Achy Bloated Smelly Guts

Do you look and feel 4-months pregnant after you eat? Have you had blood tests? Poo samples? Breathed into foil bags and had cameras stuffed down your throat?

What’s more, it can take 9 to 12 years to get diagnosed (Cichewicz et al., 2019) (Pulido et al. 2013 (Norström et al. 2011). Yet the consequences are far reaching - infertility, anxiety, cancer, thinned bones, diabetes (Haines et al. 2008) (Han et al. 2015).  

When you get a diagnosis, it seems like a relief to know you’ve got:

But where to now?

You’ve tried sitting up after meals. Cutting out fun foods. Tried remedies from your family and friends. But you still have abnormal poops, discomfort, bloating and cramps. You feel terrible. You’re tired all the time and aren’t happy with your weight.

“Why is this happening to me?” or “How can I get rid of it?” 

We understand you may feel lost, exhausted, or completely overwhelmed by now. 

Well please know that you are not alone. Here at Body and Brain Centre, we hear this a lot. It’s great that you’ve tried a few things to find relief from your gut problems. You now know what doesn’t work. So you’re a step closer to finding out what does work. 

Ways we can help you manage your achy, bloated smelly guts

People find relief from stress and anxiety through a range of ways, depending on preference and their needs:

You don’t need to worry about which service suits - we’ll point you in the right direction. However, you may like to understand how a few of these services can help:

Dietetics and nutrition for bloated, achy guts

You try to read food labels and those pesky tables on the back of packaging. But you still aren’t sure what you’re looking for. You still have questions”

What should you be eating? What foods should you avoid? When is best to eat? How much? How should food be prepared? What drinks are safe to have?

Did you know the type of chopping board can affect your guts? Or that 12cm piece of celery may irritate your gut but 6cm be ok (Muir et al. 2007) (Muir et al. 2009)? Or that the colour of a banana changes how your gut processes the fruit? (Ringer et al. 2018) (Chumpitazi et al. 2018) (Muir et al. 2007) (Muir et al. 2009)

Our dietitians have post-graduate training in gut disorders, including the complex FODMAP diet. There are many hidden sources of allergies and intolerances in the food prep process. Your dietitian will talk you through these.

You’ll get help planning meals. Learn what reactions keep an eye out for. And you’ll understand why you should or shouldn’t eat something.

• Dietetics and Nutrition at Body and Brain Centre

Naturopathy for bloated, achy guts

You may wonder what state your guts are in. Are there parasites living there? Are your hormones all over the shop? Are you inflamed or damaged? What about the bacteria levels?

You might have been advised to take a supplement. But you don’t want to waste money. You are sick of guessing and need professional help.

Our naturopaths will assess your overall health and your gut function. Special testing can help find the cause behind your gut troubles, such as bugs and inflammation. From there, you may get a tailored diet plan and a herbal formula made up for you. 

This may ease your gut troubles. What’s more, you may feel healthier and more vibrant in other areas of your health too: clearer skin (Heng & Chew 2020), fewer headaches (Saranitzky et al. 2011) (Mitchell et al 2011), a return to a healthy weight (Curioni & Lourenço 2005).

• Naturopathy at Body and Brain Centre

Acupuncture & Traditional Chinese Medicine for symptomatic relief of bloated, achy guts

Acupuncture can help restore the balance of energy in your body - yin and yang.

Chinese Medicine may alleviate symptoms. Or Acupuncture is a great add on to other therapies like dietary changes, medication and stress management.

Other techniques may be helpful: cupping, moxa or Chinese herbal formulas might also be recommended. Whatsmore your Chinese Medicine Doctor will provide you on advice to get better sleep, improve your diet and exercise appropriately for your body.

• Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine at Body and Brain Centre

Counselling and psychology for bloated, achy guts

Your guy issues seem to affect more than your body. Perhaps you can’t sleep with racing thoughts: “Is your gut ever going to get better? What does it feel like to feel normal and healthy again?”

Perhaps you smoke and want to give up. Did you know ciggys can aggravate your guts further (Islami et al. 2014) (Eastwood 1988) (Chung et al. 2015)? Or maybe you turn to the booze for a moment of respite.

Do you get stressed and angry easily? Research shows you are more likely to experience stomach problems (Muscatello et al 2010).

Counselling may help you manage your thoughts, emotions, and feelings. You may also be given exercises to help your body respond more appropriately to your thoughts. Expect to learn to relax your stressed body and mind - which may ease your gut troubles.

• Counselling at Body and Brain Centre

Clinical Hypnotherapy for bloated, achy guts

Does your pain and fear of your guts hold you back? You stop doing what you love in fear of another attack?

Maybe stress aggravates your gut health.

Clinical hypnotherapy will help create a healthy mindset and re-write those thought processes. This has been shown to be immensely helpful for things like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

• Hypnotherapy at Body & Brain Centre

Biofeedback for stress-related bloated, achy guts

You feel the gut-brain connection is linked to your troubles. You are getting so many random symptoms.

Your body feels like it's constantly stressed. This may be aggravating your gut, causing you to suffer from conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) (Liu et al. 2020).

How can you break the cycle?

Biofeedback can help your body restore the natural balance of your nervous system - to control the stress response and regulate itself better. It helps take your body out of ‘fight or flight’ mode so your gut can find its ‘rest and digest’ mode.

• Biofeedback at Body and Brain Centre