What You Need to Know About IBS and Migraine
Living with chronic pain and discomfort from migraine and IBS can be very debilitating and make you feel alone. On top of that, doctors don't fully understand either condition and often treat them wrong. It doesn’t need to be this way.
This can lead to many people with IBS putting up with these painful and draining symptoms, which can lead to feelings of anxiety and frustration and a search for answers.
Hi, I’m Maddie Lawson, a dual-certified nutritionist and dietician with post-graduate training in IBS through Monash University. I am working with the team at Melbourne Headache Solutions specifically to help those of you who suffer from both IBS-like symptoms and migraines.
There is more and more evidence that a higher rate of gastrointestinal problems, like IBS, is linked to migraine. Perhaps you haven’t made the link between the two, but science has linked different foods as a trigger for both IBS and migraine symptoms.
IBS symptoms can look like this:
- Uncomfortable or painful tummy cramps or bloating
- Experiencing frequent episodes of constipation or diarrhoea (or both)
- Flatulence or excess gas
- Indigestion
Here is what you need to know about IBS and migraine.
Most doctors are treating these as separate diseases, when in fact they can be part of the same problem. By identifying the underlying causes of both your IBS and migraine, you can effectively get your health back. The common underlying issue is often a problem with the gut-brain axis. Your brain and the nervous system in your gut are intimately connected and, in fact, arise from the same cells in the embryo. If you have any sort of gut issue, it will affect your brain and vice versa. This has been shown in numerous studies in brain disorders ranging from migraine to Alzheimer's.
One specific neurotransmitter that is prominent in both migraine and IBS is serotonin. Serotonin is a major neurotransmitter of the gastrointestinal tract and the brain, and SSRI can be helpful as part of the treatment for both conditions, depending on the type of IBS that you have. What many people do not realise is that over 90% of the serotonin in your body is found in the gut, and that we make serotonin from a substance called tryptophan - which we get from food. So if you are not eating the right foods or you can't absorb or manufacture serotonin properly because of other deficiencies, you will end up with low serotonin levels and be at risk for both IBS and migraine.
Both doctors and people suffering from IBS and migraines are unaware that there is a lot they can do once they realise the two are frequently caused by the same underlying problem.
So many people are left to try to figure it out on their own, probably just like you, and they struggle to make any real progress. Googling and trying things that have worked for other people simply doesn't work as we are all different and need a personalised and scientific approach.
You don't need to suffer in silence.
The team at Melbourne Headache Solutions are experts in both migraine and IBS.
FOR A LIMITED TIME, WE ARE OFFERING 10 CLIENTS A FREE INITIAL PHONE CONSULTATION
In this consultation:
Maddie will get to know more about your unique situation by asking some very specific questions about your health. Her role here is to simply work out if you are likely to benefit from our treatment approach and answer your questions. If we don't believe we can help we will recommend another course of action for you. We only take on clients where we are confident we will get great results.
Schedule a free 15-minute phone consult here.
