Gut health DOES affect Mental health

Did you know that we have a gut-brain connection and it is no joke!?

Today I am looking into the link between my gut health and my mental health. 
Our gastrointestinal tracts are sensitive to emotion. Anger, anxiety, sadness, elation — all of these feelings (and others) can trigger symptoms in the gut. These two organs are connected both physically and biochemically in several different ways. But, that is not what I want to talk about. I want to get into how valuable it is to have a Healthy Mind, Body and Spirit. 

Many of you know that I have a holistic health background and for the last few years I have been disconnected. I lost my way and lost touch with that side of me. I let my emotions take me down dark rabbit holes to places in my mind that were not good. Because of this my physical body also took a toll. 

Now I am back to finding out what matters. I know that the only way to heal me is with what I know and what I don’t know I research to find the answer. I have gotten my gut health back to functioning. It has a way to go but I am functioning and that is a big step for me. So why am I still so depressed and lacking energy? 

Could Germs in Your Gut Send You Into Depression?

The brain has a direct effect on the stomach and intestines. For example, the very thought of eating can release the stomach’s juices before food gets there. This connection goes both ways. A troubled intestine can send signals to the brain, just as a troubled brain can send signals to the gut. Therefore, a person’s stomach or intestinal distress can be the cause or the product of anxiety, stress, or depression. That’s because the brain and the gastrointestinal (GI) system are intimately connected. So it is easy to say that certain bacteria dwelling in the human gut might feed depression.

It is also easy to say that people with depression certainly have different diets, and different habits, than people without depression. And that would affect the gut microbiome.

I have adjusted my eating so that my intestines would work better. Actually, so that they would WORK. That quest had me adjust so much of what was going on with my physical self. I adjusted my Eating and Drinking, I began to take Supplements, I adjusted my Activity Levels and now I am seeing that it is time to work on the mental self. 

WE ARE WHAT WE EAT! 
I had been eating like crap, I felt like crap and I let my spirit go to crap. 

In researching, I found out that 90% of serotonin receptors are located in the gut. I also found that eating a healthy, balanced diet such as the Mediterranean diet and avoiding inflammation-producing foods may be protective against depression. We do need to eat right to feel right. 

If you want to learn more about that look into the antidepressant food scale.

REMINDER TO MY READERS

I am not looking to lose weight. I am a big woman and weight is not my worry at this point. I have lost weight and I have been tracking my measurements but that is not the goal of my journey. 

Adjusting My Path 

Now that my gut is functioning. I am working to have the mind, body and spirit connection. Over the last two to three years I have begun that reconnection to my spiritual self. I have been working on my book “Joy in the Storm”. I have taken a deep look at myself and I am working to just get this old lady back into shape! 

Do you eat for your mental health?

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