This social habit shows us how the more mature in defenses we get, the more subconscious or conscious they become as opposed to the pure, automatic unconscious. You may see how this one is similar to somatization or conversion, and yet the person experiencing it is also aware that they are spending time in thinking about illnesses that they may or may not have. Call it the “medical student Syndrome,” where every illness you learn about, leads to an excessive preoccupation or worry about actually having it.
GO BACK TO NEUROTIC DEFENSE MECHANISMS.