Professional_Win1535 t1_j2uv5pq wrote
I actually am studying this and want to research stress and the gut for a living. Your mood (and stress levels) have a bidirectional relationship with your gut via many mechanisms. Even one stressful event can alter the makeup of your gut.
eonaxon t1_j2vv5gf wrote
THANK YOU for studying this. I swear a lot of people’s social anxiety could improve if they could stop having stomach pain and diarrhea before they go out.
I’ve often wondered…
Do I not want to go to a social event because I’m truly anxious about talking to people, OR am I simply trying to avoid my body’s involuntary reaction of feeling sick when I’m the slightest bit stressed?
gatsby712 t1_j2xrzrk wrote
It also goes together because the nervous system slows down the nervous system during stress. I often have to go before doing something stressful and I’ll feel anxious at the same time. I think it’s a trauma response or my body learning that I’m about to have a period of time my body is activated with stress, so it better clear out while it can. So do I feel anxious because I am afraid, or am I feeling anxious because I’m actually having a gut reaction ahead of a stressful event. Probably both.
Kaputnik1 t1_j32v9k2 wrote
Sounds like a feedback loop to me! I can relate with OCD and anxiety.
ReachingHigher85 t1_j2wilwt wrote
Don’t forget hormones. Hormonal gut can cause a sensation of bloating even if no gas comes out, decrease a person’s capacity to eat meaningful portions, and leads to dramatic weigh loss. Labs will be normal.
Source: I got it from August to around April this past year. Went from 166 to 137 before I stabilized (weight loss was sudden and dramatic, 30lbs in less than 3 months.) I felt so bloated that it pushed up into my diaphragm and made me short of breath, and I could only eat small 2-3oz portions of anything, felt starving all the time. All my labs came back completely normal. The problem went away on its own but even now, 8 months later, I haven’t gained any weight. My coworkers joke that I left my ass somewhere cuz it’s just a flat plane now.
Coolman_Rosso t1_j34389c wrote
This is interesting. Back in July I had a bout of gastroenteritis that lasted five days, followed by a week of constipation. However afterwards my appetite was out of whack, I would have some mornings with extreme bowel urgency that made driving to work a huge pain, and I would get full pretty easily when eating. I thought I had developed IBS or gastroparesis, but the symptoms weren't severe enough nor fit with the diagnosing criteria (I have had no bowel-related abdominal pain since my initial illness, and my bowel movements have been largely consistent). I had two instances of heartburn, but that went away months ago. I eventually saw a Gastroenterologist and my lab results all came back negative. He suggested it was merely the illness combined with it being the most stressful period in my life (I was in the process of buying a new house and moving, going back to graduate school, and having the busiest time at my job I've ever had).
However the elephant in the room was that after my initial illness I had basically stopped eating. First it was the worry over the diarrhea, then it was the constipation, then finally it was concerns over IBS or food intolerances. The end result was that in about a month and a half I lost roughly 21 pounds. The problem now is that I only feel sensations of hunger maybe once or twice a day and even then it's most commonly after 9 PM. Furthermore when eating I'll get a faint feeling in my lower left stomach that ranges from pinching to twitching to just vague discomfort, which usually subsides in 5-15 seconds.
I've since gained back 3-4 pounds, but I can't seem to get any further than that and it's been 6 months since I was sick. My doctors don't seem concerned, but it's been a real pain since I've had to buy new belts to fit into some clothes I bought two days before I was sick.
Hatecookie t1_j2vxdrg wrote
I have CPTSD, palmar-plantar hyperhidrosis, stress-related nausea which can be daily for long stretches, and a bunch of other symptoms of having a mildly damaged sympathetic nervous system. I had an extremely turbulent childhood full of emergency trips to the bathroom when something stressed me out. I am also lactose intolerant which nobody knew when I was a kid, so they would give me dairy and I would be sick, again.
There’s something else going on - ever since I was a toddler, I have not liked eating candy and sweets because they make my stomach hurt. My parents were proud that I would turn down cupcakes in favor of fruit but they never seemed interested in the reason. I think there’s something off about my gut biome. Idk if it’s a sensitivity to some kind of preservative used in sugary foods or what. Wish I could figure it out.
[deleted] t1_j2w5kg1 wrote
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LeatherDude t1_j2xibku wrote
When I was in college, I read a book on the topic called The Second Brain, that coveted in depth how serotonin levels in the nerve complex in the abdomen had major effects on overall mental health because of the imbalance on neurotransmitters there. Blew both my minds.
As a sufferer of anxiety and depression I can anecdotally confirm that it heavily affects my bowel health when I'm stressed.
thepigfish82 t1_j2wam7k wrote
Im 40 and have been dealing with cyclical vomiting syndrome for 10 years. Turns out it was stress and anxiety
[deleted] t1_j2xe4ya wrote
It’s crazy to me how connected the two are. When my symptoms are non existent, I will tell my wife I feel serene. Like nothing in the world can bother me.
So thank you for your continued work!
bb70red t1_j2xoqvu wrote
The gut microbiome is one part. The relation between stress, the diaphragm, lower back and pelvic muscles, back pain and injury, obstipation, irritation of the bowels, chronic hyperventilation, gas, incontinence is another part. The combination of these can lead to serious but rather vague symptoms with a high impact on quality of life.
SWulfe760 t1_j2xpgdl wrote
Thank you for studying this! I'm 23 and I've lived with IBS, eczema, and acne for the longest time and I've often felt that all three are linked to each other, as well as linked to stress as a general trigger. With recent studies linking a correlation between IBS and Eczema, then IBS and Eczema independently to stress, it's reassuring to think that we may soon find better ways to manage these chronic issues by addressing underlying mechanisms; which appear to be hormones and gut health.
tough_succulent t1_j2xvyfn wrote
I see this in the kids I teach. When they are stressed their tummy hurts more. My kid's stomach hurt during lockdown all the time, and after being in school for a year, it magically went away
_trouble_every_day_ t1_j2zdngm wrote
I was having diarrhea a lot during a particularly stressful couple weeks so naturally I assumed it was pancreatic cancer. I went to urgent care(because I was obviously dying) and my lab results said everything was fine. That was enough convince me I that it must be colon cancer so I scheduled a colonoscopy which I’m currently waiting on. Anyway this has all been great for my stress level.
KidnextD00r t1_j36mtjd wrote
Yep! The spiritual folks (herbs, crystals, meditation, etc.) have been saying there is a correlation for a while!
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