Abundant Wellness With Andrea- From Surviving to Thriving in Mind, Body and Spirit

What if your child's anxiety, ADHD symptoms, irritability, or difficulty focusing were connected to something as foundational as how they breathe at night?

In this episode of The Abundant Wellness Podcast, Andrea sits down with Dr. Kalli Hale, airway dentist and founder of Toothpillow, to explore the often-overlooked connection between airway development, sleep quality, nervous system regulation, and childhood behavior.

Together, they discuss why mouth breathing, crowded teeth, teeth grinding, restless sleep, and even bedwetting may be important clues that your child's airway deserves a closer look. Dr. Hale explains how early jaw development and tongue function influence breathing and why addressing these concerns during childhood can be so valuable.

Andrea also shares her family's personal experience with Toothpillow and the improvements she's observed in her daughter's sleep, mood, and jaw development.

In this episode, you'll learn:

How airway dentistry differs from traditional dentistry and orthodontics

Common and surprising signs of sleep-disordered breathing in children

The connection between poor sleep, ADHD symptoms, anxiety, and emotional regulation

Why tongue ties, narrow palates, and crowded teeth matter

How early airway assessments can help families identify potential concerns

If your child struggles with restless sleep, behavioral challenges, or chronic mouth breathing, this conversation may help you connect some important dots.

Resources:

Toothpillow: abundantwellness.toothpillow.com

Instagram: @toothpillow_official

Dr. Kalli Hale: @theairwaycentereddentist

Podcast: The Sleep Well Journey

Toothpillow assessment and special offer: Grab your free assessment here and $300 off if you decide to move forward with treatment! abundantwellness.toothpillow.com use the code Abundantwellness

Parenting neurodivergent kids while navigating your own neurodivergence can challenge everything you thought parenting was supposed to look like.

In this episode, Andrea sits down with functional nutritionist, ADHD life coach, and applied neuroscience student Amy Jones for an honest conversation about parenting, ADHD, executive function, regulation, and letting go of the pressure to make family life fit into a certain box.

Together, they explore why identifying your family’s core values can change the way you approach everything from chaotic mornings and after-school meltdowns to meals, homework, clutter, and routines. They also discuss the importance of recognizing both your child’s capacity and your own—and why “capacity” may be a much more helpful goal than the elusive idea of work-life balance.

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• Co-regulation when you’re dysregulated too

This conversation is a reminder that a healthy family doesn’t have to look like everyone else’s family. Sometimes the greatest freedom comes when we stop asking, “How should this look?” and start asking, “What does our family actually need?”

Connect with Amy Jones:

How do you keep hoping for your child’s healing when the road has been long, exhausting, and filled with unanswered questions?

In this deeply personal episode, Andrea shares a part of her family’s journey she hasn’t talked about publicly before—the complicated space between accepting your child exactly as they are and still believing that more healing and greater function may be possible.

After years of PANDAS, therapies, evaluations, brain training, and constantly searching for the next right step, both Andrea and her daughter reached a point where they were simply tired. Taking a break brought its own fears: What if we’re missing a critical window? What if I’m not doing enough? What happens if I stop pushing?

But that season revealed something important: God wasn’t in the same hurry Andrea was.

This episode explores the intersection of parental grief, nervous system capacity, faith, striving, and hope—and what it can look like when you become too weary to carry hope yourself.

Sometimes faith isn’t pushing harder, praying harder, or finding the next intervention. Sometimes it sounds like: “God, I can’t hold this hope right now. Will You hold it for me until I can carry it again?”

If you’re raising a child with neurodivergence, developmental challenges, chronic illness, PANDAS/PANS, or another complex diagnosis and you’re exhausted from trying to get them across the finish line, this episode is for you.

You don’t have to know the entire path forward today. Maybe the invitation in this season is simply to rest, allow yourself to be loved, and trust that God can order the next steps when it’s time.

For more practical support around grief, nervous system regulation, and parenting through complex seasons, join Andrea inside the Thriving Together community.

Back-to-school season can bring a lot of change—not just in schedules, but in our kids’ sleep, mood, blood sugar, nervous system regulation, and immune health.

In this episode of the Abundant Wellness Podcast, I’m sharing some of my favorite practical strategies for helping kids transition back into the school year with more stability and resilience. And as always, we’re looking beyond behavior to understand what may actually be happening in the body—especially for kids who are neurodivergent, anxious, easily dysregulated, or simply struggling with the transition.

We’re talking about why sleep may be one of the most important (and overlooked!) tools for supporting your child’s brain and nervous system, how an overtired child can actually look more wired and dysregulated, and why an earlier bedtime can make such a significant difference.

I’m also breaking down simple ways to build more blood-sugar-stabilizing meals and snacks, including why I’m constantly reminding my own kids, “Don’t forget your protein!” We’ll talk about protein, healthy fats, and carbohydrates and how they work together to support energy, mood, and growing brains.

Finally, we’re getting into immune support as kids head back into classrooms, activities, and all of those inevitable new exposures. I’ll share some of the foundational strategies I use with my own family, including gut support, probiotics, vitamin D, elderberry, and other simple ways to support immune resilience throughout the school year.

In this episode, we cover:

Why sleep is foundational for mood, behavior, learning, and nervous system regulation

How being overtired can actually make kids appear wired or hyperactive

Creating a simple, calming bedtime routine

Why after-school meltdowns may be signs of physiological stress—not simply “bad behavior”

Building protein-forward meals and snacks for steadier blood sugar and mood

Supporting neurotransmitter production through nutrition

Simple immune-support strategies for back-to-school season

Supporting the gut as part of your child’s overall immune and mental health

Whether your family is heading into public school, private school, homeschool, or something in between, my hope is that this episode gives you a few simple tools to make the transition feel a little more manageable—and help your child feel their best as they begin the new school year.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Kids Back-to-School Meal & Snack Guide

Fall Kids Immune Support Guide

Back-to-school transitions can be incredibly stressful for neurodivergent kids—but we don’t talk nearly enough about the toll those transitions can take on the parents helping them through it.

In this episode, Andrea shifts the focus from “What does my child need?” to an equally important question: “What do I need to carry this well?”

You’ll learn how to identify the parts of the school transition that create the most stress for you, consider what support could make that load lighter, and intentionally create more margin during demanding seasons.

Andrea also challenges the traditional idea of “self-care” and replaces it with something deeper: nourishment. What does it look like to nourish the body, mind, and spirit God has entrusted to you—not because you’ve earned it, but because you matter too?

In this short, practical episode, we talk about:

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or realizing you don’t even know what you need anymore, you don’t have to figure it out alone. Join the Thriving Together community for free nervous system trainings, community conversations, and additional support.

This school year may require a lot from you—but you deserve to be supported through the transition, too.

What if the environment you live in is affecting your ability to heal?

In this episode of the Abundant Wellness Podcast, Andrea Jones sits down with Jason Earle, founder of Got Mold and Mycolab, to unpack the often-confusing relationship between mold, dampness, indoor air quality, and human health.

Jason shares his deeply personal journey—from childhood asthma and severe allergies that mysteriously disappeared after leaving a musty farmhouse, to discovering the connection between buildings and health and eventually becoming one of the early pioneers in mold detection and indoor environmental assessment.

Together, Andrea and Jason discuss why mold-related illness can be so difficult to navigate, why testing alone shouldn't be used to diagnose either a person or a building, and what to look for when you suspect your environment may be contributing to symptoms.

One of the biggest messages from this conversation is that context matters.

Rather than relying on a single test result to determine whether a person is sick or whether a building is unsafe, Jason encourages a more comprehensive approach: look at the history of the building, signs of moisture, odors, symptoms, and how those symptoms change when you're away from the environment.

The goal isn't to create more fear around mold. It's to understand your environment, address problems strategically, and create a healthier space that supports your body rather than constantly challenging it.

Jason has created a dedicated resource page for this episode with an educational ebook, inspection guidance, and additional resources:

gotmold.com/abundantwellness

You can also learn more and connect with Jason through Got Mold and find additional information about indoor environmental health.

If you've ever found yourself thinking, "What is happening to me?" in your late 30s or 40s, this episode is for you.

Perimenopause isn't just about hot flashes or irregular periods. For many women—especially those with a history of trauma, anxiety, ADHD, OCD, or neurodivergence—it can feel like an unraveling of your emotional resilience, your identity, and even your sense of safety.

In this deeply honest conversation, I'm joined by my friend and fellow functional medicine practitioner, Erin Kerry, to talk about our own experiences navigating perimenopause while balancing motherhood, careers, neurodivergent families, and healing from past trauma.

Together we discuss:

Why perimenopause can feel like you're "coming undone"

The surprising connection between fluctuating hormones, neurotransmitters, and mental health

Why old wounds and trauma often resurface during this season

How declining progesterone and changing estrogen levels affect anxiety, sleep, focus, and emotional regulation

The shift from people-pleasing to stronger boundaries and greater authenticity

Practical strategies that have made the biggest difference for us—including nutrition, movement, sleep support, progesterone, and nervous system care

Why this season isn't simply something to survive, but may actually be preparing you for your next chapter

One of our favorite takeaways from this conversation is the idea that perimenopause may be "the chaos before the calm." While the transition can feel overwhelming, it also creates opportunities for deeper healing, greater wisdom, and a stronger connection to who you truly are.

Whether you're in the middle of perimenopause, wondering if your symptoms are hormone-related, or supporting someone who is, this episode will remind you that you're not losing your mind—and you're certainly not alone.

Resources Mentioned:

Erin Kerry's podcast: Sparking Wholeness

Erin's books: Live Beyond Your Label and Kitchen Therapy

Connect with Erin on Instagram: @SparkingWholeness

If this episode encouraged you, be sure to subscribe to the Abundant Wellness Podcast and share it with a friend who needs the reminder that healing is possible—even in the middle of life's biggest transitions.

Ready to get to the bottom of the hormonal chaos? Book a Root Cause Call with the Fit Mom Functional Medicine Team HERE 

Is your child eating enough… but still missing the nutrients their growing body and brain desperately need?

In this episode, I sit down with Sharon Cryan, founder and CEO of Food Nerd Inc., to unpack the hidden problem of "silent malnutrition"—where children may have plenty of food but are still lacking the nutrients their bodies need to thrive.

We dive into what really happens during food processing, why two products with similar nutrition labels can have vastly different effects on the body, and how convenience doesn't have to come at the expense of health.

Whether you're raising a picky eater, navigating food sensitivities, or simply trying to make healthier choices without adding more stress to your day, this conversation offers practical hope and encouragement.

In this episode, we discuss:

This episode is a refreshing reminder that healthy eating doesn't require perfection—it starts with giving our kids more opportunities to nourish their growing bodies, one bite at a time.

Connect with Sharon & Food Nerd Inc.:

What if your child is incredibly bright... but still struggles with emotional regulation, friendships, executive functioning, or everyday life?

In this eye-opening conversation, Andrea sits down with Mark Talaga, counselor, founder of the Center for Identity Potential, and host of the Hopelessly Gifted podcast, to unpack one of the most misunderstood forms of neurodivergence: giftedness.

Together, they explore why highly intelligent children are often overlooked, misunderstood, or even misdiagnosed—and why exceptional intelligence doesn't automatically translate into emotional maturity, flexibility, or executive functioning.

You'll learn why many gifted children experience "asynchronous development," where advanced abilities in one area coexist with significant challenges in another. Mark shares how comprehensive assessment, understanding a child's unique developmental profile, and shifting away from behavior-based assumptions can completely change the way parents support their children.

Andrea also shares personal insights from parenting her own neurodivergent daughter, highlighting the importance of trusting parental intuition, embracing individualized support, and remembering that children do well when they can—not simply when they choose to.

Whether you're raising a gifted child, navigating autism, ADHD, sensory processing challenges, or simply trying to better understand your child's unique brain, this episode offers practical wisdom, hope, and reassurance that there is always a path forward.

In this episode you'll learn:

If you've ever looked at your child and thought, "I know something is going on, but I can't quite explain it," this conversation is for you.

Connect with Mark Talaga:

Bringing home a new baby is supposed to be one of life's happiest moments—but for many moms, it's also one of the loneliest. In this episode, Andrea sits down with Andrea Ippolito, founder and CEO of Simply Fed, to discuss the hidden gaps in postpartum care and why so many women feel unsupported after birth.

Together they explore why breastfeeding is often far more challenging than expected, how postpartum care extends far beyond a six-week checkup, and why maternal mental health deserves to be part of every conversation.

Andrea also shares how SimpliFed is helping families access insurance-covered lactation and feeding support while improving outcomes for both moms and babies.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Whether you're expecting your first baby, navigating the newborn stage, or supporting new mothers in your practice, this conversation offers hope, practical resources, and encouragement.

Connect with Andrea Ippolito and learn more about SimpliFed: