IBS - Irritable Bowel Syndrome
There are many psychosomatic problems that plague people and one of the most common is IBS. Though its name sounds as if it is very specific, IBS is really a collective term for a number of symptoms. There is no blood test or exact diagnosis for IBS so the medical profession calls the problem a ‘syndrome’.
IBS can cover anything from constipation to diarrhoea. Within that range would be abdominal pain, mucus secretions, and faeces like rabbit droppings. The medical profession believes that people should evacuate their bowel between three and seven times a week. Those people that need to do so several times a day or once a week would certainly be diagnosed with IBS.
Some medication can cause constipation. Antibiotic drugs, painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs all have the ability with certain people to have an adverse effect on bowel movements. When a patient has IBS, a doctor may prescribe antispasmodic drugs or laxatives. These may be suitable in the short term but not in the long term.
In a similar way, many people have an allergic reaction to some types of food, and this can cause the body to rapidly dispose of what has been eaten, or to slow down digestion causing constipation.
The main cause of IBS, however, is anxiety. Anxiety is another term for tension or stress. Most people find that when there is a sudden increase in anxiety, they want to visit the toilet. It is the body’s natural “flight or fight” mechanism. When the anxiety becomes long term, however, the body’s system cannot cope and reacts in a different way.
The cause of the anxiety can be old or new. Old anxieties may arise in childhood, adolescence or when the person is a young adult. Newer anxieties may arise as a result of relationship problems, financial difficulties or job related problems.
Anxiety locates itself in the unconscious part of the mind. This is where all the old memories, worries and fears are situated and cause feelings (emotions) to bubble up into the conscious mind. Anxiety is only a problem when the person cannot resolve it.
It could be said that anxiety is a fear that something specific may happen. Interestingly, when the feared event actually arises, the anxiety disappears and the person goes into action. It is therefore the fear that the event may arise that is the problem. For example: someone in a small boat who is experiencing really bad sea conditions may feel extreme anxiety (that the boat will sink). This anxiety can be so powerful that he may actually jump in the sea. On the face of it, it would appear nonsensical, but when he does so, his anxiety disappears. He clearly has to avoid drowning but his anxiety has gone which may make him feel better.
Where the unconscious mind feels anxiety and the feared event is not dealt with, the unconscious mind does not give up. It usually increases the feeling of anxiety until the person takes action. If the person does not know what action to take, the anxiety may reach an extreme level, which is then called panic. Panic attacks are very uncomfortable and
most sufferers feel as if they are having a heart attack. Where the unconscious mind has a long-term unresolved issue, it results in muscle tension. If the tension is held in the shoulders, it results in migraine. When the tension is held in the back, it causes back pain. When the tension is held in the abdomen, it causes either muscle spasms and therefore diarrhoea, or muscle tension and constipation.
There are other problems that can arise as a result of chronic anxiety. The most common are high blood pressure (hypertension), digestive disorders, a notoriously short fuse or miscellaneous aches and pains.
The cycle of anxiety must be broken or it can result in relationship or other problems, causing further stress and tension. Before any psychotherapy is undertaken, it is important to make sure that the basics have been addressed. A person needs to take proper food (rather than junk), drink an adequate amount of water, moderate their caffeine intake, and eat a moderate amount of fruit and vegetables. The person should also undertake some form of physical exercise and try to have good sleep. With the ground prepared, the person is ready to undertake the psychotherapy necessary to identify and remove the cause of the anxiety.
Sorting out the problem for a short term is not the answer. In fact, many people feel that they have resolved all the old issues in their lives. There is a difference, however, between suppressing an issue and resolving it. The solution must be long term.
Psychological problems are sometimes single issues such as sexual abuse which may have only taken place once. They may be several events of the same issue such as repeated sexual abuse. Sometimes, the person may have multiple issues arising over a long period. This can cause difficulties in that all issues need to be identified and resolved.
The skill of the Psychotherapist is in identifying the cause or causes and then finding suitable logic for the unconscious mind that will dispose of the problem permanently.
Once the issues have been dealt with, the IBS will disappear by itself. It is important for the person to develop their own skills and tools for dealing with other anxiety when it arises. This may take the form of meditation or self-hypnosis. These are relatively simple tools but have a huge impact.
IBS is not something that a person is born with; it is something that arises because a person has not been able to deal with an anxiety that has developed.
There is no reason why it should continue, but it does require specific work to remove it.