Question about stress..

[KristaM]

Hi everyone,
As you know I've only been truly diagonosed with IC this week when I had my Cysto/Hydro done. I don't have another appointment to discuss treatment options and diet with my Uro until November 2. SO... right now I'm just taking Adesol 30's and trying my hardest to give up acidic foods. I'm happy to say that I haven't had caffenine in 3 weeks. Anyways, I get flares quite frequently and I'm wondering how much stress has to do with it. I get very stressed all of the time and am a person that worries constantly about the silliest things.
Thanks, and I really appreciate everyones kindness.
Krista

[indiana]

Hi there,

I'm newly diagnosed also so I don't have a lot of advice but I've been reading these boards for about a month now and all the "seasoned" ladies say that stress is usually a very big trigger for them.

I usually do not get stressed over things but I do have a very demanding job that gets me stressed out so I have signed up for yoga classes, three times a week, plus I'm on Elavil with is an anti-depressant but it was prescribed for pain. I think it is helping me also with the "stress" of this disorder and coming to terms with it.

Please let me know if I can answer any other questions. I hope I've helped a little bit.

[Sarojini]

Stress is definitely a huge IC trigger for many of us. It certainly is for me!

I find a good stress management program is key to my own IC treatment. I do do yoga -- in fact, I do it at home with tapes a lot too. (There's a good one sold in the ICN Shop at http://www.ic-network.com/shop called "Hatha Yoga for People With Interstitial Cystitis" and it's nice and easy to follow if you've never done yoga before) You can try various types of meditation, guided imagery, etc ast well ( the ICN shop also sells guided imagery tapes).

However, if you find you're really constantly worrying about silly things to the point that it affects your daily life, you may need professional help and might benefit from seeing a therapist/psychiatrist. I did this and was diagnosed with moderate to severe generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and panic disorder (as well as depression). My shrink/therapist combination use a bimodal treament plan to help me. The therapist does talk therapy and behavior modification with me for an hour every week or two and these can really help. My shrink has put me on two drugs that help my anxiety and panic -- Klonopin (an anti-anxiety med) and Zoloft (an antidepressant that also has anti-anxiety and anti-panic properties). I can tell you I'm beginning to really see a difference!!

Good luck!!! And remember, if you need to, there's no shame in asking for help :)

:grouphug:

[SharonA]

Stress is a major trigger for me. It can bring on a flare from out of nowhere. :yikes:

[sarahmichelle81]

Stress is a trigger for me too. Especially at work. My job has a lot of responsibilities but I never really thought of it as stressful. I used to be able to handle huge amounts of stress, but now it seems that the smallest amout of stress causes an IC flare up. Sometimes taking Tylenol helps me relax before the pain gets too bad. :)