Client story: chronic diarrhoea, “IBS”, skin issues + fertility
Firstly, I’m terrible at sharing client case studies - but I know you have all been asking. One factor is of course the time, secondly a client has to be happy for this to be shared, thirdly, I am so proud of all my clients and their journeys and it’s so hard to decide which ones to share.
But here is one and I’ll try to share more when I can. You can always read some testimonials here.
This busy mother of one (& I mean busy, she ran her own company and had three jobs), came to me having felt she’d exhausted options with the NHS, experiencing:
Loose and often urgent stools for nearly 2 years!
Waking up with urgency for the toilet & going 3-4 x a day
We’re talking loose form: a 6 on the Bristol stool chart
NHS tests had been “normal”, and she had been advised it was IBS & to follow a low FODMAP diet (which btw, shouldn’t be done long-term - it’s restrictive nature can be more damaging to the gut microbiome diversity)
She understandably wanted to be able to go out for the day and not worry about having to run to the toilet
There were also skin issues, including dry patches and cystic spots linked to her cycle
Fertility goals
Poor immunity with what felt like a constant sore throat
So, spoiler alert - here is what she said after working together on the Enhanced Programme…
so, WHAT HAPPENED?
After our initial consultation and finding out more about her full health history, I created a health timeline and matrix. This helps to see how events could lead up to symptoms and piecing together symptoms we’re seeing - there were definitely some potential triggers I identified that hadn’t previously been considered. Also, her symptoms were all interlinked, the body is a whole and is interconnected. For example, her poor gut health and inflammation in the gut would have been also impacting her hormones, skin and causing potential nutrient deficiencies, due to such a constant fast transit time through the digestive symptom with 2 years of chronic diarrhoea. This would impact assimilation and absorption of nutrients, plus deplete certain minerals. Furthermore, I wasn’t surprised she’d mentioned frequent infections and a constant sore throat, as gut health is integral to immunity. These in turn would be contributing to her symptoms in a bit of a cycle.
I advised on functional lab testing that I thought would be useful to help pinpoint some root causes.
comprehensive stool test
This assesses the health of digestion, gut integrity & the microbiome (ecosystem of the gut)
We found over-adundance of E. coli, which can become more inflammatory and contribute to imbalances causing symptoms such as diarrhoea, bloating, discomfort etc.
Certain pathotypes of E. coli infection are also associated with bloody diarrhoea, which she had experienced 2 years ago (always check blood in stool with GP, she had done)
We found an estrobolome picture - a collection of bacteria in the gut capable of modulating the body’s circulating estrogen and contributing to estrogen-driven symptoms, such as her skin health + recent heavier periods
Histamine liberators in the gut - which contribute to her hayfever, skin issues
2. blood tests
We found, very low folate, DESPITE folic acid supplements - read why...
Deficiency and low levels are associated with increased risk of miscarriage
She had been supplementing, but with folic acid. Genetic SNPs in MTHR are common which can reduce the ability for many to be able to convert folic acid (synthetic form) to folate (the active form) effectively. We changed to a more suitable pre-conception supplement strategy.
Suboptimal thyroid markers that could be linked to her symptoms including feeling cold, heavy periods, dry skin etc. The poor gut health and nutrient deficiencies can contribute to imbalances in the thyroid, so we addressed areas to further support this in her personalised plan.
From these tests are could work with her to implement simple changes that would target these and begin to resolve symptoms. I also created a very personalised plan with therapeutic practitioner-grade supplements.
So now…
This just shows how important it is to look at the whole person and identify underlying root causes. By doing this, she could feel better and have “gold-standard” poos in less than 12 weeks after years of struggling.
It’s important to know when working deeply on gut health some supplements aren’t suitable for when TTC, this client chose to pause on TTC whilst we worked together and restored balance to thyroid, gut and importantly addressed folate levels. With this work, she will be able to go back into it with less inflammation, more balanced hormones and repleted nutrient status - all so important.
If you are fed up with getting nowhere with your health concerns or symptoms, you’re not alone.
Book a free chat to see if we’d be a good fit to work together and if personalised nutrition may help.