IBS is an umbrella diagnosis given by doctors for a group of symptoms such as bloating, gas, distension, constipation and diarrhoea. Getting the diagnosis is important to ensure nothing more sinister is going on but once you have the diagnosis, it can sometimes feel relatively useless as you are still left with your symptoms!
Nutritionists using a functional medicine approach recognise that in any two, three, four or five people with irritable bowel syndrome, each one of them can have different causes for the exact same symptoms so a one size fits all approach cannot be applied. We therefore use a system that looks to “remove, repair and replace” but which is tailored to each individual we see.
Step 1 of my programme looks at what can be removed from your diet and lifestyle and also what could be lingering inside to cause your symptoms: allergens, inflammation, microbes, imbalance of gut bacteria, toxins, poor diet, stress and certain medications can all trigger symptoms, so all aspects need to be considered.
Step 2 is all about adding back into your diet and ensuring that what you are eating is being digested properly and goes hand in hand with Step 3 which is all about healing your gut and ensuring you are eating a diverse diet to feed and encourage diversity in your gut flora.
And finally, step 4 where we look at other aspects of your life that can affect IBS namely stress, sleep and exercise.
As you can see, this is not an overnight fix and if you’ve been suffering for years you will have to put the work in but having steps to work through and having a hand to hold whilst doing it certainly makes it all less daunting.
Imagine what your life would look like if you had control of your IBS? Eating out could be something you looked forward to, you could wear the same size clothes in the afternoon as you do in the morning and never again do you have to fear where the nearest loo is!
Go on, take the first step and fill out the form on my website for a free discovery call to find out more about my 4 Steps to IBS Freedom system, you have nothing to lose….