Case-studies in IBD

Author Dr. Simon Foulds is a medical anthropologist who views illness in the context of social and cultural life. He is interested in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in both of its forms, ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. He argues that although a complete understanding of the causes of IBD has not been developed, that stress plays a major role. This is represented in the hyper-emotionality associated with struggles to resolve ambiguities in life – and the cognitive dissonance brought about when trying to choose how to relate to other people. His research has produced evidence that when a person with IBD is attempting to deal with a key figure in his/her life who demands conformity through authoritarian methods such as bullying or emotional blackmail, the body pays a price and can bring about both the onset and perpetuation of IBD symptoms.

Sufferers are often provided with a diagnosis that they find incomprehensible, if only because the prognosis seems ambiguous and pessimistic. Some informants describe problems dealing with steroid-psychosis. Some report attempting suicide when failing to resolve toxic relationships. Many choose to conceal their personal history of sexual and/or physical abuse, belittlement and sexual orientation. A personal history is not usually communicated to medical specialists.

HOWEVER, some informants claim to know how a remission of their symptoms was brought about. First, they begin to view their illness as a biopsychosocial problem. Then they find a route to health by rejecting unwanted influence, discover a way to attain autonomy and self-confidence – and in this way develop the means to prevent the recurrence of both social and physical pathology in the future.

Dr. Foulds believes that research in neurobiology and especially psychoneuroimmunology holds the key to understanding IBD. Laboratory studies reveal a connection between a stressed paleomammalian limbic system and IBD in animals. This and other hypotheses are discussed in a Postcript to the presentation of illness careers of IBD sufferers, whose narratives form a major part of his book.

Colitis and Crohn’s: products of fear, anger and guilt
Pensive Publishing Ltd. 246 pages
ISBN 978-0-9866895-0-5
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Contact the author: simon@fearfulgut.com

Author Dr. Simon Foulds

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