does anyone have a fear of not being near a bathroom?
Bella123, This is Johnny G. When I didn't make it, I usually wasn't in a public place so didn't have that embarassment. I had it once when going into this tavern, where I usually go. Luckily there weren't many people in there but was able to clean up in their restroom and aside from the smell...was ok but didn't stay long. I don't know if anyone noticed but no one said anything. I had it once, when I went to this donut shop so cleaned up in the bathroom, rinsed out my underwear and then didn't stay, but told them I was sick and left. I usually stopped to visit with friends so I don't know if they knew what happened or not. A lot of times a person worries about what others are thinking and either they notice but don't say anything or they really don't notice. Once it happened when I was going into church so cleaned up in the restroom and wrapped my soiled underwear in several paper towels and put them in the garbage. Since it came while I was walking, I didn't get any on my black jeans. I tended to where dark jeans so wetness wouldn't show. No light color khakis!!! A couple times in the car, had to wait until I got home. Of course then the car stunk for quite a while. Used OUT for pet odors & stains, which seemed to help and also air freshner and febreeze spray cloth deodorizer. A couple times in the car, when out in the country, could stop in a secluded spot and go on the ground. If I didn't make it, took off the underwear and tossed them and cleaned up and left with no underwear, just my jeans. Sometimes I was lucky and was wearing shorts with elastic waistband and was able to go and not mess anything up. Kind of a challenge with being disabled. Now that I'm thinking about it, back in the summer of 2000, I think, I had a girl and her 2 boys age 5 & 7 living with me for a while. I knew her Grandpa and he had helped me a lot and had passed away in June 1993. He had doted on his granddaughter and her mother so when he passed away, they had a hard time coping. I had made up my mind to not get involved but since I'm such a pushover, ended up gradually getting more and more involved in helping her and her 2 kids. I was her FREE TAXI most of the time. It was causing a lot of stress on me. When she got evicted from her last apartment in October 1999, I let her move in with me. The next thing I knew her boyfriend was living there too and I became their free babysitter. She was also letting some of her so called friends spend time there and I think some of them were taking things on me. I was so worked up, that when I went to my telemarketing job, it felt like my insides were vibrating. Her girlfriends little boy had a diahrrea problem and she didn't take him to the dr so don't know if I caught something from him or if it was all the stress and anxiety of having her there. Her and her boyfriend were always fighting too and I got to the point where I pretty much stayed in my bedroom, in my own home. I finally told her she had until a certain day to leave. I should have made her go in October 2000 but she owed me quite a bit of money for rent and was running my phone up until I finally disconnected it. She was going to be getting a tax refund because of the kids and she had worked a little so let her stay until Feb but then she got the refund and surprise......she didn't have any money for me!!! I told her she had to be out by the end of February 2001. All that time I was bothered with anxiety and diarrhea but was usually able to make it to the restroom. She was supposed to be giving me something for rent but was on welfare. Things were ok until they revamped welfare and made the people work. She was a highschool dropout, no driver's license and no vehicle. Her boyfriend could drive but had lost his license and wasn't dependable. Of course he didn't have a vehicle either. He had inherited some money, when his mother died but blew it all on drugs, pot and especially crack. Although she lived in town and could have used the bus, it was too easy to call me and I was too quick to go. Now that I don't have the stress of her being with me and don't take the Primidone,I don't have diarrhea much anymore. I think I had a lot of anxiety about what other people would think and either they didn't notice or they didn't say anything. I don't go anywhere too much but had always worried about having it when I went to church, which is why I would take 2 anti-diarrheal pills before I went. That usually helped because I knew I was having the problem while I took the Primidone. It is one of my biggest fears, since I am disabled and unable to run to the bathroom.
Hi bella!
This was my biggest problem when I started this program. I'm not fully recovered from it yet but I'm much better. The problem for us is the fear of things. "Normal" people don't go about their day thinking about diarea, we constantly think about the next time we need a bathroom.
The first thing I did was bying Imodium-pills. They are great when I'm traveling or when I'm going somewhere I don't know if there is a bathroom. They last for about a day (for me)and I can feel comfortable for a while. This is not a solution but it feels good to know that I have some help if I need it. This can take away your fear of needing a bathroom all the time and I think that if you can stop thinking about it you won't need one most of the time. When I know there is a bathroom I won't need a pill, there is nothing wrong to go to the bathroom at work or at a friends house, this took me a while to realize but when I did I don't need to go as often. Another thing I did was to write about my bathroom habits in my journal. Sounds crazy but it helped me. I didn't have a healthy way of looking at my bathroom habits. When I started writing in my journal I realized I wasn't going as much as I thought and most of the time it wasn't diarea, it was normal. And the times I had diarea was when I was nearvous or if I had ate something heavy or greasy.
Now, after 9 weeks in the program, I still have problems in the morning but now I usually only go once a day. You can also try long walks, that helps for me.
A question, what is the pills you got in the program? I didn't get any with mine.
Good luck!
This was my biggest problem when I started this program. I'm not fully recovered from it yet but I'm much better. The problem for us is the fear of things. "Normal" people don't go about their day thinking about diarea, we constantly think about the next time we need a bathroom.
The first thing I did was bying Imodium-pills. They are great when I'm traveling or when I'm going somewhere I don't know if there is a bathroom. They last for about a day (for me)and I can feel comfortable for a while. This is not a solution but it feels good to know that I have some help if I need it. This can take away your fear of needing a bathroom all the time and I think that if you can stop thinking about it you won't need one most of the time. When I know there is a bathroom I won't need a pill, there is nothing wrong to go to the bathroom at work or at a friends house, this took me a while to realize but when I did I don't need to go as often. Another thing I did was to write about my bathroom habits in my journal. Sounds crazy but it helped me. I didn't have a healthy way of looking at my bathroom habits. When I started writing in my journal I realized I wasn't going as much as I thought and most of the time it wasn't diarea, it was normal. And the times I had diarea was when I was nearvous or if I had ate something heavy or greasy.
Now, after 9 weeks in the program, I still have problems in the morning but now I usually only go once a day. You can also try long walks, that helps for me.
A question, what is the pills you got in the program? I didn't get any with mine.
Good luck!
It is so helpful to read about people who are going through the same things as you are. Bella and this bathroom business is so familiar. Reading about makes it a bit funnier- boy when you are sitting there, scared out of your wits about something totally natural, you feel pretty alone.
I had chronic, terrible back pain for 10 years, (I am young too, this started as a late teen) I went to Dr. John Sarno (amazing doctor, very well published, I highly recommend his book Mindbody Prescription), he really cured me of my back pain by explaining that it was me, cutting off oxygen by being anxious....it is the same thing as a calf charley-horse....terrible pain but TOTALLY harmless. ANYWAY, he told me that the distracting pain in my body might migrate to a new location (we who are anxious torture ourselves with all sorts of clever symptoms) indeed it did migrate (never had a single bit of back pain again!) and settled into a TERROR of being sick and bathroomless. I feel almost like passing out, I get sweaty when I feel myself digesting food....I touch my stomach a lot and imagine that I'll either throw up or have diarrhea....it is such a dumb drag. I have had the program now for a month, I feel better, I now tell my friends about this, they are cute, it helps a lot to laugh about it and see how shocked they are of my fear (they all usually laugh, one of my friends actually says she likes having diarrea once in awhile, makes her feel "cleaned out"...I almost died, this girl is stunning, smart....funny how different people can be). I have another friend who goes to work when she is sick, she could not care less, she trusts her mind and her body....she is calm....she'll laugh about "not feeling so good" with her boss...
I've tried anti-anxiety meds, they seem a bit on the useless side, I agree with Lucinda, this is a process of de-mystifying anxiety. I recommmend to anyone out there Immodium AD, you can actually safely take it, I do a few times a week before going out to a restaurant....it works perfectly (I actually hardly ever get sick, I just think about it a lot). Also, I am a vegetarian and a New Yorker (which is great for restaurants) and contrary to our bad reputation for being rude, chef's here are always nice about simplifying food....pasta with just olive oil, some veggies and a little parmesan will NEVER make you sick.
I have a friend who is an EMT, it helps to remember that people in the world look after eachother, you are not totally alone, it's so good to have a sense of humor about it, to tell people "I have the dumbest fears about getting sick, it is almost funny blah blah." I wonder how Bella is doing? Let us know. Good luck all you fellow, funny sufferers of the seemingly endless "what ifs"
I had chronic, terrible back pain for 10 years, (I am young too, this started as a late teen) I went to Dr. John Sarno (amazing doctor, very well published, I highly recommend his book Mindbody Prescription), he really cured me of my back pain by explaining that it was me, cutting off oxygen by being anxious....it is the same thing as a calf charley-horse....terrible pain but TOTALLY harmless. ANYWAY, he told me that the distracting pain in my body might migrate to a new location (we who are anxious torture ourselves with all sorts of clever symptoms) indeed it did migrate (never had a single bit of back pain again!) and settled into a TERROR of being sick and bathroomless. I feel almost like passing out, I get sweaty when I feel myself digesting food....I touch my stomach a lot and imagine that I'll either throw up or have diarrhea....it is such a dumb drag. I have had the program now for a month, I feel better, I now tell my friends about this, they are cute, it helps a lot to laugh about it and see how shocked they are of my fear (they all usually laugh, one of my friends actually says she likes having diarrea once in awhile, makes her feel "cleaned out"...I almost died, this girl is stunning, smart....funny how different people can be). I have another friend who goes to work when she is sick, she could not care less, she trusts her mind and her body....she is calm....she'll laugh about "not feeling so good" with her boss...
I've tried anti-anxiety meds, they seem a bit on the useless side, I agree with Lucinda, this is a process of de-mystifying anxiety. I recommmend to anyone out there Immodium AD, you can actually safely take it, I do a few times a week before going out to a restaurant....it works perfectly (I actually hardly ever get sick, I just think about it a lot). Also, I am a vegetarian and a New Yorker (which is great for restaurants) and contrary to our bad reputation for being rude, chef's here are always nice about simplifying food....pasta with just olive oil, some veggies and a little parmesan will NEVER make you sick.
I have a friend who is an EMT, it helps to remember that people in the world look after eachother, you are not totally alone, it's so good to have a sense of humor about it, to tell people "I have the dumbest fears about getting sick, it is almost funny blah blah." I wonder how Bella is doing? Let us know. Good luck all you fellow, funny sufferers of the seemingly endless "what ifs"
Hey everyone, i just saw all the posts on here wow i'm not alone 
i have been doing very good of course still feel sick and anxious at time,but who doesn't u know. but i have been doing very well with the program:) hey Brooklyn ur my neighbor lol i live in new jersey. i was like cool someone that's from around here. yes because of this lovely disorder i never go to new york but i will one day. i mean i have before but that was a long time ago but i did manage to go to jersey city on the train and drive down the shore, so new york is one of my goals later on as well. i bet once i start going there i won't want to leave lol. i'm now on lesson 2 and i've changed a lot and for the better:) i also bought a new cookbook called "Healthy Cooking for IBS" from Barnes and Nobles. I'm going to take a better look at it today and see if it helps me, my problem is laying off the junk food lol. and boy i wonder why my stomach hurts so much lol. i also believe being anxious and nervous has A LOT to do with IBS as well. so far from what i've read in the book it seems to be very detail oriented. You guys should check out the book and we'll compare cooking notes lol. maybe it will help us feel better. well thank you guys for sharing your stories with me it does make me feel better to know hey i'm not the only one going through this stuff, a lot of people are worrying about the same thing when in reality we should not even be worrying, we have to have that mentality of who cares. hope to hear from you all and hope all of you are doing well
i have been doing very good of course still feel sick and anxious at time,but who doesn't u know. but i have been doing very well with the program:) hey Brooklyn ur my neighbor lol i live in new jersey. i was like cool someone that's from around here. yes because of this lovely disorder i never go to new york but i will one day. i mean i have before but that was a long time ago but i did manage to go to jersey city on the train and drive down the shore, so new york is one of my goals later on as well. i bet once i start going there i won't want to leave lol. i'm now on lesson 2 and i've changed a lot and for the better:) i also bought a new cookbook called "Healthy Cooking for IBS" from Barnes and Nobles. I'm going to take a better look at it today and see if it helps me, my problem is laying off the junk food lol. and boy i wonder why my stomach hurts so much lol. i also believe being anxious and nervous has A LOT to do with IBS as well. so far from what i've read in the book it seems to be very detail oriented. You guys should check out the book and we'll compare cooking notes lol. maybe it will help us feel better. well thank you guys for sharing your stories with me it does make me feel better to know hey i'm not the only one going through this stuff, a lot of people are worrying about the same thing when in reality we should not even be worrying, we have to have that mentality of who cares. hope to hear from you all and hope all of you are doing well hi bella-
so funny to read your post, would you believe I get scared to leave New York City? It's so funny what you train yourself to be scared of. No one in the world feels totally safe coming here, and I am afraid to leave....anxiety is so weird. I was so glad you posted originally, because the sickness/bathroom thing really is my biggest fear. It helps so much to be busy and of course to see that others have the same problem. Do you have any other symptoms or obsessions? I am glad you are going to cook for yourself. I think it is really important to relax a bit though. I got myself so worked up that I only ate REALLY REALLY healthy food (I am a vegetarian, I would eat a salad EVERY SINGLE NITE, no oil, fried food, NEVER had a soda, no heavy things....blah blah blah....so many "fresh" things, you'd have thought I was a rabbit) and had ZERO fun....was very rigid about everything. I actually know that IBS is in the head, it really is. I can turn it off completely when I am happy and distracted. In the 70's there was a huge epidemic of ulcers, now it is gone, replaced by IBS....our mind/body connection is incredible.
Keep my updated!!
so funny to read your post, would you believe I get scared to leave New York City? It's so funny what you train yourself to be scared of. No one in the world feels totally safe coming here, and I am afraid to leave....anxiety is so weird. I was so glad you posted originally, because the sickness/bathroom thing really is my biggest fear. It helps so much to be busy and of course to see that others have the same problem. Do you have any other symptoms or obsessions? I am glad you are going to cook for yourself. I think it is really important to relax a bit though. I got myself so worked up that I only ate REALLY REALLY healthy food (I am a vegetarian, I would eat a salad EVERY SINGLE NITE, no oil, fried food, NEVER had a soda, no heavy things....blah blah blah....so many "fresh" things, you'd have thought I was a rabbit) and had ZERO fun....was very rigid about everything. I actually know that IBS is in the head, it really is. I can turn it off completely when I am happy and distracted. In the 70's there was a huge epidemic of ulcers, now it is gone, replaced by IBS....our mind/body connection is incredible.
Keep my updated!!
hey Brooklyn, how are you? i'm doing really good i've been doing more social things lately. Like going to the movies, went to the Portuguese Feast here in Newark last week, going grocery shopping, and hanging out with friends:) and a bunch of other stuff so i'm really happy and grateful for this program and also grateful to God with all the help i'm getting Well today is my first day of not eating junk food. (I've said this at least 10 times in the last month)lol. But today is going to be different, i notice a change when i eat junk food and when i don't even for a few hours. And overall i rather just not eat the junk food and feel better and it enables me to go out and do more when i'm not sick so it's really worth it in the long run. So far so good today no junk, it's when i leave work that the cravings hit me but i won't cave in, i think i'm going to need my very own little support group with this one lol. i'm also very excited on this new journey because i know it will be very hard for me at times but i can do it and it will eventually get easier. I know by changing my diet my anxiety and feeling sick will decrease a lot. How's everything with you? you are also right about the mind/body connection, if we are nervous we are gonna be more sick than normal, i've noticed that too, and when we feel safe and calm we don't get as sick. so it's a bunch of factors i believe. and so is if u eat crap all day ur gonna feel sick and anxious lol. well the cook book i bought i'm not even looking at it cuz it just makes me crazy lol. well hope all is well with you and write back if ya can
i've been doing more social things lately. Like going to the movies, went to the Portuguese Feast here in Newark last week, going grocery shopping, and hanging out with friends:) and a bunch of other stuff so i'm really happy and grateful for this program and also grateful to God with all the help i'm getting Well today is my first day of not eating junk food. (I've said this at least 10 times in the last month)lol. But today is going to be different, i notice a change when i eat junk food and when i don't even for a few hours. And overall i rather just not eat the junk food and feel better and it enables me to go out and do more when i'm not sick so it's really worth it in the long run. So far so good today no junk, it's when i leave work that the cravings hit me but i won't cave in, i think i'm going to need my very own little support group with this one lol. i'm also very excited on this new journey because i know it will be very hard for me at times but i can do it and it will eventually get easier. I know by changing my diet my anxiety and feeling sick will decrease a lot. How's everything with you? you are also right about the mind/body connection, if we are nervous we are gonna be more sick than normal, i've noticed that too, and when we feel safe and calm we don't get as sick. so it's a bunch of factors i believe. and so is if u eat crap all day ur gonna feel sick and anxious lol. well the cook book i bought i'm not even looking at it cuz it just makes me crazy lol. well hope all is well with you and write back if ya can Hi all, I just received my program yesterday and just watched the getting started video today. I'm hopeful that I'll make a lot of progress through the program.
The bathroom issue is my biggest fear. It's the driving force behind much of my anxiety.
This is the first time I've ever seen someone else express the same fears. The fear has controlled my life for a long time. I don't avoid all situations because of this fear, but when I force myself to I never fully relax and enjoy myself. The fear is always in the back of my mind...uggh.
I was diagnosed with IBS but I believe mine is driven totally by anxiety. I actually just fear going to the bathroom in public period (#2 only). When I started having IBS problems I had HORRIBLE stomach cramps that would result in diahrea. It was totally debilitating and the thought of that happening in public horrified me. Even now that I don't have diahrea that frequently I still fear just going in public or in peoples homes where someone would know I went to the bathroom (so ridiculous). I try to remind myself that everybody poops.
It is a daily consideration for everything I do and makes me balk at going out and doing things way too much. It's so frustrating.
As much as I would never wish this on anyone it is comforting to see that other people experience the same thing. It's definitely not something easy to explain to someone that has never felt that way. If I can just get over this it would make a HUGE impact on my life. I'm so jealous of those calm and relaxed poopers!
The bathroom issue is my biggest fear. It's the driving force behind much of my anxiety.
This is the first time I've ever seen someone else express the same fears. The fear has controlled my life for a long time. I don't avoid all situations because of this fear, but when I force myself to I never fully relax and enjoy myself. The fear is always in the back of my mind...uggh.
I was diagnosed with IBS but I believe mine is driven totally by anxiety. I actually just fear going to the bathroom in public period (#2 only). When I started having IBS problems I had HORRIBLE stomach cramps that would result in diahrea. It was totally debilitating and the thought of that happening in public horrified me. Even now that I don't have diahrea that frequently I still fear just going in public or in peoples homes where someone would know I went to the bathroom (so ridiculous). I try to remind myself that everybody poops.
It is a daily consideration for everything I do and makes me balk at going out and doing things way too much. It's so frustrating.
As much as I would never wish this on anyone it is comforting to see that other people experience the same thing. It's definitely not something easy to explain to someone that has never felt that way. If I can just get over this it would make a HUGE impact on my life. I'm so jealous of those calm and relaxed poopers!
hey Tresgatos:) how are you? wow it does feel good to know someone else is exactly like you, even though u don't wish this on anyone you know. i am doing A LOT better though so i'm very
happy:) this program has helped me so much from the first week i got the program i changed so much and for the better so i know it'll do the same for you:) it helps when u actually don't think too much about it, i've noticed. or if u do think about it, the coping skills help and you realize you are one strong person well keep me updated and hope all is well and thx for the post
happy:) this program has helped me so much from the first week i got the program i changed so much and for the better so i know it'll do the same for you:) it helps when u actually don't think too much about it, i've noticed. or if u do think about it, the coping skills help and you realize you are one strong person
well keep me updated and hope all is well and thx for the post I CAN TOTALLY RELATE!!!!! I have dealt with this problem since being in high school. It has kept me from presuing any kind of career. I did a 10 month college course which was difficult. I'd wake up 3 hours before school so I could go to the bathroom like 5 times before leaving and hoping that I wouldn't have to go in the middle of class. I would take imodium if it got really bad but then after like 2 days of not going to the bathroom it would be just as bad again. It's not healthy to be constantly taking those kinds of meds. I can't control it at all I get too stressed out about it. Can anyone offer me some help. Who has done this program and have you found it useful, especially with something like this? Thanks
Sounds like we ought to start our own "fear of ibs club", huh? My biggest fear is not being near a bathroom if I need one, and I do need one sometimes IMMEDIATELY! I know my IBS is mostly driven by my anxiety - the more worried I get (like when I have to ride in a car with others or go on a trip) about my IBS kicking in, the more likely it is that it will happen. Some things that help: positive thinking, doing the relaxation tape, exercise, eating right, and if I'm going to be in a car for a long period of time, I take immodium. I've lived with this for over ten years and for the most part it hasn't restricted my life, but there are days! I've also found that if I just tell people about it, it takes alot of the stress off. Remember the one tape where the lady was saying she was so tired of hiding her anxiety problems that she finally started telling people? I recently did that after reaching that same point. I was going on a car trip with another gal I didn't know very well. I told her I wanted to drive because whenever I get stressed out, I have "stomach problems" and sometimes have to stop right away. She just laughed and said "that happens to me too sometimes". I felt alot more relaxed going after that. We need to remember that everyone has something to deal with and it could always be worse! Most people are too busy worrying about their own problems to notice ours.