Doctors, IBS and Anxiety
#288243 - 10/28/06 07:09 AM
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professor
Reged: 07/19/05
Posts: 77
Loc: Winnipeg, Canada
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Hey everybody
Yesterday, I basically spent a day in hell. It started with my second d-attack in a week. I went in the hospital and I saw a doctor. I had an anxiety attack when they tried to put the needle in for a blood sample in the middle of the emergency ward, I almost fainted. I never had anyting like this before, I always saw myself as somebody who is psychologically strong. But I think this IBS-Life is getting to me and I'm beginning to break down.
Blood-sample test was OK. The doctor order some stool test to rule out parasites, it will take a few days. The doctor told me that the symtoms I had were classic IBS symtoms (already knew that!) and that if the stool tests were ok too, he saw no point in further investigation. I have IBS and I have to live with it. He told me that, apart from diet and Immodium, there's not much more than I can do about it. The whole time I was waiting in the emergency ward, I just knew he was going to say that. I spent 4 hours there just to confirm what I already knew. I'm under the impression that I know more about IBS than most doctors out there...
This morning, I woke up with some moderate cramps. I took one tummy tamers and drank slowly a glass of water with 3 grams SFS in it, then had breakfast with peppermint tea. The cramps went away, which I think is a good sign.
Still, I feel fragile and anxious. And getting frustrated about doctors who says «live with it». I think I have just hit a point of no return were the diet is not enough anymore. I think I will need to explore other options to cope with the anxiety that is growing in me. I am seriously thinking about therapy or hypnotherapy, yoga maybe. Any of you guys have any experience in these departments? From what I read on this site, Atomic Rose seems to be our local expert on anxiety, do you have any suggestions about coping with anxiety? I'm getting to a point where the only organ I can feel in my body is that damn colon! Almost an obsession...
Hey, I'm not crazy...yet!  But I'm looking for hope in the only place I've found it so far. This web site... 
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I think the frustration evident in your post is completely understood by everyone here on this board. I was lucky enough to have a great GI back when I was diagnosed 7 years ago. Since that time, I have been only dealing with my family doctor because he is the most understanding and always takes time to listen and help in any way he can. I hope you can find a doctor you are comfortable with as well. It really helps.
My main trigger is anxiety so I know how hard it can be to control( plus I teach 5th graders all day, a stressor in itself). I have lived for months at a time in the vicious cycle of IBS making me anxious and anxiety making my IBS worse. I have tried may natural remedies: yoga, exercise, etc., but I really needed the help of medication. Over the years, I have taken Paxil which worked really well, but caused a lot of weight gain. I was on and off of Paxil about 3 times (which I would not recommed, it is very hard to come off of and then takes a while to kick back in when you start back up). Now, I control anxiety with Xanax XR (1mg in the evening and .5 mg in the morning) This, along with Heather's diet and good sleep keep me feeling good for the majority of the time. I still struggle a little during certain times of my cycle due to hormone fluctuations, but other than that I an much better than before.
Christy
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I can so relate to your experience in the ER, anxiety, disappointment and frustration. I had an ER experience in July where the doc told me I shouldn't be here and that he had an emergency room full of really sick patients. I think being so summarily dismissed when we feel frightened and in pain contributes to the anxiety we already feel that we will have to live with a condition that is unpleasant, unpredictable, and seemingly untreatable. And I think the anxiety of "what next" is often as bad as the IBS symptoms and certainly exacerbates them. So I would say, yes, treating the anxiety will definitely improve the IBS.
The question then becomes How best to treat anxiety? You mentioned therapy, hypnotherapy, yoga? I would say yes to all of the above. I really like the hypnotherapy cds, although I am rather lax in following the program as recommended. Basically the program teaches relaxation techniques and taking charge of your thoughts to control your symptoms. I also find yoga helpful. A good beginners cd is Rodney Yee's AM/PM Yoga. He does the AM portion which is very gentle and someone else does the PM (a little more difficult). Both these things are relatively inexpensive, worth a try and can really help. Therapy can be helpful but so much depends upon the therapist, method used and getting the right match. In the meantime you might want to look into a self help group that I found particularly helpful in dealing with the symptoms of anxiety and depression: Recovery, Inc. It teaches a method of changing thoughts and behaviors to terminate panics, control anxiety and reduce depression. There are groups in Canada. The website is: www.recovery-inc.org.
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I did the hypnotherapy tapes from this site but got sidetracked halfway through. They did seem to be helping in terms of just not thinking as much about IBS.
My Family Practice doctor suggested Valium a while back. I've never tried it but you might talk to your doctor about it.
Beyond that if the anxiety is keeping you awake you might consider taking a sleeping pill for a short time. If I don't get enough sleep everything is worse including my IBS.
There's a recent thread on the Living Room about who uses what drugs for anxiety - I'd say within the last week probably. Maybe you can find something there.
You also might want to see if there's a good IBS doc in your area (old thread) and if so try seeing him in his office. He might have more time and be more willing to dig a little deeper - so to speak. It just seems odd to me that this has come up out of nowhere.
Good luck with this and I'm sorry this has happened.
Take care. I hope you feel better soon.
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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]
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i can relate. my ibs and anxiety and ocd about my stomach and germs used ot run my life, the answer for me has always been AD's, i tried to go off of them for all of last year and tried everything natural i could do and hit rock bottom stomach and anxiety wise, now i am back on AD's and have my life back again. I was on them since i was 14 since at that time my doc had done every test possible for my ibs aand my anxiety and ocd were just getting worse and he tried AD's as a last resort and low and behold i am one of those lucky people with a chemical imbalance. As much as i hate that i need the AD's i just don't function without them and for that reason if someone has tried many things to no avail i do suggest that they may be of help, of course that is something for you and your doctor to decide.
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Anxiety is my last hurdle in this battle with IBS. I have done the CD's and they worked great. It's been a long time since I finished them and I need to get back to them again. The diet is working but I still have bouts of anxiety, I take Lorazapam sometimes. It does get better, I hope you find a resource for your anxiety problem.
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Franny
IBS/D
Celiac
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