One Ringy Dingy: Your Gut is Calling

How Science is Catching Up with the Mysterious "Gut Feeling."

The concept of the intestines as the source of emotions is ancient (bowels in the mid 14 century) and has trickled down into expressions such as to hate someone’s guts (1918), gut reaction (1963), gut feeling (by 1970), and gut check (by 1976). (etymonline.com)

Modern writers and science are demonstrating that the body, mind, and emotions are not separate, nor should they be treated in silos by the medical community. There’s evidence that our understanding of the gut’s role in our lives is coming into clearer focus—and the line is direct. 

There’s a fabulous set of graphic novels for kids by Raina Telgemeier. One of her award winning books, Guts, was a breakthrough favorite at my house, not just because of the relatable kid humor (lots of bodily fluid jokes and imagery), but also because its storyline is built around how anxiety leads to physical symptoms. The book initiated some of the first conversations with my nine year old son Lazlo regarding the mind-body connection. Lazlo had been saying things like “my brain is angry” or asking after hitting the dog for chewing up his favorite toy, “Is her stomach sad like mine?” But after reading and discussing Guts, he was able to see that other kids’ emotions were influencing how their bodies felt. And the book ends with the message that kids can do something to help their bodies feel whole again. 

When I was about Lazlo’s age, I started passing out regularly: multiple dental and medical appointments, any accident, physical pain, or sudden emotional stress where I was not in control. I passed out during the sex ed film in sixth grade, in my forties after an ear exam, and dozens of times in between. I had all the tests, but the medical community had zero answers. Finally, about eight years ago, I saw one doctor’s note (not a conversation, just a scribble) — “overactive vasovagal response.” Back then, I couldn’t find anything on the vagus nerve. Now, there are clearly explained theories, books on how to tone your vagus nerve and colorful diagrams online. The vagus nerve connects our brain, gut, and heart--a telephone operator of sorts. 

Vagus Nerve as Ernestine

Your digestive tract is lined with 100 million neurons, more than are found in the spinal cord. While the gut can’t think thoughts, it does have hefty processing skills. And the messages aren’t always pleasant. For example, we’ve known for a while that scientists have been able to see a biological explanation for fear causing diarrhea and anxiety causing stomach pain.

But new MRI and animal studies show other more nuanced correlations, including 

• Reading between the lines and sensing what other people are thinking or feeling before they say it

• A flash of insight or a great idea that seems to come out of nowhere

• Getting a pit feeling in your stomach when you have to make a decision

When you make a decision intuitively, your brain works in tandem with your gut via neurons and the vagus nerve (Think of Ernestine, the old-school the telephone operator) to assess your memories, past experiences, personal needs, and preferences. 

Is it a gut feeling or is it fear? 

When fear is driving your decision making, it is often fueled by the desire to avoid disappointment, ridicule, or rejection. In your body, fear is fast and furious. There’s a tense, pressure-filled, unsettled energy behind the decision. (Lots of replaying it when you try to sleep). I typically get sudden tension headaches when I’m thick into this fear-based decision making. Extreme somatic expressions of fear driving decision making are passing out, diarrhea, or insomnia.

With fear, your inner critic is loud and dramatic, maybe even bitchy like Ernestine’s derision, and fickleness around connecting a call—she’s going to punish you a bit first.  Fear encourages you to hide, hold back, conform or otherwise compromise yourself and minimize your needs. If you are having thoughts like, “Well, others have it harder than me,” or “I shouldn’t complain. I don’t want to burden anyone” these are red flags that you are making a decision borne from fear. 

On the other hand, intuition feels like a steady, calm attraction. It can be laced with some underlying excitement, but even if there’s some risk involved, the dominant feeling in your body is hopeful. It's relaxed and characterized by trust—a certainty that if something doesn't work out, it's not the end of the world. Intuition’s voice is loving and wise, like a trusted auntie.  Intuition urges you to shine, move at your own pace, and to pursue what you need—even if that's different from what the majority would choose.

Trusting the Line Between the Gut and the Mind

In 2010 I asked my mom and sister to care for my son Harrison so I could attend a ten day silent Vipassana meditation. This was a big deal because I was a single parent, and they hadn’t really been involved in his care, which was complex. I wasn’t even a meditator, but I knew that I had to attend. Everything fell into place, and from December 20-30, I meditated for 10 hours a day, waking at 4am and heading to bed each night at 9pm. 

Instantly, my mind was a tornado of to do lists, magical thinking about toxic people, and worst case scenario theatre.  During one session, someone forgot to silence an answering machine in one of the adjacent offices, and I heard a woman's voice, “Hello.” before it was muted. My immediate thought was that it was my mom. I told myself “She is calling to tell me Harrison has drowned in the ocean.” Of course, that wasn’t the case. But I observed the power and speed of that thought. 

Days two through six were unbearably long. I felt a ton of internal resistance. I was antsy, then angry, and then big dips of sadness. After day six, the day after Christmas, the day I had finished all my mental stories about the people in attendance based on their shoes (we weren’t supposed to make eye contact), something lifted. I had played every possible scenario, rehashed my whole life, all the major players in my mind. Negative thinking was sugar, and I no longer needed it. I felt lighter. I mentally detoxed and started to fall into a rhythm with the silence. Finally, there was space between my thoughts and my bodily reaction to them. I could just observe them without judgement for the first time. I actually didn’t want to talk again. I dreaded going back to the speaking world. 

I didn’t start meditating regularly until a decade later, but that ten day silent retreat was the start. Now, my intuition is now clearer, and I haven’t passed out in years. Clearly, you don’t have to detox for 10 days in the woods to access your intuition. But some regular space to quiet your mind can surely help. I now repeat to myself and metabolize these affirmations:  I am not my racing thoughts. I am worthy of love. I can be whole and happy. And, of course, it  makes parenting a complex child markedly easier when your brain, gut, and body are all speaking the same language. 

Additional Sources on the Gut, Brain, and Vagus Nerve

The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer, MD

“How the Gut Communicates with the Brain.” Finder’s University. Science Daily. March 23, 2022.

“Vagus Nerve as Modulator of the Brain–Gut Axis in Psychiatric and Inflammatory Disorders.” Siegrit Breit, et al. Frontiers in Psychology. National Library of Medicine March 13, 2018.