Health Behaviour Cost-Benefit Analysis
Weigh up the costs and benefits of specific health anxiety behaviours — checking, Googling, reassurance-seeking — to build motivation for change.
Written by Tarun Vermani, Trainee Clinical Psychologist Last reviewed
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Health Behaviour Cost-Benefit Analysis
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Health Anxiety Behaviours
Behaviour
Benefits
Costs
Behaviour
Benefits
Costs
Overall
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When to use the Health Behaviour Cost-Benefit Analysis
The Health Behaviour Cost-Benefit Analysis is an interactive cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) worksheet, most often used in CBT for health anxiety.
It is designed to be used within therapy rather than as a standalone self-help tool: a therapist introduces it, works through it collaboratively, and helps make sense of what it surfaces. You can preview the full worksheet above, then assign it digitally for clients to complete between sessions on any device — or download it as a print-ready PDF.
How it works
Most people work through it in around 10 minutes. It moves through two short steps:
- Health Anxiety Behaviours
- Overall
Completed on the Formulate platform, your client's answers are saved automatically and shared straight back to you, so you can review them before the next session rather than waiting for a paper copy to come back.
The CBT approach behind it
In common with other CBT methods, the Health Behaviour Cost-Benefit Analysis works by noticing the links between situations, thoughts, feelings, physical sensations and behaviour — and finding practical ways to change unhelpful patterns. The aim is not positive thinking but a clearer, shared understanding of what keeps a difficulty going — and practical, testable ways to change it.
Because it is a CBT tool it stays focused on the here-and-now links between thoughts, feelings, the body and behaviour, and it works best as one part of a wider course of therapy rather than as advice or a diagnosis.
Evidence & sources
This worksheet is grounded in established cognitive behavioural therapy theory and practice. Key sources include:
- Salkovskis, P.M. & Warwick, H.M.C. (2001). Making sense of hypochondriasis: A cognitive model of health anxiety. In G.J.G. Asmundson et al. (Eds.), Health Anxiety. Chichester: Wiley.
- Beck, A.T., Rush, A.J., Shaw, B.F., & Emery, G. (1979). Cognitive Therapy of Depression. New York: Guilford Press.
For use alongside professional support
Formulate provides educational CBT resources for use with a qualified therapist. They are not a substitute for professional assessment, diagnosis, or crisis care.
If you need urgent help now:
- Emergency services: 999 — if you or someone else is in immediate danger
- Samaritans: 116 123 — free, day or night, 365 days a year
- SANEline: 0800 689 5555 — 4:30pm–10:30pm, every day
More Health Anxiety worksheets
View all Health Anxiety worksheets →Health Anxiety
Health Anxiety Formulation (Salkovskis & Warwick)
A formulation based on the cognitive-behavioural model of health anxiety — mapping the vicious cycle of misinterpretation, anxiety, checking, and temporary reassurance.
Health Anxiety
Health Anxiety Monitoring Diary
Track health anxiety episodes — the trigger, misinterpretation, anxiety level, safety behaviour used, and the actual outcome.
Health Anxiety
Reassurance-Seeking Reduction Record
Track urges to seek reassurance, whether you resisted, and what happened — building evidence that you can tolerate uncertainty without reassurance.
Health Anxiety
Body Vigilance Experiment
Test how attention to the body creates and amplifies sensations — demonstrating that body scanning is part of the problem, not the solution.
Health Anxiety
Health Checking Reduction Diary
Track gradual reduction in body checking behaviours — setting targets, monitoring frequency, and recording what happens when you check less.
Health Anxiety
Understanding Health Anxiety
A plain-language explainer on what health anxiety is, why it happens, and how scanning the body and seeking reassurance keep the worry going.
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