GI Psychology Services for Patients with Abdominal Pain
At Children's Health℠, we tend to each child’s physical, mental and emotional health. That’s why we’re home to a team of psychologists who have special training in supporting children experiencing abdominal pain and GI problems. We help children and teens understand why they're having pain and other symptoms, which teaches them skills to manage and overcome that pain. Learning skills and tools from psychologists can even help relieve pain without medication.
What are GI Psychology Services for Patients with Abdominal Pain?
There is a strong link between our guts and our emotions, especially in children. Many chemicals in the gut that help with digestion can also play a role in our mood and how we feel. That means that when a child feels stressed, excited or anxious, this can lead to or worsen stomach pain and other gastrointestinal symptoms.
Our GI psychology team teaches children and teens strategies to regulate their thoughts and emotions to better manage their pain and symptoms. We support children of all ages experiencing all types of GI problems. We tailor treatment to each child’s unique needs, helping them cope with all types of circumstances, including:
Managing ongoing stomach pain in children who don’t have an underlying disease or damage
Helping children understand why they’re experiencing pain or other symptoms and what they can do about it
Navigating both a GI disorder and a mental disorder like anxiety or depression
Being hospitalized for GI conditions
Learning they have a chronic illness like Crohn’s disease or celiac disease
What are the different types of GI Psychology Services for Patients with Abdominal Pain?
We offer several different services depending on each child’s needs. They include:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
CBT is a form of therapy that helps people recognize negative or unhelpful thoughts and behaviors. This type of therapy can help a child reframe their thoughts about the pain they’re experiencing, which can often help change their symptoms.
For example, a child may think “no one knows what’s wrong with me, I’m going to be in pain forever.” They may believe doctors are missing something or think nobody believes that they’re experiencing pain. This could make a child feel sad, anxious or hopeless. CBT can help a child reframe their experience and shift the negative thoughts they’re experiencing. A therapist might help a child reframe their thoughts to something like “my pain is real, but I can retrain my body to help it go away. And I’m going to be okay.”
Gut-Directed Hypnotherapy
Gut-directed Hypnotherapy is an evidence-based treatment for abdominal pain. Our psychologists use this approach to help children listen and pay attention to their body signals. Often, they’ll use imagination to help them understand their pain and shift how they think about feelings they experience in our gut. Children are fully in control of their minds and bodies throughout this process.
For example, our team might ask a child to describe their belly pain in words or draw a picture of it. If the child says it feels like knots in their stomach being pulled tighter and tighter, their psychologist will help them come up with a way to untie the knots.
Because children are very imaginative and creative, this can be a very effective way to help them think differently about their pain and empower them to feel control over it.
Biofeedback
This therapy can help your child gain better control of their body functions. Biofeedback measures things like a child's heart rate, breathing and body temperature. We often use an activity that’s like a video game where your child gets real-time feedback when they use their breathing to slow their heart rate or relax their muscles. This teaches them to better control body processes like breathing and muscle relaxation can help reduce their belly pain.
Relaxation Strategies
Breathing and muscle relaxation can also help your child overcome belly pain and manage GI symptoms. We often use the following approaches:
Progressive muscle relaxation where a therapist guides your child through how to relax various muscles in their body to release tension.
Diaphragmatic (belly) breathing exercises use a type of deep breathing to move the diaphragm down and give the stomach and lungs more space and reduce the pressure in your child’s belly. This can make them less likely to throw up and less likely to have belly pain and nausea.
What are the benefits of GI Psychology Services for Patients with Abdominal Pain?
The many benefits of this treatment include:
Improving physical symptoms without medication. This is especially beneficial because medications for abdominal pain could lead to or worsen other GI symptoms, like constipation.
Learning skills and tools to manage pain can help children better navigate painful experiences without possible side effects of medication.
Teaching important skills that can help children cope with stress or difficulties related to abdominal pain and any other aspect of their lives.
What can I expect with Pediatric Psychological Services for Patients with Abdominal Pain?
First, you and your child will have an hour-long visit with our GI psychology team and learn about the program. By getting to know your family and your needs, our providers can better understand the challenges your child is facing.
Next, we’ll meet with your child every other week for 5-8 sessions where we’ll teach them a toolkit of skills to manage their abdominal pain. Our team may give your child skills to practice at home between sessions.
After their 5-8 sessions, your child can continue to check in with our team as needed or on a semi-regular basis. Our care team is here to support your child in any way they can and give them the skills they need to manage their pain.
Our team also supports children and teenagers who are hospitalized for a GI problem. Our GI psychologists can visit them during their hospital stay and help them cope with being in the hospital and the treatments they’re having.
How do I prepare my child for GI Psychology Services for Abdominal Pain?
You can prepare your child to visit the GI psychology team by explaining why they are visiting the doctor and what will happen at the appointment. Our psychologists often explain that they are a special type of doctor. They don’t do any pokes, procedures or touching. Instead, they’re more like a teacher. They will talk and teach your child new tips, tricks and ideas for ways to feel better when they're hurting.