HOW I HEALED MY LEAKY GUT:
Hi, Sharon here – this is a long post but it is worth a read, especially if you have ever experienced gut issues!
There a reason for the saying “follow your Gut” – it can tell you a lot about yourself if you are willing to listen. For years, I’ve had stomach problems – I had debilitating pain during my teen years so much that I would have to cancel social plans. And you know it’s bad when a teen wants to stay home! At times, it felt like my body was working against me, I didn’t understand that it was simply trying to send me signals.
As I look back, it was sending me signals for years. For example, when I had to take a test, I always got a stomach ache – this one seems obvious – test anxiety right?! Well yes, but that’s just the beginning of it. I was not one to process stress very well but never realized that stress and anxiety were actually causing my body harm.
How Stress and Anxiety Played a Role:
As an adult, so much fear and anxiety comes into play – am I a good mother, wife, daughter, friend? How do I make sure I am raising a responsible and kind human in today’s crazy world? Is this what I am meant to do in my life? What about those dreams I had as a young woman, do they matter anymore? Not to mention, as we get older, our parents get older as well, and that often comes with a debilitating illness – are you anxious reading this? Not my intention at all but I’ve gotta tell you, I am kind of anxious writing this 😉
Which leads me to how I now deal with my anxiety and stress that naturally comes with life. Yep, you guessed it, meditation. If you want to read how meditation truly helped me, click HERE.
What does all of this have to do with my Gut? Well, it turns out that anxiety played a big role in my stomach aches and my health.
What Is A Leaky Gut?
According to Harvard Medical Publishing, “the brain has a direct effect on the stomach and intestines. For example, the very thought of eating can release the stomach’s juices before food gets there. This connection goes both ways. A troubled intestine can send signals to the brain, just as a troubled brain can send signals to the gut. Therefore, a person’s stomach or intestinal distress can be the cause or the product of anxiety, stress, or depression. That’s because the brain and the gastrointestinal (GI) system are intimately connected.”
“The father of modern medicine, Hippocrates, said, “All disease begins in the gut.” More than two millennia after his death, scientific research has now proven he was onto something all those years ago.” – Dr. Axe
By the time I was in college, I was no longer able to “go” (guess I should have warned you, we might talk about poop just for a bit) without taking some sort of fiber supplement. When that stopped working, I had to take more and more, etc…you get the picture. My body was becoming reliant on these supplements because I wasn’t getting to the root of the problem.
After many doctors’ appointments and poop tests with Western doctors, I finally found a doctor that combined Eastern and Western medicine and we started to look at why I was having this problem. And I finally had a diagnosis: Leaky Gut, also known as intestinal hyperpermeability. Sounds lovely, doesn’t it?! This term is way more popular now than it was 10-15 years ago, so I was a little iffy and wondered if this new doctor and protocol were a little too “out there” for me – but I was so tired of not being able to poop and worse, feeling like poop that I decided to give it a try.
I was told to eliminate gluten and dairy because these are two things that can cause a lot of inflammation in the body. And when there is inflammation in the body, it can cause leaky gut. I was also given a probiotic, told to drink a ton of water, and eat more vegetables.
I was even told to meditate and try yoga. Hmm, meditation doesn’t sound like prescription medicine, I was used to taking pills to fix my problems – not sit on a cushion and try not to think? Oh, what the hell, I said to myself – let’s give this a go! And much to my surprise, I started feeling so better. It took some time but I could see each day that my mood was getting better, my skin was clearing up, I was way less bloated and best of all, I was now pooping each day without the aid of a fiber supplement. HALLELUJAH!!
So, what does having a leaky gut really mean?
The digestive tract is where we process and digest our food. The intestinal wall acts as a protective barrier and controls what is and is not allowed in the bloodstream. It does this through things called tight junctions. With leaky gut syndrome, the tight junctions become loose allowing bacteria and toxins into the bloodstream. This can lead to all sorts of health problems.
Here are some symptoms of Leaky Gut:
- Chronic constipation, diarrhea, gas or bloating, Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Poor immune system
- Brain fog
- Thyroid Disease
- Skin issue like eczema, acne, rosacea
- Excessive sugar and/or carb cravings
- Joint pain
- Depression, ADHD, or ADD
- Food Sensitivities
- Inflammation
- Migraines
Before I go any further, I should tell you there has been some debate in the western medical community as to if leaky gut is a real thing. However, I’ve read that intestinal hyperpermeability has been in medical literature for over 100 years. So, I am so not sure why they couldn’t agree that leaky gut, AKA: intestinal hyperpermeability is a real thing because I have to tell you, that once I started the protocol to heal my leaky gut, life got a lot better.
About five to ten years ago, nobody was even talking about this but as the medical community starts to search for answers into these so-called gray areas (a gray area is a generic term for any area of patient care in which the parameters of good practice are not clearly defined), a lot have progress has been made!
So, how did I get a leaky gut in the first place?
Common Causes of Leaky Gut:
- Poor Diet
- Chronic Stress
- Toxic Overloads like environmental toxins as well as antibiotics, pesticides, and NSAIDs
- Bacteria Imbalance (called Dysbiosis)
- Inflammation in the body
- Genetic Predisposition
To me, one of the best things I have ever done for myself was to find the right doctor who will listen and try to get at the root cause of my symptoms. This will usually mean going to an Integrative or Functional MD or a Naturopath. I have seen both and think they both provide a wealth of knowledge!
If you are looking for a Naturopath, the one I see is a true gut expert and a joy to work with – her name is Kirsten Swales and she works virtually so you can literally visit here while wearing your pajamas. Click HERE if you want to find out more about Kirsten.
“Chances are if you’ve been having digestives issues for some time, you’ve got leaky gut and depending on the severity of it, when you heal your leaky gut, you can expect so many other symptoms to resolve. So when you find out the root cause of your issues, heal it from there, the other problems go away and don’t come back. All health begins in the gut.” ~Kirsten Swales, ND
I also see Dr. Taz and Rosi at CentreSpring MD in Atlanta, GA but they also work with patients outside the Atlanta area. They have a dedicated medical team plus a holistic spa and offer things like acupuncture, IV drips, and more. Click HERE if you want to find out more about Dr. Taz and her team.
I LOVE both of these people as they both have been super key in my healing and wellness journey!
How I healed my leaky gut:
I wasn’t healed in 7-10 days, it took some time but, I am worth it!!
- Eliminate food that is inflammatory to the body like gluten, soy, and dairy.
- Probiotics – I had to find the right one to work for me. For me, that was VSL3 (I found this behind the counter at my local pharmacy, it is refrigerated) and Metagenics UltraFlora Control. They are not inexpensive but they are definitely worth it in my opinion. Probiotics were such a game-changer for me! I thought I would be on fiber supplements for the rest of my life. Right before bed, I would skulk down some nasty gelatinous drink and hope and pray that there would be “movement” in the morning. Here is a great article on finding one that is right for you:https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/probiotics-how-to-choose-the-right-one-tell-if-theyre-high-quality-and-more
- Eliminate sugar, it is highly inflammatory and addictive and can cause lots of other health issues. I will admit, this was harder for me than all the others. Sugar had a hold on me like nothing else but once I got a grip on it and took it out of my life for a bit, I can now eat a little sugar without a flare-up. Our free 5-Day Sugar Detox is very gentle and how I broke my addiction with sugar.
- Eliminate processed foods and limit alcohol intake – I mainly shop the perimeter of the grocery store because that is where all the fresh items are. Have you ever noticed that?
- Manage stressors in my life – this means environmental stressors as well as emotional ones. Chronic stress can really alter our health and is something worth addressing if you aren’t feeling your best. For me, this meant eating organic foods and eliminating toxins in my house as much as possible, and learning to meditate and be present. This was hard for me too, but SO worth working on!!
- Following a Low FODMAP diet has been so helpful especially as life stressors increase. ModifyHealth takes all the guesswork out of eating the Low FODMAP way and was SO helpful during a flare-up. They are generously offering $20 off your first 3 orders for a total of $60 off! Just click HERE and be sure to use the code SAGE60.
- Mediation is one of the greatest gifts I have given myself. If you are curious if meditation can help you, I encourage you to check out the same course I used, ZivaMind. Use this link: ZIVAMIND and they are offering a free course preview – I promise, it’s worth your time!
Curious about a Low FODMAP diet? Learn more in A Beginner’s Guide to a Low FODMAP Diet.
The path to healing my gut is a continuing process but I feel so much better today than I did before I learned what a leaky gut was!
There are many other things we can do to help our gut health:
- Bone Broth
- L-glutamine
- Fermented foods
- Collagen peptides
Not everything works for everybody, we are all so different, but let’s keep talking about it and maybe one of your suggestions can help another person. What are your “go-to’s” when you have digestive issues?
Please share this with anyone you know who is experiencing stomach issues – it is more common than you think!
And lastly, since we mainly post recipes here, I wanted to make sure that I linked one of our favorite anti-inflammatory recipes.
xo,
Sharon
Anti-Inflammatory Soup:
