Episode 120: The Truth About IBS (and what to do about it!)
In this episode, I’m continuing the solo series of walking you through my own personal health journey, and my aim for doing this is to illustrate the things that seemed so common, but yet weren’t normal.
Today, we’re talking about a condition that approximately half of all digestive and intestinal complaints are attributed to - Irritable Bowel Syndrome aka “IBS.” It’s the most common of digestive complaints.
But IBS is an “umbrella” term meaning that it can be applied to a number of different things. So if you have IBS, there’s a likelihood that there’s an underlying issue going on.
I had pretty severe IBS that had a significant impact on how I lived my life on a daily basis. So in this episode, I share with you:
What IBS is and common causes of it
What my life was like, suffering from it
What things I did to to overcome it
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MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:
Episode 009: Food Allergies, Food Sensitivities & Elimination Diets
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“IBS is the most common condition among digestive complaints and its really more of an “umbrella” term meaning that there’s really something more specific or underlying going on, ”
Read the Episode Transcript:
Today I’m continuing this solo series of walking you through my own personal health journey, really starting from 2013.
And my aim for doing this is to illustrate all the things that seemed so common, but yet, in fact, were not normal.
Two episodes back, I began this series by sharing my experience having blood sugar imbalance. And I started this series with blood sugar because when you look at the many things that I struggled with, and the many other conditions out there that I personally haven’t struggled with, but so many other have, blood sugar imbalance is almost always an issue. Just like low vitamin D is.
This is why I consider addressing sugar addiction among the very first steps people take when taking control of their health.
Today, we’re talking about a condition that approximately half of all digestive and intestinal complaints are attributed to and that’s Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or “IBS.”
It’s the most common condition among digestive complaints and its really more of an “umbrella” term meaning that it can be applied to a number of different things like gas and bloating and diarrhea or constipation.
So if you’re told that you have IBS, there’s really something more specific or underlying going on, and I’ll get into what that meant for me in a bit.
But before I go on, if you’re squeamish, you’ll probably want to turn off this episode because talking about IBS is not for the squeamish and I had it pretty bad. So if you continue listening, don’t say you haven’t been warned.
In hindsight, because its always 20/20, right? I had IBS symptoms for a long time, way before 2013. I just started to get context around these signs and symptoms around that time because they are super common things that everyone experiences so you don’t really think much of it.
Things like:
stomach pain - which was so extremely painful for me that it was debilitating. There were times that when it hit, I couldn’t move a muscle, that’s how painful it was Spasms Diarrhea and constipation. Some people experience one or the other, and some alternate between both. I’m fortunate that, knock on wood, constipation is not something that I’ve struggled with, but I know many who do. Diarrhea was a huge problem for me especially during the height of my suffering Abnormal stools that are loose, thin or even have mucus or fat in them. Poop is a huge diagnostic tool in knowing just what’s going on inside your body and assessing your general health and well-being. In other words, if you’re not pooping regularly or have what’s considered “healthy poop” then its something to pay attention. And if you’re wondering, “Well how do I know what’s healthy poop?” Google the Bristol Stool chart which is a very simple way to assess it. I told you we’re talking about all the things in the episode - poop included!
Other symptoms that I experienced were of course gas and bloating - both in extreme conditions. I also experienced fatigue, anxiety and depression, things you don’t typically associate with IBS, but they are in fact very much symptoms of poor gut health. Nausea and headaches are also symptoms but those aren’t things that I, thankfully, experienced.
So like I said, in hindsight, I experienced these symptoms longer before 2013, but because they are so common, I really didn’t think anything of them. It didn’t occur to me that anything was wrong.
Especially because I was a long-distance runner.
It’s well-known in the running community that digestive distress happens, pooping on the run is very common. And well, it’s what I experienced too and that’s why I did all of my long training runs in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. I knew where every single bathroom and water fountain was.
But it progressively started to get worse and worse for me to the point where I would take Immodium before my training runs. I developed MAJOR anxiety that my stomach would explode and I’d be stuck somewhere, unable to finish my run or get back to my car. It was super stressful.
And guess what - those things did happen! I spent many moments mid-run sitting on a bench, in the park, crying my eyes out from being in so much pain from digestive distress. I felt frustrated, anxious and angry that my body wouldn’t cooperate.
But was that enough to clue me in that something might be seriously wrong? No, because I thought, “well all runners deal with this.”
No, what really made me finally seek help was when I started developing leg pains and extreme fatigue to the point where I couldn’t even run a single mile without pain or feeling exhausted.
That’s what finally made me seek help, but once I did, my Functional Medicine doctor immediately started zeroing in on the IBS symptoms that my primary care physician had brushed off as saying, “some people are just this way.”
That’s how I started learning about gut health, how it is the foundation of all health and wellness, and its where I started to understand why taking a functional approach to health where we don’t just ask, “what” is happening, but we equally ask, “why” is far more complete than how society currently operates.
So when it came to asking why I was having such severe IBS symptoms, here’s what I learned are some of the common, but not necessary thought of causes:
Food sensitivities which are different than food allergies. Your immune system has a different type of reaction to a food sensitivity or intolerance than it does to an allergy. Food sensitivities are NOT to be downplayed - it still elicits a reaction from your immune system, it's just not the same as an allergy. Some common food sensitivities are dairy, caffeine, gluten, nightshades, just to name a few A poor diet - whether it from too much sugar, processed foods, hydrogenated oils, or simply not enough vitamins and nutrients, or things like not enough fiber in your diet Hormonal imbalances like adrenal disruption, thyroid dysfunction or any other of the many hormones that we have. Hormones are the communication network in your body and when one part of the network is not working properly, it disrupts the rest of the network Infections, conditions like SIBO, candida or even malabsorption - things that can prevent your body from being able to absorb the nutrients from the food that you feed it. So you may be eating a pretty healthy diet, but if there’s an underlying factor that’s inhibiting malabsorption, your body could still be malnourished And then of course, stress - the root cause of all root causes! It could be emotional stress or it could be physical stress caused by any of the things I just listed - stress from having a food sensitivity, from being malnourished, from hormonal imbalances. Your body does not differentiate between the kinds of stress you’re experiencing. To you body, stress is stress.
So these are just a few of the common causes of IBS, but there’s many more possibilities out there.
So far we’ve talked about what IBS is, common symptoms and how I experienced it and what some of the common causes are. And none of it has been anything that’s super rare, right? They’re common things that everyone experiences at some point or another.
Its when they start to become chronic, where you experience them all the time that you need to start paying attention.
So if you’re there and this is sounding all too familiar, what do you do?
This is where bioindividuality comes in - because what to do will be different for each one of us. But I’ll share with you what I did, which are foundational things that every can benefit from doing.
The first thing I did was start tracking. I started keeping a Food Mood Pop Journal (although that’s not what I called it at the time).
It was pretty simple, I started tracking what I eat, when I ate it, how I felt and when I pooped, using the Bristol Stool chart as a reference to rate my poop.
Many people, especially those in functional medicine, will go straight to advanced, EXPENSIVE lab testing. To clarify, I am NOT against lab testing. In many situations its best to test, not guess.
However, BEFORE you get to those advanced and expensive tests, there are PLENTY of things you can do on your own or with a qualified coach and/or practitioner, that’s FREE, that will give you plenty of diagnostic information. And a Food Mood Poop Journal is a great place to start!
In fact, taking this first step can provide your practitioner with more useful data and be more efficient in deciding which lab tests to order for you.
In addition to keeping a Food Mood Poop Journal, I also did an elimination diet to try to pinpoint foods that I might be sensitive to or intolerant of.
I cut out sugar, grains, gluten, dairy, processed foods that include soy and corn, and I don’t drink caffeine, but if you do, that might be something to consider eliminating.
I’d say that’s a good place to start for a basic elimination diet. You can exclude other things like nightshades and seafood, or at least shellfish, but I think starting with the basics first and seeing how that goes, before considering more advanced and complicated practices.
I do want to point out that elimination diets aren’t meant to be long-term diets. In fact, the reintroduction phase of an elimination diet is equally important as the removal phase, especially when it comes to figuring out what foods you might be reacting to. Reintroduction has to be done systematically - there’s a method to it so be sure to do your research or work with someone who can guide you through it.
Having chronic IBS symptoms is not only inconvenient and uncomfortable, it also damages your insides, so incorporating gut healing practices while doing an elimination diet would be helpful. You can add in probiotic foods or supplements and even foods packed in nutrients like bone broth, collagen or gelatin.
Besides food - what else can you do about IBS?
Well if stress is a major cause, then find ways to manage your stress, in whatever way that looks like for you. Whether it be more time spent with loved ones, a massage, some quiet time in meditation, picking up your favorite hobby again, seeing a coach, counselor or therapist. This is going to look different for everyone, but prioritize whatever that is for you.
Other practices like fully chewing your food before swallowing can help. Digestion requires a great amount of energy from your body and if you body has to digest food that isn’t fully chewed, well it can cause problems. Taking the time to fully chew your food will also help you to slow down, savor and perhaps be a little bit more mindful when partaking of your meal.
Eating smaller meals can also help and perhaps even some body work along your digestive track can ease some discomfort you might be feeling. One of the underlying factors of IBS that I discovered that I had was SIBO, aka small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. I talked about this extensively in Episode 087. But one thing that did help me in eradicating my SIBO was having some A.R.T. or active release technique performed on my abdominal area. It helped to remove some adhesions in the area caused by digestive distress when then helped with motility, and the ability for things to move through my system with ease.
You can also take supplements to help ease IBS. I’m also hesitant to talk too much about supplements because its another highly individualized thing, but some general ones that I think everyone can benefit from taking are:
A daily probiotic. One that also has a prebiotic is even better. Eating foods with probiotics, like sauerkraut, as long as it isn’t adding to your digestive distress L-glutamine - this is something that I add to my morning smoothie every day to help support my gut health
And if you do all of these things and still aren’t finding relief, then of course, testing comes in. Like I said, I discovered I had SIBO. That was one of the underlying factors for my IBS. You might also look for other things like parasites or candida, which is an overgrowth of yeast in your system. Or it could be something entirely different.
The point I wanted to make here is that:
MANY people suffer from IBS, so much so that it’s almost brushed aside because its so common, but having those symptoms is in no way normal IBS is an “umbrella” term for another underlying factor that going on. This is where you can become a detective and investigate what that might be using the approaches I described If you are having chronic IBS symptoms and you don’t do anything about it, it can develop into something more serious, like Leaky Gut Syndrome, something that in fact happened to me. I touched upon this in Episode 071. I know I’ve talked about it in other episodes, but I can’t recall which ones exactly off the top of my head right now, perhaps I’ll dedicate another episode on this topic as part of this series
The good news is that you can do something about IBS. I’m happy to say that after having it pretty severely, you guys, I haven’t even told you the worst of my stories, I don’t really struggle with it anymore. I’ve spent a lot of time focusing on healing my gut health and its paid off.
And doing show has helped me learned how to become hyperaware of the signs and symptoms my body sends me, not just with regard to IBS, but for other signs and symptoms too.
Developing this skill has helped me feel more empowered in what I can do to take care of myself and also more confident in my communications and relationships with the doctors and other practitioners who I turn to, to help support me.
If IBS is something that you struggle with, then I really encourage you to try the things that I’ve shared today that helped me. And if you feel you need more support and accountability, I don’t talk about this much, but I do take one-on-one clients on a limited basis who I work with specifically for issues like this.
You can learn more about that over on my website at www.livefablife.com/services or www.livefablife.com/coaching.
I know that IBS can be very personal, but if you’re so inclined, I’d love to hear from you!
Have you, or do you struggle with IBS?
I’d love to hear your story. Come on over to the show notes for this episode at www.livefablife.com/120 and leave a comment, or reach out to me on social media and let me know! I spend most of my time on Instagram so send me a message there at @livefablifewithnaomi.
Next week, I’ll be joined by someone who’s played a significant role in my career and in my life. A very good friend who opens up and has a candid conversation about establishing boundaries in the workplace - you won’t want to miss it!
As always, thanks for being here and I’ll see you next week!
Naomi Nakamura is a Functional Nutrition Health Coach. She helps passionate, ambitious high-achievers who are being dragged down by fatigue, burnout, sugar cravings, poor sleep, unexplained weight issues, and hormonal challenges optimize health, find balance, and upgrade their energy so they can do big things in this world.
Through her weekly show, The Live FAB Live Podcast, programs, coaching, and services, she teaches women how to optimize their diet, support their gut health, reduce their toxic load, and improve their productivity, bringing work + wellness together.
Naomi resides in the San Francisco Bay Area and can often be found exploring the area with her puppy girl, Coco Pop!
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