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Appetite loss

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Posted 6/21/2012 7:43 PM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone, I am new here! Glad I found you. :-)

I was diagnosed with GAD about 10 years ago. A long time sufferer of anxiety and panic attacks. I went through therapy and I seemed to have gone inte "remission" for many years, until about 9 months ago. I went through an unexpected breakup of a relationship and dealing with other career losses and began having the panic again. Seems as though now, I have low level depression and the panic attacks have subsided but have turned into just a general overal "anxious" feel all day....along with it LOSS of appetite! The loss of appetite now has me soooo worried that I feel like this is adding to the anxiety. It is a cycle.

The doctor assured me that he does not believe there is anything physically wrong with me aside from my brain chemistry. I have been on Celexa (generic form) for 13 days now along with some Ativan to help me sleep.

But I have to say that the appetite is the most worrisome thing for me because I LOVE food and I just cannot seem to feel an appetite. I eat when I can and am able to eat mild things like yogurt, fruit, pretzels, protein shakes and sometimes toast. Other things gag me.

Has anyone else had this and please tell me it goes away.... I am so worried and scared!!!

Hugs,

Mermaid

Posted 6/21/2012 7:49 PM (GMT 0)
WHen I am anxious I cannot eat either...i do force myself bc low blood sugar and anxiety is a real nightmare
Posted 6/21/2012 7:52 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for your input sll. What is strange is that I know during a panic attack, I get nauseous and feel queasy but this is now a general feeling of anxiety everyday that peaks but I have no appetite all day. I have had momentary times when I feel hungry again then I can eat but it is usually at night and probably when I am most relaxed. Aside from that...no appetite. I do force myself to eat because as you said, the low blood sugar thing is terrible!!!
Posted 6/22/2012 5:07 PM (GMT 0)
I had no appetite for a while and it got very serious, at one point, I started forcing myself to eat. It helped! I think you need to force yourself to achieve things sometimes.
Posted 6/22/2012 5:21 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Melodee. How long did it last with you and what did you do to finally get over it?

I actually have been forcing myself to eat. And in the past few days the food has not been quite as intimidating and I do feel less nauseous. I end up finding that I have started to develop FEAR when it comes to eating as a result of this. It's sort of a viscious cycle.
Posted 6/22/2012 5:41 PM (GMT 0)
It continued for months. The only reason I started eating well is because I was getting various physical symptoms...including dizziness and pain. I didn't want to get sick and checked some articles on how bad diet and nutrition can affect your overall health and boy that changed everything. If you know what will happen to you in the long run, I can assure you, you will start eating no matter what.

I think your case sounds different though. I didn't have fear. Will you be able to consult your doctor about this? Because you should asap.
Posted 6/22/2012 5:44 PM (GMT 0)
Oh I mean consult your psychiatrist or therapist about your fear of eating.
Posted 6/22/2012 6:00 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks again Melodee. I am glad it sounds like you are doing much better.

I guess what it is, is more of a fear that my appetite wont come back, so each time I go to eat I am monitoring it "oh, am I as gagged as I was before?" and then I judge it ...I know I need to just let it go. I have found that at night when I am relaxed, I actually have an appetite where food tastes good and then I can eat. The hardest part of the day is the morning.... Normally, I am an organic food person and I did the vegetarian route for years. So I am usually a very very good eater and believe that the foods that I put in my body will fuel it. This is why this is such a big deal to me that I stress about. I want to be able to feel like fueling my body with the best.
Posted 6/22/2012 7:11 PM (GMT 0)
Mermaid, I am glad to hear you are actually eating at least at night when you can. May I ask what time at night you eat? Because whenever I eat very late at night, I do not feel like eating in the morning. That may be one reason. If you eat dinner around 6 to 8 pm, you will probably be hungry by early morning if you have any appetite that is.

Also you mentioned relationship and career losses. Are you working at the moment or are you looking for a job? Because staying at home all day without a job can affect your appetite as well since you are not really active.
I hope you will be able to consult your doc about this either way.

If you were eating healthy, you can do it again. Take baby steps and TRY a little at a time.
Posted 6/22/2012 7:28 PM (GMT 0)
Melodee, thanks so much for your input. Lately, I have been able to drink protein shakes and other things throughout the day...and at night I actually can feel hungry at times. WHen I do I will eat whatever I feel like and it is healthy stuff. Soup, cheese, fruite etc... During the day, I have still been able to do things like carrot juice, soy milk etc. I have even been able to do crackers, pretzels, fruit, yogurt, soup, peanut butter and cheese sometimes. I actually have not lost weight, maybe only a couple of pounds. I have been maintaining at least 1300 calories if you can believe that!

As for the job loss, I am a business owner (designer) and my business had to close to to the economy. So even though I am not in my chosen line of work at this time, I am doing consulting work at a major international company. It is not fulfilling but at least I am working.

I think I have been so worried about the way that I physically feel that it has also taken a toll on my emotional health. Thus as I mentioned, the viscious cycle. Perhaps part of this is just letting go and not trying to "control it" knowing that my appetite WILL come back. At least I can say that I am doing better than I was last week with regards to sleeping and eating.

I think the starting of the Celexa has also caused me some problems as the side effects are "appetite loss, nausea, fatique". My doctor seems to think that once the seretonin is up and the meds have taken effect, I will feel a lot better. But right now I sort of feel a little in the zone in my head. Not sure if that's from anxiety or the meds at this point!
Posted 6/22/2012 7:45 PM (GMT 0)
That sounds like a very healthy diet. I hope you can eat in the morning like that. :) Because you do need to fuel your BRAIN for work. lol

Well you are doing very well...if you have work at a major company. That sounds like a stable job.

Yes, you are definitely doing better. I think from here, it won't be as difficult as you expect it to be. You have a job, you can eat healthy at night, and you are sleeping. That does sound pretty decent. Maybe it is the medication as one of the side effects is appetite loss. And the anxiety is making it worse.

If you can drink protein shakes during the day and eat like that at night, keep it up and I think in no time you will be able to eat a good meal three times a day again.

Keep us posted on your progress!!
Posted 6/26/2012 2:06 AM (GMT 0)
I had to force myself to eat also. I was down to 94lbs. constantly gagging on whatever I ate. It will pass. Once the meds kick in (6-8 weeks) you will get the desire to eat back. Now I can't stop!! lol
Posted 6/26/2012 2:20 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you Sunshine! I appreciate hearing some hopeful news from someone who has been there! What a bizarre feeling this has been for me. I am usually SUCH a food person! Lol... I am actually getting a little better. I have found that my appetite is perhaps coming back in segments. Like I will start to feel hungry and actuallly enjoy eating something during the day. And I am less gagged than I was. So I am thinking this is progress. Even though it sure seems slow! I need to try not to get discouraged that I am not 100% yet and remind myself that this is a process that is not going to change around just overnight.

Anyway, thank you for sharing your experience. I am happy that you are doing much better! :-)
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