This blog is very similar to many currently being written around by bloggers around the world.
The difference with here is the impact on many of us while managing a chronic illness which for many is unmanageable on a normal day and often overlooked as a minor issue that we are judged on constantly.
Stress is a big factor in IBS and in this day and age it is part of our daily lives no matter how much we try especially during a pandemic where job security and finances are tight. Being in lockdown has removed many ways in which we would normally be able to destress in the gym, social events and just getting out of their own four walls even for some just going to work is a distraction for a time. While creating new ones which we never imagined we would have to deal with like working from home with kids or losing our routines which many of us with IBS rely on.
As parents, it has been exceedingly tough to keep our stress levels down being with your children for 24hours a day, 7 days a week while trying to educate and entertain them. Plus, finding time for self-care or even just a moment to yourself has created a new perspective for many showing more of an understanding for the stay at home parent. The life of a stay at home parent has been taken an extreme with the reduction of being able to go out of the house for walks, socialising or classes. Leaving many families to struggle with a new normal a constant battle to entertain, children realising they are missing a life they probably didn’t always enjoy and the opportunities we all took for granted. For parents with IBS this is just an added issue into the mix with everything being so extreme our gut to brain connection is on overdrive causing pain, discomfort and mental state to be at the worst point that they probably have been in awhile or ever.
I have found that improvement in my IBS and mental state was significant before everything started to get tense and the lockdown was brought into place. Before lockdown I was having to help my family as my mum was unable to complete normal tasks while she was injured and I was forced to get my arse in gear and out of the house at a decent time with toddler in tow to ensure I helped her get the ponies fed, outside and stables cleaned and prepped. This for me seemed to show me how I could manage to go out and get on with things, also showed me how afternoons are my worst as my body tires from the day and more food is eaten to be digested. Since then I have noticed a slow deterioration in my IBS, these days I suffer morning to night with waves of pain and discomfort, reduced energy levels and my period going bloody awol isn’t helping. I used to frequently take macrogol (a version of miralax), however I noticed before lockdown the feeling nauseous and pain seemed to override and I was becoming a little more regular with the movement so I had been off it for 6 months. Yesterday, I realised I hadn’t been properly in over 3 weeks the odd bit but nowhere near enough so I braved it. And boy did I regret leaving it like that, macrogol kicked my ass in a literal sense. Waves of pain, lots of pooping and the soreness has left me drained and tender today, this illness has so much to answer for and to be entirely honest if your religious having this illness would soon end that in my way of thinking.
In some people this lockdown allowed them to feel more relaxed with the pressure removed of having to go to work, the commute and the timely pressures of daily life however alongside this the shopping aspect brought new problems with toilets closing in public areas and pressure to queue for the shop and be aware of your surroundings and people. I have found after researching we have a rise in those who have developed agoraphobia from what starts as anxiety and panic attacks while in environments that get overwhelming and unsafe. Agoraphobia is complex issue which I will not even try to understand but I understand in a broad sense of the feeling and fear of leaving a safe environment where you know where everything is and who is around you trust, putting yourself in a potentially insecure position especially with IBS where the requirement for a toilet can come on fast and without warning is a terrifying experience and leads to the fear getting worse to the point where professional help is needed.
The problem with stress is it can sometimes only be seen as the clear cut work stress or schoolwork stress or obvious money stress, however for myself and others we often do not realise we are stressed. Stress is a constant pressure on you about something often put there by your own mind, way of thinking or from outside sources, creating a sense of stress on your mind to achieve something. I am one of those people who is consistently in a state of stress and on edge thinking about anything and everything. This has exacerbated since I had my little girl, as a parent we are always thinking about everything and panicking about everything from diet to development to our parenting and its affects. My IBS and stress affects my relationship with my family, my little girl has learnt that Mummy struggles and is at her best in the morning for doing things and playing, come afternoon independent play and movies are the routine.
Since Lockdown with Daddy being home the routine has changed which is now causing some stress as the routine now needs to go back after 5 months, this has got me worrying and little one is picking up on this already. Today has involved stress for all of us, so hoping that tomorrow will go as smoothly as can be expected with my IBS and the little girl and threenager in training attitude currently.
#lockdown2020 #covid-19 #stress # irritablebowelsyndrome #ibssufferer #toddlermumlife
Chill Alana, her favourite blanket
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