Anxiety and IBS

[torcol]

Have you noticed how many of the followers include anxiety in their posts?

I have been working with my doctors and resalesrching the effects that stress, anxiety and panic attacks have on the gut.

The brain is a very intricate instrument and it sends signals to the gut. If you are in a constant state of anxiety the brain sends that signal and the body responds accordingly. If you are in a positive state it responds accordingly.

If you wake up thinking the worst, expect it.

It’s a hard pill to swallow but on the bright side, YOU can control it.

We all have bad days but how we respond to it is going to predict the outcome.

Ask yourself this: I didn’t leave the house and I was fine, why? You were in your safety zone. Had I went and had a good time I obviously would have been fine, right?

You can stay home, miss out on important life moments and “be safe” but is that happiness, is that quality of life, is that living?

We are not dying from this, it is painful, embarrassing at times and some days are worse than others but does this physically effect anyone but you? No.

Who cares? Live your life

You are so busy worrying about being sick that mentally you are making yourself that way.

Try relaxation techniques, yoga, breathing excercises, read, clean, cook, call a friend, watch a movie, get a hobby, crossword puzzles, puzzles, adult coloring has been proven very effective and number one is positive thinking (do not allow negative thoughts). Any time you start to think about your IBS, immediately change your thought pattern.

I have conquered this, you most definitely can do this.

[Magic777]

Great your brain and your gut are linked on anxis if you guts wrong your head is vica versa read Erick Bakker lx

[jillyb47]

Hi I took your advice and went out for family meal with my in laws my son\daughter and their partner s. Everything was going well. I chose salmon new potatoes and salad (little bit of white sauce) . Only ever go out with hubby he knows if I say "we need to leave" then we are gone. About 20 mins after our meal the cramps start I'm sitting sweating trying to control my breathing without any one noticing. In the end I excuse myself and visit the bathroom and suffer a severe evacuation (sorry) think I'm ok to return and this happens a further two visits by which time I'm scared to return to table in case i have to go for 4th time they are all looking at me !! I apologise and lie saying I've been sick. I was positive and having a good night so why does this happen. I've had every test going in last 18 months and diagnosed with ibs. I chose carefully from menu but back to square one with confidence levels after this episode 😰

[Maureen1958 in reply to jillyb47]

Hi, just wanted to say I think you were very brave going out of your comfort zone but sometimes only we know what our limits are. They may vary from one time to another but we should never be pushed into doing what we feel is impossible for us. Maureen.

[torcol in reply to Maureen1958]

Only we can push ourselves but sometimes we need a nudge to get us started. Life is a question mark, I want mine to be an exclamation point!!

[jillyb47 in reply to Maureen1958]

Thank you Maureen . I won't let it stop me but I will be on edge next time. I'm ok if I'm just with my husband as you dont have to explain any strange behaviour/visits to him. J x

[Maureen1958 in reply to jillyb47]

I know what you mean, my husband is the same. Maureen.

[torcol in reply to jillyb47]

Jillyb47

You mentioned that you were sweating and trying to control your breathing. This is a sure sign of a panic attack, you were already doubtful before you left home. Subconsciously and consciously you were nervous, you sit and tell yourself that you are fine, you can do this, it’s just a dinner with family. By telling yourself all of this before going, in route and when you get there you are indeed thinking about the whole thing and your mind knows it. Your gut responds and all hell breaks loose. I am not an MD, I am a person that knows exactly what you are going thru and have the exact same episodes. I will say this: I am in menopause, I find that just like when I was have cycles I have weeks that are good, ok and worse. I downloaded a period tracker on my phone (my daughters idea) and guess what???!!!!! Low and behold, I will start feeling like I just can’t breath well, headaches, worse diarrhea, shaky, lower right abdominal pain, nervous, anxious. When I look at the tracker it is always when aI would have had pms, the week before a period even though I’ve not had one in five years!!!!

My wonderful doctor stated that hormones may play a part, even though men have IBS too. Soooooooo

I go out on the two weeks after I would have had a period because I always feel great, normal, indestructible, like I can do anything and I don’t even have a problem. The other two weeks a month may suck but I stay closer to home.

I hope this may help, sorry you had a rough time but I am so glad you tried, you should be proud of yourself. Sounds like a great hubby too😊👍

[Maureen1958]

I am interested in what age range you would come into and also if you are male/female and if you suffered from anxiety before having IBS?

[torcol in reply to Maureen1958]

Mid 50s, female and have ALWAYS been anxious. My sister, 3 children, brothers, all suffer with anxiety in some form or another. I finally said “ no more”. It was after the IBS test that I decided to live by my rules.

[Maureen1958 in reply to torcol]

So it sounds like your IBS was actually down to you being an anxious person. Have you managed to get rid of the anxiety too?

[torcol in reply to Maureen1958]

It comes and goes. I will never have it fully under control but I now know how to react to it. There are days that after my morning five usual trips to the toilet I want to go back to bed. I instead turn my attention elsewhere. I won’t take medicine so it’s all up to me. The blood test was my saving grace, after knowing that was it for sure I could tell myself “it’s your IBS you’ll get thru it”. I don’t have to worry “what else” it MIGHT be.

[Maureen1958 in reply to torcol]

So you haven't got rid of the IBS you are just doing what the rest of us are doing ie telling ourselves we can do things when we are not sure if we can or not. I'm not convinced that if you doubt yourself you will not be alright. I do that all the time and just hope that it will be alright and it generally is if you really need to do something. But equally I have days when I start a journey and have to abort it and go home. Also it depends how you are feeling on a particular day, some days you can push yourself and other days you can't.

[torcol in reply to Maureen1958]

Agreed, some days after going repeatedly you are exhausted and too tired to want to do anything. I also know that no meds ever help, changing diet doesn’t help, invasive tests are questionable. I have IBS, of course I am not cured or I would be a wealthy woman but I have found in my own personal experience that I can control how I react to it.

So I stay positive, chalk it up to another day in the life of IBS, smile and head out for another adventurous day. What else can ya do?

[Maureen1958 in reply to torcol]

Another question for you if you don't mind. When you have been your five times or whatever in the morning do you feel like you have finished and therefore able to go out or do you still feel like you want to go?

I feel the same as you about medications and diet. I don't take anything for it (occasionally if I hear about something new, I may give it a try) but generally don't take anything but my betablockers which I obviously need for high blood pressure.

I try to stay positive, the way I do that at the moment is to treat it as a bit a challenge. So at the end of the day I will say either "I won today" or else "OK you won today but we'll see what happens tomorrow". But when you have days on end when you lose it can be quite difficult to stay positive. Maureen.

[torcol in reply to Maureen1958]

Ya know, it’s funny, I don’t have to go upon waking. I swear that as soon as I eat, no matter what it is I can plan either during or anywhere within 10 minutes I will have to go. Now I don’t mean “ hmmm I feel like I might have to go to the bathroom”. I mean I have an urgent need to get from the kitchen to the bathroom in time! Sometimes, not often but sometimes I don’t even get there in time. Then I will think I’m done and upon standing realize, nope, not yet. Then two minutes later and now it’s water! I’m so used to it that it’s no surprise but THEN I will go a day or two notvgoing at all, nothing. So you worrycause is our know when you do have to go it’s going to be scary.

I have noticed that my smoking seems to be a culprit, after eating I immediately smoke and I can hear and feel my intestines, loudly. I then make a mad dash. My family has pointed out “you just smoked a cigarette didn’t you”? I smoke way too much and refuse to give it up so I knowingly pay the consequences. Pepsi is another of my vices and that may well be a trigger too but like I told my dr. I have smoked and drank Pepsi for thirty plus years and I refuse to give them up, be depressed and moody so it’s my own fault I’ll deal with it.

I do have home days of course and I get soooo tired some days but I figure it is what it is.

[Maureen1958 in reply to torcol]

I must say, I admire your fortitude. I have tried many different ways of coping with it over the years but now I try my best to get out as much as I can before eating but this does mean that I don't usually eat until about 4pm earliest. Someone I

met about 20 years ago, when my son was little, who also had IBS told me they didn't eat until 4pm and I remember thinking at the time "I couldn't do that" but it's amazing what you will do in order get through the day as best you can.

I also drink Pepsi, my tummy does not like water, and I find the Pepsi stops me getting too thirsty and also give me some sugar to keep going and help me burp up any trapped air.

[torcol in reply to Maureen1958]

It truly is a challenge and tonight I even ate dinner at six thirty and mustered up the nerve to go to the 4H Fair at seven! I did fine! Each new step I take I congratulate myself with a pat on my back. I just won’t let things go by anymore and miss out on events with my grandkids and kids. I will say I ate nothing at the fair but I got yummy stuff to take home😊👍 And boy did I eat it when I got there. I know how tomorrow will start out but it was soooo worth it!

Ahhh, life goes on

[jillyb47 in reply to torcol]

What you and MAureen have described is my life to a T just knowing there is no one solution is enough to put you back on track and make you get on with life. I go as soon as I get up for work and after about 5 visits i know i can make the 30 mins drive to work. If I make it to my desk and get engrossed in my work my mind is occupied and can't think about the loo. Eat late lunch so make it home before but starts making orchestra noises. You adapt its very true what you say. Good luck on your journeys J x

[torcol in reply to jillyb47]

The mind is so powerful, one little glitch and it throws off the whole balance. I think of it like a computer, when it goes down everything stored is gone until someone trained in that field can repair it. I just chose to train in that field so I don’t have to wait!👍😊

[lYNNETT in reply to Maureen1958]

THAT IS WHAT MY GASTRO SAID WHEN I SAW HIM FOR CRAMPING AND BLOATING! I WORRY TOO MUCH!! HE SAID THE COLON TEST I HAD SOME YEARS BACK SHOWED MY INTESTINES IN A MESS! HE SAID THAT IS CAUSED BY ME WORRYING TO MUCH! i HAVE IBS WITH CONSTIPATION AND THAT CAUSES MY WORRYING TO BE EVEN WORSE I BELIEVE!!

[Maureen1958 in reply to lYNNETT]

Hi, I'm not sure that I believe they can look at your intestines and say they are a mess through too much worrying. I don't think it would show anything physical. I have always been lead to understand that IBS causes no physical or permanent damage. But then what do I know, I'm no doctor!

[powerofprobio]

I have started using a probiotic and magnesium supplement that has really helped! Both have helped me a lot -- and my migraines have pretty much gone away too.