{"id":16653,"date":"2021-05-26T08:00:52","date_gmt":"2021-05-26T07:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabishealthnews.co.uk\/?p=16653"},"modified":"2021-05-21T15:48:45","modified_gmt":"2021-05-21T14:48:45","slug":"health-anxiety-and-how-cbd-could-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabishealthnews.co.uk\/2021\/05\/26\/health-anxiety-and-how-cbd-could-help\/","title":{"rendered":"Health anxiety and how CBD could help"},"content":{"rendered":"
Health anxiety is a recognised condition, characterised by obsessive thoughts about becoming or being ill.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n According to the <\/span>NHS<\/span><\/a>, other symptoms include frequently checking body for signs of illness, always asking people for reassurance that you’re not ill, worries that medical tests may have missed something and obsessively looking at health information on the internet or in the media.<\/span><\/p>\n And with a near-constant media focus on coronavirus \u2013 its symptoms and its death rates \u2013 over the past 12 months, more and more people are suffering.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n A Dutch <\/span>study<\/span><\/a> shortly after the pandemic hit confirmed that people who already had depressive, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive disorders were experiencing a detrimental impact on their mental health from the Covid-19 pandemic.<\/span><\/p>\n For <\/span>some<\/span><\/a> people, the anxiety deteriorated to such an extent that could barely leave the house for fear of contracting the virus, with others leaving their jobs or spending hours washing everything that came into the house.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n How to manage symptoms<\/b><\/p>\n However, there are ways to manage health anxiety and lessen its impact on daily life.<\/span><\/p>\n In recent months particularly, sufferers have been advised to <\/span>limit<\/span><\/a> the time they spent scouring the media for the latest news, and to stick to only reading credible sources.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Other <\/span>advice<\/span><\/a> included staying in touch with people (virtually, if necessary) and talking about any fears and worries, as well as eating a healthy diet and taking regular exercise.<\/span><\/p>\n The NHS also recommends keeping a <\/span>diary<\/span><\/a> of episodes of health anxiety, as well as techniques on how to challenge such intrusive thoughts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n If self-help techniques do not work, cognitive behavioural therapy is also recommended, which focuses on challenging intrusive thoughts and beliefs, and gradually changing behaviour.<\/span><\/p>\n An alternative?<\/b><\/p>\n While some restrictions are still in place, and people are beginning to find what they are comfortable doing, many of the activities that are often used to ease stress and anxiety are out of bounds.<\/span><\/p>\n And with concern mounting about a rise in alcohol use over the course of the pandemic, they are increasingly looking for alternative ways to ease their anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n Enter CBD, which is well-known to help ease symptoms of anxiety, no matter what is causing them.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A recent poll found that more than a third (33 per cent) of Britons have tried CBD products, while 42 per cent have increased their usage since the outbreak of Covid-19, with anxiety the most common reason for using them.<\/span><\/p>\n In fact, it\u2019s becoming such a popular remedy that a Canadian firm is currently <\/span>developing<\/span><\/a> a prescription drug based on the compound.<\/span><\/p>\n EmpowerPharm Inc is currently developing a unique prescription drug containing synthetic CBD as the active pharmaceutical ingredient to treat anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n