Try Hypnosis and Counseling for IBS and Crohn's

Video: Is it Heartburn or GERD?

There's no question that stress and anxiety play a huge role in GI problems, and these gut reactions make perfect sense given humans' sensory architecture. Sandwiched between the layers of tissue lining the digestive system are hundreds of millions of interconnected nerve cells—more even than exist in the spinal cord. This gut-based nervous system has been dubbed the "second brain" because it regulates most digestive functions, like muscle contractions, peristalsis, and fluid secretion, without ever involving the "first" brain, though generally the two are in close communication. If the actual brain experiences a stressful situation, for example, it sends messages to the second brain, which releases chemical substances responsible for all that intestinal grief. Likewise, the digestive system, with a surface area as long as a football field, shoots out distress signals to the real brain when things are not working properly. "If I had to take a guess, I'd say GI input [to the brain] is responsible for about 80 percent of our sense of well-being," says Emeran Mayer, director of the Center for the Neurobiology of Stress at UCLA.

Anxiety. Perhaps nowhere is the GI-stress connection more apparent than with irritable bowel syndrome. It's called a "functional" disorder because, though it can cause severe pain, bloating, and altered bowel habits, there is no physical explanation as there is for Crohn's. As many as 60 percent of people with IBS suffer from anxiety disorders, and historically, many doctors dismissed their complaints as psychological.

Not anymore—though the solution, ironically, appears to lie in that direction. Research has shown that IBS sufferers have a heightened sensitivity to pain as well as "motility" problems like diarrhea and constipation. Stress, while it doesn't cause IBS, makes the symptoms worse. Two promising medications have failed to deliver: Besides the withdrawn Zelnorm, Lotronex has been restricted to women with debilitating IBS-related diarrhea because in rare instances it causes lethal bowel obstructions and intestinal damage. This has left IBS sufferers with few good treatment options beyond what over-the-counter medications, exercise, and avoiding certain foods can provide. But hypnosis and cognitive behavioral therapy offer hope.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, like hypnosis, teaches patients relaxation skills. It also focuses on getting them to identify and change overly negative or unrealistic thoughts, and to work on problem-solving skills so they can better handle stress. In a study published in August of 75 IBS patients who were randomly assigned to one of three groups, nearly three quarters of those who learned CBT skills mostly on their own using a manual, supplemented by four sessions with a therapist, reported significant improvement in quality of life and symptoms. A smaller proportion—61 percent—saw similar improvement after receiving 10 sessions with a therapist, but without a self-help manual. Only 7 percent of the control group, which received no treatment, experienced significant relief.