the Gut/Mind link

I am a textbook case of BPII or cyclothymic disorder - meaning no severe depression (I play video games and sleep like a baby, a little sluggish/tired), when manic I am positive and very creative, but my sleep suffers. I am med free except the Ambien I take. I went to an acupuncturist and he said he cannot do much for me other than severe carb-restricted diet, while eating probiotics.
Now my manic phase is much milder.

Hi KinkyGuy

Thank you for sharing this alternative approach with us.

I enjoy reading alternative approaches to managing episodes.

Take care.

I forgot to elaborate (it was very late). The symptom is called leaky gut, this happens for older people who are overweight and eat garbage and lots of carbs (well that would be the US population, with some exception of course).
""Leaky gut syndrome" is said to have symptoms including bloating, gas, cramps, food sensitivities, and aches and pains. But it's something of a medical mystery.

“From an MD’s standpoint, it’s a very gray area,” says gastroenterologist Donald Kirby, MD, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the Cleveland Clinic. “Physicians don’t know enough about the gut, which is our biggest immune system organ.”

"Leaky gut syndrome" isn't a diagnosis taught in medical school. Instead, "leaky gut really means you’ve got a diagnosis that still needs to be made,” Kirby says. “You hope that your doctor is a good-enough Sherlock Holmes, but sometimes it is very hard to make a diagnosis.”

“We don’t know a lot but we know that it exists,” says Linda A. Lee, MD, a gastroenterologist and director of the Johns Hopkins Integrative Medicine and Digestive Center. “In the absence of evidence, we don’t know what it means or what therapies can directly address it.”

Gut Bacteria May Exacerbate Depression - Scientific American

Bugs That Influence the Brain
Preliminary research suggests that these common gut microbes can also affect our thoughts and feelings.

1. Helicobacter pylori: Children infected with this ulcer-causing bacterium performed worse on IQ tests, suggesting a possible link between H. pylori infection and cognitive development.

2. Lactobacillus helveticus and Bifidobacterium longum: Healthy human volunteers who consumed a probiotic mix of these bacteria exhibited less anxiety and depression.

3. Probiotic bacteria B. animalis subsp. lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus, L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus, L. lactis subsp. lactis: Healthy women who consumed yogurt containing these bugs showed less activity in brain regions that process emotions and physical sensations. Researchers do not yet know whether these effects were beneficial; they also have not discovered the mechanism underlying the observed shift in brain activity.

4. Lactobacilli: Healthy students had fewer of these bacteria present in their stool during a high-stress exam time compared with a less stressful period during the semester. The findings suggest a potential link between stress and gut microbes, but the exact relation remains unknown.

I have a huge mind/belly connection.

If I am stable and properly medicated, I have a healthy weight, appetite, and consistent elimination. If anyone goes wrong in the slightest, I get belly issues. True for both the Bipolar front and the GAD front.

moogs

We all have it. The problem is we eat lots of food that was treated with antibiotics(chicken, for example) or we take that as a drug (lesser), so this eventually kills of the good bacteria we MUST have. I take probiotics and I have noticed a world of difference...processed food does the same! I avoid that too! I still have ups and downs but the severity is not what it was before. Check out this website book. Legal/Illegal List - Breaking the Vicious Cycle

The diet itself is impossible (for me, at least to follow), but you may wish to try. Go for it!

I have Celiac disease, and when I consume gluten, it throws my moods off significantly. So much so I blamed all my mood issues on Celiac disease at first. Now I know the gluten isn't entirely responsible for my Bipolar (I have BP1) but is a huge trigger.

I've also heard of the link between gut bacteria and brain function. I take probiotics now!

There are times when I'm gut sick my mood goes into the toilet. I done realize that I'm sick till I get relief, then I instantly feel better and then I realize how sick I was.

I just finished a gut, kidney and liver detox as prescribed by my GP (who is also a qualified dietitian). I had 3 weeks of no sugar, no carbs and low GI food before my mood got so severe that I had to be hospitalised. So the strict diet went out the window but I continued the detox and stayed away from the "bad" food as much as I could. I've finished the course now. It has had no impact on my mood, energy or focus levels like he said it would. There is another stage but I cant continue that until I can resume the strict diet at home which is probably a couple weeks off. In the mean time I have to take hair samples and swabs to test my adrenal function.

I only take probiotics when needed from illness.

Severe as in up or down? Thats strange that the diet did that, did you have a recent medication change? are you BP1 or BP2?

Severe low very agitated depression. Now needing a med change and been inpatient almost 2 weeks now. Bp2 with no med change before yesterday

I'm not blaming the diet for it at all - just pointing out that the diet and detox had no effect on my mood. I eat healthy anyway but am not on the low gi no carbs no sugar diet while inpatient but intend to go back on it when I am home. I'll try anything and everything to get my mood right