# so scared to get stomach flu!



## Jen37 (Nov 10, 2011)

Hey everyone,I was just wondering is anyone else on here paranoid about getting the stomach bug? I am so terrified of getting it due to getting worse than I already am. I mean last year I got the bug and that is what started all this mess with my intestines I have now. My husband is a school teacher and I worry what he will bring me. He is the one who gave me the tummy flu lasr year! Also I have a son who is 20 and he is not very good about washing his hands. I know that nasty bug is going around and I am scared it is only a matter of time before I get it. I guess I am paranoid ever since getting that bug last year that messed me up. If one is to get the tummy bug, how can you prevent your IBS from getting out of control worse???? I am the only werido who gets paranoid about theset things?


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

Well no one wants to get the stomach flu. And IBS'ers know they may take longer to recover from it.. so I would say you are not alone in your thinking. Unfortunately... _everyone_ gets sick from time to time. Getting too upset about it and worrying too much about it may mean you need some help with anxiety.


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## Jen37 (Nov 10, 2011)

Hi BQ. Thanks for the reply. Yes, I do have anxiety, I guess it goes hand in hand when having dealt with chronic illness for 9 years. I have taken some of the different anxiety meds like ativan,xanax, but they all make my intestines worse so I try and avoid them as much as possible. But yes, I do get the whole anixety about getting sick. Every time I get sick I end up with yet another probelem brought about by whatever made me sick. It is like a viscious cycle. That is how my intestines got messed up, due to a stupid stomach bug









BQ said:


> Well no one wants to get the stomach flu. And IBS'ers know they may take longer to recover from it.. so I would say you are not alone in your thinking. Unfortunately... _everyone_ gets sick from time to time. Getting too upset about it and worrying too much about it may mean you need some help with anxiety.


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

Actually anxiety meds are not ever meant to be taken long term. So stop the vicious cycle and get yourself to a Mental Health Professional who can help you learn how to manage the anxiety.


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## windemere (Sep 25, 2011)

Last year, when my IBS was at its worst I was insanely OCD about constantly washing and sanitizing my hands that they dried out, cracked open, bled, and really hurt. I worked in a restaurant and thats a really germy place. I was so terrified to get the bug because i was already so sick from the ibs i couldn't imagine being even more sick. This year though I relaxed a bit. I washed my hands when it was appropriate, not every 5 minutes, and took it easy on the hand sanitizer, only using it after being at the store touching a cart or something of that nature. The worry was in the back of my mind but i didn't let it control me like it did last year. My ibs was brought on after a bought of food poisoning. My insides have never been the same since so I have a huge fear of eating in restaurants or having someone else prepare food for me. I am trying to get out of this funk now because my boyfriend likes to go out to dinner and its no fun when his girlfriend refuses to eat most of everything on the menu. I have been seeing a therapist about these fears and it really has helped. I have broadened my food horizons again and have even been able to enjoy sushi for the first time in 2 years, one of my favorite foods. I was just too scared to eat it due to my fear of food poisioning. You arent alone with your fear. Even people without ibs can get concerned about getting the stomach bug because it isnt any fun. (my friend last year put it best "this is the worst possible thing to have, but at least i wont be needing the gym for awhile) So i always try to look on the bright side when my fear shows its face. I could get food poisoning...and my boyfriend could have to wait on me hand and foot while i recover. If the fear is affecting your life i say get some help. If its just a worry in the back of your mind and you can still go on living a normal life then just use precaustion and buy some lysol spray. I use it all the time. When my house is clean, i feel less anxious about getting sick.


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## Jen37 (Nov 10, 2011)

Thanks for sharing your story with me. It does help to know I am not alone with feeling this way. I do tend to be a worrier ever since getting sick 9 years ago. I have a lot of different health issues which really complicates things for me. I also have interstitial cystitis, chronic urinary tract infections( I have to be on low dose antibitoics daily due to them), heart mur mur, fibro, undifferenciated connective tissue disease. For me to get he runs or diareha, it would be a nightmare. I al very very prone to urinary infections and diareha in any form can cause UTI's for any woman, especially one who is prone to them, so this is a constant concern to me. I cannot just take any antibitoic as I am allergic to most all of them so it is a problem. I suppose due to all these issues it makes my stress and anxiety worse. I never use to be like this before I got sick. I never worried about anything. I started getting the intestinal issues after I got the stomach flu a year ago. If was off and on at first, nothing to horrible, but then for the last two months it has been horrendous. I have near constant intestinal cramping and pain and the feeling of having to have to go all the time, especially after I eat. I have not went through any tests recently. My gastro doctor thinks this is all IBS. I was worried about it being crohns or something, but he said he really does not think it is crohns. He said he could do a colonoscopy and tests, but he said honestly he did not feel he needed to put me through all the invasive tests that do have risks. He gave me a couple different meds to try. Librax and elavil. I tried the librax a couple of times and it was ok, kind of made me bloated. Also had weird reaction of my mouth and lips feeling burny. I also have MCS( multiple chemical sensitivity) so I react to most any drug. It really sucks. But the gastro is reserved on doing tests saying it could make things worse. He said he would do the tests if I really insisted, but I guess he just does not want to make things worse than they are for nothing. I have seen therapists before. I even went to imagery therapy. It works to help relax me, but did not really help the issue I was having when I went for this. Mental health is pretty expensive. We have a $2,500 dollar deductible that has to be met before the insurance will pay anything.( another reason I have to be reserved when it comes to tests and stuff). I do know stress makes any illness worse, that is for sure. Thanks for replying, I appreciate it.


windemere said:


> Last year, when my IBS was at its worst I was insanely OCD about constantly washing and sanitizing my hands that they dried out, cracked open, bled, and really hurt. I worked in a restaurant and thats a really germy place. I was so terrified to get the bug because i was already so sick from the ibs i couldn't imagine being even more sick. This year though I relaxed a bit. I washed my hands when it was appropriate, not every 5 minutes, and took it easy on the hand sanitizer, only using it after being at the store touching a cart or something of that nature. The worry was in the back of my mind but i didn't let it control me like it did last year. My ibs was brought on after a bought of food poisoning. My insides have never been the same since so I have a huge fear of eating in restaurants or having someone else prepare food for me. I am trying to get out of this funk now because my boyfriend likes to go out to dinner and its no fun when his girlfriend refuses to eat most of everything on the menu. I have been seeing a therapist about these fears and it really has helped. I have broadened my food horizons again and have even been able to enjoy sushi for the first time in 2 years, one of my favorite foods. I was just too scared to eat it due to my fear of food poisioning. You arent alone with your fear. Even people without ibs can get concerned about getting the stomach bug because it isnt any fun. (my friend last year put it best "this is the worst possible thing to have, but at least i wont be needing the gym for awhile) So i always try to look on the bright side when my fear shows its face. I could get food poisoning...and my boyfriend could have to wait on me hand and foot while i recover. If the fear is affecting your life i say get some help. If its just a worry in the back of your mind and you can still go on living a normal life then just use precaustion and buy some lysol spray. I use it all the time. When my house is clean, i feel less anxious about getting sick.


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## TVgirl (Sep 16, 2009)

For me when i get the stomach flu it is like anyone else. Watery frequent diarrhea, nausea and vomiting. Lasts a day then i start recovering. I tend to go back to my usual. It doesnt make anything worse. In fact i feel a little better for awhile. I guess it cleans me right out, i lose the bloating lol!!! Not fun though!!! I am a nurse so i get really exposed to the germs!!!


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