Thank you so much, Linnea! And such a good question to follow up with.
One thing I noted is the nausea and food aversion I described in the article, and the need for easier to digest foods, are specific to the acute phase. During chronic stress I haven't experienced that. And the reason is that acute stress triggers a sharp, intense sympathetic activation that redirects blood flow away from the gut almost immediately. With chronic stress, the sympathetic activation is sustained rather than sudden, so the immediate digestive shutdown doesn't happen in the same way. Instead, prolonged cortisol elevation affects digestion more gradually through its effects on gut motility, gut barrier function, and the gut microbiome.
So with chronic stress the focus is less about what the gut can handle and more about replenishing what prolonged cortisol depletes over time, and keeping blood sugar stable enough that you're not layering cortisol spikes on top of an already taxed system. Magnesium tends to be the most immediate gap since the body burns through it faster under chronic stress and it plays a direct role in nervous system regulation. B vitamins and vitamin C are also depleted by ongoing cortisol output. Fatty fish, leafy greens, eggs, nuts and seeds, and organ meats if you eat them, cover a lot of that ground.
Hope this helps. :) It's a big enough topic that it deserves its own post, adding it to the list! :D
Oh yes, I would love an article on this topic! After living most of my life and sympathetic dominance, I’m realizing that my gut was trashed in the process. It’s taken years to try and rebuild it, and finding the right foods is tricky, to say the least. I do take magnesium religiously, along with methyl B12 and omega-3 fatty acids.
It really is a process, isn't it? Prolonged stress can absolutely leave digestion feeling less resilient, and rebuilding often takes much longer than we'd like. The tricky part is that there isn't one "gut healing" diet that works for everyone. The foods that help one person can be too much for someone else, especially in the beginning.
It sounds like you've already built a solid foundation with those supplements. I think one of the biggest shifts is moving away from trying to find the perfect foods and instead helping the body feel safe enough to digest and absorb what you're eating. I'll definitely write about this because it's such an important, and often misunderstood, topic. Thank you for bringing this up and sharing a bit of your story, Linnea! :)
Dr. Karina, Thank you so much for sharing your raw experience with us during a very difficult period for you. As an empathetic individual who suffers all too frequently from everything you discuss here, I am deeply grateful. 🙏🏼
Hope some less stressful times are ahead for you.
Thank you so much, Meagan! 💛💛💛
This is a fantastic reminder of the body’s wisdom, thank you Karina.
I’m curious, what foods do you recommend for chronic stress rather than acute?
Thank you so much, Linnea! And such a good question to follow up with.
One thing I noted is the nausea and food aversion I described in the article, and the need for easier to digest foods, are specific to the acute phase. During chronic stress I haven't experienced that. And the reason is that acute stress triggers a sharp, intense sympathetic activation that redirects blood flow away from the gut almost immediately. With chronic stress, the sympathetic activation is sustained rather than sudden, so the immediate digestive shutdown doesn't happen in the same way. Instead, prolonged cortisol elevation affects digestion more gradually through its effects on gut motility, gut barrier function, and the gut microbiome.
So with chronic stress the focus is less about what the gut can handle and more about replenishing what prolonged cortisol depletes over time, and keeping blood sugar stable enough that you're not layering cortisol spikes on top of an already taxed system. Magnesium tends to be the most immediate gap since the body burns through it faster under chronic stress and it plays a direct role in nervous system regulation. B vitamins and vitamin C are also depleted by ongoing cortisol output. Fatty fish, leafy greens, eggs, nuts and seeds, and organ meats if you eat them, cover a lot of that ground.
Hope this helps. :) It's a big enough topic that it deserves its own post, adding it to the list! :D
Oh yes, I would love an article on this topic! After living most of my life and sympathetic dominance, I’m realizing that my gut was trashed in the process. It’s taken years to try and rebuild it, and finding the right foods is tricky, to say the least. I do take magnesium religiously, along with methyl B12 and omega-3 fatty acids.
It really is a process, isn't it? Prolonged stress can absolutely leave digestion feeling less resilient, and rebuilding often takes much longer than we'd like. The tricky part is that there isn't one "gut healing" diet that works for everyone. The foods that help one person can be too much for someone else, especially in the beginning.
It sounds like you've already built a solid foundation with those supplements. I think one of the biggest shifts is moving away from trying to find the perfect foods and instead helping the body feel safe enough to digest and absorb what you're eating. I'll definitely write about this because it's such an important, and often misunderstood, topic. Thank you for bringing this up and sharing a bit of your story, Linnea! :)
Thank you for asking this question, Linnea. 💕
Thank you for reminding me of the physiological sigh. 😉
We sometimes need those little reminders, don't we? :)
Dr. Karina, Thank you so much for sharing your raw experience with us during a very difficult period for you. As an empathetic individual who suffers all too frequently from everything you discuss here, I am deeply grateful. 🙏🏼
You are loved by so many of us.
🫶
Thank you so much, Diane, for your kind words! I deeply appreciate your comment! 💛