Brighter Days, Darker Nights

Thank you so much to Mollie Eastman! I LOVED having this conversation with you.

Everyone, go check out Mollie’s work.

Here’s her debut post on Substack:

Definitely go check it out and give it a heart and subscribe!

And here’s her website to learn more about her work at Sleep is a Skill.

Mollie and I will be collaborating again soon to talk even more about sleep and motherhood on her podcast very soon.

Stay tuned!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

Hello friends! Today I am so delighted to bring you a truly insightful conversation about the liver pills industry (yikes!), sleep and nightmares, and especially, what you can do for self-care when your menstrual cycle comes back after baby and you don’t feel ready yet -or- your menstrual cycle is so heavy it’s contributing to anemia.

Our guest is Dr. Suuzi of Mother’s Best Liver Pills.

This conversation fits in with our quantum anemia series and folate series, and builds on our circadian knowledge of the liver with traditional ways to support the spleen.

Not everyone knows about the spleen’s role in health or ever where it is in the body (it’s below the heart—and plays a key role in blood recycling).

If you or those you work with struggle from heavy menstrual cycles or anemia, this interview should be helpful.

Along with it, I thought I’d also share a recipe from my kitchen.

One of the kicks I’ve been on recently is restoring the tradition of weekly liver for the family.

I’ve been eating ground beef with liver mixed in with my children for many years. When I first started doing this, I would usually roast a few cumin seeds or some ground cumin first to mask the flavor… more for my benefit than theirs. My children have always seemed to really enjoy the organ meat flavor, and will even tell me it’s their favorite compared with plain ground beef.

But I wasn’t sure how they would react to eating liver plain.

So, here’s what I did with the below recipe that (so far) has ended up with 100% of the plate being cleared every time.

Firstly, they all got to watch me make it, which I did with as much confidence and self-assured attitude as I could given this was a recipe I hadn’t made before.

They really loved seeing the darkness of the meat.

They got to see it all get cooked, and they were all very hungry as it had been a long time since breakfast and no snacks provided that day (hunger is a strategic part of the success of the operation, I believe).

Then, when it was all done and diced and mixed, I put the serving portion for all 4 of the older children on one plate with 4 forks.

My husband and I got our own plates and I shared mine with the baby.

I didn’t make a fuss or watch the children while they ate and I didn’t bicker over who ate what or how much.

I heard various shouts about which part was their favorite (one liked the meat the best and another preferred the mushrooms).

And soon enough, among the 4 of them, the entire plate was picked clean with no complaints.

Same happened the next week, proving to me it wasn’t just a fluke and that I was on to something.

Children tend to enjoy healthy foods and moderate themselves well when consistently offered fresh foods prepared with love.

It’s more often the grown ups who have more restricted palates around this stuff (beware not to let your aversion rub off on your children!).

While fresh liver is easy and you only need to make it once a week, sometimes even once is too much to manage and for those times, liver pills may help fill in the nutritional gap.

But, if like me, you’ve been dissatisfied with liver pills in the past that haven’t lived up to your expectations, here’s where you can try bespoke, non-white-label, non-freeze-dried liver capsules from Dr. Suuzi: Mother’s Best Liver Pills.

You may also want to explore:

* The liver is not merely a filter

* Quantum anemia class I

* Quantum anemia class II

* Uterine fibroids research brief

And finally, my breaded liver and onions and mushrooms recipe, below:

Do you have a liver recipe you love?

I’m still not quite satisfied with my liver pate recipe and would love to know yours (especially if it’s using everyday ingredients), or how else you use liver at home.

When I’m in a real hurry, I sometimes just fry the chicken liver in some butter and spread it on a sourdough cracker, or use it for dirty rice.

Those are easy ways I work liver into our diet… what are yours?

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

Confession: I used to get anxious… about getting anxious clients!

This was before I was mentored by my friend and colleague Kelli Ritter, PhD, founder of the Quantum Mental Health Institute and the Foundations in Anxiety Recovery program.

Dr. Kelli’s Foundations in Anxiety Recovery (FARC) program for practitioners is enrolling now! I highly recommend this program if you are also seeing an uptick in clients presenting with anxiety. You don’t have to become a therapist to be able to help. This program will give you the tools and the scope to make your approach safe for your and for your clients. Learn more at FARC.

And if you are an individual looking for support, a great place to start is Dr. Kelli’s Decode your Overthinking Style activation.

It was really an honor to be part of the first cohort of certified anxiety recovery coaches through her organization, and I’m excited to carry this forward in my work.

Announcement: I am now a certified anxiety recovery coach

Now that I understand how well the same approaches I use from the field of applied quantum biology work for anxiety, I no longer have that fear I used to have when an anxious client would approach me.

I have also been able to look back on past clients of mine who had anxiety or panic attacks, and understand specifically how our work together supported the resolution of those symptoms.

And now be able to work more deliberately towards supporting anxious clients.

I shared more about my own client approaches to anxiety in my recent appearance on Dr. Kelli’s podcast here (especially how I came to recommend darkness before light in my practice with most clients).

But in this post today, I want to share the interview I did with Dr. Kelli last week here in Brighter Days, Darker Nights.

It’s so insightful for anxious moms or moms with anxious children.

We went into a lot, but here are four strategies you can try today:

* Earthing outside

* Natural, unfiltered daylight

* Nighttime darkness

* Anything healthy that feels soothing or safe to you

Do watch the replay above for the full context, and then listen to our other recent interview here where I share more about my experience in FARC and also how I came to work with darkness before light.

And if you are interested in going deeper, you can:

* Take Mom’s Sanity course for help with anxiety as an anxious mother or mother of an anxious child

* Join Foundations in Anxiety Recovery (FARC) to learn how to add anxiety recovery coaching to your practice while staying within your scope if you are not a trained therapist

Thank you Jaclyn Hali, Neurotic Farmer, and many others for tuning into my live video with Kelli Ritter, PhD!

And please check out the upcoming calendar and join me for my next live video.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

Last week, we hosted Roudy Nassif on the Brighter Days, Darker Nights live podcast. He is an amazing storyteller—anyone who has a child struggling to pay attention in school will definitely find resonance and hope in his story.

I was also excited for this conversation because of my own journey not so much with attention but with eyesight.

See, when I was in highschool, my optometrist told me my vision was “uncorrectable.” Raise the prescription… no better vision. Drop the prescription… no better vision.

However, since that time, I have now completely reversed my astigmatism, and gone from -4.75 myopia down to -3.5 myopia.

What I did? Circadian light optimization of course!

Story and details in the interview—make sure you watch it!

Plus, as a special benefit for our community, I am pleased to be able to offer you 15-20% off the very high-quality light-optimization glasses Roudy created at VivaRays.

Shop the VivaRays back to school sale with code NIKKOKENNEDY for 15% off light optimization glasses, and code back2school for 20% off glasses for children while you listen/watch the interview.

Disclaimer: I am a new VivaRays affiliate and will get a small commission for any sales at no extra cost to you (thank you for those who shop!). If you are interested in becoming an affiliate too, here’s the link to apply.

Thank you also Andréa St.Jules, Justine Bathurst, and many others for tuning into my live video with Roudy Nassif! Check out the upcoming events calendar here to RSVP for my upcoming calls with Kelli Ritter, PhD, Audrey Coats, Mollie Eastman, Neel Bulchandani and more to be announced soon!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

Here’s the scoop on sunlight for families.

Yes, it has risks. Yes, it has benefits.

It should always, always, always be paid with adequate nighttime darkness for stable and strong circadian rhythms.

In this class, I share everything you need to start having a balanced relationship with sunlight for your family.

Join Brighter Days, Darker Nights by Nikko Kennedy for new resources and a deep archive about sunlight, darkness, motherhood, and learning to thrive around the clock in today’s artificially illuminated world.

Sunlight 101 for Families slides below:

If you still have questions after watching the recording, please feel free to leave your questions in the comments.

Next steps in your light-learning adventure:

* Early pregnancy —> Circadian pregnancy workshops

* Late pregnancy —> Light in Labor and Postpartum Planning workshops

* Postpartum —> Circadian polyphasic sleep for parents, Circadian Babyhood and Quantum Breastfeeding workshops

* 1-1 for parents —> Virtual Doula Care

* Practitioners —> Circadian and Quantum Research Library or Perinatal Practitioner Mentorship

* Organizations, events, speaking, podcasting, consulting, etc —> Email me

Upcoming live events with Nikko Kennedy:

Thank you The Homeschool OT, Sarah Baker, and many others for tuning into this live video!

Join me for my next community class by RSVP’ing from the Brighter Days, Darker Nights events calendar.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

What I find most exciting about getting below the chemical scale into the quantum scale are the implications for the future of health and healthcare.

As we move into a new scientific paradigm that better describes energy flow—fundamental to how all life functions—we better understand the potentiation of either health or disease states.

Let’s choose health!

Sign up for 🌞 Brighter Days, Darker Nights 🌚 by Nikko Kennedy to get new articles like this about circadian & quantum health.

What is the quantum scale in biology?

What if we could find out even more about how the Schumann Resonances (SRs) from the Earth (and either exposure or isolation from them) affect us by getting down to the subatomic level?

Is DNA actually quantum?

Yes, DNA is necessarily operating at a quantum scale (I’ll explain how later in this article). The environmental impacts on the beautiful butterfly-shaped thyroid are now understood to be driving multigenerational epigenetic changes, suggesting quantum factors we are just beginning to understand may actually be driving multi-generational impacts!

This tells us that we can make a big difference for future generations... but what about for us, now?

When it comes to diagnosis of disease, many are beginning to predict a new era of quantum medicine that promises the potential for earlier diagnosis, and thus, earlier treatment.

Quantum physics is a promising field that intersects with medicine much more than originally understood. In terms of diagnosing different diseases, incorporating quantum mechanics into the study of medicine can allow for efficient diagnosis before symptoms even arise in a patient. Applying theory-based mathematical structures that describe neuron transmission throughout the brain and mind on a quantum scale can help us to better understand neurological diseases in patients. Quantum theory can even give plausible explanations for subtle DNA changes and even telomere reduction in patients who develop cancer. Utilizing quantum theory in the field of medicine can help in understanding and applying treatments for a multitude of different diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease or diverse types of cancer, and even expand upon efficient and reliable diagnosis in clinical settings.

Bisiani et al (2023)

Too small to matter, or just too small to measure?

For a long time, there was a general consensus that quantum effects are too small to matter in biology, and that any quantum effects happening atomically are essentially washed out by the time everything is scaled up to the tissue level.

That premise is currently being undone as another one of the most fundamental aspects of biochemistry—the hydrogen bond—may actually depend upon quantum mechanics to function.

Hydrogen, because of its small molecular weight, seems to often be operating at the quantum scale.

Despite decades of research, the hydrogen-bonding network of liquid water still poses many unresolved challenges. Flór et al. used correlated vibrational spectroscopy to directly monitor the hydrogen bond interactions in liquid water through stretch and bend vibrations. This method was able to quantify charge transfer and nuclear quantum effects in liquid water, which could not be directly accessed using conventional vibrational spectroscopic methods.

After all, a hydrogen atom consists only of a single proton and a single electron (and sometimes an extra neutron or two).

The hydrogen bond is familiar to all biologists and chemists because water depends on it for its unique properties.

The idea of water being necessary for life as we know it expands when you move to this quantum scale. Water’s presence is also potentially carrying memory across time—a concept which has faced serious backlash historically as well as at present.

And not only are quantum hydrogen bonds central to how water works, they are also critical for how DNA is held together and how many other processes necessary for life work.

Thus, we are entering a new era where quantum effects in water and in biology are becoming more and more evident, and less and less suppressible in light of new abilities to see and calculate at this scale.

I might even go so far as to guess that everything we know that is happening in warm, wet biological environments—and especially any charge transfer happening there (hello, redox!)—will likely need reframing based on quantum dynamics in the future.

Martin Picard shared this video in one of his recent posts, and it does such a good job of explaining why understanding this energy flow matters so much!

Watch here if you have a few minutes:

Another paper published recently explored the quantum effects of hydrogen bonding on DNA pairs, and came to the conclusion that, “God created the most perfect quantum computer: the DNA.”

While there are many researchers investigating the potential quantum interactions between biology and electromagnetic frequencies, we still have many questions to answer.

This all gives hope for new, less invasive solutions to modern illnesses, many of which may involve either adding beneficial wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, or removing harmful ones.

Meanwhile, the fields of biology and engineering are beginning to merge in powerful ways, as this field is inherently multidisciplinary.

Given all of these real, physical processes and technological advances, I sometimes feel a little frustrated when people toss the word quantum around willy nilly.

What quantum is not

Let us begin our definition of quantum biology by stating what it is not: It is not a grab bag for all biological phenomena that lack a full quantitative understanding at present.

Scholes et al (2026)

Quantum is NOT just a way to say everything about life we don’t otherwise understand, or mind over matter, or that everything “woo” is necessarily true at a quantum scale.

Yes, all the “woo” things people sometimes call quantum do matter and in time, we may even find quantum dynamics at play.

But what I want to say here is that just because people use more colloquial meanings does not invalidate the science of quantum or dilute its implications.

See → What do you mean when you say quantum?

My current take on quantum biology

My current read on the state of quantum biology is that it is most exciting in terms of not only better health, but also future technology that is more harmonious with our biology so we don’t accidentally screw up our health just by living our normal daily lives.

See → From circadian to quantum

Wouldn’t it be great to improve our technology, and our health, too?

For those of us working in this emerging field, we have much pressure to be careful and correct in our language and interpretations of research to not overstate our claims and further dampen the field’s reputation in the eyes of the public.

See → Quick research training and Translational medicine vs p-hacking

This is why I am part of creating the new Quantum Biology Collective Substack, the Applied Quantum Biology Research Accelerator, and the Journal of Applied Quantum Biology.

Final thoughts on quantum biology in 2026:

OF COURSE, I can’t wrap this without saying… one of the other more fun and lighthearted things about quantum biology is it helps explain why it always feels soooooo good to stand barefoot on the Earth and get the long rays of sunlight on your face.

AQB Updates from Nikko

* Please donate to the launch of the Journal of Applied Quantum Biology if you can!

* The second round of the IAQB pilot research program is opening soon. Schedule a clarity call with me if you are a practitioner who is using light therapy or circadian rhythm coaching in your practice and you want to publish your results. You don’t have to be part of a University or have an IRB to do the kind of research we are teaching. Learn more and enroll here.

* The IAQB certification waitlist is open for the next round of certification which will take place in 2027, but in the meantime, you may benefit from joining our professional association for quantum-informed practitioners (AQB Pro). Learn more and join AQB Pro here.

* I am offering a live training on August 6th for anyone who is tired of having their citations spread across zillions of browser tabs, bookmarks, and unnamed downloads who wants to have their research citations neatly organized for easy search and one-click citations instead. Purchase a ticket here. It comes with access to my own private Zotero library with 1300+ citations I have personally curated to get you started.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

When I started doing EC fourteen years ago, reactions ranged from WTF to “this baby is going to rule the world.”

But the truth is, there’s nothing unique about my babies, or me as a mother—the cues and the ways of responding are universal!

If you are curious about EC or experiencing some stalls or frustration with it, or deciding whether to do EC or potty training, this class is for you.

You’ll learn the 4 easy and specific times to help your baby have less messy pees and poos. You’ll also learn when it’s better to just potty train. And so much more!

We did a lot of troubleshooting scenarios of all the questions sent in with those who registered to attend live. (thank you! those questions really helped guide the conversation).

About our guest expert, Andrea Olson:

Andrea Olson has built a whole online empire, including books, courses, and helpful products like the tiny potty and flush husher to make this all super simple and easy no matter what age or stage you are starting at.

To learn —> GoDiaperFree

For gear —> TinyUndies

I’m so grateful Andrea had time to come chat with us today, and hope you enjoy this super warm and practical replay.

Also, please share this with a friend! This information is truly invaluable.

Liberty Farms Illinois, one of our dear readers and community members, really said it best:

Why aren’t we teaching this to all new moms? Now, we can!

And each of you has the ability, authority and our blessing to become the node for circadian and elimination communication rhythms for all the moms in your community who will look up to you for advice and support in the future.

This guest expert session is open to the public, so please share it. This helps Andrea and me reach new people with this kind of motherhood education. Thank you!

Also, you are invited to RSVP for next month’s community class: Sleep Like A Mother: Circadian Postpartum Planning.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

Hi everyone! I recorded this earlier this year and didn’t have the time to send it out! I hope you all enjoy this interview.

We covered tongue-tie and oral restriction, and how Dr. Neel uses touch, light and empathic abilities to support infants and adults.

This interview is one I definitely recommend to any family considering a tongue-tie release, as surgery can help, but isn’t always necessary and doesn’t always work.

We also talked about light, the mouth, diastases, and so much more.

Listen in, and if this message resonates, connect with Dr. Neel for support on his website here.

Also, in case you missed my interview on Dr. Neel’s podcast Compromised to Alchemized where we dove into the health of the thyroid, you can catch up on that below:

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our live podcast recording! I’m in the process of getting more expert interviews cued up for this Summer.

I’m chatting about dates with an awesome building designer, a childbirth coach, and a few others for another great series.

I was also featured on a few incredible podcasts recently including Awakening Spaces, Regenerative Health, the Evolving Wellness Podcast and more. I will be sharing those interviews with you all soon, too.

Sign up for updates if you haven’t already! I appreciate your support.

Brighter Days, Darker Nights is a reader-supported publication by Nikko Kennedy covering light and health from birth and beyond. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

If you or a loved one is experiencing anxiety, you need to understand that it is not just a “false alarm”.

A nervous system constantly experiencing danger signals will present with anxiety it can’t be talked out of.

This is why Kelli Ritter, PhD gave up her therapy license.

She now practices with 5 interchangeable pillars:

* Light

* Water

* Earth

* Food

* Breath

These signals are all interconnected, so she teaches people how to start and move through them in the order that works best individually as not everyone will start in the same place.

But when these safety signals stack up, the danger signals being sent at the cellular and quantum scale in chronic anxiety are no longer needed.

And thus, the chronic anxiety can safely go away.

Dr. Kelli Ritter has been teaching families how to recover from anxiety for decades, and is now turning to coaches to help even more practitioners use her framework to help their clients who are also struggling with chronic anxiety.

With more people being diagnosed every day, it’s high time to focus on the signals that actually address the danger signaling happening under the surface.

Listen to the episode above where I hosted Dr. Kelli, and then tune in below for the episode where Dr. Kelli hosted me!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe

Do you believe the current systems can improve? While it takes work, I do believe it is possible for systems—even large scale ones—to improve. And, I also know in some cases it is necessary (+ faster and more effective) to build new systems outside of the ones that exist.

Watch Christine Staricka of Evolve Lactation and I chat about her strategies for improving the field of lactation through both of these methods. I invited her to have this conversation to learn what opportunities she saw for getting circadian rhythmicity integrated into lactation support.

After all, we know breastmilk is one of the strongest cues for entraining a baby’s circadian rhythm—thus, good lactation support could reach the next generation when they are most vulnerable and help set them up for better circadian rhythms for life!

Even if you don’t care about the field of lactation, there were translatable insights for other fields that suffer similarly from having grown cumbersome over years of additions, and yet still lack integrated knowledge of circadian rhythmicity where it is needed.

If you resonate with Christine’s work, please subscribe to her publication (link below) to learn more and join her community for those who love moms and babies. She is a wealth of information about breastfeeding, breast health, and the field of lactation consulting.

Thank you Kate Saffle, Andréa St.Jules, Selene Taylor, and many others for tuning into this live video with Christine Staricka! RSVP for my next live video through the community calendar here.

If you enjoyed this interview, here are few posts I’ve shared about breastfeeding and babyhood:

* Your mother gave you your circadian rhythm

* Quantum Breastfeeding class (video)

* Circadian Babyhood class (video)

* Weaning, circadian style

* Support for tandem breastfeeding

* Lactational amenorrhea and circadian prolactin

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.brighterdaysdarkernights.com/subscribe