topic Anxiety symptoms and diet in Anxiety

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 01:52:31 GMT

Has anyone who has or is predisposed to anxiety noticed an increase in symptoms when they have gone from eating meat to being vego or vegan? I became vego about four months ago and my most recent spiral into PTSD and panic attacks started 5 weeks ago. My therapist thinks there might be a connection. I can't find any studies online that support the theory however logically the scientific theory is sound. Before this downward turn I was doing fantastically (and have a great bunch tools) and there has been no obvious trigger for this so I'm playing with this theory a bit. I'd love to hear other people's experience with going vego. Thanks

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 02:15:56 GMT

By the way I still eat eggs. Just no meat or dairy. I've been very careful with my diet change and made sure I'm getting enough good fats, carbs and protein from different sources. I'm quite healthy naturally. Although since the onset of this downward spiral I have been comfort eating a bit 😑

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Just Sara — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 02:26:06 GMT

Hi and welcome PS;

You bring up a very important issue for sufferers of anxiety/panic/depression.

Apart from emotional triggers, the body has many ways of reproducing the same symptoms. Our blood sugar for instance, will spike or drop if we don't keep levels balanced by eating at appropriate times with a good combination of protein, carbs and especially fats.

I forget to eat some days which causes my blood sugar to plummet. When this happens, I get vague, forgetful and shaky. My brain interprets this as being 'at risk'. I say to myself; "God I've done it again; I'll have something really healthy for dinner" Uh huh...so much for that plan. I've learned not to panic from the symptoms though; it's just old habitual worry making it worse.

Another body cause is adrenaline; coffee, cigarettes, alcohol and even spicy food depending on our nervous systems. Anything that can 'stimulate' this gland actually. I get anxious when thinking about diet and lifestyle changes, but this is an emotional response as well as a physical one...addiction.

Physical exercise can trick the body into feeling at risk by all the running and muscle building. Ergo...fight, flight and freeze; that's our adrenal glands. The best way to treat this little monster, is to keep calm. Yeah...I know, easier said than done. Mindfulness is well worth doing, it changed my life and even lowered my metabolism, caused muscle loss and decreased dysfunctional hormone production.

Apparently, a lack of - jaw clenching, tensing up, sweating in bed and scrunched up shoulders, caused these changes.

My point is, our bodies are machines ideally fed on certain food groups and movements for optimum effect. Some research on the endocrine system, liver, heart and brain re physical workings, has given me a good grounding for determining if my responses are caused by mind or body.

This helps to create better coping strategies to manage my MH.

Hope I've helped hun...

Sara x

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 02:36:03 GMT

Thank for the reply Sara.

Yes very informative. 🙂

i don't drink, smoke and have given up coffee. Coffee is definitely not one I can keep up devastatingly 😂

I have a pretty sound understanding of the brain and body and the importance or balanced and healthy diet.

i guess I'm specifically seeking out people who have experienced an increase in anxiety (long term and not resolved by just eating something) specifically after going vego. For my own interest but also to find out if they went back to meat and how long it took for symptoms to reduce. Anicdotaly if heard about 6 weeks.

thanks again! 👌🙏

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 02:42:05 GMT

Oh and yes I meditate and practice mindfulness and do hot yoga regularly.

The other point of note with my current anxiety is that it comes from PTSD however it is entirely a physical response. It starts without trigger and without a conscious thought. So obviously there may be a subconscious thought trigger but everything is very much in my body. May days are spend just sitting with what's coming up in my body and I'm acutely aware that the majority of the time it's not chaotic thought patterns perpetuating the body response. I'm quite calm in my mind. My body is running the show. This is very new to me as usually my triggers are a significant event.

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Just Sara — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 03:04:14 GMT

Hi again PS;

I hear you...I guess that's not a great consolation prize though. All I know, is that the shaking is either caused by adrenaline, or something else. Have you spoken to a GP seeing it just as a symptom instead of calling it anxiety?

As I stated, low/high blood sugar will hit without warning if there's a problem. It's also interesting to know, that too many carbs can really affect the liver, which directly affects the onset of diabetes.

Food for thought...sorry, how lame. ha ha

Sara x

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Ken1 — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 03:20:26 GMT

This sounds like a tricky one, Peace Seeker and I'm sorry that this has happened for you!

I haven't ever gone off meat but I made a lot of drastic diet changes whilst I was coping with anxiety and most, if not all of those changes seemed to stimulate my anxiety even more. I don't know the science behind this but the way I saw it was that even if I felt like I was doing well mentally, anxiety was a starving insect in my body ready to latch onto anything.

If you feel like you're equipped already with good tools and mindfulness practices then I would advise asking your GP just in case there is something beyond your control that you haven't been able to identify.

I also suffered from panic attacks and know firsthand how debilitating they can be, so I really hope that you can find the answers you're seeking!

All the absolute best.

Bonnie

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 03:47:23 GMT

Hey guys thanks for replying 🙂

yeah im in regular/weekly consult with either my GP or therapist. I'll probably see my GP tomorrow to discuss getting back on meds again. This constant fight/flight has been going on for 5 weeks now. No amount of mindfulness or meditation will touch it. I'd been been doing so well for so long too. No meds and no PTSD or anxiety to speak of for two and a half years. I have to say I'm starting to get pretty down now.

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Just Sara — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 04:11:01 GMT

Chin up lovely!

One step at a time, be gentle and kind to yourself, and take as much time as you need to rest up after episodes. You know the drill I'm sure.

Even though my recovery is in top form, I still have days where I talk to Lifeline or the Rape Crisis Helpline to help me get to the core of my 'invisible' tormentor.

It's great you're seeing your GP tomorrow, please request full bloods and a blood sugar level as well. Can I suggest you put in a Question to Dr Kim on the Health Treatments section? She deals with many differing issues really well and is a great free resource for members.

You're doing great! You're on here taking the incentive and being proactive in your MH. Massive kudos and respect!

Warm thoughts...

Sara (hug)

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 04:15:10 GMT

Thanks so much Sara 🙏 You're a beautiful soul. I'll def ask Dr Kim too ☺

Anxiety symptoms and diet

CMF — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 04:25:10 GMT

Hi PS,

Great question. I would lean towards yes. I'm no expert on diet and nutrition but i do know that some white meats ie chicken and turkey contain tryptophan which is said to help anxiety and promote calm and help with sleep. Turkey in particular is good for this. I have been told by someone who reads a lot about nutrition that red meat contains natural anti depressants also. If you are vegan you need to make sure you are getting enough iron and vitamin d as these affect mood also. Do you eat fish at all? I have started taking fish oil and do believe it has helped. I was feeling quite fuzzy and had a foggy head but it has since eased quite a fair bit.

I think you prefer to be vegan then you need to make sure you are replacing the minerals and vitamins you would get from meat but in a natural way ie good wholesome real foods, not synthetic vitamins and fortified foods.

Hope this helps and you feel better soon.

cmf

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Just Sara — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 04:45:35 GMT

Great reply CMF! (Can I call you Comfy?)

I got so much from your info...thanks heaps hun! I have a frozen turkey breast in the freezer; I might take it out for tomorrow...love cranberries with it too, yum!

Keep your spirits up PS...Mwah!

Anxiety symptoms and diet

CMF — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 05:22:35 GMT

Sara,

Yes you can call me COMFY lol.

Many, many, many years ago when we lived off the land and 'organic' foods, not processed, modified foods with preservatives and sprays etc we were better off. Our bodies absorb all these chemicals.

cmf

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 05:57:54 GMT

Thanks CMF

i have recently read up about tryptophan too and that it's in turkey and chicken. Apparently it's also in eggs. I currently have two a day. So not sure if that's enough. I'm considering chicken soup tonight for sure.

I guess I'm resting on the fact that as humans evolved the higher parts of their brain like the frontal cortex, this was a time in our evolution where meat was a very important part of our diet. Meat has many aspects that are beneficial to brain health. Being someone with trauma, the fact is my brain has changed. And perhaps taking meat away, even though I was feeling great, has left a deficit of a combo of micro nutrients that is impacting the normal functioning of my brain and interrupted its healing/recovery. I guess I'm starting to feel like if I didn't have trauma and wasn't already genetically predisposed to anxiety, perhaps the entirely vego or vegan diet would be fine. But maybe not under my circumstances.

Anxiety symptoms and diet

CMF — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 06:06:28 GMT

Hi PS,

You make a very good point! I would love it if you would look into vitamin B8. It is not found in B complex vitamins but is purchased separately. You may find the studies interesting and helpful. Dr Robert Peers talk about it on youtube.

interested to know your thoughts.

cmf

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 06:10:38 GMT

Thanks CMF I'll definitely look into it. Thank you 🙏 I'll comment when I've had a look

just bit the bullet and bought chicken to make chicken soup. 😱

Anxiety symptoms and diet

m_bel — Mon, 01 May 2017 05:07:35 GMT

Hi Peace Seeker, sorry I'm a bit late to this post! I feel like I'm going through similar motions at the moment. I actually came onto the forum to see if anyone had posted about this specific issue. I've been really in control of my anxiety since February but I had a massive panic episode last week and I'm still not feeling right. I became vegetarian a couple of months ago but I've given up on it for the moment because my body seems to freak out. Serious internal conflict for me. Anyway, I want to try and quit sugar to see if it will help my anxiety but I'm worried it's going to do the opposite. We shall see...

Thank you for your helpful post. I've taken a lot of info from it!

Anxiety symptoms and diet

CMF — Mon, 01 May 2017 05:52:25 GMT

Hi mel b,

cutting out sugar should have a positive effect as well as white breads, processed foods. Dark chocolate (85% cocoa) is actually good for you as is brown rice.

Anxiety symptoms and diet

Peace_Seeker — Mon, 01 May 2017 09:13:53 GMT

Hey m_bel!

Im glad it helped. I agree with CMF cutting out sugar and refined carbs should help. I quit sugar a while back and it helped a bit but there were so many other benefits anyway!

i did eat some meat this week but am really having trouble stomaching it to be honest. So haven't kept it up.

I also started back on meds for the first time in years. Man. That was THE best decision my anxiety disappeared immediately.

I hope you're better soon lovely