The link between emotion and the digestive system is much closer than previously thought. Have you heard of the brain in your gut, in which people refer to as the “Second Brain”. It makes sense if have you ever had butterflies in your stomach, or gone with your gut feeling?
The link between digestion, emotions , mood and health is really significant when you think of the fast paced, high stress world we live in and the diet choices available to us.
The Enteric Nervous System(ENS) has around 100 million nerve cells lining your gastrointestinal tract from the Esophagus to Rectum. so physiological stress response may be coming directly from the second brain to the first brain not vice versa. So that loss of appetite , tummy ache when upset, wind, bloating, indigestion, and IBS are thought to be linked with a greater selection of mental health problems such as depression and anxiety.
So it appears its the gut not the brain responsible for these increasingly common ailments and mental health problems we are seeing today.
So this is very interesting to me in my work as a Kinesiologist. I work with goals and incorporate body work to increase overall wellness.
Here are a few common goals I may use in order to improve the digestive system.
- My digestive system functions at optimal levels.
- I am able to digest and process stress in my life step by step.
- I trust my gut.
- I allow my digestive system to unwind, relax and let go.
