Welcome to Oshi Patient Stories, an interview series where we hear from the real people who have found lasting relief from digestive symptoms with Oshi’s virtual gastrointestinal (GI) care. In today’s interview, Jenny talks about how our multidisciplinary approach to GI care has changed her life for the better.
Emily shares her experience with Oshi Health.
How were GI symptoms impacting your life before you found Oshi?
Prior to working with Oshi, my GI symptoms were definitely impacting my quality of life. I wouldn’t necessarily say symptoms caused me to miss work or cancel plans, but they definitely influenced my excitement and, you know, enjoyment, of things. Just like a lot of stomach discomfort and kind of dreading going out to restaurants, knowing that the food I was going to eat was just different than normal, so it just doesn’t sit well with me. And I think definitely impacting my mental health, just knowing that. My stomach would hurt when I was, you know, playing with my kids, and I could feel myself in not a great mood and just frustrated. So definitely led to a lot of frustration and just a lack of enjoyment of like everyday things that should be happy. So although I didn’t really have to give up any hobbies or avoid certain events, I would say that I would definitely dread things. I work in a hybrid situation, so some days I’m home, some days I’m at the office. The days that I go to the office, I would dread knowing that I would be suffering from, you know, bloating and discomfort for the majority of the day, just because it was a difference in my routine and anxiety and stress and things like that.
How has your life changed since working with Oshi?
I think the gut brain specialist paired with the nutritionist and the GI nurse, that trifecta was very helpful connecting things. And looking at things from different points of view, the whole picture as opposed to just, you know, how can we treat your symptoms? And my symptoms have improved. I think a lot of it is anxiety-driven, and I think that is something that I’ve had to work on. A lot of it is how I’m eating. I don’t sit when I eat, or I didn’t, I wasn’t. I was kind of shoveling things in between getting things for kids and it was really stressful and there was no focus on me. I learned that the body is just not comfortable eating in that way, and it’s not natural or normal. So just little things that have changed along the way have made a huge impact.
What would you say to someone who is considering treatment with Oshi?
I think if you’re thinking about working with Oshi Health, you’re probably at a point where I was, where traditional GI medicine hasn’t really helped. Not like you have to be at that point to go to something else, but it’s a great opportunity to get back to a more natural way of of looking at things. I think so much of my experience in traditional medicine has been to exclusively look at what are you dealing with right now: what is your symptom? And we’re not looking at the bigger picture, like a holistic approach, essentially. Learning things like gut health can affect your skin. I never knew that. And those are things that, you know, I think you learn when you take a more holistic approach. When you look more at, not just your symptoms. You’re not just looking at that, but you’re looking at the root of it. Why is this happening? Are you anxious all the time? How do you eat? Are you spending time on yourself, or are you just rushing from one thing to the next? Are you kind of living your life in fight or flight, which is what I was doing. I think all of those impact how your gut will feel and your symptoms. I think it’s a great way to connect the brain, your nutrition, and your symptoms and find out what’s really going on.
