Stomach pain is one of the most commonly talked about physical anxiety symptoms on the No More Panic forums so I thought I’d write a (probably rather long) post on my on-going and seemingly eternal battle with this monster.

If there’s one physical symptom of anxiety that I’ve been plagued with all my life, it’s stomach pain in various guises. It can be sharp or dull (usually dull), higher or lower (usually lower), and left or right (it seems to have no preference). I get bloating, gurgling, tenseness, butterflies (not literally, I hope), awful backache, toilet urgency and toilet reluctance. In other words, it can take just about any form. Is it IBS? Does it have some other name? Who knows?

The main problem is that so many other illnesses cause the same symptoms which makes us convinced that it’s got a serious physical cause. This, of course, makes us even more anxious which, in turn, makes the pain worse. The usual vicious circle. I know how difficult it is to believe that anxiety can cause such real symptoms. Just when I think I’ve cracked it, it creeps back and puts doubt in my mind. Even after every medical test known to humankind, it still catches me out.

So after the doom and gloom, is there anything we can do about it? Well first, the obvious:

· Get checked over by your GP. Other causes need to be excluded.
· Try looking for patterns relating to food you’ve eaten. Cut the usual culprits out (alcohol, gluten, dairy, pulses) one by one and see what happens.
· Try some of the OTC IBS treatments such as peppermint oil or Colofac.

This might work but it doesn’t do much for me. When my stomach is ok, I can eat/drink whatever I want with no problems. When I have the pain, certain things such as onions, chillies and certain alcoholic drinks make it worse. All this has led me to realise that the only way to break the vicious circle and start to recover is by addressing the anxiety itself. This can be hard if, like me, you often don’t even realise you’re anxious at all.

So here goes, tips from me which help:

· Don’t Google the symptoms. Really, don’t do it!
· Stay active even if you feel really sluggish and tired. Inactivity is your worst enemy in these circumstances.
· Find ways to relax – more on this below.
· Distract yourself doing whatever it takes. I find reading good.
· I mentioned more tips in a previous thread which you might find useful

So back to relaxation which is the holy grail for us long-suffering anxious folk. Half the time, I’m so tense that it’s a wonder I can actually move my limbs at all. If you tell me to sit down and relax, you may as well say poke your finger in a plug socket for all the good it does me. It’s taken me years to find out what works for me especially as I’m a natural sceptic and what I would describe as ‘new age’ techniques usually make me cringe so much that I get tenser. Having said that, I am willing to try new things and if they don’t work, that’s just the way it is.

My greatest discovery is guided meditation which, I must be honest, took me by surprise. I’ve listened to a lot but I just couldn’t bear how artificial most of them are, and I end up fighting against them. However, there are some great videos out there with my particular favourites being by Michael Sealey. The ones I enjoy the most involve picturing certain environments and your place in them. I have a rather vivid imagination and get easily absorbed into these which stops my mind whirling like a super-fast spin cycle, as is normally the case. Michael actually does a very good 30-minute session aimed at IBS which involves imagining a calming scene and walking through it. Ok, some of it’s a bit cheesy at times but I don’t care if it works. I end up felling much more relaxed which can last anything from 5 minutes to the rest of the day. Some are described as hypnosis. Whether I’ve ever actually been hypnotised by these videos is very doubtful but I can’t be sure as I often fall asleep. Regardless, they’re tried and tested so you won’t end up dancing around and squawking like a chicken whenever someone says the magic word.

To help the relaxation process along, and I can’t believe I’m going to say this, I find nice scents really help. I’m no expert (or believer, in fact) in aromatherapy so that’s not what I’m talking about. I just like nice smells which can range from freshly cut wood, grass clippings, rain after a dry spell and certain perfumes. My other half doesn’t like it when I bring grass clippings and logs in the bedroom so I thought I’d try something else. The solution: incense sticks and essential oils. As I said, I have no idea what their supposed properties are; I just pick the ones that smell nice to me. It really helps me to calm my mind and switch off. I particularly like lavender and sandalwood but you will have other favourites.

The next stop for me is to try yoga (any tips from NMP members gratefully received). I just need to find a) the time and b) a class where I won’t end up in a room full of super-bendy yummy mummies who make me feel self-conscious about hardly being able to sit on the floor, let alone do the lotus position or similar.

So, if you’ve made it through to the end of my essay, well done and I hope some part of it helps. Feel free to add, comment or generally disagree if you want to. I’m no expert and can only tell you what works for me. Writing all of this down also helps me which was part of the reason for my post. It has reminded me that anxiety can play all sorts of tricks on our bodies and not to head to the surgery of Dr. Google.

Take care everyone

Pip