# CBT for IBS



## 23048 (Dec 13, 2006)

Ive recently started a course of cognative therapy for my IBS and it seems to be mostly anxiety related that sets my symptoms off. Anyone else tried CBT and had success ? Ive tried pils, potions, hypnosis, acupuncture and the rest and still im no better.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I did a course of CBT for IBS as part of the big clinical trial that was done comparing it to one of the common drugs used for IBS (desipramine).I am nearly cured of IBS (I get mild symptoms a few times a year that are easily controlled). My IBS pain was extremely severe before I started.About 70% of the other people in my clinical trial that got CBT also had improvment in symptoms. Often with CBT the improvement continues during the year after the CBT seesions have ended.K.


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## MyOwnSavior (Dec 21, 2006)

CBT, for me, was the biggest waste of money ever. In my case (maybe I just had a really, really bad therapist) all the "doctor" did was have me learn breathing exercises and write down negative thoughts and such in a "thought journal". Then he'd tell me things like "well, you have social anxiety. Isn't that interesting?" And I'd be like, yeah, so what the hell do I do about it? My therapist was acting like breathing exercises are the solution to everything and will prevent further IBS attacks. The only problem with that is, first of all, my IBS attacks are not related to stress. I have IBS pain at THE SAME TIME EVERY DAY, irregardless of whether I'm angry, sad, happy, worried, stressed, relaxed, or whatever. My pain was the worst it's been in a long time very recently, when I was on break from college and was essentially just relaxing for a month. So again, maybe I just had a really bad therapist, but other than Kathleen here, I don't think I've heard very many positive things about CBT from other members of the board. If you've tried everything else and are at a loss as to how to treat your pain, then try it. But if your IBS pain is not stress or anxiety related (i.e. there is a CLEAR correlation that when you're worried your IBS pain gets a lot worse) then I wouldn't bother with it. Talking about your stress and IBS pain isn't going to make it go away, and this is what the premise of CBT seems to be.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I think a big problem is most CBT people are NOT doing CBT that is designed for IBS, mine was. Also it didn't work for 30% of the people, as no one treatment ever works for every one. Most of the IBS drugs only help 50% or less of the people in studies, so they aren't any more likely to help.My IBS pain was also at the same time every day and was not dependent on mood. I got pain after every meal from the increase in bowel activity that occurs after every meal no matter what you ate. Severe unrelenting I can't walk or move pain.The premise of CBT is NOT just to talk about your pain and stress, it is to change the thought patterns (breathing and writing things down can be methods employed but not the only ones) so that you alter how your brain sends signals to the gut through the brain-gut axis. The way I see it how I react to the gut can either INCREASE or DECREASE what it is doing wrong. (like how you respond can increase or decrease anxiety or depression or stress) If you can stop doing what increases the gut misbehaving and start doing things that decrease what it is doing wrong you may get better even if the IBS is still there.I have had good luck with other mind-body therapies before this for migraines before, but I didn't think the CBT would help. I did go for it all out because if I was getting free therapy I was going to get as much out of it as possible as it would be expensive otherwise.K.


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## hasenfuss (Dec 28, 2006)

Well, I am going to the CBT class on Monday which is not geared to IBS, just anxiety in general. They don't have any CBT classes for IBS. I have Kaiser Insurance ( The people from the US probably know what I am talking about). They offer lot's of classes but just nothing for IBS. Do you think the CBT class on Monday will be kind of useless for IBS ?.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

If you have anxiety which makes the IBS worse it may be worth while. They may not have it geared to the gut, but it is a very good treatment for anxiety and for a lot of people if they reduce the anxiety they stop feeding the IBS the anxious signals that make it act up.K.


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## miranda (Apr 16, 2004)

Hi,I've done and continue to do CBT geared towards IBS, anxiety and stress. I've been given certain excerpts from this bookhttp://www.amazon.com/Cognitive-Behavioral...ie=UTF8&s=booksMaybe see what you can self teach yourself.My experiences with CBT are generally positive however in terms of efficacy its middle of the road. I've had instant success with SSRI's and benzo's but side effects make them unusable long term. I would rate the hypno cd's higher in efficacy but harder to do, that's just me and time management tho...Good Luck!M


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## 23048 (Dec 13, 2006)

THanks for the tip Miranda. Ill look out for the book.Cheers


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## patience2 (Sep 26, 2006)

This is one area where I have some knowledge (lots of schooling in psychology, and teach CBT type techniques in class).At the basic level, there is a workbook that is very helpful (the anxiety and phobia workbook). It helps you through all of what you guys have mentioned - changing negative thoughts, managing worry, practicing relaxation techniques, learning your triggers, etc.I can also say that CBT in general is very successful for a lot of problems, including IBS, anxiety in general, etc.Research also shows that overall, of all the things you can do, changing your thought patterns is the most important.I have been practicing these techniques for quite some time now and see definite improvement. My outlook overall is better, which means symptoms less often. It also means that when I do have bad days, they seem to be not as bad as before. Its that realization that it is a disorder you can live with, and that you can handle it.Importantly, and like any treatment, it takes practice and time to work. It also took for me to accept that this is what I have, that I don't know when or if it will ever go away, and that I will definitely have trying days.But CBT has greatly reduced the number of bad days. And it has kept me sane.


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## twonK (Oct 30, 2006)

Another option, which has helped me, is ACT - Acceptance Commitment Therapy. Don't read into the name, it's misleading.ACT is almost diametrically opposed to CBT. CBT says to challenge troublesome thoughts. ACT says that doing that merely increases the power and frequency of those thoughts. For example, say you are troubled by the thought "everyone is staring at me" when you get on a subway train. If you are challenging this thought, you might be inclined, just before getting on the train to think "OK, _don't_ think that everyone's staring at me because it's illogical and unhelpful". Of course, when you say "don't think of a yellow jeep", sure enough a yellow jeep springs into your mind. Therefore challenging your negative thoughts merely increases their frequency.I'm not saying that it's better than CBT, just that if CBT doesn't work for you, check out ACT.Pete


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## 17179 (Feb 18, 2007)

Hi BradfordladCBT saved my life!!!! I had it free on NHS in Pontefract. I live in Castleford. My IBS started with stress. I developed a bad anxiety problem around getting caught short although i never have. I drive nearly all day in a career that i love so when i got to the point that i couldn't really leave the house without panic attacks which in turn triggered diarrheoa i was in a bit of a pickle! After my first session of CBT i drove from CAS into Leeds! At the time this was a massive achievement. My CBT wasn't focused on IBS but on me. I still apply it to everyday life and always will. I also had a relaxation tape not one with the music but the breathing ones and this really helped anxiety wise. I thought at first..Yeah as if CBT or relaxation is gonna help but it really did!! Give it a go!


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