Is my gut making me anxious?
The Incredible Power of the Mind-Body Connection
With a constant stream of new research coming out about the intricate ways our minds and bodies are connected, you may have heard an increasing amount of chatter related to our gut.
The interaction between our gut and brains is profound.
Have you ever felt sick to your stomach after hearing bad news? Or, have you ever experienced anxiety so bad it made you nauseous?
While the gut-brain connection is gaining more traction it begs the question: how does our gut play a role in our mental health? Does healing our gut mean healing our mind?
If this is the case, how do we do this? Pop a few probiotics in and call it a day?
Let’s talk all about the gut-brain connection and why it’s so powerful in healing anxiety, depression, and so much more.
What Exactly Is Our ‘Gut’?
We’ve all heard the phrase “just trust your gut!” but what exactly is our gut?
Our gut is part of the digestive system enabling us to break down the food we eat. This area of our body is not only responsible for allowing food to pass through, it absorbs nutrients from our food in order to support all of our necessary functions.
While our guts may seem like just another body part, from behind the scenes it operates to keep everything in working order.
Our gut controls our energy, hormonal balance, toxin and waste disposal, the way our skin looks, and so much more. Not only this but you guessed it - it directly affects our mental health.
Keeping our gut health in tip-top shape is vital not only for our physical health but as a way to keep our minds strong.
Vagus Nerve
So, how are our gut and brain so interconnected?
Some people call our gut our “second brain”. This is because our gut-brain connection is powered through an internal highway called the vagus nerve.
The vagus nerve, a bundle of nerves, runs directly from the gut, into the heart, and through to the brain. As it does this, it has communication with every organ acting as a chaperone to make sure everyone is doing their job.
Our vagus nerve does more than this, though. It works hard to control inflammation - a known cause of many health problems (both physical and mental). In addition, the vagus nerve powers our “rest and digest” system supporting our heart rate, sexual arousal, digestive tract, and much more.
Don’t think we’re done just yet - the vagus nerve is a powerhouse, triggering production of certain neurotransmitters in charge of muscle control, blood vessels, and heart rate.
It’s safe to say our vagus nerve is the most important system in our body.
Vagus Nerve, The Gut, and Mental Health
Think of the vagus nerve as that one coworker who is always working overtime and pulling triple their weight to make sure everything stays afloat.
It is a super system that is used to help counteract our ‘fight or flight’ response. For those who live with chronic anxiety, healing their vagus nerve meant finally developing a healthy response to stress that didn’t include feeling on edge.
When our vagus nerve is stimulated we feel calmer and are able to make clearer decisions about life. We are able to see things from a rested perspective rather than a heightened state of arousal.
Nevertheless, the vagus nerve plays a major role in mood stabilisation, emotional regulation, and when healed through the gut - creates a more peaceful state of mind.
How Do I Know If My Gut Is Unhealthy?
Some people have lived with an unhealthy gut for so long that they’re unaware of just how sick they really are. Many symptoms are chalked up to other ailments or medications and aren’t addressed until much later on in life.
The gut and the brain are able to send messages to one another through the vagus nerve. But, if the gut is leaky or unhealthy, the messages are distorted. An imbalance of healthy bacteria in our gut has been linked to many physical diseases, anxiety, depression, and other mood disorder.
So, how do you know if you have an unhealthy gut?
● Poor immune system
● Difficulty recovering from illness
● Brain fog
● Memory loss
● Chronic diarrhea, gas, or feeling bloated
● Some autoimmune disorders (Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and Hashimotos)
● Overpowering sugar or carb cravings
● Fatigue
● Mood disorders
● Nutritional deficiencies
Our gut plays a major role in nutrient absorption, food digestion, energy maintenance, hormonal support, and emotional regulation. When our gut is unhealthy our hormones become unbalanced making it much more difficult to battle many common mental health problems.
How Do I Heal My Gut?
It’s important to note: it takes time and patience to heal your gut. While you may begin to feel better after a few weeks, or even days, it can take up to 6 months to fully repair.
It’s recommended to keep a journal to record how you feel both mentally and physically during this journey.
Eliminate Certain Foods
Certain foods can cause inflammation all over the body leading to gut destruction. Since gluten, soy, and dairy are all commonly found in many food products you may not even realize how much of an impact it’s having on your mind and body.
Refined sugar, corn, and processed foods are a few more food groups that may be detrimental to your gut health.
Try cutting out some (or all!) of these foods for 30 days. You’ll get a better understanding of how certain foods affect you but give your body time to heal and repair itself.
Heal Your Vagal Tone
Since our vagus nerve plays such a profound role in our gut health, it’s no surprise that healing our gut means healing our vagal tone. Once you begin doing so, you’ll likely notice an increase in energy, mood, and digestion.
A few ways to support and heal your vagal tone include:
● Stimulation: Gargling in the morning is one way to stimulate your vagus nerve. This wakes it up and gets it jumpstarted for the day.
● Breathwork: Not just any breathwork, however. Breathe as deeply as you can from your belly, hold, and then release slowly. This can help calm and reset your vagus nerve.
● Laugh: A variety of neurotransmitters are released when we laugh. These all improve our vagal tone - laughter is the best medicine they say!
● Fish Oil: Certain fish oils help lower heart rate, helping support our vagus nerve.
● Fasting: No, you don’t have to fast for days on end. But skipping that late-night snack and not eating past 7 pm can help your vagus nerve get to work on healing your digestive system without food in the way.
● Sing: Just like gargling, singing at the top of your lungs can help stimulate the muscles in the back of your throat, awakening the vagus nerve.
Take Probiotics
Our gut has a certain amount of probiotic bacteria that is needed for us to be healthy.
Over time, these good bacteria can decrease or become damaged from poor diet, stress, or inflammation.
Probiotics help restore our gut back to its natural balance. Probiotics help digestion, emotional health, and can help our bodies absorb nutrients into our blood stream more efficiently, creating a better feeling of overall wellness.
Heal Your Gut, Heal Your Mind
A gut in distress can send signals to the brain indicating trouble. This can cause feelings of anxiety, stress, or even depression.
Since our brain and gut are so interconnected, they each play a massive influence on how the other functions. Like we discussed before, think of a time you felt smitten on a date, you might have experienced feelings of ‘butterflies’ in your stomach - a sign your mind and body are working together.
Through the vagus nerve, our gut health is then transferred to the rest of our body - however, when our gut is imbalanced or unhealthy this message too is relayed to all of our major systems.
As you take actionable steps to heal your gut you’ll notice a major improvement in your mental health, as well. Heal your gut, heal your mind, heal your life.
