The factory floor
It's a Wednesday afternoon. Gloria has just come back from a working lunch: grilled chicken wrap, side salad, sparkling water. Nothing outrageous. And yet by 2pm her waistband is digging in, her stomach distended like she's eaten Christmas dinner. She unbuttons her trousers under the desk and hopes nobody suggests a walk to the coffee shop.
This has been happening for months. She puts it down to "something I ate" or "just stress." But it's most days now. And it's not just the bloating. Her mood has been flat, her sleep is worse, she's more anxious than she used to be. She mentioned it to her GP but didn't know how to explain that it all felt connected.
If this sounds familiar: it's not in your head, and it's not just about digestion.
Your gut is a factory.
Your gut microbiome (the trillions of bacteria in your digestive tract) is producing things you'd never associate with your stomach. About 95% of your body's serotonin is made in the gut. Significant amounts of dopamine and GABA are produced there too. These chemicals communicate with your brain through the vagus nerve, a direct line from gut to brainstem.
So when Gloria says she feels anxious and flat and can't sleep, and she also has daily bloating... those may well be the same problem, showing up in different rooms of the building.
Why perimenopause makes it worse
Your gut bacteria help metabolise your oestrogen. There's a collection of gut microbes called the estrobolome whose job is to reactivate oestrogen and keep it circulating. During perimenopause, two things happen at once: your oestrogen is already fluctuating, and your gut microbiome diversity drops. You lose beneficial bacteria that support your gut barrier, reduce inflammation, and process hormones. So your hormones are under strain, and the system that regulates them is struggling too. It's a cycle that feeds itself, and it's why gut symptoms so often worsen alongside brain fog, mood changes, and joint pain.
What you can do about it
Your gut microbiome responds to change fast. You can shift its composition within days. Four places to start.
Aim for 30 different plant foods a week. It sounds like a lot, but it includes herbs, spices, nuts, seeds, legumes, and whole grains. The thyme and garlic in your stew count. That handful of mixed nuts counts as three or four. Variety is the point, not volume.
Add fermented foods. Live culture yoghurt (not the flavoured pots), kefir, kimchi, and fermented locust beans (iru/dawGloriawa) if that's already in your cooking. Even a small daily serving makes a measurable difference.
Cut back on ultra-processed foods. They feed the bacteria you don't want more of and reduce the effectiveness of the ones you do. You don't have to be perfect. Just notice where they've crept in.
Consider a quality probiotic. If you've been dealing with persistent bloating or mood changes, a strain-specific probiotic (particularly Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains) may help. Talk to a practitioner rather than grabbing whatever is on the shelf.
What Gloria needed was someone to look at the whole picture and recognise that her bloating, her mood, and her anxiety were connected. If you see yourself in her story, the steps above are a good place to start. And if you've had a sense that something deeper is going on, trust that instinct.
Health in your body, peace in your soul, purpose in your step.
Lolu :)
