From bloating to biopsies—real talk from someone who slices your polyps.
- When Your Gut Has the Audacity to Ruin Your Life Plans
Let’s be real: talking about your gut is weird. Not dinner table conversation. Definitely not first-date material. But if you’re anything like me—with irritable bowel syndrome and an ever-growing list of “foods I can’t trust anymore”—your gut kind of runs your life.
And as someone who works inside the system (literally—I’m a histotechnician in a pathology lab at a major hospital), I’ve seen it all. From inflamed colon tissue to stomach biopsies crawling with H. pylori, I’m on the team that stains, slices, and scans your gut samples to help doctors figure out what the heck is going on in there.
This blog isn’t here to scare you—it’s here to help you understand what your symptoms might mean, when it’s time to push for real testing, and why scopes and stool samples aren’t just for people over 50.
- GI Health: It’s Not Just About What You Eat (But Yeah, That Matters Too)
So you’ve cut out dairy, gluten, onions, garlic, caffeine, joy—and somehow, you’re still bloated and miserable. Cool cool cool.
Here’s the thing: while diet absolutely plays a role in gut health, it’s not the whole story. There are sneaky culprits that don’t care how “clean” you’re eating. Ever heard of Helicobacter pylori? This little stomach bug can camp out in your gut and cause ulcers, inflammation, and a whole host of issues. It’s not something you can kale-smoothie your way out of.
Same goes for conditions like celiac disease, IBD, or even microscopic colitis. These don’t always show up on basic bloodwork or respond to over-the-counter remedies. They require actual testing—like scopes, biopsies, and lab analysis—to get a clear picture.
Don’t gaslight yourself into thinking you’re just being “sensitive.” If your gut is yelling, it’s probably trying to tell you something. And no amount of oat milk is going to fix what needs a biopsy.
- The Scopes Are Coming: What They Actually Do (and Why You Might Need One)
Ah yes—colonoscopies and endoscopies. Just hearing those words makes some people clench up (in more ways than one). But let me be the first to say: scopes aren’t just for people turning 50. If your gut symptoms have been lingering, worsening, or just plain ruining your life, it might be time to look under the hood.
A colonoscopy lets doctors check your large intestine for inflammation, bleeding, or polyps. An upper endoscopy (EGD) checks out your esophagus, stomach, and small intestine. The prep isn’t exactly fun, but the procedure is quick and you’ll be napping through the whole thing.
And remember—it’s not just about what they see. It’s about what they test. If anything looks suspicious, a biopsy is taken and sent to the lab.
- Behind the Scenes: Who’s Actually Looking at Your Gut Tissue? (Hi, It’s Me)
You might think your colonoscopy ends when you wake up and get handed a juice box—but that’s when the lab gets busy.
Pathologists, pathologist assistants, and lab techs like me process your tissue samples. We embed them, slice them into paper-thin sections, stain them, and mount them on slides. Then pathologists examine them under a microscope to look for polyps, inflammation, infections like H. pylori, or any other signs of trouble.
It’s not glamorous, but it’s essential. That behind-the-scenes science often tells the real story when symptoms alone don’t give clear answers.
- The Bottom Line (No Pun Intended… Okay, Maybe a Little)
If your gut has been running the show—and not in a cute, intuitive way—it might be time to stop guessing and start testing.
There’s no shame in needing a scope. No shame in asking your doctor to dig deeper. And absolutely no shame in admitting your body is doing weird stuff. Mine does too.
As someone who both lives with gut issues and works with GI tissue, I’m here to tell you: there’s help, there’s science, and there’s a team behind the scenes (hi again) working to get you real answers.
So trust your gut—but also, advocate for it. Because when something feels off, chances are, it is. And you don’t have to figure it out alone.
About the Author
I’m a histotechnician in a hospital pathology lab by day, and an accidental gut health expert by… also day (thanks, IBS). I slice polyps, stain slides, and try to eat clean without offending my digestive system. This blog is where science meets sarcasm—and where you can learn more about your gut without Googling your symptoms at 2 a.m.
Find more at cassie_lee_barnard.com
