| Re: Can Anxiety cause acid reflux?
I have been told that anixety in and of itself does not CAUSE GERD--it can cause the excess acid in the stomach, but to have it move it the esophagus is related more to the LES (sphincter/valve) not functioning properly (due to repeated acid!!! or other reasons) which results in the GERD/ACID REFLUX or burning sensation many people get.
For me, I think that anxiety played a big role in my GERD getting out of control to the point that I needed regular medication. Most dr.'s will disagree although I have talked to one or two that agree that it can definitely aggravate it. I suppose it's true--it's like headaches and other ailments....everyone has stress to one degree or another and some get headaches, some get IBS, some get TMJ, some get GERD. So that is why they can't say "for sure" that anxiety causes GERD (or else everyone would have it) and I get that. Even now, 2.5 years later, I can be symptom free, but if I get really stressed, what I feel is the GERD acting up. I think it hits the weak spot in your body and looking back (like way back, into childhood) whenever I was nervous, I felt it in my stomach. So I suppose it's no big surprise that I have GERD now as an adult.
If anxiety is a trigger, then, in a strange way, it makes it somewhat easier to "treat", unlike many others on this site who cannot figure out a trigger. Yes, easier said than done, but we all know that there are lots of "treatments" for anxiety, including medication, exercise, relaxation techniques, etc. Then of course there is the best way--treat the underlying issues or cause. That is the best thing to do with anything. Our medical society is too quick to put a band-aid on and treat the symptoms and not the underlying cause.
For me, this has taken years of my own research and looking "inward" at what I need to do. Again, easier said than done, but despite the GERD, I am a much wiser happier person with concrete goals, compared to what I was when I first started dealing with this GERD many years ago. A silver lining to every cloud!
Good luck with it all!!!!
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