Many neurological disorders are at least linked to gut bacteria, including autism and schizophrenia.

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/05/gut-bacteria-may-con...

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/balanced/201903/schi...

Initially I suspected carbon monoxide poisoning, because it correlated to when I’d come home. The symptoms were that bad. Turns out it was the dinner I was cooking every night for the family, I’d sit down to relax and eat and just a few minutes after eating asparagus feel completely bonkers. I went to the emergency room, they gave me a few Xanax; then the GP who wanted to prescribe me Lexapro and referred me to a Gastroenterologist. It wasn’t until I got to the specialist that I felt like he “believed” me.

Have you been allergy tested? I found out last year (midway into my 30s) that I'm actually allergic to half the foods my mom used to prepare for me. Like tomatoes/nightshade fruits. I would always get itchy, confused and generally feel inflamed and terrible and my mom made me tons and tons of spaghetti as a kid. I had constant GI issues in school and did pretty poorly, bad memory, etc.

Prior to allergy testing I got really obsessed and into probiotics, lifehacking etc just to make myself feel better and I feel like nothing really helped my GI problems which always feel like they're sapping the energy out of my entire body. Turns out a huge portion of my problems were food allergies.

I haven't gone full FODMAPS but I eat much more keto/paleo nowadays when I can (I've been loose since quarantine) and feel so much better when I do. Meat and lettuce is my prime meal now.

Aren't there a lot of pseudoscience-based food allergy tests out there? I've seen ones where you drop blood onto paper cards and mail them in. Somehow they test your old dead blood and then they send back a list of foods and tell you if you're allergic to them... Seems fishy to me, and I could not find how it worked or anything that these tests are legit. Every other type of allergy that causes inflammation in the body is done live, on your body with a test where they prick your skin. But I've never heard of this being done with food. Where did you end up getting your food allergy test done?

I went to an Allergy clinic in a hospital and just got the entire test where they prick sample sites into your back (it doesn't hurt at all). I don't have my paper near me but I hit something like 80-85% of the allergens they tested me with which ran the gamut from pollens to bugs, a few common common foods (tomatoes/nightshades for sure, I forget what else) were also on the list although not that many.

IIRC it was either stupid cheap or covered by insurance. I was a little annoyed my parents didn't take me in when I was younger for it.

It was completely hassle-free and maybe 30 minutes.

Now when I eat pizza with tomato sauce and start scratching my arms and my mouth is burnt and my stomach is destroyed and I have wild brain fog for 3 days I finally know why! Not sure how I never equated it before, I always thought it was the bread and never got gluten tested (could still contribute, but I'm not going through that test).

This is a dogs results but my results looked similar, I just had a food section; https://i.servimg.com/u/f11/18/49/47/07/kyeall11.jpg

You should seriously look into mast cell activation disorder (~30% of the general population has this) along with histamine intolerance.

I had a panel for foods and came back as not allergic to any of them.

So what's in asparagus to cause this?

Sounds like you have some enzyme defect. Do you know any specifics?

Well I know asparagus is on the list of high FODMAP (fermentable) foods along with beans and flour, which also cause similar problems for me.

I started taking Prozac a few months ago. It might just be a coincidence but I checked myself into drug addiction treatment a couple months later. I’ve stopped taking almost everything but the Prozac and my life is immeasurably better and my depression is gone. I’m happy for the first time in many years.

This to me hints at the effect of Prozac possibly being far more complex than “chemical imbalance”. I’ve never found that terminology that useful. Fixing my depression required a lot of chemical changes yes, but also major changes in my voluntary behavior. All of it was connected in an intricate tapestry and Prozac only plays one part. If I tapered off Prozac, I suspect I would still be happy, but I don’t know that my depression would have ever resolved properly without Prozac. The side effects are mild so I am in no rush to discontinue.

> So crazy how much our gut can affect our mood and psychological profile.

This is anything but crazy. It has been well known for a very long time and is very well supported.

You should check out this company studying the gut brain axis :)

https://www.kallyope.com/

Hold up. Is the specter of existential angst, rising to outright horror if left unchecked, not just, like, a normal part of life that rises to conscious thought as soon as you’re not distracted, for the entire non-religious population?

I don't think it is.

I've had times in my life when I certainly didn't constantly distract myself, and being of a contemplative type, sometimes also delved into existential thoughts. But I didn't automatically (or generally) feel angst about it.

I'm not religious and haven't been since I was 15 or so. (I don't deny possibly having something of a mildly spiritual side, but I consider that different as it doesn't require belief in anything other than various kinds of feelings and experiences being part of the human experience. It also doesn't provide an externally assigned meaning.)

In times when my mental health and wellbeing have generally been worse, existential questions have also become much more distressing.

So yeah, maybe for some or even many people, existential questions may amount to angst, but in my experience it has depended a lot more on my other emotional and psychological state.

No man, that's just one line of thinking. I'm not religious in the least, and I love spending time alone and unoccupied. I know about existential angst and have indulged in it in the past, but my mind just wanders to other more pleasurable things when it's undistracted.

It depends on whether or not you engage with your hobbies.

Nah, we just ignore this stuff for the most part. People are really good at compartmentalizing things, and pretty much feel they are immortal. A lot of us suffer from stockholm syndrome and think death is somehow good -- just look at a common reaction to many transhumanist notions.

Those who do take it seriously but are not strong enough to bear, end up joining cults.