Why you may have IBS symptoms in the morning.

This is because you might have bouts of anxiety when you wake up in the morning. Although it is not a medical term, morning anxiety refers to waking up with feelings of stress and worry. Morning anxiety can be caused by factors such as stress, which can relate to a generalised anxiety disorder. Symptoms may include racing thoughts and anxiety before the alarm even goes off! There may also be other symptoms to put your nerves on edge, and set off an IBS attack such as:

·        A tight chest, and tense muscles.

·        Fatigue, as if you have not had restful sleep. 

·        Difficulty focusing your mind on what needs to be done.

·        Worry and nervousness making you short of breath.

While some anxiety is a normal part of life, continuously worrying about daily tasks or situations, may lead to higher than normal stress levels. A major cause of morning anxiety is the release of the stress hormone cortisol, in response to fear and stress. Studies have revealed that cortisol level is at its highest in the first hour of wakening, especially in people with stress and anxiety in their lives.

How does this affect IBS symptoms?

Stress and anxiety are major causes of IBS symptoms. If you go to bed worrying, that chances are that you could wake up during the night with anxious thoughts, which will interrupt your sleep-patterns, and ruin your chances of a restful sleep. The IBS symptoms can instantly flare up due to the higher levels of anxiety, and you can be hit by sudden painful spasms which can take a while to subside. This causes more stress, until it can seem like a never-ending cycle of worry every morning.

What you eat or drink in the morning can also contribute to high levels of stress in the early part of the day. Caffeine and sugar, popular wake up items, should be avoided. Opt for something with protein like eggs or cheese, and tomatoes.

Lifestyle changes.

Some simple changes if you wake up with anxiety or stress, may help to restore calm to your mind. Physical activity such as exercise, or taking an early morning walk, is known to help lift your mood, help you to relax, reduce anxiety symptoms, help you to relax, and improve your body’s ability to cope with stress. Deep breathing exercises can be done at any time you are feeling tense, but are more effective when in the morning. Research has shown that it may help to remove the focus on anxious thoughts, and turn your focus and energy instead toward your body.

Treating morning anxiety.

If morning anxiety is interfering with your daily life, and you are feeling overwhelmed and unable to cope, trusted sources agree that the services of a therapist experienced the treatment of anxiety and stress, would be beneficial. Hypnotherapy when used in conjunction with neuro-linguistic programming {NLP} make a formidable team to help treat anxiety and stress.

Hypnosis is not magic, and nor is NLP! When you are in a relaxed state, the therapist is able to access the subconscious mind, and eliminate harmful thoughts, and attitudes of negativity, which trigger episodes of IBS and painful spasms. NLP is a branch of psychology which teaches you to effectively communicate with others, and more importantly with yourself. You will learn that you can change the way you think, by the words you use to communicate with yourself - If you speak negatively to yourself, you will land up with a negative outlook on life, which will not be helpful coping with stress. Positive therapy will give you a new mindset to enable you to recognise and avoid IBS triggers.

For more information contact Matthew: www.matthewtweediehypnosis.com.au