Panic disorder and digestion problems?

I've got panic disorder diagnosed for a few months. It was all ok, but since begining of January 2008, when I experienced really severe panic attacks (series of them), I lost appetite, interest in food, etc. Since then, I've lost around 6kg (12lbs).

In the meantime, I've started taking Xanax and things are improving, I've got interest in food again, it takes me a while to eat whole meal, but I eat it in the end. I've got troubles with stomach gas (need to burp) when I'm nervous and sometimes I have really strong stomach pain when I get really nervous about something.

I had hemerrhoids before, but for a longer time I did not have stool (didn't eat). Then, I had stool with some mucus mixed with blood. Then I didn't and then again I did, but it was when I used chemical laxatives to relieve myself.

Could my problems be simply caused by lots of stress, anxiety and panic that I've gone through? I know it can be anything, but I'm asking for opinions, I'll see gastroenterologist I guess.

Not sure if it would be GERD, at least I don't feel reflux anymore. I used to have strong hearburns earlier, for years, but I managed to get rid of heartburn feeling with omeprazole course of few weeks, back in Sept/October 2007.

Maybe it could be I have troubles with acid in my stomach, but I definitely don't have reflux anymore.

I'm sure it is all caused by stress, anxiety and panic, but now I'm scared that it wouldn't escalate to something more (like ulcers or IBS or whatever).

When I'm calm, I don't feel any troubles.. except I have bowel movement very rarely, but I guess if you don't eat much, you can't ... much :)

You have a case of irritable bowel syndrom. It tends to tag along with anxiety disorders. In my case, it made me vomit daily and cause severe stomach pain to the point I couldn't move and would scream. There's a great medicine for the stomach pain...hyoscyamine... It's a stomach relaxer and in a matter of minutes it gets rid of all the pain. Talk to your doc about it! They can help you!

I had the same anxiety problems, and I suggest seeing your doctor. My guess is you might have GERD, gastroesophageal reflux disease, just type that in a google search and you will see what it is or, irratible bowel syndrome. They can be controlled with medicine and watching what you eat. Take care.

You need to see a doc & phycologist & get those panic attacks under control before you develop IBS or worse. This is nothing to mess around with.

Panic and irritable bowel go hand in hand. I started having panic attacks almost 10 years ago. The Doc's gave me different meds to try to "fix" this problem. They sent me to a shrink and a counselor. They put me on Effexor- the worst thing I've ever allowed to be done to me. (please read what other people are saying about this SSRI via the link below). They were all just band-aids for the problem. I will never take another SSRI as long as I live!! I spent hundreds of dollars on the Lucinda Basset tapes for panic attacks- did nothing for me- did tons of research and finally met a doctor who had a brain!!! She gave me a saliva test for adrenal fatigue. Turns out panic attacks are caused by certain deficiencies in the body such as low Epinephrine, high Cortisol, Doapamine, Serotonin. Tell your doctor to order this test for you. It is the only real way to find out what's actually wrong so that they can fix it. I swear I think doctors must be taking kick backs from the drug companies so they just keep us medicated instead of trying to fix the real problem and help us.
Test info:
"Neuro Adrenal 1 Profile" test from Neuro Science, Inc. 373 280th street, Osceola, WI 54020 Phone: 1-888-342-7272 www.neuroadrenalinc.com
The test consists of 3 small tubes for saliva collection and opne small vial for urine. You take the test from home and then mail back to the lab with the pre-paid postage. They send the results to your doctor, who then should give you a copy. If you are deficient in any of these areas, there are vitamins, minerals you can take to help your body normalize itself. Good luck!! DON'T GIVE UP!!!!!!!!! And help spread the word.