Let’s talk about gut health.

It is mind boggling how interconnected your nervous system, your gut and mind are.

I was diagnosed with IBS and lactose intollerance at the age of 12 after relentless years of bullying. Since then as soon as my anxiety levels are high, I’m stressed and my mental health is suffering, my IBS flares up big time.

And think about it … how often does your stomach signal your feelings?

‘Butterflies in your stomach’ before something exciting, nerve-wracking or when you are falling in love.

An upset stomach or nervous tummy before an interview, audition or big event.

Seeing something horrifying or disgusting and your stomach literally TURNS.

Your body is super clever at telling you that something is up.

And right now my stomach is screaming ‘Dude, I’m at my wits end. I’m terrified and sad and I don’t know what to do!’

I’m constantly in pain, often nauseous and my stomach bloated, no matter what I eat.

This is the reality of IBS.

It’s not pretty.

However, there are certain foods and things that can help.

Probiotics are found naturally in products like yoghurt and especially in fermented products like kimchi (a korean side dish), sauerkraut, kombucha, pickles and apple cider vinegar. Probiotics are good bacteria that help your stomach repair. They are a fantastic addition into your food when you suffer badly from gut related issues. I’ve been slowly trying to introduce them into my diet as well as other healing foods.

This morning I woke up SUPER nauseous and SUPER anxious.

So what did I do?

I made a bowl of Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Oats.

Now let’s break it down..

Lemons are packed full of Vitamin C and are a natural treatment for nausea and bloating.

Cream cheese (or vegan cream cheese in my case), is full of GOOD FAT. Fat is VITAL for your brain to work, function and moderate your emotional state.

Because lemons and cream cheese are both TART flavours, it’s important to balance this out with a little sweetness.

Blueberries are low in sugar, but still taste sweet therefore not sending your head and gut into a whirlwind. If you use the frozen variety, melt them in the microwave for a low in sugar fruit coulis.

I also added Macacha Vanilla Peace Protein as a natural sweetener (but you could quite easily use maple syrup which has healing properties or vanilla pod or vanilla extract, if you had it to hand). Macacha’s Vanilla Peace Protein also includes Lavender and Holy Basil which both have amazing calming properties. Holy Basil is a popular health tonic for reducing stress and anxiety levels.

Not only have I managed to make myself MEDICINE in a bowl, but also DESSERT in a bowl.

It was also inspired by what I had in my fridge. I’m making a real conscious effort to crack down on FOOD WASTE and use up what I have already bought. I had vegan cream cheese and a lemon in my fridge, so voila!

Oats cooked with lemon zest and soya milk (as to not influence the flavour of the porridge). Vegan cream cheese and Macacha vanilla peace protein powder stirred in. Topped with more lemon zest, blueberries and ‘biscuit base’ ground almonds.

This is a light, refreshing start to the day.

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Oats

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Serving: serves 1 (double quantities as you go if serving for more)

What you’ll need:

• 45g of oats
• Soya milk (or cows milk) – both these milks will not influence the flavour of the oats. Enough to cover oats
• 2 tbsp of water
• 1/2 lemon zested
• 1 tbsp of cream cheese/ vegan cream cheese
• Sweetener – 1 tbsp of Macacha Vanilla protein powder, 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract/ 1 tbsp of maple syrup.
• A pinch of salt
• A handful of blueberries (if you use frozen, heat them in the microwave to make a sweet coulis)
• 2 tbsp of ground almonds (biscuity base)

How to make it:

• Zest half a lemon.
• Put porridge oats into a pan or bowl.
• Pour enough milk to cover the oats and a little bit more. Add 2 tbsp of water and 1/2 of the zested lemon.
• If heating on the hob, heat at a low temperature stirring gently to avoid porridge sticking to bottom of pan. Keep stirring until the porridge thickens. Keep stirring until it reaches the consistency that you desire. You can add more milk if needed. Add cream cheese at last moment.
• If heating in microwave, heat for 2 mins. Then stir. Heat for another 2 mins. Stir in cream cheese. Heat for an extra one minute if you want it slightly thicker. You can add more milk if needed.
• Add vanilla protein powder/ vanilla extract/maple syrup and a pinch of salt. Stir till all mixed into the porridge.
• Top with blueberries, the rest of the lemon zest and the ground almonds (to create the biscuity base bottom).
• Make yourself a cup of calming tea, sit near the daylight and enJOY your oats.

Much love and PEACE to you all,

Joy xxx