CD flare up causes Anxiety?
Question:
James, Pred. definitely causes sleep problems. Then again, I have had sleep problems since exhibiting CD symptoms as far back as age 16, LONG before my CD dx. A very low dosage of Trazadone helps me sleep through the night. I can up the dosage if needed if I "feel" I won’t sleep or wake up and can’t get back to sleep. It has help me overcome chronic tiredness that I lived w/ for years because I didn’t know any better. 
mgbio – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->just thought i’d throw my .02 into the mix. i am on 40 mg/day of >prednisone and i take 1 mg of ativan every night to help me sleep. >works like a charm… perhaps a bit groggy in the morning, but it wears >off after my shower… take care… >jeff > Maybe I’m just weird, but it seems the trend here is that prednisone causes > trouble sleeping. My own experience has been that I’ve been a lot more > fatigued and had an easier time of falling asleep at night when I was on the > higher doses of pred; as my doses of pred fell (such as now), I had (am > having) trouble falling asleep/staying asleep.
Response:
> Yes, I meant 10 mg/day. > I didn’t know that Alsocol can cause insomnia… Anyone else has a > similar experience? (I’m currently on 12 400mg pills a day).
yes, asacol can cause insomnia. It’s not a common side effect. About 1% of the people taking it get insomnia. We’re just lucky, I guess. On the list of side effects, insomnia is the last one listed. I checked out Pentasa and it gives insomnia , too. So I decided to stay with Asacol and take ambien. 12 400mg pills a day? Wow! I take only 6 400 mg. a day.
Response:
Hi, I have insomnia (bad!) from pred and possibly from the asacol. I take 3mg of melatonin with 1mg of ativan at night to help me sleep. This combo works wonders for me. As an aside the ativan is helpful with anxiety, of which I used to suffer from terribly years ago. I haven’t had problems with that part for years but the ativan at night may be keeping that at bay while I sort out this severe flare. Good luck and healthy wishes, NinaW – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > When I went on prednisone last May, I found that I was unable to go to > sleep and my doctor prescribed Ambien. I worried about becoming > dependent on sleeping pills but my doctor told me that Ambien is not > really habit forming. I also had genuine trouble falling asleep > without it (I tried as the pred dosage was lowered). When I finally > got off pred I was able to get off the Ambien as well (for 9 days, > until I started taking Lexapro). > When I spoke of my anxiety earlier, it feels pretty intense. I had > heart palpatation, tightness in my chest, and when it got really bad I > worried about commiting suicide, losing my job, losing my house etc. > I did not have these feelings when I dealt with my first flare up back > in May. > Anyone else use sleeping pills during Prednisone treatment? Is anyone > else in a similar situation. Would really like to hear from you. > Recommendations/Experience with sleeping pills would be appreciated. > (I just tried to take 150mg of Trazodone last night on an empty > stomach last night and threw up. Only got 2 hours of sleep from 100mg > of Ambien).
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > When I went on prednisone last May, I found that I was unable to go to > sleep and my doctor prescribed Ambien. I worried about becoming > dependent on sleeping pills but my doctor told me that Ambien is not > really habit forming. I also had genuine trouble falling asleep > without it (I tried as the pred dosage was lowered). When I finally > got off pred I was able to get off the Ambien as well (for 9 days, > until I started taking Lexapro). > When I spoke of my anxiety earlier, it feels pretty intense. I had > heart palpatation, tightness in my chest, and when it got really bad I > worried about commiting suicide, losing my job, losing my house etc. > I did not have these feelings when I dealt with my first flare up back > in May. > Anyone else use sleeping pills during Prednisone treatment? Is anyone > else in a similar situation. Would really like to hear from you. > Recommendations/Experience with sleeping pills would be appreciated. > (I just tried to take 150mg of Trazodone last night on an empty > stomach last night and threw up. Only got 2 hours of sleep from 100mg > of Ambien)
My experience with pred and sleeping pills is very limited but here goes since you asked. I took Pred for only 3 days in June. I was awake for 3 days. It was awful! right now, I take Asacol for coll. colitis and have insomnia as a side effect. On Friday, I started taking 10 mg. of Ambien and am sleeping like a baby. I can’t believe how much better I feel and how much more I’m able to get done with a good night’s sleep. One question, are you sure you’re taking 100 mg. of Ambien? That seems like a lot. or, was that a typo? Good luck.
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > When I went on prednisone last May, I found that I was unable to go to > sleep and my doctor prescribed Ambien. I worried about becoming > dependent on sleeping pills but my doctor told me that Ambien is not > really habit forming. I also had genuine trouble falling asleep > without it (I tried as the pred dosage was lowered). When I finally > got off pred I was able to get off the Ambien as well (for 9 days, > until I started taking Lexapro). > When I spoke of my anxiety earlier, it feels pretty intense. I had > heart palpatation, tightness in my chest, and when it got really bad I > worried about commiting suicide, losing my job, losing my house etc. > I did not have these feelings when I dealt with my first flare up back > in May. > Anyone else use sleeping pills during Prednisone treatment? Is anyone > else in a similar situation. Would really like to hear from you. > Recommendations/Experience with sleeping pills would be appreciated. > (I just tried to take 150mg of Trazodone last night on an empty > stomach last night and threw up. Only got 2 hours of sleep from 100mg > of Ambien).
hi always during pred i need something for sleep..last time it was small amounts of amytriptaline…now i am not on pred but between all the other meds and the high anxiety of moving back after 2 years..(and a lot of personal stuff happening) i am on small amounts of xanax just at night for sleep..really helps me..no side effects either.. as for anxiety causing ibd or ibd causing anxiety..i think anxiety etc can exacerbate some of the symptoms but its NOT a cause…and having flares can definitely trigger all kinds of emotions… as for the sleep…amytriptaline(elavil) in very small doses(in large ones its an antidepressant..in small ones its used for migraine attacks, chronic pain at night etc…thats how i started it..i couldnt sleep thru serious back pain)..it seems to work usually for me…i am on the xanax now cos i was starting to sleepwalk again(something i do in very high anxiety states lol)… either will help u sleep..but one is for anxiety and one more geared for depression…tiny amounts for sleep wont particularly affect your mood(except that a good nights sleep really helps one to feel better in all ways) take care annie
Response:
> just thought i’d throw my .02 into the mix. i am on 40 mg/day of > prednisone and i take 1 mg of ativan every night to help me sleep. > works like a charm… perhaps a bit groggy in the morning, but it wears > off after my shower… take care… > jeff
Maybe I’m just weird, but it seems the trend here is that prednisone causes trouble sleeping. My own experience has been that I’ve been a lot more fatigued and had an easier time of falling asleep at night when I was on the higher doses of pred; as my doses of pred fell (such as now), I had (am having) trouble falling asleep/staying asleep.
Response:
Yes, I meant 10 mg/day. I didn’t know that Alsocol can cause insomnia… Anyone else has a similar experience? (I’m currently on 12 400mg pills a day).
Response:
I occasionally have been taking valerian root herb capsule at night. Nytol also makes the capsule called "Traditional Herbal Sleep Aid" which contains Valerian. Eases the pain also in my body. Wake up feeling refreshed and not groggy. Check with your doc. before taking herbs with any other meds. Nina K.
Response:
Keep in mind this answer comes from a child with no life experience who has not been diagnosed with any form of IBD or other chronic illness to his knowledge. He is speaking without any experience. mgbio – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I just suffered a CD flare up relapse after my first CD flare up > diagosis in end of May this year. I was able to get off of prednisone > and Ambien (sleeping pills) by end of July and was feeling ok. While I > was on the prednisone it changed my personality and made me this > happier person (this effect stopped once the dosage was tappered off > to around 10mg/day). The prednisone experience motivated me to try an > anti-depressant to tried to become the happier person and I started > taking Lexapro 9 days after stopping prednisone. Within 3 days of > taking Lexapro I felt a surge of anxiety and I stopped taking Lexapro > immediately, subsequently realizing that I wasn’t actually depressed > (taking Ambien while on the Lexapro seemed to have contributed to the > anxiety). After stopping the Lexapro I continued to have anxiety and > insomnia and have been struggling with its effects for the last 2 > weeks. The anxiety triggered a relapse and I have been dealing with > the relapse, finally going back on 40MG prednisone yesterday when > Asacol and Immuran alone weren’t doing it. Thankfully, the flare up > seems to be under control today (finally). Coincentally, my anxiety > seems to be subsiding today (I’ve started taking Trazodone for sleep). > My question: I wonder what relationship exists between anxiety and a > Crohn’s flare up. Does one causes the other? (It think people > generally agree that anxiety/depression can cause a Crohn’s flare up, > but can a flare up cause anxiety?) Would be great to hear from people > who had similar experience. > Why do you want to be a happier person? A SSRI isn’t a piece of fruit, > you can’t expect to chemically alter your brain and not experience any > negative effects. I can’t express how amazing it is to me to hear that > people are willing to take such a radical step just to be "happier". > These drugs aren’t something you should just stop abruptly. SSRIs can > and do effect the gastrointestinal tract, so I wouldn’t be surprised if > the drug itself is what caused your CD relapse. > Now in general, if you hadn’t taken any drugs, I would say that yes > there is a connection between anxiety and flare ups. This isn’t isolated > to Crohn’s Disease. A lot of the people with anxiety disorders are > suffering from a chronic underlying illness that hasn’t been diagnosed. > Our bodies are very sensitive to when something is wrong, and often when > things aren’t right inside our organism, we will respond with > panic/anxiety. > As for which comes first, I think it might depend on the situation. > There seem to be two distinct types of anxiety. One has a psychological > origin, and the other a physical. For instance, if you have a job > interview coming up, and you have puking butterflies in your stomach > days before, this is psychological. But if you are in a relaxed setting, > and you are fine mentally, but for no apparent reason you are anxious, > then you should listen very closely because most likely it is due to a > physical cause. The physical originated anxiety is most likely in > response to something already disordered. The psychological anxiety > however, if it persists, can disrupt your system and cause such things > as flare ups. > I’m sorry to hear you are on Trazodone for sleep. What happens if you > don’t take any drugs for initializing sleep? Why can’t you sleep? I > would love to see you find a method of inducing a healthy sleep cycle > without the use of medication. If you want to reply with more details I > might be of some assistance.
Response:
When I went on prednisone last May, I found that I was unable to go to sleep and my doctor prescribed Ambien. I worried about becoming dependent on sleeping pills but my doctor told me that Ambien is not really habit forming. I also had genuine trouble falling asleep without it (I tried as the pred dosage was lowered). When I finally got off pred I was able to get off the Ambien as well (for 9 days, until I started taking Lexapro). When I spoke of my anxiety earlier, it feels pretty intense. I had heart palpatation, tightness in my chest, and when it got really bad I worried about commiting suicide, losing my job, losing my house etc. I did not have these feelings when I dealt with my first flare up back in May. Anyone else use sleeping pills during Prednisone treatment? Is anyone else in a similar situation. Would really like to hear from you. Recommendations/Experience with sleeping pills would be appreciated. (I just tried to take 150mg of Trazodone last night on an empty stomach last night and threw up. Only got 2 hours of sleep from 100mg of Ambien).
Response:
Hi all, I think that Crohn’s both causes anxiety and can be exaccerbated by anxiety. I am generally a pretty mellow individual, but in the last year I have been through three moves, being unemployed for seven months, selling two houses, and being without all of my friends back home. There was more, but it is still too traumatic to relate. *LOL* I was not surprised when I ended up having a major flare, a re-section and then almost immediately another major flare. I know that certain types of anxiety and stress can just kill you. Ironically, I work in a very stressful line of work, and I have never found that to cause me to flare, in fact I thrive on it. I tend to flare up when I get physically over tired, or when my usually serene home life is too disrupted (i.e moving three times!!). I know that I can deal with a lot of stuff at work as long as I can come home and rest and be surrounded by the nurturance of my family. I know for a fact that when my Crohn’s is flaring up, It can cause me severe anxiety, particulary over whether I am going to make it to the bathroom in time, or if I am going to crap myself and be unbearably humiliated. When my Crohn’s is really bad, I literally cannot walk 50 feet without having severe urgency and explosive diarrhea. The other day when my office building was unexpectedly locked up when I should have been able to get in and run to the bathroom, I was extremely anxious. I have found that when I am in a severe flare I also become anxious over my health in general and whether I am going to survive this damned disease. My mortality seems a little more immediate during a flare of Crohn’s. Then, there is also the anxiety about losing one’s job if you get too sick….that is always a worry for someone with a chronic illness. I am trying my best to take things as they come and I regularly remind myself that "what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger" and that "God doesn’t give you anything that you can’t handle" and that there is a reason for everything. Sometimes just saying those things to myself helps me to just let go of the things that really bother me…regular meditation and prayer helps too. It helps me to calm my mind and allow my body to relax. *HUGS* Ann
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I just suffered a CD flare up relapse after my first CD flare up > diagosis in end of May this year. I was able to get off of prednisone > and Ambien (sleeping pills) by end of July and was feeling ok. While I > was on the prednisone it changed my personality and made me this > happier person (this effect stopped once the dosage was tappered off > to around 10mg/day). The prednisone experience motivated me to try an > anti-depressant to tried to become the happier person and I started > taking Lexapro 9 days after stopping prednisone. Within 3 days of > taking Lexapro I felt a surge of anxiety and I stopped taking Lexapro > immediately, subsequently realizing that I wasn’t actually depressed > (taking Ambien while on the Lexapro seemed to have contributed to the > anxiety). After stopping the Lexapro I continued to have anxiety and > insomnia and have been struggling with its effects for the last 2 > weeks. The anxiety triggered a relapse and I have been dealing with > the relapse, finally going back on 40MG prednisone yesterday when > Asacol and Immuran alone weren’t doing it. Thankfully, the flare up > seems to be under control today (finally). Coincentally, my anxiety > seems to be subsiding today (I’ve started taking Trazodone for sleep). > My question: I wonder what relationship exists between anxiety and a > Crohn’s flare up. Does one causes the other? (It think people > generally agree that anxiety/depression can cause a Crohn’s flare up, > but can a flare up cause anxiety?) Would be great to hear from people > who had similar experience.
Response:
Long story short, I was put on 50mg of Zoloft a day. After a couple weeks I started to feel better and more relaxed. I am pretty emotionally stable on it. The only time I break down is when I end up in the ER with an obstruction. Then I lose it. That is when I think the Crohn’s has control over me now. You could ask your doc about Zoloft. It is mild, non habit forming and pretty effective in people. Tony
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I just suffered a CD flare up relapse after my first CD flare up > diagosis in end of May this year. I was able to get off of prednisone > and Ambien (sleeping pills) by end of July and was feeling ok. While I > was on the prednisone it changed my personality and made me this > happier person (this effect stopped once the dosage was tappered off > to around 10mg/day). The prednisone experience motivated me to try an > anti-depressant to tried to become the happier person and I started > taking Lexapro 9 days after stopping prednisone. Within 3 days of > taking Lexapro I felt a surge of anxiety and I stopped taking Lexapro > immediately, subsequently realizing that I wasn’t actually depressed > (taking Ambien while on the Lexapro seemed to have contributed to the > anxiety). After stopping the Lexapro I continued to have anxiety and > insomnia and have been struggling with its effects for the last 2 > weeks. The anxiety triggered a relapse and I have been dealing with > the relapse, finally going back on 40MG prednisone yesterday when > Asacol and Immuran alone weren’t doing it. Thankfully, the flare up > seems to be under control today (finally). Coincentally, my anxiety > seems to be subsiding today (I’ve started taking Trazodone for sleep). > My question: I wonder what relationship exists between anxiety and a > Crohn’s flare up. Does one causes the other? (It think people > generally agree that anxiety/depression can cause a Crohn’s flare up, > but can a flare up cause anxiety?) Would be great to hear from people > who had similar experience.
Response:
- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I just suffered a CD flare up relapse after my first CD flare up > diagosis in end of May this year. I was able to get off of prednisone > and Ambien (sleeping pills) by end of July and was feeling ok. While I > was on the prednisone it changed my personality and made me this > happier person (this effect stopped once the dosage was tappered off > to around 10mg/day). The prednisone experience motivated me to try an > anti-depressant to tried to become the happier person and I started > taking Lexapro 9 days after stopping prednisone. Within 3 days of > taking Lexapro I felt a surge of anxiety and I stopped taking Lexapro > immediately, subsequently realizing that I wasn’t actually depressed > (taking Ambien while on the Lexapro seemed to have contributed to the > anxiety). After stopping the Lexapro I continued to have anxiety and > insomnia and have been struggling with its effects for the last 2 > weeks. The anxiety triggered a relapse and I have been dealing with > the relapse, finally going back on 40MG prednisone yesterday when > Asacol and Immuran alone weren’t doing it. Thankfully, the flare up > seems to be under control today (finally). Coincentally, my anxiety > seems to be subsiding today (I’ve started taking Trazodone for sleep). > My question: I wonder what relationship exists between anxiety and a > Crohn’s flare up. Does one causes the other? (It think people > generally agree that anxiety/depression can cause a Crohn’s flare up, > but can a flare up cause anxiety?) Would be great to hear from people > who had similar experience.
Why do you want to be a happier person? A SSRI isn’t a piece of fruit, you can’t expect to chemically alter your brain and not experience any negative effects. I can’t express how amazing it is to me to hear that people are willing to take such a radical step just to be "happier". These drugs aren’t something you should just stop abruptly. SSRIs can and do effect the gastrointestinal tract, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the drug itself is what caused your CD relapse. Now in general, if you hadn’t taken any drugs, I would say that yes there is a connection between anxiety and flare ups. This isn’t isolated to Crohn’s Disease. A lot of the people with anxiety disorders are suffering from a chronic underlying illness that hasn’t been diagnosed. Our bodies are very sensitive to when something is wrong, and often when things aren’t right inside our organism, we will respond with panic/anxiety. As for which comes first, I think it might depend on the situation. There seem to be two distinct types of anxiety. One has a psychological origin, and the other a physical. For instance, if you have a job interview coming up, and you have puking butterflies in your stomach days before, this is psychological. But if you are in a relaxed setting, and you are fine mentally, but for no apparent reason you are anxious, then you should listen very closely because most likely it is due to a physical cause. The physical originated anxiety is most likely in response to something already disordered. The psychological anxiety however, if it persists, can disrupt your system and cause such things as flare ups. I’m sorry to hear you are on Trazodone for sleep. What happens if you don’t take any drugs for initializing sleep? Why can’t you sleep? I would love to see you find a method of inducing a healthy sleep cycle without the use of medication. If you want to reply with more details I might be of some assistance.
Response:
I just suffered a CD flare up relapse after my first CD flare up diagosis in end of May this year. I was able to get off of prednisone and Ambien (sleeping pills) by end of July and was feeling ok. While I was on the prednisone it changed my personality and made me this happier person (this effect stopped once the dosage was tappered off to around 10mg/day). The prednisone experience motivated me to try an anti-depressant to tried to become the happier person and I started taking Lexapro 9 days after stopping prednisone. Within 3 days of taking Lexapro I felt a surge of anxiety and I stopped taking Lexapro immediately, subsequently realizing that I wasn’t actually depressed (taking Ambien while on the Lexapro seemed to have contributed to the anxiety). After stopping the Lexapro I continued to have anxiety and insomnia and have been struggling with its effects for the last 2 weeks. The anxiety triggered a relapse and I have been dealing with the relapse, finally going back on 40MG prednisone yesterday when Asacol and Immuran alone weren’t doing it. Thankfully, the flare up seems to be under control today (finally). Coincentally, my anxiety seems to be subsiding today (I’ve started taking Trazodone for sleep). My question: I wonder what relationship exists between anxiety and a Crohn’s flare up. Does one causes the other? (It think people generally agree that anxiety/depression can cause a Crohn’s flare up, but can a flare up cause anxiety?) Would be great to hear from people who had similar experience.
Response:
I don’t see why a flare could not lead to anxiety. After all, being sick we all worry about more basic things like will I be able to find a bathroom in time? What if I have an accident? What if I have to run out of an important meeting at work? etc…. I would talk with the doctor who prescribes the trazadone for you about this and see what he/she recommends. It is not uncommon for those of us with chronic illnesses to suffer from anxiety and depression as well. mgbio – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I just suffered a CD flare up relapse after my first CD flare up > diagosis in end of May this year. I was able to get off of prednisone > and Ambien (sleeping pills) by end of July and was feeling ok. While I > was on the prednisone it changed my personality and made me this > happier person (this effect stopped once the dosage was tappered off > to around 10mg/day). The prednisone experience motivated me to try an > anti-depressant to tried to become the happier person and I started > taking Lexapro 9 days after stopping prednisone. Within 3 days of > taking Lexapro I felt a surge of anxiety and I stopped taking Lexapro > immediately, subsequently realizing that I wasn’t actually depressed > (taking Ambien while on the Lexapro seemed to have contributed to the > anxiety). After stopping the Lexapro I continued to have anxiety and > insomnia and have been struggling with its effects for the last 2 > weeks. The anxiety triggered a relapse and I have been dealing with > the relapse, finally going back on 40MG prednisone yesterday when > Asacol and Immuran alone weren’t doing it. Thankfully, the flare up > seems to be under control today (finally). Coincentally, my anxiety > seems to be subsiding today (I’ve started taking Trazodone for sleep). > My question: I wonder what relationship exists between anxiety and a > Crohn’s flare up. Does one causes the other? (It think people > generally agree that anxiety/depression can cause a Crohn’s flare up, > but can a flare up cause anxiety?) Would be great to hear from people > who had similar experience.
Response:
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