Anxiety, Panic, Depression And Phobias

[chantaspell]

Hi,

I am currently investigating the possibility that various psychological symptoms I have are connected to gluten intolerance. I would be interested to hear how long it took other people with Celiac or undiagnosed gluten intolerance to feel better from anxiety, phobias, pani attacks and depression?

Many Thanks

T

[FMcGee]

Hi! I was having pretty bad anxiety and depression for a long time, and a month into the gluten-free diet, I feel a lot better. I still have my moments (but I still have my moments of accidental glutening!), but on the whole, I don't have that "I'll never be cheerful again" feeling, and I can handle minor crises/stress with a much more level head. I'm just one person, though, so I hope other people will weigh in with their experiences (and I'm sure they will!) so you can get a better picture. Everyone is different, is the key fact to remember.

[ravenwoodglass]

My overwhelming depressive episodes stopped very quickly and only reappears when I get glutened. I do at times get sad but not like the 'why am I on earth and what reason do I have to even live' sort of feelings that I get on gluten.

As for the anxiety, panic attacks and phobias.....well in my case I haven't had much relief from those. BUT and this is a big but, I also have PTSD from abuse in childhood and have had many violent and traumatic episodes in adulthood. I eventually developed agoraphobia and am currently working on relief from that with help form both a psychiatrist and counselor.

There are others that have had great relief from those issues on the diet though.

I would suggest that if you continue to have panic attacks and anxiety issus that you do your best to address those, for some counseling and behavioral therapy can be helpful. Don't do what I did and just try to restrict your life to accomodate the issues as that can allow things to spiral to a point where it is tough to get back to any where near a normal life.

[FMcGee]

I would suggest that if you continue to have panic attacks and anxiety issus that you do your best to address those, for some counseling and behavioral therapy can be helpful. Don't do what I did and just try to restrict your life to accomodate the issues as that can allow things to spiral to a point where it is tough to get back to any where near a normal life.

I agree. Counseling can be extremely helpful. I've been through it, too, to help resolve some issues from childhood/early adulthood trauma, and it has helped me keep perspective. I think with things like anxiety, depression, and PTSD, there is never, or rarely, just one solution. I'm thinking of going to counseling again for a few rounds to help me manage graduate school! Going gluten-free isn't supposed to turn anyone into superwoman!

[jkt]

My son is now gluten-free and we are reducing his anxiety medication now after 2+ months on the diet.

Think about it - if you're not feeling physically 100%, how can your mind be at ease? I'm so excited at how gluten-free diet has changed his life. It's amazing what power your food has!

[gf silly yak]

I started having depression and anxiety attacks two years before being diagnosed. It completely stopped about a month after going gluten-free. I was thrilled, but about a year later I started to feel bad again and experienced some panic attacks when trying to travel. I was told that once your body has a panic attack it "remembers" how to do it. The really strange thing was, anti-anxiety or anti-depressant medications would work for a few hours or days and then they would cause the anxiety attacks to get WORSE (lasting days!)

I thought this would be the way I would have to live, but then I started to think about how food had caused this reaction the first time. I began eliminating things from my diet and found that Aspertame was the culprit! Last year, the anxiety came back and I immediately tried an elimination diet again and, lo and behold, I excluded dairy and the symptoms went away!

I know how odd this sounds, but I just wanted to put it out there for anyone else who might be experiencing anxiety problems. I don't know if I would have made the connection between panic attacks and food intolerance without discovering how much better I felt when going gluten-free. It is not uncommon to lose tolerance to other foods once your body has started down that path. I have also heard of something called Leaky Gut Syndrome which supports that theory.

Anyway, if you anxiety and depression come back, give an elimination diet a try. I hope this information can help someone else figure this out sooner than the years it took me!

[Foxfire62]

Hi,

I am currently investigating the possibility that various psychological symptoms I have are connected to gluten intolerance. I would be interested to hear how long it took other people with Celiac or undiagnosed gluten intolerance to feel better from anxiety, phobias, pani attacks and depression?

Many Thanks

T

I never had any of those symptoms until I became backed up and a boat-load of things happened to me. I didn't have phobias or depression, but I started suffering from anxiety. A quick change to a hypoglycemic diet helped me immensely. I still do get anxious at time, however, when I get backed up, and the gases go into my other organs and cause me to nearly pass out, have heart palpitations, etc. Very difficult. I am dealing with that right now and am trying to get myself regulated so I don't have to go through that again. But for the most part, the nervous jitters were calmed by a hypoglycemic diet.

I have heard that going on a gluten-free diet supposedly helps depression.

Good luck!

[Korwyn]

I am currently investigating the possibility that various psychological symptoms I have are connected to gluten intolerance. I would be interested to hear how long it took other people with Celiac or undiagnosed gluten intolerance to feel better from anxiety, phobias, pani attacks and depression?

Hi,

Among many other symptoms over the last 20 years, for the last 5 years I was dealing with anxiety and continual panic attacks. In the last year it had reached a point that I was beginning to suffer adrenal and pineal gland issues as my body was losing the ability to produce cortisol and process all the stress hormones. This was really messing with my head. It wasn't until I'd been gluten-free for about 6 weeks that I began to realize how badly it had been affecting me psychologically.

About a week before I went gluten-free I told my wife I was pretty sure that I was dying. She really freaked out and wanted me to tell my Dr, but I was in a place where I just didn't care. Part of me was kind of hoping I would die just so it would be over. I never actually connected this (until afterward) with any of my other symptoms, but they were all part of the same thing. My reaction to dairy (not lactose-intolerant, actual cow's milk allergy) actually made the anxiety even worse. I don't know why, but if I get either gluten or casein (cow's milk products) in my diet my anxiety begins to come back with a vengeance.

[dhd2000]

I had anxiety and panic attack problems before going gluten-free. Now, two years later, I rarely have those issues and when I do, I can easily trace it back to something I ate. I agree with the other posters about finding other things that your body does not tolerate. I get symptoms from artificial sweetners and processed corn, like HFCS or maltodextrin. Odd, but without these things in my diet, I feel so much better than I ever imagined. I'm exercising for fun, a dance class and tennis lessons, I look forward to walking the dog... After many years of being sick, I"m so glad for the gluten-free diet and a new life at age 40!

Dee in NC

[pinkdljj]

I had terrible anxiety to the point of contemplating suicide. I finally found out what was wrong....gluten and casein intollerance. After two years of gluten and casein free, I am finally off Celexa and never feel anxious. It truly is a miracle. After suffering for 8 years of my life being told it was in my head and spending $1000's on doctors, I found what it really was. I thank God every day that something as simple as not eating gluten and casien changed my life. Spread the word.....