When your stressed-out your whole body is affected, from your brain to your hormones. It is necessary to have these physiology shifts to effectively respond to threats and ensure survival. Thankfully, when the stress is removed, you can recover.
Interestingly, your body can’t tell the difference between the mind’s perception of stress and true bodily danger. So, whether you are chronically ruminating over work stressors, or experiencing a long-term physical threat, mental and physical illnesses can ensue from this inability to rejuvenate.
One area most vulnerable to stress is your gut.
Unless you’re a born master at mindfulness, you’ve probably had a time in your life where you experienced first-hand how stress influenced your digestion. You also probably noted when your gut was misbehaving that you felt more “on edge.”
The relationship between stress and the digestive tract is bidirectional, with gut physiology impacting stress (physically and emotionally) and emotional and physical stressors causing alterations to our gastrointestinal (GI) function.
If you’re having intestinal issues and are stressed out, it’s important to understand how much this could be impacting your symptoms and have information on how to correct this.
In my latest article and video, I explore how stress can impact the gut.
Topics include:
- Our nervous system’s connection to our “second brain” in the gut
- The gut-brain connection
- An overview on how stress influences gut physiology (the “gut-stress” axis)
- How stress impacts:
- gut immunity
- the microbiome
- intestinal permeability (“leaky gut”)
- An overall summary and two tips to support a stressed-out gut
Click here to learn more.
If you can’t get to the bottom of your chronic gut issues, a naturopathic and/or functional medicine doctor can support you in remediating the contributors to a stressed-out gut and supporting your emotional health.
In a follow-up post, I’ll describe more on how to use naturopathic and functional medicine modalities to soothe and support optimal gut-brain health.
Naturopathic Medicine and Holistic Resources for Digestive, Mood, and Hormone Support
- Free resources and more education on essential oils and mind-body wellness are available to you here.
- Tools for coping with isolation and separation.
- An Integrative Mental Health and Stress Resource Guide.
- My free online essential oils database.
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Disclaimer: This material is for information purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prescribe for any illness. You should check with your doctor regarding implementing any new strategies into your wellness regime. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.
This information is applicable ONLY for therapeutic quality essential oils. This information DOES NOT apply to essential oils that have not been tested for purity and standardized constituents. There is no quality control in the United States, and oils labeled as “100% pure” need only to contain 5% of the actual oil. The rest of the bottle can be filled with fillers and sometimes toxic ingredients that can irritate the skin. The studies are not based solely on a specific brand of an essential oil, unless stated. Please read the full study for more information.
