Brain-Gut Connection and IBS

IBS is categorized as a disorder of the gut-brain interaction (DGBI), which means that there’s a disconnection between how your brain and gut are communicating with each other. You might have felt those familiar butterflies in your stomach before a presentation or experienced that sinking feeling in your gut when fear or anxiety kicks in. These sensations highlight the strong connection between our emotions, thoughts, and digestion.

What Is Irritable Bowel Syndrome?

Irritable bowel syndrome is a common gastrointestinal (GI) disorder that can severely impact quality of life. It’s often linked to stress and anxiety and affects the stomach and intestines. Its symptoms include abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and/or diarrhoea and several others.
Unlike some other gastrointestinal conditions, IBS does not cause visible damage to the digestive tract. It is often diagnosed as IBS when no physical abnormalities in the bowel have been detected.

What Causes IBS?

The exact causes of IBS are not fully understood. Although not proven, theories exist as to factors that influence IBS symptoms, including:

• neurological hyper-sensitivity within the GI (enteric) nerves
• physical and/or emotional stress
• dietary issues such as food allergies or sensitivities or poor eating patterns
• use of systemic antibiotics for GI infection
• the amount or pattern of physical exercise
• chronic alcohol abuse
• abnormalities in GI secretions and/or digestive muscle contractions (peristalsis)
• acute infection or inflammation of the intestine (enteritis)

How Does Hypnotherapy Help With IBS?

The bowel of an IBS sufferer can become hypersensitive, leading toa whole range of symptoms which can cause significant pain, bloating unpredictable bowel movements and many others, greatly impacting a person’s quality of life.

However, a person can often suffer a psychological impact too, negative thoughts, worry, fear, anxiety and depression are often felt by IBS sufferers, as they try to live their life around their symptoms. Self-confidence can ebb away and relationships with family and friends can become strained.

Hypnotherapy can be particularly effective in managing both the physical and psychological symptoms because it targets the mind-gut connection. By using relaxation techniques and guided imagery, Hypnotherapy helps to reduce stress and anxiety, which can, in turn, alleviate the hypersensitivity and abnormal bowel contractions associated with IBS. The therapy aims to reprogram the way the brain and gut communicate, promoting a more normal and less reactive bowel function.