Part1 Recap:
Effect of Mental Disturbances on Digestive System and Metabolism, Ayurveda approach in dealing them – Part1: Click the link
http://wp.me/puHAD-dE
Part 2
How do mental disturbances affect the Gastro-Intestinal system?
Intestines and stomach have nerve tissues and fibres more than that in the entire spinal cord. Therefore the Gastro-Intestinal system is called a mini-brain.
When the mind is disturbed in conditions like stress, depression, anxiety etc, the brain releases lots of chemicals and hormones into our Gastro-Intestinal tract or Mini-Brain. These chemicals and hormones may either increase or decrease the functions of the Gastro-Intestinal system.
Ayurveda reads these disturbances as the mutual pathological affliction of Prana, Samana and Vyana Vayu’s which in due course of time may have a very disturbing impact on the other Dosha’s and (their subtypes) which in turn will tend to attack the susceptible tissues and initiate the disease process.
Disturbances of Big Brain (Nervous system) and the mind faculty will hamper the smooth functioning of Mini-Brain (GI System) as it does with other systems of the body. The reverse is also possible. Many GI and metabolic diseases lead to mental disturbances and diseases.
What Gastro Intestinal and Metabolic Diseases are manifested due to Mental Disturbances?
Many GI and Metabolic diseases are manifested due to mental disturbances. I would like to enumerate the most common ones encountered in clinical practice
- Functional GI Disorders:
In these disorders there will be no problem in the organ but there will be functional disturbances
Example: Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Nervous Stomach
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Symptoms:
- Diarrhoea with cramping / Constipation or / both
- Recurrent and regular discomfort in the abdomen (belly, tummy)
- Pain abdomen (Belly, tummy)
- Bloating (feeling of fullness in the tummy)
- Noises and gases
Causes:
- Anxiety and Depression are often direct causes for Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Attending a sick mind and bringing it on track is more essential than attending the intestine. Here the intestines are troubled constantly by a diseased mind.
- Smoking due to tensions might trigger episodes of IBS
- Some women have episodes of IBS during menstrual periods (otherwise they will be normal)
Nervous Stomach
In this condition the stomach will be misbehaving and will be very troublesome. The signs and symptoms will be a mixed bag and unpredictable many times.
Diagnostic tests fail to identify a particular cause or causes for stomach related illness
Symptoms:
- Fullness of stomach
- Bloating
- Belching
- Flatulence (feeling of gases or urge to release them)
- Acid reflux (sour things coming up from stomach to mouth, burning the stomach, chest and mouth)
- Nausea (sensation to vomit) and heartburn
- Stomach pain with or without bloating
- Early repletion or satiety after meals (feeling as if the stomach is full after taking only a small quantity of food)
Indigestion or Non-ulcer Dyspepsia (Functional, Nervous or Non-organic disorder of stomach)
This is also a disturbing and annoying condition affecting the functions of the stomach though the organ as a whole may be healthy. It can be included under Nervous stomach.
Symptoms:
- Pain abdomen (tummy) with nausea (vomiting sensation) and or bloating after meals
- Symptoms predominantly present at the morning times (characteristic)
- Pain or Nausea may occur on walking
- Patient may give a history of pellet-like stools and incomplete evacuation of stools (colonic dys-motility)
- Fullness of stomach
- Belching
- Flatulence
- Heart-burn
- Early repletion
Important features:
- Pain / discomfort are not episodic. They tend to occur daily for long periods of time.
- Pain may persist throughout the day unaffected by food, antacids or bowel moments. Food on the other hand may provoke pain.
- Diffuse pain – When asked about the pain, we can see the patient making sweeping movements of hand over abdomen. Pain is referred to more than one site
- Vomiting – Provides no relief. Patient cannot eat for hours afterwards (unlike ulcers)
Young women (generally less than 40 years of age) predominantly suffer from Non-Ulcer Dyspepsia.
Women suffer more than Men (2:1 Ratio)
Generalized Motility Disorder
Generalized Motility Disorders are those which present themselves with combined symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Non-Ulcer Dyspepsia
Psychogenic Vomiting
As the name itself suggests, the vomiting occurs due to mental disturbance and not due to organic defect of the stomach or infections.
It is common in Anxiety Neurosis and Depression
Symptoms:
- Vomiting and related complaints are very common on waking up at morning. The complaints are not usually present in the later part of the day.
- Complaints are also common immediately after breakfast.
- Little or no weight loss
These symptoms may be a reaction to wakening and facing up to worries of everyday life. In youngsters and kids it may occur due to the thought of going to the school and managing the schedules from thereon, the so called school-phobia.
We need to rule out pregnancy and alcohol abuse before diagnosing it as Psychogenic Vomiting because we can find resemblance among these conditions.
- Somatoform Disorders
In these diseases people resort to repeated medical consultations for physical symptoms which have no adequate physical basis i.e. patients go to doctors and keep changing doctors to take different opinions and in seek of some remedy for long standing physical complaints but the doctors fail to detect any problem related to body
In most of the cases, a psychiatric assessment will show that the physical symptoms bear a close relationship with stressful events or emotional conflicts
Example:
- Somatisation Disorder – Vomiting, Pain, Nausea etc
- Hypochondriacal Disorder – It is a condition of morbid pre-occupation with possibility of having a serious physical illness i.e. the patient has made up the mind that he / or she is suffering from a life threatening illness. They also feel the symptoms of the imagined disease in stronger proportions. These symptoms commonly occur in anxiety and depression.
- Somatoform autonomic dysfunction (related to gut) viz Psychogenic Vomiting and IBS
- Eating Disorders
Anorexia Nervosa (characterised with weight loss):
Anorexia Nervosa can afflict anybody but it is commonly seen in adolescence, mainly in adolescent girls.
It is also commonly seen in:
- The upper class of the society, among hardworking individuals, perfectionists and ambitious people
- In those adolescents (adults too) who want to get slim and skinny and are putting desperate attempts in achieving this goal
- Those adolescents who have developed a fear of sexual maturation
- Those who are amidst the turmoil’s of family crisis
Anorexia Nervosa is characterized by:
- Weight loss of at least 25% of the total body mass in a brief span of time
- Avoidance of high caloric foods
- Distortion of body image so that the patient regards herself as fat even when grossly underweight
- Amenorrhoea (absence of monthly periods) for at least 3 months & Loss of sexual interest in boys (Due to physical over-activity, inducing vomiting or taking laxatives secretly to put down weight)
Bulimia Nervosa
Symptoms:
- Recurrent bouts of binge eating (Eating large quantities of food in a short period of time, repeated eating)
- Lack of self control over eating during binges
- Self induced vomiting, purgation or dieting after binges
- Weight managed within normal limits
(Episodes of binge at least twice a week – eating lot of cakes, chocolates, dairy products etc)
Obesity
It is the commonest form of Eating Disorder but is rarely seen as a presenting problem in psychiatric practice
{Weight Gain or loss and loss of energy, anorexia are found in Depression}
Emotional stress or psychological component can worsen or cause relapse of or trigger or present as a risk factor in:
- Ulcerative Colitis
- Gastric Erosion
- Gastritis
- Peptic Ulcers
- Gastro-Esophagial Reflex Disease (GERD)
Ayurveda too has mentioned the involvement of mind in the manifestation of somatic disorders as the stalwarts of Ayurveda knew clearly about the invariable and inevitable psychiatric involvement in many systemic disorders…that too long back in time. We can find the references regarding the inter-relationship between disturbances of mind and GI / metabolic disorders diseases in the context of Ajeerna, Agnimandhya, Atisara, Arochaka, Grahini, Udara Roga, etc
After knowing how the mental disturbances can disturb our stomach and intestines and metabolism, various types of diseases which get manifested due to such disturbances…you will surely be curious to know about the remedies for the same…and also regarding what Ayurveda has in the offering to relieve these conditions….!!!!
Isn’t it???
You need not wait for long as I will be covering the interesting concepts of treatment options and interventions especially with an Ayurveda perspective in the next…i.e. 3rd and final instalment of this topic….
Photos courtesy (with thanks):
http://www.naturesintentionsnaturopathy.com/irritable-bowel-syndrome.htm
http://formularyjournal.modernmedicine.com/formulary-journal/news/irritable-bowel-syndrome-therapeutics-market-dynamics?page=full
http://bee-ee.deviantart.com/art/butterflies-in-my-stomach-42112816
http://paininlowerleftabdomenfemale.com/
http://goodpixgallery.com/vomiting-photos/
http://www.cliparthut.com/clip-art-cause-deafness-clipart.html
http://www.keralaayurveda.biz/content/why-ayurveda-considers-obesity-be-more-dangerous-weight-loss
http://www.illustrationsource.com/stock/image/281660/medical-illustration-of-anorexia-nervosa-showing-a-malnourished-patient-looking-into-a-mirror-that-reflects-her-image-of-herself-as-an-overweight-individual/?&results_per_page=1&detail=TRUE&page=5
Dr Raghuram Y.S.
MD(Ay), Ayurvedic Rheumatology
Consultant Ayurvedic Physician
Speciality: Joint and Spine care
Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Ph: +91-9480071422
Email: drraghuramys@gmail.com
All About Ayurveda 