The Emotional Rollercoaster of Celiac Disease

When a celiac patient complains of fatigue, anxiety, or depression, people tend to dismiss it. People think that patients are just complaining about insignificant matters. Celiac disease has long been associated with psychological and emotional health issues, but many brush these concerns aside.

The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness showed that certain psychological problems are celiac disease’s way of manifesting itself. These concerns affect the patients’ thinking, emotions, behaviors, and social interactions, which are key to understanding and treating the condition.

Among the many cognitive effects of celiac disease is brain fog. Brain fog is the neurological effect that impairs cognition. Patients become disoriented and have problems with paying attention and staying focused. They also tend to forget things more easily and find it difficult to learn new things. More than 50 percent of these patients experience mild to severe symptoms of a headache.

Celiac disease affects human emotions, which causes patients to suffer from depression and get easily discouraged, moody, and overwhelmed. Because of this, they find it difficult to get a good night's rest and become irritable. Actually, irritability affects both children and adult patients equally. Children can be easily angered while adults tend to be more impatient and grumpy.

Anxiety or panic attacks are another very common symptom of celiac disease. When showing this symptom, an adult patient tends to have a social phobia while kids suffer from separation anxiety when parents or guardians aren’t around. Some patients also experience phobias and OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder).

Included among the most common misdiagnoses of children with celiac disease is hyperactivity or hypoactivity. Kids, for instance, may find it hard to focus in class and have a lack of coordination. However, it can also be the other way around. Some young patients with celiac disease can become too fatigued and lethargic. Most or all of these underdiagnosed patients also show clumsiness and weight issues.

Finally, celiac patients may become socially-challenged; they tend to be withdrawn and avoid social situations. When these symptoms are considered, the common misdiagnoses in children are autism and Asperger’s Syndrome. 

Read on to learn more about the emotional issues associated with celiac disease, and how they affect celiac patients and their families.