If you live with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), its toll on your mental health likely includes stress. Although that’s normal, too much stress can impact your IBD symptoms, making them more difficult to manage.
Here’s more on stress and IBD, and tips for keeping both in check.
Does Stress Cause IBD?
There’s no proof that stress by itself causes IBD. Doctors aren’t sure what causes IBD, an autoimmune disease that damages your digestive tract and produces painful symptoms. But the right combination of the following risk factors is a possible cause:
- Changes in your gut microbiome (the bacteria in your digestive tract).
- Environmental exposures, particularly cigarette smoke.
- Frequent use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as aspirin or ibuprofen.
- Genetics.
- History of antibiotic use.
- Overactive immune system.
That said, chronic stress can contribute to changes in your microbiome and how your immune system works. Those changes may increase your risk of developing IBD, especially if you have other risk factors.
Stress and IBD Symptoms
People with IBD often report feelings of anxiety and stress. This can make it tough to know which came first — the IBD or the stress.
Stress is your body’s normal response to a potential threat. Your brain signals an alarm, sending your body into “fight or flight” mode. Hormones increase your heart rate and blood pressure and tense your muscles to fight off the threat.
Everyone experiences stress and anxiety at one time or another. It’s also not unusual to experience stress when you’re not feeling well or you’re anxious.
But when you have IBD, feeling nervous, on edge, or worried about the future can become constant. After all, IBD symptoms — like severe belly pain and diarrhea — may interfere with work or your daily life, relationships, and routines. About 35% of people with IBD develop clinically significant anxiety.
How stress affects IBD
Unfortunately, chronic stress may cause your IBD symptoms to flare more often. That’s because the stress response also affects your digestive tract, causing it to tense up and contract. This can lead to more urgency, diarrhea, or constipation.
Chronic stress can also make it harder to manage IBD because:
- You might become less likely to take your medicines on schedule.
- You might feel hopeless and unable to manage your health.
- Your chances of needing surgery might increase.
So, living with IBD and chronic stress can pull you into a vicious cycle of negative emotions and more frequent symptoms.
How to Manage Stress When You Have IBD
It’s possible to manage IBD-related stress and anxiety. Doing so can improve your quality of life, lessen your symptoms, and even reduce the risk of relapse. Your UPMC health care team includes behavioral health specialists who can teach you techniques to put the brakes on stress.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution to managing stress, so you have to try a few techniques before finding what works best for you. Some techniques that can help you cope with anxiety and reduce stress include:
- Anxiety medicine or antidepressants (if necessary).
- Breath work or diaphragmatic “belly” breathing.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (working with a therapist).
- Guided meditation or hypnotherapy.
- Positive self-talk (reframing negative thoughts or worries).
- Regular moderate exercise.
- Yoga or tai chi.
You might also think about joining a support group. IBD is an isolating disease. Knowing others who can personally relate to your situation may help you feel less stressed.
Remember, you’re not alone. Your UPMC health care team includes a wide range of specialists ready to support you every step of the way.
About Digestive Disorders
UPMC Digestive Health Care cares for a wide range of gastrointestinal (GI) conditions and diseases, from diagnosis to treatment. Whether your digestive condition is common or complex, our experts can help.
Upon referral from your physician, we coordinate your testing and treatment. If you have a complicated condition, we can refer you to one of UPMC’s digestive health centers of excellence. Find a GI doctor near you.
Editor's Note: This article was originally published on , and was last reviewed on .