of Medical Trauma
Do you recognize these common signs of trauma in yourself?
Avoiding things that trigger your anxiety
Feeling intense anxiety or panic
Unable to enjoy your normally enjoyed activities
Irritability and angry outbursts
Feeling on edge constantly
Difficulty sleeping or sleeping too much
Feeling disconnected from others in your life
Making rash decisions or taking lots of risks
Online Counseling in New Orleans Can Help You Understand Health Anxiety vs. Medical Anxiety
Health anxiety and medical anxiety can both impact your quality of life and overall mental health - but they can also show up very differently in your body and in your thoughts.
Health anxiety typically refers to the fear of a disease or disorder developing or worsening. You live in fear that your or your doctors are missing important symptoms. If you live with chronic illness, you might experience anxiety directly from this illness. Medical anxiety, on the other hand, refers to anxiety about an upcoming medical procedure or test or a general sense of fear at medical appointments.
Online Counseling in New Orleans Can Help You Heal After Medical Trauma
Life after a medical emergency can look very different. According to the Society of Critical Care Medicine, over 1/3 of patients in ICU develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Post-intensive care syndrome, or PICS, refers to health issues that can occur after a critical illness such as a trip to the emergency room or an extended stay in the ICU.
PICS can include physical symptoms, like muscle weakness, or even mental health issues such as memory issues, trouble falling asleep, depression, or anxiety.
If you or a loved one experienced a medical emergency, therapy can help you find peace after this emergency.
Medical Trauma Can Make You Feel Disconnected From Your Body
You might have thoughts like “I won’t be able to control my anxiety at the doctor’s office” or “I fear I will not be able to survive the pain of this procedure”.
Maybe, you struggle to make medical appointments or speak up in your medical appointments because you’ve experienced medical trauma or you feel your providers do not take the time to understand your symptoms.
Online Counseling In New Orleans Can Help with Health Anxiety and Medical Trauma
Your body is your first home. It’s where you spend the most time, and you deserve to feel safe in it. Online therapy in New Orleans can help you examine potential causes to your health anxiety, replace unhelpful or anxious thoughts about your health, and help you feel like yourself again without anxiety.
Online counseling in New Orleans is convenient. You can do it from your home, your office, or even your car. Not only can you do online therapy from the comfort of your own home from your phone, computer, or tablet, but you can also schedule it around school, work, and other appointments.
How Can Online Counseling in New Orleans Help?
Examine potential causes and triggers to your medical trauma
Learn about relaxation tools you can use for appointments or procedures
Advocate for your medical needs in a way that feels authentic to who you are
Manage your anxiety so that you are able to take control of your health
Online Counseling In New Orleans Is Safe and Convenient
Online counseling in New Orleans, or teletherapy, is a safe, convenient way to meet with your therapist through a HIPAA compliant video platform similar to Zoom or Facetime right from the comfort of your own home.
If you are meeting for couples therapy, you can even access the video platform from different devices meaning you do not have to be in the same room for sessions.
If you have a chronic illness or you’re home-bound or bed-bound, teletherapy allows you to still access therapy even when you’re not feeling well enough to travel.
Hi, I’m Victoria Rodriguez
I’m a Licensed Professional Counselor who specializes in online therapy for health anxiety and medical trauma right here in New Orleans
As a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP), I've helped clients with acute medical problems just like you feel safe in their bodies again. If you’ve had a traumatic childbirth, complicated surgery, or long hospital stay or recovery, painful memories can prevent you from feeling fully connected to others and even to yourself.
Your body is your first home. It’s where you spend the most time, and you deserve to feel safe in it. Together, we will work to help you find relief and feel comfortable in your body again. Call or email today to schedule your free consultation and explore my website for more resources on health anxiety and medical trauma.
My Background and Personal Beliefs
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Neurodiversity Affirming
I'm neurodiversity affirming - meaning I recognize that for those of us who are neurodivergent, we can become hyper focused on each new "problem" in our bodies or each new sensation - and it does not suggest anything is “abnormal” with you. I believe being autistic or ADHD is in integral part to a person’s identity.
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Anti-Diet and Health At Every Size
Medical problems can also be related to disordered eating. When you experience pain in your body (from a chronic illness, medical trauma, or painful recovery), you might find yourself disconnecting from your body to avoid that pain. This can make it harder for you to pick up on your body’s hunger cues - leading to an unhealthy relationship with food. As a Health At Every Size aligned and anti-diet practitioner, this means I believe weight is unrelated to health and that people of all weights and body shapes can be at risk for developing disordered eating behaviors.
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Medical Trauma and Pets
In my free time, I foster cats (some of them might make an appearance for your telehealth appointment!) and I recognize that losing a pet, especially to acute medical issues, can be one of the most painful experiences. Your pain over pet loss will not be minimized here.