Why You Need to Relax More (And How It Fixes Your Gut)

Your gut issues get worse when you're stressed. You know this from experience—big presentation at work and suddenly you're bloated and running to the bathroom. Stressful week and your digestion completely shuts down.

But here's what most people don't understand: the connection between stress and your gut isn't just correlation. It's direct, physiological cause and effect. Your nervous system controls your digestion, and when your nervous system is in stress mode, your gut literally cannot function properly.

This is why probiotics, elimination diets, and supplements only help so much. If you don't address the stress piece, your gut will never fully heal.

Your gut only works in "rest and digest" mode

Your autonomic nervous system has two settings: sympathetic (fight or flight) and parasympathetic (rest and digest). Notice that name—rest and digest. Your digestive system is literally designed to function when you're calm and relaxed, not when you're stressed.

When you're in fight-or-flight mode—which most professional women are during their entire workday—your body diverts blood and energy away from digestion. Why? Because if you're running from danger (or your body thinks you are because you're stressed), digesting your lunch is not a survival priority.

This means your stomach produces less acid, which makes it harder to break down food. Your intestines slow down their movement, which causes constipation and bloating. Your gut lining becomes more permeable, which allows partially digested food and bacteria to leak through (leaky gut). And your gut bacteria get imbalanced because they need a calm environment to thrive.

Stress creates a vicious cycle with your gut

Here's where it gets worse: your gut and brain communicate through the vagus nerve. When you're stressed, your gut suffers. But when your gut is unhealthy, it sends distress signals back to your brain, which makes you more anxious and stressed. You end up in a feedback loop where stress damages your gut, and gut damage increases stress.

This is why people with IBS often also have anxiety. It's why digestive issues get worse during busy seasons at work. And it's why you can eat the exact same food on a relaxed Saturday and feel fine, but eat it on a stressful Tuesday and get bloated and uncomfortable.

The simple solution most people ignore

You need to activate your parasympathetic nervous system before and during meals. This tells your body it's safe to digest food properly.

Here's what this looks like practically:

Before each meal: Take 5 deep breaths.

Seriously. Before you eat anything, sit down, and do 5 slow, deep breaths. In for 4 counts, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4. This activates your vagus nerve and shifts you into rest-and-digest mode. It sounds too simple to matter, but it's one of the most powerful things you can do for your digestion.

Eat without distractions.

No laptop, no phone, no TV, no scrolling. Just eat. When you're distracted, your brain stays in stress mode and your body can't properly digest. You need to be present with your food for your nervous system to recognize "we're eating now, time to activate digestion."

Chew your food thoroughly.

20-30 times per bite. Digestion starts in your mouth with saliva enzymes. When you eat quickly and barely chew, you're forcing your stomach and intestines to do work they're not designed for. This causes bloating, gas, and poor nutrient absorption.

Take a short walk after meals.

10-15 minutes of gentle walking stimulates digestion and helps food move through your system. You're not trying to exercise—you're just supporting natural gut motility.

Why this fixes gut issues when nothing else does

You can take all the probiotics and digestive enzymes in the world, but if your nervous system is stuck in fight-or-flight during meals, your gut can't absorb them properly. You can eliminate trigger foods, but if stress is making your gut lining permeable, you'll keep developing new sensitivities.

The foundation of gut healing is nervous system regulation. When you consistently eat in a calm state, your stomach acid production normalizes. Your gut motility improves. Your gut lining heals. Your microbiome rebalances. And suddenly those probiotics and dietary changes actually work because your gut can use them properly.

This isn't about "stress management" in the abstract sense. It's about giving your digestive system the physiological conditions it needs to function. Your gut is designed to work when you're relaxed. When you're chronically stressed, it simply can't do its job—no matter how perfectly you eat.