If you've been struggling with symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome with Constipation (IBS-C)—or have ever felt like your symptoms weren't being taken seriously—this episode is for you.

Makenna shares her personal journey of living with IBS-C, from first experiencing symptoms in high school to spending years searching for answers while being told there wasn't really anything wrong. Her experience ultimately helped shape her professional path: she went on to earn her PhD, with research focused on IBS.

In this conversation, Makenna opens up about the physical and emotional impact of living with IBS-C and the challenges patients can face when trying to explain symptoms that aren't always visible. We also explore the gut-brain connection, how IBS-C symptoms can overlap with gynecologic issues, lifestyle factors that may affect symptoms, and why communicating clearly with your healthcare provider matters.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Common signs and symptoms associated with IBS-C

• How IBS-C symptoms can overlap with gynecologic issues

• What the gut-brain connection means for people living with IBS-C

• Lifestyle factors that may affect symptoms

• How to more effectively describe your symptoms to your healthcare provider

• Why finding an individualized approach to managing IBS-C matters

IBS-C can significantly affect daily life and quality of life, but there are treatment and management options available. Whether you're newly experiencing symptoms or have been living with IBS-C for years, this conversation can help you better understand the condition and prepare for more productive conversations with your healthcare team.

This episode was produced by Gastro Girl with support from Ardelyx.

Pregnancy can bring major changes to digestion and bowel habits. But if you're already living with irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C), bloating, abdominal discomfort, or chronic constipation, it can be difficult to know what's related to pregnancy—and what may be related to your digestive condition.

In this episode of the Gastro Girl Health Podcast, Dr. Lin Chang, Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a leading expert in disorders of gut-brain interaction and women's digestive health, explains what patients should know about IBS-C and constipation during pregnancy.

You'll learn:

• How pregnancy-related constipation differs from IBS-C
• Why IBS symptoms may change during pregnancy
• What may contribute to increased bloating and constipation
• Diet and lifestyle strategies to discuss with your healthcare provider
• What to know about the low-FODMAP diet during pregnancy
• Treatment and medication considerations
• Symptoms that shouldn't automatically be attributed to IBS or pregnancy

If you're pregnant—or planning a pregnancy—and live with IBS-C or chronic constipation, this conversation can help you better understand your symptoms and prepare for conversations with your healthcare team.

This patient education episode was produced by Gastro Girl in collaboration with the American College of Gastroenterology Patient Care Committee.

#IBSC #Pregnancy #Constipation #IBS #Bloating #DigestiveHealth

Living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) often means paying close attention to your symptoms and how well your treatment is controlling the disease. But what happens when you're still having symptoms; or a treatment that once worked doesn't seem to be working as well anymore?

In this episode, Dr. Corey Siegel, an IBD specialist and Director of the Center for Digestive Health at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, joins us to explain how patients and their healthcare teams can recognize when an IBD treatment may not be achieving its goals and when it may be time to reassess the treatment plan.

We discuss what successful IBD treatment can look like, why response to treatment may change over time, and how healthcare teams determine whether ongoing symptoms are caused by active IBD or something else.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• What successful IBD treatment can look like

• How long it may take to evaluate whether a treatment is working

• Why a treatment that once worked may become less effective

• How healthcare teams determine whether symptoms are caused by active IBD or something else

• What treatment optimization means and when a different approach may be considered

• Why your goals, concerns, and preferences matter when making treatment decisions with your healthcare team

Dr. Siegel also explains why ongoing monitoring and open communication with your healthcare team are important and how shared decision-making can help patients and clinicians determine the next steps in IBD care.

This episode was produced by Gastro Girl with support from Sanofi.