Podcasts about pod farm

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2022 28:11

We talk a lot about oestrogen on this show, and so today, I want to give you a complete low down on oestrogen – what it does, how it benefits you and how it can affect you when things go wrong. Now, before we go ahead, I just want to share a trigger warning – I talk about reproduction and pregnancy in this episode. It's not a huge part of it, but it's there, so please feel free to skip this episode if you need to. Another trigger warning in this episode is that I talk about the connection between oestrogen dominance and obesity. If this feels triggering for you, please skip! It is the final point on the causes of excess oestrogen/oestrogen dominance, and comes after the point on endocrine disruptors. So, let's start with what oestrogen does in the body… Oestrogen is what fuels the growth of hips, breasts, the start of the menstrual cycle and in short, the onset of puberty. Oestrogen is responsible for fertile cervical fluid, thickening the uterine lining and kicking off ovulation, and it boosts serotonin production, which is not just crucial for cognitive function, but also helps us to feel more energised, sociable and positive. Oestrogen, alongside testosterone, increases libido - oestrogen actually increases blood flow to the pelvic area, and this heightens sensation and arousal. Basically, this combination of feeling more energised, more positive, more lubricated, having heighten sensations, etc. – all of these changes, are ultimately an attempt to get us pregnant. This is why, if you have a partner, you may overlook certain issues or see your relationship in a really positive light, only to find them irritating or to have those issues resurfacing in your luteal phase. Now of course, you might want to get pregnant, but that's oestrogen's intention. Additionally, oestrogen is crucial for bone density, heart health and cognitive function, not to mention a huge list of other organs and roles in the body. Now, if the above doesn't sound like your experience of oestrogen, I get it. The phases of the cycle we're going to cover today, are normally when people who don't have endo, have more energy, feel more outgoing, more optimistic, etc. But for some of us with endo, we're worn out from our period in the first half of our follicular phase, and then as we reach ovulation, we get pain. I know clients whose worst endo flares are around ovulation, so I understand if this doesn't resonate with you – but I'm at this stage, just sharing the purpose of oestrogen. In a little while, I'll briefly touch on why you may be struggling with oestrogen, but first, let's talk about what's happening with oestrogen in your cycle. Oestrogen and the menstrual cycle Oestrogen is at its lowest point during menstruation and tends to stay low for the first 1-2 days but begins slowly rising around day 3. This rise occurs because oestrogen is made from maturing follicles in the ovaries, think of follicles like water balloons with an egg in the middle. A couple of these are picked to begin maturing, and then by days 5 to 7, one of these follicles is picked and will eventually go on to release the one egg that bursts through the ovary during ovulation. As these follicles develop, they begin to make testosterone, which is largely converted into oestrogen. You'll tend to feel a change in mood and energy around day 3 as that handful of follicles slowly begin to produce oestrogen, and then at about day 7-ish once the queen follicle has been chosen, you'll get a real surge of oestrogen and you'll move into the second half of your follicular phase. The oestrogen production really gets underway here and continues to climb right up until ovulation. During this process, oestrogen is working on thickening the uterine lining, but it is also supporting lubrication and helping to create fertile cervical fluid. Initially, just after your period you'll likely still feel dry, but as oestrogen rises, you'll begin getting a pasty, lotion type fluid in your underwear, and you may feel a little lubricated from time to time, but not noticeably so. Now, as I mentioned, oestrogen continues to rise in increasing levels, thanks to the queen follicle growing and maturing, and as we get closer to ovulation, we'll begin getting a sticky, almost clear, egg-white like fluid, and we'll feel very lubricated. This is fertile cervical fluid. Once oestrogen reaches its peak, this peak triggers a cascade of hormonal shifts which trigger ovulation. Without this peak, ovulation cannot occur. After this peak, oestrogen drops, ovulation occurs and progesterone then dominates over oestrogen. Oestrogen is still present but it's lower than progesterone and continues to decrease. However, shortly before your period begins, we get another brief surge in oestrogen. This occurs to support possible implantation of a fertilised egg, and you'll notice similar cervical fluid that you had before and around ovulation, it's no longer fertile cervical fluid, but it looks the same. Of course, if you are pregnant, then further changes will occur, if not, oestrogen drops down again to its lowest point in your cycle and menstruation begins. Now, a side note, which is really a whole episode in itself – if you're feeling depleted when oestrogen is rising, we need to look at why. It could be that you lost too much iron and magnesium due to heavy bleeding, so we need to work on lightening that (and actually we'll talk about why you may have heavy bleeding later on). It could be that you had horrendous endo pain on your period that wiped you out, so we need to look at lowering inflammation and using other tools and practices to lower that pain. It could be that you have low cortisol levels or HPA axis dysregulation, which is common in endo, and leaves you feeling constantly fatigued or fatigued in the mornings. If you're having pain towards ovulation, we need to consider whether you're sensitive to histamines, which rise with rising oestrogen or whether you have too high levels of inflammation, which is naturally part of the ovulatory process, but can cause pain in excess. Or perhaps you have an adhesion from surgery, tugging on your ovary, so that makes ovulation particularly painful. Or of course, you might have an endometrioma. So, these are some considerations to make and everything I've listed can be helped, addressed, reduced or even entirely resolved depending on your body and circumstance and what the issue is. Now of course, that's what my work is all about, so scroll through my episodes to see which ones might help you with your personal issues during this phase. Now, back to oestrogen specifically, a few things can go wrong. Let's look at the first part of the cycle. We know we want oestrogen to reach its peak, but one possible scenario is that it doesn't get there, because your oestrogen levels are low. Low levels of oestrogen can occur from: The pill or other forms of hormonal treatment or birth control designed to lower oestrogen or stop ovulation. Stress – stress can lower sex hormones because reproduction is not a priority to the body in times of stress, and if you look at it from an evolutionary standpoint, stress back in caveman days was literally famine, or wild animals, or exclusion from our tribe; real life or death situations, so the priority was survival not reproduction. In many cases, it wouldn't be safe to raise a baby in those kind of scenarios. Additionally, the stress response requires a lot of energy and resources from the body, the stress response literally diverts blood, glucose, etc. away from non-essential functions like reproduction and redirects them to the brain, heart and muscles. A one off acute bought of stress probably won't do much damage, because the body was designed to cope with acute moments of stress, but chronic or prolonged stress can end up delaying or stopping ovulation entirely. Low calorie or nutrient intake Over-exercising The follicles require energy and nutrients to mature and to reach the point where ovulation can occur, so depriving the body of these nutrients and calories can end up slowing their growth, preventing enough oestrogen from being made and ultimately, delaying ovulation or stopping it. Additionally, under eating and/or over exercising is a stressor on the body, so again, resources and energy are preserved for the stress response and directed away from the menstrual cycle process. Now here's the thing. You may be thinking that low oestrogen isn't a problem for you because you're having a period still. That's not true. You can STILL have a period if you haven't ovulated or if you have low oestrogen, this is because whether it got to the thickness it needed or not, you still have some uterine lining to shed and eventually, the oestrogen is going to drop, and that will kick off a shedding of the lining. Symptoms of low oestrogen include: Dyspareunia or painful sex, of course we need to consider that painful sex may also be from endometriosis or a tight pelvic floor in our case. Night sweats Low levels of cervical mucus or vaginal dryness Low to non-existent libido Joint pain Low mood Brain fog and low energy Infrequent periods or no period at all, or a prolonged cycle Dry eyes Dry skin Low oestrogen is linked with heart disease and a lack bone density, so it's important to get it addressed if this seems to be an issue for you. So now let's look at the other scenario. High oestrogen levels or oestrogen dominance. This can look like a few different scenarios – Low oestrogen but even lower levels of progesterone in the second half of the cycle, which means oestrogen is dominating over progesterone in this phase, when it should be the other way round. High oestrogen and normal progesterone, again, oestrogen is dominating over progesterone but is actually also high High oestrogen and low progesterone Normal oestrogen and low progesterone A few things can create these scenarios: Low progesterone, in which case, we need to look at why that's low, and that tends to be lack of ovulation, caused by stress, dysregulated blood sugar, etc. An overburdened liver. Your liver processes and packages up used oestrogen, it then filters it into the gut, for removal in your daily bowel movements. When the liver is overwhelmed by environmental toxins, excess alcohol and sugar, caffeine, smoking, or even everyday chemicals from your beauty and body products, it will prioritise getting rid of those, because they're more harmful than oestrogen. As a result, your oestrogen levels stack up in the blood stream. Additionally, it's worth mentioning here that alcohol actually raises oestrogen levels. Blood sugar dysregulation, which increases oestrogen levels in the body. Endocrine disruptors, which are chemicals and toxins which affect or mimic hormones, some of the most disruptive being xeno-oestrogens, which mimic oestrogen in the body and are now showing to be the reason young girls are getting their periods so early. Just as a side note – if you get your hormone levels tested, these won't show up in the test because the test is measuring oestrogen, which these toxins are not, they just mimic it. Excess fat cells – now I want to be really clear here, this isn't about being sizest or fat shaming, but I am just reporting on what we know from the research. Fat cells can also raise oestrogen and so the more we have, the higher the levels of oestrogen in the body. That doesn't mean we need to have no body fat at all, that would actually stop ovulation! But generally, the research is showing that obesity is linked to oestrogen dominance. You can do whatever you like with this information, and I do not recommend you start focusing on dramatic weight loss! But it's important to share all of the information and not just provide you with selective info, so you at least have it all and can decide what's relevant to you. Symptoms of oestrogen dominance or high oestrogen levels include: Worsening endometriosis symptoms Swollen and tender breasts, and maybe breast cysts Worsening PMS or PMDD symptoms Heavy periods Clotty periods Painful periods Mood swings Ovulation pain Brain fog Bloating and water retention, especially in the second half of your cycle Now, this is where the connection to endometriosis comes in. Oestrogen thickens the uterine lining, largely through proliferation, which is the process of cells growing and dividing to make more cells. So, cells that have oestrogen receptors, can also grow too, which is how oestrogen forms breasts. But we know that many endometriosis cells contain oestrogen receptors (though not all of them, as we've come to learn), and so having high levels of excess oestrogen could potentially worsen the endometriosis. However, this isn't a call to go straight on the pill to lower oestrogen. Why? Well, you've already heard the risks of low oestrogen, but the pill won't necessarily stop endometriosis growth because endometriosis doesn't just rely on oestrogen to grow. In fact, if some of your endo cells don't have oestrogen receptors, it won't be a contributing factor. Endo also uses histamines, prostaglandins, excess iron and other chemicals to grow. Additionally, endometriosis makes its own oestrogen supply, so cutting oestrogen production off at the ovaries, doesn't actually solve the oestrogen problem. Often, what doctors are doing with the pill, is suppressing symptoms, but they cannot guarantee growth suppression and the pill only works for a portion of endo patients. Now, everyone has to do what works for them, so please, please, please do what is right for you – if it's working for you, great, but I just wanted to briefly raise this. A quick side note on this, curcumin in animal studies has been shown to reduce levels of oestrogen directly in the endometriosis cells, so whilst we don't have the same evidence in humans yet, it's a really exciting development. Now of course, having oestrogen dominance or excess oestrogen not only creates a set of symptoms that look a lot like endo symptoms – like heavy bleeding, cramps, fatigue, ovulation pain, etc. but it also exacerbates endo symptoms too. So, what can you do if you suspect you have an oestrogen imbalance? Well, it of course depends on whether you have low oestrogen or excess oestrogen or oestrogen dominance. Either way, working to support your overall hormone health will help with both scenarios – so everything we cover on the podcast, such as nutrition, blood sugar balance, stress management, sleep, supporting the liver, etc. These may all sound like the foundations of a general healthy lifestyle, and that's exactly right – you need a healthy lifestyle for your hormones to thrive. If you want to test your levels, you can get a simple blood test on Day 3 of your period for oestrogen and day 21 of your cycle for progesterone. Now these are only going to give you a snapshot of what your cycle is doing during this time. Your oestrogen might look fine on Day 3, but by 21 it may be way higher than your progesterone or your body might be struggling to filter it out. So, if you do want to go a bit further, a DUTCH test will give you an in-depth look at your hormones, with the most comprehensive being a DUTCH Cycle Mapping Test. Often, testing is not necessary at first. I prefer to go through the foundational changes with my clients first, and then if they're still not responding, we test. So where to get started? One of the most foundational changes you can make for your hormones is balancing your blood sugar, and this is almost where I start with nearly every client who shows signs of hormonal problems. I have several episodes and articles on balancing blood sugar, and I also of course cover it in my courses and masterclasses, so you can pick whatever suits you best! So, I hope that this has given you a deeper insight into the wonders of oestrogen, and as you can see, the ideal is healthy levels of oestrogen, rather than demonizing it and wanting to get rid of it completely! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Ease Endo Tea Challenge here. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Oestrogen and the menstrual cycle https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279054/#female_the-normal-menstrual-cycle-and-the-control-of-ovulation.REF.1 Oestrogen and bone density https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8865143/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29962257/ Oestrogen and brain https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5743731/ https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/jnnp/74/7/837.full.pdf Oestrogen and heart https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5709037/ Causes of hormone dysregulation https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22115162/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279054/#female_the-normal-menstrual-cycle-and-the-control-of-ovulation.REF.1 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40750-014-0004-2 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10397281/ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jne.12179 https://academic.oup.com/endo/article/145/3/1314/2878187 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11511861/ Hormone testing https://nicolejardim.com/hormone-testing-cheat-sheet/ https://nicolejardim.com/the-best-way-to-test-hormones/ https://drbrighten.com/when-is-the-best-time-to-test-hormone-levels/ Oestrogen and endo https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7215544/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4077338/

The Pod Farm is now Ora Podcasts

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 20, 2022 3:30

Hi there! You haven't heard from me in a while, so I wanted to fill you in with some changes happening to The Pod Farm. When I started The Pod Farm, it was kind of a punt. I didn't know if podcast editing was a thing I could do for work, and The Pod Farm was purely a passion project. But as it has evolved and become a real business, I've felt like there are ways I can better serve my clients and attract new ones. So I've decided it's time to put those things into practice, and there are a few reasons why now was the right time. For one, most of my clients now fall into a few categories - health & wellness, spirituality, education. This wasn't intentional, but as lots of my clients are through recommendation, it's just turned out that way. Also, earlier this year my Instagram account was deactivated so The Pod Farm's social media presence has disappeared, which seemed like an opportunity for something new. And finally, The Pod Farm was an experiment at first, and it was a messy one. There's a confusion of branding, starts and restarts, too many facets to the business etc. Basically, I'm seeing the new year as a time to start fresh with everything I've learned along the way... The first stage of this change will just be a reskinning of The Pod Farm you all know - there's a new name, more gender-neutral branding, new website etc., but the day to day operation will be the same. You'll still send me podcasts and get them back a few days later, same as always. This new brand will hopefully attract more clients in the specific categories I've mentioned above, and create a stronger identity for the type of client I work with. Further down the line, I hope to use this identity to attract advertisers for the podcasts I work with, and perhaps even operate as a podcast network. But first, a facelift... The Pod Farm is now Ora Podcast. The word Ora kind of struck me out of the blue, and as I looked into it, as a part of words like oral or oracle, as a homophone to aura, and the many languages that use the word, it grew on me more and more. I feel it represents the feel I want for the new business, and how I want it to be perceived by my clients. You can visit orapodcasts.com to find out more, and just to have a poke around. You can also follow @orapodcasts on instagram, although I haven't posted anything yet! Also, unfortunately I'm not going to continue releasing podcasts at the moment. These podcasts will stay up, so anyone can access episodes that have been helpful to them, but I won't be releasing more under Ora Podcasts for now. Thanks so much to everyone who has listened, to anyone who has got in touch and anyone who has found them helpful. You can still follow The Pod Farm and my work as Ora Podcasts, and I hope to be able to work with many of you in the future to nurture new podcast projects and help you make them a reality - see you soon.

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What I Do on My Period to Avoid a Pain Flare

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 17, 2022 30:06

So, following on from last week, where I shared the most effective strategies, I've tried from the past seven years of managing endo, today I want to share what I do on my period to avoid a pain flare. Essentially, what I do on my period that allows me to experience either low pain levels or no pain at all, and if for some reason my levels do start to creep up, how I get them back down quickly and prevent them from getting worse. Go back to last week's episode if you haven't listened to it already, but for context, before I started managing my endometriosis, my periods were excruciating. I would take pain killers upon pain killers with little to no relief at all. I couldn't stand, sleep, walk, eat – pretty much anything. Over the years, as I've come to train and to experiment, I have been able to pull together essentially a toolbox of strategies that I always go to on my period. To be clear, for me, managing endometriosis is something I do all cycle long, because if I don't, the tools I am going to share today just aren't as effective and my pain is worse, but a combination of month-long strategies like anti-inflammatory eating and physiotherapy for example, plus these tools on Day 1 of my cycle, really guarantee me the best results. For years and years, I suffered with period pain that on a pain scale of 1-10, were a 12, now they're 0-3, and a bad period would be seeing them creep to say a 5, which usually only happens very temporarily and using the strategies listed, my levels return back to normal. Now, I want to be clear that we're all different. You may have to play around for a few cycles to work out what you respond to, it may take you a couple of months to lower your inflammation overall, you may need different tools and strategies. So, please don't give up if you don't have the relief, you want straight away! This episode is here to inspire and motivate you, but ultimately, it's my personal protocol, and you'll need to work out what yours looks like too. So, now you have a bit of background and context, let's get started… So once I actually see fresh blood (as opposed to spotting or light pink or brown discharge), that's when I bring in my main go-tos. As you all may know, I usually take a handful of anti-inflammatory supplements each month, and normally I will stagger these throughout the day. When I am due on however, I wait until my period starts, and then take them all at once – at the moment, I'm taking quercetin, glutathione which is a potent antioxidant and omega 3 fish oil. But I vary them up depending on what I need and if I'm on a specific healing protocol for say SIBO and histamine. Taking them, all together gives me a dose of anti-inflammatory antioxidants that can start lowering any inflammation which comes with menstruation, and in turn, can help lower pain. Sometimes I don't take the whole dose in one go but instead split them into two. So, at the moment I take two glutathione a day and two omega 3 caps, and 6 quercetin, and so when I see the blood, I may take half of that, then a few hours later if I feel pain creeping in, I take them again. The reason why I do this is because I've noticed a pattern in my bleeding. If I'm going to get any pain, it's going to be when I first see fresh red blood, because that's when the inflammation and inflammatory chemicals are doing their job to cramp the uterus up and shed the uterine lining. Then things calm down and I would say about five hours later, I get another flow of fresh red blood and if I am going to get any pain, that would be when the second wave comes, and so I may save my other dose for then. The other things I do when I start bleeding is that I immediately put on my BeYou patches, one on the front of my pelvis and one of the back. These release natural essential oils selected for their anti-spasmodic properties, essentially, they reduce cramps. Once that's in place, I pretty much soak my pelvis and sometimes my lower back if I'm a little achy there, with magnesium spray. Magnesium helps to reduce period pain, but also relaxes muscles and reduces cramping and inhibits the inflammatory chemical prostaglandin E2. Now, a very quick science lesson, I talk about this in more depth in other podcast episodes and in my courses, etc. but essentially, inflammatory chemicals like histamines and prostaglandin E2 cause the smooth muscle of the uterus to contract, helping to shift the lining. That's normal. However, when we have too many of these chemicals, it causes too much inflammation and cramping, and therefore pain. Research has found that people with endo have high levels of histamines and high levels of prostaglandin E2 in their pelvic cavity and menstrual blood, research also shows that people with dysmenorrhea or painful periods have high levels of prostaglandin E2 in their menstrual blood as well. So, what I am doing here, is essentially trying to lower the levels of inflammation and cramping. Now, I do this all month long by adopting an anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle and by avoiding things that raise prostaglandin E2 levels like refined vegetables oils, processed foods and too much sugar, and adding in practices that lower their levels, like eating a diet rich in antioxidants and omega 3 fats and utilising supplements and tools like magnesium baths. But back to what I do on my actual period, within minutes of using all of these tools, any cramping I may feel creeping in dissolves or reduces greatly, and if I have none at all, this usually keeps it that way. Once those bits have been done, I or my boyfriend make a ginger tea. Ginger root powder is naturally anti-inflammatory, is an effective pain reliever and has been shown to alleviate period pain when taken for the first three days of the cycle. The studies range between using 1000mg to 2000mg a day for period pain, and it's safe to go to 2000mg generally. I divide this dose across several teas if I'm not taking it in supplement form. You shouldn't take too much ginger in one go, as it can cause diarrhoea, so you'll find most supplements and studies dose at 250mg to 400 or 500mg at any one time. I tend to go for 250mg of dried ginger root powder per tea. I used to do higher, but it was just too spicy for me! So, I now drink less of it, but drink it more frequently. If I have them in the house, I will also add turmeric and cinnamon, which both have anti-inflammatory properties, and cinnamon helps to alleviate heavy menstrual bleeding. I have to be a bit cautious with cinnamon because of my histamine intolerance, but I tend to allow it on my period as I'm usually only having it for one day. I'll link in the show notes to a latte recipe which includes ginger, turmeric, and cinnamon. So, I drink that, and at the same time as we're already boiling the kettle, I may also get a hot water bottle, which I'll use for about 30 minutes, as any longer can actually worsening cramping because the blood vessels begin to restrict. I don't love using hot water bottles, so I only really use them if I feel I need the comfort or if I feel like I need an extra tool to keep the cramping from increasing. As I mentioned earlier, usually I am pain free or very low pain, and there are numerous factors that allow me to live with endo in this way, and I know from experience, that if I didn't use these strategies, my pain would usually increase or will last longer. Next up is movement and posture. I have noticed that if I am in that point where I'm bleeding freely, that point I mentioned earlier when if I'm going to be pain, it'll be then, if I'm lying down, then the cramps can sometimes worsen. I think this is very likely my body realising it has to work harder to move the blood out, and I start to cramp more. It could also be that by lying down, I don't have much else to focus on except for the sensation, and so I pay more attention to it, I get scared that it might get worse, my brain feels unsafe and sends danger signals, and then of course, the brain responds by increasing pain. If you want to learn more about how pain signals work, I've linked to an episode in the show notes. So, it could be either of those or both. Either way, I find if I want to relax in bed, that sitting up or at least propped up, helps to reduce the chances of this happening and if it has already happened, it tends to reduce those cramps down again fairly quickly, which is why I think it's more to do with the body having to work harder to shift the blood out because lying down has slowed the flow. If I still don't feel very comfortable sitting up, say the cramping has continued, then I'll move around. I find that when I'm moving out of choice, rather than force, so I have chosen to get out of bed and move around vs. I have to get up and catch a train to a meeting, then the movement is very helpful and tends to support my menstrual flow and eases the cramping. A walk around the house, yoga for endometriosis and period pain or a walk outside if I'm up to it, tend to ease the cramps. The exception being is if I'm stuck out for some reason, I'm tired and I don't have any of my tools with me – that kind of scenario would increase my pain. This leads me onto my next strategy. As much as I can, I love to rest on the first day of my period. If I can fit it into my schedule, Day 1 of my period will be the one day of the month that I allow myself to sit in bed all day and just watch romcoms and chick flicks. And I'm going to say something that might sound strange to you, and I hope it doesn't anger or upset you because please remember, I once suffered with horrific pain too – but I actually look forward to my period now. I know my period will (hopefully) involve a bath and a day in bed watching light-hearted films and series, all guilt free. I usually watch some of my favourites like period dramas, or a classic romcom like Notting Hill. In short, it's a very stereotypical ‘girly' day – and I love it. I don't often do these things, and it just feels very indulgent, comforting and like a returning to myself because I get to pause. I have found that if I don't do this, I end up dragging myself through my period and coming out the other end of it exhausted. Your period is when your hormones are at their lowest. Your hormones help with energy, neurotransmitter production and a heap of other functions in your body. You quite literally have less energy, less happy hormones and less of a drive to socialise on your period as a result. Not to mention, you're using up energy and nutrients in the process of bleeding, including losing iron and magnesium, two essential nutrients for energy production, so you're more likely to be tired. When we push through the lowest hormone days, 1 to three being the lowest, we are stressing are body and forcing it to function off cortisol and adrenaline to get us through, because it knows it needs to meet demands it doesn't have the physical resources to meet. It's no wonder then, that if I don't allow even a little bit of rest, that I feel burnt out that month, which is the inevitable result of getting by on cortisol and adrenaline. Now, clearly, I have the privilege of working for myself and I also don't have children to look after. So, I appreciate that most of you have to go to work and some of you have people depending on you. And I get that, for many years I was an employee working with vulnerable homeless young people, who I couldn't let down. I would drag myself to work in whatever state I was in. These days, it's a bit different, but I still have commitments. I see clients every week, so if my period falls on a day when I have one or two clients, I will see them and rest afterwards or beforehand, and I'll push everything else to the next day. If I know ahead that I have a really busy day of clients, I will move some around in advance – it's worth stating here that the only way I am able to do this is by tracking my period and ensuring I know which day I'm due on, or as close to. Back when I wasn't tracking my period, I'd be taken by surprise every single time. Anyway – back to the point, strangely, I don't have to do rearrange my days too often as the universe seems to organise it that my clients ask to swap a day, or my period falls on an admin day or a day when I don't have too many sessions. Like I said, if I do have a day with a few clients and I haven't moved them, I'll rest up as much as possible between calls or afterwards, and I'll also try to take some time out the next day, so I can squeeze in a full day's rest. If that fails and for some reason, I'm unable to take any time out, say when I'm in a course launch, then I'll take a weekend day out to rest. For those of you who work for a company, perhaps you can talk to your managers about arranging it so you can work from home on Day 1 of your cycle, having endometriosis means you're legally entitled to reasonable adjustments at work, even though it's not classified as a disability. So, for example, when I worked at Centrepoint, I could work from home on Day 1 of my cycle and the other days of my period I could come in later and leave earlier, and I would make up the time at other points in my cycle – though honestly, they didn't even expect me to do that. If you're not sure what you're legally entitled to, have a listen to my episode with Clare from See Her Thrive, which is all about this topic. It's episode number xxx. Now of course, if you have children, I understand this may be totally unrealistic and I'm not sharing this info about what I do for you guys to replicate it all. Instead, I hope it inspires you to carve out some kind of rest or time out that works for you and your lifestyle on Day 1. It could be having five minutes to yourself before the children wake up, or it could be that your partner takes the baby for half an hour whilst you lie down, or if you're a single parent, maybe this is a day when your friend or your own parent might be able to give you a helping hand, so you don't have to juggle everything alone. I don't know what will work for you, but I'm sharing what works for me, and I hope that perhaps it'll help you discover what works for you! So, my next strategy is an Epsom salt bath! Yes, I rave about these and with good reason. Research shows that having a bath two to three times a week with 500 g to 600 g of Epsom salts, for 10 to 30 minutes, reverses magnesium deficiency. Now here's the thing, most of us are deficient in magnesium, especially people who menstruate or who experience frequent stress (which let's be honest, living with chronic illness can be stressful) as these both deplete magnesium. And as I mentioned earlier, Magnesium is not only anti-inflammatory, but reduces muscle cramping, has been shown to reduce period pain and PMS, is essential for healthy hormone balance, energy production and helps to stabilise blood sugar. All important for managing endo and for aiding in energy and pain relief on our period. So, on my period, I try my best to make time for a bath, even if it's just 10 minutes, to soak up that magnesium, and help to relieve the tension from my muscles and uterus and restore my energy levels. I also always have a couple of baths in the lead up to my period to help prevent my cramps being bad on my actual period. If you don't have a bath, you can do this with a foot soak or you can actually get inflatable baths, fold out baths and plastic bathtubs online, that you can just store away! So, you could always try that. The benefit of soaking in bath on your period as well, is that the heat actually works as a pain therapy too. Next is how I eat on my period. As you learned last week, once upon a time I used to fast on Day 1 of my period. I would now never do that, given how much energy we need for Day 1 of our cycle! Then when I started being able to eat on my period, I moved to more keto based meals on Day 1, to avoid a blood sugar spike, which would lead to a pain flare on my period. Now I seem to have better stability with my blood sugar, I can eat meals with a normal amount of carbs, but I ensure that meal is blood sugar balancing as much as possible – so fat, fibre, protein, and complex carbs. I do actually still ease up a bit of the fibre, so I tend to have more low FODMAP veggies on day 1, just because we are already prone to having loose stools or diarrhoea on our periods because the prostaglandins also cause the colon to cramp and contract, and as I have SIBO, if I also aggravate that, the situation just gets worse and I can get intestinal inflammation and further cramping, causing me more pain and more IBS trouble. I also add in a few extra blood sugar hacks now that I'm eating more carbs on my period, just to avoid any spikes. I have a tablespoon of vinegar in water before I eat, which has been shown to reduce blood sugar spikes and I eat my veggies first or try to have a side salad first, and eat my starches last in a meal, which again, has been shown to reduce blood sugar spikes because the fibre from the veggies delays the glucose release. And just to credit her, this info is from the incredible biochemist Glucose Goddess. I also walk around the house for 10 minutes after a meal, or just move gently on the spot, which helps to use up any excess glucose, preventing a spike. I have found that using these hacks on Day 1 of my period, really allow me to eat more comfort food like a pasta or something carby, without having a pain flare. If you want to understand this process in more detail, have a listen to last week's episode and episode xx, and it's definitely worth checking out the Glucose Goddess! So that's it! That's everything I do on my period to prevent a pain flare or to reduce pain if I have any. Usually, these practices keep me pain free or at a low level of pain, but if for some reason it creeps up, I double down on these and repeat some of the processes, like spraying magnesium, drinking tea, applying a new patch, or taking some more supplements, and if I really need to, I take a paracetamol. Usually, I just need one and that's enough to nip it in the bud. Now of course, what works for me may not work for you because we're all different. This period protocol has been created after years of experimenting and training as an endo health coach, and I've adapted it over the years as my endo has changed. If you'd like to create your own protocol, I really recommend going over some previous podcasts and articles for further research and information, and of course, I have the masterclasses and my course Live and Thrive with Endo. Please do consult your doctor before taking any supplements or making any dietary changes! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Ease Endo Tea Challenge here. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Super Turmeric Latte Anti-inflammatory Living for Endometriosis (pain signals) Christie Uipi episode (pain signals) Curcumin https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4533742/ https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/491886 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0753332217346838?via%3Dihub https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1756464615000092 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5407015/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24672232/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25277322/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3476912/ Quercetin https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19462895/ https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2014/781684/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4808895/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19297429/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6273625/ https://avivaromm.com/remedies-seasonal-allergies/ Omega 3 Fatty Acids https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16531187/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2832216/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3614254/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11687013/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17434511/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22261128/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3257651/ Magnesium https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/5/10/3910 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/dme.12250 https://drbrighten.com/boost-low-progesterone/ https://www.composednutrition.com/blog/increase-progesterone-naturally https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2675496/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25023192/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5112180/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30880352/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4847116/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17229895/ Ginger https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23865123/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26177393/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25912592/ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ptr.6730 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7171779/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23657930/ Cinnamon https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4443385/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30396627/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5220230/ https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/89/3/815/4596714 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30396627/ https://examine.com/supplements/cinnamon/ https://jandonline.org/article/S2212-2672(16)30899-1/fulltext Essential oils https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4979258/ https://www.hindawi.com/journals/prt/2016/8158693/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2221169115001033?via%3Dihub

My Most Effective Strategies After Seven Years of Managing Endo

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2022 48:51

Okay so as it's the start of a new year I thought I'd do a reflective type episode. I've been doing this podcast for a couple of years and many of you have been with me on this journey of transformation with my endometriosis, but I realised I've not really done an episode where I've shared my biggest needle movers in terms of endo strategies. I recently did a live on my key go-to daily strategies and this is a bit similar, but this is all about the things I am certain have made the biggest changes to my symptoms. Now, they're not the only changes – supporting my liver, improving my gut health, adhesion work, physiotherapy and many more strategies have made a big difference too, but if for some crazy reason my life depended on it and I had to give just four strategies that I think made the biggest difference, it would be these. The reason why I'm sharing this is because I've seen many people and clients go down rabbit holes with very niche changes. They start researching alkaline water and focusing on only drinking that, or drinking celery juice every day, or drinking apple cider vinegar every day or doing a fast or a juice cleanse. And sure, I'm not saying there aren't benefits to some of these more nuanced additions (some of them however do more harm than good!), but if your diet is still full of processed foods or you're drinking alcohol every day, or you're not getting enough sleep or you have an underlying condition like SIBO, these smaller changes are only going to do so much. So, I'm trying to save you time by giving you an insight as to what really worked for me. Now of course, this is my personal experience so you may respond differently, but I will say as an endo health coach, that a healthy anti-inflammatory diet and balanced blood sugar are essential to managing endometriosis. That's why I talk about them so much and why they are at the core of my work with endometriosis clients. How that fits into each client's life, if at all, is down to the individual, but all of us can benefit from a healthy diet and balanced blood sugar, even if we don't have endometriosis! So again, before we get started, the following is my personal experience, not a protocol for you to follow, but I hope that my experience might inspire you with where to start or how to continue on your own journey of healing your endo symptoms. If you do want a more step-by-step protocol based on the science and research, then I have countless articles, podcasts and then of course my classes, courses and coaching that you can use to create your own plan for beating endo. So let's get started… 1. Number 1 is anti-inflammatory nutrition. This was the first thing I tried for endometriosis, way back in the beginning when I was waiting for my second operation, about seven years ago. At that time, my life was miserable. I lived in fear of my endometriosis flares, and my period was excruciating. I would have pain that would start before I was bleeding, sometimes a full 24 hours beforehand, at a level 10 on the pain scale – and then, I'd start bleeding and it would be even worse. The worst of the pain would be for about 48 hours to maybe three days, and by the third day it would start to clear and would be manageable again and would fade away. Nothing seemed to help for the pain, I would take way too many painkillers and then spend the next couple of days recovering from the number of painkillers I had taken, feeling sick and experiencing migraines and drowsiness. Feeling desperate, I went down a rabbit hole learning about nutrition for endo and inflammation, and I had so long to wait until my surgery that I decided to give it a go. Now, to caveat, how I did this is not how I would recommend my client's do it having now qualified as an endometriosis health coach. So, please don't take this initial bit as advice, I'm just sharing what I did for context… So, unfortunately, I didn't change my diet very strategically. I didn't do an elimination diet, where you remove certain common inflammatory foods and allergens and then add them back in one by one to see which ones you respond to. Instead, I just removed a handful and pretty much kept them out for the most part, which is not what I would recommend doing now, unless it was a food that you know, for health reasons it's generally best to keep to minimal amounts, like alcohol and added sugar. But for the most part, I wouldn't advise clients to just cut out a bunch of foods and never try them again or to stay strictly away from them forever. I guess the difference with me in this scenario is that I had just done a food intolerance test and it showed I was really intolerant to gluten and diary, and when I removed them I felt so much better, the difference in my IBS symptoms and period was so dramatic, that I think that test had been pretty accurate, though generally they're quite unreliable (an elimination diet is the most effective way to test if you have a food intolerance). So anyway, I removed gluten, dairy, added sugar and caffeine specifically – I already wasn't drinking alcohol and so I continued with that, and I was already vegetarian so I went fully vegan at this point and decided to remove eggs too. Back then I wasn't a health coach and I was confused about the health verdict of eggs at the time (which has changed over the years), so as I wanted to go vegan anyway, I just removed them too. I don't think I was eating them much anyway, except in baked goods. And just a side note, if you're happy to eat animal protein and it fits with your lifestyle and values (because we're all different and have to do what's right for us as individuals!), eggs are nutrient dense, great for hormones and healthy, providing that they're organic, free-range and from hens fed a diet mostly based on grass and foraging. Lean, unprocessed meat can have a role in a healthy anti-inflammatory diet for endometriosis, providing it is grass-fed, organic and free range or wild, to avoid the added hormones and inflammatory chemicals. That's a big topic for another discussion, but in short, most anti-inflammatory diets in the research show a greater intake of plant foods over meat. The link between red meat and endo is more complex and requires an entire episode itself, the bottom line is that if you do eat red meat, it's all about quality and quantity. If you want to learn more, I do cover it in my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses and in the Live and Thrive with Endo course and this will be covered in another episode later in the year, it's just a guest episode and we haven't been able to pin a date down yet. But back to the main point, I did this elimination diet for one month, and had a pain free period. My first pain free period in years. This was the start of my managing endo naturally and holistically. I then went onto experiment, unfortunately not very strategically as I already shared, and I would add things in here and there, and make changes, and sometimes I would have good periods and sometimes I would have bad, and because I wasn't being very strategic, I didn't always know what the cause was. But what I did know is that if I ate a diet low in inflammatory foods, and for me, what I worked out from my experiments is that my biggest inflammatory triggers were sugar, dairy, gluten, caffeine and alcohol, then I had dramatically better periods. I had some hiccups, as I'll come to explain later, but this change meant that I got my life back. Now I didn't just swap these foods for a bunch of processed replacements like soy meat products and gluten free bread, because let's not forget, processed foods whether veggie, vegan or meat based, are still processed foods – and we know a diet high in processed food is generally inflammatory. Instead, I ensured my diet was rich in whole plant foods that were full of antioxidants, which fight inflammation. Since then, I've come to learn the science behind anti-inflammatory nutrition and a more sustainable approach to changing our diet as part of my training as an endo health coach. In short, I focus on what we call ‘crowding out' the inflammatory or processed foods with more nutrient dense whole foods such as vegetables, fruits, healthy fats including olive oil, avocados, fatty fish if applicable, and nuts and seeds; lean protein like beans and legumes, fish and grass-fed organic meat in moderation, and whole grains, gluten free if necessary. These foods are the key foods that come up time and time again in the research as being the basis of an anti-inflammatory diet, the biggest difference is that some diets include a little meat, some not at all and some quite a bit, like the paleo diet – however, as I said before, the key takeaway is that plants outweigh meat and are the star players of an anti-inflammatory diet. Now of course, every single body is different, so what is generally anti-inflammatory in the research may not be anti-inflammatory to you, so for example, tomatoes are very anti-inflammatory in general and according to the research, but for me, because I have histamine intolerance, they're inflammatory. So just keep that in mind, there's no one size fits all for anti-inflammatory nutrition and it also comes down to your personal lifestyle and values. Then, if or when my client's feel ready, we go through a short 4-week elimination phase where we remove a small list of common inflammatory foods or allergens, and then we retest them one by one to see which ones are worsening inflammation and endo symptoms. These days, I personally adopt the 80/20 rule. For the most part, I eat an anti-inflammatory diet, rich in those food groups I mentioned above. Then, occasionally, usually at the weekends, I allow myself to have some foods that aren't normally in my personal anti-inflammatory diet, like a takeaway (or take out for my American listeners) or added sugar or caffeine. Now, this is a very short discussion on anti-inflammatory eating, and more so from my personal perspective, so please don't base any changes on what I've shared here. Instead, do further research and listen to my other episodes on anti-inflammatory nutrition for endo or read my articles, or if you want a step-by-step outline on how to make changes safely and realistically, there's of course my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, my course Live and Thrive with Endo or you can work with me one to one. As always, consult your doctor before making any dietary changes! And if you have a history of an eating disorder or currently have one, please work with a nutritionist or dietician and a mental health practitioner before making changes. But personally, for me, this was the first change I ever made to manage my endo and it will forever be the biggest game changer. This was the pillar that the following changes were built on. 2. Number 2 was adding in anti-inflammatory supplements, specifically curcumin, ginger and magnesium. When I first started managing endo with nutrition, I would say that my endo was still unpredictable. I was still learning and as you'll come to see in strategy 3, I didn't really understand the science behind what my body was and wasn't responding to. To have a pain free period I felt like I had to eat “perfect” all the time, and that I could never eat any of the foods that I had cut out in the beginning - as soon as I strayed, I would end up having a really bad period that month. I felt like I was just too sensitive, and I had to work really hard to control it. It was incredible that I could even have a pain free period after years of suffering, but trying to maintain that every month was difficult. I was then offered a curcumin and ginger supplement to trial, both have been shown in studies to be effective pain relievers, and just as effective as NSAIDS, and curcumin has been shown in rat models to directly target endo and reduce lesion size and growth rate, whilst ginger has been shown time and time again to reduce period pain. I wasn't offered the supplement to test for endo, but actually for immunity, but that month was December and I had already been more relaxed with my eating so I was worried I would have a flare around my period. But then my period arrived and I felt absolutely fine, I still remember my shock and confusion trying to understand what I had done differently. For me, this was the start of consistently low pain or pain free periods. Adding supplements on top took the edge off and allowed me to be more flexible with my diet and lifestyle. This is when I really moved into the 80/20 rule I shared earlier, because I had more freedom to. Since that first encounter, I have experimented with lots of supplements and there are some great, incredibly effective ones out there which I share in episodes 130 and 131. For me, I like curcumin because there's promising research on its effects on endo, when taken consistently it's just as effective as ibuprofen so has pain relieving benefits daily, it helps to heal leaky gut which is important for keeping inflammation down, it's a powerful anti-inflammatory and we know inflammation drives pain and it can also help with brain fog. I haven't actually taken curcumin for a long time because I've had to focus on supplements for SIBO and there's only so many I can take or afford, but for several years this was my go-to and I believe played a huge role in my healing. I still take ginger to this day, just before and on my period. I would take it daily but unfortunately it burns my bladder because of my interstitial cystitis. However, I use ginger to prevent and reduce any mild cramping that may come with my period, just so I can be sure I can keep to the pain free or low pain levels that I'm used to. What I love about ginger as well, is that if I find I have higher pain levels than usual, it really pretty much stops them in their tracks. So, for example, if there's been a birthday or event near my period and I've eaten lot of sugar or something I know flares me that I wouldn't normally eat, I find the ginger means I don't suffer severely for it, it gets the pain under control quickly. A handful of times I may add a single paracetamol in there if I find it's not strong enough, but that's rare! If you're interested in the dosing etc. of ginger, have a listen to my supplements episode, episode 131. Finally, a later addition was magnesium. Magnesium is not only anti-inflammatory, but reduces muscle cramping, has been shown to reduce period pain and PMS, is essential for healthy hormone balance, energy production and helps to stabilise blood sugar, which you'll learn about in my next strategy. The difference I experience in my energy, my hormones, my moods, my sleep and my period pain with magnesium is extraordinary. I use both magnesium spray on my body daily and directly on my abdomen during my period, and I use magnesium baths throughout the month. If I feel any cramping during my period, I spray a couple of times on my pelvis, and the cramps literally melt away in minutes, so in that way, I use it for in the moment pain relief as and when needed. But when I use magnesium spray and baths consistently, the need for spray during my period is greatly reduced, I just find my body's tolerance and resilience is so much higher, I can be more flexible and have less consequences, and it takes a lot more to cause me pain. That doesn't mean I can eat junk food and sugar every day as long as I use magnesium, I want to be clear that you can't out supplement a bad diet and eating healthy isn't just about endo, but all of the other chronic diseases we are at greater risk of with an unhealthy diet, like heart disease, cancer and diabetes. So yes, I still focus on my 80/20 approach, but it means that I can eat out more and have some treats without such severe reactions as I used to. You know I am all about foundations, so for me, it's about laying the foundations of good health and then adding in some extra endo support, because we tend to need a little more than the average person. And I feel like these supplements do that for me. They're the cherry on the top that have really enhanced my endo management and freed up my life. 3. Number 3 is balancing my blood sugar, which came many years later when I started my training as a health coach. Something I had noticed was despite my endo pain being better, I was always exhausted. I had severe dips during the day which would leave me slumped in my chair and so tired I literally would hold my eyes open whilst staring at my computer. It's a wonder that no one on my management team pulled me up on it! I additionally had severe brain fog and low moods. I also felt hungry quickly after big meals, would have trouble sleeping, would wake up tired and starving, and would often feel faint, dizzy, shaky and irritable. I put this all down to having endometriosis and the chronic fatigue and brain fog that can come with it. I now don't think it's as simple as endo causes brain fog and fatigue, I actually think -well, know - there are multiple factors that contribute to these symptoms, and I explore them in episode 119 for those of you who would like to learn more. I was really interested in understanding why I had managed to clear my endo pain, but not my fatigue and brain fog. The other issue was that I had noticed that I couldn't eat heavy carbs on my period without causing a pain flare. I could be pain free, had a great month, but if I ate some fruit, a bowl or oats, rice, grains, pasta or potato, I would be in agony within 30 minutes or so. I started noticing that I was better off sticking to fasting on Day 1 of my period, or eating a small amount of protein, fats and low starchy vegetables for the first 24 hours to two days. I was also depressed, anxious and had awful PMS and mood swings and spent a good portion of each month feeling suicidal. I do have my suspicions about whether I suffered with PMDD and that it's now largely under control, but I wasn't tracking my period and I didn't even know when my period would start, so I can't really say whether these feelings were cyclical, but I feel like they were. Regardless, all of that has gone away since balancing my hormones and learning about blood sugar. And when I finally did learn about blood sugar, it all made sense! So, let's do a recap of what blood sugar is and means for the body. Blood sugar is the measurement of glucose a.ka. sugar, in the blood stream. We get glucose from carbohydrates, after they break down in the gut through digestion. Glucose is the body's main source of fuel, but it needs to be in the right amount to benefit us. Too much and we'll have problems, too little and we'll have problems too. Complex carbohydrates like vegetables, contain fibre and are broken down over time, so you get a steady drip of glucose to the blood stream over a sustained period, which creates even energy levels. However, simple carbohydrates like processed carbs such as white bread, white pasta and simple sugars like honey, maple syrup and white sugar, contain very little fibre and are made up of only very short chains of glucose. It doesn't take the body much time at all to break down those chains into single glucose molecules that get absorbed into the blood stream. So, this creates a large spike in blood sugar, in a very short amount of time. Our body actually finds this spike a stressor, as we're not designed to have that much glucose in our blood at one time. The body wants to clean up all this glucose quickly, so it releases lots of insulin from our pancreas. Insulin is a hormone that delivers glucose to cells for fuel, but when we have too much glucose, it quickly shoves it away in storage in our fat cells and liver. Because the body has released so much insulin in a panic to sort our blood sugar levels out, our glucose levels end up dropping dramatically and our levels get too low. As a result, our brain and body are now starved of glucose, because all of it has been put into storage and none has been left for actual fuel. It's this dip that I was experiencing during my sleep, when I was waking in the morning, when I felt exhausted mid-morning and afternoon, it's why I would eat a huge meal and feel starving shortly after. It's why I felt dizzy, shaky, depressed, anxious. It's also why my moods fluctuated and it's also why I had severe PMS and oestrogen dominance symptoms, because blood sugar dysregulation drives up oestrogen levels and can lower progesterone levels, creating hormonal imbalances. Now the other issue is that high blood sugar levels raise inflammatory chemicals called prostaglandins, and we know that inflammation is a driver of pain in endometriosis. This would explain why I would have surges in pain when eating a carb heavy meal during my period, especially when I hadn't created these meals to be blood sugar balancing. I can now eat a blood sugar balanced meal on my period and not experience any pain at all, which to me is still revolutionary. At the time, when I was experiencing all of these problems, I was eating a wonderful anti-inflammatory diet rich in an antioxidant rich foods, but I was mainly eating carbs, and wasn't paying enough attention to protein or healthy fats. I would pile my plate with hummus, potatoes, rice, falafel and vegetables. These aren't unhealthy foods. Carbs are not the enemy here – as I've already explained, the glucose from carbs is essential fuel for us. But it's about how we eat carbs. There are a few steps to balancing your blood sugar and I dive into those in more details in other episodes, articles, my course Live and Thrive with Endo and my nutrition masterclasses, but in short, the first step is having a balanced plate. That means having fat, fibre, protein and complex carbs with every meal. Fat, fibre and protein are not only nutrient dense and provide essential nutrients for managing endo and balancing hormones, but they slow down the release of glucose from carbohydrates because they take longer to digest. At the IWHI where I trained, we're taught to balance a plate with 50% of the plate being low starch vegetables like cruciferous veg, peppers, cucumbers, etc., 25% of your plate is protein, whether that's animal or plant based, and the final 25% is split between healthy fats and extra carbs, usually starchier ones or more veggies, depending on what your body needs. So, for example, it might look like having some root vegetables which are starchier and higher in carbs, or whole grains which again are starchier and higher in carbs, and tend to break down more quickly than low starch veg. For fat, we're looking at about two tablespoons or two golf ball sized portions. Now this will need tweaking for each individual, as someone who is very active will probably need more starchy carbs than someone who has a desk job, but regardless, it's about focusing on those four pillars and their rough portion sizes, adjusting to what feels right to you. Once I made this change, I felt such a huge difference, I almost think about my health in the sense of before and after blood sugar balancing! My moods are much more stable, my energy is consistent in the sense that I don't often have those swings anymore or those crashes unless my blood sugar is unstable for some reason, I rarely ever have oestrogen dominance symptoms unless I haven't taken care of my blood sugar, I don't have PMS again unless I haven't taken care of my blood sugar, my brain fog is minimal and I'm much more focused, and I don't have these surges of pain when I eat on my period anymore. Of course, if you have an eating disorder or a history of an eating disorder and this feels triggering for you, I don't recommend you make any changes without the support of a dietician or nutritionist versed in eating disorders and a mental health practitioner. If you'd like to learn more about blood sugar in-depth, I listed earlier the resources where I provide more step-by-step actions. 4. My last biggest needle mover has been surprising for me and that's clearing my SIBO, despite having relapsed shortly afterwards. I haven't spoken about this much because I wanted to be sure, but even though I am quite certain I have relapsed with my SIBO, since I got a negative test result, I've experienced yet again, a new level of resilience in my period, similar to how I felt with adding in those supplements. Just after I got the all clear we spent six weeks in Greece, where my options for endo friendly foods were limited. I ended up incredibly sick with gut health issues, because I am intolerant to gluten and dairy and having to eat those a few times a week ended up causing a lot of IBS issues, but in the past I would have been in cripplingly agony on my period if I was eating these foods regularly, but instead, whilst I did have an increase in pain, it wasn't anywhere near how it was previously. I will say, during treatment my period was up and down because there was a lot of inflammation going on in my body, so it was more coming out on the other side that I've seen the difference. And since treating, I've introduced gluten for a coeliac disease test, but again, despite it being worse than normal and I've needed to take some time out of work for it, the pain with my periods wasn't anywhere to the level it would have been in the past. Secondly, my blood sugar levels have dramatically improved. Prior to treating my SIBO, I would have to work very hard to control my blood sugar levels and I was incredibly sensitive to any increases or dips, now they are much less sensitive and more stable. And even though I could eat more on my period learning how to balance my blood sugar, I still had to eat a low level of carbohydrates to prevent a blood sugar spike, which would normally lead to a pain flare. So, in terms of what I could eat on my period, I had gone from pretty much needing to fast or eating minimal amounts of fat and protein, to then being able to eat low carb meals once I learnt how to balance my blood sugar. However, now the difference is remarkable. My period was on New Year's Eve and I truly cannot believe what I ate. I had already noticed over the past months that I was becoming more and more resilient with what I could eat, so we decided to have noodles on New Year's Eve. Usually, I would stay away from anything with a high carb content on my period because it would just shoot my pain up, but because I had been dipping my toes in over the past few months and as it was New Year's Eve, I decided to try something I would never normally even consider eating on my period. I'm pretty sure I also ate some of my gluten free bread that day too and probably some other Christmassy carbs. And whilst I got slightly more pain than my usual low pain or pain free periods, with some extra ginger and magnesium, it went away quickly (as in, within half an hour). So again, just to be clear, I'm not about to fill my diet with foods I know make me sick, like dairy, gluten, caffeine and sugar, and I'm certainly not going to start swapping my veggies for more processed food. But it's nice to know I don't have to panic if I eat a slice of birthday cake near my period or if I want a bowl of pasta on my period. Now you're probably wondering why treating the SIBO would make a difference. Without offering my body up for research, I can only hypothesize as to what's happened, but I think I can reasonably believe this is correct. Firstly, SIBO, especially methane type SIBO, can cause blood sugar imbalances, as can other forms of bacterial imbalances in the gut. I believe that whatever bacteria I specifically had that was behind my SIBO, was driving some of my blood sugar issues. You've heard me talk about this for a long time, that even when I ate for blood sugar, I would still notice how sensitive I was to blood sugar changes or a meal that wasn't perfectly balanced. Now there are numerous bacteria responsible for SIBO, so for example, two people could have methane type SIBO, but the bacteria causing their methane SIBO could be different. I think that the bacteria causing my blood sugar issues has either been cleared entirely and it's a different bacteria that's causing my current relapse, or it's returned but is in low levels so I'm not so affected by it. Secondly, bacteria from SIBO can release a toxin called endotoxins or lipopolysaccharides. These cause a huge inflammatory reaction in the body and have been found in the pelvic cavity of people with endo and have been shown to contribute to the inflammation and growth of endometriosis. Having cleared SIBO, it's possible that I may have reduced the level of endotoxins in my blood and pelvic cavity, reducing the inflammation in that area. And as a result, my body is more resilient to changes that can increase inflammation because it's not already being inflamed by SIBO. Clearly, I need to get back on top of my SIBO to keep reaping the benefits because I don't want the endo toxins or bacteria to build up to high levels again. It's not something I'm doing just yet because I'm working on my root causes, to prevent relapsing again, and as you know, I've been exploring candida overgrowth and mould too, which can cause relapse, but all of these things take time. If I notice any negative changes, I'll try to do the treatment quicker, but for now, I'm enjoying the benefits! So that's it. Those are my top four changes that I feel made the biggest difference to my endo symptoms in the past seven years. I hope you've found this episode inspiring, motivating and hopeful! See you next week. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Ease Endo Tea Challenge here. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Anti-inflammatory nutrition https://www.integrativepainscienceinstitute.com/diet-works-best-pain/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4684110/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4359818/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11093597/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11093597/ https://gut.bmj.com/content/65/11/1812.long https://gut.bmj.com/content/70/7/1287#article-bottom https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23419794/ https://academic.oup.com/endo/article/149/3/1190/2455150 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15051604/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2693127/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17434511/ https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/msystems.00031-18?permanently=true Magnesium https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/5/10/3910 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/dme.12250 https://drbrighten.com/boost-low-progesterone/ https://www.composednutrition.com/blog/increase-progesterone-naturally https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2675496/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25023192/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5112180/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30880352/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4847116/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17229895/ Ginger https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23865123/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26177393/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25912592/ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ptr.6730 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7171779/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23657930/ SIBO https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7375730/

Festive Special Series - Five Natural Tips to Reduce Oestrogen Dominance and Balance Hormones with Endometriosis

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 42:35

Today's episode is part of an end of year special series. I am resharing some of my most actionable episodes to help you reduce pain on your period and pain flares in general, and to balance your hormones for better periods, less PMS and healthier cycles. I am sharing these episodes because this time of year is often when some of our endo management strategies can go out of the window (and understandably so!). We might have more sugar, less sleep, more alcohol and more blood sugar dysregulation, and as a result, these can all raise inflammation and give our bodies a hard time when it comes to clearing old and excess hormones. So come January or maybe sooner, we tend to have more PMS, worse periods and more pain. So these episodes are designed to provide you with some tips you can quickly implement if you're worried about your upcoming period, or you're feeling rough and need some tips to improve your symptoms. Now of course, it's natural that we want to indulge a bit over Christmas, and so these episodes are not about telling you to be a saint. Instead, they're about practices you can throw in that can just help lessen some of the impact. I am releasing a couple so you can choose strategies you think will help you most and so you have options, but you certainly don't have to try them all! And whilst I'm here, if you find that you want to learn more about how to eat for endo and for hormone balance, or you get to the end of the festive period and you really just want to improve your systems, I now have my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, which are available to buy all year round, unlike my courses. Lucky for you, they're still discounted because I haven't had time to change the prices, so you can still get each masterclass for £29.99 or you can buy the bundle for £50. You could also ask for them as a Christmas present! Finally, thank you for listening to this podcast this year, and for sticking with me even with my sporadic release dates as I navigate all of these new courses and offerings with recording my free content. I am wishing you a wonderful festive break (if you celebrate) and a very happy New Year. So, without further ado, let's get to today's episode. I really hope it helps you manage some of your symptoms over this festive period. Seven Foods To Alleviate PMS with Endometriosis In episode 107 I took you through what oestrogen dominance is, the causes and the symptoms, alongside seven foods to help alleviate the hormonal imbalance. If you haven't listened to that episode yet, go ahead and check it out, then come back to this one! But why is oestrogen dominance even a problem? Oestrogen has been shown in multiple studies to play a pivotal role in the development and growth of endometriosis, it's why many doctors use progestin only hormonal birth control methods to possibly help lower symptoms (though not everyone responds well to this option). If we have too much oestrogen in our body, we may be further fuelling our endo and additionally, the symptoms of oestrogen dominance look a lot like endometriosis and we for sure don't want to be worsening those! So today, I'm taking you through five natural lifestyle and nutrition tips to reduce oestrogen dominance and balance hormones with endometriosis. Stress management - The body responds to stress by releasing cortisol and adrenaline. In acute moments of genuine threat and danger, this is helpful and normal but long-term chronic stress, whether it's a low lying level of stress or severe, can cause hormonal disruption, lowering progesterone and creating an oestrogen dominant scenario. Stressors don't just have to be emotional or mental (like 2020!), they can also be physiological, like over-exercising, heavy caffeine consumption, underlying infections or conditions like SIBO, chronic inflammation, lack of sleep, dysregulated blood sugar, etc. Strategies that have been shown to lower cortisol include meditation, mindfulness, breath work, yoga and walking in nature. Blood sugar balance - Blood sugar balance is absolutely key to healthy hormones and imbalanced blood sugar can lead to oestrogen dominance, as well as inflammation (worsening pain). There are numerous ways that dysregulated blood sugar causes imbalanced hormones, but for the purpose of today's conversation, I'll focus on two areas… High insulin levels (caused by a spike in blood sugar) raises aromatase, an enzyme that coverts testosterone into oestrogen, creating excess oestrogen in the body. Additionally, blood sugar imbalance can also cause sporadic ovulation or a lack of ovulation entirely, lowering progesterone and further exacerbating the oestrogen dominance scenario. Three key ways to balance blood sugar are making sure your meals include fat, fibre, protein and complex carbohydrates. Eating regularly and not allowing yourself to get really hungry, hangry, shaky or faint before meals and reducing refined carbohydrates like pastries and sugary snacks. Daily bowel movements - You should be having at least one bowel movement a day, as this not only allows waste to leave the body but any old oestrogen too. Constipation can lead to oestrogen dominance because oestrogen is reabsorbed if it's not eliminated quickly enough - and I see this often with my clients who suffer with constipation from SIBO! Ensure you're drinking enough water (at least half your body weight in lbs, in oz) and you're eating 8-10 servings of fruits and veggies a day for adequate fibre. Foods like chia seeds can also really help, but would be best avoided if you have SIBO as chia seeds can aggravate symptoms. If your bowel movements are fine, your gut may still need some attention. The gut microbiome contains a group of bacteria called the estrobolome which is responsible for eliminating oestrogen from the gut, if you have an imbalance and not enough of this bacteria, you may not be able to properly remove oestrogen. Additionally, an enzyme in the gut called beta-glucuronidase can actually take old and used up oestrogen and convert it back into the usable form, causing an excess of oestrogen in the body. You can test your gut microbiome using a test called the GI Map. If you think something is up with your gut microbiome, I encourage you to go back to my episodes on the endo belly and try some of the strategies listed there. Removing xenooestrogens - Xenooestrogens are chemicals that are in the environment, pesticides, beauty products, cleaning products and more, which mimic oestrogen and have been linked in numerous studies to hormonal disruption, endometriosis and fertility problems. They additionally over-burden the liver and so old oestrogen is put on the back burner whilst the liver works hard to clear out these toxins in our body. Both the xenooestrogens themselves plus our own waste oestrogen building up leads to oestrogen dominance. Strategies to reduce our exposure include drinking filtered water, going organic as much as possible, swapping our beauty, body and cleaning products for non-toxic versions and replacing our non-stick cookware and Tupperware with stainless steel, cast iron, ceramic, glass, silicone and non-toxic non-stick products. Yes, this is a lot to do, so start slowly! Even if it takes you a year to work through, that's fine! We can also support our liver further with lowering our exposure to drugs, alcohol, caffeine, sugar, drinking plenty of water and eating a nutritious diet. Good nutrition - You knew it was coming! 8-10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day fill us with fibre to help daily bowel movements, feed our gut bacteria and also provide essential nutrients for healthy hormones. Additionally, cruciferous veg play a key role in helping to clear out our waste oestrogen. Healthy fats, protein and complex carbohydrates also aid in keeping our blood sugar levels balanced and supporting our body to make healthy, happy hormones. For more tips on nutrition, head to episode 107. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Hormone balance with Nicole Jardim My blood sugar episode Understanding the Endo Belly Part 1 Understanding the Endo Belly Part 2

Festive Special Series - Seven Foods To Alleviate PMS with Endometriosis

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 29, 2021 27:03

Today's episode is part of an end of year special series. I am resharing some of my most actionable episodes to help you reduce pain on your period and pain flares in general, and to balance your hormones for better periods, less PMS and healthier cycles. I am sharing these episodes because this time of year is often when some of our endo management strategies can go out of the window (and understandably so!). We might have more sugar, less sleep, more alcohol and more blood sugar dysregulation, and as a result, these can all raise inflammation and give our bodies a hard time when it comes to clearing old and excess hormones. So come January or maybe sooner, we tend to have more PMS, worse periods and more pain. So these episodes are designed to provide you with some tips you can quickly implement if you're worried about your upcoming period, or you're feeling rough and need some tips to improve your symptoms. Now of course, it's natural that we want to indulge a bit over Christmas, and so these episodes are not about telling you to be a saint. Instead, they're about practices you can throw in that can just help lessen some of the impact. I am releasing a couple so you can choose strategies you think will help you most and so you have options, but you certainly don't have to try them all! And whilst I'm here, if you find that you want to learn more about how to eat for endo and for hormone balance, or you get to the end of the festive period and you really just want to improve your systems, I now have my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, which are available to buy all year round, unlike my courses. Lucky for you, they're still discounted because I haven't had time to change the prices, so you can still get each masterclass for £29.99 or you can buy the bundle for £50. You could also ask for them as a Christmas present! Finally, thank you for listening to this podcast this year, and for sticking with me even with my sporadic release dates as I navigate all of these new courses and offerings with recording my free content. I am wishing you a wonderful festive break (if you celebrate) and a very happy New Year. So, without further ado, let's get to today's episode. I really hope it helps you manage some of your symptoms over this festive period. Seven Foods To Alleviate PMS with Endometriosis Bloating? Anxiety? Tearfulness? Painful breasts? If you experience any of these symptoms, you likely experience PMS in the lead up to your period. Even though PMS is very common, it doesn't mean it's just something we have to live with - especially when we're dealing with endometriosis as well. In fact, PMS is caused by hormonal imbalances, often oestrogen dominance or excess oestrogen and sometimes low progesterone - and when we get these into balance, a lot of our endo symptoms ease too! So this week, I wanted to share with your seven foods that you can add in during your luteal phase (the phase after ovulation, before your period) that contain wonderful nutrients that have been shown to alleviate PMS and support healthy hormone balance… Leafy greens for magnesium, calcium and potassium. You guys must know by now how much I love magnesium! It helps to alleviate cramps, aids in oestrogen detoxification but also progesterone production and reduces bloating. Potassium additionally supports bloating, which is another bonus considering so many of you reach out to tell me this is one of your worse symptoms. Finally, in research calcium has been shown to help with PMS symptoms too! Add to smoothies, salads and whatever you're having for dinner - think leafy greens with each meal. Nuts and seeds, particularly sunflower seeds, sesame (tahini is best here as sesame seeds are often too small to chew and pass through undigested) and pumpkin seeds. Nuts and seeds and these three in particular are rich in magnesium, and zinc which supports healthy progesterone levels and good levels of vitamin E, which has been shown to help alleviate period pain and PMS. Add nut butter to your porridge, overnight oats and smoothies and drizzle tahini over your veggies. Protein for B6, including organic free range and pasture raised chicken and turkey, organic grass-fed beef, fish, lentils and chickpeas. B6 helps to keep blood sugar levels stable (in turn, keeping hormones balanced and anxiety and fatigue at bay) and has actually been shown to reduce PMS and depressive symptoms, and is truly a crucial vitamin for healthy hormonal balance! Try a chickpea curry for dinner and perhaps wild caught fish or another animal protein at lunch with lots of veggies and some healthy complex carbs and fat. Sweet potatoes, squash and beetroot (and all other root veggies) actually help to raise serotonin levels in our brain thanks to their complex carbohydrate content. Our feel-good neurotransmitter, serotonin works closely with oestrogen during the first half of our cycle, and when oestrogen lowers in our second half our mood can take a bit of a hit - especially if our progesterone levels aren't high enough. Eating root veggies with a good serving of protein and fat improve our mood, boost our energy and keep our blood sugar levels stable. Root vegetables also contain hormone loving B vitamins, calcium and magnesium - all great for balancing hormones and alleviating PMS. Try steaming and freezing root vegetables for smoothies or making up a lentil and beetroot salad. Peppers and other vitamin C rich foods like berries and broccoli can actually help to increase progesterone levels. Low progesterone levels can lead to PMS, anxiety, low moods, short cycles and pre-menstrual spotting. Try a salad of leafy greens, broccoli, peppers and lentils for a hit of vitamin C, magnesium and B6! Kidney beans, black beans, adzuki beans and other beans for B vitamins. B vitamins are some of the foundational nutrients behind healthy hormones - they ensure you're making healthy amounts, keep oestrogen in check, support progesterone if it's low and so much more that I'll have to do a whole podcast on them. In short, they can help alleviate PMS symptoms by making sure any excess or old oestrogen is cleared out and that you have a healthy level of progesterone in your luteal phase. Try an Italian bean salad with rocket, pumpkin seed pesto, adzuki beans, borlotti beans, olives, red onion, tomatoes, pepper, artichokes and olive oil! Broccoli sprouts, broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables for healthy oestrogen elimination. Broccoli and broccoli sprouts contain DIM and sulforaphane which support the liver to break down oestrogen in a healthy way and therefore lowers any chance of PMS symptoms. Throw a big handful or half a cup of broccoli sprouts in your smoothies or on salads, and try adding cauliflower rice to your chickpea curry. Even just adding one or two of these foods in on a daily basis could make a difference! Try making a meal plan or some meal ideas with any of the above suggestions and track how your PMS symptoms over a few cycles to see if things change. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Hormone balance with Nicole Jardim My blood sugar episode Lisa Hendrickson-Jack Fertility Awareness Method My FLO app Magnesium: Magnesium for oestrogen clearance The Association Between Serum Magnesium and Premenstrual Syndrome: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies Magnesium--a new therapeutic alternative in primary dysmenorrhea Potassium: Potassium foods for bloating Calcium: A systematic review of the role of vitamin D and calcium in premenstrual syndrome Zinc: Zinc induced changes in the progesterone binding properties of the human endometrium Vitamin E: Evaluating the effects of vitamin D and vitamin E supplement on premenstrual syndrome: A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial B6: The Interactions between Vitamin B6 and Hormones Nutritional factors in the etiology of the premenstrual tension syndromes Dr Jolene Brighten B6 Vitamin C: Serum Antioxidants Are Associated with Serum Reproductive Hormones and Ovulation among Healthy Women Low progesterone B vitamins: Dr Joelene Brighten Broccoli sprouts: Magdalena Wszelaki broccoli sprouts Changes in levels of urinary estrogen metabolites after oral indole-3-carbinol treatment in humans Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C) and its Major Derivatives: Their Pharmacokinetics and Important Roles in Hepatic Protection

Festive Special Series - Six Foods To Eat Before Your Period To Reduce Pain with Endometriosis

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 27, 2021 34:16

Today's episode is part of an end of year special series. I am resharing some of my most actionable episodes to help you reduce pain on your period and pain flares in general, and to balance your hormones for better periods, less PMS and healthier cycles. I am sharing these episodes because this time of year is often when some of our endo management strategies can go out of the window (and understandably so!). We might have more sugar, less sleep, more alcohol and more blood sugar dysregulation, and as a result, these can all raise inflammation and give our bodies a hard time when it comes to clearing old and excess hormones. So come January or maybe sooner, we tend to have more PMS, worse periods and more pain. So these episodes are designed to provide you with some tips you can quickly implement if you're worried about your upcoming period, or you're feeling rough and need some tips to improve your symptoms. Now of course, it's natural that we want to indulge a bit over Christmas, and so these episodes are not about telling you to be a saint. Instead, they're about practices you can throw in that can just help lessen some of the impact. I am releasing a couple so you can choose strategies you think will help you most and so you have options, but you certainly don't have to try them all! And whilst I'm here, if you find that you want to learn more about how to eat for endo and for hormone balance, or you get to the end of the festive period and you really just want to improve your systems, I now have my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, which are available to buy all year round, unlike my courses. Lucky for you, they're still discounted because I haven't had time to change the prices, so you can still get each masterclass for £29.99 or you can buy the bundle for £50. You could also ask for them as a Christmas present! Finally, thank you for listening to this podcast this year, and for sticking with me even with my sporadic release dates as I navigate all of these new courses and offerings with recording my free content. I am wishing you a wonderful festive break (if you celebrate) and a very happy New Year. So, without further ado, let's get to today's episode. I really hope it helps you manage some of your symptoms over this festive period. Six Foods To Eat Before Your Period To Reduce Pain with Endometriosis Today I wanted to follow up on last week's episode Six Tips for Reducing Endometriosis Pain in The Week Before Your Period, with something a little more focused around nutrition. As most of you will know by now, I lean towards making healthy choices to support us with endo all month long, but that doesn't mean that focusing on foods to add in just before our period can't be useful. In fact, if you're struggling with where to get started with endometriosis management, I would start here and with my last episode. As always, these are just options - you don't have to do them all nor do you have to do them exactly as suggested, tweak and tailor to your lifestyle and preferences. If you're triggered by any of this, seek the support of a therapist and dietician/health coach/nutritionist before making further dietary changes. So, here are any foods to to eat before your period to reduce pain with endometriosis: Spinach and other leafy greens such as kale, boy chow, lettuce, rocket, chard and other greens. Add these in for anti-inflammatory nutrients, magnesium iron and fibre. Leafy greens can help to reduce period pain, fatigue, PMS symptoms like bloating and can aid reducing any excess oestrogen. You can throw some spinach in your morning smoothie and a big handful or two of lettuce to your lunch. Olive oil and other Vitamin E containing foods such as almonds, olives, avocados, greens and sunflower seeds. Vitamin E has been shown to reduce inflammation in numerous studies, as well as reduce pain with endometriosis and painful periods. Try drizzling two tablespoons of olive oil or sunflower seed butter over your lunch time salad, and snacking on almonds! Broccoli and other cruciferous veg like kale, cauliflower, asparagus, broccoli sprouts, sprouts and cabbage. These help to reduce oestrogen dominance by supporting the body to remove old oestrogen that needs clearing out and can cause symptoms like clots periods, heavy periods and period pain. You could try roasting wedges of red cabbage and mixing into a salad, grating red cabbage over a tex-mea meal or adding broccoli sprouts to salads and smoothies. Salmon and other sources of omega 3 fats such as mackerel, anchovies, sardines, herring, walnuts and chia seeds. Omega 3 fats help to lower inflammation and have been shown to reduce period pain and in studies on rats, reduce the size of endometriosis lesions. Add no more than two portions of fatty fish a week in addition to walnuts and chia seeds, and be cautious of large fatty fish as these can have a higher mercury content. If you don't eat fish, it's worth noting that most of us can't convert plant-based sources of omega. fats into the usable form, so you'll need to supplement with a vegan DHA and EPA supplement. One way to get in extra fish is to pair it with a Mediterranean salad and whole grains like quinoa for dinner, and try adding in some chia with a chia pot snack mixed with blueberries, walnuts and some almond milk. Tomatoes and other colourful vegetables such as berries, red cabbage, parsnips, peppers, squashed carrots. Studies have shown that people with endometriosis have higher levels of oxidation (which leads to higher levels of inflammation and therefore pain) and that when participants added in a high anti-oxidant diet in the form of extra fruits and vegetables, their oxidation levels lowered. When it comes to fruit and veggies, the more colour, the more anti-oxidants - so eat the rainbow! Try snacking on red and yellow peppers and cucumber dipped in hummus, and make a dinner that has a delicious roasted veg salad with it such as roasted carrots, beetroot and fennel - delicious with some puy lentils, fresh herbs and rocket! Turmeric and other herbs and spices like cinnamon and ginger. Many herbs and spices are anti-inflammatory, yet turmeric, ginger and cinnamon are particular stand-out stars, with curcumin (the active compound in turmeric) showing promise with endometriosis lesion suppression and ruction in mice, and ginger being an effective pain reliever in people with primary dysmenorrhea. How about making up a daily turmeric latte and a carrot and ginger soup to enjoy for the week? Bonus food! Raw cacao and sugar free dark chocolate. Rich in magnesium, iron and anti-oxidants, raw cacao can help lower inflammation and support energy production, whilst helping us with those sugar cravings! Just be mindful of how much you have as cacao does have a little caffeine. My superfood hot chocolate recipe is a lovely way to get this delicious food into your diet before your period. So which one are you going to start with? Dm me over on Instagram and let me know which food you try this cycle! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes My FLO How to track your period Magnesium Study Magnesium baths for pain article Magnesium--a new therapeutic alternative in primary dysmenorrhea Vitamin E Vitamin E, oxidative stress, and inflammation Antioxidant supplementation reduces endometriosis-related pelvic pain in humans Evaluation of the effect of vitamin E on pelvic pain reduction in women suffering from primary dysmenorrhea Omega 3 Fatty Acids NHS fish guidance Dietary fish oil supplementation inhibits formation of endometriosis-associated adhesions in a chimeric mouse model Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) as an anti-inflammatory: an alternative to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for discogenic pain Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on intensity of primary dysmenorrhea Anti-inflammatory Effects Of Omega 3 Fatty Acid In Fish Oil Linked To Lowering Of Prostaglandin Outsmart Endometriosis by Dr Jessica Drummond Eat the rainbow Foods That Fight Inflammation - Harvard Health Oxidative Stress and Endometriosis: A Systematic Review of the Literature Women with endometriosis improved their peripheral antioxidant markers after the application of a high antioxidant diet Curcumin Curcumin inhibits endometriosis endometrial cells by reducing estradiol production Ginger Dr. Aviva Romm ginger recommendations The effect of ginger for relieving of primary dysmenorrhoea Comparison of Effects of Ginger, Mefenamic Acid, and Ibuprofen on Pain in Women with Primary Dysmenorrhea Cacao 100% black sugar free peanut butter mini eggs Hazelnut truffles Absolute Black (can find the bar in Sainsburys) Hotel Chocolat buttons (these are AMAZING, but I don't love their other 100% chocolate products) So Free sweet dark chocolate Raw cacao (you can find this in Sainsburys, but generally you can get raw cacao everywhere and online) My brownie recipe

Festive Special Series - Seven Foods to Alleviate Oestrogen Dominance with Endometriosis

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 22, 2021 44:54

Today's episode is part of an end of year special series. I am resharing some of my most actionable episodes to help you reduce pain on your period and pain flares in general, and to balance your hormones for better periods, less PMS and healthier cycles. I am sharing these episodes because this time of year is often when some of our endo management strategies can go out of the window (and understandably so!). We might have more sugar, less sleep, more alcohol and more blood sugar dysregulation, and as a result, these can all raise inflammation and give our bodies a hard time when it comes to clearing old and excess hormones. So come January or maybe sooner, we tend to have more PMS, worse periods and more pain. So these episodes are designed to provide you with some tips you can quickly implement if you're worried about your upcoming period, or you're feeling rough and need some tips to improve your symptoms. Now of course, it's natural that we want to indulge a bit over Christmas, and so these episodes are not about telling you to be a saint. Instead, they're about practices you can throw in that can just help lessen some of the impact. I am releasing a couple so you can choose strategies you think will help you most and so you have options, but you certainly don't have to try them all! And whilst I'm here, if you find that you want to learn more about how to eat for endo and for hormone balance, or you get to the end of the festive period and you really just want to improve your systems, I now have my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, which are available to buy all year round, unlike my courses. Lucky for you, they're still discounted because I haven't had time to change the prices, so you can still get each masterclass for £29.99 or you can buy the bundle for £50. You could also ask for them as a Christmas present! Finally, thank you for listening to this podcast this year, and for sticking with me even with my sporadic release dates as I navigate all of these new courses and offerings with recording my free content. I am wishing you a wonderful festive break (if you celebrate) and a very happy New Year. So, without further ado, let's get to today's episode. I really hope it helps you manage some of your symptoms over this festive period. Seven Foods to Alleviate Oestrogen Dominance with Endometriosis If you've listened to my podcast recently, you've likely heard a lot about oestrogen dominance or excess oestrogen and the problems these two imbalances can bring. Oestrogen in itself isn't a ‘bad' hormone - it's a wonderful hormone that plays a crucial role in our menstrual cycle and our overall health. But too much or too high in relation to progesterone is where the problems arise, and these problems can make our experience of endo worse. So what is oestrogen dominance? Oestrogen dominance occurs when the ratio of oestrogen to progesterone is too high, this can happen when progesterone is low, oestrogen is high or both! Excess oestrogen is when there is too much oestrogen circulating the body, and this would be likely cause oestrogen dominance, providing of course that progesterone isn't also too high (which in my experience with clients at least, is generally less common). Why does oestrogen dominance occur? We deep dive into this topic in other interviews and episodes (so check the links below), but to give you an overview, here are some of the common causes: Stress Imbalanced blood sugar Gut health issues Deficiencies, such as zinc Heavy alcohol consumption Overburdened liver Xenoestrogens Whilst taking a holistic approach looking at all of these areas is advisable, eating certain foods can help your body to remove any old or excess oestrogen and adding these foods in can be a great way to get started with healing any imbalances. Here are seven of my favourite foods for alleviating oestrogen dominance with endometriosis: Dandelion root tea or coffee to help support the liver with clearing out old and excess oestrogen. Be careful that you're not buying a caffeinated dandelion and coffee blend - we're looking for dandelion alone. You can drink it as a herbal tea or buy it roasted, then grind and have as coffee! It makes a lovely black coffee or latte. Broccoli sprouts provide a big, concentrated dose of SGS (sulforaphane glucosinolate) , a plant compound that also helps the liver to detoxify oestrogen and break it down in a healthy way Cruciferous vegetables such as kale, broccoli, cabbage and Brussel sprouts aid oestrogen detoxification. The active compound in cruciferous veggies is a nutrient called I3C (indole-3-cabinol), which further breaks down into SGS (sulforaphane glucosinolate) and DIM (diindolymethane) and both play a big role in supporting the liver with oestrogen detoxification. In fact, these nutrients are so powerful that you may recognise them - they're often found in oestrogen clearance supplements! Probiotic foods such as kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi and yoghurt help create a healthy gut microbiome and ensure that the bacteria which helps to eliminate oestrogen, the estrobolome, is well supported and that beta-glucuronidase, the enzyme that reactivates oestrogen (causing it to be reabsorbed into the blood stream), is prevented from getting too high. A caveat here is that if you have SIBO you may find probiotic foods aggravating. I would start slowly with one tablespoon and increase to tolerance over time. B6 foods such turkey, fish, seeds, nuts like pistachios, lentils, eggs, and a moderate amount of organic pasture-raised red meat helps to detoxify old and excess oestrogen and raise progesterone levels. Lignans from nuts and seeds, particularly pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and potentially flax (if you respond well to it) help bind and remove oestrogen. Flax can have weak oestrogenic effects, and is often recommended to help lower oestrogen dominance symptoms . However, I recommend being mindful here as I am not the only practitioner to have witnessed endo symptoms and oestrogen dominance symptoms worsening from flax, so I would just see how you personally respond. Having said that, lots of doctors, nutritionists and health coaches see an improvement, but just have an awareness when you try and if you try flax. Hopefully it works well for you! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes SIBO episodes Ep 99 with Dr Allison Siebecker Ep 97 My SIBO treatment plan Oestrogen dominance episodes Ep 104 Blood Sugar episodes Ep 88 Ep 81 Ep 66 Ep 55 Broccoli sprouts and cruciferous veg Magdalena Wszelaki broccoli sprouts Changes in levels of urinary estrogen metabolites after oral indole-3-carbinol treatment in humans Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C) and its Major Derivatives: Their Pharmacokinetics and Important Roles in Hepatic Protection Estrobolome Alisa Vitti Histamine The 4-Phase Histamine Reset Plan B6 The Interactions between Vitamin B6 and Hormones Nutritional factors in the etiology of the premenstrual tension syndromes Dr Jolene Brighten B6 Lignans Dr Joelene Brighten on seed cycling and flax Lara Briden explains phytoestrogens

Festive Special Series - Six Tips for Reducing Endometriosis Pain in The Week Before Your Period

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2021 36:52

Today's episode is part of an end of year special series. I am resharing some of my most actionable episodes to help you reduce pain on your period and pain flares in general, and to balance your hormones for better periods, less PMS and healthier cycles. I am sharing these episodes because this time of year is often when some of our endo management strategies can go out of the window (and understandably so!). We might have more sugar, less sleep, more alcohol and more blood sugar dysregulation, and as a result, these can all raise inflammation and give our bodies a hard time when it comes to clearing old and excess hormones. So come January or maybe sooner, we tend to have more PMS, worse periods and more pain. So these episodes are designed to provide you with some tips you can quickly implement if you're worried about your upcoming period, or you're feeling rough and need some tips to improve your symptoms. Now of course, it's natural that we want to indulge a bit over Christmas, and so these episodes are not about telling you to be a saint. Instead, they're about practices you can throw in that can just help lessen some of the impact. I am releasing a couple so you can choose strategies you think will help you most and so you have options, but you certainly don't have to try them all! And whilst I'm here, if you find that you want to learn more about how to eat for endo and for hormone balance, or you get to the end of the festive period and you really just want to improve your systems, I now have my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, which are available to buy all year round, unlike my courses. Lucky for you, they're still discounted because I haven't had time to change the prices, so you can still get each masterclass for £29.99 or you can buy the bundle for £50. You could also ask for them as a Christmas present! Finally, thank you for listening to this podcast this year, and for sticking with me even with my sporadic release dates as I navigate all of these new courses and offerings with recording my free content. I am wishing you a wonderful festive break (if you celebrate) and a very happy New Year. So, without further ado, let's get to today's episode. I really hope it helps you manage some of your symptoms over this festive period. Six Tips for Reducing Endometriosis Pain in The Week Before Your Period Most of us with endometriosis have experienced debilitating periods that stop us in our tracks and derail our day or week completely. Perhaps we get through with a mix of pain killers or maybe nothing helps at all - whatever is going on for you, today I want to offer you six simple pain relieving strategies that can help alleviate your endometriosis pain when your period arrives. These methods are best begun seven days before your period so the effects build up and compound and I do totally recommend continuing them into your period too, for extra benefits! As always, these are just options - you don't have to do them all nor do you have to do them exactly as suggested, tweak and tailor to your lifestyle and preferences. Consult your GP before adding in supplements. Here are my six tips for reducing your endometriosis pain for when your period starts: Magnesium rich baths, 2 - 3 times the week before your period, with 500g - 600g Epsom salt baths, soaking for at least 10 minutes each times. Two portions of low mercury, fatty fish (sardines, mackerel, anchovies salmon, herring) in addition to 1000mg - 3000mg good quality omega 3 fatty acid supplementation. Turmeric lattes with 1/2 teaspoon turmeric (1g) and 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ginger root powder (350mg-700mg) in addition to ginger tea (made with ginger root powder), raspberry leaf tea and dandelion tea. Always add some fat into your latte to aid absorption of the turmeric - coconut oil, coconut butter, cacao butter or nut butter all would work well. Daily yoga or stretches for endometriosis and pelvic pain. Reduce or eliminate sugar, utilising stevia, inulin root syrup, berries and 100% dark chocolate as alternatives. Eat the rainbow! Get in 5 to 10 servings of fruit and veg a day, focusing more on vegetables (think 80% vs 20%). I hope this episode helps you prepare for your period! Please do let me know if it changes your experience of your next period - I would love to hear from you! Scroll down to the show notes for links to studies, brand recommendations, recipes, etc. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Magnesium Study Magnesium baths for pain article Magnesium--a new therapeutic alternative in primary dysmenorrhea Omega 3 Fatty Acids NHS fish guidance Dietary fish oil supplementation inhibits formation of endometriosis-associated adhesions in a chimeric mouse model Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) as an anti-inflammatory: an alternative to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for discogenic pain Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on intensity of primary dysmenorrhea Anti-inflammatory Effects Of Omega 3 Fatty Acid In Fish Oil Linked To Lowering Of Prostaglandin Outsmart Endometriosis by Dr Jessica Drummond Lion Heart Aqua Biome Fish Oil Lattes and teas Super Turmeric Latte recipe Curcumin inhibits endometriosis endometrial cells by reducing estradiol production Nicole Jardim Fix Your Period book Dr. Aviva Romm ginger recommendations The effect of ginger for relieving of primary dysmenorrhoea Comparison of Effects of Ginger, Mefenamic Acid, and Ibuprofen on Pain in Women with Primary Dysmenorrhea Yoga and stretches for pelvic pain Yoga for endometriosis Stretches for endometriosis Pelvic floor and fascia release exercises by Dr. Nicole Cozean Sugar Inflammatory cytokine concentrations are acutely increased by hyperglycemia in humans: role of oxidative stress Proinflammatory effects of glucose and anti-inflammatory effect of insulin: relevance to cardiovascular disease 100% black sugar free peanut butter mini eggs Hazelnut truffles Absolute Black (can find the bar in Sainsburys) Hotel Chocolat buttons (these are AMAZING, but I don't love their other 100% chocolate products) So Free sweet dark chocolate Raw cacao (you can find this in Sainsburys, but generally you can get raw cacao everywhere and online) Stevia drops Troo syrup Stevia powder Perfect World ice cream My brownie recipe Sweet Laurel's Bakery blog Endometriosis and dairy episode Endometriosis and caffeine episode Endometriosis and sugar episode Endometriosis and gluten episode Molly Roberson interview Eat the rainbow Oxidative Stress and Endometriosis: A Systematic Review of the Literature Women with endometriosis improved their peripheral antioxidant markers after the application of a high antioxidant diet

Festive Special Series - Endo and PMS: The Key to Reducing Mood Swings, Anxiety and Low Moods in Your Luteal Phase

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 18, 2021 25:13

Today's episode is part of an end of year special series. I am resharing some of my most actionable episodes to help you reduce pain on your period and pain flares in general, and to balance your hormones for better periods, less PMS and healthier cycles. I am sharing these episodes because this time of year is often when some of our endo management strategies can go out of the window (and understandably so!). We might have more sugar, less sleep, more alcohol and more blood sugar dysregulation, and as a result, these can all raise inflammation and give our bodies a hard time when it comes to clearing old and excess hormones. So come January or maybe sooner, we tend to have more PMS, worse periods and more pain. So these episodes are designed to provide you with some tips you can quickly implement if you're worried about your upcoming period, or you're feeling rough and need some tips to improve your symptoms. Now of course, it's natural that we want to indulge a bit over Christmas, and so these episodes are not about telling you to be a saint. Instead, they're about practices you can throw in that can just help lessen some of the impact. I am releasing a couple so you can choose strategies you think will help you most and so you have options, but you certainly don't have to try them all! And whilst I'm here, if you find that you want to learn more about how to eat for endo and for hormone balance, or you get to the end of the festive period and you really just want to improve your systems, I now have my Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses, which are available to buy all year round, unlike my courses. Lucky for you, they're still discounted because I haven't had time to change the prices, so you can still get each masterclass for £29.99 or you can buy the bundle for £50. You could also ask for them as a Christmas present! Finally, thank you for listening to this podcast this year, and for sticking with me even with my sporadic release dates as I navigate all of these new courses and offerings with recording my free content. I am wishing you a wonderful festive break (if you celebrate) and a very happy New Year. So, without further ado, let's get to today's episode. I really hope it helps you manage some of your symptoms over this festive period. Endo and PMS: The Key to Reducing Mood Swings, Anxiety and Low Moods in Your Luteal Phase Okay so a while ago I ran a poll about PMS and endo, and I wanted to know what symptoms you struggle with. Turns out, the majority of you get low moods during your luteal phase. In fact, out of the hundreds of you who entered the poll, 93% of you said you struggle with low moods and mood swings during your luteal phase. So today's episode is the first in a two part series. Today I'm going to take you through one of the key causes of PMS mood swings and I'm going to provide you with my go-to strategy for starting to tackle it, and then in the second episode, I'll be taking you through the secondary causes and strategies. So number one, where we're starting, is to balance your blood sugar, and truly, this is one of the most important things you can do if you want to improve your moods during this time, lower inflammation and balance your hormones. This is really key and this is why I'm starting here. If you've got your blood sugar sorted, then clearly this isn't your main cause and the next two causes in the future episode will be more relevant, and they are low progesterone and low neurostransmitter levels. But we're starting with blood sugar because this is foundational to hormone health and plays a really big role in PMS, and could be the reason why you have low progesterone anyway! So let's look at what blood sugar has to do with moods specifically. Blood sugar is the measurement of glucose in our blood. Glucose comes from complex carbohydrates like fruit, vegetables, beans, whole grains, etc. and it is our body's and brain's primary fuel. For us to feel energised and have stable energy levels all day long, we need to have a steady drip of glucose filtering into our blood. When we're eating a diet that consists of complex carbohydrates, that also includes healthy fats, proteins and lots of fibre, this ensures good blood sugar levels. But glucose also comes from refined carbohydrates, such as sugars like honey, maple syrup and standard white sugar, and baked processed products like bread, cake and pizza. These foods contain a lot of carbohydrate and little fibre, they are made of simple carbohydrates, meaning that they break down very, very quickly in the gut. Complex carbohydrates are called complex carbohydrates because their chemical structure is made of long chains of glucose linked together, which takes the body longer to break down. In contrast, simple carbs are made up of very short chains of glucose that are easy for the body to break down. This creates a huge surge of glucose that's pumped quickly into your blood stream. What then happens is that your body panics. It's a stressor to the body to have this much glucose in the blood at any one time, so it releases a hormone called insulin. Insulin usually delivers glucose to our cells for fuel, but when we have too much glucose, it's released in really high amounts and pushes it into the liver and fat cells for storage. This equally happens quickly, in fact, a little too quickly and the insulin accidentally takes too much glucose out of the blood in its rush to clean things up, and our blood sugar levels plummet. This leaves us hungry soon afterwards, and we end up on a blood sugar rollercoaster, needing more refined carbs and sugar to fuel us and get our blood sugar levels back up to a healthy level. Of course, eating more sugar or processed carbs won't take us to healthy levels, but will spike our blood sugar levels once more – so we'll temporarily feel good, only to crash again, so the cycle continues. The result is that we spend our days going through highs and lows, and this blood sugar rollercoaster feels like: · Hanger · Irritability · Anger · Moodiness · Tearfulness · Anxiety · Shakiness · Feeling sleepy after meals · Having mid-morning and mid-afternoon energy slumps · Cravings for caffeine, sugar or refined carbohydrates · Trouble falling asleep, waking up in the night or struggling to wake in the morning · Feeling thirsty a lot You don't have to have all of these symptoms, but if you have a few of them, it's likely your blood sugar levels need improving. So what's this got to do with PMS? Well, in the first half of our cycle, from menstruation to ovulation, as oestrogen rises, we're actually more insulin sensitive because oestrogen actually boosts the effectiveness of insulin. This means we respond well to insulin so we're getting in glucose and making energy effectively, we're satisfied more easily and we feel satiated for longer. Basically, we're more responsive to insulin and that in turns helps us to have balanced blood sugar levels and stops us from craving all the sugar. But in contrast, in the second half of our cycle, when progesterone rises, we actually become less insulin sensitive because progesterone can dampen the effectiveness of insulin. That means the same meal you ate the week before, may no longer satisfy you because your body is not taking in the glucose from insulin in the same way. It also means, as a result, you may be more susceptible to blood sugar highs and lows and you might end up eating more refined carbs, sugar, etc. because you still feel hungry or less energised, so your body is telling you to eat foods with a quick energy fix. This is likely why 84% of you say you get cravings during this time! This of course can create those blood sugar crashes that leave you feeling anxious, tearful, irritable, or moody. This is one of the key reasons we can feel low during the luteal phase, which is why we start here. In the follow up episode I'm going to take you through the other causes, but by working on your blood sugar levels, you'll actually be preventing the other causes from happening in the first place in many cases, so this is the foundation we really want to have in place. Once this is in place, we can clearly and accurately see whether there's any other issues left over affecting your moods in this part of your cycle. So there are a few key strategies for balancing blood sugar, but let's start with the main strategy to get you going. Ideally, we want to practice this all month long because it's going to lower inflammation and regulate your hormones so your PMS will be better and your pain will be better too, but at the minimum, it will be helpful to bring this strategy in from ovulation onwards until your period so we can manage those blood sugar levels. So, the strategy is to eat healthy fats, fibre, complex carbohydrates, and protein with every single meal. And so this looks like: · 50% of your plate (or half your plate) should be covered with low starchy veggies. This is where your complex carbs and fibre will come from. This is important because the carbs give you energy and the fibre slows down the release of glucose, because it takes longer to digest foods with fibre. So think asparagus, broccoli, kale, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber, aubergine, cauliflower, etc. · 25% of your plate should be protein (or a quarter of your plate). And that should be equal to the size and thickness of your palm. We need about 20g of protein per meal on average, so that's not 20g of beans or chicken, but how much protein is actually in the food itself. Don't worry, you don't need to be weighing things up, just start with the ratios first, the portion sizes. If you're still getting hungry after meals, check how much protein you're actually eating and up it if need be. For meat, it works out at about 3-4 oz of animal protein. If you're eating beans or a protein rich grain like quinoa or brown rice, you're probably going to need to up your levels with say a dressing made of nut butter, or an egg, or maybe a tablespoon or two of seeds. Also, remember that beans and grains also count as complex carbs, so keep that in mind for when I get to the complex carbs bit! · Next up, we want the final 25% to be split between more starchier complex carbs and healthy fats. For healthy fats, we're looking at a two golf ball sized serving, or two heaped tablespoons and that could be equal to half an avocado, two tablespoons of olive oil, two tablespoons of nut butter, etc. Fat helps to slow the blood sugar release down, and is actually essential for hormone production by the way! The starchier carbs would consist of a small handful of something like root veggies such as sweet potato or parsnips, or maybe some quinoa or beans if you haven't had them already as your protein source. And so this is where it has to be very individual as if you already have beans or grains, you might not need that extra starch boost and instead, you could just add some extra veggies so your plate is around 60-65% veg. But if you have say beans on your plate for your protein source and you tend to burn a lot of energy during the day because you're a very active person, you might need a little sweet potato too or some grains. And if you've got meat as your protein source and you're very active, that serving of starchier carbs might need to be a bit bigger than someone who isn't very active. It has to be tailored to you and what your body needs. For example, my blood sugar cannot tolerate beans and grains in the same meal, I crash and burn hard! But I have a job where for the most part, other than using a standing desk a few times throughout the day and my usual exercise routine, I don't have a physically demanding lifestyle. But if you're say a nurse in a busy hospital, a dance teacher or an athlete, you'll probably feel like you do better with that extra fuel. In fact, one of my clients who's a dance teacher always needs some kind of grain with her meals or her blood sugar would get too low, because she was always burning it off! Another thing I want to mention here is how our blood sugar responds to grains is very personal too. Some people find that grains give them a steady release of fuel, others find they spike their blood sugar levels quickly and then crash. That's me! Especially after oatmeal, I can have a big, filling bowl but find myself starving and shaky an hour later, if not sooner. So if you do respond like that to grains but you want to eat them regularly, you might need to up you fat and protein to really slow down that glucose release. So, this is where we get started. It might sound a little fiddly, but over time, you'll gradually grow accustomed to it and notice when one of these food groups is missing! In the show notes, I've linked to a great diagram of how this looks on a plate, so you can always print that off and have it on your fridge. Now there other steps to balancing your blood sugar, but it can take some time to adjust to this one, so this is where I'd suggest for you to start and then you can revisit my past blood sugar episodes to learn more, or I think I'm probably going to release a standalone workshop on this in the future so you can always sign up to that if you'd like a deep dive and a step by step process. But start here, give it at least one cycle and see how you're doing. Of course, if you're constantly spiking your levels with chocolate and sweets, then balancing your meals won't cancel that out, so just be mindful of that! And I just want to leave you with one last tip, to really get off on the right track, make sure your breakfast is fat and protein rich, don't skip these two! If you're just having oatmeal, you're going to need to add a lot of nut butter, some protein powder or have two eggs on the side to balance out the carb content. Keep that in mind when you start the day and you'll find balancing your blood sugar levels much easier as go through the rest of your day. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes How to Build a Healthy Plate Diagram by Amelia Freer

How to Live Well with Endometriosis and Ehlers-Danlos with Natalia Kasnakidis

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 10, 2021 86:19

Do you get full body pain? Does it affect your muscles, nerves or joints? Do you find that you need to rest after walking or find you tired more easily than others? It might not just be endometriosis. Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is a group of 13 conditions which all affect connective tissue (collagen) in the body. Most are rare, but one type called hypermobility EDS is common - and out of those with this type of EDS, 6-23% have endometriosis. But that's not where the connection ends… 32-77% of those with EDS have vulvodynia and or pain with sex. 33-75% have heavy menstrual bleeding. 73-93% have painful periods. Additionally, histamine intolerance caused by Mast Cell Activation Syndrome is a co-condition of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and we also know that overactive mast cells play a role in endometriosis. Not only can this cause more painful periods, but it can also create problems like allergies and eczema to name a few. Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is also a huge risk factor for SIBO, and as you may now know, at present SIBO is estimated as affecting 80% of the endo population. I could go on with the overlapping symptoms and connections, but instead, I'll let you hear it first hand from Natalia Kasnakidis who is not only an endometriosis warrior, but is also living with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, histamine intolerance and potentially postural tachycardia syndrome. In this episode we talk about: What the Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes are and how common they are. The signs and symptoms to look out for and Natalia's own experience with her symptoms. The journey she tool to diagnosis and her tips for getting diagnosed. The co-conditions of EDS and their symptoms. Her key strategies for living well with endometriosis and EDS. Get my free Christmas endo recipe ebook here. With five delicious endo-friendly recipes, This Endolife, At Christmas, is a mini cookbook to help you live and thrive with endometriosis at Christmas. These recipes are anti-inflammatory, plant-based, gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free and contain no added sugar! Featuring... Sausage, Pecan and Chestnut Stuffing Carrot Bacon Pigs in Blankets Salted Caramel Cheesecake This Isn't Just Custard, This Is Endo-Friendly Very Vanilla Custard Christmas Spiced Plum and Blackberry Crumble Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

Symptom Management Supplements for the Endo Belly

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 29, 2021 24:04

Do you suffer with the endo belly? Is it accompanied by bloating, diarrhea, constipation or abdominal cramping? Whilst I'm all about getting to the root cause and find out WHY you're suffering with the endo belly (not to mention, healing the root cause) I also understand the need for short-term symptom relief whilst we're on that journey. Today's podcast episode offers just that. I am sharing the most effective supplement options that help to relieve endo belly flares in the moment. These are the tools and strategies we use in our SIBO training with Dr. Siebecker, but are safe if you don't have SIBO but do suffer with IBS symptoms. You will find all the dose references in the show notes, but remember - as a health coach I cannot prescribe you a treatment protocol, this is education only and the aim is for you to take this information away to discuss your options with your doctor. Full credit to my tutor Dr. Allison Siebecker for teaching and providing us with these strategy relief tools! Activated Charcoal So first up we're starting with activated charcoal, which is great for: Diarrhea Abdominal pain (not pelvic pain) Gas Acid reflux It works by absorbing gases, which reduces pressure in the gut that can lead to cramping and of course, reduces bloating. It's also absorbs fluid, so reduces diarrhea too. The doses are: Up to 1000mg, every 1-3 hours for diarrhea. Up to 1000mg, every 2-6 hours for bloating/gas/abdominal pain. Up to 1000mg 30 mins before a meal and one hour after for endo belly ‘trigger' foods. Now what I mean by this, is if you have to eat something that you know is probably going to make you bloat or gassy, or swell you up, but you're a bit stuck for choices, say you're at a family thing or wedding, or you're on holiday, then you could use charcoal. I don't advise you just use it for every meal so you can eat whatever you want, because you'll end up very constipated because it absorbs fluid, but I have found it very helpful on holiday and at weddings. Up to 500mg every 2-3 hours for acid reflux. So, some things to consider when taking charcoal: Do not consume more than 4000mg per day. It can cause constipation, so reduce the dose if constipation occurs or use with magnesium citrate (which you'll learn about shortly) or stool softeners, and I've listed some natural stool softeners in the handout. If you do use magnesium citrate to avoid any constipation, take it an hour after the charcoal or before bed. Your bowel movements may look dark after charcoal - don't worry, it just stains everything! Absorbs everything, so take it 30 minutes before meals/supplements/meds and/or one hour after. Some research has showed that in it can cause vomiting if accidentally inhaled, so if you struggle with small airways or swallowing, be cautious with this. I also personally prefer using capsules, as I have tried using the powder stirred in water and have accidentally inhaled it myself one or two times! Ginger Next up is my absolute favourite, and that's ginger. Ginger is effective for: Nausea/vomiting Gas Bloating Fullness/food won't go down Abdominal pain Ginger is a prokinetic, which means it stimulates the MMC and gut motility, so it moves gas down and out of the small intestine. This therefore helps with gas, bloating, pressure, and abdominal pain, and it helps food to go down as well if you're feeling like you're not digesting your food properly. And I've mentioned, it's a great tool for nausea and vomiting. The doses are: 1000mg an 1-2 hours after meals or at bedtime for nausea/bloating/gas/vomiting/ab. pain. 1000mg 30 mins before meals to aid with appetite if nauseas. So, some things to consider when taking ginger are: Do not consume more than 2000 mg per day. It can cause something called ginger burn, which feels like heat or acid reflux is the oesophagus or stomach. If that occurs, take less, stand up and move around so it starts to go down (as ginger burn often happens when lying down or reclining in many of my clients) and sip on lots of water. In people with interstitial cystitis, as it's a spice, it might cause some irritation, but this tends to vary from person to person. Finally, fresh ginger root is usually not as effective as dried ginger root powder, so we're going for a 1000 mg in the form of capsules. Peppermint Peppermint can be used for: Abdominal pain Bloating General IBS symptoms (there's LOTS of research on peppermint for IBS) Indigestion Pain with bowel movements (which I know many of you suffer with) Peppermint relaxes the smooth muscle of the intestines, so helps significantly with cramping and abdominal pain, and helps to ease the transition of gas. It's also been shown to be 67% effective for reducing severe IBS symptoms, pretty impressive stuff! So, the doses are: Use peppermint tea/or tincture (follow label dose) for pain or sensations higher up in the abdomen (this is because peppermint generally works locally, so if you feel symptoms around the stomach area, the peppermint tea or tincture will be able to affect that area because it's not sealed up in a pill, whereas the pills are coated and are designed to not be released until they exit the stomach). Label dose of triple coated tablets for mid to lower abdominal symptoms, as needed or daily. Research has shown that pain and symptoms improve significantly with long-term use with peppermint oil. Can also apply peppermint essential oil to abdomen. Follow label instructions as some oils require diluting in a base oil. A quick tip here, is you can use Be You patches, which I share on my podcast, over the abdomen, to ease spasms. You can keep those on for 12 hours and you can wear them daily. So, some things to consider when taking peppermint are: It can cause acid reflux in some people because it relaxes the muscles, it can open up the sphincter connecting the stomach and the oesophagus, so stomach acid can travel up. If this happens to you, try a pill that's triple coated and designed to bypass the stomach. For some people, peppermint can also cause nausea. Magnesium Magnesium citrate or oxide can be used for: Constipation These types of magnesium draw water into the colon, helping to create a bowel movement. The dose is: Up to 2000 mg at bedtime (two hours after food), daily or as needed until you have a bowel movement. However, 1000 mg is normally effective for many, but see what works for you. So, some things to consider when taking magnesium citrate or oxide are: You need to start slowly, beginning at 500 mg and building up until you find the dose that works for you. Generally, increasing your dose slightly each night should be a good pace, but keep in mind it can take a few nights to get to work, so don't be too hasty. Too much will cause abdominal cramping, bloating and diarrhea. If that occurs, reduce the dose back down until you get to a dose that creates a healthy bowel movement without watery stools or discomfort. Food will reduce the effects, so keep in mind you need to take it two hours away from food. And finally, you have to use either magnesium oxide or citrate, other forms of magnesium are not laxatives and will be absorbed in the body, rather than making their way down into the colon. Partially Hydrolysed Guar Gum PHGG be used for: All IBS symptoms (multiple studies/reviews confirm this) Constipation Improving stool consistency Diarrhea Bloating/gas Increasing beneficial bacteria PHGG is a type of soluble, low FODMAP fibre, which is generally safe and well tolerated by even SIBO patients! It's a longer term symptom management tool, whereas the others bring relief same day, this tends to need about a month to build up to the benefits. It helps to bulk up stools, making it effective for both constipation and diarrhea. So, the dose is: 5-6 g daily, ideally dissolved in hot water on an empty stomach, for at least one month and likely ongoing for maintenance. Some people do put it with tea, coffee, smoothies or even porridge, but many of the labels suggest on an empty stomach. Increase to full dose across one to two weeks, especially if SIBO positive, so start out lower, with say one gram, and then increase by a gram or half a gram a day. So, some things to consider when taking partially hydrolysed guar gum are: Ironically, in some people, likely people who have SIBO or extensive gut issues, it might cause bloating. So, give yourself a month or so on it and see how you respond. If it's noticeably bad, reduce back down to a level you can tolerate or discontinue. Generally, it is thought to be SIBO safe, but we're all different and SIBO is so individual, that we can't guarantee it'll be well tolerated by everyone. And alongside that, it may cause some GI distress, so basically an irritation of your IBS symptoms and if you have SIBO and don't respond well to it, it could worsen those. However, as I've mentioned, on the whole, it's well tolerated. Most Important Takeaway: So, that wraps up this module, and I wanted to also let you know, there are multiple other options to help with symptoms, including more supplements and some at home remedies. I've linked to a handout in this slide by my tutor Dr. Allison Siebecker, which provides all of them. You don't need to use them all, but I would recommend you have a read of it, so you know your options, and I also recommend trying some of the simple home remedies before buying expensive supplements! But before we do any of that, remember, getting our foundations in place can make a huge difference to gut health - so start off with the first line therapies, before you start spot treating with lots of different supplements. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My new Nutrition for Endo Masterclasses are out now and are on special offer for Black Friday. Get one masterclass for £29.99 (full price £40) or both for £50. Find out more here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Charcoal https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3717809/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3521259/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7015846/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3717809/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7949514/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12516788 https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/sibo_symptomatic_relief_suggestions_jan_2020.pdf Ginger https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10442508/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16865831/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24390893/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17545109/ https://www.europeanreview.org/article/10145 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3958926/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18403946/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25912592/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23612703/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30423929/ https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/sibo_symptomatic_relief_suggestions_jan_2020.pdf Peppermint https://bmccomplementmedtherapies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12906-018-2409-0 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11207510/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24100754/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26319955/ https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/sibo_symptomatic_relief_suggestions_jan_2020.pdf Magnesium https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/sibo_symptomatic_relief_suggestions_jan_2020.pdf PHGG https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25843197/ http://ecite.utas.edu.au/121479 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16413751 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25519526/ https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/sibo_symptomatic_relief_suggestions_jan_2020.pdf

My Daily Essential Endo Management Strategies

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 27, 2021 63:12

This episode is an IG live where I discuss the endo management habits that are a part of my everyday life and I pretty much couldn't live without! Now, it's definitely not as simple as ‘do these habits and your symptoms will be sorted', that's not what this live was about - this was just a little peak into some of my daily habits. When it comes to endo it's about understanding and treating/managing the root causes behind your symptoms and that will differ for every person. BUT these are habits that have profoundly changed my experience of endo, and I also see work wonders for clients. They are: Anti-inflammatory nutrition Blood sugar management Magnesium spray/baths Omega 3 fatty acid supplementation An extra good quality, evidence-backed anti-inflammatory supplement (quercetin, curcumin, glutathione, etc) Daylight in the mornings Underneath these it's also of course important to have the foundations of good health: Sleep Movement Stress management Good nutrition (but that's covered above) Stress management Hydration Connection/joy I also work on the liver, gut, HPA axis, pain signals, pelvic floor health, etc. with myself and clients, but those are longer term strategies for another day and another live! They are integral to the way I approach endo management, but today I just wanted to share some of my daily habits that are part of my standard everyday routine (I think I've added that disclaimer enough times now!). FINALLY I want to say that all of these methods must be tailored to you, and must fit into your life in a way that makes them feel manageable and enrich your life, rather than making you feel stressed and exhausted trying to keep up with them! If you're interested to learn more about eating for endo, I've just launched two new masterclasses: Nutrition for Endo: The Foundations Masterclass (anti-inflammatory nutrition) Nutrition for Endo Advanced Masterclass (blood sugar) They're currently on special offer for Black Friday until Tues 10pm GMT. Each class is £29.99 (full price £40) or you can get them both in a bundle for £50. Join here. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order.

SIFO, Yeast Disorders and Endometriosis with Dr. Ami Kapadia

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 17, 2021 78:54

I first came across Dr. Ami Kapadia's work through some presentations she held for an online SIBO conference. Her lectures focused on small intestine fungal overgrowth, yeast disorders and mould - and what I heard resonated with not only my story, but so many of my clients' stories. And I'm not alone. Dr. Jessica Drummond often speaks on the connection she sees between chronic pelvic pain and yeast problems, and yeast/SIFO are prevalent issues within the SIBO community. In fact, left untreated, they can really hinder SIBO progress. The trouble is, they're not easy to diagnose and the symptoms are often identical to SIBO, and at least a quarter of SIBO patients, if not more, also have SIFO. So, given that research is currently estimating that up to 80% of endometriosis patients also have SIBO, I wanted to invite Dr. Ami onto the show to discuss how to identify and treat years disorders both alongside SIBO and alone. Dr Ami. Kapadia is a family medicine and integrative medicine physician, with a special interest in yeast and fungal disorders. She is the creator of practitioner course A Minimalist's Approach to SIFO And Mold Related Illness and patient course An Integrative Approach to SIFO: Small Intestinal Fungal Overgrowth And Related Conditions. In this episode we discuss: What are fungal/yeast related disorders and how do they affect the body. The connection between yeast/fungal disorders, endometriosis and SIBO. The signs and symptoms of fungal/yeast related disorders and how to test for them. Dr. Ami's unique treatment approach and her specific anti-fungal protocols. Dietary considerations (it's not what you think!) and what to do if you find food restriction triggering. How to work with Dr. Ami. This episode was fascinating and I completely geeked out (you' can probably tell!), I hope you enjoy it just as much as I did! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk This episode is sponsored by Semaine. Try their supplement for period pain and daily supplement for hormonal balance and PMS prevention with code ENDOLIFE to get 20% off your first order. Show Notes Website: www.amikapadia.com Teachable course for practitioners: https://drkapadia.teachable.com/p/a-minimalist-s-approach-to-mold-related-illness-and-small-intestinal-fungal-overgrowth-sifo Teachable course for patients: https://drkapadia.teachable.com/p/sifo-in-integrative-course-for-patient-education

Endo and Relationships Part Two: Family and Friends

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 14, 2021 43:58

This episode is an IG Live I hopped on to answer your questions in endometriosis and navigating relationships with family and friends. In this Q&A I answer: How to have fun with friends again? Feels like endo always gets in the way. How to handle family not understanding how endo affects my life? How to explain it to those who don't get how impactful it is? What to say or do when a friend questions if you're really in pain when you say you can't go out? Also, a few of the resources I mentioned in the live: Endometriosis UK Endometriosis NewsEndometriosis News @vickiewilliams_ Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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How I Became an Endo Health Coach

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2021 50:19

This episode is another live Q&A from Instagram. I had a number of you ask me about the training I did to became an endo health coach and what training is generally required, so I decided to answer some of those questions live on Instagram. In this Q&A I talk about - What motivated me to become an endo health coach. The work experience I had to prepare me to coach. The certifications I took to qualify as a women's health coach. The certifications I took to qualify in endometriosis specifically. The certifications I then went onto take for SIBO. My business model (what working with clients looks like on a week to week basis). My plans for the future (naturopathic doctor)! My struggles with perfectionism and workaholism during my training and start-up period. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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Adapting to the Climate Crisis with Morgan Phillips

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2021 84:53

In this episode Martin talks to Morgan Phillips, author of the brilliant new book Great Adaptations - In the Shadow of a Climate Crisis (http://theglaciertrust.org/great-adaptations). Morgan is a real expert in environmental education and is currently Project Designer for Global Action Plan (https://www.globalactionplan.org.uk) and Co-Director of The Glacier Trust (http://theglaciertrust.org/). Martin and Morgan discuss Morgan's career in environmental education, his new book, and how schools can adapt to climate change. Other links mentioned in the podcast: Common Cause Foundation (https://commoncausefoundation.org/) Keep Britain Tidy (https://www.keepbritaintidy.org) National Association for Environmental Education (https://naee.org.uk) Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Three Spheres Framework (https://cchange.no/about/the-three-spheres-of-transformation/) Humankind by Rutger Bregman (https://www.rutgerbregman.com/books) Survival of the Friendliest by Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods (https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/550437/survival-of-the-friendliest-by-brian-hare-and-vanessa-woods/) How London Schools and Early Years Settings can Adapt to Climate Change (https://www.london.gov.uk/WHAT-WE-DO/environment/environment-publications/how-schools-and-early-years-settings-can-adapt-climate-change) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Endometriosis and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome - Is There a Connection?

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 24, 2021 13:48

Okay today I want to now talk about something a little more unusual, and that's Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and its possible connection to endometriosis. Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is a group of 13 conditions which all affect connective tissue (collagen) in the body. Most are rare, but one type called hypermobility EDS is common. Because the intestines are made from soft tissue, EDS affects digestion and often causes IBS symptoms. It is a major risk factor for developing SIBO, because it slows down motility. If you have EDS and SIBO, you will be chronic - but you can still live well! And we'll get to that in the bonus lesson with Dr Allison Siebecker. And just to hammer this point home about the connection between EDS and IBS, one study of 228 IBS patients found 48% also had EDS. Now the reason why I want to bring EDS to your attention is because I am seeing it more and more in my clients with both endometriosis and SIBO. Despite these statistics, to my knowledge, most experts do not consider EDS and endometriosis to be significantly connected. At present, it is thought that most of the period pain and menstrual problems of those with EDS is not caused by endometriosis, but EDS itself. However, I have spoken to multiple health care practitioners who do see a connection and see the two conditions together in patients, and because EDS can cause gut problems and SIBO, I think it's worth raising here. So, here's an overview of what we know so far… Current estimation is 6-23% of patients with EDS also have endometriosis. More research is being done into the connection at present. 32-77% of those with EDS have vulvodynia and or pain with sex. 33-75% have heavy menstrual bleeding. 73-93% have painful periods. And here are some of the main symptoms of EDS, though there are many and they are often far reaching. You do` not have to have them all to have EDS: ·Joint pain/full body pain Hypermobility (can be very subtle) Stretchy skin Soft, velvety skin Bruise easily Dislocations of joints Chronic fatigue Dental crowding And I wanted to include some signs or clues of EDS as well… Unusual symptoms that seem random, so people with EDS often feel like they have lots of symptoms and never really feel well. Family has hypermobility - again, this can be very subtle. They might have no idea. Tight muscles and stiffness - because your joints are unstable, the muscles overcompensate and are often stiff and tight to try and create some stability in the body. Allergies - and this is because MCAS is now being identified as a co-condition of EDS. MCAS is when the mast cells which release histamine are overly sensitive and easily triggered, resulting in a higher amount of histamine being released on a daily basis. Mast Cell Activation Syndrome still isn't widely acknowledged by conventional medicine, but many functional and naturopathic doctors are leading the way with this. MCAS is now showing up in the research as being a likely co-condition of EDS, as part of a trio with another condition call PoTS, which stands for Postural Tachycardia syndrome. Low blood pressure and/or dizziness - because EDS often comes with something called dysautonomia Racing heart or palpitations - due to a type of dysautonomia which I mentioned earlier, called PoTs IBS - because of how EDS affects the gut So, following on from that, I just wanted to provide a bit more education around dysautonomia in case you have the signs. Dysautonomia is a group of conditions that affect the autonomic nervous system, which control involuntary functions of the body. Postural Tachycardia syndrome or PoTs is one of these conditions and is part of a trio of EDS-MCAS-PoTs I mentioned earlier, and it affects blood flow and blood pressure in the body, so that too little blood is getting to the heart and the heart rate increases when going from sitting/lying down to standing. Some of the symptoms of dysautonomia are… Blood sugar dysregulation Low blood pressure/fainting Chest pain/breathing issues/palpitations/racing heart Gut problems and bladder problems Dizziness/balance difficulties/vertigo Struggle to regulate temperature I'll take you through some ways to get tested in the next lesson. Now I know this might sound scary, but if you do get a diagnosis, you can manage these symptoms long-term, and your quality of life will dramatically improve! And just because I found this personally quite helpful, because there's a lot of symptoms floating around with this, EDS specialist Dr Alena Guggenehim sees loose joints, joint pain and dysautonomia as the main signs/symptoms of hEDS. Diagnosis for EDS is best done through a rheumatologist, but reportedly this is more frequently being performed by GPs these days. If you can't get a referral on the NHS (if you're based in the UK), then I think the best route would be to buy health insurance and get referred to an EDS specialist. I think that would be safest, because not all GPs are fully versed in diagnosing EDS. For hypermobility EDS, diagnosis is based on a physical test called Beighton score, which looks at the range of mobility in your joints, as well as issues like teeth overcrowding. Family and patient history should also be taken into account, and signs of co-conditions, like allergies and dizziness. It's worth noting here that you can still have hEDS if you don't score highly on the Beighton score. There is a link to it in the slides, but it does have some confusing terminology and is not to be used as a tool for diagnosis without a doctor. Genetic testing will also be carried out to rule out the rarer forms of EDS. PoTs is tested for by testing heart rate and blood pressure when going from sitting to standing and lying down (on a tilted table) to upright. You'll need to speak to your GP to get a referral. If you test positive for EDS and you have signs of dysautonmia, even if it's just fatigue, it's worth looking into this. Other tests may be run to look for other types of dysautonomia Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Stats references https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/toolkits/ehlers-danlos-syndromes-toolkit.aspx https://www.siboinfo.com/associated-diseases.html https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29687534/ https://www.ehlers-danlos.com/pdf/2018-annual-conference/N-Blagowidow-2018Baltimore-OB-GYN-and-EDS-HSD-S.pdf Symptoms https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/ehlers-danlos-syndromes/ https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/toolkits/ehlers-danlos-syndromes-toolkit.aspx https://ehlers-danlos.com/wp-content/uploads/hEDS-Dx-Criteria-checklist-1.pdf https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/toolkits/ehlers-danlos-syndromes-toolkit.aspx Dysautonomia https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31267471/ https://drbeckycampbell.com/mast-cell-activation-syndrome-postural-orthostatic-tachycardia-syndrome-and-ehlers-danlos-syndrome-what-is-the-connection/ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/postural-tachycardia-syndrome/ https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/6004-dysautonomia https://join.sibosos.com/page/94124 Testing references https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/ehlers-danlos-syndromes/ https://ehlers-danlos.com/wp-content/uploads/hEDS-Dx-Criteria-checklist-1.pdf https://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/resources/toolkits/ehlers-danlos-syndromes-toolkit.aspx https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/postural-tachycardia-syndrome/

Endo Q&A: Healing Painful Sex

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2021 40:11

This episode is from a mini IG Live answering your questions about painful sex with endo (which turned out not to be mini, more like 40 mins). Here's the three most common questions I answered: Is there anything that will make sex with endo eventually not painful/how do I fix it? I've tried everything but still get pain, is surgery the next option? How to navigate painful sex without killing the mood? In this IG Live I talk about inflammation, adhesions, having a hypertonic pelvic floor, pain science and share lots of tools, resources and books to help you on your way to having less pain (hopefully pain free) sex. I really hope you find this useful! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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The Magical Orange Doorway - Chapter Four

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 18, 2021 25:12

A magical audio-story, created to launch a sustainable food project. Minerva is in trouble - but for Edmund to find her, he must first work out how to get to Peru though the magical orange doorway. Edmund seeks the help of a wise old standing stone... Background This story has been created for London Climate Action Week during a global pandemic. It is inspired by zoom meetings and by a belief that despite everything there is much hope and magic. The story launches a sustainable food project between two groups of young people: Year 7 students at Glebe School, an SEN school in the London Borough of Bromley and young people in a refuge on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. How will this work students in both places (initially Glebe, later Lima) will trial their school food project their feedback will be presented monthly by 'Minerva' and 'Edmund' in the form of a new episode of the magical orange doorway at the same time, a blog will be written (hosted by Semble) discussing 'learnings' from experts in the field the project will continue for 12 months and will report its findings to COP26 The project has two parallel journeys: A school based case study based around sustainable food, language, culture, and place. It is part of a wider school project called Proyecto Peru A working group of experts that will advise, critique and support the schools based on their own expertise in education, sustainable food, language, culture, and place People The voice of Edmund and the narration are by Martin Crabbe, Head of Geography at Glebe School. Martin was inspired to write this story by the grandmother of Martin Allen Morales , by the Wild Area and by so many other things! The voice of Minerva is played by Leydis Vollar, Head of Modern Foreign Languages at Glebe School. Leydis will also translate each episode of the story into Spanish for our friends in Peru. People who are about to become involved... Mark McKillop, Head of RE, Glebe School Martin Allen Morales - advisor, inspiration Malini Mehra - advisor The young people of Glebe and in the refuge in Lima Many other experts as we continue. And if this magical story inspires you why not get involved from your own perspective? And tell us how you get on. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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What's a Healthy/'Normal' Gut vs. What's Endo Belly?

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2021 21:56

This week's episode is a snippet from my upcoming course, The Endo Belly Course. I realised when creating this lesson, that this information is info everyone should know, not just my students! So today's episode is all about what's a ‘normal' and healthy gut vs. what is the endo belly? So first up, I wanted to actually talk about what the endo belly is. The ‘endo belly' is not actually a medical term, but instead is a name the community has coined in reference to the severe bloating we often experience. So, there isn't technically a set definition, but it is generally thought to be severe bloating/swelling that tends to be attributed to endometriosis and is sometimes accompanied by pain. Some experts, articles and endo patients also include gut problems within this term too, but not always. My definition, from my training and from seeing so many clients with these symptoms is that the endo belly is exaggerated/severe bloating, often accompanied by gut symptoms, pain or discomfort - but it is not always caused by endometriosis directly. So here are some of the common symptoms I see in my clients and that I tend to think of as fitting under the term ‘the endo belly': Flares up with stress/food/pain/cycle - but not always, this might just be a daily thing for you. Normally comes with IBS issues like diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain, gas. These might not be flares, but more so just your daily bowel habits and gut issues. So, for example, you may tend to always lean towards constipation or loose stools, or you may have a lot of gas on a daily basis. It's often debilitating - so it may disturb social life, diet, work, or confidence. You might worry about eating out because you're scared of a flare up, you might have to eat a restricted diet to control symptoms, you might have to sometimes take sick days, or you just struggle at work with your symptoms. It's not as simple as just feeling a bit bloated after lunch. Normally a dramatic increase in abdominal size - endo patients often report looking pregnant, requiring different sized clothing, having swelling that's so bad they're in pain. And finally, I just want to note - some sources discuss the endo belly swelling being lower down in the abdomen and that IBS issues are higher up, but I think the problem with this is that it's not true for everyone and it might mean you dismiss any other possible causes because you think “Oh it's low down, it's just my endo”. I've seen lots of people with SIBO and endo, whose bloating is from their diaphragm all the way down or starts from their belly button and goes down to their pubic bone, so I really wouldn't pay a huge amount of attention to where the bloating is, unless of course you're just getting a tiny bit of bloat or a bump on say one side near your ovaries, which might indicate a cyst, for example. So, something I really think is important to discuss is what is normal vs. what is endo belly, because I don't want us to be trying to reach for an unattainable vision of a healthy gut. So here are some signs of the endo belly/something more is going on with your gut… Bloating and gut problems get worse and worse as day goes on. You get more uncomfortable, maybe your pain increases and by your last meal your stomach has swollen to triple its normal size. Symptoms can only be controlled through restriction - a ‘normal' diet can't be achieved, and you find yourself skipping meals or having to restrict to avoid flare ups. Often can no longer fit into clothes or need to change to be comfortable when your belly swells up because it's become so distended. In short, the bloating is severe and significant. May be accompanied by other health problems and nutrient deficiencies like achy joints, fatigue, low B12 or low iron. These are signs of inflammation and malabsorption of nutrients. You might get constipated before period. From a functional medicine point of view, which is what my training is based on, you should have at least one daily bowel movement, and this is actually really important for hormonal health, because old oestrogen is excreted through waste and that needs to occur daily. However, in contrast, dieticians and conventional doctors tend to take a different stance and say whatever is normal for you, is normal or at least three times a week. In terms of my training with Dr Allison Siebecker, Dr Jessica Drummond, etc. we would consider that as constipation, basically anything that is not once a day, is leaning towards a form of constipation. It might be considered normal, but we wouldn't class it as optimal for health. Diarrhea on period which causes abdominal discomfort, eating problems (maybe you have to avoid food or eat a restricted diet), affects daily life (you might not be able to have a normal workday because you're stuck in the toilet), sicks days, etc. Often affects daily life/confidence because you've been asked so many times whether you're pregnant, you get comments or you just feel fed up with not being able to wear the clothes you'd like. Additionally, your gut symptoms are affecting your daily life, so for example, I had a client who would get several bouts of loose stools every morning, to the point where she would sometimes be late for dropping her child off to nursery. Another client wouldn't be able to finish meals without needing to dash to the toilet. Wake up bloated already or with gut problems/sleep is disturbed due to discomfort. So, I had one client who had a distended belly all the time, and it was so bad she actually got to the point where it was too painful to sit or stand up, she had to lay down all the time. Another client wouldn't be able to sleep because by the evening, her belly was so bloated she couldn't get comfortable, and she'd be in agony from all the gas inside her. So, in contrast, I wanted to talk about what is normal for a healthy gut, and some of this might surprise you - Feel satisfied after eating, not overly full or like food isn't going down. Of course, if it's Christmas or Ramadan you might be feasting on more food than you normally would, so of course sometimes you're going to feel full to bursting, but generally, you should feel like you're able to digest your food and like it's going down. It's not just sitting there for hours afterwards. May be a bit bloated or gassy after meals (esp. high fibre. or large meals), but the bloating should subside a few hours later and it's not accompanied by GI distress. This is because our good gut bugs actually eat our food and ferment it, as part of the digestion process. We actually need this to happen to get all of our nutrients. But a result of this process is the creation of gas from the bacteria, and so naturally we will get a bit of expansion after a meal and of course, we're putting food into our stomach, you wouldn't expect to fill an empty bag with food shopping and for it not to expand or look bigger. So, there will be some extension of your abdomen after meals, but it shouldn't be painful, be accompanied by GI distress, be severe or worsen as the day goes on. It should naturally go down and not affect your life or comfort. Additionally, so you know, according to the NHS, a normal amount of passing gas is about 5 to 15 times a day. You should wake up with a relatively flatter stomach in contrast to after meals. This is because your digestion has been working overnight. Now note I don't say your stomach should be flat in the morning, it will be flatter in contrast to after meals, because you haven't eaten in something like 10 or 12 hours. And to follow on from that, a normal healthy gut doesn't mean your stomach is flat all the time. Your stomach shouldn't be flat all the time, it should naturally expand a bit with food! Bloating tends to increase towards period and in luteal phase, but it shouldn't be severe/painful/debilitating. This is because progesterone and oestrogen affect water retention, and so bloating and swelling can increase towards your period when progesterone is at its highest. Now if your hormones are imbalanced, this will be worse, so supporting your hormones (which this course will help with) should minimise the effects, but they won't eradicate them entirely. Additionally, those inflammatory chemicals, prostaglandins, naturally begin building in the uterus from ovulation to your period, and as we know, inflammation creates swelling, so there may be some level of normal swelling during this time, but again, it shouldn't be severe. If it is, this may be an indicator that your inflammation levels are too high, which is likely to be the case anyway, given that the endometriosis lesions release prostaglandins. Lastly, progesterone relaxes muscles, including the muscles of the intestines, so as a result, digestion slows down, meaning things become a bit sluggish and we get a bit more of a build-up of gas and waste, leading to a bit of bloating - again, it shouldn't be severe. Bowels might feel a bit sluggish towards period but shouldn't have full-blown constipation or if you do have any, it should at least short lived, so a day or so, for example. Or maybe your stools are a little harder or more cracked than normal. In contrast, it's normal to have bowel movements that are looser during your period. This is because those prostaglandin E2 causes the muscles to contract, and as your uterus is right next to your colon, this can create contractions in the colon, resulting in a bowel movement and looser stools. If your inflammation levels are high, you may get full blown diarrhea, and that's when we'll want to reduce those levels. Ideally, a normal scenario is maybe more bowel movements which are a bit looser on your period, but they shouldn't be causing you pain or affecting your day-to-day life during this time. Bloating after meals doesn't require a new dress size! Image from Integrative Women's Health Institute To show you what a healthy stool looks like, here is the Bristol Stool Chart. This is a diagnostic tool used to determine the health of stools, especially in IBS populations. In terms of functional medicine training, at IWHI we aim for a 4, so your stools should be snake like, smooth, easy to pass with a banana-like consistency. You should be having one to three bowel movements a day, one is the minimum because for optimal health and hormonal health, we want to removing waste on a daily basis, including old oestrogen, to prevent hormonal imbalances. Now, dieticians and conventional medicine will likely say to aim for somewhere between a 3-5. In terms of my training, we see 3 as beginning to lean towards constipation and 5 beginning to lean towards diarrhea. This is something that we focus on heavily with SIBO, a lot of people think that they don't have constipation, or they don't have diarrhea - but these bowel movements actually exist on a spectrum. Stools that are like pellets, hard and round, or difficult to pass, is a form of constipation. In my training, anything before 4 is a form of constipation and above 4 is a form of diarrhea or loose stools. They don't show pudding like stools here, but I would consider that as form of diarrhea. However, opinions will vary as I have mentioned, so be guided by what feels best for you. The caveat here is that if you are vegan and eat a lot of plants (not processed vegan food), you may have softer stools, nearer to a 5, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. The other thing I would say is don't chase perfection, which I've been guilty of. When my IBS was the most managed it's ever been (at the time of recording it's not, because I've had a SIBO relapse), my stools were about a 5 but I was very caught up on getting them to a 4! So, if your endo belly dramatically improves, if you get an all clear for gut conditions, etc. but sometimes your stools are a little either side of type 4, this is probably not something to worry about. It might just be that you ate a little more or a little less fibre that week, or maybe that's just your normal. If you're concerned about it, certainly see a gut health practitioner, but I just wouldn't obsess about it that's the only issue left and there are no other signs that something is up with your gut. Just to finish off this section, I want to hammer this home. A super flat stomach does not equal a happy gut - in fact, it sort of suggests that the gut microbiome is under fed or non-existent, because for them to thrive, they need to eat food and as a result, that creates gas. So, we're not aiming for washboard abs all the time, we're aiming for gut health that doesn't affect your daily life, cause you pain or physical/mental/emotional distress. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes https://www.siboinfo.com/symptoms.html https://www.endofound.org/endo-belly https://drseckin.com/endo-belly/ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/irritable-bowel-syndrome-ibs/symptoms/ https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/remedies-for-bloating-and-wind/ https://nutritionstripped.com/is-bloating-normal/ https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/flatulence/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2849969/?fbclid=IwAR3kn0CVHyH4aZsIJ0hPq8__O7k4WfM_rk7EWKSLWj4RmQlVZsnCbnEu4Yg#R7 https://joe.bioscientifica.com/view/journals/joe/89/2/joe_89_2_011.xm https://nicolejardim.com/howyourperiodaffectsdigestivetract/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16992446/

christmas live healthy wake thrive breakfast cbd symptoms nhs ramadan gi belly ibs b12 diarrhea sibo aimed endo bloating soothe flares bowels it starts beyou stools integrative women jessica drummond bristol stool chart allison siebecker pod farm

Endo Belly? A Plea to get Tested for Coeliac Disease - and Six Surprising Symptoms

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 8, 2021 21:47

Today on the show I am talking about one of the possible root causes of your endo belly – coeliac disease. Now, before you turn this podcast off because you think you don't react to gluten, I am literally begging you to listen. I have noticed a trend in my clients to dismiss coeliac disease as a possibility, because they don't have immediate reactions after gluten. But – here's the thing, the reactions from gluten are not always obvious and they don't always happen straight away. So, if you're bloated all the time, tired all the time, maybe you have diarrhoea regularly or gas, or constipation, or maybe you don't have any gut symptoms at all – but you have brain fog, fatigue and achy joints, then it may be down to coeliac disease. And these symptoms don't just have to occur after straight after gluten. In fact, according to the Food Allergy Research and Resource Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, coeliac disease is a “delayed hypersensitivity reaction where symptoms develop 48-72 hours after ingestion” of gluten.(1) Now yes, some people with coeliac disease will experience symptoms soon after eating gluten, but for others, it's a couple of hours or even longer, as demonstrated here. So just because your symptoms do not show up straight after gluten, that doesn't mean you do not have coeliac disease and in fact, if you tend to eat gluten daily, and you tend to feel unwell daily – maybe you have chronic fatigue, for example - then this could be the result of that delayed reaction, just blurring into the next, because there's little time between each serving. Additionally, the NHS states that symptoms can actually be mild and can come and go, so the signs of coeliac disease may be inconsistent(2). Your reactions to gluten do not have to be severe for you to have coeliac disease, for example, my brother was hospitalised with severe abdominal cramping and vomiting when he was diagnosed, whereas my sister literally said she was just “fed up of feeling nauseas”. And here's why it's important to get checked. In the UK, only 30% of people with coeliac disease have been diagnosed(3), and it is estimated that 500,000 people are walking around with undiagnosed coeliac disease.(4) In America, 83% of people with coeliac disease are undiagnosed.(5) And it's not rare either. In the UK, 1 in 100 people have coeliac disease (3) and in the USA, 1 in 133 people have coeliac disease.(5) And as you can see from these stats, the majority of them don't know they have it. And if you have endometriosis, the chances of having coeliac disease is higher. Research has identified a strong association between endometriosis and coeliac disease. Coeliac disease patients were found to be almost twice as likely to develop endo in research(6) and studies have found that people with endometriosis are significantly more likely to develop coeliac disease.(7) To add to that, coeliac disease is a co-condition of small intestine bacterial overgrowth(8), which is a condition where normal bacteria which should be found in the large intestine, are growing in the small intestine. And SIBO is at present, estimated to affect up to 80% of people with endometriosis(9) and is a root cause of the endo belly, because the signature SIBO symptom is bloating. So, if you have endometriosis and SIBO, this is a really strong indicator that you should get tested. Additionally, in a study of over 200 women with endo, 75% experienced a reduction in symptoms after eliminating gluten for 12 months.(10) That doesn't mean you have to be as strict as someone with coeliac disease if you don't have it, as people with coeliac disease have to avoid cross-contamination, so literally they have to have separate food prep areas, chopping boards, etc. But not eating gluten containing foods may make a significant difference to life with endo. Now, clearly, this isn't for everyone. For some people in this study, it didn't help, and we have to be careful when we talk about eliminating foods, as it can be triggering and cause issues with disordered eating, so I am not saying to just go and cut out gluten today. In fact, I actually advise against that – at least until you've been tested for coeliac disease! Then if you don't have it, I advise you work with someone to identify if gluten is a problem for your endo personally or take one of my courses where I teach you how to do that yourself, and as you guys know, The Endo Belly Course is currently open for enrolment now. So now you know the prevalence rates of coeliac disease, I thought I'd take you through some of the signs. Now, gut symptoms are often common symptoms, but some people don't have these at all and in fact, they have other symptoms that may be seemingly random or connected to endometriosis, so they dismiss the possibility of it being coeliac disease. So today, I want to take you through some surprising signs of coeliac disease to look out for: 1) Rashes. Number one is rashes and specifically, a rash called dermatitis herpetiformis. My brother developed this, but my sister didn't, and the rash turned up probably a year or more before his gut issues arrived and it's actually common for people who have the rash, to not have the gut symptoms (though this isn't always the case). The rash looks like blisters on the skin, and is itchy, red, and tends to occur on the elbows (which is where my brother had it), knees and glutes. It is only a rash that appears in coeliac disease patients and is caused by gluten, it is not a rash anyone could get and is not caused by herpes, however, it does look like the herpes virus! Of course, if you have a rash like this and you have some of the other symptoms of coeliac disease, it's worth testing for it, but you can also get a biopsy to confirm whether this is dermatitis herpetiformis.(11) 2) Number two is dental problems. Now this tends to occur if the coeliac disease developed as a child (and just be mindful that coeliac disease can develop at any age!) due to the body being unable to absorb enough nutrients due to the damage in the intestines and from my understand, also as a result of the immune reactions. Dental problems can occur as issues with the enamel and can look like discolouration, patches on the teeth, translucent areas, grooves on the teeth and potentially increased cavities. Additionally, the growth of adult teeth can be delayed too.(12) 3) Number three is mouth ulcers(13), and these would be on the side of the mouth, on the cheeks and tongue, not on the lips – so we're not talking about cold sores. These won't occur in everyone, but if they do, they'll usually be recurring and you may have a few at one time. Again, this is thought to be a result of the nutrient deficiencies and immune response to the gluten. 4) Number four is anaemia, either b12 or iron deficiency induced anaemia or both(14). And this is tricky, because this is also a sign of SIBO!(15) So again, it's easy to dismiss coeliac disease here. B12 and iron deficiency anaemia will cause symptoms like tiredness, dizziness, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, numbness in the hands and feet, mouth ulcers, brain fog and irritability to name a few.(16,17) I've linked to the NHS page for symptoms in the show notes. You can fairly easily get tested for these through your GP or online testing sites like Thriva in the UK, and I've linked to a few of them(18). If your levels are low but not deficient, it's still worth ruling out coeliac disease, because they have to get low to get deficient and if you've only just recently developed coeliac disease, it may take some time for your levels to drop. And on top of that, if you have the presence of gut problems, endo belly or any of the other symptoms I've listed, and you have low levels of iron and B12, it's safer just to rule it out. 5) Number five is infertility or reoccurring miscarriages, and I think this is an important one to raise because we often dismiss fertility problems as a symptom of endometriosis. Now if coeliac disease is diagnosed and treated (as in, a person sticks to a strictly gluten free diet, which is the only form of treatment there is) then fertility rates return to normal and are equal to someone without coeliac disease. The problem is when it's left undiagnosed, and in fact, the guidance in the UK is that people who have recurring miscarriages or fertility struggles should be tested. I mean I think they should be tested as soon as the difficulty begins, to save people all that heartache, but I guess it costs the NHS less this way. There are numerous reasons why coeliac disease will affect fertility, from disrupting hormones, causing inflammation in the body, nutrient deficiencies and so on. But the bottom line is, the only way to treat it would be with a diagnosis and an adherence to a gluten free diet.(19) 6) Number six is brain fog(20). Coeliac disease patients often report brain fog and fatigue and research confirming these reports, with MRI scans showing brain changes and damage in people with coeliac disease. This brain fog may be accompanied by memory loss, headaches, and even balance or speech problems. One small study found a significant improvement in patients with CD and cognitive impairment after a year on a strict gluten free diet(21), so there is definitely hope if this is a symptom you have and you're diagnosed! And I thought I'd raise this one because so many of us report brain fog with endometriosis, and whilst there are many root causes behind this (in fact, I have a whole episode on them) often we just dismiss it as something we have to live with. So those are a few symptoms that you may not suspect would be behind coeliac disease – and these can all occur with or without gut problems and the endo belly. Some other signs to look out for include the development of autoimmune conditions like hashimoto's thyroiditis, type 1 diabetes (which my brother developed) and osteoporosis(22). So now let's move onto testing. To accurately test for coeliac disease, you must be eating gluten daily, at least twice a day, for six weeks(23). This is because the immune system will create antibodies against gluten and that's what's being measured. If you're not eating gluten at all or not regularly, you'll get a false negative test, even if you have the disease. So, if my brother tested today, he would come up as negative, because he hasn't eaten gluten for several years. Once you've done the blood test, you'll then also be sent for a biopsy. If you're still not sure whether it's worth getting tested, I've linked to an online assessment in the show notes, which will literally create a letter to take to the doctor, if it advises you to get tested, based on your symptoms.(24) So that's it! If you have the endo belly, full stop, I advise you to get tested. And if any of these other symptoms sound familiar, I advise you to get tested too! Left undiagnosed, coeliac disease can cause serious health problems and increase your risk of multiple conditions and chronic diseases(24), and we've never lived in a better time to be gluten free, so even though it might be a hassle to get tested, it'll be worth it in the long run. I've also linked to some gluten free courses and cookbooks in the show notes.(25) Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free workshop: Creating a Roadmap to Endo Belly Healing Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes 1. https://farrp.unl.edu/resources/gi-fas/celiac-disease 2. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coeliac-disease/symptoms/ 3. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/coeliac-disease-faqs/ 4. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/about-coeliac-disease/myths-about-coeliac-disease/?&&type=rfst&set=true#cookie-widget 5. https://www.beyondceliac.org/fast-facts-about-celiac-disease-infographic/ 6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21840904/ 7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6601386/ 8. https://www.siboinfo.com/associated-diseases.html 9. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9660426/ 10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23334113/ 11. https://celiac.org/about-celiac-disease/related-conditions/dermatitis-herpetiformis/ 12. https://celiac.org/about-celiac-disease/related-conditions/oral-health/, https://jcda.ca/article/b39 13. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/about-coeliac-disease/what-are-coeliac-disease-symptoms/ 14. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/about-coeliac-disease/what-are-coeliac-disease-symptoms/ 15. https://www.siboinfo.com/overview1.html 16. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamin-b12-or-folate-deficiency-anaemia/symptoms/ 17. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/iron-deficiency-anaemia/ 18. https://thriva.co, https://valahealth.com, https://www.letsgetchecked.com 19. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/conditions-linked-to-coeliac-disease/infertility-and-coeliac-disease/ 20. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/conditions-linked-to-coeliac-disease/neurological-conditions/ 21. https://celiac.org/about-the-foundation/featured-news/2014/07/brainfog/ 22. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/conditions-linked-to-coeliac-disease/ 23. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/information-and-support/coeliac-disease/getting-diagnosed/#glutenthroughout 24. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coeliac-disease/complications/ 25. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/665647/cannelle-et-vanille-bakes-simple-by-aran-goyoaga/, https://www.arangoyoaga.com/on-demand-videos,https://www.learningwithexperts.com/foodanddrink/courses/river-cottage-gluten-free?ref=naomidevlin, https://gluten-free-baking-school.thinkific.com/courses/gluten-free-sourdough-bread, https://gluten-free-baking-school.thinkific.com/courses/enriched-dough, https://gluten-free-baking-school.thinkific.com/courses/everyday-gluten-free, https://gluten-free-baking-school.thinkific.com/courses/bao-noodles-and-dumplings, https://sweetlaurel.com

How Do You Get Rid of Adhesions without Surgery, Advice on Exercising with Diaphragmatic Endo and Other Questions Answered!

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 4, 2021 28:30

Happy Monday everyone! As I mentioned, today is another live Q&A style episode, with Friday's episode being one of my regular recorded episodes. This is a nice, short Q&A but I many of those who watched really appreciated the questions and found the answers useful! So hopefully, there's something in this episode for you too! In this episode I answered… How do you test for SIBO and what do you ask for? Advice on exercising with diaphragmatic endometriosis? Can you get rid of scar tissue/adhesions with other methods other than more surgery (short answer: YES!) I really hope this short Q&A was helpful and gives you guys some info/inspiration for your own healing journey. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free workshop: Creating a Roadmap to Endo Belly Healing Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

live advice thrive breakfast cbd surgery roadmap exercising sibo aimed endo soothe it starts beyou diaphragmatic adhesions pod farm

Endo and Relationships Q&A with My Partner

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 27, 2021 51:44

This episode is another live Q&A and I managed to convince Chris (who hates public speaking, IG lives, etc.) to help me answer your questions about relationships and endo. I had so many questions submitted in the end that we answered the ones that were sort of directed to Chris and I/about romantic relationships and I'll answer the remaining in another live soon! So in this Q&A we answer... Advice to a partner on how to support you when they say they feel “helpless”. Is Chris into holistic/naturopathic health and does he find what I do interesting. Suggestions for helping a partner understand endo. How to have fun with your partner again when endo gets in the way. Just to give a little bit of context, Chris and I have been together almost 8 years, and have been friends for I think 11 or years! He was my friend when I was first diagnosed with endo and we were literally a month into our relationship when my endo symptoms returned. We have a joint column together on Endometriosis Net and Chris has also written for Endometriosis News and still writes monthly for Endometriosis Net! We really hope you found this live helpful. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free workshop: Creating a Roadmap to Endo Belly Healing To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

relationships live advice partner thrive breakfast cbd roadmap suggestions endometriosis aimed endo soothe it starts beyou pod farm

How Endo Surgery Could Cause Endo Belly, Affect Your Digestion and Cause Gut Problems – and What to Do About It

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 24, 2021 40:40

So last week I did an episode on adhesion formation post-surgery and how that can affect or literally cause endo belly – and you guys loved it! And I'm glad that you did, because I had another linked episode to follow up with, a part two in a way… So today, aside from adhesions, I am talking about the ways in which endo surgery could have worsened or even caused your endo belly. Now of course, adhesions are included in that, but they're a big topic hence the separate episode, so I encourage you to listen to that if you haven't done so already! So, let's dive in… 1) Number one is constipation. The medications, like pain relief and some of the other medications they may use in surgery, can be a cause of constipation following your laparoscopy. Even just having to water fast and not eat anything before surgery, can cause constipation. There's also the possibility that if you don't feel like eating much post-surgery, or you're stressed from surgery, your gut feels sore after surgery or you suddenly eat a lot more stodgy comfort foods post-surgery, that you may get constipation. Now a lot of people think constipation is just a matter of discomfort and that it's not a big deal, but actually, we eliminate oestrogen through daily bowel movements. You've heard me talk a lot about excess oestrogen and oestrogen dominance in the past, and how it can be a potential driver of endometriosis and endometriosis symptoms in some of us. However, for many, the symptoms of endo look very similar to the symptoms of oestrogen dominance or oestrogen excess. When we have too much oestrogen in our bodies or we have oestrogen levels that are too high in relation to progesterone, we get symptoms such as heavy periods, period pain, clotty periods, mood swings, breast tenderness and bloating in the lead up to our periods, post-ovulation. So, we may think that our endometriosis is out of hand and causing all of these problems, but if we spent even just a month balancing our hormones, we may see a dramatic reduction or even complete elimination of these symptoms. Now of course, you can have these symptoms of oestrogen dominance or excess AND the excess oestrogen may also be fuelling your endo or worsening your symptoms, that's certainly a possibility, but for some of us, the cause of the symptoms is the hormone imbalance itself. Regardless, we want to ensure we're supporting your hormones, especially after surgery, because we want to build on the good work of the surgery, and we don't want to have excess oestrogen circulating in our system and possibly feeding any future endo growth. It's not that oestrogen is bad, it's a wonderful and essential hormone, but we want to ensure it is in the correct levels and in its healthiest form, as high levels and unhealthier forms of oestrogen are behind issues like breast cancer, fibroids, and endo. So already, you can see that constipation can have a knock-on effect on our health with endo. But aside from this, constipation or sluggish bowels can cause bloating and discomfort in the abdomen, as waste and gases continue to build up, and this will of course mimic what we call the endo belly. Now as I've said before, I don't believe the endo belly is just the endo belly and it's one sole root cause is endometriosis. In fact, I usually see multiple causes behind the bloating and swelling my clients experience, and sluggish bowels is one of them. So, if post-surgery you're getting a lot of bloating and swelling (which you will of course, for the first few days, from the gases they use to inflate our bellies), just consider whether you're having healthy bowel movements. You should be having at least one bowel movement a day, and it should be long, snake-like with a banana like consistency. If it's hard, cracked, like pellets or stones of difficult to pass, that's constipation. And if you're not going daily, that's constipation too. Often, we're led to believe that we only have constipation if we're not going as regularly as we normally would, but that's not healthy! If you go once a week and then you start going every 10 days, that doesn't mean your once a week was healthy. A healthy bowel habit for optimal health, hormones and waste elimination is at least once a day. So, if you are constipated, what can you do about it? Firstly, don't panic. You might be a little constipated for a few days post-surgery as your organs essentially get over the shock of going through surgery, it is after all, a trauma to the body. Even with the methods I'm going to suggest, it might take a few days to get things moving, so don't worry, just get started with them and give yourself some time. Hopefully within two or three days we can get things moving again. So, the first tip would be to move, gently. This is a basic first line therapy that we genuinely use with gut healing – simply to exercise. It's low risk and is free. I'm not saying to jump on a trampoline, but your body requires movement to get things moving and constipation can often be aided by exercise. Now if we weren't post-surgery, you could maybe do some yoga, go for a run, or do some Pilates, but clearly, we're not going to do that post-surgery. So, just like is suggested in the post-surgery recovery guidance, just ensure you're getting up regularly and moving around gently for a couple of minutes. I don't mean a fast walk, I don't mean standing up until you hurt, I literally mean every 30 minutes or an hour, or further apart if that's all you can handle, just gently get up and walk slowly around your room or house, for a few minutes. It could even just be one minute to start with. But if you're lying down for eight hours then things are not going to be moving well in your body. Doing this is also going to speed up your recovery, because it ensures that blood is flowing to the area of your surgery and getting to work with healing the wounds. Now, you've likely heard your doctors encourage you to move gently after surgery, but I do want you to check in with them on this, because of course, I don't know the type of surgery you're having or have had. If you had a six-hour surgery then they may give you different advice, so please do check in with them on this. Next up is a very simple strategy and that's warm or hot water, drunk slowly in the mornings. Yes, really! This actually triggers something called the gastrocolic reflex, which stimulates movement in the large intestine, creating the urge to have a bowel movement. You can also try increasing your intake of healthy fats, like egg yolks, fish oil (so maybe you take an omega 3 rich oil), or full-fat yoghurt (dairy free if that's better for you, and organic to avoid added hormones if you're having animal-based yoghurt), ideally in the mornings, as this will increase motility (which basically means movement) in the large intestine, and generally, we're more likely to have bowel movements in the morning because digestion has been working overnight and it should take between 12-24 hours to for the food we eat to form a bowel movement. If none of these simple at home methods work for you, you can try magnesium citrate or oxide. This works by drawing water into the intestines, creating looser stools and encouraging a bowel movement. You can safely take between 500mg to 2000mg, at night, before bed, but normally 1000mg tends to work well for people. You'll need to build up until you find the right dose for you, as going straight in at 1000mg or 2000mg may cause diarrhoea. So, start at 500mg and increase slightly every other night until you get a bowel movement, but keep in mind may take 2-3 days as it can take a little while to get going. If you get bloating or abdominal pain from the magnesium, you've probably taken too much, and you'll need to reduce back down. Of course, consult your doctor before starting any new supplement! 2) Number 2 is that the stress from surgery, whether emotional or the physical stress of your body undergoing surgery, can turn off your digestion. Your digestion is controlled by a part of your nervous system called the ‘rest and digest response', whereas your stress response, which helps us to power through stressful or genuinely life-threatening situations, is controlled by a part of the nervous system called the ‘flight or fight response'. The two cannot be operating at the same time and unfortunately or fortunately, depending on the situation, the stress response will always win, because it ensures our survival. This has allowed us to survive and evolve as humanity, but in modern times, even just a stressful email might trigger the flight or fight response, turning the rest and digest response off. And the thing is, post-surgery we really want the rest and digest response to be operating well, because not only does it control digestion, but it also controls healing. So, when our body and mind is feeling stressed from having a surgery, our healing and recovery time is impaired. But back to digestion. When digestion shuts off, a few things happen. Firstly, our digestion and motility tend to slow down. Now for some people, you may get exaggerated and increased motility in the large intestine, resulting in diarrhoea, but that doesn't mean things are moving well in the small intestines. So, if things have slowed down in the stomach and small intestine, this creates stagnation and a chance for bacteria to populate in the small intestines where they shouldn't be. Now that of course, sounds like small intestine bacterial overgrowth, which is a condition many people with endometriosis have, where bacteria which should be in the large intestine, happily existing in the gut microbiome, are living in the small intestine. This creates a whole host of problems and symptoms like bloating (which we may think is the endo belly), gas, constipation, diarrhoea, and abdominal pain to name a few. Now this likely wouldn't be enough to cause you to develop SIBO alone, because once the rest and digest mode is switched back on, hopefully your motility is working well enough that the bacteria are swept out of the small intestine and into the large intestine where it belongs. However, if you also have adhesions or low stomach acid, or other risk factors for SIBO, it might be enough if you keep returning to this state of fight or flight and you're really chronically stressed. So, if SIBO does happen to develop, that most certainly is going to cause what we see as the endo belly, which in my experience with my clients, is most of the time at least in part caused by SIBO, so that's one possibility. However, even if you don't have SIBO, that slowed down motility and digestion is going to leave food hanging out in your intestines, whether that's the small or large, leaving lots of time for bacteria to have a good munch on that food, and in turn, they make gas as a result. That's the process of fermentation. Additionally, when digestion turns off, we also don't get a release of gastric juices like stomach acid and digestive enzymes. These guys are absolutely vital for breaking down food and extracting nutrients, so without them, we're going to have chunks of food in our intestines that can't be broken down and that can result in pain, bloating, gas, constipation, or diarrhoea. A side note here is that we really want to be absorbing our nutrients. Our body requires vitamins, minerals, amino acids, glucose, and fats to heal, not just for the energy but for the actual process of healing and repairing the tissue. If our digestion is shutting down and we're not absorbing our nutrients properly, we're going to have a harder time healing and are most likely going to experience more inflammation and more pain. Lastly, stomach acid and digestive enzymes actually play a role in protecting us from SIBO and bad bacteria. They kill off bacteria as it enters the gut, and so if those levels are lowered, it's like our first line of defence is lower and bad bacteria can more easily move in. Having low stomach acid is also a risk factor for developing SIBO, it's not usually enough on its own, but coupled with another risk factor it could take us to the point where we do develop it So, what can we do about this? So, the first thing, of course, is creating feelings of safety in the body and lowering our stress response. There are numerous ways to do this, but some proven effective strategies for turning off the flight or fight response include tapping (where you tap on different points of your body and repeat certain statements), meditation, deep breathing, and spending time in nature. There are other strategies like yoga and exercise, but I'm trying to only highlight the ones that you'll be able to do post-surgery. So even though you may not be able to go for a run or something in nature, maybe you might be able to sit in your garden, or by a window, or when you get stronger, maybe you can manage a 10-minute walk in the park. Now of course, we can't always live in a stress-free bubble, and you may have recurring feelings of stress about your surgery, so it's not that we're trying to totally remove you from the feeling of stress, because that could get pretty stressful in itself! But what we want to do, is a few times a day, take some time to lower our stress response, so the body gets these reminders that it's safe, that you are safe. So perhaps you do some gentle breathing in the morning, maybe you do some tapping at lunch and some meditation before bed, for example. In the show notes, I have linked to a few apps where you can learn these techniques. Next up is digestion support. Firstly, we want to ensure that when you're eating, your rest and digest response is actually switched on. So, to do that, we want to be eating in a calm environment and taking time with our meal rather than rushing, if we're rushing or eating when we're tense, the flight or fight response will be switched on and digestion will be switched off! You can further encourage the rest and digest response to be on by taking a deep breath or a few deep breaths before eating – in through the nose, and out through the mouth, with your exhale longer than your inhale. This helps to turn the flight or fight response off and the rest and digest response on. Finally, we can further support your digestion by adding in stomach acid support and digestive enzyme support. You can stimulate the production of stomach acid by drinking one tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in 8 tablespoons of water 15 minutes before a meal. Drink through a straw to protect your enamel and don't do this if you have a history of stomach ulcers or inflammatory bowel disease. If you have interstitial cystitis or histamine intolerance, the vinegar may not be the best option for you, so I recommend adding bitter foods with your meals, like rocket in your salad, as that can also help stimulate stomach acid – not dramatically, but somewhat. Of course, always consult a doctor before adding in supplements or digestive support. You can also buy tinctures known as bitters, which are a blend of bitter herbs, and you can take a few drops of that before a meal instead of the vinegar. Again, these tinctures do tend to contain alcohol so people with IC may need to be careful. You can actually take a supplement called betaine HCL, that literally provides you with more stomach acid, but at first, it's best to see how you respond to these options as it can be very strong and is not always suitable for some people. So, start here and if you don't feel like it's helping, I have a protocol for taking betaine HCL in my upcoming course The Endo Belly Course and I think it might be in my endo belly podcast series as well For digestive enzymes, certain herbs and spices have actually been shown to stimulate the production of digestive enzymes! These are: · Garlic · Mint · Onion · Turmeric · Ginger · Fenugreek · Caraway · Fennel · Coriander · Cumin So, adding a mix of these to dishes can help to increase your digestive enzyme levels. A mix is always best because they tend to increase different digestive enzymes and you need an array of them, so for example, don't just rely on garlic in a meal, try to add one or two other herbs to get the best support. You can also use digestive enzyme supplements, which you take with meals, as directed on the label. Unless you have a gut health condition, it's best not to use these for more than a month so that your body doesn't get too reliant on them, but I do use them longer term for people with SIBO and anyone with more extensive gut health issues. 3) The last way endo surgery can cause endo belly and gut problems is by causing leaky gut. As you may know, the pain relief drugs known as NSAIDs can cause leaky gut, but so can stress as the chemicals released in the stress response actually directly damage the gut lining. If you're not familiar with leaky gut, I have a whole episode on it which I've linked to in the show notes, but leaky gut or intestinal permeability occurs when tiny holes appear in the gut lining. Think of the gut lining as a sausage skin, it's a tube from the mouth to the colon that separates what's coming in and going out from the rest of the body. The lining is incredibly thin, just one cell thick and these cells are tightly packed together with only the tiniest gap between them, to allow for the absorption of nutrients. When the gut gets inflamed or damaged from chronic IBS reactions, chronic stress, NSAIDs, infections, SIBO, allergies, intolerances, an inflammatory microbiome, etc. the gaps begin to widen. When this happens, food particles can pass through the gut lining alongside bacteria and toxins from bacteria, known as LPS. While some of the immune defences are inside the gut, there is also a large amount on the outside of the gut lining, waiting to attack anything that passes through which shouldn't be there. It doesn't matter if this is food or bacteria, inflammatory immune cells will be released and because the blood stream is also on the other side of the gut lining, the inflammatory cells can get swept along the blood stream, causing full body inflammation. If you have leaky gut, this is going to be happening every time you eat, putting you in a state of chronic inflammation. Additionally, leaky gut can cause gut irritation, creating reactions like bloating (or what we may see as the endo belly) and IBS issues. Over time, leaky gut can cause food intolerances as the immune system begins to create antibodies to the foods passes through. Of course, we don't want this to be happening whilst we're trying to recover from surgery. We want a healthy level of inflammation to help us heal, not chronic inflammation, and we certainly don't want swelling or abdominal distress putting pressure on our stitches or the internal sites which have been excised. So, what can we do about it? Well of course, firstly we want to try and lower stress as I mentioned before, so go back to those practices. Secondly, if we can, we want to lower our reliance on NSAIDS during this period. Now if you can't, don't worry – don't feel guilty or pressured, just focus on the stress piece and maybe the next tip too. But if you can, there are supplements that have been shown to be just as effective as NSAIDs for reducing pain, in particular, ginger powder. Ginger has been shown to be just as effective as ibuprofen and mefenamic acid for dysmenorrhea, it's also been shown to be a wonderful pain reliever in numerous studies for migraines, arthritis pain, back pain and so on. Dose wise, ginger is safe to take at up to 2000mg a day, but it needs to be divided into doses rather than taken all in one go, as that can cause diarrhoea. You could start at 1000mg a day and take it four times a day, so 250mg per dose or some supplement brands are 500mg a dose, so you could start there and do two a day or four a day, depending on the level of pain you're in. You could take it like this daily, to just keep pain down, or you can literally take it at the onset of pain, like a pain killer. Now ginger is a blood thinner, so if you decide to start taking it before surgery, to lower inflammation ahead of time, just consult with your surgeon as they may want you to stop taking it for a few days or a week before your surgery date. Curcumin has also been shown to be just as effective as ibuprofen for pain relief when taken daily for 4 weeks at 1,500mg. It was also shown to have less GI side effects than ibuprofen, which is great for the endo belly! And guess what else? Curcumin helps to heal leaky gut and reduce intestinal inflammation, so double bonus. Now curcumin is also natural blood thinner, so what you could do is take it for four weeks prior to your surgery to gain the beneficial effects and build up that level of pain relief, and then stop before your surgery if instructed to by your surgeon, so check in with them ahead of the surgery in case they want you to stop, and then start again after your surgery to continue reaping the pain relieving effects. You'll probably only be pausing your dose for a few days, two weeks at the maximum, but it's likely they'll only ask you to stop taking it for a week or even less before the surgery, especially if it's only keyhole. Of course, you may need some more pain relief than these alone, but for some of us, they're enough, and if you're also using some of the supplements, I mentioned in my last episode on the endo belly and surgery, then you really may not need any additional pain relief. However, if you do, hopefully the addition of ginger and maybe curcumin, might lower your need for as many Finally, I don't want to throw too many supplements at you for this episode and so if you do want some specific supplements and strategies for leaky gut, head to my episode on leaky gut and endo belly healing, which are linked in the show notes. But for now, I want to give you a very simple at home method for calming the gut and healing leaky gut, and that's bone broth. Bone broth contains amino acids and collagen, which help to heal leaky gut. Now a few caveats to this, if you're vegan or vegetarian, this is of course not the one for you, and so what I recommend is you just really focus on a diet rich in anti-inflammatory foods to lower intestinal inflammation, support your gut with curcumin and perhaps listen to my episode on leaky gut and try some of the other tips from there. The other caveat is if you have SIBO, you might react to bone broth because the collagen in there actually can feed SIBO. Some people with SIBO do fine on bone broth, but others get bloated or get abdominal discomfort, so test how you feel on it. Finally, if you have histamine intolerance, bone broth is high in histamine, so this also may not be for you. You can make a low histamine bone broth by cooking it for much less time, but it won't be as healing for leaky gut because it's going to contain less of those amino acids, collagen, minerals, etc. from the bones. So if for whatever reason, bone broth is not for you (and actually, even if it is) the foundational thing you can do to support your gut lining to heal, is to eat a nutrient dense diet full of anti-inflammatory foods, because if we just spend our time recovering eating sugar, alcohol and fast foods, the gut lining is going to become even more inflamed and any damage from NSAIDs or stress is just going to be exaggerated. But if you can add bone broth, it'll be a wonderful healing addition to this protocol. So that's it! You have lots of options to choose from, and you certainly don't have to try them all. Pick and choose what suits you, your values, and your lifestyle, and they will go a long way to helping your gut to recover and heal post-surgery and preventing recurrence or worsening of the endo belly. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free workshop: Creating a Roadmap to Endo Belly Healing To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Stress relief tools Headspace Calm Tapping Solution Frequency Mind Ginger research https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23865123/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26177393/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25912592/ https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ptr.6730 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7171779/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23657930/ Curcumin https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4533742/ https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/491886 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0753332217346838?via%3Dihub https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1756464615000092 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5407015/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24672232/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25277322/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3476912/ Leaky gut episodes https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/endometriosis-leaky-gut https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/-the-endometriosis-belly https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/understanding-the-endometriosis-belly-part-2

Endo and Skin Conditions/Endo Friendly Skincare Q&A

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 20, 2021 47:22

Today's episode is another bonus Q&A and this time it was more light-hearted and fun. This time I'm talking about endometriosis and the associated skin conditions, and I'm also sharing endo friendly skin care tips! In this episode I talk about... My personal experience with rosacea and eczema and how I healed those after over a decade of suffering with them. How treating SIBO improved my skin in so many ways but also dehydrated it and caused some surprising skin issues! My skin care routine, favourite products and gua sha technique that are all endometriosis friendly. The link between endometriosis, histamines and eczema. The link between SIBO and rosacea. Cystic acne, endometriosis and oestrogen and how to begin healing acne. Endocrine disrupting chemicals in skincare and how they affect endometriosis. I hope this Q&A is both fun and helpful! Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free workshop: Creating a Roadmap to Endo Belly Healing To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

live thrive breakfast cbd friendly roadmap skincare endometriosis sibo eczema aimed endo soothe endocrine rosacea histamine cystic it starts skin conditions beyou pod farm

How Adhesions from Surgery Can Cause Endo Belly and Five Tips to Prevent Adhesion Formation Post-Surgery

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 16, 2021 25:51

So, you've had an endometriosis surgery and you're really hopeful that's this is it – you're going to have some relief, for a while at the least. Maybe your periods are better, your chronic pelvis pain is better, things are improving. But after a few months, the endo belly comes back. Or maybe you get it for the first time ever. You're bloated all the time or maybe you bloat badly after meals, or maybe it gets worse over the day? Perhaps it's also accompanied by IBS issues like constipation, gas, or loose stools. If any of this sounds familiar, this episode is for you. Whilst surgery is essential for many people, it doesn't come without its risks. And I honestly feel like it's a disservice that these aren't more talked about. So today, I'm talking about why you may get endo belly for the first time, a return of it or a worsening of it as a result of adhesions, and what you can do to prevent them. If you haven't heard me bang on about these guys before, adhesions are a form of scar tissue. They are web-like structures and bands of collagen that grow in response to injury and trauma, to ‘knit' back together a wounded area and as part of the healing process from infection and inflammation. Collagen strands bond together to protect the damaged area to allow healing to occur in a safe and isolated environment, and if an infection is present, they protect the rest of the body by preventing the spread. Adhesions occur in nearly all cases of abdominal surgery, the results vary from study to study, but one large and long study found that between 55% to 100% of women who had pelvic surgery developed adhesions, and up to 90% of people who had major abdominal surgery - so something like a caesarean - developed adhesions. So, if you've had even one or more surgeries for endo, it's very likely that you have some adhesions. Now adhesions are a leading cause of the condition, small intestine bacterial overgrowth. This is another topic I bang on about all the time, but if you're new here, I am specialised in endometriosis and SIBO, because SIBO is so prevalent in our community, the research at present is indicating that 80% of us have it. And SIBO is a condition where the normal bacteria which should be in our large intestine (this is referred to as our gut microbiome), starts accumulating in our small intestine, where it shouldn't be. Normally, bacteria are moved through the small intestine into the large intestine with the help of something called the migrating motor complex, and this MMC is a wave like motion that sweeps the small intestine of any left-over food bits and bacteria, and it kicks in about two hours after meals and at night whilst we're asleep. Now a number of things can damage the MMC or prevent it from doing its job. Food poisoning or gastroenteritis is the main cause of damage to the MMC, and that actually damages nerves and muscles that control it. But adhesions, even if the MMC is working well, they can stop it from doing its job properly. And they do this by pulling on our intestines. So, imagine you have an adhesion that is going from your pelvis to somewhere on your intestines, it's going to be pulling down on your intestines and distorting the shape or the flow of the intestines. In fact, your intestines need to be able to slip and slide over each other, they need to be able to expand and accommodate food and waste, but if they're being yanked in different directions and they're being held in place by adhesions, the flow is going to disrupted. There may even be adhesions wrapped around the intestine, which would create an obstruction, or the adhesions may have caused the intestine to loop over itself, creating a pocket area that the bacteria can't escape from. Whatever is happening, the result is the same. The small intestine can't get clean, and bacteria builds up, causing SIBO. And the small intestine isn't designed to house bacteria, so this causes all sorts of problems like bloating, which is a main cause of the endo belly and IBS issues. The gases that are released from the bacteria can also cause brain fog, fatigue, joint pain, and body pain to name a few symptoms. I've linked to a couple of episodes where I break down SIBO in more detail, so if you're not familiar with it, have a listen to that. Now even if SIBO hasn't developed yet, adhesions may still be a source of your bloating. If they're not affecting your small intestine, they could still be affecting your large intestine and may be causing a build-up of waste or gas, you may not be able to have regular bowel movements or your intestines might be sluggish and slow, allowing for gases to accumulate, creating that swelling. So, what's the solution? Prevent the adhesions from taking root in the first place, or if they have, start to break them down. So first up, just as a caveat, we want to be lowering inflammation levels before and after surgery with good anti-inflammatory nutrition. Now inflammation occurs during healing, it's actually part of the healing process, but too much of it for too long will encourage adhesion formation. We want a healthy level of inflammation that aids in healing, not a chronic level that accelerates the growth of adhesions. So, before your surgery and during your healing phase, make sure you're filling your diet with those anti-inflammatory foods I always harp on about: colourful vegetables and fruits; healthy fats like avocado, olive oil, nuts, seeds, and fatty fish; antioxidant packed herbs and spices; and organic lean protein sources beans and lentils, free range organic omega 3 rich eggs, wild caught fish and free range, organic, grass-fed meat. If you want to learn more, I've linked to a few of my podcast episodes on anti-inflammatory nutrition and a free copy of my cookbook in the show notes. I should also be bringing out a nutrition for endo workshop in the next few weeks too, so keep your eyes peeled for that. Okay, so now that's cleared up, let's dive into the extra strategies. I'm going to start with what you can do before and initially after the surgery, and then what you can do once the scars have healed. 1. Number one is supplementing with omega 3 fatty acids. Fish oil was shown to reduce adhesion formation following surgery on mice with induced endometriosis, and reduced the inflammatory healing process post-surgery, which could reduce the chances of further endo development as inflammatory chemicals like prostaglandins fuel endometriosis. This led to the mice who were fed with fish oil to have fewer lesions than those who were fed a standard diet without fish oil supplementation, so even though we don't have research specifically on adhesion formation and omega 3 on humans with endo, this could be a potential helpful supplement before and after surgery (though I would argue it's an essential daily supplement). The therapeutic dose is between 1000mg to 3000mg a day. I personally find I get more pain relief from the higher doses, but it can be tricky to get hold of those levels without exceeding the dose recommendations on the bottle. I have linked to a few higher dose supplements in the show notes, but if you chose to exceed the dose recommendations on the label, obviously that's your choice but you'll need to consult with a practitioner to be on the safe side. However, omega 3 fatty acids are generally very safe at these doses. If you're vegan, look for an algae-based supplement that contains both DHA and EPA, because we need both. I've linked to a few in the handout. The only risk is that they can sometimes thin blood, so speak to your surgeon ahead of surgery to see whether you need to stop taking them a few days beforehand, for keyhole surgery it's unlikely, but just check. 2. Number 2 is proteolytic enzymes. Proteolytic enzymes are natural substances that break down protein, and of course, the building blocks of muscle and tissue are amino acids, which form protein. As a result, proteolytic enzymes help to reduce adhesion formation and they also reduce inflammation post-surgery and aid in clearing waste products from the wound site. The research is limited, with most of the research being in oral surgery or sports related injuries but there is one study on endometriosis. So, the only study we have on enzymes for endo is the use of a brand we use commonly at IWHI and that's Wobenzyme. In the study, Wobenzyme was shown to reduce pain and inflammation post-surgery, reducing the chances of adhesions growth and it also inhibited the formation of new blood vessels, reducing the chances of further endo development. The dose used in the study was the label dose for 40-60 days pre-op and then 60 days post op. One thing to note is that because proteolytic enzymes reduce adhesion formation, there is the risk that if there is an infection at the site of the wound, that it could spread, as adhesions play a role in isolating infection sites from the rest of the body. This is rare but has been known to happen. 3. Number three is home Arvigo Massage. Now, everyone is different, but my recommendation is as soon as your scars have healed and the therapist gives you the go ahead, learn Arvigo massage from a licensed therapists and start practising on yourself every day or a couple times a week. This really increases blood flow and helps to clear away scar tissue. It only takes 10 minutes and can be part of your evening routine, because if you do it at night, it actually helps to stimulate your MMC, so that will also help to reduce your chances of clearing SIBO. So that's a great tool you can be trying at home and that's like your daily maintenance. But we do want to go in with the bigger guns and that's so that's number four. 4. Number four is having some form of professional abdominal massage known as manual therapy, which is designed to break up adhesions. Manual therapy is a form of organ massage and manipulation to break down and prevent adhesions from forming, unstick organs and release a frozen pelvis. Your main options are visceral manipulation or Clear Passage. Visceral manipulation is a form of manual therapy which was designed by Jean-Pierre Barral. It's generally the more affordable and accessible option and is very effective for treating adhesions. Not much research has been specifically done on its effects on endometriosis, but there is plenty of research on its effects for pain conditions and lots of clinical research with endo patients experiencing success from treatment. The holy grail of manual therapy is Clear Passage. This is a unique form of manual therapy which is designed for adhesions and is incredibly effective for SIBO and endometriosis. In fact, there is even amazing research behind it for these conditions, showing its effectiveness. If you're contemplating a surgery but you're not sure it's necessary or the right path for you, for whatever reason, and you have the money to afford Clear Passage, you may want to look into it first because it can even prevent the need for surgery with endometriosis. Of course, if you have cysts that need removing or deep infiltrating endo that's damaging your organs, I am not saying to ignore the advice of a surgeon and not have surgery, but in some cases, surgery isn't the best option – especially if you've already had a few. Research has shown that the pain relief from Clear Passage is the same as surgery and is long lasting, and they all have remarkable results for endometriosis related infertility, pain during sex, and menstrual or ovulatory pain. They also have wonderful results for SIBO and are endorsed by many of the world's leading SIBO doctors. Honestly, I wish all of my clients with SIBO, and endo could have Clear Passage because the results from the studies are so positive. However, it's very expensive so if you can't afford it, honestly, don't worry and try the Arvigo massage and visceral manipulation approach. 5. Lastly, you could also try regular castor oil packs. I know countless leading women's health practitioners who use castor oil to soften and break down adhesions and who experience great success with it with their clients. However, it's generally considered that more research needs to be done, though there is research on castor oil's abilities to lower inflammation, reduce symptoms of constipation, improve circulation, and stimulate muscle relaxation. I actually asked Arvigo Therapist Tara Ghosh about using castor oil packs for breaking down adhesions and she explained how it works. So, castor oil actually triggers the immune system, due to some of its chemical components, but once it responds to the call and finds no poison to clear, the immune system goes about utilising its tools on repairing and healing the pelvic area seeing as it's already there, which in turn helps to break down and clear adhesions. She also emphasises that it lowers of inflammation and improves of blood flow to the area, and that this also helps to clear adhesions or prevent their formation. If you want to learn how to make your own castor oil pack and how and when to safely use them, I advise listening to my interview with Tara who has a really quick and easy method as opposed to the often messy and sticky traditional approach! You can try a castor oil pack alongside your Arvigo massage a couple of times a week once your scars have healed. And if you're years past surgery, don't worry – other than the proteolytic enzymes, you can use all of these strategies to break down any old adhesions that have formed! With the proteolytic enzymes, we only have research that focuses on pre- and post-surgery, so I really couldn't say whether they would work years after surgery, you could try, but I just can't make any guarantees! So that's it! I hope that this episode provides you with a bit of a protocol for healing post-surgery and preventing adhesion formation. I think it's actually appalling that we're not told about them and how to manage them, given that they cause people with endometriosis so many problems, but hopefully this gives you some tools to get to work with. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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Endo Q&A: Will Endo Get Worse or Stay the Same and How Does Mould Affect Endo?

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 13, 2021 52:47

This episode is another endo Q&A and in this live I answer: Will endo get worse or stay the same? My personal experience with mould and how it affected my endo co-conditions. Will endo continue to cause issues even if you're not having pain? Tips for managing the kind of pain flare that leaves you on the floor. Post-period pelvic pain and what to do about it. ...And more! I really hope you find this live helpful! We covered A LOT of super interesting topics in this one. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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My Small Intestine Fungal Overgrowth Protocol

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 10, 2021 49:39

Okay, so a number of you have reached out to ask me whether I'm going to talk about my next steps for SIFO treatment, which I wasn't originally going to do as I have an expert in mind to invite onto the show, but as a number of you asked, I hope that sharing my story will be somewhat helpful for you! So, unlike with SIBO where I had quite a long-term plan in mind, this I am more so feeling out my journey because as I discussed in my previous update, I'm not 100% sure if the issue is gut dysbiosis or SIFO. So, to recap, let's start with what SIFO is. SIFO stands for small intestine fungal overgrowth and it's when fungus like yeast (or other fungi) grow in the small intestine. We do have some normal, non-harmful levels of fungus and yeast in the large intestine, but they become a problem either when they overgrow or when they're found I the small intestine. Unfortunately, the symptoms of SIFO are exactly the same as SIBO, so it can be very tricky to identify between the two. What makes it harder is that testing for SIFO is unreliable. Often the fungus hides in biofilms, which are protective mucosal-like layers, so they don't show up on tests and even if they do, there's no way, without a very invasive biopsy, to tell whether the fungus is in the large intestine or small intestine. What we do know is that the organic acids test tends to be the most reliable test, at least according to the practitioners I've trained with. We also know the candida tends to be the culprit behind SIFO in many cases, and just to be clear, that's the type of yeast which causes thrush, and we also know that about xxx of SIBO cases. Now there are some extra tell-tale signs of candida specifically, if that's the fungus behind the problem, and those are… · Allergies · Yeast overgrowth (vaginal, oral or on the skin) · Nasal congestion and excess mucus or phlegm · Rashes · Joint pain · Brain fog and chronic fatigue · Headaches The difficulty is that unless you have the obvious thrush, whether oral, vaginal or on your skin, this symptoms are also typical of histamine intolerance, which you know if you listen to my podcast, is very common with our community and is also very common with SIBO, and hydrogen sulphide SIBO specifically. As I had suspected hydrogen sulphide and for sure, have histamine intolerance, any possible SIFO really wasn't obvious. Until more recently. As you may know, about two months ago, I cleared my SIBO! But unfortunately, I still had the majority of the SIBO symptoms. I also had an unusual test result, which showed no hydrogen gas in my large intestine, which is where it should be. In a healthy negative result, you should see little hydrogen gas in the small intestine and then a rise in the large intestine, but I had a flat line. So, this indicates two possible issues – either hydrogen sulphide or a bacterial imbalance in my large intestine, essentially, the bacteria in my gut having been wiped out. Because I'd done so many treatment rounds and most of them would target all three types of SIBO, I felt it unlikely it was still hydrogen sulphide remaining, and my colleagues agreed. Secondly, I had done a round of antibiotics, and I react quite badly to them, having lots of diarrhoea, fatigue, and headaches, and after I finished the course, I got shingles, which you only get when you're very immune compromised. And 70% of the immune system is in and around the gut. If your healthy microbiome in the large intestine is wiped out, you can bet your immune system will be too. So, for sure, I was certain that there was some gut dysbiosis happening. But I didn't believe it was enough to cause all my symptoms. And a few clues made me suspect SIFO. Firstly, I was doing pretty well with symptom reduction until the third week of the elemental diet, which is full of simple sugars. Suddenly, I began to bloat up again. I also had a strong white film throughout the entire elemental diet, which indicated the sugars were feeding bacteria or yeast in my mouth, and secondly, I started having thrush symptoms during the elemental diet. Then, from the elemental diet, I went onto the antibiotics, and I got thrush symptoms again! Now Dr Siebecker warns that the elemental diet may cause yeast or fungal overgrowth in people who already have it, in contrast, Dr Ruscio uses the elemental diet for candida overgrowth, because he says the simple sugars are absorbed too quickly for the yeast to eat it. I think it's probably the case that both doctors are right, but that it depends on the individual and that they see different types of patients. Either way, it seemed quite clear to me that I had some yeast overgrowth as a result. I went to my doctor at Vala, and they agreed that it looked like candida overgrowth in my mouth. Additionally, I've always had a white film on my tongue, honestly ever since I could remember. I used to ask dentists about it, but they would shrug it off, and tell me it was down to what I had eaten, but I was waking up with it before I had eaten a thing. Back then I just took what they said as gospel. Then a few years ago, my boyfriend and I went through a real sweet tooth phase, long before I had gotten on top of my endo and eating an anti-inflammatory diet, and we were eating a lot of sugar. At that point, I got full on oral thrush, which thankfully was cleared with 24 hours of taking the medication – or so I thought! I've only ever had vaginal thrush a handful times, so again, initially, I really didn't think candida was an issue for me! However, the fact that I then started getting the symptoms from two things which we know may cause yeast overgrowth – the elemental diet and antibiotics – made me think that maybe I have had SIFO all along, but the white film never got out of control, and it wasn't really affecting my vagina too much. Now having said this, according to Dr Jacobi, candida can also cause a burning bladder pain, and for sure, that's what my pain feels like inside my bladder. Like I have a fire going on in there, and there's also a few rusty knitting needles sticking through it too! So, alongside my colleagues who I trained with in SIBO and my doctor, I concluded I do likely have SIFO and gut dysbiosis. The problem is, if you have SIFO, its usually quite hard to clear SIBO or to stay in remission, and even though I still had all the symptoms of SIBO, I felt like I relapsed about 2 weeks into my all clear. The changes were subtle, but they were there. I was still having bloating and loose stools, that hadn't changed. But what had improved is I could no longer feel fermentation happening in my gut, like active bubbles forming and moving around in my gut, which I used to get all the time – and that returned. The second issue was that my stools changed, and I won't go into the detail, but it was reminiscent of when my SIBO used to be really bad. Then I started getting the burping back, which was a new symptom originally, that started I think in 2019, but it went during treatment, and came back around the same time as these other symptoms. So, this occurred whilst I was in my prevention of relapse phase. So, when you clear your SIBO, you move into a three-to-six-month period where you put in place meal spacing, prokinetics (which are supplements or drugs which stimulate your migrating motor complex in the small intestine overnight, to clear out bacteria) and some kind of SIBO diet. There are also some additional extras you can do, which I was doing. I was pretty much doing everything perfectly, but I relapsed. So, I was two weeks in, whilst deciding what treatment to start for SIFO. And at that point, sometime after my relapse, is when we decided to go to Greece. Now originally, you'll know my plan was to do a very specific reintroduction of foods, following the usual elimination diet reintroduction phase, where you try one new food basically a week. But now I had relapsed, and I was at a point where I never didn't have symptoms. I bloated after every meal, despite being on the SIBO bi-phasic, so I couldn't get any more restrictive. So, trying to tell what I was specifically going to react to was going to be incredibly difficult and frustrating. Also, we have been wanting to travel for years, but in addition to COVID, we hadn't because of my SIBO. I didn't want to be in a position where I had to eat outside of a SIBO diet and ended up relapsing. But now I had relapsed. And part of what may cause relapse is chronic stress and an elevated nervous system. I won't go into it now, but many of you know that I have felt very, very stressed and unsafe in our current home in Margate, but we've had continual circumstances that have prevented us from moving – one of them being that we didn't want to just move to a new flat, we really wanted to move overseas and roam around for a while. Additionally, we had mould, which we've cleared as much as we can, but there's likely a lot of hidden mould as the entire flat was flooded not long after we first moved in, and it was after that that I got very sick with histamine intolerance, which can flare up from mould triggering the immune system. But this is a stressor on the body and nervous system, and additionally, can cause relapse if your immune system is being compromised by something like mould. On top of that, I'd worked really hard, for really, really long and it had been a tough few years. So, we made quite an overnight decision to go to Greece for six week. You know, our original vision was to pack up, leave the flat entirely and just travel Europe for six months, because that's all we're allowed to do thanks to Brexit, but because of the restrictions with COVID, etc. it was just all so limited and so fingers crossed, we can do that this year. But we both decided enough was enough and we wanted a break from the house and a change of scenery, of course it was something we just wanted to do in life, but in a large part for me, my health was my motivation and my therapist even called it an intervention, and that's for sure what it felt like. So, I made the decision to go to Greece, knowing full well I wouldn't have total control about the reintroduction of food, but by this point I was pretty certain I had relapsed and giving that I still had the SIFO road ahead of me, a break away seemed not just like it wouldn't do much more damage, but that it would be good for me. So, my plan for SIBO and SIFO basically revolved around Greece because I would have to take all my treatment with me. And I established three goals, I mean I didn't, I'm not that organised, but that's this is what I focused on – · Keeping SIBO at bay and continuing the prevention of relapse to the best of my ability so it didn't progress rapidly. · Beginning to take on SIFO, but gently, to avoid any die off reactions whilst away. · And to rebuild my microbiome and improve my gut lining, which I was already working on anyway. So as a result, here's what my current protocol looks like: Diet Before we went away, I began expanding with one to three new foods a week. Just some of the key ones that I thought I should try before we went, that I would likely rely on in restaurants, like lentils and some nuts. Then, as we planned for Greece, my aim was to eat as expanded as possible, so basically the more lenient end of a SIBO diet, which looks more like the expanded version of the low FODMAP diet and the paleo diet. This is fine by the way; you won't relapse if you expand. The point of the prevention of relapse phase is to expand to tolerance as rapidly as possible. Of course, I had no bloody idea what I was and wasn't tolerating, so I just decided to follow the low FODMAP serving guidance to help me to stay within some kind of relatively low carb (that's the basis of a SIBO diet) protocol. So, before we went, I basically started transitioning from the bi-phasic, which is very, very restrictive, to low FODMAP. Because we are here for six weeks, I had the advantage of not eating out all the time. So, I my plan was, and what I have implemented whilst here, was to eat low FODMAP during the week at home, and then at the weekend, to eat as low FODMAP or paleo friendly as I could manage whilst out and about, but also allowing for treats and just basically enjoying and appreciating a different cuisine. Now my doctor, who is a functional medicine doctor, sent me a candida diet. There are a few different versions, but essentially, it's a low carb diet to a degree, that removes yeasts and sugars. I had a look through it and because in terms of servings, it's generally less restrictive than the low FODMAP, I was essentially doing it, other than when I have some bread or ice cream over the weekend. But I didn't really want to go down a rabbit hole with that, especially as I'm not sure how suitable the candida diet is for SIBO and equally, some practitioners debate whether the candida diet is even necessary. So that's going to be a bridge that I cross when I get home. But for the most part, I am naturally doing it anyway. So, we've been here for about two weeks now and I've settled into a routine of this kind of pattern. The first weekend we were in Athens for 48 hours and were travelling and didn't really have time to seek out gluten free and dairy free, etc. We did stumble across a few places, thankfully, so that was great. But I ended up eating quite a bit of gluten, and by the third day I felt really nauseas and started getting an upset stomach. I also had dairy too, once, or twice, because it turns out that in Greece, it's really hard to eat vegan and gluten free in general restaurants. The protein options are mainly meat, fish or dairy and often the fish was things that I just wouldn't be able to stomach, like octopus, and as you know, I was hoping to transition back off of meat after having to eat on the bi-phasic, so I had some cheese every now and then, as being a health coach, blood sugar is important to me and so you do need protein with every meal. Also, my blood sugar is very suspectable to lows, so just having a plate of carbs would really mess me up and ruin the rest of the day, so I had to make choices about having enough fat and protein and that sometimes looked like a little dairy. Now I know I'm intolerant to dairy, which actually might be due to having SIBO, because it causes temporary lactose intolerance until you clear it, so I wasn't eating huge amounts and I tried to choose cheeses that I know I tolerate better, and I avoided cow's dairy and milk for the most part – except for a scoop of ice cream here or there, but in Athens I could get vegan. So, because I was nervous about eating foods out, that I hadn't eaten for a long time, I took with me betaine HCL, which is stomach acid support; digestive enzymes; FODMATE, which is digestive enzymes specifically for FODMAP foods and charcoal capsules, which absorb gas if you have bloating and can also be helpful with diarrhea, and all of these have been really handy when out. I've still not had the happiest bowel movements, but I wasn't having sudden severe reactions whilst out and needing to dash to the loo, which is what I used to get and what I was scared of. So that's the diet side of things. SIFO For SIFO, I didn't want to go in too hard core now and then have lots of die off reactions whilst away, which would leave me feeling really unwell. So instead, I started subtle. I have a one-week course of an anti-fungal from my doctor, but I am also taking a high dose of saccharomyces boulardii, which is a healthy yeast probiotic that competes with candida for space in the gut and has been shown to be very effective. I am also taking another probiotic called lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM, which creates candida antibodies to kill it off. I am also taking immunoglobulins, which are naturally a part of our immune system and line our gut, but I am very low on these. They bind to toxins and help expel them, and when they're low, we're more suspectable to infections, parasites, yeast, etc. So, I am taking them to help with both the SIBO and SIFO. Additionally, I am taking glutathione, which is an antioxidant that's absolutely essential to liver function, and so this is supporting my liver to clear out all the toxins as the candida, fungus, etc. clears, helping me by lessening the die off. SIBO For SIBO, I am keeping it at bay with the strongest prokinetic, called prucalopride. This is a pharmaceutical drug, but unfortunately, the natural prokinetics aren't normally strong enough and this was certainly the case for me. I tried them all, and they just didn't do the job. Whilst doing that, I am of course doing the diet 80% of the time, and then meal spacing as much as possible. So that's 4 hours between meals and 12 hours overnight. Sometimes I can't manage the 4 hours between meals because I'm hungry or I need to support my blood sugar, but at a minimum we're required to do 12 hours over night. I think maybe three days I ended up doing less than that because of travelling, maybe 10 hours or something. And alongside that I am taking low dose allicin, which is an extract from garlic, and I use multiple times in my SIBO treatment with success, and allicin also kills off fungus. It's reportedly not strong enough alone to kill fungus and yeast, but it can help and in combination with the probiotics, I think it's a nice combo to keep the SIFO at bay at least, if not begin killing it off. So, I am taking the allicin at a low dose to keep the SIBO at bay, and this is a common approach. Dr Siebecker doesn't use it, but some other doctors do use it between treatment rounds instead of a prokinetic, and it does work. So, it may not be enough to kill the SIBO, in fact I know it's not, but it just sort of keeps it from growing like crazy. Then of course, the immunoglobulins help too. Microbiome and gut lining repair So, I am taking high dose fish oil, about 2000mg, which helps to repair the gut lining. I am taking 2000mg of quercetin, which again helps to repair the gut lining, and also lowers inflammation in the body and gut and is a natural antihistamine. I was taking l-glutamine before I left, which is the best leaky gut healer, but the tub was huge and was open, and is a white powder, so I thought I might get arrested for that one! Additionally, the saccharomyces boulardii also helps to repair the gut lining, and the lactobacillus acidophilus also contains two other strains which have been shown to repopulate the gut and increase levels of beneficial bacteria. Now normally, I wouldn't take so many probiotics with SIBO, because taking too many can cause a flare up and even cause it to grow, but it's about testing your tolerance. If you take a probiotic and you're bloating or SIBO symptoms get worse, it's probably not the best one for you because it's feeding your SIBO. In contrast, certain single strains are better tolerated. I like to build people up to a few strains, and I was already on two, so with this combo I'm on four, and I tested them out before I left to make sure I wasn't reacting. But essentially, I couldn't find a single strain of lactobacillus acidophilus for the life of me, so this was the best I could find! And the immunoglobulins help to rebuild the gut lining and support the microbiome too. Additionally, in general, I have been supporting my gut by using the app. Nerva, which improves the gut-brain connection and using Arvigo massage at night to stimulate the migrating motor complex overnight. Both of these also help to lower stress, which damages the gut lining and microbiome, so addressing a stressed nervous system and an anxious gut is really important too – and I see Greece as part of that. I have to say, I haven't been able to be consistent with the massage and the Nerva with all the travelling, but we're a week into our new temporary home now and we're here for another three weeks, so I can get back into my routine. So that's my current protocol. When I return to the UK, I am going to move into a high dose of oregano and another yeast antimicrobial, likely Candibactin AR, but continue with the probiotics, and I'll of course retest for SIBO. If I am positive, I may do the elemental diet again, whilst taking anti-fungals, as that should kill it at the same time. I may then need to continue with the candida treatment for several months, as it can take some time to clear. But I think that will be judged on whether I am seeing any improvements, because if it's not candida, then I don't want to waste time treating the wrong issue. I'm hoping to do an organic acids test too, to see if any candida shows up. What I'll do is take an anti-biofilm for two weeks ahead of the test, and that will hopefully break up the biofilm so it can be detected. It doesn't always work, but we'll see. But there are plenty of natural anti-fungals to rotate through and I have all the doses from my course with Dr Jacobi, so I'll let you know which ones I'm doing as I go through the treatments. If it's not candida, I may be still having symptoms because of possible Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which I am being assessed for when I return, and I've been talking about that over on Instagram if you want to learn more about its connection to endo and SIBO. And it could also be that I am just rapidly relapsing and severely reacting because of an upregulated nervous system, in which case, there are two great courses for rewiring your brain if your body is very reactive, one is called DNRS and the other is the Gupta Programme, so I may consider those too. I see a lot of this with my clients, an upregulated nervous system from years of pain, inflammation, etc. It's really too early to say which route I'm going to go down until I see what my SIBO results say, and I see how I respond to the candida treatment that I try when I get back. So that's it. I hope that sharing my journey has given you some insight into your own, has maybe offered you some hope or some motivation to keep going. I know clearing these guys is tough, and I'm with you on that, but feeling well is possible. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Nerva DNRS Gupta Programme Arvigo massage practitioner

Endo and Fatigue Q&A Episode

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 6, 2021 36:58

Today is another recording from an Instagram live I did - this time all about endometriosis and chronic fatigue. In this episode, I discuss - Why does it happen? Covering the link between endo/chronic pelvic pain/chronic pain conditions and low cortisol, inflammation and mitochondria dysfunction, gut health issues and nutrient malabsorption, hormone imbalances and blood sugar dysregulation. Whether fatigue will fatigue get worse the longer you live with endo. Why fatigue might be worse after your period. Whether fatigue is still common after excision surgery. What's the best/quickest way to get iron levels up. I really hope you find this episode useful! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. To become a The Endo Belly Course Founding Member, email me at hello@thisendolife.com with ‘Yes' in the subject line. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Ep. 139 Ep. 141

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Endo and PMS: Low Mood, Low Progesterone, Low GABA

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 2, 2021 27:51

A few weeks ago, I shared an episode on addressing low moods in your luteal phase (that's your premenstrual phase, which occurs after ovulation and lasts around two weeks), and I started with low blood sugar. In this episode, I want to talk about the other common issue which can cause low moods at this time of your cycle, and that's low progesterone. I was originally going to also talk about low neurotransmitters as well, but actually just low progesterone alone has so many parts to it (and I didn't even touch upon them all!) that I think it would be good to separate this theme into three episodes, so one on blood sugar, one on low progesterone and one on low neurotransmitters. That way, you can work on an area and observe the difference, rather than trying to address all the issues at once, when some of them may not even be relevant to you. If you haven't listened to my previous episode, then I really strongly suggest you start there and begin balancing your blood sugar first, because you may not even need to address these next steps if your symptoms improve with better blood sugar levels! And the reason why I am covering this, is because 93% of you said that you suffer with low moods in the week or so before your period, and endometriosis is enough to deal with, let alone with feeling extra teary, anxious, or irritable! I want to make your period and the rest of your cycle as manageable, and even as easy as possible for you, so even though this may not seem directly linked to endo, it will improve your overall experience of your cycle. In fact, addressing these problems will likely help your endo too – and I'll explain why as we go through the episode. So, let's dive into low progesterone. And to understand this, we need to understand how progesterone is produced. The majority of our progesterone comes from a gland called the corpus luteum. This is a temporary gland that is formed once our chosen mature egg is released from its sack-like follicle during ovulation. When this sack no longer holds the egg, it transforms into our corpus luteum, and this gland releases progesterone during the second half of our cycle. Progesterone is responsible for various reproductive roles, such as further preparing the uterine lining and supporting a healthy pregnancy, which is why it's so crucial to have good progesterone levels if you're trying to conceive or struggling with miscarriages. But it is also a mood soother and without enough of it, we can get cranky, irritable, depressed, or anxious… Progesterone produces a metabolite, which is essentially a by-product that is made as a result of progesterone being used. This metabolite is called allopregnanolone and it usually has a positive impact on nerve signalling and brain function. Allopregnanolone binds to GABA receptors, and GABA is a neurotransmitter which tends to soothe and calm the nervous system. And just to be clear, a neurotransmitter is essentially a chemical messenger which transfers information from one brain neuron to another, they include other neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine. So, this binding to the GABA receptor enhances the calming effects of GABA, creating a sedative like response which can improve sleep, calm anxiety, and generally soothe both body and mind. However, if we're low in progesterone, we may not have enough allopregnanolone to reap the benefits of GABA, and the reason why we'll notice this so dramatically in the second half of the cycle, is because in the first half, oestrogen is supporting serotonin production, our happy hormone. So, when oestrogen lowers in the second half of our cycle, if we don't have enough progesterone, we may feel a real crash in our mood. On the flip side of this, research is showing that in those with PMDD, regardless of the levels of progesterone, these people have a negative reaction to the binding of allopregnanolone to GABA receptors. They actually have the opposite reaction; they become anxious, the nervous system over responds, etc. So, if you suspect you have PMDD, just have an awareness of this – healthy hormone levels will help, but you may also need some extra support due to this reaction. I've put a link into the show notes where you can read up on this a little more and to two podcast episodes where I cover PMDD and how to manage it. But for those of us without PMDD, lower levels of progesterone can cause insomnia, anxiety, depression, and irritability. And also, if you suspect you have oestrogen dominance and you're wondering why we don't just keep reaping the benefits of serotonin if our oestrogen levels are higher than they should be in the luteal phase, well in many cases, it's not that oestrogen is high, but that progesterone is too low, and this creates an imbalance where oestrogen is too high in relation to progesterone. Or you may genuinely have high levels of oestrogen and too low progesterone, or simply just have high levels of oestrogen and normal levels of progesterone, but regardless, that doesn't mean the effects will be positive! If your hormones are not doing what they're supposed to be in the second half of the cycle, you're going to run into problems and oestrogen dominance or excess oestrogen causes PMS, which of course, causes mood swings. So, the best way to have balanced moods in your luteal phase, is to balance our hormones. So how do our levels of progesterone get too low in the first place? So, number one is a lack of ovulation. If we don't ovulate, we don't have healthy progesterone levels, because the majority of progesterone will come from the corpus luteum, which is only made once we've ovulated. And many people think if they have a period, they've ovulated, but this isn't the case. You can still have a period without ovulation, it's just not a true period, it's sort of like a breakthrough bleed. If you want to know for sure if you're ovulating, then you need to use the Fertility Awareness Method to track your cycle and this will measure your basal body temperature, cervical fluid and cervix position and will give you the exact date you ovulated on. Understanding the Fertility Awareness Method is really another podcast episode, so I've provided a link to where you can learn more about it in the show notes, but I also share how to do it in my course and with my clients, if you want more support on how to do it. So, what stops up from ovulating? Many things, but the key is usually stress, whether that's emotional or physical. And that stress can look like work stress, money stress, general life stress, but it can also be physical stressors like chronic inflammation, gut health conditions like SIBO, blood sugar imbalances, too much caffeine (because caffeine turns on the stress response), etc. When our body is stressed, it kicks into survival mode and energy is taken away from non-essential functions and directed to essential functions that will help us to survive ovulation is not one of those, so that is put on the backburner. Additionally, having a baby when we're under threat, from a biological standpoint, is not the best time to bring offspring into the world, so there are several ways the body responds to stop us from conceiving, and most of these result in a lack of ovulation. Additionally, when we're stressed, the body will always prioritise cortisol, our stress hormone. Cortisol and progesterone actually fit into the same cell receptors, so when we have higher levels of cortisol, progesterone is blocked from cells, preventing it from getting to work. So even if we have healthy levels of progesterone, if we're stressed, we may not be reaping the same benefits. Another possible cause of low progesterone is hypothyroidism, which is when the thyroid is producing too little thyroid hormones. Autoimmune hypothyroidism, known as hashimoto's thyroiditis, has actually been linked to endometriosis in several studies, indicating that there could be a greater risk of developing the autoimmune condition in those of us with endo. Some signs of an underactive thyroid are: · Chronic fatigue · Low libido · Painful joints · Cognitive impairment such as brain fog and forgetfulness · Feeling cold all the time or particularly sensitive to cold · Constipation · Dry skin and hair · Hair loss or thinning (including eyebrows) · Weight gain · Low moods or depression · Period problems such as heavy, long, or painful periods · Infertility or miscarriage I've written an article about the subject, though it is fairly old, and I'd love to update it, but it does have some good guidance on how to check for signs of hypothyroidism and how to correctly test your thyroid too! However, the bottom line is, if you're not producing enough thyroid hormones, you won't be making enough progesterone because a lack of thyroid hormones can stop or delay ovulation and additionally directly affect our ability to make enough progesterone. Another cause of low progesterone would be nutrient deficiencies. Nutrient deficiencies are a stressor on the body regardless, and so that could interrupt ovulation, but if we don't have adequate nutrients, we may struggle to develop healthy follicles, meaning that even if an egg does make it to ovulation, the corpus luteum might be too poor quality to produce sufficient levels of progesterone. So, what can we do about low moods caused by low progesterone? Well, clearly, there could be a number of causes, so I'm not going to give you a huge to-do list because that'll be overwhelming. Instead, I'm going o give you some baby steps to try and if they don't help over the next few cycles, you can turn to the deeper investigations. My first suggestion is to manage stress and raise GABA levels with one action. Any stress reduction exercises can help to lower stress and raise GABA levels according to Trudy Scott, in her book, The Anti-Anxiety Food Solution, but particularly, yoga has been shown to be a shining star here. Additionally, you could try deep breathing exercises or slow movement like tai chi or forest bathing (a fancy term for walking in nature)! The more you do of these in your luteal cycle, the better you'll likely feel and the more you do of them all month long, the less likely you'll be to feel low in your luteal phase, because hopefully, the stress reduction has supported a healthy ovulation! My second suggestion is to eat more fat. Yep, I really said that. And when I say fats, I mean healthy fats, like olive oil, avocados, and nut butter. Our hormones are made of fat and protein, specifically cholesterol and a protein called STAR protein. If we're not consuming adequate fat, we won't be developing healthy follicles leading to low levels of progesterone or a lack of ovulation entirely. Additionally, eating enough fat keeps blood sugar levels stable, and we know that imbalanced blood sugar is a major stressor to the body, which of course can lead to delayed or missing ovulation and resulting PMS. When we're thinking about serving sizes of healthy fats, we want to be eating around two golf ball sized servings of fat with every single meal. So that might look like two tablespoons of nut butter, or maybe a third of a large avocado for example. So that's it. Those are two fairly easy and pleasant actions to get started with – try eating more fat and try out some gentle exercises like yoga, breathing or slow movement, ideally at least one of these once a day if possible. Now of course, if you have hypothyroidism or you suspect you do, then these exercises aren't going to be enough to recover your progesterone levels and you'll need to get that addressed. And additionally, if you have gut health issues like SIBO, gut dysbiosis, candida, etc. these are going to be a significant source of inflammation in the body and will be a chronic stressor, which could be having a real effect on your hormones. In fact, gut health issues are a leading cause of hormonal imbalances; the healthier your gut, the better your hormones will be – and the better your endo symptoms will be! Gut health problems will also very much be behind nutrient deficiencies as well, if you have them that is, as they'll often affect nutrient absorption. And the toxin known as LPS, which comes from gram-negative bacteria and escape through a leaky gut wall, have also been shown to contribute to the development of autoimmune hypothyroidism. LPS levels are very high in SIBO, so healing that will help to prevent the development of hypothyroidism or will improve your symptoms if you already have it. Now of course, gut healing is a whole other topic and can often take some time to work on, so I'm not going to dive into that here. What I will say is I have plenty of episodes on leaky gut, SIBO and gut healing in general, and I'm also running a free gut healing challenge at the moment, called the Endo Belly Challenge, so you can sign up to that if you'd like to begin working on this area of healing. And finally, the standard protocols I always go on about such as eating a nutrient dense anti-inflammatory diet and balancing your blood sugar will have a significantly positive impact on ovulation and progesterone production, so generally trying to keep those in mind is going to help here too. In the future, I'll do another spotlight episode on progesterone and how to boost that but start here and see how you do for a few cycles and then if you're not experiencing much of a response, begin to investigate some of the other issues I raised today like PMDD, hypothyroidism and SIBO. Additionally, listen out for the final episode in this series to see if that could help you too! Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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What You Need to Know About SIBO with Endo 101

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2021 50:16

For the next few weeks I'm experimenting with something new - two episodes a week! I'll be releasing my usual podcast episode and a live Q&A recording, so anyone who doesn't follow me on Instagram can tune in there. I want to see how you guys like this format and then if it's something that is working well, we'll keep to two a week for the most part. As a result of this new change, this week's first episode is a recording of my SIBO live Q&A. Small intestine bacterial overgrowth in our community is a big, big deal. Current research has shown that possibly 80% of us with endo have SIBO, and having SIBO may even be a risk factor for developing endo in the first place... BUT having endo can also cause SIBO so it's a real chicken or the egg scenario. In this Q&A I break down: The stats behind SIBO and IBS with endo The treatments for SIBO: antimicrobials, antibiotics or the elemental diet. Why you can't just treat it with one round of over the counter herbs (there are specific time frames and quantities!). Root causes of SIBO and prevention of relapse. The current problems with trying to access a diagnosis and treatment though the NHS. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

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How the Brain Increases Endo Pain and How Pelvic Pain Becomes Chronic with Christie Uipi of Curable

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 23, 2021 66:55

Okay, this is a bold statement but… this is my most favourite This EndoLife episode ever. You all know I've been fascinated with the world of chronic pain science for a long time now. In fact, I did an episode on lowering pain signals through calming the brain and nervous system back in 2019 but I've been on a continuously evolving research journey since. And this research has led me to Curable, an app for chronic pain, that works by helping to reprogram the brain and nervous system so we can unlearn pain pathways and reduce chronic pain flare ups. I absolutely love Curable, and use it with my clients to help them to address the ways in which trauma, stress and a heightened nervous system could be contributing to their pain levels. Often I find it's the missing piece of the puzzle in someone's endo healing journey. So I am so excited to introduce you to this week's guest, social worker and psychotherapist Christie Uipi. Christie is on the Scientific Advisory Team at Curable, and is specialised in chronic pain, depression and anxiety. After enduring years of chronic pain herself, Christie went on to not only cure her chronic pain but also to specialise in treating it! In today's episode, we discuss: Christie's personal story with chronic pain. How all pain is made in the brain and how that differs from being told endo pain is just “all in our heads”. How pain evolves to become chronic and how that changes the brain and nervous system. What factors influence chronic pain for better or worse. How to identify if pain is from tissue damage vs. an upregulated nervous system. How an upregulated nervous system can directly influence endometriosis pain. Exercises to begin reprogramming the brain to lower pain signals. I really hope this episode is useful to you and perhaps it will be the missing link you've been looking for in your own healing journey. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to my free Endo Belly Challenge here. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Endo Belly Challenge Episode 73 (pain signals, etc.) Curable Christie's website This Might Hurt film

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How to Work Out Safely with Endo for Better Pelvic Floor Health with Dr. Bri Grogan

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2021 67:58

This week's episode is a good one! Today I am talking to Dr. Brianne Grogan. Dr. Bri is a pelvic floor physiotherapist who helps people to recover from pelvic floor dysfunction, pelvic pain, bladder and bowel dysfunction and pelvic floor injuries through her online programmes and free resources (like YouTube)! She is the author of Lady Bits: Understand Your Body, Elevate Your Health, and Reclaim Your Spark Naturally, the founder of FemFusion and Vibrant Pelvic Health and is the podcast host of Dr.Bri Talks Lady Bits. I was so excited to have Dr Bri on the show because I get so many questions about how to work out safely with endo - lots of you want to move your bodies, but you're scared of making the pain worse or doing damage! Many of you have also expressed that you have fitness goals and that you're fed up of just doing yoga or stretching exercises, so I really wanted to talk to someone who actually creates workout videos and who could speak to these issues. In this episode we discuss: Which types of workouts are safe for endo, vaginismus and bladder pain and which ones we may need to tweak and tailor. How to exercise safely with endo and pelvic pain conditions - whilst still growing your booty and building abs if that's what you want to do! The correct form to support pelvic health with endo. The benefits of movement for people with chronic pelvic pain conditions. How and when to adapt our exercise routine if we're having a bad day pain wise. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes "Overcome Pelvic Pain for Women" - a fully guided holistic programme that includes stretches, deep relaxation poses, nutrition guidance, trigger point release, mindset work, and more. Get a 7-day free trial: https://www.vibrantpelvichealth.com/free-female-pelvic-pain-7-day-program Dr Bri's YouTube playlists, all in one place: bit.ly/FemPlaylists 20 minute core workout for a tight pelvic floor: https://youtu.be/DleC6Hn0_KU Exercises and Stretches for Endometriosis | Gentle Pain Relief: https://youtu.be/Y7ZRyBkSLCs Period Relief Yoga Stretches: https://youtu.be/bZgBw6mo60c @femfusionfitness on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube Booty workout example discussed in episode Ab workout example discussed in episode Pelvic floor release

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Endo and PMS: The Key to Reducing Mood Swings, Anxiety and Low Moods in Your Luteal Phase

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 9, 2021 22:29

Okay so a while ago I ran a poll about PMS and endo, and I wanted to know what symptoms you struggle with. Turns out, the majority of you get low moods during your luteal phase. In fact, out of the hundreds of you who entered the poll, 93% of you said you struggle with low moods and mood swings during your luteal phase. So today's episode is the first in a two part series. Today I'm going to take you through one of the key causes of PMS mood swings and I'm going to provide you with my go-to strategy for starting to tackle it, and then in the second episode, I'll be taking you through the secondary causes and strategies. So number one, where we're starting, is to balance your blood sugar, and truly, this is one of the most important things you can do if you want to improve your moods during this time, lower inflammation and balance your hormones. This is really key and this is why I'm starting here. If you've got your blood sugar sorted, then clearly this isn't your main cause and the next two causes in the future episode will be more relevant, and they are low progesterone and low neurostransmitter levels. But we're starting with blood sugar because this is foundational to hormone health and plays a really big role in PMS, and could be the reason why you have low progesterone anyway! So let's look at what blood sugar has to do with moods specifically. Blood sugar is the measurement of glucose in our blood. Glucose comes from complex carbohydrates like fruit, vegetables, beans, whole grains, etc. and it is our body's and brain's primary fuel. For us to feel energised and have stable energy levels all day long, we need to have a steady drip of glucose filtering into our blood. When we're eating a diet that consists of complex carbohydrates, that also includes healthy fats, proteins and lots of fibre, this ensures good blood sugar levels. But glucose also comes from refined carbohydrates, such as sugars like honey, maple syrup and standard white sugar, and baked processed products like bread, cake and pizza. These foods contain a lot of carbohydrate and little fibre, they are made of simple carbohydrates, meaning that they break down very, very quickly in the gut. Complex carbohydrates are called complex carbohydrates because their chemical structure is made of long chains of glucose linked together, which takes the body longer to break down. In contrast, simple carbs are made up of very short chains of glucose that are easy for the body to break down. This creates a huge surge of glucose that's pumped quickly into your blood stream. What then happens is that your body panics. It's a stressor to the body to have this much glucose in the blood at any one time, so it releases a hormone called insulin. Insulin usually delivers glucose to our cells for fuel, but when we have too much glucose, it's released in really high amounts and pushes it into the liver and fat cells for storage. This equally happens quickly, in fact, a little too quickly and the insulin accidentally takes too much glucose out of the blood in its rush to clean things up, and our blood sugar levels plummet. This leaves us hungry soon afterwards, and we end up on a blood sugar rollercoaster, needing more refined carbs and sugar to fuel us and get our blood sugar levels back up to a healthy level. Of course, eating more sugar or processed carbs won't take us to healthy levels, but will spike our blood sugar levels once more – so we'll temporarily feel good, only to crash again, so the cycle continues. The result is that we spend our days going through highs and lows, and this blood sugar rollercoaster feels like: · Hanger · Irritability · Anger · Moodiness · Tearfulness · Anxiety · Shakiness · Feeling sleepy after meals · Having mid-morning and mid-afternoon energy slumps · Cravings for caffeine, sugar or refined carbohydrates · Trouble falling asleep, waking up in the night or struggling to wake in the morning · Feeling thirsty a lot You don't have to have all of these symptoms, but if you have a few of them, it's likely your blood sugar levels need improving. So what's this got to do with PMS? Well, in the first half of our cycle, from menstruation to ovulation, as oestrogen rises, we're actually more insulin sensitive because oestrogen actually boosts the effectiveness of insulin. This means we respond well to insulin so we're getting in glucose and making energy effectively, we're satisfied more easily and we feel satiated for longer. Basically, we're more responsive to insulin and that in turns helps us to have balanced blood sugar levels and stops us from craving all the sugar. But in contrast, in the second half of our cycle, when progesterone rises, we actually become less insulin sensitive because progesterone can dampen the effectiveness of insulin. That means the same meal you ate the week before, may no longer satisfy you because your body is not taking in the glucose from insulin in the same way. It also means, as a result, you may be more susceptible to blood sugar highs and lows and you might end up eating more refined carbs, sugar, etc. because you still feel hungry or less energised, so your body is telling you to eat foods with a quick energy fix. This is likely why 84% of you say you get cravings during this time! This of course can create those blood sugar crashes that leave you feeling anxious, tearful, irritable, or moody. This is one of the key reasons we can feel low during the luteal phase, which is why we start here. In the follow up episode I'm going to take you through the other causes, but by working on your blood sugar levels, you'll actually be preventing the other causes from happening in the first place in many cases, so this is the foundation we really want to have in place. Once this is in place, we can clearly and accurately see whether there's any other issues left over affecting your moods in this part of your cycle. So there are a few key strategies for balancing blood sugar, but let's start with the main strategy to get you going. Ideally, we want to practice this all month long because it's going to lower inflammation and regulate your hormones so your PMS will be better and your pain will be better too, but at the minimum, it will be helpful to bring this strategy in from ovulation onwards until your period so we can manage those blood sugar levels. So, the strategy is to eat healthy fats, fibre, complex carbohydrates, and protein with every single meal. And so this looks like: · 50% of your plate (or half your plate) should be covered with low starchy veggies. This is where your complex carbs and fibre will come from. This is important because the carbs give you energy and the fibre slows down the release of glucose, because it takes longer to digest foods with fibre. So think asparagus, broccoli, kale, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber, aubergine, cauliflower, etc. · 25% of your plate should be protein (or a quarter of your plate). And that should be equal to the size and thickness of your palm. We need about 20g of protein per meal on average, so that's not 20g of beans or chicken, but how much protein is actually in the food itself. Don't worry, you don't need to be weighing things up, just start with the ratios first, the portion sizes. If you're still getting hungry after meals, check how much protein you're actually eating and up it if need be. For meat, it works out at about 3-4 oz of animal protein. If you're eating beans or a protein rich grain like quinoa or brown rice, you're probably going to need to up your levels with say a dressing made of nut butter, or an egg, or maybe a tablespoon or two of seeds. Also, remember that beans and grains also count as complex carbs, so keep that in mind for when I get to the complex carbs bit! · Next up, we want the final 25% to be split between more starchier complex carbs and healthy fats. For healthy fats, we're looking at a two golf ball sized serving, or two heaped tablespoons and that could be equal to half an avocado, two tablespoons of olive oil, two tablespoons of nut butter, etc. Fat helps to slow the blood sugar release down, and is actually essential for hormone production by the way! The starchier carbs would consist of a small handful of something like root veggies such as sweet potato or parsnips, or maybe some quinoa or beans if you haven't had them already as your protein source. And so this is where it has to be very individual as if you already have beans or grains, you might not need that extra starch boost and instead, you could just add some extra veggies so your plate is around 60-65% veg. But if you have say beans on your plate for your protein source and you tend to burn a lot of energy during the day because you're a very active person, you might need a little sweet potato too or some grains. And if you've got meat as your protein source and you're very active, that serving of starchier carbs might need to be a bit bigger than someone who isn't very active. It has to be tailored to you and what your body needs. For example, my blood sugar cannot tolerate beans and grains in the same meal, I crash and burn hard! But I have a job where for the most part, other than using a standing desk a few times throughout the day and my usual exercise routine, I don't have a physically demanding lifestyle. But if you're say a nurse in a busy hospital, a dance teacher or an athlete, you'll probably feel like you do better with that extra fuel. In fact, one of my clients who's a dance teacher always needs some kind of grain with her meals or her blood sugar would get too low, because she was always burning it off! Another thing I want to mention here is how our blood sugar responds to grains is very personal too. Some people find that grains give them a steady release of fuel, others find they spike their blood sugar levels quickly and then crash. That's me! Especially after oatmeal, I can have a big, filling bowl but find myself starving and shaky an hour later, if not sooner. So if you do respond like that to grains but you want to eat them regularly, you might need to up you fat and protein to really slow down that glucose release. So, this is where we get started. It might sound a little fiddly, but over time, you'll gradually grow accustomed to it and notice when one of these food groups is missing! In the show notes, I've linked to a great diagram of how this looks on a plate, so you can always print that off and have it on your fridge. Now there other steps to balancing your blood sugar, but it can take some time to adjust to this one, so this is where I'd suggest for you to start and then you can revisit my past blood sugar episodes to learn more, or I think I'm probably going to release a standalone workshop on this in the future so you can always sign up to that if you'd like a deep dive and a step by step process. But start here, give it at least one cycle and see how you're doing. Of course, if you're constantly spiking your levels with chocolate and sweets, then balancing your meals won't cancel that out, so just be mindful of that! And I just want to leave you with one last tip, to really get off on the right track, make sure your breakfast is fat and protein rich, don't skip these two! If you're just having oatmeal, you're going to need to add a lot of nut butter, some protein powder or have two eggs on the side to balance out the carb content. Keep that in mind when you start the day and you'll find balancing your blood sugar levels much easier as go through the rest of your day. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes How to Build a Healthy Plate Diagram by Amelia Freer

My SIBO Treatment: A Negative Test, Hydrogen Sulphide or SIFO?

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 3, 2021 102:16

Today's episode is a SIBO update from me… and it's an exciting one! I FINALLY have a negative test - or is it? Yes, nothing in my treatment journey has been straight forward so far and apparently, that's not going to change any time soon! In today's episode, I share: My experience on the second round of the elemental diet and why I LOVED it! My struggles with the low histamine bi-phasic diet and what finally got me on track. My experience on antibiotics for SIBO (rifaximin, metronidazole and neomycin) and the not so great response from my immune system. The symptoms that got better - and the symptoms that got worse, despite a negative test result. The dilemma as to whether my SIBO test results are negative or a hydrogen sulphide flat line. Why I think I may have small intestine fungal overgrowth and what my next steps are with testing and treating. My prevention of relapse strategies including supplements, hypnotherapy, vagus nerve healing and more! This is a LONG episode but there was so much to catch up on, and I just hope that by being really honest about my journey, you'll be able to gain some insight and perspective on your own healing path with SIBO and endometriosis. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Bladder test Organic acids test GI Map

live thrive treatments negative breakfast cbd organic endometriosis sibo aimed endo bloating soothe it starts sifo beyou gi map hydrogen sulphide pod farm

Neisha's Endo Healing Story: Recovering from Chronic Allergies, Coming Off the Pill and Eating for Endo

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 26, 2021 35:21

As some of you know, I've been a bit sick recently with suspected shingles! As a result, I am just in too much pain to sit and record an episode, so today I am sharing another healing story. This time, I'm chatting to Neisha. I wanted to share Neisha's experience because I think her story will resonate with many of you because she just discusses so many relevant topics. Neisha started my course Live and Thrive with Endo on the pill (though she didn't want to be on it and didn't feel well with it), severe period pain, low moods, fatigue and severe allergy reactions. Working through the course she now feels well pretty much all of the time, her allergies and hay fever have disappeared, she has tonnes of energy, she has transitioned off the pill and she has better moods and feels empowered about managing endo. Before we dive in I wanted to just let you know that this chat with Neisha was originally recorded as a testimonial for the course, but the course is closed now and won't be open again until next year - so this episode I am simply sharing just because I hope it will be helpful. Secondly, I also wanted to let you know that Neisha and I talk about an elimination diet in this episode, so skip this episode if you think that might be triggering for you. But if not, I wanted to give some context - both in my course and with one to one clients, I first start lowering inflammation by adding foods in for the first few weeks, so lots of colourful veggies and fruit, nuts and seeds, healthy fats, etc. - all tailored to each person and their needs. Then, as we move to gut healing, course students or one on one clients have the option to do a 4 week elimination phase, where they remove the key or common inflammatory triggers such as dairy, gluten, sugar, alcohol, caffeine and soy. There are two versions, a simplified version and the full version, or people can just tailor the elimination phase to what they think is best for them. This elimination phase allows for the immune system to calm down, for inflammation to lower and for the gut to begin healing. After 4 weeks, they reintroduce each food removed one by one, for a period of days, to see whether the body reacts. This is the best way to test for intolerances and food sensitivities, and is considered as such based on research. It's not a trendy ‘cleanse' or diet, this is based on research, evidence and is a standard protocol in my training with Dr Jessica Drummond and Nicole Jardim, as well as Dr Alison Siebecker, who refers to this as a first line therapy. You don't have to do this elimination phase if you don't want to, but it's an option and an option that Neisha felt was right for her, but of course, everyone is different! So I just wanted to make that clear before you hear this interview and worry that an elimination phase is a must for healing. Here are some of the key topics we covered in our chat: How Neisha didn't realise that she was suffering with low immunity, blood sugar imbalances and histamine intolerance until she lowered her inflammation levels and balanced her blood sugar. This part is really inspiring for anyone living with allergies as Neisha was! Why Neisha wanted to come off the pill, and how she prepared her body with the course to transition off without triggering hormonal chaos and post-pill symptoms. Why Neisha chose to try an elimination diet to lower her inflammation and her advice for anyone worried about the restrictions involved. I really hope this episode is helpful for you and inspires and motivates you on your own healing journey! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. Sign up to the wait list for my course, Live and Thrive with Endo here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk

Miriam's Endo Healing Story: From Sick Leave to Full-Time and Improving Pain, Bloating, Fatigue and Brain Fog

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 12, 2021 27:20

Before I get started I just want to remind you that my course Live and Thrive with Endo is open for enrolment. In this 8-week course, you will transform the way you manage endometriosis and learn the tools and strategies for reducing your symptoms naturally so you can thrive with endo and get your life back. This course is a step-by-step outline of my exact one-to-one coaching programme; a road map for reducing pain, bloating, fatigue and brain fog (not to mention all the other symptoms!). It is the most comprehensive and clear resource I offer, other than working with me directly... And today I just wanted to let you know that I've added my SIBO bonus module to the course and you'll receive this when you sign up before Tuesday midnight BST. Classic signs of SIBO include: Bloating Constipation Abdominal pain and cramping Diarrhea Inflammation Nause Vomiting And current research is indicating SIBO prevalence in the endo community at 80%, so it's really worth investigating. This module will take you through understanding your test results, the different types of SIBO and the different types of treatment so you can begin to understand the road map to healing with SIBO. What you'll get: How to interpret your test results tutorial SIBO types and treatment tutorial, with accompanying handout Resource guide for SIBO healing The link to enrol and to learn all about the course and to even watch a course video which shows you the modules, is in the shownotes. I would love to see some of you there! Okay so today's episode is another inspiring transformation story and this time I'm talking to Miriam. And the reason why I wanted to share Miriam's story is because it just moved me so much, she experienced such an incredible change in quality of life that I really had to share it. As someone who personally faced a lot of challenges at work in the past with endo, the fact that Miriam was essentially able to save her career and job really resonated with me. I also love this story because Miriam was literally able to improve her pain, her fatigue, her brain fog and her bloating - all key symptoms many of us with endo suffer with. So, here in her own words is Miriam's story... Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. My course, Live and Thrive with Endo is opening for enrolment again soon. Join the waiting list now to access early bird pricing and special bonuses. Sign up here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Live and Thrive with Endo course

Rachael's Endo and PMDD Healing Story

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 5, 2021 30:30

Today we're doing something a little different. For the past few weeks I've been recording testimonial videos with people who have taken my course, and I really wanted to share some of these stories because they're just so incredible. I know a lot of you expressed an interest in hearing more positive and uplifting real life experiences with managing endo, and as I personally found these stories so inspiring, I thought you guys might as well. So I'm starting with Rachael's story and I'll leave Rachael to share her experience in the podcast, but to give you an overview, Rachael was suffering with PMDD, chronic fatigue that was affecting her ability to work and painful (endo) periods which required her to use opioids to get through. She'd recently had excision surgery but was still suffering with an array of symptoms and was feeling desperate and didn't know what else to try. Once Rachael started the course, through making nutritional and lifestyle changes, Rachael was able to: Stop using opioids to get her through her period and instead now just uses magnesium baths, ginger tea, paracetamol and BeYou patches. Has gone from having to sleep for two hours every day during work (which was agreed through occupational health) due to severe fatigue to having sustained energy and has only needed these allocated sleep hours twice in the past 8 weeks! Stopped suffering with PMDD symptoms and works with her cycle to keep her endo and PMDD symptoms at the minimum. Her transformation is really remarkable and so I hope that if you also struggle with any of these, Rachael's story will shine a light at the end of the tunnel for you... Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. My course, Live and Thrive with Endo is opening for enrolment again soon. Join the waiting list now to access early bird pricing and special bonuses. Sign up here. This episode is sponsored my free workshop Creating a Roadmap for Endo Healing in 2021: Overcome Overwhelm, Identify Your Core Endo Challenges, Learn the 8 Key Pillars of Healing and Set Goals and Next Steps So You Can Begin Managing Endometriosis with Confidence and Clarity and take action after the workshop. Sign up here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Creating a Roadmap for Endo Healing in 2021 Live and Thrive with Endo course

Foundational Steps to Healing HPA Axis Dysfunction with Endo

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 28, 2021 55:23

So, now you've learnt all about the link between HPA axis dysfunction and endometriosis, in today's episode I want to provide you with some of the core foundational strategies for healing HPA axis dysfunction. Before I dive in, I do want to state that healing HPA axis dysfunction can take some time, especially if you're prone to living in the flight or fight response – so what I mean is, you're default mode is feeling stressed, or anxious, or you spend a lot of time rushing around or over-committing yourself to endless to-do lists. If this sounds like you, don't worry, that's me too, and it's many of my clients and for those of us who are like that, it can take some deep unlearning of these patterns before we can really get to see significant improvement. We can certainly feel better, and many do, but I think to really thrive and not keep returning to this cycle of low cortisol burnout, we need to change some of these habits. So, for example, one of my clients loves to work and runs her own business like I do, so we make traction with her HPA axis dysfunction, but then if she goes through a busy period, her default mode is to put her sleep, and the strategies I'm about to share, on the backburner, because that's always been her strategy. To push through, to keep going, to reach for perfection. And I totally get it, because I'm exactly the same too. So for her, we've seen improvement with her HPA axis, most definitely. She used to not be able to get out of bed! But we still have a long way to go because it's a few steps forward and a few steps back. And the same goes for me. I could feel a noticeable difference, I could feel my energy returning and my sleep schedule becoming normalised, and then I released the course, and it was incredible, but it was one of the hardest things I've ever done. Now moving forward, it won't be like that, because I've now made the course, but beforehand, I was building a course from scratch and learning how to market a course – and it was more work than I think I've ever done in my life. So my cortisol levels really depleted again, and I'd love to see where they were after the course, but with the SIBO treatment I just couldn't afford more testing on top. I feel like they're getting back on track, but until my SIBO is fully resolved (and if there are any other infections, having them addressed too) I don't think my cortisol will be at optimum levels. I think it will be good, much better than it's been for most of my life, but the chronic SIBO and maybe an underlying mould infection will be keeping my body in a state of flight or fight, and I'll explain about that a bit later in the episode. The length of time it can take to recover from HPA axis really varies. I've seen studies showing it taking weeks to recover, whereas someone who is completely burnt out, like chronically fatigued, can't get out of bed most days, that can take much longer. I did have one client like that, and I consulted with Dr Jessica Drummond, and she said to me, you know, this could take two years to heal, and we're about a year in and she's waking up early and working, but she's not fully recovered yet. So, it's a journey and just know that your healing will really depend on what's happening in your life, in your body and the strategies you choose to implement, which will all become clear in time. So please don't give up if it doesn't feel like it's working, because honestly, what I'm about to share we should ALL be doing every day, for optimum health and a healthy stress response and circadian rhythm, so it will be benefitting you, but it may take time for your cortisol levels to fully recover. What I suggest is, if you can afford to do so, take a CAR test, and again, I've linked to some options in the show notes, and then take another test after three months or sooner, if you're feeling a difference, and then at another three months after that, just to see what your body is doing. You can usually tell, because you'll notice changes in your energy, sleep, when you wake up, etc. but it can be helpful and just interesting really, to see what your levels do in response. So, what I'm going to share today is four of the key strategies, there are a couple more and there are some additional strategies and tools which can help, but to avoid overwhelm, I'm just going to provide you with some of the initial key steps. These may be enough on their own to heal your HPA axis or you may need to do some further work later on down the line, but these are some of the key foundations to get started. 1. Number one is a nice and simple strategy, get sunlight to your eyes for 30 minutes as soon as possible in the mornings. Your body relies on patterns, to set its internal rhythms and it especially relies on light and dark. Your circadian rhythm is essentially controlled by day light, so getting light exposure for 30 minutes in the mornings, is going to tell your brain what time of day it is. The light changes throughout the day, and your cortisol levels will respond to that, so getting that morning light is going to really help to raise your cortisol levels to healthy levels. Over time, this continued pattern will basically reset your internal body clock, and your circadian rhythm will be able to set its pattern to this once more and your cortisol levels will start rising when they should. You can get this light in a number of ways. It could be that you eat your breakfast in your garden in the mornings, if you have one, it could be that you sit by an open window to get ready, or you could go for a walk or commute to work ensuring you get lots of light along the way. As long as you are getting unfiltered light, so not through sunglasses or through a window, you're all good. And if you can't manage 30 minutes, just do as much as you can. 2. Number two is probably the most important one, but I appreciate is often the hardest one. Get at least 7.5 hours sleep, minimum, each night, whilst also going to bed and waking at the same time every day. I know this sounds intense but let me explain why it's important. Your body needs regular sleep and wake times in order to know when to raise and when to lower cortisol. If you're going to bed at 1am, of course you'll struggle to go to bed at 9pm, because your cortisol isn't low enough yet as it's been programmed to lower around 1am, and if you have a flipped curve, as we discussed last week, where cortisol is rising at night, this training of a new sleep routine will be hard but will be essential to getting those cortisol levels down. It's the same if your cortisol levels are low in the morning. If you're going to bed late, then the body won't be elevating your cortisol levels to their waking levels until about 8 hours later. Yes, they start rising before that, but not enough to wake you up, so if your alarm is going off and you've only had five or six hours sleep, your cortisol levels just won't be high enough. So, if you have HPA axis dysfunction and your cortisol levels are low in the morning or generally low all the time, you can see why not having enough sleep or irregular waking hours is not going to help. The body needs to know when it should be elevating cortisol, and to do that, it needs a reliable pattern. We're essentially resetting your alarm clock here. On top of that, the reason why our HPA axis is dysregulated is because of stress, and that comes from both physical and emotional stress, and a huge physical stressor on the body is lack of sleep. So, if we want to allow our HPA axis to regulate, we do need to invest in improving our sleep quality. Now this is of course easier said than done, so that sleep routine piece is going to take practice in order for your body to get into a rhythm, and in most cases, it's going to take sleep hygiene practices. These are essentially strategies which help your cortisol levels to lower and melatonin levels to rise at night and improve your sleep quality. That's a whole other podcast, but I have linked to an Instagram post I did on sleep hygiene strategies and of course, if you want to dive deeper, I cover both HPA axis and sleep optimisation in my course, which you can get on the waiting list for now – I've put the link in my show notes. If you have insomnia, I understand and I go through cycles of this, which truthfully, I think this is down to a flipped cortisol curve because I so often default to living in a state of flight or fight, and I also truly think a large majority of insomnia cases are down to cortisol dysregulation. So, if this is you, rather than getting stressed about the sleep piece, perhaps look at working on all of the other areas, because they will start to regulate your cortisol levels, which over time, should help you to sleep. And I would start teaching your body a pattern of the same sleep times and wake times, if possible, even if you're not getting to sleep, even if you're not trying to – just sitting in bed and practice calming, restorative techniques to help lower cortisol at night. Don't make the focus on getting to sleep, but rather on just lowering cortisol. So, a dark room, maybe candles or very soft lighting, breathing exercises, massage, listening to sleep stories (which you can now find on loads of meditation apps), just anything gentle or soothing and I hate to say this, but I would avoid watching TV, being on your phone or your laptop or computer like the plague. I know I'm often very careful with my language and say to do what works for you and to tailor each strategy, but there's really no way around this one. Blue light from your TV, phone and laptop will elevate cortisol and suppress melatonin and not only that, but they're also designed to engage, stimulate, and activate your brain, they're not designed to help you wind down. If you need your phone for the meditation or sleep story, put it on night mode, ideally get an app that creates a red screen and wear blue light blocking glasses, and turn the brightness right down. Now finally, I know you're probably thinking – what about the weekend? Well, research has shown that we need this consistent pattern all day, every day, but I know that's not realistic, so I would just try to do your best. If you're out late at a birthday, it's a one off and I wouldn't stress about it. If you're at home and you just tend to stay up later at the weekends, see if you can curb that slightly and bring it closer to your normal bedtime. So, if you go to bed at 10pm normally, can you make it 11pm at the weekends? That kind of thing! 3. Number three is to eat at regular times and to balance your blood sugar. Just like with light exposure and sleep, eating at similar times can help give your body reliable patterns to set its internal rhythm to. So, if you can eat at roughly the same time each day, that'll help. This pattern is less important that the first two, so don't worry if sometimes you're travelling or something and can't eat at the same time, but roughly and as often as you can will be helpful. But what is really important is blood sugar regulation. You know I've talked about this so many times by now, but high and low blood sugar are stressors to the body and activate the HPA axis stress response. And even if your cortisol levels are low, it's still going to activate, it's just going to be pumping out adrenaline in cortisol's place and so the stress response will still be occurring, just of course, not as it should. And as long as we keep repeatedly stimulating that stress response, the HPA axis is going to stay dysregulated. I've shared how to regulate your blood sugar in previous episodes, so I'll link to that for full details, but in short, we need to include protein, fat, fibre, and complex carbohydrates with every meal. And the general ratios for good blood sugar balance are 50% of your plate consisting of low starchy veg which provides you with fibre and complex carbohydrates, 25% of your plate consisting of protein, and the final 25% being split into healthy fats and starchier, yet complex carbohydrates. For fat, we want at least two golf ball size servings, so that could look like say about a third of a large avocado or two tablespoons of nuts and seeds, and with starchier complex carbs, it could be sweet potatoes or quinoa, or beans if you haven't got them as your protein source, and the serving size you have really depends on your energy needs. Of course, if you look at it in relation to the other ratios, it's not a huge serving, about a handful, but you might need to increase it if you have a very physical job or you're very active. Be guided by how you feel! If you find you're getting hungry soon after meals, first try increasing your fat and protein sizes. The other key strategies for balancing your blood sugar are to not allow yourself to get starving or super hungry before you eat – if you're shaky or hangry, you've waited too long, and of course, try to keep refined carbohydrates, and added sugar to special occasions rather than everyday foods. If you want to understand this in more depth, have a listen to the episode I've linked to or a read of the articles I've added to the show notes, and my course also has an entire module on blood sugar balancing and its impact on endo and our hormones, and how to balance it. I know the idea of reducing certain foods can be triggering, so if this feels that way, then focus more on the balancing of your plate and all the wonderful foods you can add in, and on eating regularly. Of course, if you have a history of an eating disorder it is always best to work with a nutritionist, coach or dietician who can guide you, as well as a mental health practitioner. 4. Number four is stress management. I know I said sleep was the most important, but actually it probably ties with stress management! Now in order for our HPA axis to recover and get back to some kind of normal regulation, we need to stop chronically activating it. This means we need to learn how to move regularly out of flight or fight and manage our stress response, plus look at any areas that may be a source of stress that we can address. Of course, there's always going to be some element of stress in our lives, but we can change how we cope with and respond to stress, and even how we perceive stress. So firstly, let's begin with the simpler changes. We want to practice moving out of the stress response, called the flight or fight response, and move into the rest and digest response on a regular basis. This is particularly important if your default mode is anxiety, stress, worry, fear, etc. because for you guys, most of the time you're going to be in flight or fight, and that's not good for the body. You know the impact that chronic stress can have on the HPA axis and on pain, from our last episode on this, but being in a constant state of flight or fight has far reaching effects on our health. Personally, I've found that I have a harder time trying to get my mind to calm down, but utilising stress relief methods for my body, practices that actually put us in rest or digest, then calms down my mind or at least takes me out of flight or fight, even if my mind is still ruminating. So, some strategies which calm down the stress response and put us into rest or digest include: Massage, any kind, but I really like abdominal massage like the I Love You massage for IBS issues or Arvigo massage for IBS, period pain and endo in general. These are really great to do before bed because they put your body into rest and digest but also support digestion overnight. I've linked to a free I Love You massage on YouTube, and you can learn Arvigo massage in one Zoom session with a therapist and then practice on yourself. I've put the links to both in the show notes. Tapping, also known as Emotional Freedom Technique is an exercise where we tap on the body – on the side of the hands, the eyebrows, side of the eyes, under the eyes, below the nose, on the chin, on the collarbone, under the arms and on the head, whilst repeating certain statements. The practice combines acupressure, originating from Chinese medicine, with more Western psychology practices. It's now gathering a wealth of data behind it and has been shown to take us out of flight or fight and calm the stress response. It's also been shown to reduce anxiety, depression, and pain, and is even helpful with managing SIBO! You can learn tapping with a practitioner, or you can use an app or watch free YouTube videos online. I've linked to an app I like in the show notes. Yoga Mindfulness meditation Walking in nature Mild to moderate exercise (such as Pilates, brisk walking, Zumba, etc.) Being in community All of these have been shown to reduce stress levels, taking us out of flight or fight and into the rest and digest state. And what I also love about these is that they're a way to process trauma or emotion out of the body. Often if we don't want to think about something that is distressing to us, or we don't feel like we're safe to express it in the moment, for whatever reason, and we store that tension in our bodies, which can lead to hypersensitive nerves firing off danger signals, triggering pain because the brain thinks we're unsafe. But if we're able to physically work off some of that emotion, the physically damaging effects of that stress response can be reduced. I've found it really helpful for me, being a health coach, it's of course sometimes a stressful job because I am looking after people's health and that in itself is a lot of pressure, but of course hearing about someone's pain or distress is emotional, so afterwards I can sometimes feel worried or anxious. So often I'll come off a call and I won't really know how to think my way out of what I'm feeling, I struggle to soothe myself with just my thoughts, so I tap, or I get on my rebounder for five minutes, or I do some mindful breathing, or I do some of my weightlifting exercises, which I do at intervals throughout the day. And I sort of imagine myself shedding the stress as I do it. Not all the time, but especially when I'm jogging on my rebounder, I sort of see myself running the stress off, and it really, truly helps. It's become a wonderful way for me to process my feelings. The next area to look at with stress is whether you have any past trauma that needs working through. I've been talking a lot over on Instagram about the ways in which childhood trauma, known as Adverse Childhood Events or experiences dramatically increases our chances of developing chronic pain, autoimmune diseases and chronic conditions, and the pathway for most of these developments is through HPA axis dysregulation, which has occurred due to chronic stress. If we haven't worked through these past traumas, they can be subconsciously keeping us feeling unsafe, causing our bodies to be in a near constant state of flight or fight or easily stressed and activated. This could be a whole topic in itself, so my recommendation to get started with this healing process is to read my Instagram post first, and then I've linked to a couple of books, podcasts, and therapy resources to help you work through the trauma in the show notes. We also need to look at how pain is triggering your stress response. Of course, the more stressed we are about our pain, the more unsafe our brain feels, and then the worse the pain gets, because it is our brain which creates pain and controls the intensity – and if the brain feels like there is a reason to make pain (so if the brain feels at threat or in danger in any way at all, and this could be as small as a stressful email) it will increase the pain levels. So, changing the way we experience pain and perceive it is also important and of course, this and the above step about trauma can take some time. Don't worry about that, don't stress about having to get it all done. Put the easy practices in place, like maybe getting sunlight, trying tapping before bed, eating at the same times, balancing your blood sugar, etc. Put the practical bits in place and implement them over a time frame that feels manageable, and then when you feel strong enough to work on your pain perception or trauma, begin then. By this point, I would hope that you would have better cortisol levels and a more robust and healthy stress response, so you can actually better handle the work involved in these steps. So anyway, that was a side note on how to approach this, but back to actually changing the way we perceive our pain… Again, this is a podcast in itself but there are a few therapies and approaches to help you to do this. You could try: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for pain Curable (which is a brain retraining app for chronic pain and I highly recommend it) Mindfulness Based Pain Relief And there are a couple of great books I recommend too, so I'm going to link to those in the show notes. Finally, we also want to look at physical stressors, but this where it can get a little complex. If you're dehydrated, if you're eating an inflammatory diet, if you're over-exercising, sleep deprived, or have SIBO or gut health infections (or any underlying infection for that matter), chronic inflammation or nutrient deficiencies, these will all be stressors on the body and can make it harder to recover from HPA axis dysfunction. Now what I would say is that this is more advanced healing and I feel like for many people with HPA axis dysfunction, they need to have more energy and better cortisol levels to be able to take this stuff on, otherwise it can just feel too overwhelming, so I'm not going to dive into this today. Instead, what I will say is to focus on a nutrient dense diet rich in anti-inflammatory foods, so your body is well fed, is getting a good amount of nutrients and we aren't fuelling the inflammation fire. You can of course also add one or two supplements to help lower overall inflammation, which we know is generally a problem for most people with endo, being an inflammatory disease, and I talk about my favourite anti-inflammatory supplements in episodes 130 and 131. Also make sure you're drinking enough. The calculation to work out what your body needs at a minimum is to drink half your body weight in fluid ounces. So, you take your weight in pounds, so say someone was 100lbs, then you halve it, so we have 50lbs and then you just replace the pounds with fluid ounces, we're not converting, just swapping. And if you're very active, you'll need more than that, this is just your minimum. I have linked to a water calculator in the show notes, which helps you to work out how much water you need if you're very active or breast feeding, or something like that. You could also add some essential basic supplements too, like a multivitamin and minerals supplement and omega 3 fatty acids, to ensure you're covering the basics. Now of course, if you're not absorbing your food well due to gut health issues, or you're deficient in a nutrient, these may not be enough, but again, I'm just covering the foundations. If in time you feel ready to get some thorough nutrient status tests and gut health tests, or to explore anything else you think may be going on in your body, of course, that will help, but I want to emphasise these foundations first, because they can make such a difference and can give you the strength for the bigger stuff. So, there's the initial four steps. And what I wanted to emphasise, what should be underpinning all of this, is joy and fun. If this is stressing you out, then it won't be helpful. So, we need to tailor the healing in a way that will make you feel pleasant feelings and that allows you to have fun or enjoy yourself, in whatever way that is. So, for example, instead of seeing a 10.30pm bedtime as a curfew, how can you make it feel luxurious? Can you turn your evening routine into a min spa retreat each night with a candle, an abdominal massage and calming music before bed? How can you spend more time with loved ones who you enjoy being around, in a way that feels joyful and nourishing to you? Can you go to restorative exercise classes with friends or have regular catch ups, so you feel supported and connected? Could you do things you enjoy more often, like heading to the cinema or doing fun activities? Are there things you stopped doing that brought you joy, which you can bring back into your life? Could you take a cooking course to learn how to make delicious but healthier desserts, so you can feed your body and taste buds, or could you get some new cookbooks to learn how to eat more fruits and veggies? Or maybe, if you don't like cooking and can afford it, can you try a meal delivery service which offers you not just healthy meals, but more time for you to relax? Basically, whatever it is, make this healing path feel good. If it feels stressful, take a step back and think about how you can make this process more joyful. My course, Live and Thrive with Endo is opening for enrolment again soon. Join the waiting list now to access early bird pricing and special bonuses. Sign up here. This episode is sponsored my free workshop Creating a Roadmap for Endo Healing in 2021: Overcome Overwhelm, Identify Your Core Endo Challenges, Learn the 8 Key Pillars of Healing and Set Goals and Next Steps So You Can Begin Managing Endometriosis with Confidence and Clarity and take action after the workshop. Sign up here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Creating a Roadmap for Endo Healing in 2021 Live and Thrive with Endo course CAR tests https://regeneruslabs.com/products/cortisol-awakening-response https://www.letsgetchecked.com/gb/en/home-cortisol-test/ Light https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2699216/ https://www.sleepfoundation.org/circadian-rhythm Blood sugar https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/reduce-fatigue-endometriosis-symptoms-and-oestrogen-dominance https://endometriosis.net/living/diet-sugar Sleep https://www.instagram.com/p/CIBrBCmDMuj/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12941057/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12220314/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10849238/ Massage https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTOkKVlBHzk https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/arvigo-massage-for-endometriosis https://www.arvigotherapy.com/team-members https://selfhacked.com/blog/32-ways-to-stimulate-your-vagus-nerve-and-all-you-need-to-know-about-it/ https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2020.00082/full https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095496418300372 Tapping https://www.thetappingsolution.com https://www.thetappingsolution.com/science-research/ Yoga https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3768222/ https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/yoga-could-slow-the-harmful-effects-of-stress-and-inflammation-2017101912588 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3111147/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15750381/ Walking in nature https://www.natureandforesttherapy.org/about/sciencehttps://www.natureandforesttherapy.org/about/science Exercise https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27956050/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4013452/ Mindfulness https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272735813000731?via%3Dihub Community https://scholar.harvard.edu/marianabockarova/files/tend-and-befriend.pdf Trauma https://www.instagram.com/p/CQJvnf1BYum/ https://kimberlyannjohnson.com/call-of-the-wild/ https://cmbm.org/thetransformation/ SelfHealers SoundBoard podcast Sex Birth Trauma Pain resources This Might Hurt Film Tell Me About Your Pain podcast https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pelvic-Pain-Hurts-Adriaan-Louw/dp/0985718684 The Way Out by Alan Gordon Curable Water https://www.hydrationforhealth.com/en/hydration-tools/hydration-calculator/

London Schools Eco-Network with Dr Jessica Tipton

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 25, 2021 46:41

In this episode, Martin talks to Dr Jessica Tipton about the London Schools Eco-Network (https://twitter.com/ldnschoolseco). Jess was recently awarded the School Changemaker of the Year 2021 at the Sustainable City Awards www.globalactionplan.org.uk/about-us/sustainable-city-awards Jess will be one of the panelists at the Schools Climate Summit on 29th June 2021 in our 'deep dive' into Community: http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/uploads/1/5/7/4/15747734/scs_programme-full-22-6.pdf Jess has a rich and varied background in Russian language and culture, music, civil service and teaching, and is currently Head of Youth Networks at Global Action Plan (https://www.globalactionplan.org.uk/). Jess also convenes the London and South East Schools Eco-Network and was recently made a Fellow of the National Association for Environment Education (http://naee.org.uk/about-naee/naee-fellows/). She previously worked for ten years at the UK Department for Environment (DEFRA) and on the Teach the Future campaign (https://www.teachthefuture.uk) to reform the English education system to reflect the severity of the climate and ecological crises. Jess and Martin talk about how the various eco-networks formed, and the projects that the students from the networks have been involved in. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

community head english future russian network teach schools fellow national association tipton uk department global action plan pod farm

Three Safe Probiotics for the Endo Belly, Endo Related IBS and SIBO

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2021 21:21

Today's episode is all about probiotics which are suitable for SIBO and endo related IBS. Now of course, this is a huge topic and there are so many different probiotics out there, which can often just get confusing and overwhelming, so with this podcast my intention is for it to be succinct and easy to digest, with a smaller array of probiotics to start exploring on your initial steps to gut healing. Unfortunately, I think over the years probiotics have been a little misunderstood, and of course, we're still learning so much about the gut microbiome (which is the good gut bugs found in our large intestine) that this area of research is still developing. But regardless, what often happens is that we're led to believe that we should just take a broad-spectrum probiotic, meaning it has lots of different strains in it – and that we should take this if we have gut health issues, and that will sort the problem out. Unfortunately, that's really not always the case and for our community, I would exercise caution when choosing probiotics. We know that many people with endo have IBS related symptoms, and we now know that the majority of IBS is actually caused by SIBO – which stands for small intestine bacterial overgrowth, a condition where normal gut bacteria grow in the small intestine, rather than the large intestine. The small intestine is designed for the majority of our nutrient absorption, it wasn't intended to house lots of bacteria, so this overgrowth damages the small intestine and our ability to absorb nutrients, but this bacteria also ferments our food, making gases that are harmful for us and cause symptoms like bloating, constipation, diarrhea and abdominal pain. And we also now have recent research showing that up to 80% of endo patients have SIBO, so quite possibly, your IBS symptoms are largely down to SIBO. If you'd like to understand why SIBO occurs so frequently in the endo population, I've linked to some of my podcasts and articles on the subject in the show notes. Unfortunately, when you have SIBO, taking probiotics can often make the situation worse, especially if you also have histamine intolerance, which I've talked about multiple times on the show already, and I've linked to a couple of episodes about this in the show notes, if you'd like to learn more. But if you think about it, if we're adding bacteria to a small intestine full of bacteria already, we're just going to be adding more fuel to the fire. So, when it comes to trying probiotics for SIBO, we have to proceed with caution. Some people with SIBO just can't tolerate probiotics at all at first, so their symptoms tend to get worse, but often, they've tried a couple of probiotics with lots of strains, and that could be the problem. Instead, when it comes to SIBO clients or clients with very sensitive stomachs, we start with specific strains, so a probiotic with literally only one type of bacteria, and then we can build up over time. That way, if a person reacts badly to that probiotic, we know straight away that that particular strain is not well tolerated at this stage in time. So today, what I wanted to do was to offer you three probiotic options, which have been researched for specific IBS symptoms that are often reported by endo patients, and are in most cases, safe for SIBO and are also safe for histamine intolerance, which is very common with endo. If you do have SIBO, I want to state it's best to proceed with extra caution, as everyone's tolerance is different and without knowing exactly what types of bacteria are overgrowing in your small intestine specifically, we can't guarantee that we won't be adding to the load. As always, what works for one person won't necessarily work for another, so it's very important that you tailor to your needs and approach this with an open mind – if these guys don't work for you, it doesn't mean all the other strains won't either. I've only listed three to keep this simple, but there are a couple of others that are safe for SIBO and histamine, not many, but a few, so do some extra research if you find these aren't the right ones for you. I also want to be clear that probiotics aren't a quick fix. If there's an imbalance in the microbiome, SIBO, a parasite, an infection, an allergy, or intolerance, we need to address those because otherwise we're just sort of pouring water into a bucket with a hole in the bottom, so whilst probiotics are part of the healing picture, they're supportive and won't necessarily fix or treat the root cause if it's as extensive as a parasite or SIBO. And finally, please let your GP know when starting with any new supplement regime. 1. Number one is lactobacillus plantarum 299v. Lactobacillus plantarum 299v is great for bloating and general IBS symptoms, so loose stools, pain, cramping, diarrhea, constipation, etc. In one large study of 214 patients, 78.1% who took l.plantarum 299v rated their symptom improvement as good or excellent, in comparison with just 8.1% of those who took a placebo. The study showed that l.plantarum was particularly effective for bloating and abdominal pain. Additionally, two meta-analyses (which are large reviews of all the studies) have proved the effectiveness of lactobacillus strains on IBS symptoms, including diarrhea and loose stools, but generally, they've been shown in multiple studies to be effective for all IBS symptoms. If you're concerned about the reaction of l.plantarum 299v on SIBO, l.plantarum was also included in a multi-strain probiotic used to treat SIBO, which was found to be more effective than one of the commonly used SIBO antibiotics, metronidazole. In my training with world leading SIBO doctors, Dr Allison Siebecker and Dr. Jacobi, they both recommend l.plantarum 299v for symptomatic relief, but of course, naturally say to proceed with caution as they can't guarantee a patient won't react. I also just want to be clear here that if you want to try and treat SIBO with probiotics alone, it's not yet an industry standard, more research needs to be done and you would need to work with a practitioner who could provide you with the exact strains and take you through the treatment. But as it stands right now, antimicrobials, the elemental diet and antibiotics are the gold standard of SIBO treatment and I don't know many practitioners who are attempting to use probiotics alone for SIBO. So if you'd like to try l.plantarum 299v, start low and increase gradually over time – don't rush to full dose, maybe stagger it over a few weeks. In my training with Dr Nirala Jacobi, she recommends taking l.plantarum 299v at a dose of one capsule, twice a day for SIBO related IBS symptoms. I've linked to a few brands in the show notes, and of course, if you don't have SIBO, you can just follow the label dose. Now, some probiotics actually increase histamines in the gut, but l.plantarum 299v should be safe as it's been found to be histamine neutral, so it doesn't raise histamines and actually, some strains of l.plantarum actually reduce histamines. I couldn't find any research on l.plantarum 299v reducing histamine specifically, but it lowers inflammation, supports gut health as we've discussed and at the very least, doesn't add to the histamine load. 2. Number 2 is saccromyces boullardi. This is actually a yeast, rather than a bacteria, but it's not a “bad” yeast – it's not going to cause candida to overgrow. In fact, it actually helps to reduce candida and keep it at healthy levels. But it's also wonderful for aiding with leaky gut healing, and as you guys probably know by now, leaky gut is super common with SIBO, is a strong risk factor for developing autoimmune diseases, causes chronic inflammation and is normally a root cause of histamine intolerance. I've linked to a couple of episodes on leaky gut in the show notes. In my training with Dr Siebecker, she also recommends saccromyces boullardi for abdominal pain and diarhhea, and it's been found in multiple studies to be effective for various types of diarhhea. It also improves immune function, by increasing the production of one of our essential antibodies, called immunoglobulin A . IgA lines the intestines and other surfaces in the body like the nostrils, and is often low in patients with SIBO, and when it's low, we're more vulnerable to bad bacteria, parasites, viruses, etc. because IgA is normally one of our first line of defence against these baddies. It also binds lipopolysaccharides (LPS), which are toxins released from pathogenic (bad) bacteria, gram-negative bacteria and often, the bacteria found in SIBO. LPS has been found in the pelvic cavity of people with endo and has been shown to contribute to the growth of endometriosis. IgA binds LPS and helps to eliminate it from the body, so there's less of it to leak through out gut, and into our blood stream and pelvic cavity. I talk about this in a couple of episodes on leaky gut, so will share in the show notes. Because s.boulardii can improve the immune system and heal leaky gut, it can also have a very positive effect on reducing intestinal and full body inflammation, making it helpful for endo, which we know is an inflammatory disease. The dose actually varies depending on the brand, so either follow the brand instructions or if you have SIBO, you can follow some of the brand and dose recommendations in the show notes, which are from my training with Dr Nirala Jacobi. Again, as always, try with caution and slowly build up to see how you respond, especially if you have SIBO. 3. Number three is lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. This is recommended in my SIBO practitioners course with Dr Allison Siebecker for diarhhea and has been shown to be helpful for various types of diarrhea, from acute watery diarhhea to travellers' diarhhea, and diarhhea from antibiotic use. But it's also used in SIBO treatment by Dr Jacobi because it's been shown in studies to aid with constipation, abdominal discomfort, and leaky gut healing and in general, has been shown in research to be effective for IBS. I will quickly say though, that from my understanding, it appears that the research for constipation is a little inconsistent and needs further investigation and the leaky gut evidence is mainly based on animal studies at present. Whilst more research needs to be done on this area specifically, it's also been found to be helpful with histamine tolerance, as it lowers histamines receptors and allergy receptors in cells, so in the simplest of terms, allergens and histamines can't lock onto cells to cause a reaction, and this calms down inflammation. Generally, the dose from my training with Dr Nirala Jacobi for SIBO is 1 capsule twice a day. If you don't have SIBO, you can just follow the label dose. So that's it! Please be sure to try one probiotic at a time, and really, give it at least a month or so before adding in another. I hope this episode was useful to you, and if you'd like to learn more about gut health with endo and you're interested in accessing some support from me on your journey, you can now sign up to the waiting list for my online course, Live and Thrive with Endo. If you're looking for free resources on gut health, I would start with the articles and episodes I've linked in the show notes. I would love to hear if you try any of these and how you respond. Please feel free to let me know on Instagram! Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. My course, Live and Thrive with Endo is opening for enrolment again soon. Join the waiting list now to access early bird pricing and special bonuses. Sign up here. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis'. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes SIBO The SIBO, Endometriosis and Interstitial Cystitis Connection wth Dr. Allison Siebecker How To Treat SIBO with Dr Allison Siebecker Understanding The Endometriosis Belly, Part 3: SIBO Symptoms How Do You Know When to Test for SIBO? How to Test for SIBO at Home Histamine intolerance Histamine Intolerance 101 Dr. Becky Campbell https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/strategies-for-lowering-histamine-reducing-allergies-endometriosis https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/association-between-endometriosis-allergies Endometriosis, SIBO, Interstitial Cystitis and Allergies: The Histamine Connection L.Plantarum 299v research https://meridian.allenpress.com/jfp/article-abstract/80/10/1682/199965/Degradation-of-Histamine-by-Lactobacillus?redirectedFrom=fulltext https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21381407/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3316997/ https://www.optibacprobiotics.com/uk/professionals/latest-research/general-health/which-probiotic-for-histamine-intolerance https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3419998/ https://journals.lww.com/jcge/Abstract/2017/04000/Probiotics_for_Preventing_and_Treating_Small.4.aspx https://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v14/i17/2650.htm L.Plantarum 299v brands Jarrow Ideal Bowel Support 299V, at one caps twice a day (Dr. Jacobi) Metagenics Ultra Flora Intensive Care, at one caps twice a day (Dr. Jacobi) CAUTION: If looking for your own brands to buy, avoid probiotics containing probiotics, as these may worsen SIBO symptoms. For a list of ingredients to be mindful of when choosing probiotics, see Dr Allison Siebecker's handout here. Leaky Gut https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/endometriosis-leaky-gut https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/-the-endometriosis-belly https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/understanding-the-endometriosis-belly-part-2 https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/root-causes-of-bloating-endometriosis LPS https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/endometriosis-leaky-gut https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4519769/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2327198/ https://www.cell.com/cell-host-microbe/pdf/S1931-3128(16)30161-5.pdf S.Boulardi research https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6375115/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26316791/ https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/immunoglobulin-a-deficiency https://www.optibacprobiotics.com/professionals/latest-research/gut-health/probiotics-best-for-candida https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18584523/ https://academic.oup.com/ecco-jcc/article/11/8/999/3044359 https://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v14/i17/2650.htm S.Boulardi brands and doses Klaire Labs Saccharomyces boulardi, at two caps taken twice a day (Dr. Jacobi) Invivo Bio.Me S. boulardii, at two caps daily Bioceuticals SB Floractiv, at two caps taken twice a day (Dr. Jacobi) CAUTION: If looking for your own brands to buy, avoid probiotics containing probiotics, as these may worsen SIBO symptoms. For a list of ingredients to be mindful of when choosing probiotics, see Dr Allison Siebecker's handout here. L.rhamnosus GG research https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18813028/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21390145/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30040527/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4239510/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22946635/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15756221/ https://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/full/v14/i17/2650.htm L.rhamnosus GG brands and doses Nutrigold L. Rhamnosus GG, label dose (caution: contains brown rice flour) Metagenics, Ultra Flora LGG® 60, at one cap twice a day (Dr. Jacobi) CAUTION: If looking for your own brands to buy, avoid probiotics containing probiotics, as these may worsen SIBO symptoms. For a list of ingredients to be mindful of when choosing probiotics, see Dr Allison Siebecker's handout here.

live home safe thrive breakfast cbd preventing gp generally belly ibs endometriosis abstract probiotics lps gg sibo aimed leaky gut endo soothe iga degradation jacobi histamine lactobacillus histamine intolerance it starts beyou redirectedfrom interstitial cystitis metagenics becky campbell s1931 allison siebecker pod farm

Tired All The Time? HPA Axis Dysfunction and Endo

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 14, 2021 37:15

Okay so today I'm talking about hypothalamic pituitary adrenal dysfunction. A mouthful, I know and for ease, it's called HPA axis dysfunction. If you haven't heard of HPA axis dysfunction, you may be more familiar with the term ‘adrenal fatigue'. And yes, if you're thinking adrenal fatigue was sort of debunked as not being real, you'd be correct, but HPA axis dysfunction is very, very real and there is a huge wealth of research and evidence behind it. Adrenal fatigue was essentially an attempt to describe what is happening with HPA axis dysfunction but it oversimplified the process and made it seem like the adrenals sort of ‘ran out' of energy, which isn't the what happens and misses a big part of the story. I imagine, originally, when the term was coined, it did come with the full explanation of HPA axis dysfunction, but eventually through the spread of social media, it perhaps lost that meaning. But anyway, the bottom line is HPA axis dysfunction is real, and it's incredibly prevalent within the endometriosis and chronic pain community - and it may be the root cause behind your fatigue. So if you're finding yourself exhausted all the time and overwhelmed by life, I really encourage you to keep listening. So in order to understand HPA axis dysfunction, we need to break down the system behind it. The hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis is a system consisting of the: · The hypothalamus (a part of the brain, found at the base of the brain) · Pituitary gland (a gland found at the base of the brain) · Adrenal glands (found above the kidneys) This system works together to regulate our stress response and to also regulate our circadian rhythm, which is like the internal body clock that governs our sleep/wake cycle. Let's begin first by understanding how the HPA axis controls our stress response. First, our hypothalamus alerts the pituitary gland of a stressor, and then the pituitary gland sends a signal to the adrenal glands to go about making stress hormones, and neurotransmitters, to power us through the situation. The brain and adrenals respond by first releasing adrenaline, which is released quickly but also subsides quickly and then 15 minutes later, cortisol and DHEA are released, and these guys hang around for several hours. Adrenaline and cortisol increase blood flow to organs like the heart, brain and muscles; reduce blood flow from non-essential organs like the digestive tract and reproductive system and trigger the release of stored glucose and fat, so you have the energy to fight or run. And DHEA acts as a buffer to counteract some of the damaging effects that cortisol can cause. An important difference to note between adrenaline and cortisol, in terms of pain, is that adrenaline is inflammatory. That initial stress response triggers inflammation because the body is anticipating that there may be an injury or infection that needs to be addressed. So for example, if the stressor was that we cut ourselves, the inflammatory white blood cells would help to heal the area and fight off any bacteria that may have entered the wound. However, long-term that inflammation would become damaging, so 15 minutes later, cortisol is released, which is actually anti-inflammatory in the short term to bring down inflammation to healthy levels. I'm going to dive into the link between chronic cortisol output and pain in future episodes, but just keep in mind that in the right levels, cortisol is anti-inflammatory. I think this can sometimes be confusing as you hear people talk about stress being inflammatory, so to clear that up, the acute initial response is inflammatory, for about 15 minutes, then it becomes anti-inflammatory when cortisol is released and these events are totally normal. It becomes a problem when cortisol remains elevated or keeps being triggered, that's when stress becomes inflammatory, when the stress is chronic. So, adrenaline eventually lowers back down, but cortisol is left remaining in the system until the stressor passes and should reduce after a few hours. Adrenaline is basically the hormone that gets us through the acute moment of stress, where cortisol carries us through the aftermath so to speak. So, for example, when we had that crazy flood in our flat, it was adrenaline that got me through getting out our most valuable belongings, trying to turn the mains off, calling plumbers in the middle of the night, that kind of thing. But it was cortisol that stayed with me, that kept me awake on the drive to my mum's at 5am. That got me up the next day so I could work, despite feeling super stressed out. That stayed with me when we moved into a temporary Airbnb and navigated all the stressors of trying to work in a new home without all my stuff, with dodgy internet and a drowned laptop charger that now needed replacing. And this is actually where the problem occurs. Originally, this stress response was designed to get us out of acute moments of danger alive. So back in cavemen days, this system helped us to outrun a wild animal that was hunting us, or to fight another tribe that was threatening ours and the stakes were high, but the outcomes were usually pretty black and white. We either died, or we survived. If we got away from the wild animal, and found our way back to the safety of our tribe, our stress response would have lowered and we would moved out of the flight or fight response and into rest and digest mode, which is the part of our nervous system responsible for digestion, repair, etc. But in modern society, the stakes aren't that high, but the situations aren't as simple either. We're now bombarded by stressors every day. Emails from colleagues who make us anxious, constant sensational headlines and 24-hour news cycles, traffic jams, struggling to balance our work and family or social lives, endless to do lists. You get the picture, I'm sure! And equally, it's not just emotional stressors, but physical stressors that appear to the body as a threat or danger. So chronic inflammation, a low-lying infection or condition like SIBO, blue light exposure, late nights, physical pain, etc. And these stressors, to the brain, are no different to the wild animal hunting us. The brain sees it as the same – a threat to our lives - and the stress response goes off. This means that we're potentially operating in a state of flight or fight the majority of the time, which means we're experiencing elevated levels of cortisol on a regular basis. And cortisol is our survival hormone, it's great in small doses to keep us alive when we need to it, but it's not great for long-term exposure at high levels. Long-term exposure to cortisol can damage the gut, causing leaky gut and negative shifts in our gut microbiome, and it can also cause chronic inflammation, a suppressed immune system, increased blood sugar (because remember, part of cortisol's job is to raise energy levels so we can fight or run, and it does this by releasing glucose from our cells into our blood stream, elevating blood sugar levels), and it can cause low progesterone (which results in oestrogen dominance), lowered thyroid function, and lack of ovulation. This episode isn't about the effects of stress directly on our sex hormones and cycle health, but if you're interested to learn more about this then I discuss it with Nicole Jardim in one of our podcast episodes, which I've linked to in the show notes, and I cover this process in detail in my course, Live and Thrive with Endo, which you can get on the waiting list for now. Again, the link is in the show notes. So in short, the body knows this is a problem, and eventually adapts to protect itself. Firstly, the body has a sort of internal cortisol shutdown mode. The high levels of cortisol in the body trigger a feedback loop in the brain which encourages the brain to actually lower cortisol output, so the adrenals stop producing as much. Another possibility is that the adrenals may also become resistant to the signals from the brain to make more cortisol, so they lower cortisol production in that way. A third possibility is that the cortisol receptors, known as glucocorticoid receptors, become resistant, so cortisol may be being released, but it's not actually doing its job. There are multiple different avenues for cortisol to become dysfunctional or lowered, but these are some of the main ones. So this may seem like a good thing, as cortisol is now lowered and is no longer damaging the body, but the issue now is that the HPA axis regulation of the circadian rhythm is dysregulated. So, I'm now going to walk you through what that means. Cortisol isn't just your stress hormone. It's your wake hormone. It's the hormone that gets you up in the morning and powers you through your day. At night, cortisol lowers and our sleep hormone melatonin rises, to allow us to drift off. If you looked at your cortisol pattens on a graph, it would look like a roller coaster. It starts to elevate before we wake up, and it reaches its peak height about an hour after waking, so this is when we should feel our most awake (which isn't the case for many of us with endo, right?!). After that, it begins to decline fairly sharply throughout the morning until about 12pm (so this is why many people find themselves needing an extra caffeine boost at 11am), and at midday the decline continues but is less dramatic. Your levels hit another drop at about 3pm, which again, is why people tend to get that afternoon slump and then they peter out as the afternoon and evening continues. This is to allow melatonin to rise, as cortisol actually suppresses it. Now what can happen with HPA axis dysregulation, is that if you're chronically stressed, you may have high levels of cortisol at first. These may be at their highest in the morning, so you wake up feeling stressed and tense straight away, maybe you find your sleep is disturbed in the early hours of the morning, but your levels can also be high at night, which suppresses your melatonin, so you find yourself exhausted but wired and unable to switch off when you go to bed. You may also be gaining weight around your middle, have trouble stabilising your blood sugar levels and be experiencing fertility issues or hormonal imbalances. These are classic signs of high cortisol. Then over time the cortisol levels lower, and this really depends on the individual as to when this happens, but it can be quickly, over the space of weeks in some cases, but I've seen it take much longer. And the cortisol pattern also varies from person to person. For some people, they have lower levels than usual at certain points in the day so they tend to feel like they have dramatic crashes in energy, or they have low levels all day long but high cortisol levels at night (which is really when you have those exhausted feelings yet you're just wide awake or struggling to stay asleep), or they have low levels constantly, and that's when we're really fatigued. Now these scenarios manifest a little differently depending on the pattern of cortisol dysfunction you have, but the tell-tale symptoms include: · Chronic fatigue · Brain fog · Waking up tired (no matter how much sleep you get!) · Feeling unable to cope with everyday stressors and bigger stressors like COVID, etc. · Continuous feelings of overwhelm as the body struggles to respond adequately to stress · Anxiety · Depression · Blood sugar dysregulation · Exercise intolerance (you find it hard to do much exercise, or find it difficult to recover afterwards) · Get ill easily · Dizziness, especially when going from seated to standing · Frequent energy crashes, especially mid-morning and mid-afternoon as cortisol begins to fall · Insomnia, disturbed sleep or feeling suddenly energised at night (this would of course be more likely if your cortisol was creeping up at night) And if this resonates with you, I wouldn't be surprised. Low cortisol output is associated with nearly all chronic pain conditions, especially pelvic pain conditions, endometriosis and fibromyalgia. In one study of 92 women with endo and 82 ‘healthy' volunteers, they found that the women with endo and chronic pelvic pain had low levels of cortisol despite reporting higher stress levels and a low cortisol awakening response, which is that rising cortisol level we need to be able to wake in the morning. Because pain is a stressor to the body, at first, when we first experience this pain, the cortisol output is likely to be normal for the situation or high, but overtime, if we become anxious, stressed, worried or scared of our pain, which is of course, a totally natural response to endometriosis, then over time, our HPA axis becomes dysregulated and our cortisol levels deplete because they have been high for so long as response to this pain-fear cycle. In fact, the high cortisol type of HPA axis dysfunction from chronic stress (whether the stress is from pain or not) has been shown to trigger the onset of some chronic pain conditions and worsen existing chronic pain. Then cortisol becomes depleted, and the pain continues, because the protective anti-inflammatory properties of cortisol are now lowered. So essentially, high levels of cortisol contribute to inflammation and pain, but so does low cortisol. We want the healthy level of cortisol for optimal pain regulation. So the stress of the pain doesn't go away, but our body is now less able to deal with it. Remember, cortisol provides us with the energy to deal with stress, it literally gets the glucose and resources we need to power our body through a stressful situation and without it, we may feel unable to cope with the demands of every day stressors or bigger events. Usually, with depleted cortisol levels, our body begins to rely more heavily on adrenaline, so when we're stressed, we may find that we experience symptoms of high adrenaline, like shaking, an increased heart rate, feeling jittery and wired, but yet we feel unable to cope with the situation because we don't have enough cortisol to power us through. So now you understand what HPA axis dysfunction is, what can we do about it? The good news is, HPA axis dysfunction can be repaired and the are very key, often simple steps to repairing it. And for us, for those of us with endo specifically, it's about giving our body reliable patterns in the day to normalise our circadian rhythm, and changing our response to stress and pain. So in a future episode, which will be out very soon, I'll provide you with some of the initial key steps for repairing your HPA axis and alleviating your fatigue. I am also going to do another episode that dives deeper into the pain, cortisol and inflammation connection, because it's fairly complex and deserves an episode to itself! I really hope this information has been useful for you. I know for many of my clients, when they learn about this and we see their low cortisol levels on their test, it makes total sense to them. So I hope this has given you some answers. If you want to test your cortisol levels, you can order what is known as a CAR test, which is a Cortisol Awakening Response. This measures your levels of cortisol from the morning into the night, and I have provided you with a couple of test options in the show notes. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis'. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My course, Live and Thrive with Endo is opening for enrolment again soon. Join the waiting list now to access early bird pricing and special bonuses. Sign up here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Studies https://academic.oup.com/humrep/article/33/9/1657/5055017 https://www.hoajonline.com/reproduction/2054-0841/3/2 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10253890701840610 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1521693418300324?via%3Dihub https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4263906/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5476783/ https://jneuroinflammation.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12974-020-01752-1#Sec21 https://journals.lww.com/psychosomaticmedicine/Abstract/1998/05000/Abuse_Related_Posttraumatic_Stress_Disorder_and.17.aspx Interview with Nicole Jardim CAR tests https://regeneruslabs.com/products/cortisol-awakening-response https://www.letsgetchecked.com/gb/en/home-cortisol-test/

covid-19 live interview thrive tired airbnb breakfast cbd car emails endometriosis abstract cortisol adrenaline sibo aimed endo adrenal soothe chronic stress hpa dhea 3dihub it starts beyou nicole jardim hpa axis dysfunction pod farm

In Search of Aether with Natasha Freedman & Rhuti Carr of Studio 2909

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 11, 2021 57:38

In this episode, Martin talks to Natasha Freedman and Rhuti Carr from Studio 2909 (https://www.studio2909.org/) about their current project - In Search of Aether (https://www.studio2909.org/in-search-of-aether). Studio 2909 broker conversations around social justice, human health and the health of the environment, enabling collaborations between artists, scientists, environment and health professionals, communities, schools, the higher education sector, local councils, youth, health and environmental organisations. They support schools to enhance their creative offer and embed cross-curricular approaches to learning, and support young people to develop their voice around issues that concern them, nurturing their sense of empowerment. In Search of Aether explores our right to clean air and to accessing the head space to imagine positive visions of the future. It focuses on breath as a practical tool for managing anxiety and powering the voice, and as a framework for inter-disciplinary learning across Science, PSHE, Civics, Geography, English and Music. Working with secondary schools in some of the London boroughs with the worst air quality and health inequalities, it supports cross-curricular and creative thinking, helping teachers and pupils understand the health impacts of air pollution and develop their sense of empowerment to bring about change in their own behaviour and in their local community. As well as hearing all about this project, you'll hear some wonderful clips from the work of the students involved. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

music english science search studio carr geography in search civics freedman aether pshe pod farm

Strategies to Alleviate Premenstrual Endo Bloating Before Your Period

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 7, 2021 55:31

So last week I took you guys through the ways in which inflammation, gut health and hormone levels can increase bloating in the lead up to your period. This week I want to give you some tools to actually alleviate that bloating, now you know why it's happening. I'm going to give you two types of tools, one set to deal with in the moment of bloating and another set for which are long-term strategies to help you to address the root cause. So, let's start with the tools you can use in the moment. Many of these tools I'm about to share are based on my training with world leading SIBO doctor, Dr Allison Siebecker. I'm using her doses, which are safe and effective and if you'd like a reference for these doses, they are actually available on her website, under handouts, in a handout called Symptomatic Relief Guide. So these doses are available publicly, you don't need a prescription for them, but always consult your doctor before starting new supplements. 1. Number one is using a prokinetic. A prokinetic is either a pharmaceutical drug or natural supplement which improves gut motility in the small intestine, so it increases transit time in the small intestine and also stimulates the migrating motor complex in the small intestine, which is the wave like motion that clears bacteria from food out of the small intestine and into the large intestine. When the migrating motor complex is slowed, this is when we are at risk of developing SIBO and one study actually found that 100% of participants with endometriosis had gut motility dysfunction. A prokinetic doesn't stimulate a bowel movement by the way, so it's not a laxative. It doesn't get to work on your large intestine, but on your small intestine, so it's essentially aiding you to digest and move your food into the large intestine, and to clear gas and bacteria out of the small intestine too. To stimulate the migrating motor complex, we can use a prokinetic at night, but for bloating, you can take it during the day, and this will support healthy transit time of gas accumulating in the small intestine. This can be really helpful in the second half of our cycle, when progesterone is naturally causing things to slow down! So the two natural supplements you could try are ginger and STW5, which is also known as iberogast. For ginger, there are many different prokinetic formulas and I've put some of the best ones in the show notes, and you would just take the label dose, twice a day, one to two hours after meals or as needed, just be sure not to exceed the recommended dose on the label or to exceed 2000mg of ginger per day. STW5 is a tincture, and you would take 20 drops with meals as or as and when needed. I do just want to caution here that some of the ginger formulations can cause ginger burn, which is like a hot burning sensation in the diaphragm area, so if you have acid reflux this may not be the best option for you. You can normally get rid of the feeling through drinking water, but some formulations are less ‘ginger burn' causing and I've highlighted which ones in the show notes. Ginger, being a spice, can also irritate bladder symptoms if you have interstitial cystitis, so this is something to consider and normally, I find the formulas which cause less ginger burn, cause less bladder problems. Secondly, because STW5 also contains alcohol, I find this to also irritate the bladder in people with interstitial cystitis, so just be cautious with these two and experiment until you find a formula that works for you. Finally, if you experience pain with prokinetics, it's normally due to motility actually starting to get to work, which can cause muscle contractions at first, but if the pain is severe or persistent, it may be that you have an obstruction or adhesions disrupting the motility flow and working against it. If that's the case, stop using and see a visceral manipulation therapist who can access your gut for adhesions and obstructions. 2. Peppermint oil Next up is peppermint oil. Peppermint oil is actually a smooth muscle relaxant and is great for abdominal pain, if you get pain with your bloating and generally, it's really wonderful for pretty much all IBS symptoms. Recent research has shown its effectiveness in multiple symptoms of IBS, so this is a great option if you have IBS issues frequently with endo and in the lead up to your period. So, you could of course try the tea, and some people do find that to be effective, but generally, peppermint oil tends to be stronger. If you wanted to go for tea, I would make sure it's strong for it to work! For capsules, you want enteric coated peppermint oil, which are capsules that have a coating on them which protects them from stomach acid, so that the peppermint is released lower down in the intestines where we want it. You would just follow the label dose and take as needed, though you could take them every day during the second half of your cycle as the effects are stronger when taken consistently. However, if you have acid reflux, peppermint may not be the best option for you as it can sometimes cause acid reflux. Another possible side effect is nausea. You could test yourself on one dose and see how you respond of course and take it from there, but if you're prone to acid reflux or nausea, you might want to consider some of the others. If you do want to give peppermint a go, pills are less likely to cause acid reflux or nausea as opposed to peppermint tea or say, a tincture. Lastly, peppermint oil can slightly slow down motility, so if you are noticing sluggish motility already due to progesterone in the second half of your cycle, either use one of the other options or if you really want to take peppermint oil, also take a prokinetic. Oddly, if you have interstitial cystitis, it appears peppermint oil may help or it may actually irritate. There's some research going on at the moment, specifically on peppermint oil for the treatment of interstitial cystitis, and some practitioners advise using the tea, etc. whereas I've heard others warn against it. Personally, applying topical peppermint oil helps with my interstitial cystitis pain, and this would be because it's a smooth muscle relaxant, so it's calming down any contractions and cramping, but if I drink the tea, I find it causes a burning feeling inside my bladder, so I think you'll have to see how you respond personally, but I'm very curious to find out the outcome of this study! 3. Number three is activated charcoal. Activated charcoal absorbs gas, so is really helpful for any bloating which is being causing by gut issues during the second half of our cycle. You can take activated charcoal in supplement or powder form, you would just mix the powder into water, as and when needed, but you do need to ensure that you're taking it at least 30 minutes before a meal and an hour after a meal, because it doesn't just absorb gas, it absorbs nutrients too! This would be the same for supplements. You don't want to be spending money on lovely supplements for the charcoal to be absorbing it all! You can take up to 1000mg per dose or just follow the label dose, and you can do so four times a day, spacing the doses out by at least two hours, just don't exceed more than 4 grams of charcoal a day. Lastly, charcoal can sometimes cause constipation, so of course, we don't want to worsen that if you already struggling with sluggish bowels in the second half of your cycle. If you are, then you can take magnesium in addition, which I'll share in the next point. 4. Magnesium Whilst magnesium won't directly help with your bloating, it is great for constipation, so if this is one of the root causes of your bloating in the second half of your cycle, magnesium is a good tool to aid with this. Magnesium is also a nutrient that most of us are deficient in and gets used up with chronic stress and during menstruation, and when we're low in magnesium it can worsen PMS, pain, and fatigue so this is a great supplement for endometriosis. The best options for constipation would be citrate or oxide, and I personally prefer oxide for anyone with interstitial cystitis, as the magnesium citrate can be irritating to the bladder for some. You can take between 500mg to 1000mg in the evening, at bedtime, and it's best to start at a lower dose, like 500mg, to see how you react to it, as if you take too much you may get diarrhea. The aim is to have a bowel movement come the morning, so that's the sign you want to know it's working and normally, it takes about 2-3 days to get to work, so be patient. If you don't have a bowel movement in this time, move up to a higher dose. Often, 1000mg is the dose most people find works for them, however, as I said, you can go higher, you just can't exceed 2000mg and you need to ensure you're increasing your dose slowly. Finally, make sure you take your dose two hours after food because otherwise this can interfere with the effects. Hopefully, by supporting your gut to keep to a healthy flow during the second half of your cycle, you'll experience lessened bloating as waste and gas isn't hanging around for so long. 5. Number five is abdominal massage and for the purposes of bloating you could use either the I Love You massage or Arvigo Therapy, both of these you can do at home by yourself. Additionally, these massages are great for constipation and sluggish motility, so if you're noticing those to be an issue in the second half of your cycle, I would recommend trying one of these. They also put your body into the rest and digest state, so if you're working on trying to calm your nervous system down so your pain decreases over time (which I've been talking about a lot recently over on Instagram), then these are a great addition to your routine. You don't need to do both, one or the other is fine, however, if you want the added benefit of adhesion release and better periods and less endo pain, Arvigo Massage is the way to go. The I Love You massage is a simple massage where you literally trace the letters ‘I', ‘L' and ‘U' over your intestines repeatedly. There are free YouTube videos on how to do this and I've linked to one in the show notes. With Arvigo Therapy, you first need to be taught how to do it on yourself by a practitioner. The sessions are usually pretty affordable and can be taught in about 30-45 minutes, after which you don't need to pay for anyone more sessions, you can just start performing the massage on yourself. I've linked to a wonderful practitioner in the show notes and to the practitioner directory. You can do these massages daily, and I personally recommend using them in the evenings before bed, which is when the migrating motor complex really gets to work and as these help to stimulate it, they'll give your motility a nice boost overnight. Of course, if you're feeling bloated in the moment and want some instant relief, if you feel like it's not painful to do, you could perform these massages when needed. Both of them take just 10-15 minutes at the most, so they're quick to do. 6. Number six is a slightly different one and that's lymphatic drainage. We're not addressing the bloating directly but more the water retention and fluid build-up in the body, which could in turn help to reduce the bloating, depending on whether your bloating is coming from water retention or from fermentation in the gut. So the lymph system is a collection of vessels that run like a map across the body, under the skin and around organs. They are connected to lymph nodes which can be found in places like your armpits and groin, they're the small shaped bumps you feel when you're unwell. The lymph vessels contain fluid that collects waste products, toxins, bacteria, viruses, etc. from around the body. These products are then delivered to the lymph nodes, which attack any pathogens (baddies), and this is usually when the swelling occurs if you have a really active infection - that's why you'll get raised bumps under your arms when you have a virus for example. Once the most harmful pathogens have been killed off, these toxins, waste products and dead bacteria are sent to the liver and kidneys through the blood stream, where they'll eventually be filtered out of the body. What's important to note here is that the lymph system cannot transport waste on its own - the fluid begins flowing with assistance from movement, such as massage or exercise and if we don't assist it, it can stagnate, like a stream that's become blocked. Helping to get the lymph system moving will help to shift any build-up of excess fluid and water retention, and it can help to get rid of the excess LPS which may be circulating in our blood stream before menstruation and would certainly be adding to our inflammation levels. There are multiple ways to get lymph fluid moving, but two lovely self-care methods you could try are dry brushing before your shower and then using a sort of lymphatic drainage paddle after your shower on your skin. So before your shower, you would use a dry body brush and starting at your ankles, brush upwards in short bursts, going over them same area three to five times before moving to the next section of your leg. The brush strokes should be fairly firm, and short, so say from your ankle to mid-calf and then from mid-calf to your knee. You would work your way up your legs, bum, torso, all moving up towards your heart, and then you would go to your arms, starting at your wrists, and working your way up to your shoulders. The process should take about 5-7 minutes. Then you can jump in the shower, and you can totally stop here if you like. A body brush is about £10, so it's a nice and affordable option. If you want to add another layer, you can get a lymphatic drainage body tool, which looks a bit like a paddle and is made of wood. I think it originates from the gua sha technique. You would essentially follow the exact same pattern you took with the body brush, but this time more lightly, it can be very gentle, and you would apply oil first, so you don't pull your skin. I tend to use coconut oil and my paddle was £18 from Amazon. I've linked to it so you know the kind of thing you're looking for. Now of course, this process is most effective when done every day but honestly, I struggle to fit it in, so you could try a couple of times a week or whatever works for you! 7. Number seven is taking an anti-inflammatory supplement. Now as we discussed last week, I don't think the swelling and bloating is purely down to inflammation alone, but it certainly plays a role as inflammation is building as progesterone lowers and prostaglandins are slowly being released in the uterus to prepare for menstruation from ovulation, providing you're not pregnant. So as we have higher levels of prostaglandins already, having endo, it'll most certainly be helpful to lower these. Now to be clear, these are not root cause fixes, I'll move onto those in a moment, these are to help you to start feeling better in the short-term, but I just want to remind you that anti-inflammatory supplementation is not enough to get chronic inflammation down, we need to get to the root causes, but they can certainly help! So in terms of anti-inflammatories, you could use supplements like magnesium, ginger, curcumin or fish oil and all of these have their own unique benefits, so my recommendation is to go back and listen to my episodes on supplements, so episodes 130 and 131. Then you can pick one or two that are best suited to you, and when taken consistently, should really help with your period pain too! So that's the symptomatic relief part of the podcast, but now let's move onto addressing these root causes. Now what I'm giving you is the simple first steps, not the whole protocol for each of these because that would just be a lot! 1. Number one is to start balancing your hormones, and one of the key ways we can do this is through ensuring we have balanced blood sugar levels, as having dysregulated blood sugar can cause elevated oestrogen levels and low progesterone. So this is really the key place I start with when balancing hormones with my clients. And the process is pretty simple, though it takes some getting used to and practice, and it's simply ensuring you have protein, fibre, healthy fats and complex carbohydrates with each meal. This is because if we just have a plate full of refined carbohydrates like white rice or white pasta, we're going to get a surge of glucose in the blood (which is what carbs break down into in the gut) and that will elevate our blood sugar levels and that then creates a cascade of negative effects on our inflammation levels, hormones, and energy production. The same goes for a plate full of brown rice and starchy veg or just rice and veg – yes, these foods are healthy, but they're also rich in carbohydrates with nothing to minimise the effects on our blood sugar. First off, we need to choose complex carbohydrates in contrast to refined. Refined carbs break down quickly and easily in the gut, flooding the system with glucose very quickly. These are processed foods such as bread, pasta, fries, crisps, cakes and pizza. In contrast, complex carbohydrates break down over a period of time, providing the body with sustained glucose release, and these include vegetables, starchy root veggies like sweet potato and parsnips, fruits, beans and whole grains. Now whole grains really depend on the individual, for some people they break down slowly, for others, they break down quickly and cause a blood sugar surge, so it's really about how you feel on them as an personally. And we always want to pair these complex carbohydrates with protein and fat, because they help to slow down the release of glucose to the blood. Fibre also does the same, but providing you have enough vegetables, you should be getting fibre from there, as well as from foods like beans and whole grains. In terms of ratio, to balance your blood sugar the ideal ratio is having 50% of your plate covered with low starchy veggies like broccoli and asparagus for example. 25% of your plate should be a protein source, and the final 25% is split between fat and complex carbohydrates. So we're looking at about two tablespoons or two golf ball sizes portions of fat and a serving of more starchy complex carbohydrates like sweet potato, root veggies or quinoa. Now depending on your activity levels, you may need more or less starchy carbs – this is very individual, so you need to adjust your serving to what feels best for you. If you're still hungry after a meal, or finding yourself having blood sugar crashes, try increasing the protein or fat intake first, but if your carb content is very low, increase your carbs, whether that's from low starchy veggies or in fact you find you just need a bit of extra starch from sweet potato, for example. In the show notes, I have linked to a great diagram demonstrating what this could look like. But just to give you an idea, you might have half a plate full of a salad of rocket and spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, red onions, and asparagus, with a piece of salmon, then say half a small avocado and a serving of quinoa, adjusting the grain serving to the size you personally need. So, this is where I would begin with balancing your hormones. If this feels triggering for you because it's food related, addressing your gut health will also support your hormones, as well managing your stress levels with stress relief tactics and supporting your detoxification processes. All of my episodes on oestrogen dominance and hormone imbalances cover various areas to address when healing your hormones, so you can have a listen to those if you'd like a different option, or if you get to grips with blood sugar and want to move onto the next step. And you could practice this over the course of a month and see what happens with your bloating. I do recommend that this is kept up going forward, not just for bloating but for keeping endo at bay, for healthy hormones, sustained energy, lowered inflammation and to prevent the onset of chronic diseases, which blood sugar dysregulation has been linked to. If you want to learn more about blood sugar, I cover it in multiple episodes, and I've linked to them in the show notes, or you can read my book or take my course, when it comes out again in a few weeks. And of course, if you want a step-by-step protocol for balancing your hormones, my course includes that and you can get on the waiting list now, so you'll be the first to hear when it launches. Again, the link is in my show notes. 2. Number two is to start repairing the gut. Now this is a more complex one and tends to take time, and of course if there's a condition like SIBO, that will eventually need treating. But we can start with some small steps, that really, we use with everyone to see whether they respond to these changes, and these are the basic foundations of good gut health. You can listen to my episode Understanding the Endo Belly Part 1 for full protocol of what we call ‘first line therapies', which like I said are these foundational pieces, and you can implement them over the course of a few months, but to get you started, you can try one or two of these options here. The first would be to eat 30 different plant foods a week. Your good microbiome needs an array of different plant foods, fibres, and nutrients in order to survive and thrive, and to actually ensure the health of your intestines. In fact, your good gut bacteria take certain plant fibres and turn them into key food for our intestinal cells, which helps to keep the gut wall strong. So eating an array of different plant foods will not only help to start creating a healthy microbiome, it'll also help the process along of repairing leaky gut. Now I know for those with IBS, when they think about eating more plant foods it can be scary, because the fibre can often aggravate symptoms, but this is different. This is literally about eating any type of plant food – so olive oil counts, coconut oil counts, spices count, fresh herbs count, seeds count and nuts and veggies and fruits, and wholegrains and beans! Yes there's a lot of options and they all count. And it's actually pretty easy to get in 30 different foods when you consider this wide array of ingredients you have to work with. You know between the elemental diets I've been on the low histamine bi phasic diet, and honestly, I don't think there's a diet more restrictive than this and especially in terms of fibre and carbohydrate content, it's much more restrictive than the low FODMAP diet, and I was still able to reach 30 different plant foods. So basically, work with the foods you're allowed to eat if you're on a specialist diet, and if you're stuck, work with a nutritionist or check out gut health blogs for recipe recommendations. Secondly, if you can, I would also begin reducing your intake of sugar. Now I don't mean fruit. I mean added sugar, like maple syrup, honey, caster sugar, coconut sugar, corn syrup, rice syrup, added fructose, that kind of thing. Sugar actually feeds an unhealthy microbiome and inflames the gut, and changes the composition of the gut microbiome, leading to leaky gut. And of course, we want to heal the gut lining and create a nice balance of healthy bacteria in the gut. I know this is a big step for a lot of people, so it may just be that you start slowly. Maybe you start reducing the sugar you add to your coffee by a quarter of a teaspoon for the first week, and then move to half and so on. Or maybe you start snacking on dark chocolate with a lower sugar content than a standard milk chocolate bar in the afternoon. Whatever it is, choose a method that's manageable and sustainable for you. And again, I would implement this over a month, to observe the changes. You could start with adding the plant foods the first month, and then start lowering sugar the next, or you could do it all in one go, and you could combine these methods with the blood sugar balancing or you could implement them month by month separately. It's really up to you. Now again, these are just two of the strategies and there is generally more to be done with healing the gut, but you might notice that these bring you significant relief. If they don't, then don't panic, this is just the beginning and normally I don't expect to see complete resolution with my clients at this stage. So what I recommend is that you have a listen to my Understanding The Endo Belly episode, which I've linked in the show notes, and you can continue to layer some extra first line therapies on top of these methods,. If neither of these options that I've shared appeal to you because they're food specific, then that episode will provide you with some other options, like chewing properly, mindful eating and stress management. Or if you want to dive deeper, my course walks you through a step-by-step gut healing protocol, so again, you can get on the waiting list for that if you'd like to. 3. Okay, so number three is all about lowering inflammation. And normally, in functional medicine, we would begin with food, as this is one of the quickest ways to lower inflammation. Now there is a specific protocol for lowering inflammation with nutrition, which I would normally implement over a month with a client, but again, I am just giving you the foundations first to get started. If you want to dive deeper, you can listen to my episode with Dr Jessica Drummond, which I've linked in the show notes, I have countless articles on anti-inflammatory nutrition, and I've linked to one or two of those in the show notes as well, or you can read my book or sign up to the course for an exact step by step guide. So to start, one of the most powerful things we can do nutritionally to lower inflammation is to eat an abundance of colourful fruit and vegetables a day. Specifically, we're aiming for eight servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit. Now I understand that for those of you with IBS, this might be hard on your stomach at first and it may take some time to build up to this amount of fibre, so start slowly. However, a SIBO diet or low FODMAP diet shouldn't prevent you from getting in this amount of fruit and veg a day, you may not be able to get in a whole serving, which is 80g, because of the portion size limitations with the low FODMAP diet, but if you aim for variety, you should be able to get in eight different veggies. For example, 1 small red pepper, one medium carrot, one cup of cabbage, four sprouts, one cup of broccoli, 2 cups of spinach, 1 cup of spaghetti squash and half a cup of beetroot are all FODMAP friendly. That's eight right there! And you've got some green, yellow, red, purple and orange in terms of colour, and that's really key to lowering inflammation because the more different colours you have, the more variety of antioxidants you have, and it's these wonderful plant nutrients that lower inflammation. So you're aiming for lots of different colours but with a nice emphasis on dark leafy greens, and working your way up to eight servings of veg and two servings of fruit. Again, do this slowly if you have stomach troubles on a regular basis and if you have gut health issues like SIBO or another condition, you may need to heal that first before you can tolerate that many servings of veg. But just get up to what you can tolerate and what makes you feel good. And in the beginning, if your stomach is sensitive, start with well-cooked and pureed or mashed fruits and veggies. So for example, have a smoothie for breakfast, and a roasted veg salad for lunch, and a soup for dinner, for example. Basically, we're trying to take some of the digestion work out of it for your stomach, so it can predominately focus on extracting those lovely nutrients. So ideally, we're working on adding more colour and more fruit and veg to start with, and practice that over the space of a month again, and see how your bloating and swelling does, and see how your PMS and period responds too. Now in the beginning, as your body adjusts to this added fibre, you may find yourself more bloated, and that's why it's important to build up slowly and to focus on well-cooked or broken-down foods, so your body gets used to it. For example, don't go from two servings of veg a day to eight! Start with an extra serving for a few days or a week, and then move up to another serving. And of course, have those bloating relief remedies to hand as well to help you through and listen to your body. If you need to adjust or reduce the amount of veg you're consuming, do so but don't just assume you can't eat veg, it may be about the serving size, how it's cooked or the type of veg, so experiment! Now if this feels triggering because it's food related, another way to lower inflammation is by getting enough sleep. Sleep deprivation is one the key causes of inflammation, so instead of working on your food, you could start here. Now of course, if you have insomnia, sleep can be a difficult area to master and again, this is about taking it step by step and in stages, and there's really a whole sleep hygiene protocol we could go through, depending on the type of insomnia you're struggling with. But let's start with the basic step of giving yourself a nine-hour window to sleep. There is no argument, we all need at least seven and a half to eight hours sleep a night, without that, there are significant changes in our health, and it can make manging endo much more difficult because it can worsen pain, inflammation, and hormonal imbalances. Now as someone who struggles with sleep, I want to say to you not to let this panic you, and really just to allow yourself to work on your sleep, with kindness, not beating yourself up if you're not at eight hours yet. Giving yourself a nine-hour window allows your body time to fall into a deep sleep and actually get eight hours of solid sleep, rather than seven hours or even less. And this nine-hour window shouldn't include reading or scrolling or watching TV, this is literally lights out, eyes closed time and ideally, this nine-hour window should take place across the same period of time every night, so for example, from 10.30pm to 7.30am. The reason we do this is because your body has an internal clock, and this clock lets it know when to release our waking hormone, cortisol, to wake us up, and when to release our sleep hormone, melatonin, to help us get to sleep. When we have erratic hours or inconsistent sleep patterns, the body doesn't know when to produce these hormones, so we can find ourselves wide awake at 1am and super groggy at 9am. The body relies on rhythm to create its essential processes, and so it needs us to follow regular rhythms in order to function. Now of course, there will be some nights when you just can't sleep, or it's a friend's birthday, or your child is up sick all night, and that's just life! So don't beat yourself up about it, but on the whole, try to get this regular nine-hour window in. I understand if you have a baby, this is probably not possible, so come back to this when you have your nights back but otherwise, see if you can begin working on this slowly but gradually. It will probably take some time to adjust, it'll probably take moving around your schedule, and discipline and practice, but eventually your body should find its routine and start feeling sleepy around this time. The hardest bit for many, is us actually having the will power to put this in place and I can tell you, as someone who has a habit of working late, it is a daily practice, one I don't always do so well at, but one I am always coming back to. If your sleep issues are really extensive, then it to me sounds like your HPA axis is probably off. I'm going to do a podcast on this soon, but I also have a whole module on this and sleep hygiene in my course, so if you want more guidance and a roadmap for addressing this, you can of course join the waiting list. So that's our three strategies for beginning to address these root causes, and if we're taking the first suggestions rather than the alternatives I've provided, it'll look like: · Eating protein, fat, fibre and complex carbs at every meal · Eating 30 different types of plant foods a week · Reducing sugar · Eating 8 portions of colourful veggies and two portions of colourful fruits a day (or building up to that). So that's four steps, and you could work on one step a week, so by the end of the month you're at all four, or you could work on one step per month, and observe where you are in four months. Choose to do it however you feel is best. And remember, that these are foundational steps, they may not totally resolve your PMS bloating, but they're a step in the right direction and you can choose to keep going forward with some of the other strategies I've mentioned for continued improvement. And just so you don't drive yourself crazy, I want to remind you that it is natural for us to be a little more bloated and perhaps a tiny little puffier before our periods, but these symptoms shouldn't be extensive and shouldn't be affecting our daily lives. So, if you can get down to a place where these symptoms feel minimal and manageable, don't drive yourself crazy trying to get a perfectly flat stomach the day before your period, as it might not be totally possible. I really hope this episode has helped you and been informative! If you find it useful, please share it with others who might benefit and please do let me know and reach out on Instagram. I'd love to hear how you get on! Remember to consult your doctor when making changes to your diet or supplement regime. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis'. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My course, Live and Thrive with Endo is opening for enrolment again soon. Join the waiting list now to access early bird pricing and special bonuses. Sign up here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Dr Siebecker's dosages https://www.siboinfo.com/uploads/5/4/8/4/5484269/sibo_symptomatic_relief_suggestions_jan_2020.pdf Prokinetics Vita Aid Prokine Pure Encapsulations Motil Pro (in my experience, I found this caused a lot of ginger burn) Integrative Therapeutics Motility Activator (better for IC/ginger burn) Enzyme Science GI Motility Complex (better for IC/ginger burn) Priority One SIBO-MMC Invivo Clinical Bio.Me.Kinetic (I find this to be better for IC/ginger burn) Gut motility https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9660426/ Peppermint oil https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30654773/ I Love You Massage https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTOkKVlBHzk Arvigo Therapy https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/arvigo-massage-for-endometriosis https://www.arvigotherapy.com/team-members Lymphatic drainage tool https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07V7GJW1W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Supplements https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/2021/4/17/supplements-shown-to-target-endometriosis https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/supplements-for-period-pain-menstrual-symptoms Blood sugar https://ameliafreer.com/2020/01/10/build-healthy-plate-from-scratch/ https://endometriosis.net/living/diet-sugar https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/reduce-fatigue-endometriosis-symptoms-and-oestrogen-dominance Course waiting list https://mailchi.mp/thisendolife.com/wait-list First Line Therapies https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/-the-endometriosis-belly Sugar and gut health https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7284805/ Anti-inflammatory nutrition https://endometriosis.net/living/diet-antioxidants https://endometriosisnews.com/2020/07/23/primary-pillars-healing/ https://endometriosisnews.com/2020/08/13/nutritional-changes-endo/ https://endometriosisnews.com/2020/09/03/easy-meals-anti-inflammatory-diet/ https://endometriosisnews.com/2019/11/21/snack-healthy-suggestions/ https://www.thisendolife.com/this-endolife-podcast-episodes/outsmart-endometriosis-dr-jessica-drummond Sleep https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/10/181009135845.htm https://endometriosisnews.com/2020/09/17/5-ways-sleep-deprivaton-affects-endometriosis/

tv amazon live strategy giving blood sleep thrive breakfast period sugar cbd personally gut supplements pms ibs i love you endometriosis ic magnesium lps activated peppermint sibo refined aimed endo bloating fibre kinetic soothe alleviate fodmap hpa lymphatic it starts beyou premenstrual allison siebecker arvigo therapy pod farm

Bloating Before Your Period with Endo: The Oestrogen and Gut Connection

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 1, 2021 30:31

Transcript: Recently I polled my Instagram to find out just how many of you are suffering with PMS on top of your endo symptoms and the results were pretty staggering! Unfortunately, Instagram didn’t keep the number of votes so I don’t know how many people actually took part in this pole, but the percentage of people who did and who suffer PMS was 86%. I know from past experience that the week leading up to your period and the week of your period, can often be when endo really rears its head for a lot of us, so adding PMS symptoms as well is of course not what we want! I went on to poll your symptoms specifically and there was not one symptom that fell beneath the 50% mark, with most of them being around 70-90%, so you guys are dealing with a lot of symptoms. I was originally going to do one podcast episode dedicated to PMS and endo, but after I saw these stats, I felt like it really would be too much to take on in one show and that some of these symptoms that you guys really scored high on deserve more focused attention. So today, I’m talking about bloating before your period, why it happens and some strategies to reduce it. I chose this one to start with because this was the highest score, with 94% of you suffering with it. So let’s dive in. Now of course, when it comes to bloating, you know that I’m always going to talk about SIBO, which is small intestine bacterial overgrowth and research estimates that up to 80% of endo patients also have SIBO and that SIBO may even play a role in the development of endo. But, today I am not going to talk about SIBO. If you have bloating all the time, or most of the time, I really do recommend you also listen to my podcast episodes on SIBO, as that may be worsening the bloating you’re getting around your period. But if your bloating is mainly around your period or it’s at least worse around your period, then this episode is for you. So other than SIBO and gut health infections or more serious gut health conditions, let’s look at some of the two of the key causes of bloating around your period. 1. Number one is hormonal imbalances, mainly oestrogen excess or oestrogen dominance and/or low progesterone. So to be clear, excess oestrogen is a hormonal imbalance where we have too much oestrogen in the body, whereas oestrogen dominance is when our levels of oestrogen dominate over progesterone. So in a normal healthy cycle, oestrogen should be higher in the first half during the menstrual phase and the follicular phase. It actually starts off at its lowest point on Day 1 of your cycle but it will begin to build. After ovulation, progesterone is higher than oestrogen, but what happens with oestrogen dominance is that oestrogen is higher than progesterone throughout the luteal phase, which is that second half of your cycle after ovulation. This can occur in four ways: · Progesterone is too low but oestrogen is normal so naturally oestrogen dominates. · Progesterone is normal but oestrogen is in excess. · Progesterone is low and oestrogen is in excess. · Progesterone is low and oestrogen is low, but progesterone is lower. Two of the most common symptoms of these hormonal imbalances are water retention and bloating. Why? Because progesterone and oestrogen actually play a role in fluid regulation, fluid retention and sodium (that’s salt, essentially) retention in our body! There are actually oestrogen and progesterone receptors in parts of the body that affect fluid regulation, such as the kidneys. Research has found that in healthy participants, when they’ve isolated progesterone and oestrogen, separately, and administered them in normal doses, fluid regulation and sodium retention were acutely affected. So for example, the hormone that triggers the kidneys to recirculate water back into the body rather than excreted in urine was higher. However, in normal healthy participants the effects of these changes were minimal so fluid retention wasn’t dramatically increased. But of course, we’re then left to wonder what happens when hormone levels aren’t normal and are in fact higher, like with oestrogen. So, when they isolated normal levels of oestrogen in these studies, they found there was a small increase in water retention, which was because oestrogen encouraged the kidneys to recirculate water rather than excreting it. However, despite higher levels in the hormone responsible for this process, which is called arginine vasopressin, the kidneys were not responding as expected, meaning there wasn’t as much water retention as they would have expected there to be given the levels of arginine vasopressin. This has left scientists wondering whether oestrogen has the ability to make the kidneys less sensitive to this hormone, which has actually been shown to increase in the second half of the cycle. So basically, the effects aren’t that dramatic and they’re still trying to work out why because giving these findings, they should be. Now sodium retention does increase with oestrogen and so scientists believe that the small change in water retention that they observed, was really down to the higher levels of salt in the body, rather than the higher levels of arginine vasopressin, which didn’t seem to create a huge change in the kidneys. And higher sodium levels increase the amount of fluid that surrounds our cells, so that would explain why we feel extra puffy and swollen. Additionally, oestrogen increases the amount of plasma in our body, which is a clear liquid fluid that makes up the bulk of our blood. This results in swelling in the body and alterations in where fluid is distributed. Progesterone has also been found to do the same thing, but this result hasn’t been consistent across studies. So, if progesterone can increase swelling potentially, and very slightly in healthy adults, and oestrogen can increase it too, again, slightly, then you can see why having normal levels of progesterone and higher levels of oestrogen could result in excess swelling around the body water retention and ultimately, bloating. So if we’re able to bring our hormones into balance, we may see some normal small increases in swelling and bloating as we enter the second half of our cycle, especially if this research on progesterone increasing plasma fluid is accurate, but we shouldn’t be experiencing dramatic bloating and noticeable swelling. This leads me to my next cause. 2. Number two is your gut health. If you listen to my podcast you’ll know already that gut health problems cause symptoms like bloating, especially problems like candida, SIBO and fungal overgrowth. Even if you don’t have an infection, parasite or one of these problems, general gut dysbiosis can cause bloating. Gut dysbiosis is when the bacteria that live in your gut, become out of balance and this imbalance creates an inflammatory environment, excess fermentation which results in gas and bloating, and symptoms like IBS. These issues can be worsened by the changes that happen to the gut during the lead up to menstruation. When progesterone rises in the second phase of your menstrual cycle, it actually slows down digestion – this is why you may experience constipation before your period or at least slower, sluggish bowels. This is because progesterone is a muscle relaxant, it actually helps to loosen muscles and ligaments during pregnancy to allow your pelvis to expand. So yes, naturally and normally, your bowel movements might be a little slower in the second half of your cycle or you may just notice that your food doesn’t seem to go down as quickly after a meal, creating some degree of bloating or fullness. But these changes shouldn’t be to the point where you can hardly go to the toilet in the second half of your cycle or that your bloating is painful, your belly is really extended so you look six months pregnant or you can no longer wear the clothes you wear in the first half of your cycle. If that’s happening, we need to look at your gut. If you have dysbiosis or a condition like SIBO, you’re going to be having more fermentation anyway, so that means you’re going to be more bloated generally. Now if we slow down the transit of food through your gut, of course, this gives the bacteria and archaea even more time to munch on the food, creating even more gas! Then, because you have slower peristalsis, which is the movement that pushes food and waste through your intestines, it’s going to take gas longer to exit. So essentially, you have more food and gas hanging around in your gut for longer, so it’s no wonder that you feel bloated! On top of this, if you have gut dysbiosis, SIBO or another gut condition, your gut microbiome may have higher levels of an enzyme known as beta-glucuronidase. This is an enzyme that helps to regulate oestrogen, by recirculating waste oestrogen if needed, rather than allowing it to be excreted through a bowel movement. Researchers looking into the alterations of the gut microbiome and its connection to oestrogen dependent diseases hypothesise that people with endometriosis may have higher levels of beta-glucuronidase, and this is certainly the case with many of my clients when we test them. In fact, another study, sadly on monkeys with endometriosis, found significant dysbiosis including low levels of lactobacillus, which is a bacteria that helps to keep beta-glucuronidase in check and at the right levels. This of course means that the gut dysbiosis could be the cause of or worsening any excess oestrogen or oestrogen dominance you may have, and that can in turn be worsening your water retention and swelling. Another point to add here is that the same study on monkeys also found high levels of gram-negative bacteria in the microbiome. Gram-negative bacteria can be disease or illness causing, such as for example, certain strains of e.coli, but there are also normal gram-negative bacteria found in our guts that don’t cause disease, again, like certain strains of e.coli, but they have the potential to evolve and cause illness. What’s really important here is that gram-negative bacteria break down, they release parts of their cell walls called lipopolysaccharides or LPS for short. Lipopolysaccharides trigger a huge inflammatory response from the immune system, and these monkeys were shown to have higher levels of intestinal inflammation, which would make sense! More recently, research has found LPS in the pelvic cavity of people with endo and it’s believed that this LPS has been transferred from the gut, through leaky gut, and it has also been found that LPS contributes to the inflammation and disease growth of endo. But what’s even more interesting is that recent research (though on a small study of 40 and this study does have its limitations) has found that gram-negative bacteria and LPS may actually increase in the blood in the lead up to our periods. They studied the immune responses to LPS throughout the cycle at four stages (Day 7, Day 14, Day 21, and Day 28), and found peak levels being on Day 28, indicating that there were higher levels of LPS in the blood stream around this period of time because there were higher levels of LPS antibodies. They suspect that LPS and gram-negative bacteria actually increases in the blood due to translocation, so just to remind you that’s the movement (usually of bacteria) from the gut to outside of the gut. This, they believe, could be due to changes in the gut wall caused by progesterone rising in the second half of the cycle, so essentially, progesterone is causing temporary leaky gut. This in turn is creating an exaggerated inflammatory immune response, and one of the trademark symptoms of inflammation is a swelling of the inflamed area. Now prior to this study, much research has shown that the immune system is actually suppressed in the second half of the cycle, and the theory is that this is to support healthy implantation and fertilisation of the egg, without the risk of the immune system attacking it. This occurs when progesterone rises following ovulation, so early to mid-luteal phase your inflammatory immune reaction should be somewhat dampened. However, as progesterone begins its decline ahead of your period about 9 to 11 days after ovulation, inflammation returns as the immune system begins to return to its normal strength. This correlates with the findings of this study on LPS immune reactions. The strongest reaction from the immune system comes at the end of the cycle, around Day 28, and this would make sense given that the immune system is pretty much back to full strength by then. They also show that Day 14 has the lowest reaction to LPS, which would make sense of course as this is roughly around the time that ovulation occurs, although it varies from person to person and from month to month, the idea that we all ovulation on Day 14 or 15 is actually a myth! So, as the immune system is only suppressed between say day 14 and day 25-ish, if the LPS and bacteria were present all month round, we should have seen a higher level of immune reaction on Day 7 when the immune system is still fully functioning, but we’re not, the immune response is in fact at its lowest point here, along with Day 14. So, in this study it was the antibodies to the LPS which were measured, not the LPS levels or the gram-negative bacteria, but they have concluded from the rising antibodies that this indicates rising LPS and gram-negative bacteria levels in the second phase of the cycle, with a strong immune reaction towards the end of the cycle when the immune system returns to fully functioning. Now the limitation here is that we don’t actually know for sure the levels of LPS or bacteria as the microbiome was not studied itself and there were no stools tests taken at all, we’re simply going off the LPS antibodies in the blood, so I hope that more research is done to look into this further and see whether these findings are consistent. But if this research is correct and we’re able to replicate it in future studies, then it would make sense that people with endo, who have a higher load of gram-negative bacteria in their guts, and maybe even more so in the case of SIBO or some other pathogen, would have more LPS in their blood stream in the second half of their cycle. Especially because there’s the possibility of leaky gut already being present, which is often the case when we have dysbiosis, or SIBO or another gut health condition. So if progesterone is expanding those tight junctions in the second half of the cycle, there’s the chance that it’s making big gaps in the gut lining even bigger, allowing more bacteria and toxins to travel through. And if LPS and gram-negative bacteria are escaping in the luteal phase, and are finding their way into the pelvic cavity, this could be contributing to swelling in the area thanks to an inflammatory immune reaction towards the end of the cycle. As I mentioned earlier, there’s already LPS in the pelvic cavity of people with endo, so if these findings turn out to be accurate and can be replicated in future research, perhaps this could explain why there’s even more an inflammatory reaction in the abdomen and pelvis of people with endo, in the lead up to their period, in contrast to the rest of the month and to those who don’t have it. So to wrap up, of course, endometriosis can cause some degree of swelling due to the inflammatory nature of the disease, so this could definitely be contributing, but the bulk of inflammation occurs at menstruation, as the uterine lining sheds and prostaglandins and histamines are released, not beforehand (though prostaglandins are being released in the uterus in the lead up to menstruation), so this extensive swelling the week or even two weeks before, doesn’t really correlate. In my opinion, it’s the impact of this increased LPS, the returned immune response, the presence of endo, gut dysbiosis and hormonal imbalances that are creating the perfect recipe for swelling and bloating ahead of your period. So now you’ve got some information on why it’s happening, next week I’m going to take you through some simple strategies for supporting the gut and balancing your hormones and some easy methods for quick bloating relief in the lead up to your period. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis’. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Fluid retention https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2849969/?fbclid=IwAR3kn0CVHyH4aZsIJ0hPq8__O7k4WfM_rk7EWKSLWj4RmQlVZsnCbnEu4Yg#R7 https://joe.bioscientifica.com/view/journals/joe/89/2/joe_89_2_011.xml Progesterone and constipation https://nicolejardim.com/howyourperiodaffectsdigestivetract/ Gut Mircobiome https://academic.oup.com/humrep/article/17/7/1704/576914 https://www.maturitas.org/article/S0378-5122(17)30650-3/pdf https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-04081-1 LPS https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/acta-neuropsychiatrica/article/menstrual-cycle-may-not-be-limited-to-the-endometrium-but-also-may-impact-gut-permeability/4312A69492836C1A9D93A510D144B08D https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5902457/ Immune system and endo https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29778270/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1568997211002977 Prostaglandins https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16992446/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1115176/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7411005/

research breakfast period cbd researchers gut pms ibs gram endometriosis fluid lps sibo aimed endo bloating soothe progesterone it starts beyou oestrogen pod farm

8 Strategies for Loosening Adhesions and Freeing a 'Frozen' Pelvis

Play Episode Listen Later May 26, 2021 39:47

As some of you may know, I’m doing a lot of work at present to free up my pelvic area from adhesions and tightness caused by pulled fascia and a tight pelvic floor, which in physio speak is a hypertonic pelvic floor. So I thought this would be a great time to talk about some strategies you can bring into your daily life to help loosen adhesions and a frozen pelvis. Transcript: I’ve talked about adhesions and fascia before, but let’s do a quick recap of what adhesions and fascia are. So fascia is a thin sheet of tissue made from collagen that sits beneath your skin and holds your organs and muscles in place. It also surrounds all the organs, nerves, blood vessels, etc. Fascia surrounding the body is like a bed sheet, if you pinch it or one end, the rest will wrinkle. So what can happen when we’ve had surgery is that these incisions create puckering and scarring in the fascia, which ends up tightening the fascia and pulling it in other directions. Fascia can also become distorted from inflammation, injuries and muscular problems like pelvic floor dysfunction. Adhesions are a form of scar tissue. They are web-like structures and bands of collagen that grow in response to injury and trauma, to ‘knit’ back together a wounded area and as part of the healing process from infection and inflammation. Collagen strands bond together to protect the damaged area to allow healing to occur in a safe and isolated environment, and if an infection is present, they protect the rest of the body by preventing the spread. Adhesions occur in nearly all cases of abdominal surgery, the results vary from study to study but one large and long study found that between 55% to 100% of women who had pelvic surgery developed adhesions, and up to 90% of people who had major abdominal surgery - so something like a caesarean - developed adhesions. So, if you’ve had one or more surgeries for endo, it’s very likely that you have some adhesions. Adhesions can also form from inflammation, which we know occurs in those of us with endo due to the lesions and can occur in those of us with SIBO, because the body sees it as an infection. Again, as you probably know by now, research has shown that up to 80% of us with endo may have SIBO, so this could be an additional cause of your adhesions and frozen pelvis. It’s also worth noting here that adhesions can actually cause SIBO too, because they prevent the normal flow of gut. So, what can we do about it? Thankfully, there are numerous ways to loosen adhesions and free up a frozen pelvis, and as a result, lower the pain and other challenges associated with them. So let’s dive in to my top 8 strategies. This list isn’t exhaustive by any means, and you don’t need to do them all! Just pick those that feel the most helpful for you and suit your lifestyle and budget. 1. Foam Rolling Number one is foam rolling, which is an effective and affordable at home strategy which you can use every day if you’d like to! With foam rolling, we’re really looking at loosening the fascia rather than working on the adhesions directly. As I said earlier, fascia can get tight, pulled, puckered, and wrinkled, and if it’s experiencing it in one place, it can affect other areas in the body. Foam rolling helps to release a distorted fascia and is when we literally use a long foam cylinder to roll back and forth across various areas of our body. With foam rolling for endo or other pelvic pain issues, we’re not just rolling back and forth on our pelvis, we’re rolling across our hips, bums, back, upper back and legs. In the show notes I have linked to videos on how to do this, by physiotherapist Dr. Nicole Cozean. You can order foam rollers from Amazon for about £11 and in the beginning, I would suggest starting gently with a soft roller that’s smooth, especially if you’ve experiencing a lot of pain. Now with all of these methods, listen to your body. Some discomfort is normal when we’re working with releasing facia and adhesions, but if it’s really painful, ease up and go lightly or if it doesn’t feel right at all, appreciate that this may not be the right approach for you at first. In an ideal world, we’d use these strategies under the guidance of a physiotherapist, but I know that’s not always an affordable option for everyone, so carefully watch the tutorials and if you’d like to do some further research to be really comfortable, I suggest reading Know Your Endo by Jessica Murnane, as she interviews Heba Shaheed, who I’ve had on the podcast before as well, and they talk about foam rolling extensively in the book. 2. Visceral Manipulation Next up is visceral manipulation, which honestly, if you can afford it, I really believe is worth a try! Visceral manipulation is a form of organ massage which was designed by physiotherapist Jean-Pierre Barral with the particular intention to free up organs from adhesions and other structural issues that are restricting them. Organs are supposed to be able to expand and move gently as our body moves, and glide smoothly over muscles and nerves as we go about our day. When adhesions or some kind of other structural problem is keeping them stuck, that’s when we can experience pain and organ dysfunction. Visceral manipulation is very effective for releasing these organs and loosening adhesions and I’ve seen some incredible results with my clients. What I will caution here is that it can feel quite intense and aggressive at times, and if your pelvis is very stuck, you may be better off starting more gently with a different type of massage like some kind of womb massage such as the one I’m going to suggest in the next point. If you’re going to try visceral manipulation, make sure you’re comfortable with your therapist and be very clear with them about the pain or discomfort you experience within the session, so they know when to ease up or when to stop working on an area if it feels too much. I can tell you from personal experience that gritting your teeth and baring it does not always end well! Other greats forms of organ/abdominal massage include Mercier Therapy and Clear Passage. Clear Passage is really the holy grail with lots of research behind it for endo and SIBO, but it’s incredibly expensive, so you may be better off trying the other techniques first. However, I do highly recommend it if you can afford it! I’ve linked in the show notes how to find practitioners for all of these that I’ve just mentioned. 3. Arvigo Massage Third on our list is Arvigo Therapy, which is a form of abdominal massage that is much more gentle than the ones I just mentioned previously. The benefit of Arvigo Therapy is that you only need one session, which can be done over Zoom, to learn it from a therapist, and then you can just practice it daily at home every evening. Now in my conversation with Tara Ghosh, who is an Arvigo Therapist and actually taught me personally, she shares that whilst Arvigo Therapy doesn’t directly loosen adhesions like visceral manipulation does, it does encourage circulation to the area and helps to relax the muscles and organs in the area, which can then have the indirect effect of loosening a frozen pelvis. However, I have seen some articles by therapists claiming it can loosen adhesions, perhaps they mean indirectly or perhaps there are differing opinions, but you can listen to the interview with Tara in episode 127 to learn more. I highly recommend working with Tara because she’s just the loveliest person, and you can reach out to her directly via the details she shared in the interview (and I’ll put her Instagram in the show notes) but if you want to find another therapist, I’ve linked to the directory in the show notes. I’m pretty sure Tara sees clients from all over the world. 4. Breaking up your time sitting down Number four is all about breaking up the time you spend sitting down at your desk, specifically by using a standing desk and by taking regular breaks. Now, there’s been a lot of debate and controversy over this in the past few days. You may have seen in my stories I posted about my standing desk, which I use at varying intervals during the day, alternating between sitting and standing. I do this because my own physios and my colleagues, many of who are pelvic floor physios and my pelvic pain training, have always taught me that sitting for long periods of time without a break can worsen pelvic floor dysfunction symptoms through shortening and weaking the muscles in the area and restricting blood flow. My understanding was that sitting down for long periods of time without breaks shortens the muscles in the front of our hips and pelvis, which means when we stand, walk or do anything else that isn’t sitting, we have restricted movement, tension, tightness and are more likely to experience pain. And if we have adhesions in the area, sitting down for long periods of time lessens the opportunity to stretch them and release them, making their hold on our organs stronger and tighter. However, I had quite an strongly worded message form a physio informing me that this simply isn’t true and that muscles don’t shorten or lengthen, which absolutely threw me. So I went away and spoke to some colleagues and they all said that yes, muscles shorten and that sitting for prolonged periods of time causes this and can worsen pelvic floor issues. So I was quite confused! I wanted to dig a bit deeper to understand why this physio said they don’t and I think what it boils down to is terminology, and oversimplification to make physio language easy for patients to understand. From what I gather through my own research and conversations is that the muscles don’t actually change length, but they lose their ability to stretch so they become restricted. Here’s how one of the PTs I spoke to put it. Martha Spalding, Circle of Health Physical Therapy, CA: “Muscle length stays the same so no, they don’t elongate but they can be contracted, weak in both eccentric and concentric contractions, strained, sprained, torn and severed. Ligaments can be overstretched and they can have laxity, which is common during pregnancy and some people just have genetic ligamentous laxity. Prolonged sitting is stressful on the entire spine and pelvic floor as it is a prolonged static position in weight bearing on the pelvis. The pelvis is generally rotated posteriorly. Depending on the muscles, you can determine the stress component in the sitting position. This prolonged position does impact the fascial slings which can become restricted.” So to help understand this better, eccentric contraction means when muscle length increases from tension during a movement, like a stretch. In contrast, concentric contraction is when a muscle shortens and tenses in order to bear weight and counteract resistance, so think about lifting a dumbbell in a bicep curl. So in short, the ability to perform these contractions can become weaker. Laxity is defined as ‘looseness of muscle’, but I wouldn’t say this would be occurring here, it’s just an example she’s providing to demonstrate how muscles change. After these conversations, the physio who originally contacted me also replied to say that sitting all day without any movement would cause joint and muscle stiffness, but she was also very clear to state that there are no detrimental effects on the pelvis with sitting. So clearly there are some cross overs here, but also some differing of opinions. As I’m not a physio, I can’t really give you a definite answer so I’m providing you with the information I have gained and also what I have learned in my own time in training and working with physios. To my knowledge, yes, sitting without breaks and movement can have an impact, but I’ll leave it to you to decide. My practice is to alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day, as I feel comfortable. When I start to feel tired and my legs need a break, I sit down, and when I feel like I’ve been sitting for long enough, I stand. And every 30 minutes to an hour of sitting at my desk working, I get up and do some form of movement, usually it’s a couple of minutes of rebounding, stretching, walking around the house or a few minutes of exercise and literally it’s just like 3 to 5 minutes. Now I appreciate that if you have chronic pelvic pain and a weak core from pelvic floor dysfunction and from living with chronic pain, that using a standing desk can be difficult to do. So I suggest starting when only you’re ready with smaller periods of time to build up the strength in the core and to also have a cushioned mat under your feet or cushioned slippers to soften the impact. If you need to first spend some time just practicing taking breaks with gentle movement to build up your strength, or if you need to do some physio first or work on pain alleviation, do that first. This is just an option and you have to do what feels right for you – don’t rush into using a standing desk just because I’ve talked about it today, make sure it’s the right choice for you. If you do buy a standing desk, you should also be swapping your positions when you’re standing up, so you’re not just constantly bearing down on your joints. I’ve linked to a helpful article in the show notes on different positions to adopt and how to stand in a healthy way when using a standing desk. There’s now mounting information on the health risks of sitting for long periods of time without breaks or movement, including heightened inflammation, which you guys know is super important for us to keep on top of, so if you’re employed by a company, they really shouldn’t be surprised by you asking for a standing desk. And in fact, it should fall under reasonable adjustments to help make you feel more comfortable when living with endometriosis. If you have trouble getting your company to agree, I suggest having a listen to my interviews with Vickie Williams and Clare from See Her Thrive, which are both about your rights as an employee with endometriosis in the workplace. If you’re curious to learn more about the health considerations and research behind prolonged sitting, I’ve linked to a couple of articles in the show notes. If you’re self-employed like I am, you can easily order a standing desk online. Prices range dramatically from whole desks which adjust to become either a seated or standing desk at about £1000 or cardboard desk toppers that you just put on top of your desk, and that you rest your keyboard and computer or laptop on, and these are around £15. If you’re not quite ready for a standing desk or you’d like something extra to support your pelvis further when sitting, it’s best to take a quick break from sitting every 30 minutes if possible. I recently spoke to Rachal Dutton, The Period Whisperer, and she suggested getting up and doing hip circles both clockwise and anticlockwise for a minute or so or doing cat cow stretches whilst still in your chair. There are tonnes of movements you can do whilst seated to give your pelvis a quick break, so if you’d like more options, do some extra research until you find some that suit you! To bring this unusually controversial tip to an end, I want to reassure you that if you need to sit down or lay down regularly, it’s okay. The key really is about trying to add in healthy movement as and when your health allows, and to take frequent short breaks from the sitting position, again as and when your health allows. I understand that there are days when all you can do is stay curled up, I’ve been there too! But on the days when you feel stronger, consider some small movements like rotating your hips or a quick cat cow to break things up a bit. 5. Pelvic floor stretches You knew I was going to go there. Pelvic floor physio stretches are essential, in my opinion, to loosening adhesions and freeing up a frozen pelvis. Of course, in an ideal world, we’d all go to pelvic floor physiotherapists who can give us tailored stretches to do daily at home, but that’s not an option for some people on smaller incomes. So if that’s you, you’ll be pleased to know that there are so many pelvic floor stretches for endo and chronic pelvic pain available online and in books. I’ve linked to videos, articles and books in the show notes for you to choose from, and all of these are designed by professional and specialised women’s health pelvic floor physiotherapists. What I will say is to listen to your body here. If you’re experiencing pain, or you have a strong reaction, ease up or try a different stretch – you may be currently too tight or ‘frozen’ in the pelvic area to attempt certain stretches for the time being, so start slower and allow some space and flexibility to build before attempting those pain triggering ones again. You could add these in during your day, as part of your break from sitting, or in the morning as a way to wake your body up, or in the evening to help you to wind down. Whatever it is, find a time that suits you and don’t worry, you don’t have to spend half an hour on this! Ten or even five minutes is fine! Just start and try to get them in as often as possible, daily if you can – but don’t stress if you can’t! Now of course, I don’t know your personal circumstances, so if stretching isn’t the right choice for you right now, don’t worry, try something else from this list that is. 6. Proteolytic enzymes Alright, number six is proteolytic enzymes. Proteolytic enzymes are enzymes which break down proteins into amino acids. Proteolytic enzymes, when used for healing, help to reduce inflammation post-surgery and aid in clearing waste products from the wound site, and help to reduce adhesion formation. This is because of course, the building blocks of tissue are proteins! However, because they reduce adhesion formation, there is the risk that if there is an infection at the site of the wound, that it could spread, as adhesions play a role in isolating infection sites from the rest of the body. This is rare but has been known to happen. Another thing to note is that the research is limited, with most of the research being in oral surgery or sports related injuries. The only study we have on enzymes for endo specifically is one we use commonly at IWHI and that’s Wobenzyme. Wobenzyme was shown to reduce pain and inflammation post-surgery and inhibit the formation of new blood vessels, reducing the chances of further endo development and adhesion formation. The dose used in the study was the label dose for 40-60 days pre-op and then 60 days post op. You need to take Wobenzyme away from food, otherwise the enzymes will just be used for digestion. Now most of the studies on adhesion formation are conducted pre and post-op, so I really can’t say whether they’d make a difference if you surgery was five years ago for example, my instinct is that they wouldn’t aid with the adhesions but they might help with inflammation. 7. Castor oil So number seven is castor oil and this one is also a little controversial, so I’ll provide you with the info and you can make your own decision about it. I know countless leading women’s health practitioners who use castor oil to soften and break down adhesions and who experience great success with it with their clients. However, it’s generally considered that more research needs to be done, though there is research on castor oil’s abilities to lower inflammation, reduce symptoms of constipation, improve circulation, and stimulate muscle relaxation. You may have heard Arvigo Therapist Tara Ghosh break it down in my interview with her. She explained that castor oil actually triggers the immune system, due to some of its chemical components, however, on responding to the call and finding no poison to clear, the immune system goes about utilising its tools on repairing and healing the pelvic area, which in turn helps to break down and clear adhesions. She also emphasises that the lowering of inflammation and improving of blood flow to the area, thanks to castor oil, is part of how this process works. She’s not the only fan either. I had a conversation about castor oil with my colleagues and so many of them used castor oil packs to break down adhesions, and Nicole Jardim is a fan of using them for endometriosis and period pain. So if you want to learn how to make your own castor oil pack and how and when to safely use them, I advise listening to my interview with Tara who has a really quick and easy method as opposed to the often messy and sticky traditional approach! 8. Heat Therapy Last up is heat therapy. Yet another controversial one. Heat therapy is often used by practitioners to help loosen fascia, muscles and break down adhesions. I recently spoke to Rachel Dutton who strongly recommended it to me to help with the lower right side of my pelvis, which is really stuck and isn’t responding well to body work therapy because it’s just too frozen and so I need to start with a gentler approach. She explained to me that heat therapy stimulates blood flow, which as a result helps to break down scar tissue and suggested this as one of the first options I should try. Additionally, increased blood flow will allow the muscles to relax as more oxygen is delivered and so any muscles which were contracting due to restricted access to oxygen, which is common when you have a tight, bunched up pelvis, can start to loosen and become more mobile. There’s also research showing how heat therapy can prevent adhesions from building up so much after injury. Unfortunately PubMed was down at the time of writing this, so I haven’t got a tonne of studies to stick in the show notes but I’ve put in a few articles and one or two studies, and of course you can do some of your own research as well. So now the controversy comes in. Some sources, but not many, claim that heat can loosen adhesions and fascia and then as they cool, they stiffen up again, and become stiffer than before. I dug into this further and honestly, I couldn’t really decipher how they sources came to that conclusion, and I spoke to multiple colleagues about this who were equally as baffled and looked at the articles with me, and didn’t really feel the claims were fully supported. However, one research paper does discuss the rebound phenomenon, where the positive effects of heat therapy are actually only present for 20-30 minutes. So for 20 to 30 minutes, blood vessel dilate and blood flow increases, but afterwards, the blood vessels actually start to constrict again, preventing blood flow, so this is definitely worth taking into consideration. After I raised this to my colleagues, they all agreed that they only use heat therapy for 20 to 30 minutes in terms of hot water bottles, normally applied alongside castor oil packs and perhaps alongside a massage therapy treatment. They were also very keen to stress that they never use boiling water in a hot water bottle, only warm water. However, I’m curious about whether we can go a step further than hot water bottles. For a long time now, I’ve been very interested in the research behind infrared therapy, which has been shown to heal muscle injury, tissue damage and lower inflammation. For this reason, I’ve been really curious about infrared sauna belts and infrared heat pads for my chronic bladder pain, because they have so many benefits, but I just haven’t bought one yet as I’m spending so much on SIBO healing. The prices that I have seen range between £50 and £60, so not that expensive, but for some of us a hot water bottle is the more affordable choice. So whilst I can be sure about the theory that adhesions and muscles get worse after heat therapy, clinically, heat therapy seems to achieve remarkable results, especially when combined with castor oil packs and massage. Of course, if you’re going to use hot water bottles, just keep it to less than 30 minutes and don’t use water straight off the boil. I think a wonderful way to try heat therapy is to use heat 30 minutes prior to a home massage, like Arvigo Therapy, to relax and soften the muscles so they’re more pliable and open to movement and stretch. So I hope that has given you some ideas to help you soften your fascia, loosen adhesions and release a frozen pelvis. Remember, what works for one may not work for another, always listen to your body and be guided by what it’s telling you and ideally, consult a practitioner if you can afford to do so. I would love to hear which strategies you try and how you get on! Please remember I am not a physiotherapist or a masseuse. This information comes from my training as a health coach, my conversations and interviews with leading pelvic floor physios and my experiences a patient. This podcast is here for educational purposes only. Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis’. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes Adhesions https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11528133/ Foam Rolling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJOzcFS6fGE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umTObqSYay0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6cR3knKFIA Visceral Manipulation https://www.iahp.com/pages/search/index.php https://clearpassage.com https://www.merciertherapy.com (You currently need to email them directly for a referral) Arvigo Therapy https://www.arvigotherapy.com/team-members Sitting https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/expert-answers/sitting/faq-20058005 https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/why-sitting-too-much-is-bad-for-us/ https://www.startstanding.org/standing-desks/10-standing-desk-mistakes/#positions Stretching https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXigFK5hLLF82uZ72jzTvmg/videos https://www.harpercollins.com/products/beating-endo-iris-kerin-orbuch-mdamy-stein-dpt?variant=32903931691042 https://thepelvicexpert.com/blog/6-simple-exercises-to-ease-endometriosis/ Heat Therapy https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31115522/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6214933/ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/300270473_Superficial_Heat_and_Cold_Applications_in_the_Treatment_of_Knee_Osteoarthritis Castor Oil https://nicolejardim.com/castor-oil/

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My Experience of the Elemental Diet for SIBO

Play Episode Listen Later May 19, 2021 65:35

If you have bloating or what’s commonly known as the endo belly - SIBO is something to pay attention to. Small intestine bacterial overgrowth is incredibly common within the endometriosis community, in fact, recent research has shown that up to 80% of endometriosis patients may have SIBO. So how can you treat it if you test positive? One of the treatment options is the elemental diet, and today’s episode is all about my experience of the elemental diet for SIBO. Those of you who are following my SIBO journey may know that I’ve already completed three rounds of antimicrobials, to find out how that went, have a listen to episode 126 - My SIBO Treatment: An Update. After three rounds my hydrogen was at 63ppm and my methane levels were at 10ppm, given that the elemental diet reduces gas levels by 70ppm on average, this seemed like a good time to try the elemental diet and potentially clear my SIBO in one final round. So what is the elemental diet? The elemental diet is a powdered (sometimes liquid) formula that includes all of your calories and nutrients in a predigested state so that your gut can absorb your nutrients immediately instead of taking time to digest them. This means you get fed, but the SIBO archae or bacteria starve because there’s no time for them to feast on your food during digestion. It also allows your gut the chance to heal because it’s not having to do any work, and for this reason, the diet is also used for people with severe gut health conditions like crohn's, ulcerative colitis, coeliac disease, malabsorption and in hospitals for patients who can’t eat for other medical reasons. It’s safe (though must be followed carefully and correctly to be so), well studied and evidence based and includes everything you need, from macro to micro nutrients. For SIBO, this powder is blended with water and oil (if fat isn’t included in your formula) and poured over ice. This shake is the only source of food for 12-21 days, with the purpose being to starve and therefore kill the SIBO bacteria or archaea. You are of course also allowed to drink water alongside this. Some patients have experimented with weak black teas and coffee, and plain boiled or baked chicken or steak (trimmed of fat and skin) and this has worked for some, but has not been proven in studies. The elemental diet as I said earlier, reduces gas levels on average by 70ppm, but has in some cases has reduced by up to 150ppm, which is incredible! It’s 80% effective at eradicating SIBO after 2 weeks, and 85% effective at 3 weeks, so it’s a really great tool for those with high gas levels. However, it’s expensive, at about £600 to £1000 per round and is also emotionally and physically challenging, so the decision to go ahead with the elemental diet shouldn’t be taken lightly! I wanted to share my experience of the elemental diet with you all, as it can be an overwhelming treatment to contemplate trying and so I hope my experience will help you to make an informed decision and will hopefully also help you to have a better experience if you do go ahead with this form of treatment. So in this episode, I discuss: How much I spent on the elemental diet, and how I planned and prepared for it. The challenges of the first week - in particular, blood sugar dysregulation (severe) and die off. How I tweaked my formula to achieve better blood sugar regulation and how that completely transformed my experience of the elemental diet in the second week. How I felt emotionally, from my feelings about socialising and sharing my experience with friends and family to crying over my boyfriend’s pizza! The benefits I experienced, from stabilised and sustained energy in the second week to laser sharp focus. My SIBO results - they’re not what I expected - and why I’m back on the elemental diet (yes, really)! I really hope that this episode is useful to you, whether you’re about to start the elemental diet or you recently had your SIBO diagnosis and you’re contemplating what’s next for you. Please feel free to direct message me on Instagram if I’ve missed anything that you’re particularly interested in! Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis’. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes The SIBO, Endometriosis and Interstitial Cystitis Connection wth Dr. Allison Siebecker How To Treat SIBO with Dr Allison Siebecker Understanding The Endometriosis Belly, Part 3: SIBO Symptoms How Do You Know When to Test for SIBO? How to Test for SIBO at Home Understanding The Endometriosis Belly, Part 1 Understanding The Endometriosis Belly, Part 2

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La Puerta Naranja Mágica - Capítulo Uno

Play Episode Listen Later May 7, 2021 24:03

This episode is the Spanish version of chapter one of The Magical Orange Doorway, translated by Leydis Vollar for the young people in Lima, Peru, and created to launch a sustainable food project. Background This story has been created for London Climate Action Week during a global pandemic. It is inspired by zoom meetings and by a belief that despite everything there is much hope and magic. The story launches a sustainable food project between two groups of young people: Year 7 students at Glebe School, an SEN school in the London Borough of Bromley and young people in a refuge on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. How will this work students in both places (initially Glebe, later Lima) will trial their school food project. their feedback will be presented monthly by 'Minerva' and 'Edmund' in the form of a new episode of the magical orange doorway at the same time, a blog will be written (hosted by Semble) discussing 'learnings' from experts in the field the project will continue for 12 months and will report its findings to COP26 The project has two parallel journeys: A school based case study based around sustainable food, language, culture, and place. It is part of a wider school project called Proyecto Peru. A working group of experts that will advise, critique and support the schools based on their own expertise in education, sustainable food, language, culture, and place. People The voice of Edmund is played by Martin Crabbe, Head of Geography at Glebe School. Martin was inspired to write this story by the grandmother of Martin Allen Morales , by the Wild Area and by so many other things you will have to wait until his blog comes out next week on Semble (Wednesday 25th November)! The narration and voice of Minerva are played by Leydis Vollar, Head of Modern Foreign Languages at Glebe School. Leydis will translate each episode of the story into Spanish for our friends in Peru. People who are about to become involved...Mark McKillop, Head of RE, Glebe School Martin Allen Morales - advisor, inspiration Malini Mehra - advisor The young people of Glebe and in the refuge in Lima Many other experts as we continue. And if this magical story inspires you why not get involved from your own perspective? And tell us how you get on. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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The Magical Orange Doorway - Chapter Three

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 30, 2021 44:01

A magical audio-story, created to launch a sustainable food project. In this chapter Minerva steps through the magical orange doorway, explores the Wild Area and meets the tyre-swingers. Everyone receives a visit from a giant, and then they plan a special event... Background This story has been created for London Climate Action Week during a global pandemic. It is inspired by zoom meetings and by a belief that despite everything there is much hope and magic. The story launches a sustainable food project between two groups of young people: Year 7 students at Glebe School, an SEN school in the London Borough of Bromley and young people in a refuge on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. How will this work students in both places (initially Glebe, later Lima) will trial their school food project their feedback will be presented monthly by 'Minerva' and 'Edmund' in the form of a new episode of the magical orange doorway at the same time, a blog will be written (hosted by Semble) discussing 'learnings' from experts in the field the project will continue for 12 months and will report its findings to COP26 The project has two parallel journeys: A school based case study based around sustainable food, language, culture, and place. It is part of a wider school project called Proyecto Peru A working group of experts that will advise, critique and support the schools based on their own expertise in education, sustainable food, language, culture, and place People The voice of Edmund and the narration are by Martin Crabbe, Head of Geography at Glebe School. Martin was inspired to write this story by the grandmother of Martin Allen Morales , by the Wild Area and by so many other things! The voice of Minerva is played by Leydis Vollar, Head of Modern Foreign Languages at Glebe School. Leydis will also translate each episode of the story into Spanish for our friends in Peru. People who are about to become involved... Mark McKillop, Head of RE, Glebe School Martin Allen Morales - advisor, inspiration Malini Mehra - advisor The young people of Glebe and in the refuge in Lima Many other experts as we continue. And if this magical story inspires you why not get involved from your own perspective? And tell us how you get on. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Prioritising Your Health and Celebrating your Endo Wins with Jessica Murnane

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 30, 2021 56:35

This week I caught up with the wonderful Jessica Murnane, talking about her new book, Know Your Endo, which is out now. If you didn’t manage to catch the IG Live, you can listen to our interview here, where we talk about: How she found writing a book about endo - in the middle of COVID! How to prioritise your health with endo without feeling guilty or overwhelmed. Defining what your ‘best’ is with endo and how to walk the line between accepting that some symptoms may not fully resolve (but can be reduced) whilst also recognising when there is a deep root cause to be investigated. How she celebrates her progress with endo and practices self-compassion. Her key tools for managing endo including knowing your endo, stress management, good food, movement and changing our body/home products for more endo friendly versions. Navigating relationships, having friends with endo and looking after yourself in community spaces. How to be an advocate for endo without the burn out! Jessica’s new book Know Your Endo is out now in the UK, US, Canada and Australia. Listen and subscribe on your favourite player or listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram or sign up to my newsletter. This episode is sponsored by my free guide ‘A Natural Pain Relief Tool Kit for Endometriosis’. This four page guide includes evidence based and effective remedies which you can use at home to reduce your pain with endo. Download your copy here. My cookbook This EndoLife, It Starts with Breakfast is out now! Get 28 anti-inflammatory, hormone friendly recipes for living and thriving with endometriosis. Order your copy here. If you feel like you need more support with managing endometriosis, you can join Your EndoLife Coaching Programme. A 1-to-1 three month health and life coaching programme to help you thrive with endometriosis. To find out more about the programme and to discuss whether it could be right for you, email me at hello@thisendolife.com or visit my website. This episode is sponsored by The Pod Farm. Learn all about how to start your own podcast with the complete course from The Pod Farm. Aimed at beginners, this course takes a simple and straightforward approach to planning, equipment buying, setting up, recording, editing and hosting your own podcast. With hours of audio and video materials, and downloadable guides and useful links, this multimedia approach aims to have something for every kind of learner. From now until April 15, newsletter subscribers get 20% off the course price. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to enroll or find out more This episode is sponsored by BeYou. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches and CBD range. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk Show Notes jessicamurnane.com Know Your Endo

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Replay: Learning From Insects with Bridget Nicholls of Pestival

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2021 41:35

To mark the start of Pestival project 'Make More Insects', we are replaying the interview Martin did with the remarkable Bridget Nicholls. Bridget conceived of Pestival (http://www.pestival.org/) in 2004, and has gained international status as a world authority on eco-entertainment, in particular cultural entomology. In 2010 she was awarded the first International Zoo Art Fellowship of the Zoological Society of London, a role created for her, voted Woman to Watch – Cultural Leadership Programme 2010 and named CRZ Cultural Engineer by Honda for her outstanding sustainable and ecological entrepreneurship. More recently, Nicholls won a Capital Awards Grant from the Wellcome Trust to fund her ongoing work with the Pestival mission. Martin and Bridget discuss how insects inspired Bridget to create Pestival, how out of the box thinking can enhance schools and learning, and Bridget teases her brand new project 'Make More Insects (by any means possible!)'. Other links mentioned in the podcast: Pestival (http://www.pestival.org/) Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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REPLAY | Audio Repair Magic: iZotope RX 7

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 22, 2021 16:32

For the next 8 weeks I'm going to be delivering the course, so I'm taking a break from the podcast. During that time, I'll be posting 8 of the most popular episodes from 2020 for anyone who's new around here, or as a refresher to everyone else. I'll be back with new content very soon! So when I recorded the mouth sounds episode a few weeks back, I wasn't completely honest with you... There is another tool that we use here at The Pod Farm to repair audio and remove pesky mouth sounds and other unwanted features of a recording. That tool is RX 7 from iZotope (https://www.izotope.com/en/products/rx.html). RX 7 is a powerful set of audio repair tools that enable users to easily repair audio, remove breaths, mouth clicks, reverb, noise and so much more, all for a very reasonable price! Listen to this episode to find out a bit about what this powerful set of modules can do. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to check out more of what we do and check out our other resources. www.instagram.com/thepodfarm www.facebook.com/thepodfarm www.youtube.com/thepodfarm www.twitter.com/thepodfarm Music: Sunshower - LATASHÁ

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Munros, Forest Schools and 'Linking the Thinking' with Douglas Crabbe

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 16, 2021 44:07

As part of a series of interviews in which Martin will be interviewing teachers from outside of London in the run up to COP26, Martin is speaking to Scottish primary school teacher - and his brother - Dougie. Dougie is a munroist and Forest Schools leader, whose current professional role supports families and schools across the borders in getting their young people engaged back into school life. In this episode, Martin and Dougie discuss using the outdoors as a tool to engage young people, Scotland's 'curriculum for excellence', and 'linking the thinking'. Other links mentioned in the podcast: COP26 (https://ukcop26.org/) Scottish Curriculum for Excellence (shorturl.at/hrNOR) Maggie's Centres (https://www.maggies.org/) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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REPLAY | Battle of the Free Audio Editors: Audacity vs. Garageband

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 1, 2021 12:37

For the next 8 weeks I'm going to be delivering the course, so I'm taking a break from the podcast. During that time, I'll be posting 8 of the most popular episodes from 2020 for anyone who's new around here, or as a refresher to everyone else. I'll be back with new content very soon! Welcome to the very first episode of 'How to Record a Podcast' from The Pod Farm. In our inaugural show we're going to be looking at two of the most popular free audio editors - Audacity and Garageband - and comparing the two to help you decide which program is best suited for your needs. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to check out more of what we do and check out our other resources. www.instagram.com/thepodfarm www.facebook.com/thepodfarm www.youtube.com/thepodfarm www.twitter.com/thepodfarm Music: Sunshower - LATASHÁ

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Learning From Insects with Bridget Nicholls of Pestival

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 29, 2021 41:50

This week Martin is talking to the remarkable Bridget Nicholls. Bridget conceived of Pestival (http://www.pestival.org/) in 2004, and has gained international status as a world authority on eco-entertainment, in particular cultural entomology. In 2010 she was awarded the first International Zoo Art Fellowship of the Zoological Society of London, a role created for her, voted Woman to Watch – Cultural Leadership Programme 2010 and named CRZ Cultural Engineer by Honda for her outstanding sustainable and ecological entrepreneurship. More recently, Nicholls won a Capital Awards Grant from the Wellcome Trust to fund her ongoing work with the Pestival mission. Martin and Bridget discuss how insects inspired Bridget to create Pestival, how out of the box thinking can enhance schools and learning, and Bridget teases her brand new project 'Make More Insects (by any means possible!)'. Other links mentioned in the podcast: Pestival (http://www.pestival.org/) Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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The Easiest Way to Start a Podcast THIS WEEK!

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 18, 2021 18:22

Want to take your first steps launching your new podcast this week? The Pod Farm can help! Listen to this episode for a behind the scenes tour of PODCAST FROM SCRATCH. This new course is a complete guide to starting a podcast - covering everything from equipment and planning, to editing and marketing. PLUS - learn all about the bonuses you'll get for signing up. I'm really proud of this course - and I can't wait for you to join me in starting your new podcast! Enroll on the course here from Tuesday 19th: https://www.thepodfarm.com/course/ Find out more about the live event and book your place here: https://www.thepodfarm.com/workshop-sign-up Download the New Podcast Checklist for 2021 here: https://mailchi.mp/61a959c70a73/new-podcast-checklist-2021 Visit www.thepodfarm.com to check out more of what we do and check out our other resources. www.instagram.com/thepodfarm www.facebook.com/thepodfarm www.youtube.com/thepodfarm www.twitter.com/thepodfarm Music: Sunshower - LATASHÁ

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A Teacher's Perspective On COVID-19 From Inside a School

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 7, 2021 31:43

In this episode Martin speaks as the voice of one teacher, talking in a time of crisis, from the perspective of one school. Martin talks from a purely personal perspective on the current COVID-19 situation, the new lockdown and the role school's have played in the run up to the decision, Martin examines how his school is coping with the new lockdown, how things have changed since the first lockdown in March 2020, and he explores these topics through a mantra he uses throughout his geography field work lesson - safety first, fun second, learning third. Finally, Martin shares some exciting news about a series of meetings leading up to the Schools Climate Summit, and a renewed focus for sustainable schools. To find out more about some of the resources Martin talked about in the podcast: Project Peru and the Magical Orange Doorway: http://www.magicalorangedoorway.co.uk/about-us.html London Climate Action Week (schools): http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/london-climate-action-week.html To find out more about Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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The Need for a London Schools Summit on Climate with Malini Mehra

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 17, 2020 39:18

In this episode, Martin talks with co-chair of the London Climate Action Week Schools Group, Malini Mehra. Malini is the CEO of GLOBE International (http://globelegislators.org/), the environmental legislators organisation. She has more than three decades of experience on sustainability, gender, human rights and climate in multiple sectors. From leading international campaigns for Friends of the Earth International, Oxfam and other NGOs to founding an award-winning Indian climate & sustainability NGO, she has co-authored the UN's Human Development Reports and advised the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, on UN reform. Currently, she is a commissioner to the Mayor of London on sustainable development, and an adviser to the head of the UN's disaster risk agency. A keen swimmer, she founded the Teach A Girl To Swim (https://teachagirltoswim.org/) campaign to highlight the hidden global epidemic of drowning and connect it with the climate crisis and girls empowerment. She is based in London, where she raises her three children, and helped initiate the annual London Climate Action Week. Martin and Malini reflect on the successes of this year's event, what lessons they learned from it, how the pandemic has changed not just the event, but the conversation around climate, and the need for a unified direction for schools to take climate action. Catch up on events from this year's LCAW: How London Schools and Early Years Settings can Adapt to Climate Change (shorturl.at/dtuz5) Choose Life! Film (shorturl.at/jJMX7) LCAW 2020 Launch Film (shorturl.at/clnJ1) Let's Go Zero: The National Zero Carbon Schools Campaign Interview with Martin Crabbe (shorturl.at/kBNZ5) Ashden Awards 2020 (shorturl.at/ey079) Semble Webinar (shorturl.at/dvwI1) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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The Magical Orange Doorway - Chapter Two

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 17, 2020 9:12

A magical audio-story, created for London Climate Action Week 2020, to launch a sustainable food project. In this chapter Edmund gets another visit from Minerva the magical Jaguar, who brings a Christmas message for him and the year 7 students of Glebe school... Background This story has been created for London Climate Action Week during a global pandemic. It is inspired by zoom meetings and by a belief that despite everything there is much hope and magic. The story launches a sustainable food project between two groups of young people: Year 7 students at Glebe School, an SEN school in the London Borough of Bromley and young people in a refuge on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. How will this work students in both places (initially Glebe, later Lima) will trial their school food project their feedback will be presented monthly by 'Minerva' and 'Edmund' in the form of a new episode of the magical orange doorway at the same time, a blog will be written (hosted by Semble) discussing 'learnings' from experts in the field the project will continue for 12 months and will report its findings to COP26 The project has two parallel journeys: A school based case study based around sustainable food, language, culture, and place. It is part of a wider school project called Proyecto Peru A working group of experts that will advise, critique and support the schools based on their own expertise in education, sustainable food, language, culture, and place People The voice of Edmund and the narration are by Martin Crabbe, Head of Geography at Glebe School. Martin was inspired to write this story by the grandmother of Martin Allen Morales , by the Wild Area and by so many other things! The voice of Minerva is played by Leydis Vollar, Head of Modern Foreign Languages at Glebe School. Leydis will also translate each episode of the story into Spanish for our friends in Peru. People who are about to become involved... Mark McKillop, Head of RE, Glebe School Martin Allen Morales - advisor, inspiration Malini Mehra - advisor The young people of Glebe and in the refuge in Lima Many other experts as we continue. And if this magical story inspires you why not get involved from your own perspective? And tell us how you get on. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Celebrating Some Highlights From London Climate Action Week 2020

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 3, 2020 73:30

Today's podcast is a special celebration of London Climate Action Week 2020 (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/). The week had over 200 events, with over 30,000 people taking part across a huge range of sectors. Due to pandemic, the majority of the events took place virtually - but they weren't any less inspiring! This episode aims to give you a flavour of the week with a focus on schools and the young people involved, so Martin has selected a montage of clips from his favourite things from the week. The first clip is the Choose Life! video inspired by the film Trainspotting, and, followed by the LCAW launch film. Following that is an introduction to the Let's Go Zero campaign (https://letsgozero.org/) with Alex Green from Ashden (https://ashden.org/) featuring a short clip of an interview with Martin. Then there's a poem from poet Rakaya Fetuga at the Ashden Awards, followed by an interview led by Studio 2909 (https://www.studio2909.org/) with sixth form students from Sydney Russell School in Dagenham. After that is a few words from Zamzam Ibrahim - president of the NUS, then clips from the Semble (https://semble.org/) webinar Supporting Youth Climate Action in our Communities, featuring Amanda Horton-Mastin, Carley Sefton, Mya-Rose Craig, and the incredible Eco Emeralds. Events and other links featured in the podcast: How London Schools and Early Years Settings can Adapt to Climate Change (shorturl.at/dtuz5) Choose Life! Film (shorturl.at/jJMX7) LCAW 2020 Launch Film (shorturl.at/clnJ1) Let's Go Zero: The National Zero Carbon Schools Campaign Interview with Martin Crabbe (shorturl.at/kBNZ5) Ashden Awards 2020 (shorturl.at/ey079) Semble Webinar (shorturl.at/dvwI1) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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The Magical Orange Doorway - Chapter One

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 18, 2020 19:42

A magical audio-story, created for London Climate Action Week 2020, to launch a sustainable food project. Background This story has been created for London Climate Action Week during a global pandemic. It is inspired by zoom meetings and by a belief that despite everything there is much hope and magic. The story launches a sustainable food project between two groups of young people: Year 7 students at Glebe School, an SEN school in the London Borough of Bromley and young people in a refuge on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. How will this work students in both places (initially Glebe, later Lima) will trial their school food project. their feedback will be presented monthly by 'Minerva' and 'Edmund' in the form of a new episode of the magical orange doorway at the same time, a blog will be written (hosted by Semble) discussing 'learnings' from experts in the field the project will continue for 12 months and will report its findings to COP26 The project has two parallel journeys: A school based case study based around sustainable food, language, culture, and place. It is part of a wider school project called Proyecto Peru. A working group of experts that will advise, critique and support the schools based on their own expertise in education, sustainable food, language, culture, and place. People The voice of Edmund and the narration are played by Martin Crabbe, Head of Geography at Glebe School. Martin was inspired to write this story by the grandmother of Martin Allen Morales , by the Wild Area and by so many other things you will have to wait until his blog comes out next week on Semble (Wednesday 25th November)! The voice of Minerva is played by Leydis Vollar, Head of Modern Foreign Languages at Glebe School. Leydis will also translate each episode of the story into Spanish for our friends in Peru. People who are about to become involved... Mark McKillop, Head of RE, Glebe School Martin Allen Morales - advisor, inspiration Malini Mehra - advisor The young people of Glebe and in the refuge in Lima Many other experts as we continue. And if this magical story inspires you why not get involved from your own perspective? And tell us how you get on. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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What's Happening During London Climate Action Week 2020

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 12, 2020 21:15

London Climate Action Week 2020 (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/) starts on Saturday 14th November and as an aim of this podcast is to get schools involved in LCAW, Martin shares some highlights to expect in the coming week. You can check out the full diary of events here (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/events). Martin also talks about episodes of the podcast that will be highlighted during the week, The School's Pack of free lesson plans (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/london-climate-action-week.html), and a special surprise for Wednesday lunchtime... Events mentioned in the podcast: Youth Climate summit 2020 (https://www.transform-our-world.org/youth-climate-summit-2020) School & University Partnerships for Climate Action (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/events/0487f462-a947-4ec5-8a82-0cb17e2e0e5a) Let's Go Zero: the zero carbon schools campaign (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/events/7729bd81-dd66-4965-86a0-099919c67b4c) Breathing Space: accessing clean air to imagine the future (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/events/b1c39378-9f46-4df8-8616-9c025debaa78) Youth Demands for Climate Justice: Action on Loss and Damage (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/events/90e2acb2-ef01-4d60-ac9d-eedb8644fda0) Climate Café (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/events/f7308088-987a-49d9-8786-69351770c096) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Kids, Community and Climate Action with Lorna Cumming-Bruce of Semble

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2020 49:26

Lorna works for Semble (https://semble.org/) (formerly Project Dirt), a platform that brings together businesses and community projects to make change happen from the grassroots up, and a long time partner of Outdoor Classroom Day. Lorna believes in the power of storytelling to inspire real change; and spends her days devising wonderful ways to celebrate community action. In this episode, Martin and Lorna discuss the work that Semble are doing with kids, communities and climate action, through two of their major campaigns: Backyard Nature and Outdoor Classroom Day. Lorna also talks about an exciting webinar Semble are hosting during London Climate Action Week. Other links mentioned in the podcast: Backyard Nature (https://www.backyardnature.org/) Prince William: A Planet For Us All (https://www.itv.com/hub/prince-william-a-planet-for-us-all/10a0440) Outdoor Classroom Day Webinar (3rd November) (shorturl.at/fjpI4) Embedding Youth Climate Action in the Community Webinar (17th November) (shorturl.at/fvDZ9) Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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How the Greater London Authority is Helping Schools Take Climate Action with Annette Figueiredo

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 9, 2020 51:36

Annette Figueiredo works with the Greater London Authority (GLA) (https://www.london.gov.uk/about-us/how-we-work-london). She is instrumental in developing environmental programmes for London schools based around water, air quality and climate resilience. Her work is set within the context of the London Environment Strategy and addresses ways that London can adapt to climate change whilst meeting London's zero carbon emissions target by 2050. It integrates planning, health, transport and social policy areas. Annette has recently led the development of a Guidance document for schools/nurseries on how they can adapt to London's changing climate. It considers three areas in detail: higher temperatures, flooding and water scarcity. Martin and Annette have worked together on various projects over a number of years. In this episode, Martin and Annette discuss the risks to London schools of poor air quality, rising temperatures, flooding and water shortages and how they can adapt to these environmental changes. They touch on some of the resources and reports the Greater London Authority produce to help schools take climate action and links to these are provided below. Other links mentioned in the podcast: The Mayor's school air quality audit programme (https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/pollution-and-air-quality/mayors-school-air-quality-audit-programme) How London Schools and Early Years Settings can Adapt to Climate Change (https://www.london.gov.uk/WHAT-WE-DO/environment/environment-publications/how-schools-and-early-years-settings-can-adapt-climate-change) Re-imagining Rainwater in Schools (https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/reimagining_rainwater_in_schools_v1_.pdf) Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Loose Parts and Risk Taking: Improving Children's Play with Cath Prisk of Outdoor People

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 25, 2020 44:57

Cath Prisk, CEO of Outdoor People (https://outdoorpeople.org.uk/) and Global Partnerships Director for Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/), is a well respected thinker and advocate for children and the outdoors. She has led large scale programmes, campaigns and research, both in the UK and globally, based around outdoor play and learning. Her work has always supported children, schools and families and has helped governments, corporates and charities to meet their aims. In this episode, Martin and Cath discuss the importance of time spent outdoors for children's development. Cath discusses how schools can improve their students' play including how to maximise play areas with limited resources and space. Cath discusses the global growth of Outdoor Classroom Day and why celebrating the outdoors is more important now than ever. They also take a trip to the beach! Other links mentioned in the podcast: Outdoor Play And Learning (OPAL) (https://outdoorplayandlearning.org.uk/) Learning Through Landscapes (https://www.ltl.org.uk/) Teacher Tom's Blog - (http://teachertomsblog.blogspot.com/) Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Black Lives Matter and its Implications for Climate Action with Judy Ling Wong

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 11, 2020 48:47

This week Martin talks to the remarkable Judy Ling Wong CBE, OBE. Judy is an artist, poet, dancer, environmental activist and a founder of the Black Environment Network (BEN - http://www.ben-network.org.uk/). Martin and Judy first met in the late 90's and Martin has since worked for and with Judy on projects such as Sowing the Seeds and London National Park City. In this episode, Martin and Judy discuss her journey from Hong Kong to becoming one of the most respected figures in the environmental movement - not just in the UK, but across the world. Judy also shares her perspectives on the Black Lives Matter movement and its implications for climate action. Other links mentioned in the podcast: Judy's own website with some further remarkable info that we didn't have time to include: http://www.judylingwong.co.uk/ NCVO: https://www.ncvo.org.uk/ Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/ TCV - https://www.tcv.org.uk/ World parks congress - https://www.worldparkscongress.org/ Groundwork - https://www.groundwork.org.uk/ Climate Reframe (docsociety) - https://climatereframe.co.uk/ Centre for Alternative Technology - https://www.cat.org.uk/ National Trust - https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ Judy's simple but profound recommendations: Develop in your students a passion for nature, and a love of each other and relating to each other. Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Playful Naturaleza: Proyecto Perú and Outdoor Classroom Day

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2020 18:59

In this 'shorter than usual' episode, less really is more. In under 20 minutes Martin describes how this year's Outdoor Classroom Day provided inspiration to Proyecto Perú (Glebe school's global learning project). Martin tells the story in audiobook style, reading from a blog he wrote on May 26th. Martin describes how the school grounds became the perfect backdrop for developing the concept of playful nature - the theme of this year's Outdoor Classroom Day. The Proyecto Perú team renamed the day 'Playful Naturaleza'. It became a fun mixture of play, exploration, discussion, art and the powerful but simple use of Spanish. It would not be too strong a statement to say that the day ended with the audacity of hope. Accompanying this podcast Martin shares loads of brilliant lessons created by Outdoor Classroom Day, suitable for a range of age groups, to help you engage, not only in outdoor learning, but also in London Climate Action Week. Note on the blog that formed the basis of this podcast: It was the ninth blog out of a series of 12 blogs entitled 'Reflections'. The first blog was written April 8th, 2020. They were a deliberately reflective series, written in Lockdown, which ultimately led to the creation of the Doorways podcast. To read any of the 12 blogs entitled 'Reflections' click here. Each blog is hosted on Semble. And if you haven't heard of Semble (formerly Project Dirt) we recommend that you check them out immediately!! Martin's recommendations: Safety first, fun second, learning third 1. Safety - do your best to make your school more climate resilient (see Mayor's report above) 2. Fun - try to make lessons fun - the subject is serious but you are more likely to engage people for longer if they enjoy what they are doing 3. Learning - find the approach that you excel in or that interests you the most and start there Martin's school, the home of Proyecto Perú, is called Glebe School and you can access the website here (https://www.glebe.bromley.sch.uk/) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Let's Go Zero 2030 with Martin Crabbe

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2020 44:58

In this episode, Martin introduces us to an exciting new project called Let's Go Zero 2030 which will be launched in November 2020 at the Youth Climate Summit. This national project aims to get UK schools to become net zero by 2030. The project has been developed by Ashden but it is explicitly collaborative. Ashden have already started working with an impressive group of people including Global Action Plan, Ecoschools, Fairtrade, WWF, Sustrans, Soil Association, UKSCN, Salix and Carbon Trust. Martin gives an overview of Let's Go Zero 2030 and then offers some perspectives based on his years with London Sustainable Schools Forum. In the final part of the podcast Martin discusses how Proyecto Peru, a project in his own school, will participate in Let's Go Zero and provide case study evidence to the Youth Climate Summit. As part of this, Martin discussed a school food project based on circular economy principles that he has started working on with Martin Morales. During the podcast Martin mentioned this report by the London Mayor. IT IS RECOMMENDED READING: How London Schools and Early Years Settings can Adapt to Climate Change Martin also mentioned a charity he is working with called Project Peru. Martin's recommendations: Safety first, fun second, learning third 1. Safety - do your best to make your school more climate resilient (see Mayor's report above) 2. Fun - try to make lessons fun - the subject is serious but you are more likely to engage people for longer if they enjoy what they are doing 3. Learning - find the approach that you excel in or that interests you the most and start there At the end of the episode, Martin shares not one but 37 free lesson plans (climate actions), suitable for a range of age groups, to help you engage in London Climate Action Week. Find this episode's 37 supplementary lesson plans here. Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day Eco-Schools London National Park City Schools Network Great resources at Transform Our World Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum + London Climate Action Week This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm.

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The Importance of Engaging With a Wide Variety of People With Jordan Smallin

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 31, 2020 53:03

Jordan Smallin is a former GB bobsleigh athlete and boxer. Jordan graduated from Loughborough University in 2018 with a degree in Sports Science. Whilst there he started working as Security on the doors of the students union and in some of London's clubs and hotels. Jordan is also a campaigner on social justice issues such as Consent, Loneliness in Society and Black Lives Matter. During this podcast you can listen to Jordan talk about his journey from being a talented young science student to becoming a GB bobsleigh athlete, explain how he used this experience to inspire school students to pursue their dreams, and also how his security work, perhaps surprisingly, has helped him develop his perspectives on social justice. Finally, Jordan shares some reflections on lockdown, his love of nature and some tips on how to engage a more diverse range of students and educators into our sustainable schools work and London Climate Action Week. You can follow Jordan on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jrsmallin The Croydon-based organisation Martin mentioned is called Wild in the City and can be found at https://wildinthecity.org.uk/ Find out more about Generating Genius here https://generatinggenius.org.uk/ Follow TeamGB Bobsleigh here https://www.teamgb.com/winter-sports/bobsleigh Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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The Joy of the Small Outdoors With Anna Portch of Sunnyside Community Gardens

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2020 47:10

Anna Portch is the manager of an amazing green space in North London called Sunnyside Community Garden. She has a huge depth and breadth of experience in sustainable schools ranging from creating and then running Empty Classroom Day (now Outdoor Classroom day), to being the co-ordinator for Eco-Schools England, to being the manager of London Environmental Educators Forum. In this episode, Anna share her thoughts on changes in the sustainable schools sector, discusses the benefits of small green spaces to London communities and offers simple but important practical suggestions for schools to engage in London Climate Action Week. The show is hosted by Martin Crabbe, chair of the London Sustainable Schools Forum and a Geography teacher in London and takes place on location in Sunnyside. Plus, Anna and Martin have co-created and shared a free lesson plan, suitable for all age groups, to help you realise the joy of the small outdoors. You can find out more about Sunnyside at http://sunnysidecommunitygardens.org/ or on https://www.instagram.com/sunnysidecommunitygardens/. Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html). Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/). Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/). London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network). Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/). Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/). This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/).

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Introducing Doorways to Sustainable Schools with Martin Crabbe

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 2, 2020 34:04

Welcome to the first episode of Doorways to Sustainable Schools - a podcast aimed to support London schools to engage in London Climate Action Week 16th-22nd November 2020. (https://www.londonclimateactionweek.org/) The show will be hosted by Martin Crabbe, chair of the London Sustainable Schools Forum and a Geography teacher in London, but in this first episode, Martin is the one being interviewed. We talk about his reasons for starting the podcast and what to expect going forward, London Climate Action Week and how schools can start their journey in sustainability. Plus, Martin shares a free lesson plan, suitable for all age groups, to get us started. Find this episode's supplementary lesson plan here. (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/doorways-podcast.html) Start your school's journey into sustainability: Outdoor Classroom Day (https://outdoorclassroomday.com/) Eco-Schools (https://www.eco-schools.org.uk/) London National Park City (https://www.nationalparkcity.london/get-more-involved/get-more-involved-1/schools-network) Great resources at Transform Our World (https://www.transform-our-world.org/) Find out more about London Sustainable Schools Forum (http://www.londonsustainableschools.org/) This podcast was produced by The Pod Farm. (https://www.thepodfarm.com/)

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Audio Repair Magic: iZotope RX 7

Play Episode Listen Later May 25, 2020 16:04

So when I recorded the mouth sounds episode a few weeks back, I wasn't completely honest with you... There is another tool that we use here at The Pod Farm to repair audio and remove pesky mouth sounds and other unwanted features of a recording. That tool is RX 7 from iZotope (https://www.izotope.com/en/products/rx.html). RX 7 is a powerful set of audio repair tools that enable users to easily repair audio, remove breaths, mouth clicks, reverb, noise and so much more, all for a very reasonable price! Listen to this episode to find out a bit about what this powerful set of modules can do. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to check out more of what we do and check out our other resources. www.instagram.com/thepodfarm www.facebook.com/thepodfarm www.youtube.com/thepodfarm www.twitter.com/thepodfarm Music: Sunshower - LATASHÁ

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INTERVIEW: Jessica Duffin of This EndoLife on Why She Started Podcasting

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 11, 2020 39:04

In this episodes of the podcast, we are joined by Jessica Duffin - Women's Health Coach and founder of This EndoLife. Jessica is a client of The Pod Farm, and we discuss why she started podcasting, what challenges she faced starting out and what advice she has to give to new podcasters. Jessica, and This EndoLife, help women live and thrive with endometriosis. Find out more at www.thisendolife.com or follow her on Instagram www.instagram.com/this_endolife. Visit www.thepodfarm.com to check out more of what we do and check out our other resources. www.instagram.com/thepodfarm www.facebook.com/thepodfarm www.youtube.com/thepodfarm www.twitter.com/thepodfarm Music: Sunshower - LATASHÁ

podcasting started health coaches duffin pod farm

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