Avia Juliet
03-18-2016, 12:11 PM
A few months ago (in September) I found out that I have a gluten intolerance. I've been gluten free since then and I've been doing a lot better, aside from the few times I've gotten sick due to cross contamination. It's not easy living with other people who eat gluten.. Anyway, when I accidentally eat gluten I tend to get pretty anxious for a day or two afterwards. However, about a month ago I ate gluten and it was a lot more than I normally have. Usually when I get sick it's just from cross contamination, but this actually had flour in it and I got very sick. My anxiety was worse than it had ever been and I literally couldn't do anything but sit in my room all day. I could barely even eat. The worst was over in about a week, but I was still having trouble eating. Eventually I was able to eat normally again and have spent the past two weeks just trying to recover. And I've been doing pretty well, my anxiety was pretty much gone and I felt like myself again.
But the other night I started to feel anxious again. The first time was when I was going to bed. I was trying to go to sleep and just started to feel very anxious and like I couldn't breathe, so I sat up in bed and ended up texting my friend so that I wouldn't have an anxiety attack. I thought it was weird, but I was fine the next day so I didn't think much of it. The next night though.. I had been eating a lot of snacks that day and was feeling kind of bloated, so I knew that I should not have eaten dinner. But I did.. and in turn felt very sick and had a full blown anxiety attack.. The day after that I was anxious when I first woke up, but started to feel a bit better after a while.. though I was still anxious all day. Just a different type of anxiety, if that makes sense. For me at least, there's the kind of anxiety where I actually have physical symptoms (mostly upset stomach and dizzy/lightheaded and shaky if it's bad enough) and there's the type where I feel fine physically but every once in a while I'll just get these feeling of dread. The latter is what I felt the other day.. it's not pleasant when I get those feelings, though it is easier to ignore so it wasn't a huge deal. The next day, which was yesterday, I felt the same way but I went out and actually had a really great day. Until dinner.. I ate dinner and immediately started to feel shaky and bloated. I'm not sure if that bloating was from anxiety or actually what I ate, but I'm guessing anxiety unless I just ate too fast. Because I had been out almost all day I had only snacked here and there so dinner was my first real meal, and I didn't even eat that much. Either way, the bloating quickly turned into an anxiety attack, though not nearly as bad as before and I was able to control it a bit more.
Honestly I've never had many problems with general anxiety. Maybe every once in a while, but for the most part it's been social anxiety. My social anxiety has actually gotten a lot better since I stopped eating gluten, but now I've developed this general anxiety. Go figure. But this past month has by far been the worst. I've never had anxiety like this and I had never even had an anxiety attack before! I'm trying to get in the doctor to get some tests done and see if I have any other food sensitivities, because I'm pretty sure I do. I think I've been avoiding the doctor because I'm scared I'll have a problem with soy or something. I'm starting to worry that I won't be able to eat anything.. Artificial sweeteners make me really sick and I'm pretty sure red dye #40 does as well. I'm actually wondering if red dye is what caused this anxiety. Because I was completely fine for at least a week, and then this and the only thing that I ate that was different was a cookie that had red dye in it. I had been avoiding red dye 40 (i've eaten other red dyes and they didn't make me sick) for several months because I thought that i might make me sick.. but I wasn't sure. It's not good for you either way, so I just decided to avoid it all together. But a few nights ago I ate something with red 40 and the next night was when I had the really bad anxiety attack. I actually had red dye the next two nights as well.. Does anyone have any experience with red dye causing anxiety? I know for a fact that I didn't eat gluten. The only difference that I can think of was the dye. I guess it's back to avoiding it.. But I know it will probably take at least a few days for me to feel better and I'm having a lot of anxiety about food right now. I don't really want to eat, but I make myself eat anyway. Though usually not very much..
Sorry if this is long and all over the place, but I just don't know what to do! The past month has been hell and I'm terrified that it's going to start over again. In the back of my mind I know that it's not.. The anxiety isn't nearly as bad this time. But I can't stop worrying. I woke up today hoping to feel better, but I just feel weird. Like this overall anxious feeling. My stomach isn't upset or anything, just those feeling of dread. But this time I just feel.. off. I don't know if that even makes sense, but I don't know how to describe it. It's a very helpless feeling.. I have absolutely no reason to be anxious at all right now, but I am and that's terrifying. Now that I know how bad the anxiety can get, I'm so scared that I'm going to slip back into that. I just feel so overwhelmed and helpless with this whole situation.. Help! What do I do..? :(
But the other night I started to feel anxious again. The first time was when I was going to bed. I was trying to go to sleep and just started to feel very anxious and like I couldn't breathe, so I sat up in bed and ended up texting my friend so that I wouldn't have an anxiety attack. I thought it was weird, but I was fine the next day so I didn't think much of it. The next night though.. I had been eating a lot of snacks that day and was feeling kind of bloated, so I knew that I should not have eaten dinner. But I did.. and in turn felt very sick and had a full blown anxiety attack.. The day after that I was anxious when I first woke up, but started to feel a bit better after a while.. though I was still anxious all day. Just a different type of anxiety, if that makes sense. For me at least, there's the kind of anxiety where I actually have physical symptoms (mostly upset stomach and dizzy/lightheaded and shaky if it's bad enough) and there's the type where I feel fine physically but every once in a while I'll just get these feeling of dread. The latter is what I felt the other day.. it's not pleasant when I get those feelings, though it is easier to ignore so it wasn't a huge deal. The next day, which was yesterday, I felt the same way but I went out and actually had a really great day. Until dinner.. I ate dinner and immediately started to feel shaky and bloated. I'm not sure if that bloating was from anxiety or actually what I ate, but I'm guessing anxiety unless I just ate too fast. Because I had been out almost all day I had only snacked here and there so dinner was my first real meal, and I didn't even eat that much. Either way, the bloating quickly turned into an anxiety attack, though not nearly as bad as before and I was able to control it a bit more.
Honestly I've never had many problems with general anxiety. Maybe every once in a while, but for the most part it's been social anxiety. My social anxiety has actually gotten a lot better since I stopped eating gluten, but now I've developed this general anxiety. Go figure. But this past month has by far been the worst. I've never had anxiety like this and I had never even had an anxiety attack before! I'm trying to get in the doctor to get some tests done and see if I have any other food sensitivities, because I'm pretty sure I do. I think I've been avoiding the doctor because I'm scared I'll have a problem with soy or something. I'm starting to worry that I won't be able to eat anything.. Artificial sweeteners make me really sick and I'm pretty sure red dye #40 does as well. I'm actually wondering if red dye is what caused this anxiety. Because I was completely fine for at least a week, and then this and the only thing that I ate that was different was a cookie that had red dye in it. I had been avoiding red dye 40 (i've eaten other red dyes and they didn't make me sick) for several months because I thought that i might make me sick.. but I wasn't sure. It's not good for you either way, so I just decided to avoid it all together. But a few nights ago I ate something with red 40 and the next night was when I had the really bad anxiety attack. I actually had red dye the next two nights as well.. Does anyone have any experience with red dye causing anxiety? I know for a fact that I didn't eat gluten. The only difference that I can think of was the dye. I guess it's back to avoiding it.. But I know it will probably take at least a few days for me to feel better and I'm having a lot of anxiety about food right now. I don't really want to eat, but I make myself eat anyway. Though usually not very much..
Sorry if this is long and all over the place, but I just don't know what to do! The past month has been hell and I'm terrified that it's going to start over again. In the back of my mind I know that it's not.. The anxiety isn't nearly as bad this time. But I can't stop worrying. I woke up today hoping to feel better, but I just feel weird. Like this overall anxious feeling. My stomach isn't upset or anything, just those feeling of dread. But this time I just feel.. off. I don't know if that even makes sense, but I don't know how to describe it. It's a very helpless feeling.. I have absolutely no reason to be anxious at all right now, but I am and that's terrifying. Now that I know how bad the anxiety can get, I'm so scared that I'm going to slip back into that. I just feel so overwhelmed and helpless with this whole situation.. Help! What do I do..? :(