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Key takeaways:
- Many IBS patients are told it's all in your head, which can feel alienating, and Nerva's Claire Hall is working to change that conversation.
- Hypervigilance and catastrophizing are very real in IBS: noticing a slight gut gurgle can trigger worry and toilet-scanning, a thought pattern that leads to more symptoms.
- The discussion covers how hypnotherapy's effectiveness compares to the low FODMAP diet, toilet anxiety, and the bi-directional brain-gut relationship via the vagus nerve.
- Stress connects directly to symptoms even though some people still find this hard to believe, and Claire notes that the cycle is hard to break.
“So many IBS patients are told, ‘It’s all in your head’. This can be incredibly alienating to hear – understandably! But we’re working relentlessly to change the conversation,” said Nerva’s Claire Hall in her appearance on the 'Quiet the Diet' podcast with host dietitian Michelle Shapiro.
“Hypervigilence and catastrophizing symptoms is very real for people with IBS. If you hear the slightest gurgle in your digestion, it’s going to send you into a cycle of being hyperaware of where you are, worrying what's going to happen, constantly on the look out for toilets. And that thought pattern absolutely leads to more symptoms,” Claire explained. “But it’s hard to break that cycle."
Watch Claire and Michelle's discussion below to hear more about how hypnotherapy's effectiveness compares to the low FODMAP diet, toilet anxiety, the bi-directional relationship between the brain and the gut via the vagus nerve, and how stress connects directly to symptoms (and why some people still find this hard to believe).
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