Hello  – I’m sorry you’ve been suffering for so long. Allow me to share some possible root causes, to hopefully begin to peel the layers of the onion and get you feeling better again. In terms of causes, gastroparesis is often multifactorial. Common drivers include:
• Nerve damage. Diabetes is considered to be one of the biggest risk factors because hyperglycemia causes nerve damage. The vagus nerve controls the muscles of the stomach and small intestine. If the vagus nerve is damaged, the muscles of the stomach and small intestine do not work as well and the movement of food through the digestive tract is slowed. Similarly, if nerves or pacemaker cells in the wall of the stomach are damaged or do not work normally, the stomach is slow to empty. In addition to diabetes, other things that affect nerve health such as chronic smoking or low vitamin B12 can also contribute. Ideally, I like to see serum B12 above 600.

There is an important connection here too where gastric emptying plays a major role in stimulating the release of incretin hormones which directly triggers first-phase insulin release.  In fact, gastric emptying accounts for about 35% of the variance in the glycemic response to oral glucose and/or carbohydrate-containing meals in clinical study. Gastroparesis can contribute to less incretin release and thus less insulin release which can contribute to hyperglycemia over time, driving the progression of insulin resistance, and potentially creating a vicious cycle.

->Have you ever tested your fasting glucose, fasting insulin and HbA1c?
• SIBO. Small intestinal bacteria overgrowth can slow motility along the entire GI tract due to high methane production from intestinal bacteria. 

->Do you know what type of SIBO you have?
• Insufficient stomach acid. 

->Have you confirmed the H. Pylori is negative currently. Are you taking anything to stimulate or support stomach acid?
• Mitochondrial dysfunction can cause cellular energy deficiency that causes lower motility. This is seen in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.  

->Have you done an Organic Acid urine test by any chance?
• Hypothyroidism can also slow motility due to cellular energy deficiency and present as gastroparesis as well as other forms of low motility (e.g. constipation).

->Have you test your thyroid levels? These include: TSH, Total T4, Total T3, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3, anti-TPO, anti-TG
• Several medications are associated with gastroparesis, such as tricyclic antidepressants, anticholinergics, narcotics, lithium, nicotine, calcium channel blockers, dopamine agonists, and progesterone. 

->Are you taking any of these?
• Other less common causes include gastric surgery, viral infections in the stomach, and autoimmune disorders such as scleroderma.

->Do any of these resonate with you?
If gastroparesis continues untreated, downstream consequences include malnutrition, dehydration, poorly controlled blood sugar, bacterial infections, and in rare cases, a bezoar (where undigested food accumulates in the stomach, forming a solid mass).
Here are some recommendations to start:
• Explore possible contributors to neuropathy (e.g. increased oxidative stress, insufficient Vitamin B12 or B6. The organic acid test would have all of these markers)
• Check RBC magnesium level (not serum) and replace to optimal levels (ideally, upper third of the reference range)
• Continue to focus on easy to digest nutrition – smoothies, soups, broths, veggie purees, and soft, well-cooked foods.
• Bitter herbs such as ginger in whole food or supplement form can stimulate gastric motility.
• Focus on ensuring optimal eating hygiene.  In particular, taking time to see and smell foods and stimulate the cephalic phase of digestion that will also support optimal grehlin release.  This resource may be helpful about grehlin.
• Consider if serotonin might be low, contributing to slow motility. Pure Encapsulation’s Motilpro (which combines B6, 5-HTP, and ginger) may be a consideration for this.
• An herbal remedy called Iberogast has been demonstrated in clinical study to be effective in improving motility

In addition, I would highly encourage you to make time to watch the Gut Health Masterclass. It is long and intense, but will help you understand the whole digestive process so much better, and how easily it can dysfunction.

If time is an issue for you, then start by watching the summary of how digestion works, and then the summary of how digestion dysfunctions.

And since your main struggle is with the upper GI, you can also watch how digestion works in the stomach, and how it dysfunctions (in the stomach & causes of hypochlorhydria (low stomach acid)).

And here are solutions for stomach acid support.

I will leave it here for now as to not overwhelm you. Please make time to watch these videos, answer my questions above about tests, and let’s keep the conversation going.

Hope this helps give you some direction.

 Can you please upload your results here so that  can also chime in, and other members can benefit from this exchange as well. We’re all supportive here and no judgements…

But just a quick note based on what you’ve shared above. If you are too sensitive and cannot tolerate most supplements and medications, that’s an indication that you need a strong period of gut healing of at least 30 days before even attempting to support motility with bitter herbs. Anything at this stage would be adding fuel to a fire.

My very sensitive clients often have to start very slowly with food therapy alone in liquid form like marshmallow root infusion and slippery elm tea. And opening up gut healing supplement capsules and dumping contents into liquid helps too.

Here’s a tutorial how to make infusions. But instead of stinging nettle as shown in the video, they replace it with marshmallow root. Slippery elm is available in powder form which can be mixed into the infusion (drink it cold or hot).

Gut healing is definitely the place to start. Since eating solid foods is proving difficult as well, you might want to consider a nutrient dense liquid meal replacement such as Liquid Hope.

To be able to ship supplements using Fullscript, you’ll need to get a mail forwarding company like Boxit4Me (or similar for the UK). You might also want to check out Amrita Nutrition which carries many practitioner grade supplements in the UK.

Hope this helps.

Thank you for sharing . I’m not going to ask how much you’ve paid for all of these functional tests!! We’re going to do our best to guide and support you the best we can.

With complex chronic cases, I always take a step back and approach it with the simple model of “minimize, maximize and prioritize”.

I’m going to summarize my findings from the tests and symptoms you’ve shared, and then try to guide you with a framework/strategy within this model for you to begin taking action with one of your practitioners.

-Weak gut immunity is allowing strong dysbiosis and overgrowths (H Pylori overgrowth, bacterial overgrowth (Hydrogen SIBO) and yeast overgrowth) which leads to nutrient malabsorption, histamine overload, & oxalate build-up.

-High stress state (I suspect mold toxicity despite MycoTox showing otherwise) and lack of micronutrients from malabsorption leads to mitochondrial dysfunction (every cell in our body has mitochondria to generate ATP – our energy currency in the body).

Just a note about the MycoTox test – if the body’s detox pathways are blocked, it will show a false negative since the body isn’t excreting mycotoxins in urine. Your OAT shows heavy yeast and possibility of mold.

Maximize, Minimize & Prioritize model:

1. Maximize:
• Gut healing for minimum of 90 days. I like GI Revive (opening up capsules helps with absorption).
• Liquid nutrition/powdered supplementation. I shared Liquid Hope above. You can also search on Frullscript for powdered meal replacement shakes and see if they’re available on Amrita. I filled out a practitioner application and will pass those details onto you once approved so you can have access to their site & products.
• Gut immunity for minimum of 90 days. Something like IAG powder and MegaIgG2000 (open up capsules) can help strengthen gut immunity, as well as liquid omega-3 supplements. I like Biotics Biomega-1000.
• Mitochondrial support once the above is well implemented and supported for at least 30 days. Fullscript has liquid options if you search for “mitochondria” that you can see if available on Amrita.
• Gentle detox support. Castor oil packs on the liver/gallbladder and overall stomach to stimulate gastric motility. The “I Love You” massage also helps stimulate motility manually. Dandelion root tea infusion (can be mixed with marshmallow root) and beet kvass. Infrared sauna sessions (3-5 days per week) followed by sole (saturated salt water) to replenish electrolytes. Consider liquid or powdered amino acids to support phase 2 detox.

2. Minimize:
• 100% removal of known food sensitivities from your test (dairy & gluten) and anything you know you can’t tolerate at this stage
• addressing H Pylori overgrowth first and foremost after 30 days of gut healing therapies. Matula tea is gentle as a starting point.

3. Prioritize:
• sleep and eating hygiene
• ensure environment is free from mold & mycotoxins. I usually recommend my clients get an ERMI test. Booking a consultation & test with PJ Harlow is the easiest (~$400 USD for test and consult).
• Seek out an ANF therapy practitioner in your area. When supplements and food are no longer tolerated, transdermal applications of these energetic “discs” can really help a person regain control.

There’s obviously more that needs to be done, and a “kill” phase is probably needed, but given how sensitive you are, the first phase really needs to be on helping you regain some strength in order to tolerate the next phases.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Hey ,

I agree 100% with . Yeast & mold can be a cause of elevated oxalates. Sometimes yeast & mold can ‘steal’ nutrients, leaving your body with lower values.

What supplements do you currently take? And I’m also interested in what supplements seem to make your condition worse. Have you been using probiotics or saccharomyces boulardii? If so, did this made the symptoms worse or did you tolerated this well?

 Thank you for sharing your list of supplements.

PHGG – is a prebiotic fiber. As I mentioned in my other reply to your post about your diet, fiber is very irritating, and to an already inflamed gut, will be adding fuel to a fire! Plus, since it’s a prebiotic, it will be feeding opportunistic overgrowths and causing a lot of gas and bloating. Not ideal for you at this stage.

Glutamine – you didn’t mention if you’re struggling with anxiety, but if so, know that glutamine can cross the blood brain barrier (BBB) and worsen anxiety. It might be ok, but just wanted to highlight this fact just in case you started experiencing anxiety when taking it.

Invivo Mucin is a good choice given that you have non-detectable levels of Akkermansia

I would avoid all yeast (including S Boulardii) on the suspicion of mold being at play in your case. I know there are 2 schools of thought regarding S boulardii and mold illness, but I have personally seen a client’s symptoms worsen with the introduction of S boulardii before she was ready. I think timing and individual factors play a big role here. 

Since you don’t know what supplement is causing what symptoms, I usually suggest to my new clients to stop everything they’re taking (except prescription medications) for at least 1 week, and then slowly re-introduce them 1 at a time after 3 days of being symptom-free to determine what is suiting them or not.

Regarding GI Revive – there are many other options without pork. GI Resolve by Biotics research or Thorne’s GI Relief (without glutamine).

Regarding your probiotic, your GI map shows dysbiosis in your commensal bacteria – not a low count (except akkermansia) so it is unnecessary to be taking such a high count. It also contains maltose (a sugar) which acts like a prebiotic. Again, it’s not a bad thing, but timing is key. Prebiotics can add fuel to a fire in someone with digestive distress. The goal as I mentioned in my previous reply is to strengthen your gut immunity so that your immune system can start to take care of the imbalances while healing your gut lining.

 

-I suggested alternatives to GI revive in my reply above.

-Biomega-1000 is capsule form. Liquid is better. Biomega-3 liquid is a better option for you (if you can tolerate the taste).

-Yes, both IAG Powder and MegaIgG (capsules) can be added to water. With or without food.

-Protein suggestion is in my reply to your diet post

-For someone who is gluten-free, your gliadin should be lower. But I’ve also seen this elevated in mold-sick clients. Another marker that makes me suspicious of hidden mold.

-Markers 21, 58, 59 on your OAT make me suspicious of yeast and mold. Marker 32 points to mitochondrial dysfunction, along with markers 58 & 59 which indicate a higher level of toxicity and need for glutathione. Toxins directly interfere with mitochondrial function. WHAT is the toxin? I suspect mold, hence my recommendation for an ERMI test to check your home environment, and infrared sauna and gentle detox support to start helping your body eliminate whatever toxic burden it’s dealing with.

Hope this makes sense.

Hey ,

I am replying with a video message because I wanted to show you 3 exercises that you can do to help you with your Hiatal Hernia.

Specially the 2nd exercise (which is more of a massage) can help you with pulling back your stomach through your diafragma. The 3rd one is to strengthen your diafragma.

My apologies, but Youtube chose the thumbnail. From the 8 minute video it chose a really poor frame of the video, but I promise you this is an educational video!

Let me know if these exercises help you!