FallingApart Posted September 8, 2015 Report Share Posted September 8, 2015 Hello, Most of our children have some form of anxiety. Who has a child with EXTREME debilitating anxiety? Do you have something that has worked to lower the anxiety to survivable levels? Our DD is always horribly, paralyzingly anxious but then there are times where it gets even worse. Start of school, Christmas, birthday parties, etc. We've been doing this for a LONG time so of course I know the general supplements that help with anxiety. But what forms, doses, combinations have you taken that have had a lasting impact? On another note:bloated belly. DD has always been a fine size. She's never been super skinny but recently (at least 6 months) her belly has really expanded. Her belly is like a beer belly and has cellulite on it. We've seen this before but DD was too young to notice. Now she is almost 10 and has noticed that her belly isn't like her sister or the other girls. She is devastated by this. We've spent the summer exercising and eating protein. She has a major sugar craving and will sneak sugar whenever possible. But she has learned that isn't a good idea and hasn't been sneaking sugar as much. Her hard work from the summer helped her arms, legs and face have thinned out but her belly didn't change or got bigger. She has been tested for celiac, diabetes and food allergies/intolerances. Anyone dealt with this or made progress with it? The bloated belly is playing in to her overall feeling of anxiety and despondency. TIA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mama2alex Posted September 8, 2015 Report Share Posted September 8, 2015 Our ds had debilitating anxiety in the beginning. He only made it to school about half the time that year (3rd grade). He had to be in the same room with me all the time - including the bathroom. He believed there was a robber in our house 24/7. The only thing that helped was treating for Lyme and co-infections, and this was a very slow, but steady improvement over the last 5 years. He is now nearly anxiety-free and going to school with no problems. Belly bloat can be caused by yeast/Candida. You should have her tested. She may need medicine in addition to avoiding sugar (which feeds yeast). The sugar craving is also a symptom of yeast overgrowth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasu Posted September 8, 2015 Report Share Posted September 8, 2015 (edited) This sounds familiar. Our daughter needs to be with us (or my parents) at all times. Last winter we could barely get out of the house and both parents needed to be present. We feel like we are living large now that only one of us parents needs to be with her at all times. We haven't discovered any magic pill yet, except that anxiety is a symptom of PANDAS. CBD seems to help some. She is also very fond of sugars and refined starches. We have tried to use herbs to fight candida with the extended abx use. We also try to get pro-biotics in either as pill or as kimchee, sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, Edited September 8, 2015 by dasu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emst Posted September 8, 2015 Report Share Posted September 8, 2015 Rhodiola hands down. . Pure encapsulations is a very good brand. Caps are small. Start with 1. Wait about an hour try another. I gave my son 2 1st time, 4 the next -- 4 works for him. He's 12, 65 pounds. It only lasts 3-4-5 hours then he may need more. We now use a time release version from Nature's Plus Herbal Actives Rhodiola -- 1000 mg, the only drawback is that it's a big tablet. Time release usually the suggestion is not to crush the pill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kakrpa Posted September 8, 2015 Report Share Posted September 8, 2015 emst, rhodiola is good for anxiety?? How long has ur DS been using this? Tks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcmom Posted September 8, 2015 Report Share Posted September 8, 2015 (edited) Falling apart- could the bloat be from constipation or some type of irritable bowel? Edited September 8, 2015 by dcmom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
searching_for_help Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 Really sounds like gut issues. Our dd has extreme anxiety at times, and she has had yeast overgrowth and when her stool was tested she had NO bifido bacteria. She also had a form of c.diff, but not the diarrhea kind - she has always been constipated. I'm not sure if the abx started the gut issues, or the gut issues screw up the immune system which ends up causing our kids to be on abx (chicken or egg), but research is showing the gut microbiome being screwed up is a major player in our mental and physical health. Yes, when the gut bacteria is off, you can get some major sugar and carb cravings, as these feed the yeast and bad bacteria. I'd really do some stool testing. Regular docs will roll their eyes, but there is plenty of research to back this up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pr40 Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 might be leaky gut -- esp if you can make the connection btw the stomach and the anxiety has she been seen by an gastro to rule out things that may not be related to pandas and autoimmunity? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FallingApart Posted September 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 thanks for the answers all! The bloat has been studied for YEARS! Nothing has ever shown positive - except for an xray of constipation at 4 years old (almost 10 now). Subsequent docs have ruled it out as not chronic because of the feeling of the abdomen and her bowel habits. We are going to see our ND this Thursday, thank God. DD is beside herself and it is NOT helping with the anxious rages... We've tested/treated for yeast. She has muscle tested as NOT having a gluten intolerance although we do as little gluten as possible. All of this said, I'm not still sure that she doesn't have any or all of the issues mentioned. The belly now has cellulite on it - thankfully DD doesn't know what that is. But at almost 10 this is becoming an issue. We've talked about body image in a very positive way - but let's face it - if you are a woman, you get it. I've asked her for another month of patience (her version of patience would earn any of us a spot in heaven) while we try targeting some minerals that could be causing this because of a deficiency - namely zinc. But given how hard she worked this summer- and the actual change I've seen in her body everywhere else - I'm not hopeful. As for IBS - if you have thoughts on this based on what I've just described, PLEASE share. I believe that I have IBS-C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcmom Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 Fall apart- I believe my younger pandas daughter has/had IBS-C. Tried diet, laxatives etc. Nothing worked from age 0-11. She literally pooped once a week, and it caused lots of mood issues- separTe from but made worse by pandas. Dr put her on low dose of prozac for anxiety/ mood- within 2 weeks ALL constipation issues PLUS lingering anxiety/ mood issues were gone, and have stayed gone over a year now. I subsequently read how prozac is being looked at for IBS treatment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mayzoo Posted September 10, 2015 Report Share Posted September 10, 2015 Just another option: My kiddo got a "tummy" right before she started her menstrual cycle. Now she gets a tummy right before a growth spurt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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