Digestion problems

[corgilover22]

Has anyone experienced ongoing digestion problems (nausea, bloating, light headedness) particularly after eating & it ended up being related to anxiety? For weeks or months at a time & then disappears.

[Hidden]

Hello - yes, my family member with ocd experienced some of this and IBS symptoms. After taking probiotics, Dr visits, ND visits with prescribed powders (to improve gut bacteria, etc) & visit with specialists it became clear that the cause of these issues was anxiety. The symptoms have stopped after the source of anxiety (school) wasn’t a factor (graduated) but I’m pretty sure could reappear should a new stressful/anxiety- provoking situation present itself.

[corgilover22 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for your reply! I don’t have a clear answer yet from my doctor on whether or not it is due to anxiety but I think since I still am not sure what’s causing it is making my OCD out of control since I’m constantly seeking for an answer that I can’t find. It’s mentally exhausting, but also the physical symptoms do seem to be worse when I’m anxious - just a vicious cycle.

[Hidden]

Yeah, my OCD is mostly gone now (somewhat amazingly - for like half a year), but I get like tense and stiffened muscles, mostly in the abdomen, but it can and does spread into a whole host of other stuff - pain in the abdomen, back, chest, etc, dizziness, slight changes in hearing that feels a little like I might pass out, random numbness tingling, some other stuff.

My OCD in the past has been rather severe. Uhh... I remember, lol, after everything settled (there was a period, some months ago), and then my physical pains came back, I think.... I wondered, "did I miss something". That coupled with some kind of desire I guess I still had at the time to "figure it out" (and I think there was some type of need to get a certainty involved here) led to my OCD resurging, and I very quickly became aware of what happened.

I think I remember being caught in those "loops" that we all have I think. It took me a couple of times of starting and then breaking those loops before I said that "I wouldn't try and figure it out myself", and I think I said, "I will try and wait for someone else to help me and figure that out for me instead".

I don't actually know if the OCD is the reason that I have these physical symptoms - indeed, I don't even exactly have confirmation that it's all due to mental health - but I do strongly suspect that it is all mental, and my doctor does seem to agree with me - thus far. Whether or not the mental component, is OCD, something else, or both OCD and something else, dunno.

[FitWithOCD]

I have significant GI upsets related to anxiety. I personally will try to practice embracing the uncertainty of the anxious situation, and if the symptoms are so interfering that I cannot do my valued activities, I will take one of my PRN anxiety medications and see if they subside. If not I can take TUMS or a Gas-X, something like that. It is SO uncomfortable though, and embarrassing. I hope you find you are able to tolerate the distress of physical symptoms.

[Sear45ching]

Yes, all my life really. My anxiety has always affected my digestive health. Heightened anxiety equals worse stomach.

[Playonwords]

Yes, I do also. Sometimes it’s immediately after having an anxious thought or experience. Other times it’s chronic and I don’t realize it’s related to anxiety but it usually ends up being related. Treating the symptoms helps while also reducing general stressors.