Today I want to shine a spotlight on maca, a herb you’ve probably heard lots about in the wellness space, but for those of us with endo, it can be confusing to know if it’s helpful or whether we should avoid it. Because maca can help us handle stress and burnout, I thought this busy time of year is a perfect opportunity to talk about it! Maca is an adaptogen herb, which means it helps our bodies to adapt to physical and emotional stressors. Maca does this by acting on the hypothalamic pituitary ...
Dec 06, 2024•14 min
Today is a quick episode but hopefully a helpful one. Today I want to talk about the glycemic index and the glycemic load of foods, and how you can use these tools to help you manage endo. The glycemic index and glycemic load are two tools to help you understand how food can affect your blood sugar levels and how quickly they can do so. Read more. Shownotes Glycemic index and load resources https://glycemic-index.net/glycemic-index-chart/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000291...
Nov 29, 2024•17 min
Okay so today we’re continuing with our series on dairy and endo, and today we’re taking about hormones. And I’m going to warn you up front - the research is mixed, and it really comes down to your personal response to dairy. That being said, non-organic dairy can be treated with extra hormones, which may influence our own, so it goes without saying that organic is preferable when possible. Of course, don’t worry about the one offs like an ice cream out or some cream on your dessert in a restaur...
Nov 22, 2024•21 min
This week we’re taking a pause from the dairy series to give those who don’t want to learn about diary or who feel distressed by the topic for ethical reasons, a bit of a break, as I appreciate it might be a bit much to go back to back with this topic. So today, I want to answer a question that was asked of me on a call the other day. And that’s when you’re starting to manage endo, and you put in place various protocols to get your symptoms under control, do you then have to do those strategies ...
Nov 15, 2024•22 min
If you’ve been considering eating for endo, or you have been, you may be thinking about or may have already, cut out dairy. But is it necessary to remove dairy entirely for people with endo? The answer is, it’s complicated and really depends on your body and of course, your personal values, because some people may choose to lower or omit their dairy intake for ethical or environmental reasons. So in this series, we’re going to explore all the factors to consider around dairy and endo - because t...
Nov 08, 2024•20 min
Recently I shared an episode on pycnogenol and the research behind its use for chronic UTIs and interstitial cystitis - and the evidence is pretty impressive. I mentioned in the show that pycnogenol is one of my favourite supplements for us endo peeps, and I thought I should elaborate on some of the key benefits, for those of you who are curious. Read more. I am now taking applications for my final one to one coaching cohort of 2024 Apply here: https://www.theendobellycoach.com/coaching Show Not...
Nov 01, 2024•16 min
Now of course, this is a huge topic and there are so many different probiotics out there, which can often just get confusing and overwhelming, so with this podcast my intention is for it to be succinct and easy to digest, with a smaller array of probiotics to start exploring on your initial steps to gut healing. Read more. Show Notes SIBO The SIBO, Endometriosis and Interstitial Cystitis Connection wth Dr. Allison Siebecker How To Treat SIBO with Dr Allison Siebecker Understanding The Endometrio...
Oct 25, 2024•22 min
Recently I’ve talked a lot about the gut microbiome and endo, but today, I want to do a very short episode on the bladder microbiome, but specifically, a supplement or plant extract that could help us. For those of you who deal with bladder pain or recurrent UTIs, I’m hoping this episode is helpful. Interstitial cystitis has been dubbed as the ‘evil twin’ of endometriosis by researchers, and is characterised by bladder pain, increased frequency, pressure, and trouble emptying the bladder to name...
Oct 18, 2024•15 min
Sourdough bread has been popular in the mainstream for a good number of years now, but I feel like there’s a big focus on it and its benefits in the wellness industry at present. And I think for people with endo, when new health trends come round, it can be confusing, because foods we thought might bother us with endo, are being promoted to the masses as good for our health, so the question is - where does sourdough fit in with endo? So, let’s first look at what sourdough is. Sourdough is a type...
Oct 11, 2024•27 min
If you want to learn more about SCFAs, I’ve linked to some episodes in the show notes. But now let’s look at probiotic foods and how they can raise SCFA. Probiotic foods are cultured and fermented foods which have live beneficial bacteria in them. When we eat these foods, we ingest this bacteria, which then become part of our gut microbiome and improve our levels of beneficial bacteria. Many of these beneficial bacterial strains directly increase SCFA levels, but some of them indirectly support ...
Oct 04, 2024•20 min
Today I want to talk about another short chain fatty acid booster, which also supports long term gut healing and symptom relief, and that’s partially hydrolysed guar gum. PHGG is a soluble fibre derived from the guar bean plant, it is not exactly the same as the food ingredient guar gum. PHGG is broken down by enzymes from guar gum, and dissolves in water. In contrast, guar gum is a thickening agent and too much guar gum in certain foods can cause gut problems, whereas PHGG is recognised as bein...
Sep 27, 2024•13 min
Last week we talked about certain fruits, vegetables, beans and lentils that can boost the short chain fatty acids called propionate and acetate. Alongside butyrate, which you can increase with resistant starch rich foods such as cold oats, green bananas and cooked and cooled potatoes and rice, these guys help to lower inflammation, heal gut issues and may even protect against endo progression. To learn more about the benefits of short chain fatty acids for endo, listen to episodes 312, 311 and ...
Sep 22, 2024•16 min
Last week we talked about the most beneficial short chain fatty acid for endo - butyrate. Short chain fatty acids are types of healthy fats that are produced by good gut bacteria when we eat fibre. They eat the fibre, and the process of this, known as fermentation, produces short chain fatty acids. To get the low down on endo and short chain fatty acids overall, head to episode ep.310 and to learn about butyrate specifically, go to last week’s episode 311. Today, we’re talking about the two othe...
Sep 13, 2024•21 min
Last week I talked about short chain fatty acids and their benefits for endo, and why people with endo need to focus on these to help manage the disease. Today, I want to talk about how to boost one of these types of short chain fatty acids, called butyrate. Read more. Show notes SCFAs/Butyrate https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10233627/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-30114-4#:~:text=...
Sep 06, 2024•15 min
Short chain fatty acids are types of gut friendly fats that are produced when good bacteria in our large intestine eats fibre. So, when healthy bacteria eat let’s say, beans, it will ferment our food, and create gas. Along with that gas, it creates short chain fatty acids. Short chain fatty acids are one of the key reasons gut health is so important to our overall wellbeing. Number one is that they are the primary source of food/fuel for the cells in our large intestine. They therefore help to k...
Aug 30, 2024•15 min
Chronic fatigue is one of the biggest complaints of clients and students when they come to see me. But endo isn’t solely responsible for fatigue, there are usually a number of culprits, that can be associated with endo or are worsened by endo. If you’d like to learn more about the causes of fatigue in the endo community, I’ve linked to a podcast episode on this subject, but today, I want to talk about foods to eat to help you battle this symptom. Now, for most people, there will be other areas o...
Aug 23, 2024•17 min
Today I want to continue on with the theme of foods for surgery recovery. And today, we’re talking about protein. In my training on endometriosis surgery recovery, the importance of protein intake, and good quality protein intake, was really emphasised - and with good reason. Protein is essential for tissue repair, and whilst we need lots of nutrients to recovery after surgery, protein is the key component to rebuilding tissue and in short, knitting us back together! Read more. Show notes https:...
Aug 16, 2024•27 min
I’ve had a couple of clients work with me recently ahead of their very first surgeries. We’ve been doing a lot of prep to ensure that they heal well, have an easy recovery, and to minimise the chances of recurrence or severe recurrence, as much as we possibly can (though of course, there is no guarantee with endo). As a result, I wanted to do an episode to help you to prep if you have a surgery coming up. Now, there are quite a few strategies I use with clients for this, and I do have a mastercl...
Aug 09, 2024•15 min
To follow on with our episode on flax seeds and chia seeds for constipation, I wanted to add another one into the mix. For those of you who haven’t listen to that previous episode, I’ve linked it in the show notes. Additionally, if you’re wondering why constipation is a problem for many in our community, there can be numerous reasons, ranging from adhesions, pelvic floor dysfunction, small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), gut dysbiosis and more. I’ve linked to an episode I did on this topi...
Aug 02, 2024•14 min
Many people with endometriosis, including about 60% of my clients, suffer with constipation. Is this because of endometriosis directly? Not exactly. There are several reasons someone with endo can have constipation, whilst this episode isn’t about that, here’s a quick low down on some of the key causes: Endo – Of course, whilst this isn’t the case for everyone, endo can be located on the bowel, which can cause structural changes to the bowel, making bowel movements harder. Adhesions – Adhesions ...
Jul 26, 2024•31 min
Blood sugar is the measurement of glucose in the blood stream at any one time. Glucose comes from complex carbs, like vegetables, beans and whole grains, and simple carbs, like flour, pasta and honey. Complex carbs break down slower in the gut, resulting in a slow but steady drip of glucose to our blood stream, whereas simple sugars break down very quickly and are also typically very high in carbohydrates and so create what we call a blood sugar spike, which simply means your glucose levels in y...
Jul 04, 2024•25 min
Dr. Tara Morrison is Birth Trauma Specialist and Holistic Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist who specialises in whole-person care for pregnancy, postpartum, and beyond. We actually met several years ago when we were both training at the Integrative Women’s Health Institute, so it was a real pleasure to have her on the show! Tara uses trauma-informed Somatic Pelvic Care to aid not just pain and pelvic floor dysfunction, but nervous system healing through mind-body based physical therapy tools, stres...
Jun 29, 2024•51 min
Rachel Dutton a.k.a The Period Whisperer is pretty much one of the most knowledgeable women to grace this podcast. She is not only a women’s health coach, but a yoga teacher, reflexologist, aromatherapist and womb massage therapist to name just a few of her credentials. Rachel specialises in women’s health and fertility - including PCOS. As a PCOS warrior herself, Rachel knows first hand the struggle to get an accurate diagnosis, life with PCOS symptoms but perhaps most importantly, how to manag...
Jun 14, 2024•51 min
Maybe your periods are better, your chronic pelvis pain is better, things are improving. But after a few months, the endo belly comes back. Or maybe you get it for the first time ever. You’re bloated all the time or maybe you bloat badly after meals, or maybe it gets worse over the day? Perhaps it’s also accompanied by IBS issues like constipation, gas, or loose stools. If any of this sounds familiar, this episode is for you. Whilst surgery is essential for many people, it doesn’t come without i...
Jun 10, 2024•27 min
Today on the show I am talking about one of the possible root causes of your endo belly – coeliac disease. Now, before you turn this podcast off because you think you don’t react to gluten, I am literally begging you to listen. I have noticed a trend in my clients to dismiss coeliac disease as a possibility, because they don’t have immediate reactions after gluten. But – here’s the thing, the reactions from gluten are not always obvious and they don’t always happen straight away. So, if you’re b...
May 31, 2024•21 min
This week I want to give you some tools to actually alleviate that bloating, now you know why it’s happening. I’m going to give you two types of tools, one set to deal with in the moment of bloating and another set for which are long-term strategies to help you to address the root cause. So, let’s start with the tools you can use in the moment. Many of these tools I’m about to share are based on my training with world leading SIBO doctor, Dr Allison Siebecker. I’m using her doses, which are safe...
May 17, 2024•55 min
You may remember back in late August I was promoting an event I was speaking at; the wonderful IC Retreat, a virtual 3 day event hosted by Joana Bartlett - all about empowering IC patients with tools, knowledge and support. My presentation was a deep dive into the connection between interstitial cystitis, endometriosis and SIBO and how to manage these conditions together. I was so proud of this presentation and felt so passionately that everyone should have this info, that I asked Joana if I cou...
May 10, 2024•1 hr 7 min
Today is a special episode, because my mentor, the woman who coached me through my coaching training, Susan Clinton, is joining us! Susan Clinton is a board certified women’s health physical therapist, a fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Therapy, and a board certified health and wellness coach - to name just a few of her hats! She is also a Master Coach for the Integrative Women’s Health Institute, hence why she ended up being my coach and mentor! In today’s episode, Susan and ...
May 06, 2024•55 min
We are taking a short season break, so in the meantime, I’m revisiting some old episodes that have been asked about or requested over on Instagram. Enjoy and see you soon with some new episodes! The migrating motor complex is a wave like emotion that occurs in the small intestine, not large, between meals and overnight. This wave motion clears out any old food debris and bacteria once food has already passed through into the large intestine, so basically, see the MMC as the washing up, once all ...
Apr 26, 2024•20 min
Today we’re doing another clip from my course, Live and Thrive with Endo 2.0 as I am still getting over covid and what has turned out to be several of the most stressful days I’ve ever experienced (more on that another time). During the past couple of days, I’ve not had access to the internet and so I wasn’t able to share that the course doors were closing for enrolment or even actually close the doors, so if you want to sigh up, you still can. I’m likely going to leave the doors open until Sund...
Apr 21, 2024•26 min
