You know that feeling in your stomach when something just feels off?
Maybe it’s the flutter of nerves before a big meeting…
Or that heavy, bloated discomfort when you’re emotionally drained but powering through dinner prep anyway.
Or maybe it’s the sudden energy crash at 3pm that makes your brain fog feel like a full-blown white-out.
That, my friend, is your gut talking.
And science now confirms what our bodies have known for centuries: Gut feelings are real.
And they’re deeply intertwined with your brain and your hormones. Let’s unpack this together.
The Triangle of Truth: Gut, Brain, Hormones
Imagine a three-way conversation constantly happening inside you:
Your Brain is the command centre — managing thoughts, moods, stress levels, and sleep cycles.
Your Hormones are the messengers — influencing metabolism, mood, weight, libido, and how well you cope with life.
Your Gut is the wise old communicator — home to trillions of microbes, it’s like the control panel that regulates both brain and hormone function.
They don’t function in isolation — they chat to each other all day long, and it’s loud and clear
So if you’re dealing with:
- Low moods or anxiety
- Foggy thinking
- Constant fatigue
- Sugar cravings
- Weight gain that won’t budge
- Mood swings that feel out of the blue
… it’s highly likely your gut is waving a red flag.
Your Second Brain: The Gut-Brain Axis
The gut has its own nervous system (called the enteric nervous system) and sends more signals to your brain than your brain sends to it.
In fact, 90% of your body’s serotonin (your feel-good neurotransmitter) is made in the gut — not the brain.
So when your gut is inflamed, imbalanced, or burdened with stress and processed food, guess what?
Your brain doesn’t get the happy messages.
Your moods suffer. Your motivation drops. Your resilience disappears….
And if you’re a woman in midlife?
That burden is even heavier — because hormonal changes make the gut lining more sensitive and less stable.
Hormones Join the Party (and Make It Messy)
Oestrogen and progesterone affect your gut motility, the microbiome balance, and how you absorb nutrients.
During perimenopause and menopause, those hormone fluctuations can disrupt digestion, increase bloating, constipation, or IBS-like symptoms — and leave you feeling like a stranger in your own body.
Stress (emotional or physical) throws cortisol into the mix, and that hormone alone can:
- Shut down digestion
- Increase cravings (especially for sugar or carbs)
- Affect sleep (which in turn, worsens gut health)
- And slows metabolism
It’s a feedback loop. One that gets louder if we ignore it.
How to Harness Your Gut Feelings
Let’s bring it home — what can you do right now to support this triangle of communication?
1. Start Your Day With Bitters
Gentle herbal bitters (like dandelion, swedish bitters, or lemon in warm water) can stimulate digestive juices, support liver detox, and reduce bloating.
Bonus tip: Add a splash of apple cider vinegar to your water 10–15 mins before eating.
2. Feed Your Microbiome
Your gut bugs thrive on fibre-rich, colourful, unprocessed plant foods. Think: berries, flaxseeds, broccoli, and leafy greens.
Fermented foods like miso, sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir and plain yoghurt are also natural allies for your gut-brain axis.
3. Balance Your Blood Sugar
Stable blood sugar = stable mood + stable hormones + stable gut.
Start your meals with protein and healthy fats.
Think twice before eating carbs on their own — toast, cereal, or crackers need some protein or fat to keep your blood sugar stable
4. Tune Into What Your Gut Is Really Saying
That bloating after certain meals?
That sluggishness after lunch?
That ‘blah’ feeling after sugary snacks?
These are not random — they’re clues.
Try keeping a 3-day Gut–Mood–Energy Diary. Note what you ate, how you felt an hour later, and any symptoms. …..You’ll be amazed at what patterns emerge.
5. Reset Your Nervous System Daily
A gut can’t heal in fight or flight mode.
A 5-minute walk, deep breathing before meals, legs-up-the-wall, or a cup of chamomile tea in silence — these are not luxuries. They are digestive medicine.
From Gut Instinct to Empowered Action
When you feel anxious, tired, bloated, or unmotivated… trust that there’s wisdom in those signals. Your gut is trying to get your attention.
And when you listen — really listen — you become the healer.
Not the fixer. Not the problem. The healer.
Your body is not broken. It’s brilliant. It just needs the right conditions to thrive.
Want to Go Deeper?
If this message speaks to your belly, your brain, and your heart…
Download my free Gut-Brain Reset Food List & Checklist. It’s filled with easy swaps and feel-good suggestions to start supporting your internal triangle today.
And if you’d like personalised support, you can book a Naturopathic Consultation with me — where we’ll look under the hood and build a tailored plan to get your spark back.
Teressa
Naturopath + Biochemist
Ready to kick start Gut Health? Book a Call!
This is how gut microbes can influence weight!
Probiotics can help you gain weight or lose weight by interacting with our genetics, food and metabolism.
And yes, I did say lose or gain weight……..
Firstly, let me explain that the trillions of microbes in the gut need to be varied, meaning that there should be a large variety of species. There are many different species (or breeds) of microbes, and they all have their place in aiding health — the more variety and balance, the better health results.
Back to the weight loss or weight gain issue….
Do you eat yogurt and berries for breakfast? Thinking that it’s helping you lose weight?
Well, Lactobacillus acidophilus (like the species found in yoghurt) has been connected to weight gain.
I am not saying throw your yoghurt and berries in the bin. Instead, I am suggesting looking at the overall picture. If Lactobacillus acidophilus is the predominant micro-organism of the gut, then weight gain can result.
It is about the variety of species of gut microbes. Imagine if we only have trained german shepherd guard dogs in the world. It may be a safe world, but I am sure that other breeds may be more suitable as a family pet.
While Lactobacillus acidophilus is associated with weight gain, other Lactobacillus species correlate with weight loss.
Species like Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus gasseri, and Bifidobacteria animalis have been found to support weight loss.
Want to lose weight?
Look at your gut flora to support your goal.
Tests can be performed to identify the predominant species of the gut, and specific species can be utilised to support weight changes.
Want more information about your gut health?
Or want to look at all the factors contributing to weight gain, I’d love to be able to help.
