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Stephanie Tavarez, Biochemist | Gut Health | IBS & SIBO

@wellwithstephanie

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✨Gut health through a functional lens
🧪 Labs + protocols your GI skipped
Functional Practitioner making IBS & SIBO someone else's problem

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Hear me out.

Most people with low ferritin get told to take iron. Nobody asks if their body can actually absorb it.

To absorb iron you need enough stomach acid and a gut that isn’t inflamed. A lot of the women I work with have neither. They’re stressed, eating on the go, maybe on an antacid. Some have bloating they’ve just accepted as normal. Some have H. pylori or SIBO and have no idea.

So they take iron, it sits there, and they get constipated and nauseous. Then they retest and the number barely moved.

That doesn’t mean they did anything wrong. It means no one looked at the gut.

It’s not always the gut. Heavy periods, inflammation, and not eating enough red meat all matter too, and some people really do just need iron. But if you’ve been supplementing for months with nothing to show for it, I’d look at your gut before you add more.

DM me “FERRITIN” and tell me your number. by @wellwithstephanie

You’re never gonna feel ready. Not monday, not after the holidays, not when work calms down. That feeling isn’t coming and while you wait, your body keeps telling you something’s off.

Waking up tired even after a full night. Needing coffee just to feel normal. The 3pm crash where you can barely keep your eyes open. Jeans that fit in the morning and are cutting into you by dinner. Brain fog so bad you forget what you walked into the room for. Hair all over the shower drain. Always cold when everyone else is fine.

You’ve gotten so used to it that you think it’s just how you are. it’s not. So just START. There’s no better time than now. Already doing the basics and still feel like crap?

Common ‘TEST’ and let’s figure out what’s actually going on by @wellwithstephanie

Some of you have been in a toxic relationship with your stomach for YEARS 😭

“Dairy goes straight through me.”
“I’ll pay for this tomorrow.”
“I brought my Lactaid, Pepto-Bismol, and a prayer.”
“I’m gonna be so bloated after this.”

At some point you just start planning your life around your gut without even realizing you’re doing it.

And listen, I’ll make the jokes all day 😂 but constantly having to accommodate your stomach isn’t something you should just accept as your normal.

Send this to your chronically tummy-ache friend.

And if you ARE the chronically tummy-ache friend… you already know where to find me.

#guthealth #ibs #bloating #digestivehealth #guthealthsupport by @wellwithstephanie

H. pylori is incredibly common, but a lot of people have no idea what it is or that they could have it without obvious symptoms.

H. pylori is a bacterium that colonizes the stomach lining.

And when symptoms do show up, they can look like things people deal with all the time: reflux, burping, nausea, indigestion, upper abdominal pain, etc.

Which is exactly why I’m big on testing instead of guessing.

When I see a positive result, I’m not just thinking, “Okay, how do we get rid of it?”

I’m looking at the person in front of me. What symptoms are they having? What else is going on in the GI tract? What needs support afterward?

And just because someone starts feeling better doesn’t automatically mean H. pylori is gone.

Retesting matters.

So please stop throwing random antimicrobials at your gut because TikTok convinced you that you have H. pylori.

Symptoms give us clues. Testing gives us actual information.

Save this if H. pylori has ever come up in your gut health journey. 🤍

#H.Pylori #GutHealth #DigestiveHealth #GutHealthTips #FunctionalNutrition by @wellwithstephanie

Sorry not sorry 🤷🏽‍♀️. by @wellwithstephanie

One thing I’ve noticed after working with people with IBS...

Many of them share similar patterns.

Not because these traits cause IBS, but because living with ongoing digestive symptoms changes the way you experience your body.

I’ve met people who...
• Research everything because they’re trying to find answers.

• Think through every meal because they’re afraid of feeling worse.

• Keep showing up for work, family, and everyone else—even when they don’t feel well.

• Start believing that feeling “off” is just who they are.

None of this means your symptoms are “all in your head.”

But we also can’t ignore the connection between the gut and the nervous system. Chronic symptoms can influence stress, and chronic stress can influence gut function. It’s a relationship that deserves attention—not blame.

That’s one reason my approach isn’t just about managing symptoms.

It’s about understanding why they’re happening, while helping people rebuild trust in their body again.

🤍 Which one resonated with you the most?

#ibs #guthealth #ibsrelief #functionalmedicine #digestivehealth by @wellwithstephanie

I rated some of the most common IBS treatments from a functional practitioner’s perspective.

Before anyone comes for me... this isn’t about saying a treatment is “good” or “bad.”

It’s about understanding what it’s designed to do, where it fits, and where its limitations are.

Here’s why I scored them the way I did:

➡️ Miralax: Effective at softening stool by drawing water into the colon. But it doesn’t restore gut motility or explain why constipation developed. If it’s become your long-term solution, it’s worth asking what may be contributing to the constipation in the first place.

➡️ Low FODMAP: One of the most evidence-based dietary approaches for IBS symptom relief. But it’s designed to be temporary. Staying in the elimination phase long term may unnecessarily reduce dietary variety and beneficial fibers that support the gut microbiome.

➡️ PPIs: They can be incredibly effective and absolutely have a place. However, prolonged use should be periodically reassessed, as it has been associated with nutrient deficiencies and an increased risk of certain gastrointestinal infections.

➡️ Probiotics: They aren’t one-size-fits-all. Different strains have different effects, and in some people, the wrong probiotic may worsen bloating or digestive symptoms rather than improve them.

➡️ IBgard (peppermint oil): It can be a helpful tool for reducing abdominal pain and cramping, but it doesn’t address every potential driver of IBS. It may also worsen reflux symptoms in some individuals.

Every treatment has a role.

The goal isn’t to fear medications, supplements, or diets.

It’s to understand what they’re designed to do, recognize their limitations, and know when it’s time to ask deeper questions.

#ibs #ibsrelief #guthealth #digestivehealth #functionalmedicine by @wellwithstephanie

Most conversations about SIBO focus on getting rid of the bacteria.

And while treatment is important, it’s often only one part of the picture.

One question I always come back to is:

What allowed the overgrowth to happen in the first place?

For some people, that conversation may include motility, stomach acid, prior infections, anatomy, medications, or other contributing factors. Every case is different.

Treating the overgrowth matters.

Understanding what may be contributing to it matters too.

💬 What have you found to be the most frustrating part of your SIBO journey?

#sibo #digestivehealth #functionalmedicine #IBS #guthealth by @wellwithstephanie

One of the biggest misconceptions I see is that a normal colonoscopy or endoscopy means “nothing is wrong.”

That’s not what these tests are designed to tell us.

They’re incredibly valuable because they help rule out many serious conditions, including inflammatory bowel disease, cancers, ulcers, and other structural abnormalities.

IBS is different. It’s diagnosed based on symptoms after other conditions have been excluded—not because it’s visible during a colonoscopy or endoscopy.

That’s why someone can have normal testing and still experience very real digestive symptoms.

Understanding what a test can tell you is just as important as understanding what it can’t.

#ibs #bloating #digestivehealth #functionalmedicine #guthealth by @wellwithstephanie

One of the hardest parts about living with IBS isn’t always the symptoms themselves.

It’s watching your life slowly change around them.

I’ve spoken with people who avoid vacations because they’re worried about flare-ups.

People who check restaurant menus before making plans.

People who know where every bathroom is before they walk into a building.

People who carry medication everywhere “just in case.”

Over time, it becomes normal.

But planning your life around your symptoms isn’t something you should have to accept.

If this resonates with you, I hope it reminds you of one thing: Your world deserves to be bigger than your symptoms. ❤️

#ibs #guthealth #digestivehealth #sibo #womenshealth by @wellwithstephanie

It’s not about eating ‘perfect’… it’s about what you can actually stay consistent with.

Here’s a look at some of the foods I eat regularly.

Nothing fancy. Nothing extreme. Maybe it doesn’t even look presentable for socials lol (not here to make food look pretty).

Just simple foods I rotate week after week because they work for my life.

I view food from a nutrient dense lense but I also want to find enjoyment in my meals. I’ve created a way to have both. That’s where real change happens. Not in perfection, not in lengthy extravagant recipes, but in structure that supports your real day-to-day.

I meal prep and have systems in place that help me keep healthy food a priority even with a busy schedule, because consistency only works when it’s designed to be lived with.

And I think about food in terms of what it’s doing in the body:

🥩 Protein→ supports repair + blood sugar stability
🍠 Carbs→ support energy production + nervous system regulation
🥑 Fats→ support hormone production + gut lining function
🥦 Fiber→ supports digestion, gut motility, and regular elimination

When you understand what food is doing, you stop chasing perfection and start building something you can actually sustain.

Make it real. Make it yours. Show up. ✨ by @wellwithstephanie

Somewhere along the way, taking care of your health started to feel like doing the most.

More supplements.
More rules.
More trends.
More confusion.

It makes sense why so many people feel overwhelmed.

Because when everything feels important, it becomes hard to know what actually matters for you.

The truth is, more isn’t always better.

And healing doesn’t have to feel like constantly adding things to your plate.

Sometimes the most helpful next step is slowing things down and getting clear on what your body actually needs.

Not guessing.
Not copying what worked for someone else.
Not trying everything at once.

Just understanding you.

💬 Have you ever felt overwhelmed by all the wellness advice out there?

#guthealth #functionalmedicine #hormonehealth #ibs #wellnessjourney by @wellwithstephanie