IBS and anxiety
#337206 - 10/22/08 09:11 AM
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MicheleLynn
Reged: 10/22/08
Posts: 15
Loc: Hartland, WI, USA
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I just joined the message boards but I have had IBS-D for several years. The last year has been especailly hard, we moved from Texas to Wisconsin leaving our family, friends, church, etc. I have had lots of flare ups of IBS-D and times when I don't want to leave the house or make any plans because I never know how my stomach is going to feel. I have started having a lot of anxiety especailly about driving in a car or flying even making plans because it is such an effort to get out. I was on Effexor XL for about two and a half years and it worked great, but then all the symptoms came back with the move so I got off of it (it also made me gain a lot of weight). I have been off of it a year and have tried other anti-depressants but cannot tolerate them so I am thinking of getting back on Effexor. HELP! I am feeling desperate, I called a Christian counselor and will make an appointment ASAP. It just seemed like posting here with people who know what I am going through might help. Thanks.
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Sounds like me! I never went on a anti depressant but I began having panic attacks and aniexty with the start of my IBS. The doc said this would go away when the symptoms of IBS cleared up but he was sooooooooooo wrong!
What really works for me is NOT putting any expectations on myself.If I feel good, I go out.If not, I stay home.Period.
I also began to realize that if I have to go to the bathroom, then I go.No one pays any attention to the bowel habits of others AT ALL! My biggest obstacle was this. I was afraid to go poo in public.I didn't want any one to know.Wel ..no one cares.We live in a world where NO ONE pays attention to others at all. So realizing this helped me to get out.If I need to go,I go.Just being calm about it helps keep the panic at bay and keeps me from having any attacks.
I still can't go shopping with my mom(thats another story)she drives me crazy but...I have gone shopping bymyself with no problems.I think the more you push yourself and get back into a routine of leaving the house and going somewhere,The sooner you will break the cycle of barricading yourself behind the bathroom door.
Trust me I lived that way for years.
I have also been using the hypno tapes and am finding a huge relief.It has really enabled me to reopen my food menu and also help me leave the house with no fear.
good luck to you,If you have to use meds then do it.the whole point is to get yourself in a good place so you can function in this world and reclaim your life from the hell that is IBS.
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IBS-D since 1999...mostly stable..i do cheat too.Bad me.
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I just wanted to say that this is exactly like me - I had NO anxiety issues until the start of my IBS. THat kicked off my anxiety BIG TIME. Now I hardly have any IBS symptoms anymore and I eat whatever I want (I had 2 kids, and I swear the pregnancies 'cured' my stomach somehow). Anyways, the anxiety didn't leave at all, if anything it's worse.
I didn't have anything helpful to say - just sympathizing!! 
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~Cara~
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Thanks for sympathizing with me! I am just going to try to tough it out a little longer before just going back on meds. This too shall pass...right? I do seem to have a couple good weeks then a couple bad then a couple good days and a bad one so maybe I will feel better soon. Do you take anything for your anxiety? Does it ever go into a full on panic attack? I have those every so often and that's when I have to take a xanax (heart racing, shortness of breath,stomach upset, diarreah that won't stop).
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Thank you for the encouragement, it helps just knowing I am not alone with this anxiety! I feel this sickness in the pit of my stomach when I have to go out (or the last few days even staying in!). I did go get my hair cut and colored today even though my stomach was a mess. I am traveling to Texas all next week to see family and even though I like going home I still seem to have symptoms...I guess it doesn't matter where I am going just the travel itself gets my stomach and anxiety going! I agree about medicine, I am not willing to go on like this forever. If it doesn't start to get better in the next few weeks then I will seriously consider getting back on Effexor XL. Even if it only works for a few years again that's a few years of feeling good!
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Oh Michele, I so understand your pain and confusion. I, too, have weeks of great health and then I will have a month of periodic D. Lately, since going on the Acacia fiber, I have been symptom free, at least D, and maybe I have swung back to more C, but I have been having formed stools, which is great.
Let me share what I have found. Now, I know this will sound difficult, and with D it is especially hard. But, I have found that the less I focus and dwell on ths IBS the better off I am. And, I mean anything and everything to do with it, including these boards. It seems the more I focus on it, the more it expands, and usually, at least for me, it only takes one bad day to perpetuate the cycle again.
The end of the last cycle of this crap was about a month ago. I was on my way to work, (the commute was hell), and I was driving erractically, and that is not me. I am a grandma driver, but that day the feeling of inpending doom, (meaning soiling myself), was so overwhelming that I drove like a total nut. Well, I got pulled over, and it took that cop forever to run my license. It was at that moment, that I said to myself mentally, "ENOUGH"...it is not worth killing myself or someone else because of this. I arrive at work and the urgency makes me run to the bathroom, and guess what...nothing. Just a little gas. So, that was it for me. I started from that day forward to say to myself what is the worst that could happen. Maybe a little embarrassment, but I will be alive. 
I am also an anxious person. I have had generalized anxiety for most of my life. I will tell you what has helped me tremendously and that is the Charles Linden method. I purchased his CDs and he is an expert, at least to me. He nailed every symptom I had, right on the head. I listen to his CDs every night before bed, and the anxiety does lessen. Will I ever be anxiety free???? I don't know, but I strive for that.
Another website you might want to take a look at regarding the "what you focus on expands", is the Abraham-Hicks website. Now, this site might offend some, because it is a bit metaphysical, but if it sits well with your belief system, it does give alot of info on this focus thing. It is also quantum physics that what you focus on expands. And I have found this to be true in my daily life.
I also feel, and alot of people may disagree, that this condition is mental/emotional...not about the food. It is my opinion that it starts in the brain, and if you can get control of your mental/emotional health, it won't matter what the heck you eat. This was me for many years, until a traumatic accident last year, seem to trigger the D. Some people, when they are overwhelmed get migraines, others get backaches, we on this board, get IBS.
Mental/emotional/spiritual stress will strike the weakest link in our bodies. I think once we are calm, our bodies heal themselves. I have been eating pretty much what I want lately with no problems. That is not to say I won't have them tomorrow, but I also have a sense of calm in my life right now, so I know that has more to do with it than the food. I know the food may exacerbate it, but I do not think it is the initial cause. Others may not agree, it is just my personal feelings.
So, I know this is alot, but when I read your post, I just felt so sad for you, and I know exactly the feeling. I hope I have helped in some way.
Lynn 
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Lynn,
Thank you so much for your thoughtful reply. I do believe it is more related to stress/mental health than just the food. Because when I am doing well then I can eat almost anything (except dairy since I am lactose intolerant). I know a big reason I was completely symptom free for a while on Effexor is because it dealt with my depression and anxiety that seemed to come on quickly after the IBS started. I have tried the Hypnotherapy CDs twice now with little relief. I just ordered the Acacia fiber and am going to try it. I will check out Charles Linden and the Abraham-Hicks website...thank you for the information. I am ready to try anything. I ordered the Lucinda Basset "Attacking Anxiety and Depression" progam last fall and it made a lot of sense and seemed to help. Lucinda had IBS-D and lots of anxiety attacks and she give lots of ways to deal with them. I feel like I failed the program because I understood and identified with all the information but still am having relapses. I think I will pull the program out again and take a refresher course!
Thanks again!
Michele
oneellemichele@aol.com
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Michele,
You are so welcome!!! And, please do not be so hard on yourself. You didn't fail anything. I think with any chronic condition, we are all prone to relapse. Just count the good days more, and before long, they will be the norm.
Be well!!
Lynn
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Ipretty much agree.When they say it's all in your head,i think it is.The trouble is, if you don't know how to deal with it...it won't go away.
Ever had a day when you were just so busy you didn't even think about feeling ill?Then the moment you realize you do feel good...your stomach starts to gurgle?
Some food can cause reactions I believe,everyone has that food that they can't eat ,we just react to everything it it seems.
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IBS-D since 1999...mostly stable..i do cheat too.Bad me.
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Hi Dragonfly,
I totally agree!!! I have had a wonderful month. I haven't even given the IBS much thought. So, I am on a roll, but should I become stressed, my first thought is my gut, and that perpetuates the cycle again.
It is hard to put it out of your mind. Because, the more you try to push it away, the worse it is. So, what I have done is try my best to keep my mind occupied with other interests, and that has helped alot. Once you get the hang of it, it does work. The trick is don't try to push it away, bacause it will grow in your mind, and the old saying, "what you resist, persists," is so true. In the Charles Linden tapes for anxiety, the number one way he conquered his anxiety, was to focus his mind on an interest (his was photography), and even though the anxiety was lurking in the background, he went on with his interest. In time, the brain was rewired, if you will, and he got well. So, I know how hard it is, but if you can find a way, we all can heal. I think it just takes time.
Now, as far as the food goes, I do believe some people are highly sensitive to some foods, as lactose, fructose, etc., but I think in alot of the cases with IBS, it is the mental/emotional factor that is the main culprit, and maybe the food just exacerbates the condition.
I know for the first half of my life I ate whatever. But, now I am careful, although at this point, right now, I am OK with pretty much everything. Then on the other hand, maybe those with IBS have eaten something they are sensitive to, for so long, unknowingly, that their body just rebels, because it is so damaged. I think it may be a little bit of both in some people, and in others I think it is all related to the sense of calm in their life at that time.
Be well! Lynn
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