Understanding SIBO
SIBO
Let’s talk about SIBO for a second. I’m sure you’re thinking what the heck is it, how do I say it, and how do I know if I have it, right?
SIBO, pronounced see-bo, stands for Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth. This is often misdiagnosed as or guessed to be, IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) To be completely honest with you, I believe IBS is a BS answer to any set of gut health related symptoms. IBS is not a diagnosis of a condition, merely a diagnosis of symptoms. Confirming that a patient has IBS, is like confirming they experience intestinal discomfort and sickness. So, if a doctor has ever “diagnosed” you with IBS, take a closer look, and you will find the root of the issue.
SIBO occurs when the small intestine has a chronic overgrowth of good and bad bacteria, infecting the gut. This causes an interference of normal digestion and absorption of food, and can cause damage to the membrane and lining of the small intestine. This overgrowth of bacteria produces an excess of hydrogen and methane gas in the digestive tract, causing bloating and distention, burping, and a list of other symptoms.
Medical Medium sheds more light on this topic, in his article, Healing SIBO, where he outlines the notion that SIBO is caused by the gut when there is an overgrowth of streptococcus (a widely spread bacteria) which can happen due to the lack of hydrochloric acid production.
Dr. Starr Ramson, at Nourish Medical Center, touches on this subject as well, in her blog post The Vagus Nerve, Low Stomach Acid, and SIBO, where she dives deeper into the relationship between mental health and SIBO. Understanding Dr. Starr’s point of view on the connection between mental health and bodily function, was a crucial, life changing experience for me in my healing process.
Below, you will find my story of battling SIBO, where I outline my symptoms and experiences as my health progressively got worse. To read more about my mental health journey, click here.
Image by Lulwa Alsabt
Symptoms relating to SIBO includes the following:
- Bloating and distention, to the point of looking pregnant
- Burping and gas
- Nausea, whether it be on and off or constant
- Diarrhea and/or constipation
- Abdominal pain and cramping
- Headache
- Brain fog
- Fatigue & lethargy
- Lightheadedness & dizziness
- Shortness of breath/shallow breath
- Skin irritation
- Unexplained, rapid weight loss
As the list of symptoms progress, so does the condition of the overgrowth. I can’t speak for all who have had SIBO, but when I first started to feel these symptoms, it was a gradual, steady progression that persisted over time. For years I’d been experiencing terrorizing gut health issues, but it wasn’t until college when I realized there was something seriously wrong. It started out with abdominal pain, cramping, bloating, and constipation. The bloating would increase throughout the day, and by night time, I would look three months pregnant, hard as a rock. Diarrhea then became a routine occurrence; essentially a part of my existence. I’m talking, as soon as I woke up, multiple times a day, and sometimes in the evening. There really was no rational timing or pattern that I could make sense of. All I knew, was my digestive system was completely out of wack, and I was not only embarrassed and insecure, but depressed and confused. As a year or two went by of having these symptoms, I started experiencing the headaches, brain fog, fatigue, and lethargy. I spent my senior year of college abnormally exhausted and constantly nauseous. After graduating in 2016 and moving to the LA area, I hit a wall. Getting out of bed was painful and difficult. I was sleeping eight to ten hours a night, and would wake up feeling as if I’d slept three. My lymph nodes started to swell, bulging out of my neck. As I continued to feel worse, we went through our healthcare to put in an order for the SIBO Carbon Dioxide and Methane Breath Test, which you can learn more about here.
In May of 2017, with a bulgey neck, an intense migraine, abdominal cramping, bloating, and of course, diarrhea, I received the SIBO test and was immediately diagnosed. I was put on Augmenten, an Amoxicillin antibiotic, for ten days.
Fast forward a few weeks, I finished my Augmenten treatment, and was put on a loosely formatted LOW FODMAP diet. After following a poorly designed LOW FODMAP diet for about six weeks, I felt incredible. I started feeling a little more energetic, and a little more normal. Three more months of this, and I hit a wall, once again. Like I said, this diet was poorly designed, not to mention, the doctors didn’t look into any other conditions other than my SIBO. I was shoved out the door after a ten minute conversation, a few pamphlets, and nothing else.
A few months later I started spiraling downward, all over again, but this time, it was even worse. It was violent, life-sucking, and I started to physically appear differently. Summer 2018, I dropped down to about 100 pounds, the circles under my eyes sank deeper and darker, and I began having trouble breathing. I was experiencing severe shortness of breath, brain fog, dizziness to the point of near collapse, fatigue and lethargy that gave me the energy levels of an elderly person, frequent anxiety/panic attacks, and my vision started to blur. Pile this all on top of the already chronic bloating, diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain, and nausea. Walking became painful, I stopped leaving my house for fear of collapsing or having uncontrollable dizzy spells, I slept here and there throughout the day.
That summer, I found help through my naturopath, Dr. Starr Ramson at Nourish Medical Center, whom I absolutely adore. I’ve been receiving treatment from her ever since, and plan on continuing the relationship to maintain my healing process and lifestyle.
With all this being said, I have one thing to say; please, don’t normalize your symptoms, your pain, or your exhaustion. I can’t stress this enough. The healing process is lengthy and time consuming, from the moment you first start to seek help, to the moment you begin treatment or lifestyle changes. If you find yourself feeling a few symptoms within this post, I deeply encourage you to seek help and find out what battles your body is fighting. And when you do, your body will begin to love you in return.
Think you have SIBO, and wondering what to do now? I have a few resources on where to start! Click here for more on what to do if you think you have SIBO.