Diarrhea Anxiety Symptoms

Why Anxiety Causes Diarrhea

Medical Advisory

We recommend all new, changing, persistent, and returning symptoms be discussed with your doctor to ensure they are caused solely by anxiety and not by a medical condition or the side effects of medication.

Yes! Anxiety can cause and aggravate diarrhea and in several ways:

The Stress Response

Anxious behavior activates the stress response, causing many body-wide changes that give the body an emergency “boost” of energy and resources when we believe we could be in danger. This survival reaction is often referred to as the fight or flight response.[1][2]

Visit our “Stress Response” article for more information about the many changes it causes.

Some of these changes include:

• Increases blood sugar so that we have an instant boost of energy.
• Stimulates the nervous system.
• Shunts blood to parts of the body more vital to survival, such as the brain, arms, legs, and vital organs, and away from parts of the body less vital for survival, such as the stomach, digestive system, and skin.
• Suppresses digestion and digestive enzymes so that most of the body’s resources are readied to fight or flee.
• Increases hydrochloric acid to assimilate food already in the digestive system.
• Reduces saliva since the digestive system is suppressed (saliva aids in the digestive process).
• Strong urgency to void the bowels so that you don’t have to mid fighting or fleeing.
• Reduces digestive tract motility.
• Tightens muscles so that the body is more resilient to damage, including stomach muscles and those associated with the digestive system.

To name a few.

Any one or combination of these changes can impact the digestive system, leading to digestive problems, such as diarrhea.

Many anxious people have digestive problems, such as diarrhea, due to anxiety and stress.

Also, many people experience diarrhea when anxious, frightened, nervous, or stressed.

Diarrhea is a common symptom associated with anxiety and stress.

Hyperstimulation

When stress responses occur infrequently, the body can recover relatively quickly from the many stress response changes.

However, when stress responses occur too frequently, such as when a person behaves too anxiously, the body can’t complete recovery.

Incomplete recovery can create a state of semi-stress response readiness. We call this state “stress-response hyperstimulation” since stress hormones are stimulants.

Hyperstimulation is also often referred to as “hyperarousal,” “HPA axis dysfunction,” or “nervous system dysregulation.”[3][4]

Hyperstimulation can cause changes of an active stress response even though a stress response hasn’t been activated.

Visit our “Hyperstimulation” article for more information about the many ways hyperstimulation can affect the body and how we feel.

Many anxious people get diarrhea due to hyperstimulation and how it affects the digestive system.

Furthermore, prolonged digestive system disruption, such as from hyperstimulation, can cause persistent digestive system problems, which can lead to chronic diarrhea.

Once the digestive system becomes disrupted, it can take a long time to recover from the flora and digestive system changes.

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Other Factors

Associated with anxiety, there are other factors that can cause and aggravate anxiety symptoms, such as:

Medication

Side effects of prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications can mimic, cause, or aggravate anxiety symptoms.

Talk with your doctor and pharmacist if you are unsure if your medication is playing a role in your symptoms, including diarrhea.

Recreational Drugs

Many recreational drugs can cause and aggravate anxiety symptoms.

Many recreational drugs also have a profound effect on the nervous system, which can also aggravate existing anxiety symptoms since anxiety can dramatically affect the nervous system.

Stimulants

Stimulants bring about their stimulating effect by causing the secretion of stress hormones and other chemicals into the blood stream, stimulating the body.

Increasing stress hormone secretion can cause and aggravate existing anxiety symptoms since they are fueled by stress hormones.

Sleep Deprivation

Going without adequate sleep can affect the body in many ways, such as:

• Prevents the body from sufficiently refreshing itself
• Stresses the nervous system
• Impairs brain function
• Increases blood pressure
• Increases blood sugar
• Increases moodiness
• Increases cortisol secretion to compensate for feeling tired (cortisol is a powerful stress hormone)

These effects can cause and aggravate anxiety symptoms.

Low Blood Sugar

Low blood sugar, even if low within the normal range, can cause anxiety-like symptoms and aggravate existing anxiety symptoms.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Nutritional deficiencies, such as low vitamin B and D, to name two, can cause anxiety-like symptoms and aggravate existing anxiety symptoms.

Hormone Changes

Hormones affect the body in many ways. A change in hormones can cause many anxiety-like symptoms, as well as aggravate existing anxiety disorder symptoms.

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