Andrea’s experience of Nutritional Therapy
20th July 2021Katie Shore
Nutritional Therapist
Digestive support for Andrea after Covid – a brief case study
Andrea* came to see me in clinic for help supporting her digestion. Eight months previously she had caught a virus leaving her bed-bound (which we now suspect was COVID) and after she recovered her digestion was not functioning like it used to. Andrea worked in an active job, usually outside, with very limited access to toilet facilities and was becoming embarrassed by how she needed to urgently go to the toilet after every meal. Most foods upset her stomach and she was frequently in pain with trapped wind. Not being used to having reactions to food – she used to be able to ‘eat anything’ prior to her illness – this left her feeling overwhelmed and confused about what she could eat.
We worked on a ‘food first’ approach by initially focussing on identifying and removing the specific triggers for her symptoms – in this case dairy and spicy foods. Then we gradually added in lots of digestion supporting alternatives, for example by swapping stock cubes out for home made broth, for its digestive benefits. Finally we undertook a short course of targeted microbiome rebalancing (re-populating the beneficial bacteria found in the gut) using food and supplements to make sure that longer term she had built back some resilience back into her system.
After just three months Andrea no longer experienced the painful trapped wind or urgent trips to the toilet after food. Her embarrassment at work was gone and she had this to say ‘Katie was great at filling in the blanks and encouraging my progress. My overall well-being has definitely improved since working together.’ Andrea is an example of how personalised nutrition can often result in big improvements to your overall wellbeing because of the bespoke approach – it helps you to be YOUR best.
*Name changed for confidentiality reasons