This week on the Less Stressed Life Podcast is a recording of a LIVE community call I recently hosted all about gut & stool testing.  I want to do these calls monthly to be helpful, get to know your needs, and answer questions for you.My next community call will be on Dec 20, 2022, at 11 AM MT/1 PM ET for 30 min, and we’ll be talking about testing for stress hormones. You can register for that one at www.christabiegler.com/community.I’ve got a couple of tests I’m going to compare for looking at adrenal hormones in practice.We covered:Differences between conventional and functional stool tests, including sensitivity and conventional tests, are useful in acute situations, where functional testing can be more helpful in chronic situations.DIY vs. working with a practitioner.Viome stool testing.What to do if budget is an issue.SIBO testing vs. stool testing.I walked through a GI Map and compared it to another common functional stool test on the market.Andrea asked great questions about what to do with constantly changing markers on a stool test.Susan asked about parasites.Adriana asked about HS and body acne.Britt asked about trying to find a practitioner.When to go functional? Chronic, low-grade, annoying symptoms (When you’re told everything is fine)BOTTOM LINE: Your symptoms are AS important as a test.To paraphrase Andrea from our call, “the test will show you a problem but not solve the problem.”You do need to find a practitioner that knows what they are doing with stool testing. It’s pretty useful in gut, skin issues, and fatigue, which are all topics in my wheelhouse.If you’d like to work with me 1:1, I’m accepting a small handful of clients in December to complete testing and get started in January.www.christabiegler.com/schedule