Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS): Leaving Discomfort

 

Do you suffer from any or all of the following:

 

• Abdominal cramp-like pain

• Bloating of the abdomen (often on the left side)

• Excessive wind

• Mucus being passed

• Alternating bowel habits

• Diarrhoea

• Constipation

• A feeling of incomplete bowel evacuation

• Nausea

 

Of course, you should consult your doctor if any of these symptoms persist.

 

Cause and incident

 

The precise cause of IBS is not fully understood, but high levels of anxiety and stress tends to make the condition worse. At certain times, some one in five people suffer from these intestinal symptoms. Irritable Bowel Syndrome is more common in women than men and often begins in early or middle adulthood and can continue throughout life.

 

As well as physical symptoms, those with IBS frequently experience a loss of social freedom, a reduction in spontaneity, and increased embarrassment.

 

Treatments

 

Many conventional treatments (such as antispasmodics, antidiarrhoeals, bulking agents, tranquillizers and sedatives) are often of little help. Side-effects from drug treatment can sometimes occur.

 

Of course, the problem in treating IBS is that the cause has not been fully defined. Nonetheless, certain foods including sugar, wheat, milk and eggs are thought to play some part in creating symptoms.

 

Along with dietary changes, there are natural (non-medication) ways to alleviate symptoms. Research by the prestigious Cochrane Collaboration based on a meta-analysis of 147 patients indicated that hypnotherapy was superior to standard treatments.

 

Recent work by Manchester University Medical School has also supported the belief that hypnotherapy can be beneficial to IBS patients. Our intestines are highly sensitive to anxiety and react naturally in 'flight or fight' mode. Some people have greater sensitivity than others.

 

Hypnotherapy can address the underlying causes of the condition and can often alleviate the symptoms.

 

Alan Gray has been trained to apply clinical hypnotherapy to IBS by medical doctors Dr Rumi Peynovska MD MSc FBAMH and Dr Anna Zohrabian MD PhD FBAMH of The London College of Clinical Hypnosis. He has also trained with Michael Mahoney who is regarded as the UK's leading hypnotherapy expert in IBS treatment. Alan has taken many clients successfully through treatment.

 

Our digestive system is physiologically sensitive to anxiety and stress. It naturally responses in a 'flight or fight' response.

 

Since IBS is closely associated with stress and anxiety, hypnotherapy has proved to be a successful treatment approach based on independent research and practice.

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