• Inside the gut
  • The digestive journey
  • The aging GI tract
• Special section: The Stress Connection
  • The second brain
  • Stress and the functional GI disorders
  • Treating the whole body
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease
  • Causes of GERD
  • Diagnosing reflux
  • Complications of reflux
  • Self-help for reflux
• Antireflux drug therapy
  • Herbal remedies
  • Surgical options for reflux
• Functional dyspepsia
  • Diagnosing FD
  • Tests and medication
  • Causes of FD
  • Treating FD
• Irritable bowel syndrome
  • What is IBS?
  • Causes of IBS
  • Diagnosing IBS
  • Managing IBS
• Constipation
  • How constipation happens
  • Frequency of bowel movements: What’s normal?
  • Causes of constipation
  • Diagnosing constipation
  • Treating constipation
• Diarrhea
  • What is diarrhea?
  • Causes of diarrhea
  • When to call the doctor
  • Diagnosing diarrhea
  • Treating diarrhea
  • Preventing diarrhea
• Excessive gas
  • Where does gas come from?
  • A gas primer
  • Diagnosing and treating aerophagia and flatus
  • Treating belching
  • Treating flatulence
• Glossary
• Resources
• Organizations

Treating the whole body

Stress-related symptoms in the GI tract vary greatly from one patient to the next, and treatment can vary as well. For example, one person with GERD might describe an occasional, mild burning sensation in the chest, while another complains of excruciating discomfort night after night. As the severity of symptoms varies, so should the therapies, medications, self-help strategies, or even surgeries used to relieve them.

Many patients have mild symptoms that respond quickly to changes in diet or medications. If symptoms do not improve, your clinician may ask you more questions about your medical history and perform some diagnostic tests to rule out a physical abnormality, infection, or cancer. For some people, symptoms improve as soon as a serious diagnosis has been ruled out (another example of how emotional stress affects the gut!). Your doctor may also recommend symptom-specific medications. But sometimes these treatments are not enough. As symptoms become more severe, so does the likelihood that a patient is experiencing some sort of psychological distress.

Often, patients with moderate to severe symptoms, particularly those whose symptoms arise from stressful circumstances, stand to benefit from psychological treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy, relaxation techniques, and hypnosis. Some patients are reluctant to accept the role of psychosocial factors in their illness. But it’s important to know that emotions cause real, chemical and physical responses in the body that can result in pain and discomfort. Behavioral therapy and stress reduction treatments do not directly reduce pain or improve symptoms in the way that drugs do. Rather, the goal is to reduce anxiety, encourage healthy behaviors, and help patients cope with the pain and discomfort of their condition.

The following reviews have been left for this report. Log in and leave a review of your own.

As someone who has suffered from a variety of GI issues over the years, I found this report to be not only an extremely helpful and in depth primer on the digestive system, but necessary reading for anyone who has suffered from GI distress. Thanks to the authors for so clearly explaining so many of the possible causes of these problems: from anxiety and stress to medication to eating habits and food intolerance -- as well as a wide range of solutions from medical to self-help. This is the first time I've come across much of this information, and it's written in a language that is easy to understand.

While the booklet is loaded with technical info, it doesn't aim at the average layman., and isn't worth the $18. pricetag.

"The Sensitive Gut" is well written, very informative and is extremely beneficial to anyone who needs accurate, up-to-date information that will assist with identifying solutions to several problems. "The Sensitive Gut" is written to provide important technical information but is written in a way that people who are not familiar with medical terminology can understand easily.