Your gut health has direct implications on your overall health, which is why it’s so important to prioritise getting your gut on track.
I always view taking care of your gut (as well as your health), as an opportunity to practise self-care – in short, it’s about finding those rituals and practices that help nourish your mind, body, soul, and spirit.
Self-care can come in many shapes and forms, and it doesn’t have to take too much time or cost too much money. It may be any of the following:
- a massage or facial
- taking a yoga class
- meditating
- going for a hike in the woods
- having a relaxing bubble bath
- spending some time alone
Whatever the activity of self-care means to you, is the self-care you need to participate in.
This is something that busy mum-of-four, Roxanne, came to realise and that’s why she got in touch.
Juggling family and her work as a beauty therapist had started to take its toll as she was spending more time taking care of her children and her clients, and less time on looking after herself. She was eating on the go, and this overall lack of self-care started to manifest itself in digestive and gut symptoms, in the shape of painful abdominal cramps and bloating. Here’s what she had to say:
“I suddenly came down with an awful painful bloated stomach that lasted around two weeks. I was at my wits’ end as nothing was working, and I felt terrible. A trusted friend of mine recommended Linda and Just for Tummies, and to start with the 5-day Charcoal cleanse. I ordered the Charcoal capsules straight away and they arrived very quickly (also in very cute packaging!)
I started the cleanse and began to feel better within a day or so. I had also emailed Linda to ask her advice and was delighted to receive a reply within 24 hours within advice and recommendations. I followed what she said, and I even emailed a few more times with questions which she came straight back to me on. May I say, it’s really lovely for someone to give advice without charging a fee and without expecting anything afterwards.
I’ve finished the cleanse but have ordered more Charcoal as I plan to take this daily now. I ordered the Live Bacteria capsules, Digestive Enzymes tablets, Omega 3 capsules and Tummy Tea as recommended by Linda, and everything is making me feel so good. Love the products! Thank you, Linda – you have made me a very happy person!”
You can hear more about Roxanne’s story here in a video she kindly made for us; hear how the simple act of identifying that she needed to put herself first, and start a supplement protocol to get her gut health on track meant that she started to feel happier, with more energy and, by return, the motivation to keep doing what she was doing – reclaiming her health and wellness!
What does the gut have to do with self-care and energy levels?
More than you might expect! You see, your gut microbiome (the ecosystem of bacteria that live in your gastrointestinal tract) has a huge effect on the rest of your body. When the bacteria in your gut microbiome are in balance – meaning there’s a mix of about 85% good bacteria to 15% bad – you tend to feel energised.
But when they’re depleted or out of balance due to factors like a less-than-fantastic diet, poor sleep, stress, exposure to antibiotics in food or medication, or overzealous sanitisation practices, it affects your whole body.
When your gut is imbalanced, your energy levels become unregulated, leaving you open to peaks and crashes, and setting you up for a spiral of fatigue, which you may try to fix by drinking sugary or chemical-laden energy drinks that deplete your microbiome, leaving you feeling even more tired.
When your gut bacteria are in balance, they work with the rest of your body to produce hormones in the proper amounts, at the proper times.
Plus, without enough beneficial bacteria, your body can’t absorb the nutrients from all those great foods you’re eating, so it doesn’t have the building blocks it needs for stamina and endurance. And if the bacteria that regulate your circadian rhythms are off, chances are you’re not sleeping as well as you could, which has a huge effect on your energy levels, not to mention your overall health.
Therefore, supporting the gut with probiotics was the boost Roxanne needed to kick-start other self-care efforts. Self-care really does start in the gut.
If you have any questions about a digestive and gut health issue or would like to know more about our products, please get in touch.
