Digestive Issues Anxiety and depression often result in feelings of nausea, diarrhea, and general unease in your belly. Stomach pain or discomfort that seems to increase along with stress may be tied to depression.
A troubled intestine can send signals to the brain, just as a troubled brain can send signals to the gut. Therefore, a person's stomach or intestinal distress can be the cause or the product of anxiety, stress, or depression. That's because the brain and the gastrointestinal (GI) system are intimately connected.
Can stress or anxiety cause stomach pain? Absolutely. Stress and anxiety are common causes of stomach pain and other GI symptoms.
Stomach pain or uneasiness in the abdomen
Pain that worsens, especially when stress arises, may be a sign of depression. In fact, Harvard Medical School researchers suggest that stomach discomfort like cramps, bloating, and nausea may be a sign of poor mental health.
Stress also may make swallowing foods difficult or increase the amount of air that is swallowed, which increases burping, gassiness, and bloating. Stress may make pain, bloating, nausea, and other stomach discomfort felt more easily. Vomiting may occur if the stress is severe enough.
Feeling anxious in your stomach can include having what feels like “butterflies” or “knots.” These usually subside relatively quickly once the stressful situation, such as a job interview, is removed. However, anxiety can also cause more unpleasant and painful symptoms in your stomach. These could include: Nausea.
Stress belly is the extra abdominal fat that accumulates as the result of chronic or prolonged stress. Although stress belly is not a medical diagnosis, it is a term used to describe the way that stress and stress hormones impact your midsection.
When you have it, you may feel: Cramping, churning, tightness, or knots in the stomach. “Butterflies” in the stomach feeling. Shivering, shaking, or twitching of muscles.
But because anxiety is a constant, long term, chronic issue, you're left with a digestive tract that is not running correctly. That can cause several different issues, but of course it often leads to constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating, and traditional indigestion.
While the most common symptoms of depression are emotional, such as feeling hopeless and sad, some people also experience physical symptoms, such as feeling sick. These physical issues can be just as debilitating as mood-related symptoms and lead to daily challenges for many people.
The Link Between Your Gut and Your Emotions
The physical reason why emotions and stress can lead to stomachaches and other digestive problems is because the gut is highly sensitive and full of nerves, just like the brain.
The development of IBS is often preceded by a stressor to the patient; the stressor can be depression or any physical ailment [20,21].
Initial evidence suggests that intermittent fasting may benefit your gut health, particularly by increasing the diversity of your gut microbiome and the “good” gut bugs that make their home there. Certain foods may improve your gut health while intermittent fasting, as well as help support you during fasting periods.
Building a healthy microbiome can take up to 6 months if the correct healthy habits are adopted (diet, exercise, sleep and stress management - and also supplements if needed) however it really is a lifelong journey because you need to continue these habits to maintain a healthy microbiome.
We recommend staying on the diet for at least 3-4 weeks as it will take about that long to “heal the gut.” Some patients may take up to 3 months to reestablish a normal functioning intestinal mucosa.
People with depression may have frequent stomach problems, such as nausea, bloating, diarrhea, or constipation. One possible explanation for these symptoms involves a neurotransmitter in the brain and gut called serotonin.
Foods that may boost serotonin levels include turkey, chicken, milk, canned tuna, peanuts, oats, bananas, and apples. Serotonin is important for your mental health and sense of well-being, and it's also important for proper gut function.
Natural remedies: Ginger, which people can sip as a tea, chew on as a root, or take as a supplement, may help alleviate mild gastrointestinal symptoms, including nausea . Drinking peppermint tea or smelling peppermint oil may also reduce nervous stomach symptoms.
What causes stomach or abdominal tightness? Common causes include gas, overeating, indigestion, IBS, and pregnancy. Fluid retention can lead to bloating in people with PMS or ascites, which occurs with liver disease and other chronic health issues.
Many studies show that stressful life events are associated with the onset of symptoms, or worsening of symptoms, in several digestive conditions, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), and peptic ulcer disease.