Do you think stress is directly linked to your flare ups?

[Ithinkimafigher]

I just wanted to see what people thought about their stress levels effecting the activeness of their Crohn's disease. keep it short.

I have noticed that long periods of moderate stress can cause my flare ups quicker than just brief bouts of intense stress. when i first started to get better after i was diagnosed i was so care free and stress free that i healed quickly and made it to the heaviest i have ever weighed (im skinny and workout religiously). when i started a new job in construction and had problems with my boss paying me and was stressed about being evicted i relapsed almost immediately after. my diet had not really changed during that period. coincidence?

lets hear your story :thumleft:

 

[EthanPSU]

I highly belive that stress is linked to flare ups.

My reasoning being. That I am in college and every semester when finals role around I tend to flare alittle. I have definately concluded it does this because I am stressing about my finals.

 

[Goldfish]

I think I started up in February this year with the rash and that coincided with a show that had to be put up and pressure on my course with exams following. Looking back before I was diagnosed my tummy certainly seemed jippy around exam time. So I am inclined to think stress will flare it up. I too will be at college this year so time will tell.

 

[lookame]

I find under a lot of stress I will see bloody stools. I think it's due to the fact I can't sleep therefor my bowels can't efficiently reset. I find in the morning aftr a night of tossing and turning I'll see some blood. I also think I tend to skip medicine dosages since I'm focased on other things. I can also get so worked up that I start making myself sick.

 

[Ithinkimafigher]

perhaps i can suggest the marijuana once again to everyone out there. it has helped me with the appetite, pain, and stress relief like no other medicine has. lets keep it going :allright:

 

[kit6876]

I agree completely with all of you that stress is a HUGE factor in my flare ups. Like Kaniela I use Marijuana to help with my appetitie, pain, and stress relief and it seriously does all three without all the crazy side effects from all these meds they put us on. I still take my medications but it is a whole lot easier to make it through tough times with a little MJ by my side... otherwise I don't think I'd ever eat!

 

[Nataliekim]

YES! Every time we had a hurricane head our way, my stomach went nuts! So happy to be out of FL now. Now I just have to figure out how to stress proof myself from what the kids throw at me, LOL!!

Nat

 

[Lizzie]

I've always had a dodgy tum (still awaiting full diagnosis), and dad had Crohns, but my first bout of blood/mucus etc started this year a couple of months after he died in difficult circumstances, even his funeral had gone badly awry, cortege really late and ending with the funeral car crashing into the hearse and I was extremely stressed about all this. I started really overeating so my theory is that the stress combined with overeating and a tendency to a bad tum did set it all off.

On the related subject of dope, I'm confused because I thought smoking of any type was bad for your guts? For example, if I have a cigarette once in a blue moon it sends me straight to the loo. Is dope different? Do you have to smoke it 100% unadulterated with tobacco?

 

[Nico85]

I dont think its as much stress, i think its nerves. Any time i get remotely nervous i instantly need the toilet. Then wheni get to the loo i dont need it anymore lol

 

[Sophia]

I think stress can induce a flare for me, definitely. Not just mental stress, but also physical stress on the body due to for example little sleep, having other illnesses etc. Also I find that when I am stressed about work, I tend to work way too much which then affects my sleep and also gives me no time for physical exercise, which I think is very important to maintain a healthy life.

 

[Ithinkimafigher]

On the related subject of dope, I'm confused because I thought smoking of any type was bad for your guts? For example, if I have a cigarette once in a blue moon it sends me straight to the loo. Is dope different? Do you have to smoke it 100% unadulterated with tobacco?

this is a topic that gets so many mixed reviews its not even funny. scientifically i dont see how smoking weed would hurt you any more than say prednisone, imuran, or anything else your pharmacy has prescribed you. cigarettes make people use the toilet for a few reasons including the dialating of blood vessels from the nicotine and other garbage in the cigarettes. the rest is unknown to me. it could also be a mental thing or it could be people just like to hate on smokers. who knows.

nico85- i think if you need to use the toilet when u get nervous it may be just that and not flare related. like a bashful dog that pees when you pet it :smile:

 

[Lizzie]

this is a topic that gets so many mixed reviews its not even funny. scientifically i dont see how smoking weed would hurt you any more than say prednisone, imuran, or anything else your pharmacy has prescribed you. cigarettes make people use the toilet for a few reasons including the dialating of blood vessels from the nicotine and other garbage in the cigarettes. the rest is unknown to me. it could also be a mental thing or it could be people just like to hate on smokers. who knows.

Agreed, I'm not subscribing to any "pharmaceutical drugs good/self-administered drugs bad" view. I haven't got any particular downer on smoking, either, actually I quite like the smell of cigarettes in small doses. I honestly don't think it's a mental thing, though, about nicotine, because it's always had that effect on me, since long before smoking was taboo (I'm pretty ancient). I've not bothered with dope much because it doesn't do anything for me, but maybe it could help your guts even if it doesn't get you high?

 

[sunflower]

For me, my trigger seems to be allergy season. I get sick almost every summer when my allergies flare. It usually starts in February and builds to summer, then subsides when the cooler weather hits.

 

[Ithinkimafigher]

I've not bothered with dope much because it doesn't do anything for me, but maybe it could help your guts even if it doesn't get you high?

it might. depends on what you are using cannabis for. im not sure if eating it will induce hunger like smoking it will. i eat cannabis brownies sometimes and it makes me have a body numbing high and dulls the pain alot. on the bad side it also makes me extremely lethargic and my motor skills are compromised. give it a try... you might like it.

sunflower- thats interesting about the allergies effecting your crohns. it must be some kind of immune response to the allergies that also effect the rest of the body. i wonder if allergy medicine would keep your crohns at bay for longer periods of time?

 

[Nico85]

nico85- i think if you need to use the toilet when u get nervous it may be just that and not flare related. like a bashful dog that pees when you pet it :smile:

lol well when it happens about 15 times a day at work then i think its a little more serious than just a 'Bashful dog' but thanks anyway :wink:

Since then ive moved department and im more office based and its not happened once.

 

[missvicki]

My chrons is absolutely related to stress. Since being diagnosed with it in 2007, I have been able to eat whatever I want and do whatever I want. I don't have symptoms or anything and believe me. I do not eat healthy at all.

I quit my job back in April. Since then, I have been getting sicker and sicker. tThis past monday I started a new job and it seems to just be getting worse. I was stressed about not having a job and the last few have been about me not being good enough at my new job. I cant even sleep at night because the pain is so bad.

 

[AndiGirl]

I definitely notice that it gets worse when I'm stressed out. If I get a cold, flu, or other sickness, I also can flare-up.

 

[Ithinkimafigher]

nico85- sorry i didnt mean to tease i didnt realize it happened that frequent. good that it doesnt bother you anymore. now that i think of it i have a similiar issue as well. it feels like diarrhea but it goes away within seconds. it happens a few times a day, its never happened prior to diagnosis. we're in the same boat man.

missvicki- since my latest relapse i have been practicing stress relief. aside from strict dieting i take epsom salt baths once a week, drink relaxing tea, smoke alot of weed, and do stretching and deep breathing. i also cut all people that cause me stress out of my life while im flaring. i know its extreme but it works. and my health is more important than anything. give it a try. get a massage. get more sex. do things you enjoy and it will pay off. i also think happiness is a key factor in maintaining remission. stay alive my friend.

 

[Nico85]

nico85- sorry i didnt mean to tease i didnt realize it happened that frequent. good that it doesnt bother you anymore. now that i think of it i have a similiar issue as well. it feels like diarrhea but it goes away within seconds. it happens a few times a day, its never happened prior to diagnosis. we're in the same boat man.

missvicki- since my latest relapse i have been practicing stress relief. aside from strict dieting i take epsom salt baths once a week, drink relaxing tea, smoke alot of weed, and do stretching and deep breathing. i also cut all people that cause me stress out of my life while im flaring. i know its extreme but it works. and my health is more important than anything. give it a try. get a massage. get more sex. do things you enjoy and it will pay off. i also think happiness is a key factor in maintaining remission. stay alive my friend.

lol its cool!!!