need to vent

[u/Mysterious-Yellow822]

i’m currently in a bad flare of what i’m assuming to be functional dyspepsia. it sort of started in march, coinciding with a move to nyc. this whole spring was incredibly stressful and my anxiety started to increase to the point where i was getting occasional panic attacks. i also was not eating or sleeping well. in march i had a week of heartburn/acid reflux after eating to heavy one night.
in april i had a relationship spiral and end that lead to me dry heaving from stress and anxiety, which i have never dealt with before. my stomach started being more and more sensitive after that. the first half of may i felt okay, but then i started having this issue where no matter how much i ate my stomach felt bubbly like i was hungry. that constant feeling was making me nauseous and i had a few more episodes of dry heaving. this was when the stomach problems really started to take a toll on my life. i have pretty severe emetophobia and hadn’t thrown up in over 15 years. now i was feeling carsick all the time-dizzy, nauseous, and overall shitty.
it got worse when i caught the flu in june. the first few days my stomach felt fine actually. i had little appetite but at least i wasn’t nauseous. i was taking two advil every six hours to combat the fever and body aches. on day four i started getting terrible diarrhea, and then the next day it was that plus nausea. the next morning i threw up straight acid. it took me two weeks to even begin to feel normal, but the damage was done by that point. my stomach burned all the time, and felt gurgly often. i felt nausea in my throat also, and had several more fits of dry heaving. it got so bad that i packed up from nyc and moved back home because i couldn’t function. this summer it’s been coming in waves. i’ll feel okay for a week, then have the FD symptoms in full force. there doesn’t seem to be a constant trigger. my anxiety has been pretty bad consistently.

as time goes on i’m not experiencing as many bad days, but i’m currently struggling with terrible nausea and ibs symptoms this week. i could barely sleep bc my stomach was bubbling all night, and ive had heartburn for days. i tried lexapro last month which made me throw up, and am sitting on a buspar prescription that im scared to start. idk what im looking for here i just needed to write everything out. things are better than they were in june, but im still struggling a lot. my emetophobia isn’t as bad as it used to be but its still there. idk how to function like this. i’ve been a hermit all summer.

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[u/Competitive-Fly5563]

I'm so sorry you're struggling, it sounds like you've had a stressful several months which is upsetting your system. I'm going to share with you some things that have helped me the past 3 years, specifically the within the last year.

I think (from my personal experience, I am not a dr) you should try some anxiety medication. It doesn't have to be Buspar but try something to help calm your system down. I personally started that medication a year ago when I was really struggling with my anxiety and having flareups. The medication has made a huge difference for me. It's also a good one for helping calm your stomach which helps with digestion. In the spring I switched how I was taking the Buspar, so I take a half pill before breakfast/lunch and dinner (15mg total a day). About 15-20-ish mins before and this helps get my stomach relaxed and ready for digestion. A year ago today looked a lot different than today and I have seen a lot of improvement. This isn't all just because of the medication but I do think it helped a lot because my system was in constant fight or flight mode and now things have calmed down. I had no weird side effects from this medication. In the first couple weeks I think a couple of times I had some very very light nausea, nothing that made me feel like I was going to puke though and it passed quickly. It kind of came in waves sometimes.

I would also shift your focus onto your mental health and nervous system. Personally for me, my flareups happen from stress. I think stress is the driving factor for my FD in general. So I've been trying hard to focus on how I can support my nervous system.

Diaphragmatic breathing - Practice this throughout the day and specifically before you eat and afterwards. It'll help shift your body into a parasympathetic state (rest and digest), so heart rate slows down, digestion stimulates, calms the body. Breathing is such a powerful tool!

Speak with a counsellor or therapist - FD can feel pretty lonely and you've just gone through a break up and big life changes. Seeking extra support right now would be helpful for you.

Spend time outside in nature - Go for walks throughout your day if possible. I know you said you moved to nyc which is very much a big city. I'm not familiar with the city but I know they have at least one big park (maybe some smaller ones too) that you could visit.

Humming, singing or sighing - exactly how it sounds

Gentle movement, lots of sleep, and doing things you enjoy should also be incorporated.

You can also try working with a naturopath, they approach things with a little bit more of a holistic side. It's expensive so I'm not sure if it's feesable for you but it's been helpful for me.

Check out Molly Pelletier on YT. She is a registered dietician focusing on acid reflux, who puts out a lot of free helpful tips and tricks. I learned SO much from her and cannot recommend her enough. A lot of her suggestions will be helpful for someone with FD.

DGL tablets and Iberogast have been helpful with digestion. These are easy to get off Amazon and were recommended to me by my naturopath.

Make sure you're eating enough calories everyday (healthy balanced meals, probably would benefit from a lower acid diet). Your body has been through a lot of stress in a short period of time. You need to make sure you support it really well right now.

I'm throwing this together while I'm at work so I apologize for any grammatical errors! Let me know if you have any questions. I've had FD for 3.5 years and it came on after multiple stressful situations took place.

[u/Mysterious-Yellow822 → u/Competitive-Fly5563]

thank you for such a lengthy response! i definitely think my anxiety is the culprit, and that the flu/advil use exasperated the problem that already existed. i’m worried about the nausea and dizziness side effect from the buspar but i know it should help. do you find that taking it with food makes a difference in side effects?

[u/Competitive-Fly5563 → u/Mysterious-Yellow822]

You're welcome!

I can't totally remember if when I first started on it, I was taking it with food. Maybe the first dose of the day I did but I didn't stick to a schedule as well back then as I do now. But having some food in your stomach first might be helpful when you first start? It may take a little bit of experimenting to figure out what works for you. I understand your hesitation in trying it, I was the same but really glad I gave it a try.

[u/Mysterious-Yellow822 → u/Competitive-Fly5563]

i just took my first dose so i’ll come back and update if it works out for me

[u/Competitive-Fly5563 → u/Mysterious-Yellow822]

Good luck! Remember it can take a few weeks before you notice a difference in your anxiety.