IBS is diagnosed by your GP, after the tests that rule out other causes, and nothing here changes that. Our naturopaths and nutritionists in Geelong and Drysdale work alongside them on the part that fills your days: what you eat, how your gut responds, sleep, stress, and the food triggers that are yours rather than the ones on a list.
Because a normal scope and normal bloods are the point of an IBS diagnosis, not a dead end. IBS is a disorder of how the gut and nervous system talk to each other, it affects around one in twenty people worldwide by the current criteria [1], and the tests that rule out other conditions do not tell you what to eat, why the bloating comes in the afternoon, or what to do about the 6am urgency.
Most people who come to us have that diagnosis, a list of foods someone told them to avoid, and no plan. Some are on a low FODMAP diet they were never taught how to finish. Some have tried everything. Some have never been told that IBS and anxiety travel together, or that sleep and stress change the gut as much as food does [2].
It is not “all in your head”, and it is not nothing. We will always listen.
We don’t diagnose or treat irritable bowel syndrome; that stays with your doctor. Our part is the nutritional, herbal and lifestyle work that sits alongside their care.
The British Society of Gastroenterology guideline puts first-line care for IBS in diet, lifestyle and the gut-brain connection, with medication for what remains [3]. That is also where we work, with the time a GP appointment rarely allows.
The low FODMAP diet, done properly — it is the best-supported diet for IBS symptoms in the trials [4], and it is a three-stage process: a short restriction, a structured reintroduction, and a personalised long-term diet. Most people we see were given stage one and nothing else. Staying restricted for months narrows the diet and the microbiome for no gain [5].
Your own triggers — a food and symptom diary, kept for two to three weeks, usually shows a pattern that no generic list would. A structured elimination and rechallenge, one food group at a time, is how we test it without cutting foods for nothing.
Fibre, fluid and meal pattern — the type of fibre matters more than the amount in IBS, and regular meals with fewer large gaps settle a reactive gut.
Sleep, stress and the gut-brain connection — stress and poor sleep change gut motility and sensitivity, and psychological therapies aimed at the gut, such as gut-directed hypnotherapy and CBT, have good trial evidence in IBS [6]. We work on the sleep and stress side and refer to a psychologist where that is what you need.
Anxiety and low mood — around a third of people with IBS meet criteria for anxiety [2]. It deserves care in its own right; see your GP, and we work alongside that.
Overlaps that are not IBS — coeliac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, endometriosis, bile acid problems and small-bowel bacterial overgrowth can all look like IBS. Coeliac testing goes through your GP before gluten is removed; the others are your GP’s or gastroenterologist’s to investigate.
Stool testing, only when it would change the plan — a functional stool test can add information to the tests your GP has already run, particularly for long-standing symptoms. It is not routine, the laboratory bills you directly, and we tell you what it can and cannot show before you decide. Our gut microbiome testing page explains it.
What stays with your doctor — the diagnosis, the tests that exclude other conditions, medication, and any red-flag symptom.
Your GP diagnoses IBS, runs or refers the tests that exclude other conditions, and prescribes where medication is needed. We work on diet, triggers, sleep, stress and the gut-brain side, and we keep them informed. We never suggest stopping or changing medication, and we check anything we suggest against it first.
Depending on what we find, a plan can include:
A properly staged low FODMAP diet, with the reintroduction and personalisation stages that most people never get.
A diary-led elimination and rechallenge for suspected triggers, so decisions rest on your own results.
Fibre, fluid and meal-pattern changes matched to whether your IBS runs to constipation, diarrhoea or both.
A sleep and stress plan, and a referral for gut-directed hypnotherapy or CBT where the gut-brain side is driving symptoms.
Stool testing where it would change the plan, read with you alongside your GP’s results.
Herbal and nutritional support, chosen in consultation and checked against your medication. Nothing is prescribed from a list.
Keeping your GP or gastroenterologist in the loop.
We usually review at six to eight weeks, because a gut settles over weeks, not days, and a reintroduction stage needs time to do properly.
We are open 6 days per week, by appointment only. Book an appointment online via our online booking link.
Before anyone calls it IBS, and whenever something changes. Blood in the stool, black stools, unexplained weight loss, symptoms that wake you at night, a fever, persistent vomiting, difficulty swallowing, new symptoms after 50, anaemia, or a family history of bowel cancer, coeliac disease or inflammatory bowel disease all need your GP first, not a diet change. If you suspect coeliac disease, get tested through your GP before removing gluten; the test only works while you are eating it.
We don’t diagnose or treat irritable bowel syndrome; diagnosis, the tests that exclude other conditions and any medication sit with your GP or gastroenterologist. Seeing a naturopath is not a reason to skip those tests or to stop a medication you have been prescribed. healthdirect’s IBS guide sets out the medical side plainly.
Not with the diagnosis, which stays with your GP after the tests that rule out other causes. What a naturopath can do is the part the guidelines put first: diet done properly, your own triggers, fibre and meal pattern, sleep, stress and the gut-brain connection, alongside your doctor’s care and never instead of it.
No. It is a three-stage process: a short restriction of a few weeks, a structured reintroduction of each FODMAP group, and a personalised diet that keeps only what actually bothers you. Staying restricted long term narrows your diet and your gut bacteria for no benefit, which is why we walk people through all three stages.
Usually not to start. A functional stool test can add information for long-standing symptoms, particularly where the standard tests have not explained them, and we suggest it only when the result would change the plan. The laboratory bills you directly, and we explain what it can and cannot show first.
Intestinal permeability is a real thing that researchers measure. Leaky gut as a diagnosis, a test you can buy or a cause of everything is not, and we do not build plans on it. What we work on is what the evidence supports in IBS: diet, triggers, fibre, sleep, stress and the gut-brain connection.
Closely. Around a third of people with IBS meet criteria for anxiety, and the gut and brain signal to each other constantly, which is why stress and sleep change symptoms. Anxiety deserves care in its own right through your GP; alongside that, we work on the sleep, stress and gut side.
1. Sperber AD, Bangdiwala SI, Drossman DA, et al. Worldwide prevalence and burden of functional gastrointestinal disorders, results of Rome Foundation Global Study. Gastroenterology. 2021;160(1):99-114.e3. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2020.04.014
2. Zamani M, Alizadeh-Tabari S, Zamani V. Systematic review with meta-analysis: the prevalence of anxiety and depression in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2019;50(2):132-143. doi:10.1111/apt.15325
3. Vasant DH, Paine PA, Black CJ, et al. British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines on the management of irritable bowel syndrome. Gut. 2021;70(7):1214-1240. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2021-324598
4. Black CJ, Staudacher HM, Ford AC. Efficacy of a low FODMAP diet in irritable bowel syndrome: systematic review and network meta-analysis. Gut. 2022;71(6):1117-1126. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2021-325214
5. Whelan K, Martin LD, Staudacher HM, Lomer MCE. The low FODMAP diet in the management of irritable bowel syndrome: an evidence-based review of FODMAP restriction, reintroduction and personalisation in clinical practice. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2018;31(2):239-255. doi:10.1111/jhn.12530
6. Black CJ, Thakur ER, Houghton LA, Quigley EMM, Moayyedi P, Ford AC. Efficacy of psychological therapies for irritable bowel syndrome: systematic review and network meta-analysis. Gut. 2020;69(8):1441-1451. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2020-321191
If you have the diagnosis and a list of foods to avoid but no plan, it is worth seeing someone who works with your GP rather than around them. Our naturopaths and nutritionists consult from Geelong CBD and Drysdale, in person or by telehealth, six days a week. Bring your results and a week of food and symptom notes, and we will start by listening.
We are open 6 days per week, by appointment only. Book an appointment online via our online booking link.
