Does worrying affect IBD?

[mikeyarmo]

According to author and Doctor John A. Schindler, 50% of all people seeking medical aid have what he calls Emotionally Induced Illness (E.I.I.). This is basically a person worrying so much and being so anxious that they actually cause themselves to experience pain or sickness.

How does this relate to you? According to a test done at Oschsner Clinic in New Orleans, 75% of 500 patients that were consecutively admitted for gastro-intestinal diseases were found to be suffering from E.I.I.

Things to keep in mind:

-These people admitted could have been for anything from stomach-pain, heartburn, upset stomach, to an actual chronic disease like IBD.
-This was done a long time ago (1940's?) so the accuracy might not be as good as a recently done study.
-Is E.I.I. something real that can be diagnosed, or just some vague general symptoms (like is a worrier)?

Overall I do not know how much this informatio should be read into. I do believe that being a worrier is not a useful trait that one should try to pursue or continue doing, and that taking things in stride and with a grin on your face can make things much easier.

 

[Jeff D.]

Hey Oschsner Clinic was only a few miles from my house in fact I could see it from my house. Sorry off topic.

Anyways, I think that could definitely be understandable. It was weird because when I first started coming to these forums I got really sick because everyone was talking about fistulas and having blockages so I believed I had one too when I did not go to the bathroom for a day which ended up being a week which ended up with me going to my doctor.

 

[Valentina]

I know stress effects my IBD. I think our minds and emotions play a huge part in our health. If I really wanted to right now, I could prob talk myself into getting really sick, and flaring.. on the other hand, I can prob convince myself that the next couple of months are going to be fantastic, and happiness will make me feel healthy.
I know this only works to a point of course, and that if there are major problems going on, the power of suggestion isnt going to do much to help it.. but I know from experience that I have been my own worst enemy when it comes to my health and happiness.
a positive attitude cant hurt.. and just maybe... it can help

 

[Big_Al]

Mike

I'd like to take issue with you, specifically about the title of this post. I think its very irresponsible having such a title on a site like this. There are a lot of very ill people on here, and no doubt there are some who are desperate to end their pain, to the point that they will try anything.

There are many crackpot theories out there which people are trying to sell to those with IBD, claiming that they have found "The holy grail"- namely the cure for IBD..they use titles like the one you have.

I'm not arguing with what the Doc says, worrying may cause illness, I just think that with the title you have used, there may be those out there who come onto this post expecting something else.

Al

 

[Jeff D.]

Hey Big Al, I don't want to argue or anything but it did say maybe in the title so it's not like a cure all or something it is merely a suggestion that could help some people out. I know that if I knew about that before my last flare which was not a flare but my mind playing tricks on me. I was in such a depression for a while so I think that it could help a few people out there especially if they are on forums such as this one a lot. I know that once I heard about fistulas and other things I thought I had it all. I had myself believing that I was really sick when in fact I had no intestinal inflamation or anything wrong with me. I made myself go back to before I was diagnosed and I was suffering constipation and other things but once I dealt with my depression and state of mind I was suddenly better. So I got to say that there has to be some truth in the statement.

Sorry about that

 

[Big_Al]

Thats your opinion Jeff, I know the post title said maybe, but desperate people mayl look past that and come on looking for something else. So , how about the title gets changed to reflect that its a suggestion?

Al

 

[Jeff D.]

Okay, hopefully Mike gets on here soon to change it.

 

[mikeyarmo]

Sorry Al,

I did not see this post until now. I did not mean to have the phrase seen maliciously or to give false hope, but rather I meant it in a playful way that corresponds with the light humour that occurs with many of the other posts at this forum. I did not mean it to give false hope, but rather as a "hmm whats this" to the regular readers/

I deeply apologize and will change this immeadiately. Thank you for raising your concern.