Persistent Nutrition

Replay post while I’m on holiday: IBS symptoms can feel random, but they’re often patterned — it’s just hard to see the pattern when you’re tired, busy, and your gut is choosing violence.

Tracking isn’t about control or perfection. It’s about getting *useful data* you can actually take to your GP/dietitian/nutritionist without being told it’s “just stress”.

Comment "IBS" and I’ll DM you my symptom tracker.

General info only, not medical advice. If symptoms are severe, changing, include bleeding, unexplained weight loss, persistent vomiting, or you’re worried — please get medical support.

Music -Been there done that by Dynamedon

Replay post while I’m on holiday😸: if perimenopause has you googling “high cortisol symptoms” at 2am then I feel you!

Cortisol isn’t the villain — it’s a normal hormone. But perimenopause can crank the volume on sleep, mood, and stress tolerance, so you end up "wired but tired" on repeat. Assistance is available and there are tools that help!

Comment **Hormones** and I’ll send you my hormone checklist.

General info only, not medical advice. If symptoms are severe, changing, or impacting safety, please see a qualified clinician.

Music :Been there done that by Dynamedon

If you’ve ever left a GP appointment feeling brushed off, confused, or like you somehow “explained it wrong” — this is for you.

Here are 5 phrases that can interrupt medical gaslighting patterns without you needing to get aggressive:

1) “Can we agree on red flags + what the plan is if this doesn’t improve?”

2) “What are the top 2–3 possible causes you’re considering?”

3) “I’m not comfortable calling this anxiety until we’ve ruled out the basics.”

4) “My main concern is function — I can’t do X, Y, Z.”

5) “If you’re not recommending tests/referral, what would make you reconsider?”

You deserve a plan. You deserve clear reasoning. You deserve to be taken seriously.

Want the most convenient way to track symptoms (without making it a full-time job)?

Comment TRACKER*and I’ll DM you the easiest option for your brain.

Music:“Been there done that” by Dynamedon

If you’re navigating HRT — perimenopause, gender-affirming care, or anything in between — you already know it’s not all sunshine and “omg I feel amazing” overnight. There’s the stink, the random hair, the mood swings, the pimples, the constant monitoring, the hunt for a GP who actually knows what they’re doing… and the rude realisation you have to become your own hormone expert.

This is the bit nobody prepares you for.

Want the most helpful starting point so you’re not just doom-scrolling symptoms? Comment “Hormones” and I’ll DM you my most helpful hormone checklist.

General info only, not medical advice.

Been there done that by Dynamedon

Ways I fu**ed it up this week: sleep edition.

I’m Bek — nutritionist, chronic illness specialist, and spoonie — and this week I aggressively overrode my own sleep rules. Here’s what happened:

- chocolate an hour before bed → back-to-back hot flushes and rage-rolling around

- “overdue for laundering bedding” → woke up repeatedly like… *is that smell me?*

- “one more episode” → went to bed late, woke up at the usual time, hello sleep debt

- bedroom door open for pet freedom → stared at the hallway light while my anxious thoughts did parkour

I’m sharing this because yes, I have sleep optimisation rules (and a genuinely helpful download on my website)… and I’m still a human. Sometimes we need to re-learn *why* we do the basics by testing the boundaries and getting it wrong.

If you want to chat with an actual human who won’t judge you for fu***ng it up with health/food/sleep stuff, you can find me via my website.

Music: “Been there done that” by Dynamedon

If you want “healthier” meals but your brain/body is allergic to extra steps, here are my favourite "stealth nutrition upgrades" that don’t taste like sadness:

- Add silken tofu or white beans to blended soups → extra protein + fibre, basically undetectable
- Use frozen veg in everything → pre-chopped, washed, less waste
-Fruit + seeds in baked goods → why not make snacks work harder?
- Add canned lentils to beef mince → more volume + fibre, stretches meals further (and you can’t really tell)

Quick note: rinse canned lentils really well to get rid of the foamy liquid so they’re gentler on your gut and you’re not adding extra “meh” stuff to the meal.

Also:
- Grow herbs if you can → flavour + phytonutrients, and you stop buying bunches just to watch them die in the fridge
- Freeze chicken bones and make stock → great flavour and nutrition without paying $6/L for “bone broth”
- Leave veg skins on when you can → more fibre/nutrients, less effort

What’s your best “sneaky nutrition” trick? Drop it below so we can all steal it.

Music: “Been there done that” by Dynamedon

If you’ve spent your whole life being “on a diet” or “being bad”… it makes sense that meals feel loaded.

The “good food / bad food” mindset sets you up to rely on willpower — and willpower runs out. Then you snap back to your baseline: how you were taught to eat, what you saw at home, how you celebrate, how you cope with feelings, the whole culture around food.

And if you’ve seen a nutrition professional but didn’t feel safe enough to be real, you probably walked away with rules — not change — and then blamed yourself when it didn’t stick.

You don’t need more rules. You need a safer, more sustainable way to eat that builds trust with your body and your choices.

If you’re ready for real change, I’ve opened limited new client appointments. Details are on my website.

Music: “Been there done that” by Dynamedon

Fibro winter can feel like being sick "man flu style". Not because you’re weak — but because amplified sensation signalling can make the unpleasant parts of being unwell feel louder and more painful.

These are my “I feel sub-par” kindness staples: cosy smells, tea, steam, low-stim clothes, gentler scheduling, and warming protein-forward meals.

What’s your best hot self-care tip when you’re unwell?

Music: “Been there done that” by Dynamedon