Right before an important presentation.
Before an exam or an interview.
Meeting someone for the first time.
“I just went to the bathroom, and I already need to go again…”
Have you ever had that experience?
Some people suddenly get a stomachache or feel the urge to go when they’re nervous.
“Am I just overthinking it?”
You might wonder, but these reactions are actually tied to a bodily mechanism in which the brain and the gut influence each other.
This time, let’s look at why nervousness can even upset your stomach, through the lens of the gut-brain axis.
The Brain and the Gut “Talk” Even Though They’re Far Apart
The brain and the gut sit in quite different places in the body.
But neither works completely on its own.
The brain and the digestive tract exchange information in both directions through several pathways, including the autonomic nervous system, hormones and the immune system.
This close relationship is
what we call the “brain-gut axis” (also known as the gut-brain axis).
That is its name.
For example, just imagining a stressful situation can give you a stomachache.
Conversely, when your stomach is upset, your mood can feel unsettled, too.
As these experiences show, it isn’t only
brain → gut;
there is also
gut → brain,
a two-way relationship.
The gut is sometimes called “the second brain,” and one reason is that it has its own network of nerves, known as the enteric nervous system.
Why Does Your Stomach React When You’re Nervous?
So why does your stomach suddenly act up before a presentation or an interview?
When we feel anxious or nervous, the brain registers the situation as stress.
This activates the autonomic nervous system and other stress-related mechanisms, bringing changes to many bodily functions, such as heart rate and breathing.
One of the places affected is the digestive tract.
Psychological stress is known to change the movement and secretions of the digestive tract, as well as how sensations from the gut are perceived.
So, for some people, reactions such as
a rumbling stomach
a sudden urge to go
stomach pain
a tendency toward diarrhea
may appear.
What’s interesting is that nervousness doesn’t happen “only in your head.”
Your gut, as part of your body, is also responding to the stress your brain senses.
Some People Feel Nerves “in Their Stomach” and Others Don’t
Of course, not everyone gets an upset stomach when they’re nervous.
How the digestive tract responds to stress varies from person to person.
One condition that has been studied extensively in relation to stress and digestive symptoms is irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
In IBS, symptoms such as stomach pain and changes in bowel habits can become worse with stress and other factors.
What’s important here is that it isn’t as simple as
“feeling stress = your gut will always suffer.”
That’s not the whole picture.
Many factors are involved: not only signals from the brain to the gut, but also signals from the gut to the brain, past experiences, your psychological state and more.
So even when facing the same presentation,
“some people’s hands get sweaty,”
“some people’s hearts start pounding,”
“some people get a stomachache,”
and so on: the way the body reacts differs from person to person.
Needing to Pee More Often Is a Separate Mechanism
There’s one more situation:
“When I’m nervous, I need to go to the bathroom again and again.”
In this case, it may be an urge to urinate rather than to have a bowel movement.
This needs to be considered separately from the gut-brain axis.
As urine collects in the bladder, that information travels through the nerves to the brain.
The brain, the spinal cord and the autonomic nervous system then work together to control when we urinate.
In situations of strong nervousness or anxiety, you may become more aware than usual of sensations from your bladder and feel the urge to urinate more strongly.
“I just went, and I want to go again.”
This experience doesn’t necessarily mean your body has simply produced urine at a rapid pace.
However, if frequent urination continues in daily life, or comes with pain or blood in the urine, there may be other causes, so it’s important to consult a doctor.
It’s Not Just Your Mind; Your Body Is Tense, Too
When we say we’re “nervous,” we tend to think of it as a matter of the mind or brain alone.
In reality, though,
your heart rate speeds up.
Your breathing changes.
Your hands get sweaty.
Your muscles tense.
Your stomach hurts.
You need to go to the bathroom.
In these ways, nervousness shows up in many different parts of the body.
That’s why, when you feel tension lingering, try not to deal with it only in your head, and turn your attention to your body as well.
Breathe out slowly.
Let your shoulders relax.
Step away from your smartphone or computer for a while.
And make time when you don’t have to think about anything.
At La HEAD, in a calm, fully private room, we care for not only your head but also your neck, shoulders and arms as one connected whole.
In daily life, both mind and body can stay tense without our even realizing it.
Precisely because every day is like that, why not sometimes close your eyes, step away from thinking, and make time to let your body relax?
We look forward to welcoming you.