Told to just go on the Low FODMAP Diet, Drink More Water, and Take Restoralax or Imodium for your IBS? Here’s how you can get to the Bottom of your Symptoms instead:
If you’ve been told you have IBS, you’ll know this — but it’s generally a diagnosis of exclusion.
When you’ve had stubborn gut issues for ages, and you’ve gone through the whole pipeline of seeing your GP, getting referred to a gastroenterologist, and having a slew of tests done along the way (which is great, and really important due diligence!)…
To end up with a handful of “normal” lab results and an IBS diagnosis because “everything looked great!”
It can be… frustrating? Disheartening?
You might be wondering where you go from here?
Off the back of an IBS diagnosis, it’s not uncommon to receive recommendations like the low FODMAP diet, Restoralax, Imodium, Align probiotics, maybe Rx’s like Omeprazole or Linzess or antidiarrheals.
Sometimes those interventions work. Maybe in the short-term you find some relief. But likely not full resolution of your symptoms.
For so many of the clients that I work with, what they’re told is just “IBS” is actually a combination of root contributors that have been overlooked for years:
Poor thyroid function due to years of under eating and chronic stress
Micronutrient deficiencies that impact digestive function and motility
Motility issues contributing to bloat, gas, constipation, a belly that looks like you swallowed a basketball by the end of the day
Bacterial overgrowths (like SIBO) driving gas, bloating, irregular bowel movements & food sensitivities
Histamine issues making you feel reactive to EVERYTHING
Gut infections like H.Pylori, candida, and parasites
Low stomach acid and poor enzyme and bile output making digesting properly really hard, often resulting in GI symptoms and distress
(You can learn more about about the root-causes of IBS symptoms I often see in my practice here)
This is exactly why my approach goes beyond symptom management and looks at the whole picture:
A comprehensive look at your health history, an assessment of your nutrition and lifestyle habits, and utilizing strategic labs to help us gather data, so we can make more informed decisions and use more targeted efforts to reverse your symptoms.
Your symptoms aren’t random.
There’s a reason for them.
They are your body waving a red flag that something deeper is going on 🚩
So let’s dive into some of the next steps you can take if you want to look deeper at what’s causing your gut issues:
Audit & Assess
When did your symptoms start? What’s been your personal health history leading up to the onset of your symptoms? What was your life like growing up? What’s your family health history? Do you have a history of medications/hospitalizations/surgeries? What did your nutrition/lifestyle look like leading up to your symptom onset? Did your symptoms slowly develop over time? Or have a clear start date?
What does your CURRENT nutrition and lifestyle look like?
Take assessment of your: stress, work, nutrition, sleep, movement, hydration, rest, finances, responsibilities, mental health, relationships, etc.
This may seem like a lot (and as a practitioner it’s what I help facilitate with my clients), but being able to identify any patterns, onsets, connections to past experiences/illness/medication use can be so helpful to get a better understanding of what’s ACTUALLY going on (which I find is often more than one thing, vs. one silver bullet!).
Investigate & Tweak
Based on your assessment where are there opportunities?
What nutrition and lifestyle areas do we have the opportunity to tweak and adjust?
(Ie. if you’re not eating breakfast and running off coffee and vibes in the morning, this is a great opportunity to make some shifts here and eat a real, well-rounded breaky to fuel your thyroid, digestion, and keep your blood sugar and hormones supported)
This may also be the time to consider which types of labs might be advantageous to find more answers.
Labs can shed light on your root specific causes (especially when it’s hard to discern 100% through analyzing symptoms 🤓*).* Some symptoms, like bloat, are vague, and can have multiple reasons for its presentation. Strategic lab testing takes the guesswork off the table.
In practice with my gut health clients, we look at a lot of bloodwork, micronutrient testing, comprehensive gut panels, SIBO testing, and more.
You can learn more about the types of labs my clients and I often use, here.
Don’t Skip the Foundations
Again, based on your assessment, which foundations need some attention?
Are you sleeping horribly?
Not eating enough in a day?
Is there opportunity to adjust your morning routine?
Are you spending 8 hours on your phone?
What does stress management look like?
Are you moving your body appropriately?
Are you drinking enough water? Really?
What’s your night time routine like?
Have you connected with your people recently?
The foundations are non-negotiable and are absolutely a part of your healing strategy!
A focus here, on nutrition and lifestyle fundamentals, in addition to running strategic labs to investigate deeper imbalances is the secret sauce to the success and transformation my clients experience (even after YEARS of trying everything).
Bring on Symptom Relief Strategies for Quick Wins!
One of the things I implement early with clients are symptom relief strategies to help them find quick relief from their symptoms (even if these are just temporary bandaids while we work on root causes).
This could look like: nutrition strategies, supplements, herbal teas, lifestyle adjustments.
These are some of the top strategies I recommend to my gut-health clients when we want relief, fast:
Make meal hygiene and meal spacing a priority asap. Two big drivers for bloat, gas, constipation, distention, indigestion that I see all all all the time are: poor meal hygiene (aka not chewing properly, eating while in a rush/on a go, eating while distracted), and constantly snacking/grazing throughout the day & not leaving enough time between meals.
Solve for these and your GI symptoms (particularly bloat, gas, constipation, indigestion), will DRASTICALLY improve.
Chew your food well. Put your fork down between meals. Try to take a few deep breaths before eating. Avoid eating while in a rush/on the go/driving. Leave ~3-4 hours between meals to give your body space to digest and move.
Use bitters!! Bitters (via food sources, and supplemental bitters) help to stimulate digestion, support your liver, and promote healthy bile flow. Poor bile flow, stomach acid and enzyme output can compromise digestion, contribute to irregular bowels, gas, bloat, food sensitivities, and more.
Incorporate bitter foods daily, like: arugula, radicchio, endive, green tea, dandelion root tea, dandelion greens, rapini, broccoli rabe.
Carminative herbs are amazing for reducing gas, bloat, promoting normal bowel movements/gut motility, reducing GI spasms and cramping. Think: ginger, chamomile, peppermint, anise, fennel. These herbs are great sipped on as tea between meals!
Demulcent herbs are awesome for reflux and heartburn relief, helping soothe and calm irritated tissue (both upper GI like in your esophagus and stomach, but also lower down in the GI tract).
Slippery elm, marshmallow root, DGL, and aloe are great examples here. Enjoy slippery elm and marshmallow root as tea. DGL chewable tablets are available, and great for in-the-moment reflux relief. Aloe vera can be found in supplemental formulas, or the juice from the inner filet can be purchased at health food stores and drank!
Address Any Relevant Lab Findings
Off the back of any labs, diagnostic screenings, bloodwork, you’ve had done, using that information to inform the healing process and make strategic plans to address imbalances is a great next step.
This is where working with a practitioner, if you aren’t already, is a really good idea.
This is an important piece.
Especially for chronic, stubborn cases. Because even though our nutrition and lifestyle foundations are incredibly important, it may take addressing something like H. pylori, bacterial overgrowth, candida, a parasite, nutrient depletions, or whatever you’ve got going on, resolve your symptoms.
Make Sure it’s All Sustainable
I always tell my clients: It’s important, yes, to address & resolve the symptoms that are impacting you now, but it’s also critical that you establish a sustainable foundation that’ll help maintain your gut (and overall!) health LONG term — so you don’t end up back here.
This might look like revisiting the nutrition and lifestyle foundations you’ve got in place, making sure they’re all accounted for, and feel good and manageable to you.
Layering in an individualized “maintenance” supplement stack to keep your system supported long-term.
Having toolkits on hand for when flare ups will inevitably happen.
This step-by-step strategy is what I help my clients work through in our 1:1 work together
It’s fully personalized, not cookie-cutter
It’s comprehensive and holistic.
It prioritizes the foundations and investigates your root causes so we get strategic.
It’s data-informed, so we’re not guessing.
It works FOR you and with your life (we make it as practical and realistic as possible)
If you’re ready to FINALLY get rid of your bloating, normalize your poops, and heal your food sensitivities…
This is how you get there.
You can learn how to work with me 1:1 here.
>> Or go ahead and book in a free discovery call (via zoom!) here, where we can meet 1:1 to chat about your health concerns, what you’ve tried, what your goals are, and how I might be able to help you achieve them 🤝
