Increased anxiety

[Micvic]

I am on day 5 and the last few days have had a lot of anxiety. Nothing going on in my life to attribute to. I have had anxiety in the past postpartum (related to hormones). I think I am eating enough fat. So much I feel nauseous all the time. Has this happened to anyone else. I want to understand cause and expected time til it goes. I am thinking it is due to a chance in Hormones which I know is a trigger for me.

[jmcbn]

I'm very sorry you're feeling this way - it could well be your hormones balancing out as it's very early days yet & how you feel now will be very much dependent on how you were eating before...

Could you post a couple of days worth of food to see if any tweaks can be made? It could just be as simple as adding some starchy veg to each meal...

[ladyshanny]

It could also be the fact that you may have been using food to dull down the anxiety in the past (cookies, breads etc will send some serotonin to your brain which will help numb that feeling) and now that you aren't, you're feeling the full weight of your emotions.

 

If you are not eating starchy veggies, add them asap.

 

On a personal note, after two car accidents and a near miss on my motorcycle, I had fairly severe anxiety when riding, especially in the morning when we would just head out.  I found that if I ate a lot of carbs (much more than normal) at my breakfast meal I was far more calm!

[Micvic]

2 days ago

Sweet potato sausage hash on spinach

Chicken and avocado salad

Cauliflower fried 'rice' with bacon and chicken and cashews

Yesterday

Smoothie with veg and fruit with coconut milk and flax and hemp (couldn't face a fatty breakfast as feeling sick and I can't eat eggs)

Sweet potato and sausage hash with spinach for lunch

Meatballs and tomato sauce on spaghetti squash

I did eat pretty good before starting whole 30. No gluten or dairy and very little processed food.

I am going to start a magnesium supplement and eat a potato for dinner.

Any suggestions would be great. Thanks

[GFChris]

It's hard to tell your portion sizes from what you've posted. Are your meals satiating you for 4-5 hours?  Are you drinking at least 1/2 an ounce of water per pound of your body weight, daily? Are you getting at least 8 hours of sleep nightly?  Besides your anxiety, how is your current stress level?

 

Other specific thoughts:

- Are you eating your first meal within 1 hour of waking? This is optimal for hormonal balance.
 

- When you have the sweet potato, are you getting in at least a fist-sized serving? Otherwise, are you getting 1-3 cups of veggies per meal?

- The recommended protein servings size at each meal is 1-2 palm sized amounts: that's the length, width and thickness of your palm or double that.

- Is your bacon and sausage compliant?

- Smoothies are discouraged on a Whole30. The idea is to chew your food vs drink it, as chewing is more satiating. There are countless non-egg breakfasts on a Whole30 that are not smoothies. Google Whole30 non-egg breakfasts to see LOTS of past discussion threads on this topic.

- I don't see a lot of fat in most of your meals.  Be sure to get at least the minimum recommended in the meal template.

 

[Micvic]

Thanks GFChris

Yes to most of what you asked. Yesterday was first day of smoothie because I was feeling so nauseous with the heavy breakfast. I am eating a ton of veg and as much fat as I can handle. I am wondering if too much fat (compared to normal diet) is the issue with my nausea. I am going to stick with it and hope it is just a rebalance of hormones. Life is great. Was having no anxiety issues until started whole 30. This is why I am finding it so weird.

[ladyshanny]

Did you used to eat a lot of processed carbs (sugar, grains etc)? It could be that during your transition you actually need far more starchies than you are currently getting.

[Micvic]

Not really. I don't have a sweet tooth so didn't eat junk. And was gluten free. Did eat rice and oatmeal but maybe 1 or 2 servings a day.

[ultrarunnergirl]

Nothing is standing out to me, so I'll ask a bunch of questions:

 

Are you anxious in general, or can you trace it to anything particular? Social situations? Not drinking? Worries about the Whole30 itself?

Are you worried you are eating too much or too much fat?

Any new foods you didn't eat before?

Are you getting exercise? Is it high intensity or low intensity?

Have you tried going for a long walk each day or shorter walks a couple times a day?

 

Just a few questions to get you thinking and maybe find something that could be causing this.

[Micvic]

Strange to me too. No to your questions. No new foods I didn't drink alcohol before whole 30. Was excited. No new stress in life. Nothing currently to be anxious about. When I had postpartum anxiety 8 an 18 years ago (after birth of children) my anxiety completely related to hormone change so am wondering if that is what I am experiencing now. Walking and swimming most days. Very strange to me, having a lot of anxiety attacks. Has to be related to diet change as this is the only thing that has changed in my life. Thanks for everyone's comments. Going to give it a few more days and if doesn't change will have stop whole 30

[natusya81]

Are you drinking enough water?  When I started whole30, my water intake decreased because I think I just felt full all the time from all the protein I started eating.  Decreased water intake means I was dehydrated which causes anxiety (at least this is the case with me).  All I did was increase my water intake and my anxiety symptoms went away. 

[Brewer5]

I'd like to know WHEN you are feeling anxious. Is it when you first wake up? In social situations? All the time?

I'd also like to know if you are consuming caffeine, and if so, how much, how often?

Were you dieting a lot before whole 30? What led you here? What are your goals with this whole 30?

[TrayS]

MicVic, how are you doing now?

 

I'm on Day 10 and my anxiety is through the roof. However, I have gone through a lot of life changes recently (lost a pregnancy at 13 weeks, moved to a new city, started a new job - all in the last six months) so it's not shocking that my baseline anxiety is high (and it never isn't, really). It just seems like it's really on full blast the past week.

 

From what you said above it seems like you're onto something with the hormonal changes. In particular, hormone-related anxiety seems a logical explanation given your history of hormone-related anxiety.

 

I've charted my cycles for over two years and I've noticed that when I do a Whole 30 (this is my fourth) my temperature oscillates wildly, particularly if I start it before ovulation. A lot of women report having late periods on the Whole 30. All because it can really impact your hormones when your body is trying to figure out its new normal. My temperature observations have told me that it isn't typically until my last week that things level off hormonally.

 

Everyone is different, still you may find improvement if you are able to give it more time. Good luck, I know it can be really hard to live with.