How long does it take to treat digestive disorders?

It’s actually quite difficult to give an accurate estimate. It can range from three to five days a week to half a year or even longer. The core depends on the cause of your disorder, how long it has been delayed, and whether there are any pitfalls during conditioning.

Last week, I met a little girl who went to the night market for three days to eat ice cream and skewers, and spent the whole night with the air conditioner on. After two days of vomiting and diarrhea, she still felt bloated and couldn't digest food. She found out that there was no organic problem. It was just a temporary functional disorder. I prescribed her some probiotics and told her to drink warm porridge and noodles within three days and not to fool around. On the fourth day, she sent a message saying that nothing was wrong.

But if you have been "working" on your gastrointestinal tract for several years, it will not happen so quickly. Last year, a young man who worked on the Internet came to me. He had been suffering from constipation and diarrhea for two consecutive years. He had acid reflux and belching when the project was launched. He had a colonoscopy and gastroscopy three times without any problems. Before, he bought a lot of gastric medicine and probiotics, which were good and bad sometimes. His problem was no longer simply about diet. He stayed up late and was under great stress for a long time. His brain-gut axis was in a state of stress for a long time, and his gastrointestinal rhythm was in a mess. I gave him appropriate medicine and asked him to take 10 minutes a day to go downstairs for a walk and not to bring his work emotions to the dinner table. It took almost four months before he finally told me, "I haven't had much stomach trouble in the past half month, and I finally dare to drink warm milk normally."

People often argue about the treatment method in the clinic. Some people say that they are fine after taking medicine for two days and it is all due to the medicine. Others say that taking medicine for half a year is of no use and that it is only through nourishment that the recovery is relieved. Both sides are correct. In fact, there is no contradiction between the two. The acute stage is very uncomfortable, so you must first suppress the symptoms with medicine. You can't be so bloated that you can't sleep, or you can't bear it until you are dehydrated. However, if you expect that taking medicine will solve it once and for all, you will turn around and continue to eat spicy food and drink ice, stay up late, and sit all day long. No matter how good your stomach is, it can't withstand it. Conditioning is a multi-dimensional matter, and there is no magic pill.

I rarely give patients chest pats and say "how long will it take to get better?". Digestive dysfunction itself does not have organic lesions, but is caused by small daily problems. The more you focus on "when will it be better", the more anxious you will be, which will put extra pressure on the stomach. It is better to eat three regular meals first, eat less food that is too cold and too spicy, and don't check work messages while eating. By the time you forget that you have this problem, you will basically be fine.