If you suffer from diverticulitis, you are not alone. In fact, more than half of people in the United States over age 60 will deal with this condition at some point in their lives. Diverticulitis symptoms can be very uncomfortable, affect your quality of life, and even cause hospitalization. Fortunately, you do not have to just accept these symptoms as part of the aging process. Instead, consider trying some of these non-invasive methods to get your diverticulitis under control.

Reduce Stress and Increase Rest
You know that stress negatively affects your mental and emotional health, but you might be surprised to find out it can aggravate your diverticulitis, too! Studies have found that emotional stress often increases diverticulitis pain. Of course, you cannot eliminate all areas of stress from your life, but you can find healthier ways to deal with stressful situations. Many patients find that coping mechanisms such as spending time with loved ones, talking with a therapist, or staying active in nature help them reduce their stress levels.

While you are reducing stress, you also need to increase quality rest. Many times, doctors will advise you to temporarily stop food consumption or move to a liquid diet to give your entire digestive tract a chance to rest and heal. When you feel your diverticulitis start to flare up, give your body the extra rest it craves. Try using a heating pad, breathing deeply and meditation to move past mild pain and rest peacefully.

Fight Constipation
One of the best ways to handle diverticulitis is to avoid its triggers as much as possible. In many cases, constipation is one of the main causes of diverticulitis. Constipation can be a result of eating a diet that does not have sufficient fiber, so make sure that you are getting enough fiber to help your bowel movements proceed smoothly. You can also fight constipation by ensuring that your diet is made up of mostly natural, whole foods instead of highly processed ones.

Introduce Good Bacteria
Since bad bacteria causes diverticulitis inflammation and infection, you need plenty of good bacteria in your system to fight this. Natural supplements, such as our diverticulitis tea, can soothe the gut and introduce helpful nutrients into your system.

Taking probiotics is an easy way to repopulate your gut with good, healthy flora. To get the best results from your supplementation, make sure that the probiotics you select have at least 7 to 10 billion colony forming units per dose. Some patients have better results when they start at lower probiotic amounts and work their way up. As always, use all supplements and other natural products under the supervision of your physician.

Today’s diverticulitis patients have more options than ever when it comes to natural and holistic therapies. By caring for your entire body, you can improve your health and minimize your diverticulitis symptoms. Over time, some people even find that they never have to deal with this condition again.