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How IBS might affect you at work

April marks IBS Awareness Month.

Prudence Wade
Monday 03 April 2023 06:00 BST
IBS could cause pain and anxiety at work (Alamy/PA)
IBS could cause pain and anxiety at work (Alamy/PA)

April marks Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Awareness Month, offering an opportunity to learn more about the condition and how it might affect people in their day-to-day lives.

ā€œIBS causes a problem with the way your gut, or bowel, works,ā€ explains Dr Bryony Henderson, lead GP at digital health service Livi.

ā€œIt’s a common condition that affects women more than men, and it’s usually a lifelong problem. The symptoms for this can be very similar to types of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which is why it’s important to speak to a doctor and get checked out.ā€

According to the digestive charity Guts UK, IBS affects approximately one in 20 people in the UK – racking up to 3.2 million people. That’s a big number, and although people experience IBS symptoms to various degrees, it can have the potential to impact your work life.

According to Henderson, these are the most common IBS symptoms:

– Stomach pain or cramps which may get worse after eating– Bloating and gas (flatulence)– Diarrhoea– Constipation– Tiredness– Mucus in your poo– Backache– Needing to pee more than usual

And if someone is experiencing a lot of pressure at work, things might get even worse. According to NHS gastroenterologist Dr Philip Hendy, who runs The Better Gut initiative: ā€œStress, including workplace stress, often worsens IBS.

ā€œIn my gastroenterology clinics, I often hear patients say it is work pressures that cause their symptoms to deteriorate.ā€

Henderson adds: ā€œIBS symptoms tend to come and go, and can generally be well-managed. Many people have long periods with no symptoms and only use medication when their symptoms flare up.

ā€œIf you are concerned, speak to a doctor who will be able to make an individual assessment, recommend a treatment or refer you to a specialist if needed.ā€

So how might it affect someone at work?

IBS is usually a lifelong condition, but symptoms tend to come and go and can generally be well managed

Dr Bryony Henderson

Embarrassment

ā€œPossibly the most common thing I hear about the effects of IBS when working in an office, is the embarrassment that goes with frequent trips to the WC and having to leave important meetings to rush to the toilet,ā€ says Hendy.

ā€œThis goes hand in hand with a sense of shame and worry that these toilet trips may be viewed as a form of work avoidance. When people feel anxious and ashamed, this can exacerbate their symptoms even more, creating a vicious cycle of worsening stress and ill health, that seeps into all areas of life.ā€

There is still some stigma around IBS, which might make it more difficult to talk about. Henderson suggests some people could experience ā€œpotential embarrassment with needing to discuss personal issues with managersā€.

Anxiety

Henderson mentions ā€œanxiety around having an attack whilst at workā€, particularly if the ā€œtoilet facilities are not as private as one would likeā€.

It might be tricky when certain food or drink triggers your symptoms, but it’s out of your control when you’re ā€œat work, networking or at other professional functions where food or drink is providedā€, she adds.

Affecting performance

As one of the symptoms of IBS is tiredness, Henderson says this could lead to a ā€œlack of energy, affecting performance at work, or affecting arriving timesā€.

Laura Geigaite, medical doctor at Glow Bar London, agrees, saying: ā€œIBS can affect your productivityā€, as the symptoms can make you ā€œfeel distracted and uncomfortable at workā€.

Low mood

Geigaite suggests the condition could contribute to low self-worth: ā€œThere is a stigma toward IBS. This can harm your self-image and sense of worth in the workplace.ā€

Henderson adds: ā€œPain, discomfort and bloating can trigger low mood, and could potentially affect relationships with colleagues, as the symptoms are ā€˜hidden’.ā€

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