When Food Intolerances Are Really About the Gut
Sometimes it’s not the food that’s the problem, it’s the state your gut is in when you eat it.
Listening to the Gut: What Food Intolerances Are Really Telling Us
I used to think food intolerances were just about the food itself. Like, if something didn’t sit well, it meant I had to cut it out forever. That’s how I ended up with a mental checklist of “good” foods and “bad” foods, constantly worried about what might set my stomach off next.
But over time, I started to notice a pattern. These flare-ups weren’t random, and they weren’t just about the food. They showed up when life was shifting — during times of stress, travel, lack of sleep, or when I was simply asking a lot of my body without giving it the chance to rest. The timing was just as important as the food.
The patterns that matter
What I’ve learned is that intolerances aren’t fixed labels. They ebb and flow depending on how strong or fragile the gut feels in a given season. It’s less about what you ate and more about where your body is at when you eat it. That shift in perspective took me out of “this food is bad” thinking and into more of a conversation with my gut.
For me, there are still certain foods that are always a no (coconut, legumes, shellfish, and even chamomile tea, which oddly enough makes my stomach hurt). But outside of that, the list isn’t as rigid as I once thought. What matters more is having a safe, grounding set of foods I can fall back on when everything else feels uncertain.
The reset
When my gut feels tender, I reach for the basics: bone broth simmering on the stove, a pot of white rice, roasted sweet potatoes, a handful of cooked greens. They’re not glamorous meals, but they give me exactly what I need — something warm, steady, and easy to digest. It feels like pressing the reset button, a way of giving my body space to catch up and repair.
I’ve noticed these resets aren’t just physical. They’re also about rhythm. Intolerances flare most when my nervous system is stretched thin, when I’m not sleeping well, when I’ve been in go-mode for too long, or when stress is running the show. In those moments, the gut is like a mirror, reflecting back the need to slow down.
A different why
Food intolerances, as frustrating as they are, aren’t punishments. They’re signals. They remind me to check in, to pay attention, and to stop pushing so hard. When I see them that way, I can respond with care instead of frustration. It turns the whole experience from a fight with my body into more of a dialogue, one where the body gets to say what it needs and I get to listen.
The grocery cart that keeps me steady
When I go through these phases, my grocery cart usually looks a lot simpler. No trendy ingredients or complicated recipes, just a collection of basics that help me feel anchored again:
Chicken thighs
Beef bones for broth
White rice
Sweet potatoes
Zucchini
Spinach
Carrots
Olive oil
Avocados
Ginger or peppermint tea bags
These aren’t the only foods I eat, but they’re the ones I know I can always come back to when my gut needs support. They feel familiar, dependable, sort of like home!
Healing the gut isn’t about chasing the perfect diet or cutting out every food that ever caused discomfort. It’s about tuning in, noticing patterns, and giving the body a softer landing place when things feel off. For me, that means leaning on these foods, keeping routines simple, and remembering that intolerances are just part of my body’s way of communicating.
And that’s really what Vibrational Bloom is about — building trust with your body, learning its language, and finding steadiness in the in-between. The gut is just one of the places where that conversation starts.
With love and alignment,
Jess ✺
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