Effexor Panic

Yoga:  60-minute Rodney Yee DVD
Other: Therapy
Bloating:  6
Cramping: 0 (since I didn't go - no spasm afterwards)
BM Satisfaction: 0 (I am officially constipated - Effexor side effect)

So the drug I just started for anxiety is making me anxious.  Specifically, the side effects I have been reading about on the internet have me pretty freaked out and very doubtful I'll continue this drug.   It just seems very, very difficult to go off of - lots of scary-sounding withdrawal symptoms.  And also... weight gain.    I am reading stories of massive amounts of weight gain in a short period of time.  I just... I can't.   

The Effexor is already making me very constipated . If I don't go every day, it's serious trouble for me -I think because I have IBS, I am more sensitive to the contents of my bowel.    I've missed two days now, I am hugely bloated and uncomfortable.   

BUT I still did my yoga and I wore a baggy hoodie at work to conceal it.  

I wrote an email to a pyschologist who blogs about eating disorders.  I asked her what "recovery" from an ED looks like when you have IBS to contend with and can't simply "eat intuitively".     An excerpt from her response:

My guess would be that your IBS was most likely caused or triggered by your eating disorder.
Any co-morbid conditions you may have, such as anxiety or depression, can also trigger or exacerbate IBS.


Another possibility is that you may not actually have IBS per se. As far as I know, doctors know very little about IBS and often use it as a "wastebasket diagnosis" after other possibilities have been ruled out, when they don't actually know what is causing the digestive problem.


What you (or your doctors) have labeled as IBS may simply be the remnants of ED and/or refeeding (which is also really hard on the digestive system). After 15 years of an eating disorder, most people would suffer some long-term damage to the digestive system as well as other body systems.


Most people with EDs experience bloating, gas, constipation, and gastroperisis (delayed gastric emptying) during and after weight restoration and normalization of eating patterns. This symptom usually remits after several weeks or months at a healthy weight with normalized eating. How long have you been weight restored? How long have you been eating normally (full range of food groups, adequate calories and fats, at least 3 times daily)? If you had an ED for 15 years, the process of normalizing digestion will obviously take longer than normal.


The psychological symptoms of ED (fear of certain foods, preoccupation with body image, etc.) will exacerbate any underlying physiologcal food intolerance.


If your digestive problems preceeded your ED, the digestive problems may have served as a gateway to the ED by prompting you to limit your diet and causing unintentional weight loss, thus triggering ED thoughts and behaviors.


In terms of treatment, I have heard anecdotal evidence that CBT can help with IBS. Specifically, learning to manage stress, relaxation training, and changing certain behaviors can help improve IBS symptoms.

I agree with her first statement - I believe my eating disorder caused my IBS.  As for whether this is "real" IBS or simply the results of a malnourished digestive system... she is posing a question I have wondered for years. I suppose only time - time at a healhty weight, eating enough food - will tell.