Episode 10: Q&A: Anti-Inflammatory Diets for IBS, Navigating Change, and more!
This episode is a Q&A from our Instagram community, where I answer the following questions:
When do you stop seeking answers from professionals and just deal with the symptoms?
Should you be on an anti-inflammatory diet for IBS?
How do you explain that you have IBS to others without feeling like you’re sharing too much?
How do you navigate change to keep symptoms down?
You can check out the podcast on iTunes here, Spotify here, and on YouTube here! Below is a full transcript of the episode if you prefer to read through it or want notes.
Don’t forget to connect to others in The GUT Community, a Facebook group for those with IBS and digestive disorders to support one another and dive deeper into each episode together.
We are back for another episode of The Gut Show, and this one is a q&a from our Instagram community! I love getting to answer your questions, so if you want to be able to submit questions for future episodes, or just ask a question, any day of the week, make sure you're following at erinjudge.rd on Instagram, or that you're a part of The Gut Community on Facebook so that we can connect with you and answer the questions that you have around topics of gut health, digestive disorders, and IBS.
So let's jump into the questions and see what you guys wanted to know!
Question number one is when do you stop seeking answers from professionals and just deal with symptoms? So I love this question! The basis of this question is, when do you stop, you know, searching for more answers of what's going on, or searching for more help and just deal with the way things are?
And the answer to this is, honestly, it's a personal choice. I'm a big advocate to not stop seeking out the professionals that maybe know more or are able to work more hand in hand with you or are willing to kind of dig in deep with you. I'm a big advocate of looking for other solutions beyond what you've tried before to find something that does work, because I do believe that there is a way for you to feel confident in your body and to get your symptoms under control.
But at the end of the day, you have autonomy of your own health care, and there's a few things that you can consider in this area to decide when you want to keep pushing for answers, and when you may want to stop and take the symptoms that you have, the life that you have and just move forward with that.
So one thing that I would consider in this equation is that, you want to make sure that you've at least gotten enough testing done to rule out certain conditions and that you've at least connected with a good gastroenterologist that you can continue following up with over time, just to make sure that nothing more serious like colon cancer is wrong. The reason I say that is that IBS can overlap with other conditions, and while the signs of those conditions may not show up at first, it could show up later on, and there are some really serious negative impacts to things like inflammatory bowel disease, and colon cancer. With the rise in colon cancer in our culture, especially around young adults, it's very important that we are continuing to check in and just following up with a good provider over time as you age.
So you want to make sure you still got that follow up, just like you want to keep you know a connection to your gynecologist and get your pap smear and all those things and you know, breast exams, you want to make sure that you're still connected to a gastroenterologist because of the history that you've had with your gut symptoms. You also want to make sure that some of those initial tests have actually been done, or you're connected well to look for different changes in order to do other tests to make sure that things have truly been ruled out.
If you are at the beginning stages of your journey, and you've just been told you have IBS, but they haven't really done bloodwork or breath test, stool testing, scopes….if none of that has been done, then you want to make sure that you are digging in with those providers to be sure you're rolling those conditions out. We want to make sure that all the other conditions have been ruled out before we land on IBS and move forward just with IBS. So what I would say is make sure that the basics have been covered, make sure you have a good follow up with a gastroenterologist or someone who understands your history, has been a good listener and is at least checking into things with you, before you just accept it and move on.
The next step I would say is, knowing how you are comfortable or not comfortable with the symptoms that you have and the way that they impact your life. So if your symptoms are pretty well controlled and just kind of popping up randomly, if you're eating fairly freely, if you're doing the things you love, and they don't really interfere except maybe on occasion, then you may decide that it's not really worth it for you to add more stress and anxiety and work and exhaustion and trying to manage those symptoms because they're not really interfering with your life in a big way, and you're not really giving up things in order to keep them down. And so if that's the case, and you may decide that you know what, I can handle, I can live with this, it's not a big deal.
If you're at a place where your symptoms are interfering with your day to day life, if they are keeping you back from things that you love, if your diet is very restricted just to keep symptoms down, if being isolated at home is the only way you can keep symptoms down, that means that they are interfering, and that is not sustainable, or going to produce good quality of life long term. And so that might be a place where you're not satisfied with the way that your life is with your symptoms, and so that would be a sign that you do not want to just kind of give up and do your own thing, that may be a sign that it is time to dig deeper with professionals. So those are a few things that I would consider whenever you're thinking about, you know, do I do I continue seeking help and guidance, or do I just deal with the symptoms that I have?
Another piece of this that I would want to say is, and I see this a lot in the world that I live in and work in, is where someone might come to me and say, you know, I've done it all. I've tried everything, I've tried it all and nothing has ever worked. I’ve worked with all the people, and then whenever you start talking about it, it's okay, I saw a dietician for one time, I went to my doctor a few times, I had an evaluation by a physical therapist, I worked with a therapist for a few months. You have to give time for the guidance and the process that you're following to actually work and pay off. I work with most of my clients, five, six, seven, eight months, it takes that much time for us to get through the strategies we're working through. And that's very hand in hand, like almost meaning weekly, very well connected, watching food logs every single week. That is how we're connected, and it still takes a lot a long amount of time.
So you want to make sure that you are being very intentional about the people you're working with, and that can be tricky, and I know it's frustrating. Once you find someone that you do connect with, there is an amount of time that it might take, and so there's some trust that has to be there as well as some commitment that needs to be there. And it's difficult. But if you haven't had that, that might be a sign that there could be better answers out there for you, and it may require some of that commitment over time, and, you know, patience and grace for yourself as you work through that because time is the name of the game, most of the time.
And most of the strategies that we do have, it does require time before we just throw our hands up. And that's honestly the value of having good professional guidance, because someone who really understands it, someone who's really well versed in this world, they're going to be able to tell you that on the front end. So with my clients, I'm usually in the first appointment letting them know that it's okay that they don't trust me yet, but I'm asking them to have faith and trust me and commit to this process. My clients commit to that five months at the start, and we don't do less than that, because I know that it takes time, and I want them to be very clear, I want them to understand, I want them to be on the same page with me that we're in it for the long haul, we're not just in it for a few appointments. We want to make sure that we've got that space built in where we are connected and I’m committing to them, they're committing to me. And so that's the relationship that you would want to have with the provider to make sure that you're giving it enough time and like really pushing into the strategies well before just deciding like, it doesn't work and you just move on.
And so if you do find that you are managing things well, if you are, you know worried that there's more happening, so if you get to a point where like, I just I'm still worried that there's more going on, then you get to reflect inward and kind of let your intuition guide you and determine you know what direction you want to go in. Also know that there's a lot of new research that has come out in the past few years and is coming out soon, and so keeping up with that up to date research, because that could uncover those things that might be going on that people didn't catch before. And we didn't understand IBS, you know, 10 years ago, now we understand it better, and we're going to understand it even more in the future. So keeping up with that too, and again, that's where having that those regular check ins with that provider you trust can actually pay off and be very valuable.
The second question is should you be on an anti inflammatory diet for IBS? I love this question! So anti inflammatory diets, the Mediterranean approach is kind of one that we typically talk about. This is sort of the gold standard, right? Anti inflammatory diet just means it helps support that decrease in inflammation as well as increase some of the factors that might be able to help with damage from inflammation, like oxidative stress and things like that. Inflammation, so the inflammatory response in the body, the damage from chronic inflammation can contribute to disease and so an anti inflammatory diet is seen kind of as our like healthiest diet, if you will. And that's that's an approach many of us take, even if we don't say that we take it in that way.
Specific to IBS….IBS is not an inflammatory condition. It is a functional gut brain disorder, it does not contribute to true inflammation, there's no inflammatory response directly linked to IBS. Now there could be some like low levels of inflammation indirectly linked, or due to some overlapping issues that are going on, but IBS itself is not considered inflammatory. So an anti inflammatory approach may not be necessary, if you will, but it will help with preventing disease, it'll help with supporting hormones, it'll help with many other things, because an anti inflammatory approach is also typically plant rich, so fiber rich. It's also typically nutrient rich, which means you're going to get the vitamins and minerals that your body is needing. And then the components that make things more anti inflammatory are also going to help with brain health, they're going to help with microbiome support, they're going to help with your hormones and all of those different pieces. And so it's really helpful to have an approach that overlaps that's, you know, the anti inflammatory diet and lifestyle, so it's not just diet, it’s lifestyle, as well, kind of weaving into your IBS, or IBD, or celiac, whatever other plan that you have, so that you get that good overlap, and you get the benefit of both.
Within an anti inflammatory diet or approach, there isn't a need to be 100% perfect with it. So an anti inflammatory approach is not meant to be restrictive or anything like that. It's more of a lifestyle and like consistency over time. And so the goal whenever we're looking at anti inflammatory foods and anti inflammatory practices, it's not one and done, and there's not like a clear set of rules that you have to follow, it's about weaving those different things into your life in a way that works for you makes sense for you, and it's sustainable for you. We do this in our programs and a lot of providers that I respect and I know also do that. And if you want good information on that, the American Heart Association has really good information because anti inflammatory diets and lifestyle behaviors are very strongly recommended for heart disease, and then we have some information on that kind of within our resources as well.
And the next question is, how do you explain that you have IBS to others without feeling like you're sharing too much. So in Episode Six, so go back to Episode Six, I actually talked about this in depth. I'll go through some of these key points that I mentioned in that episode, but I do recommend going back to that episode, because it's really helpful.
Number one is explaining what IBS is, in simple terms. Break it down, make it simple, be very clear.
Number two, help them understand your needs. Remember, we can't expect people to do things for us and to help us and modify things for us, if we don't let them know what we need, right, they don't know what we need, so we have to communicate again, in simple terms.
Number three is give them a solution to help you. If they don't have the resources to help you with your needs, they might feel stuck just like you maybe felt stuck when you were trying to figure that out, so be able to explain and communicate those solutions, so that they can help you ask them for it.
Number four is to share resources with them. So once you give them those solutions, also give them the resources. If you're eliminating a food because it causes symptoms for you, don't just tell them, hey, I can't have dairy. Tell them, hey, here's other alternatives, here's what I use in these situations, here are some things that you can do, this how you modify a recipe, give them the resources, so it's very easy for them to accommodate you and what you need.
And then number five is allow them to ask questions and clarify what you need. So give them space, and that it comes within the relationship. So you might only do step one for the relationship, maybe step two, or three, I talked about that in Episode Six. But this fifth one is really for those deep relationships where you want to make sure that they have the space and they have the ability to freely ask you questions and understand what's happening for you better, because the more they understand, the more they feel like they're connected, the more empathy they're going to have, as well as the better they'll be able to support you.
And the value of doing that on the front end and really being clear about this at some point is that you can come back to that much easier when you need it the most who can say, hey, remember this, hey, you know, we're having this get together, remember that resource I sent you? Do you want any other resources? Would it be helpful to have us a different recipe or whatever it might be. So just being able to communicate it now allows you more freedom in that relationship, and just allow some of that tension and anxiety and stress around the time spent with that person to be much better.
And again, not everyone is going to respond well and I talked about that in episode six, but it's good to practice those muscles because you'll be more confident and being able to set a boundary or walk away once you are confident in how you're explaining and what you are doing. So explain what IBS is, in simple terms, help them understand your needs, give them a solution to help you share your resources and allow them to ask questions and clarify with you.
Okay and the last question for this episode is how do you navigate change to keep symptoms down? So the gut, with any digestive condition, the gut can be very hesitant and resistant to change. One thing that your gut loves more than anything else is routine and consistency. And so we see this the most whenever you're traveling, when things of your normal routine are kind of mixed up for the holidays, or whatever it may be, the gut tends to get really frustrated and might overreact, right. And so that's very normal, that happens for those without IBS or digestive conditions, but it might happen on a more extreme level for those with digestive conditions. And I know that this can raise a lot of anxiety and a lot of stress around these moments of change, so I came up with a few strategies that you can follow in order to navigate that change and then keep your symptoms down.
The first one is to try to establish new routines. So if it's a small trip or a small bit of time of change, try to kind of quickly get back into the routine you have, especially the components of the routine that mattered the most, like your sleep schedule, your eating schedule, your meditation, movement, whatever it might be, try to pull in those pieces that do matter the most for you on a day to day basis. If things have changed very significantly, like you got a different job, you had a baby, whatever it might be, then try to establish new routines quickly. So get your body acclimated to a new routine.
Second is give your body grace. So know that adjusting to those routines can be hard, we can't expect the gut to just, you know, automatically be able to adjust. And so it's important to make sure you're giving your body grace and understanding that, okay, this might be difficult, and adjusting to a new routine, getting into a new routine, like that's gonna take time. And so giving your body grace will help reduce some of that anxiety, it'll also help prevent things like self sabotage when the symptoms are coming up from those changes that you're experiencing.
So establish new routines, give your body grace, listen closely, and respond well and generously to your body. So create space to listen to what your body is saying. Typically, when things are changing, or you know, routines are off, whatever's happening, your body's giving you some communication of what they may need, giving you warning signs, like oh, this isn't working well, things are not going great, I need some rest, I need to pause a minute, your body will give you those signals, ad so make sure you're creating space within those adjustments to actually listen. This is going to be the most important when there are changes that increase your, I guess, attention needs. So like if a family member passes away, and there's a grieving process or during the holidays, when you're going in many directions, a new job or a new project at work that's taking all of your time and your focus, whenever that happens, you have to be intentional about creating space to check in and listen. And then not only listen, but respond generously to your body. So make sure you're responding well. So your body is craving rest, create space for rest. That listening and response can prevent big flares and also help your body trust you. Trust that change and trust that you're going to get through that change better and more effectively.
And then the last one is hold on to the things that you know have helped you the most. So I kind of mentioned that with establishing new routines. But whenever you are going through moments of change, and things are changing, and they feel a little bit out of your control, really try to hold on to the things that have helped you the most and have gotten you through the most. It might look different, so maybe it's movement, and 30 minutes was what you were doing before. Now maybe you only have 15 minutes, being able to hold on to the movement and adjusting and modifying it so it still fits for you, that's going to be key. And that will help your body get through that change without the symptoms.
So I hope that was helpful! If you have any follow-ups, if you want to clarify, or maybe you have another question that you're dying to ask, then I want you to head on over to The Gut Community on Facebook and let me know what you're thinking. And as always, your views, your comments, they mean the world to us because that allows other listeners to hear what we have to say and feel heard and feel understood in the conditions that they're living with. So thank you so much for your continued support and for tuning in and being part of this gut show community! I’m thankful for you, I hear you, I see you, I am with you and I am cheering you every single day. I’ll see you in the next episode and in The Gut Community!