You’ve had the scopes. The ultrasounds. The tests. Maybe even the elimination diets. And still—your gut symptoms persist. You’ve been told it’s not Crohn’s, not celiac, not something they can see. So what is it?
When Everything’s Normal (But Nothing Feels Right)
One of the most common phrases we hear from patients is:
“All my tests came back normal—but I still feel awful.”
There’s bloating. Pain. Irregular stools. Sometimes nausea or urgency, sometimes constipation that seems to defy logic. You may have been told “it’s just IBS,” or that stress is the cause. But what you probably weren’t told is that there’s a name for this group of conditions:
They’re called Disorders of Gut–Brain Interaction, or DGBIs.
And understanding that term can change everything.
So What Is a DGBI?
DGBIs are a group of conditions where the nervous system and digestive system stop communicating smoothly. There’s no structural damage. Nothing a scope or biopsy will catch. But that doesn’t mean the symptoms are in your head.
These are real, measurable, and diagnosable conditions that affect how your gut moves, feels, and reacts.
The most well-known DGBI is Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), but others include:
- Functional dyspepsia (chronic upper stomach discomfort)
- Functional diarrhea or constipation
- Abdominal migraine
- Centrally mediated abdominal pain
What they all have in common is this: the gut is working, but it’s misfiring—because of disrupted signaling, not damage.
Why the Gut–Brain Connection Matters
The gut has its own nervous system (the enteric nervous system) which constantly communicates with the brain via the vagus nerve and other pathways. This is how we regulate digestion, sensation, motility, and immune activity.
But when that communication system becomes hypersensitive or dysregulated—often because of early life events, stress, infection, or other life factors—the gut begins to respond with:
- Excessive pain or pressure from normal gas or stool
- Spasms or cramping not tied to food
- Urgency or constipation out of sync with routine
- An amplified stress response that shows up in the gut first
And the kicker? Most standard tests are designed to look for damage or disease. Not interaction. Not signaling.
That’s why so many patients with DGBIs get told their results are “normal”—and still feel unwell.
Why This Explanation Changes Things
Once we explain what a DGBI is, many patients say:
“That actually makes sense for the first time.”
Because finally, the pieces come together:
- Why stress and meals interact in strange ways
- Why reassurance from tests doesn’t bring relief
- Why no one diet seems to be the solution
- Why every new protocol feels like a dead end
It’s not that you’ve missed the right supplement or haven’t found the right practitioner.
It’s that you’ve been given the wrong framework.
And once that changes, your plan can, too.
If You’ve Been Told “It’s Just IBS” — This Is for You
DGBIs are not a wastebasket diagnosis. They are well-studied, formally recognized conditions—mapped and named by leading gastroenterology bodies around the world.
And they’re not rare. In fact, 1 in 3 people globally live with a DGBI.
The problem is not that these conditions don’t exist.
It’s that few clinicians know how to explain them—and even fewer are trained to treat them with the full range of support patients actually need.
Where to Begin
If this sounds familiar—if your symptoms have never fit the textbook, if the testing has ruled out everything but never explained anything—there’s a good chance you’re dealing with a DGBI.
And naming it clearly is not the end of the road.
It’s the beginning of an approach that respects how your gut, brain, and whole system interact.
You don’t need to keep chasing causes that may not exist.
What you need is a map.
We can help with that.
