5 Things I Learned From My CBO Protocol (And Why Everyone Can Benefit From One)
For most of my life, I’ve felt like I could collapse into a never-ending deep sleep at any moment.
I could never stay awake in class, while watching a movie, and I’d often fall asleep in my car at places like the gym parking lot or my driveway. I was too annoyingly exhausted all the time.
I thought I was simply a sleepy person. That’s the way I am, nothing more to it, and I’ll just have to deal.
It wasn’t until I came across The Cabral Concept that a lot of what I’d been taught about health and my body was blown out of the water.
Stephen Cabral is a naturopath, ayurvedic, and functional medicine practitioner who preaches about getting to the root cause of your health issues. He often spoke about how your gut and its imbalances can lead to many health problems, including drastically low energy and fatigue.
After spending countless hours getting dazed and lost in this podcast, I knew I most likely had candida overgrowth in my gut and needed to get functional medicine lab testing done.
So that’s what I did.
I went over my results with an EquiLife health coach, and sure enough, my gut wasn’t in good shape. I needed to do a Candida & Bacterial Optimizer (CBO) Protocol to heal my gut, and hopefully — to be a bit dramatic — it’d change my life.
It was one of the most challenging yet worthwhile things I’ve ever done.
What is a CBO Protocol?
Simply put, a CBO protocol is a godsend for cleaning up and rebalancing your gut. But let’s dive into the nitty-gritty of how it works.
This protocol comes with nine supplements which you take in three phases:
- Month 1: BioFilm Disruptor, Microbial Balance, S. Boulardii
- Month 2: FloraFilm, Gut Bacterial Support, L. Acidophilus
- Month 3: Healthy Belly, Candida Complex, Clean Gut Probiotic
Over the span of three months, the supplements alter the state of your microbiome, remove unwanted microbes, and gingerly reintroduce beneficial probiotic strains.
You might be thinking three months is quite a long time. I hear you.
But understand there’s no quick fix for improving your health. Healing takes time, and in comparison to our entire lives, three months is laughable.
So these supplements’ job is to rebalance your gut and flush out the candida and bacteria overload. Each month, unwanted bacteria are removed while good bacteria are reintroduced to replenish the body.
This is done safely and effectively, starting with gentle ingredients and ending with the strongest for your gut.
And of course, you need to eliminate foods that feed the bad bacteria and eat those which don’t.
But before you start grappling with how you’re supposed to give up your favorite foods for three months, let me mention that after 21 days, you can have one “free meal” a week.
The cool thing about EquiLife is their health coaches create a comprehensive guide for you that’s extremely informative, a breeze to follow, and comes with a meal plan. To be honest, the whole process being mapped out took most of the stress away.
Because let’s face it, planning is half the battle, and executing said plan is the other half.
So you get this incredible guide that lays it all out on the table for you: when to take your supplements, a sensitive gut food guide, nutrition and movement recommendations, and way more.
Then you start.
Take it one day at a time and trust the process.
If you have any questions or fiascos along the way, your health coach is a fantastic resource to utilize. Their knowledge is unmatched.
Signs of an Unhealthy Gut
As I shared in the intro, the main symptom of my unhealthy gut was extreme fatigue and low energy.
But your body can react to an imbalance in your gut in so many ways, depending on your bio-individuality and genetic makeup. Symptoms can look like:
- Mood disorders
- Digestive issues, including gas, bloating, constipation, and heartburn
- Skin issues, including rashes and eczema
- Chronic fatigue
- Weight changes
Let me emphasize this: It is not normal to be bloated all the time. Or have brain fog and skin issues that kill your confidence.
And it took me a while to learn it’s not normal to pull over to the side of the road and take a nap mid-day because I’m too tired to keep my eyes open while driving.
These are all signs your body’s screaming at you, letting you know there’s a problem. It wants you to listen, and it’ll do anything to get your attention.
How Your Gut Becomes Imbalanced
So how did we get here?
Imagine your body’s like a big ol’ bucket. When you’re exposed to toxicities for a long time, that bucket continues filling until it eventually overflows.
When it overflows, that’s when you start seeing symptoms.
Dr. Cabral refers to this as the Rain Barrel Effect.
Keep in mind that everyone’s symptoms look different. I’ve never had issues with bloating, digestion, or my weight.
On the other hand, my mother one day started noticing she was getting extremely bloated when consuming certain foods and having odd digestive issues.
She worked with a naturopath and learned she also had candida and yeast overgrowth in her gut, and went through a similar protocol as I did.
She no longer has these problems.
So your gut has billions of microorganisms — bacteria, fungi, viruses — which make up your gut microbiome. These microbes in your intestines can impact everything from immune health to cognitive function and metabolic health.
When the balance here is disrupted, known as dysbiosis, your health starts to plummet. An imbalanced gut can be caused by so many things, such as:
- Stress
- Medications, such as antibiotics and NSAIDs
- Poor nutrition
- Environmental toxins
Over time, an unhealthy gut can cause many chronic diseases like diabetes, inflammatory bowel diseases, chronic heart diseases, and autism.
Let’s not get there, okay?
What I Learned and My Results
After going through twelve weeks of strategically taking supplements, meal prepping, and nourishing my body accordingly, I made it to the finish line.
I did it, and I was over the freakin’ moon.
Even about halfway through the CBO protocol, I started feeling different. I remember being out and about in the evening around week eight or so, thinking how wild it was that I wasn’t the least bit tired.
I felt electric.
This protocol really did change my life. After healing my gut, I noticed these changes:
- Less brain fog
- No more fatigue
- Increased energy, especially in the mornings
- No more chronic hiccups
Yeah, I had chronic, obnoxious hiccups daily for years. I squawked like a turkey that just found out what happens on Thanksgiving.
And somehow fixing my gut got rid of them? Still trying to understand that one, if I’m being honest.
On a side note, it’s worth mentioning that I also had skin issues like tinea versicolor and blepharitis. Doing the CBO protocol didn’t completely eliminate my external symptoms, but that aside, I feel insanely better overall.
Now, let me share what I learned from this radical experience.
1. Give Yourself Grace
We can all apply this to our lives.
You can’t be too hard on yourself when trying something new and struggling. It’s okay to mess up or feel like you’re not doing everything perfectly.
This process is a marathon, not a sprint.
No one’s perfect, and I doubt most people go through this CBO protocol without difficulty. Do the best you can, and lean on your loved ones and health coach for support.
2. In the Grand Scheme of Life, Three Months Really Isn’t a Long Time
I can’t tell you how many shocked reactions I got from people when I told them I had to do this thing for three months.
Three months of no traveling, saying no to restaurant outings, and staying mentally and physically diligent.
But three months of our entire lives? Big deal. That’s practically nothing.
And let me ask you this: Would you do this if you knew you could improve your health and feel so much better?
I think you would.
Often, people fail at what they’re chasing because their “why” isn’t strong enough.
Make your “why” powerful, and you can do anything. Mine was, and I did this.
3. Eating Home-Cooked, Whole Food Meals Every Day Feels Freaking Amazing
It truly does.
Sure, it’s a lot of work, but you’d be amazed at how different you feel and how your body changes from this.
Plus, I felt better fueled for my workouts.
One of my favorite meals was quinoa fusilli pasta with broccoli, peppers, tomatoes, spinach, and shrimp mixed with olive oil, pepper, and Celtic salt. It’s too easy to make and so simple to prep.
I could eat this meal every day for the rest of my life and be totally content.
4. Plan Ahead
One of the more challenging parts of the CBO protocol was planning meals in advance and meal prepping for the week.
To make things more complicated for myself, I like to cycle sync my food with the phases of my cycle to optimize my hormones.
So, I’d sit down and plan my grocery lists and meals for two weeks at a time in my Notes app. Then, I’d put on a podcast and spend a few hours whipping everything up and dividing my meals into glass containers for the week.
Look, I know no one has all the time in the world. I get it. I don’t exactly have unlimited hours on my hands, either.
But if I can do it, you can too.
Planning ahead was the key to success when doing this protocol. If I was ever on the go, I already had my food packed up, and my supplements divvied up and ready to go.
5. The Results Are Absolutely Worth It
The last day of this gut protocol was a beautiful, beautiful day.
It was overwhelming to think about what I did and was capable of in the past three months. Every hardship I faced in that time was worth the results I got.
I still have moments when I stop and express gratitude that I feel “normal” and I’m not on the brink of passing out.
We are meant to do hard things. How will we ever become the best versions of ourselves if we don’t?
Onto Healthier and Better
If you’re dealing with health problems like digestive issues and constant low energy, get functional medicine lab testing done. You won’t regret it.
You can run these labs with a local naturopathic doctor near you or an online practice — like I did — such as EquiLife.
With well-over 144,000 man-made toxins in existence today, it’s no wonder humans are constantly dealing with health issues that make us feel as though we’re broken.
The good news is the human body is incredibly efficient at healing itself when you give it the proper tools and environment to do so.
Ultimately, your gut is a critical piece of your overall health. Find out what’s going on inside yours, and do the work to help it heal.
Your future self will undoubtedly thank you.
