Before I dive into my gut healing journey I want to talk about the gut microbiome, how it can affect gut health, and WHY gut health is so important. 

What is the gut microbiome and how does it effect gut health?

Our gut microbiome is made up of trillions of microbes and each of them plays a different role in your body. Most of them are extremely important for your health, while others may cause disease. When there is an imbalance of these good and bad bacteria (called gut dysbiosis) it can lead to intestinal issues like irritable bowel syndrome, small intestine bacterial overgrowth, inflammatory bowel disease, and leaky gut. 

Why is gut health important?

The gut is largely responsible for critical functions in the body and a healthy gut means overall physical and mental health.  It goes way past digestion – did you know that 70% of the immune system is located in your gut?  This is why when our immune system is down it usually signifies that there is something going on in our gut. And it doesn’t stop there, an unhealthy gut also affects your nervous system and mental health. Literally everything is tied to our gut and that is why it is referred to as our “second brain”. 

Now let’s get into how I healed my gut.

First, I want to say that this is my own journey and what worked for me may not work for you. I’m just sharing my experience. I’ve had stomach issues for as long as I can remember – from diarrhea to constipation, awful stomach distention, gas, bloating, you name it. Every time I went to a doctor or GI they just wrote it off as IBS and put me on medication but none of it actually fixed the problem and I was so discouraged. And I’m sure that many of you who have been there know this feeling all too well. Finally, I decided to take my health into my own hands and started researching and reading all things gut health. I would like to note that with a history of an eating disorder I knew that a full elimination diet wouldn’t be the best thing for me mentally, even though I would consider myself recovered and haven’t struggled in years. Instead i focused on what I could add in to my diet and how I could best support my gut. I did end up cutting out gluten, dairy, and added sugars (not including maple syrup or honey) for 30 days because I felt it was something I could handle and I knew that I would be adding them back in a few weeks. I also allowed myself them if a moment arose because I didn’t want to get into a restricting mindset. So one morning during the 30 days my husband and I got normal donuts – for me knowing I could still eat those foods and not fear them was important. After 30 days of following the protocol below I’m feeling so much better and it is like night and day with my symptoms. 

Here’s a closer look at exactly what I did:

  •  Focused on eating real, whole foods. The more you focus on whole foods the better off your gut will be. Avoid foods that contain lectins & gums because they disrupt your gut lining.
  • Ate a variety of fruits & vegetables. The more different foods you eat, the happier your gut will be. If you feel yourself eating the same foods over and over again you may be doing your gut a disservice because you aren’t getting all the nutrients that your gut needs.
  • Practiced mindful eating. How you eat is just as important as what you eat. Chew your foods & eat without distractions. When you are eating your meals, pay attention to how the food tastes, how you feel, and really enjoy the food. When you eat with distractions you tend to overeat without realizing it.
  • Managed my stress. While recovering from my eating disorder I struggled with awful gut health. I was bloated 24/7 – like painfully bloated. My digestion was crap. I started to get acne. And I was extremely fatigued all the time. I talked to multiple doctors about it and eventually a GI told me that my anxiety was what was causing most of my gut issues. I learned that I held my stress/anxiety in my gut which kept me in a constant state of fight or flight. And when your body is in fight or flight mode there isn’t time or energy for digestion – cue all my symptoms. I was literally making myself sick because I didn’t my stress in check.
  • Added fermented foods into my diet. Fermented foods are packed with probiotics that help to strengthen your microbiome. Foods like kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi, etc can help to restore the balance of friendly bacteria in your gut. Gave my body a break from eating: The more you are snacking throughout the day the harder it is on your body. Your migrating motor complex “the street sweeper of your intestines” takes about 4 hours to do its job of clearing out your digestive tract and every time you eat before its done it has to start over – leaving food and particles in your intestines and causing bloating/discomfort. 
  • Added a probiotic into my daily routine. Adding a probiotic into your diet helps to improve gut health and improving digestion. It also helps to maintain healthy gut barrier function and integrity. Why do you want a healthy gut barrier? Your gut barrier has two vital jobs – including absorbing beneficial nutrients and providing protection against harmful substances. I take Seed DS1 and love that it has both prebiotics and probiotics. You can use code HAPPYBALANCEDLIFE15 for $$ off. 
  • Supplemented with L-Glutamine. Your intestinal lining actually uses L-glutamine as fuel to create a strong surface for digestion and absorption. By taking an L-glutamine supplement you are strengthening your gut lining and preventing bacteria from entering your intestines. 
  • Added in bone broth. Bone broth is extremely helpful for gut health. It is full of nutrients like collagen, gelatin, glycine, and glutamine. Which have all been shown to sooth gut irritation and inflammation, strengthen the gut barrier and reduce the presence of LPS in the blood.
  • Digestive Bitters. Before meals I drank some ginger tea and added in digestive bitters. Digestive bitters help to aid in digestion and regulates GI motility.
  • Warm lemon water every morning. Drinking lemon water in the morning can help with gut health. Lemons are high in vitamin C & fiber. As a potent antioxidant, vitamin C protects the cells against free radicals, and has the potential to reduce gut inflammation and boost the immune system. It also helps to balance the bacteria in the microbiome.
  • Eliminated gluten, dairy, and added sugars (not including maple syrup or honey) for 4 weeks. All of these foods can wreck havoc on our gut and also cause excess inflammation in the body. By reducing them you are giving your gut a chance to build up your gut barrier, fuel the good bacteria and get rid of the bad bacteria. 

 I know that there is a lot of information out there on gut health and it can be so confusing. So if you are someone dealing with gut issues and want support/guidance healing your gut I would love to help you do that – you can schedule a free call on my contact me page! We are all different and it can help to have someone working with you to find the best plan for YOU.