The Ground Beneath - The Root Causes of IBS Nobody Talks About

(A Mind–Body–Microbiome View)

Most people are told their IBS is “just something you have to live with.”
Or that it’s stress.
Or that it’s food.
Or that it’s “one of those things.”

But IBS is rarely random, and it’s almost never “just stress.”
It’s the body trying to communicate – and often, no one has ever taught you how to recognise its signals.

If you’ve lived with bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, food reactions, or a gut that seems to switch moods daily, you may have already felt this:
there’s more going on than anyone has explained to you.

And you’re right.

IBS is not one root cause – it’s a pattern.
A set of interconnected systems trying to compensate, protect, and adapt.
When we zoom out, a much clearer picture emerges.

Let’s walk through the layers that often sit quietly beneath IBS – the ones most people never hear about.

1. Digestion That’s Not Actually Digesting

Many people think IBS means their gut is “sensitive.”
But for a lot of people, the deeper issue is that digestion simply isn’t happening efficiently.

This might look like:

  • food sitting in the stomach

  • poor breakdown of protein or fats

  • low stomach acid

  • sluggish motility

  • feeling full quickly

  • or the opposite – feeling hungry all the time but not satisfied

When digestion slows or becomes inconsistent, it creates the perfect environment for symptoms. Not because your body is flawed – but because it’s under strain.

2. A Microbiome That’s Lost Its Balance

IBS is often a microbiome story.

Not necessarily in a dramatic way – but in subtle shifts that change how your gut feels day to day:

  • too little diversity

  • too many gas-producing microbes

  • not enough beneficial species

  • yeast overgrowth

  • lingering effects from antibiotics or infections

  • or bacteria simply sitting where they shouldn’t (hello, SIBO)

These changes don’t always cause problems immediately.
Symptoms often show up only when your system is already juggling stress, illness, or hormonal changes.

That’s why gut symptoms feel unpredictable: it’s not about the broccoli you ate yesterday – it’s about everything your microbiome is responding to.

3. Hormones That Influence the Gut More Than We Realise

This is a big one that gets missed.

Oestrogen, progesterone, cortisol, and even thyroid hormones play major roles in:

  • motility

  • gas production

  • bowel movements

  • sensitivity to pain

  • water retention

  • inflammation

This is why so many of my clients notice their IBS worsening before their period, during perimenopause, or alongside fatigue and low mood.

Your gut doesn’t exist separately from your hormones.
When hormones shift, the gut shifts with them.

4. A Nervous System That’s Doing Its Best to Protect You

IBS symptoms often flare when your body senses threat – even if your mind feels “fine.”

Many people live in a chronic state of subtle tension without realising it.
Not panic, not overwhelm – just constant bracing.

This might show up as:

  • shallow breathing

  • a tight belly

  • clenching your jaw

  • rushing meals

  • swallowing tension

  • difficulty relaxing

  • feeling “on alert” without knowing why

In these states, digestion is never the priority.
Your body isn’t malfunctioning – it’s prioritising survival.

And here’s what many people don’t realise:
IBS often develops in bodies that have been under prolonged pressure – physical, emotional, or both.

5. Emotional Patterns Held in the Body

This is the part that people often sense but don’t talk about openly.

For many clients, IBS didn’t begin when their gut “went wrong.”
It began when their body learned to carry tension or stress for long periods of time.

Not dramatic trauma – often the very opposite:

  • being the “good” one

  • staying calm

  • keeping peace

  • pushing through

  • not wanting to be a burden

  • holding everything together

The body remembers what the mind learns to minimise.
And the gut – with its thousands of nerve endings – is often where this strain shows up physically.

None of this is about blame.
It’s about understanding the full picture.

When the emotional system is under constant load, digestion rarely feels settled.

6. The Perfect Storm of Modern Life

IBS is almost always multifaceted.
And modern life quietly hits every layer at once:

  • poor sleep

  • fast eating

  • irregular meals

  • under-eating or over-restricting

  • high expectations

  • constant stimulation

  • unresolved fatigue

  • subtle inflammation

  • disconnection from the body’s cues

Your gut isn’t “too sensitive.”
It’s responding to a world that gives it very little space to recover.

So What Does This Mean for Healing?

The good news:

IBS is not a mystery.
And it’s not something you’re stuck with.

Healing happens when we support all the layers that influence digestion – not just diet alone.

This might look like:

  • restoring digestion and motility

  • rebuilding microbial balance

  • regulating hormones

  • identifying hidden triggers

  • exploring nervous system patterns

  • reducing overall physiological load

  • rebuilding trust in your body

  • creating space for calm, consistent nourishment

IBS doesn’t resolve through quick fixes – but it often responds well to support that works with the whole system, at a pace the body can tolerate.

A Final Thought

If you’ve felt unheard or dismissed, or if your symptoms feel too complex to make sense of, there is nothing wrong with you.

Your body hasn’t been malfunctioning.
It’s been responding.

The work is not to silence your gut –
but to understand what it’s been reacting to all along.

Amanda Callenberg