The Wellness Witch Podcast

Are you someone who’s struggling with an autoimmune disease or know someone who is? If so, then this episode would be really helpful for you! Learn some helpful strategies and solutions for autoimmunity from Dr. Nadia Saleem as she shares her knowledge and expertise on the subject, as well as her own healing journey from Hashimoto’s.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode54.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• Nadia’s struggle with Hashimoto’s and how she took her health in her own hands
• The steps to healing from Hashimoto’s
• What an actual diagnosis of Hashimoto’s is and what women need to look for in their blood work
• Some of the commonalities among women who have Hashimoto’s
• Progestin vs Progesterone
• The dangers of progestin-only birth control pills
• How to tell if you have estrogen dominance
• Hormone replacement therapy versus bio-identical hormones
• Where to start if you have a hormonal imbalance.
• The impact of fasting on hormonal health
• Why it’s difficult for women to lose weight when they’re in menopause

Key Takeaways:

• Traditionally, what people are testing for when they do their blood work is TSH and maybe T4 if people are lucky. But the things we really need to look at is TSH, T4, T3, reverse T3. And then the two thyroid antibodies that are most commonly looked at anti-TPO and anti-TG. And until we see all of those numbers together, we really can’t make a true diagnosis for Hashimoto’s.
• Some women have actual values of TSH, T3, and T4 that are fine but still have elevated antibodies. We look at that as just an immune system issue.
• A lot of Eastern Europeans tend to have Hashimoto’s because of the radiation.
• There are a lot of hormonal birth control pills and IUDs that have progestin. What people don’t realize is that progestin will increase breast cancer risk and actually make estrogen dominance worse.
• The non-negotiables when it comes to autoimmunity are nutrition, sleep, lifestyle and stress management, and mindset and mental/emotional work. Those have to be in place for you to get anything else under control.

Action Steps:

• Build a healing community around you of people you can trust and who can truly hold you accountable.
• Try to eliminate, or at least minimize, the stress from your life.
• Have your blood work done.
• Test your hormone levels and test for estrogen dominance.

Samantha said:

“Wherever you are on your health, you must do the uncomfortable work. You just have to dive in and begin right where you are because there is no right time to begin and your health doesn’t wait for the right time.”

Nadia said:

““We don’t want to wait until your antibodies are in the thousands to start working on them, because chances are, they will get there, and why wait until they get there?”

“No matter what condition we’re looking at, any type of autoimmune condition, until we get the stress under control, it’s a futile battle… So the stress has to be number one.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

Join the Metabolic Reset Program! It’s our high fat, low carb approach to helping women lose weight and balance their hormones.

Also, sign up for our weekly newsletter! And if you’re a health practitioner or an entrepreneur, be on the lookout for the Holistic Wellness Business Mentorship program that’s coming soon!

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

DUTCH Test – Advanced Hormone Testing

Where you can find Dr. Nadia Saleem:

Nadia’s Instagram (@dr.nadiasaleemnd)

EBL Naturopathic Clinic

MyPureBalance

Recommended Products:

• Matcha green tea
• Spearmint tea
• Calming teas
• Licorice tea

*Shop for these at the Holisticwellness Shop. Enter the coupon code save15 at checkout and get 15% off.

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Healthy Hormones for Women Podcast Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

What are the core supplements that everybody should take to support their whole body from head to toe? Listen in as I talk about the five foundational supplements that are incredibly essential in supporting your hormones, your brain, your heart, and your energy.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode53.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• The five foundational supplements for everyone across the board
• Vitamin D
• Fish oil or omega-3
• Magnesium
• Probiotics
• Juice Plus
• Food sources of magnesium
• The different benefits of Omega-3
• Things to look for in a probiotic

Key Takeaways:

Vitamin D

• Vitamin D functions more like a hormone in your body, and it’s really important for modulating your immune system, for brain development, and for hormone support. It’s also important in supporting bone density as well as insulin management.
• Studies show that those with hypothyroidism tend to have significantly lower levels of vitamin D.
• There have been some great studies showing that higher intakes of vitamin D were associated with lower risks of pancreatic cancer.
• Studies also show that those who have any kind of psychiatric issues or neurological diseases are typically vitamin D deficient.

Fish Oil or Omega-3

• Omega-3 is really a brain nutrient.
• Omega-3 helps to switch off the genes that store fat and turn on the genes that break down fat. It reduces your risk of heart attack, stroke, congestive heart failure, and even diabetes.
• Omega-3 can help your body to increase the utilization of fat storage from your fat cells.
• One of the biggest things that many people experience from supplementing with omega-3 and fish oil is the reduction in their inflammation.
• Omega-3 also helps to improve mental focus, memory, and overall brain function.
• It increases your serotonin levels and has a very positive effect on your mood.
• From a skin perspective, it helps to lubricate and support your skin internally.

Magnesium

• So many people are deficient in magnesium and magnesium deficiency can really put you at a risk for impaired metabolic function and reduce your mitochondrial function.
• There are lots of ways to get your magnesium. Foods rich in magnesium include leafy greens like spinach, swiss chard, turnip greens or beet greens, kale, bok choy, romaine lettuce, colored greens, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cacao, avocado, different seeds and nuts, and fatty fish like wild-caught salmon or mackerel.
• Magnesium helps to strengthen your bones by promoting healthy bone density. It is also involved with helping to control blood sugar levels, especially in people who have diabetes or may be at risk for diabetes.
• Magnesium also helps to relieve constipation.
• Magnesium is also great for sleep, protecting your heart, and any type of mood disorders -- anxiety, irritability, and even depression.

Probiotics

• Our gut is basically home to approximately 100 trillion microorganisms and our gut contains 10 times more bacteria than all human cells in the body.
• Some things that can really impact our gut and our gut flora are antibiotics.
• After antibiotic use, the diversity of your gut flora isn’t recovered unless you supplement with probiotics.
• Infants that aren’t breastfed and are born to mothers with bad gut flora are more like to develop unhealthy gut bacteria and that these early differences in gut flora may predict being overweight, developing diabetes, having eczema, psoriasis, depression, and other health problems in the future.

Greens Products or Juice Plus+

• Juice Plus+ is a blend of 30 different fruits and vegetables, bridging the gap between what you should eat and what you do eat every day, so it’s really providing you with real food nutrition. It comes in three different bottles -- the Orchard Blend, the Garden Blend, and the Vineyard Blend.
• PaleoGreens from Designs for Health is over 90% organic and doesn’t have grains, gluten, fructose, and soy.

Action Steps:

• Get your vitamin D levels tested so that you can really gauge where you are on the range.
• Work with a health practitioner to assess your dosing when it comes to magnesium supplements.
• Support your gut by supplementing with a probiotic.
• Make sure that your probiotics have live active culture, that there’s no sugar added, and that it’s enteric-coated so this can really help support with your digestion and bioavailability, especially if you have low hydrochloric acid or stomach issues and digestive issues in general. Enteric-coated will mean that it can help you absorb it much, much better.
• When it comes to probiotics, look for a combination of different strains and at least 10 billion cultures. And make sure that it’s non-GMO certified.

Samantha said:

“I call [these supplements] the foundational five because I think that these are really at the core that everybody should take, and then on top of that, you can add in other strategic supplements based on your condition or symptoms or whatever you might be experiencing.”

“I don’t typically recommend multivitamins… because if you need to get a high dose of vitamins, you’re going to have to pop a lot… and oftentimes you’re just getting really crappy versions of the vitamins in there… Instead, I recommend a greens product or something like Juice Plus+.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

Register for my FREE Weight Loss + Hormone Webinar on March 20th and get a behind the scenes look at our 12-week weight loss program + receive an exclusive webinar discount.

Also, sign up for our weekly newsletter! And if you’re a health practitioner or an entrepreneur, be on the lookout for the Holistic Wellness Business Mentorship program that’s coming soon!

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

  Episodes mentioned that you shouldn’t miss:

• Podcast Episode 45: Eat Your Vitamins: Essential Nutrients for Women’s Health
• Podcast Episode 49: Top 10 Herbs for Hormonal Health

Recommended Products:

• Magnesium bisglycinate
• Designs for Health NeuroMag (Magnesium L-threonate)
• Designs for Health OmegAvail Hi-Po
• Designs for Health TG Fish Oil Emulsion in Mango Peach Smoothie
• Juice Plus+
• Designs for Health PaleoGreens

*Shop for these at the Holisticwellness Shop. Enter the coupon code save15 at checkout and get 15% off.

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Healthy Hormones for Women Podcast Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Welcome to another Q&A episode! The questions that come in, many of us have these questions and sometimes we’re just scared to ask. So take a listen as I provide some insights and strategies on the things that you want to know about. Enjoy!

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode52.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• How can you boost low progesterone?
• Why should you take a DUTCH test?
• When you have low thyroid function, should you support your thyroid, your adrenals, or both?
• What can you do with terrible menopausal symptoms?
• Should you eat different foods while you’re on your period?
• Is it possible to take too much B vitamins?
• What can you do about getting sick a lot?

Key Takeaways:

• Some of the reasons for having low progesterone could be age. Or it could be that your progesterone is low in relation to your estrogen, meaning that there is estrogen dominance going on.
• If you have low thyroid function, it typically means you have a high adrenal function. So your adrenals and your thyroid can’t really function at the same time.
• When it comes to menopause, your symptoms will get worse if you have a congested liver, if you have adrenal fatigue, and if you have low thyroid function.

Action Steps:

• Get acupuncture treatment to help boost low progesterone. You can also start to incorporate some evening primrose oil, specifically during the second half of your cycle.
• Get a DUTCH test.
• Support both your adrenals and your thyroid.
• Address terrible menopausal symptoms:
• Do a thyroid test and run a full thyroid panel).
• Manage the stressors in your life.
• Implement a high level of self-care.
• Detoxify. Get rid of toxic products that you’re currently using. Go to ewg.org and look up the Clean 15 and the Dirty Dozen lists.
• Eat a variety of foods during your period.
• Make sure you’re getting enough iron by eating red meat (lamb, beef, organ meats like liver). If you have a heavier flow, take an iron supplement.
• Get lots of vitamin C by eating citrus fruits (lemons, lime, grapefruit, berries) and dark leafy greens. Vitamin C is going to help with the absorption of iron.
• Eat foods rich in omega-3 (fish oil, hemp seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, wild-caught fish).
• Eat foods rich in B12 (red meat, dark leafy greens)
• Pay attention to carbohydrates. Some women need a little bit more carbohydrates during their period and everybody is different.
• What to do if you often get sick:
• Eat mushrooms. Reishi mushrooms, Cordyceps, and Chaga are really good and help to modulate the immune system.
• Increase your vitamin C intake by eating vitamin C-rich foods or supplementing with it.
• Make sure you stay hydrated.
• Support your gut health with probiotics, fermented foods, and bone broth.
• Make sure you’re sleeping well enough and that you’re creating healthy boundaries around your sleep.
• Get anti-inflammatory herbs and spices (ginger-lemon tea, ginger-lemon-turmeric lemonade).

Samantha said:

“[The DUTCH test] is a wonderful hormone test because it will not just show you what’s going on with your sex hormones but will also really break down all your hormone metabolites and how well your liver is.”

“If you feel like you’ve done everything… and your symptoms are still showing up in a big way, that’s when I would suggest to go dive in and now do the DUTCH test. Instead of trying to guess everything, just test, don’t guess, and then dive into that.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

Sign up for our weekly newsletter. And if you’re a health practitioner or an entrepreneur, be on the lookout for the Holistic Wellness Business Mentorship program that’s coming soon!

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• DUTCH Test
• ewg.org

Recommended Products:

• Designs for Health Adrenotone
• PURICA Immune 7
• PURICA Complete 360

*Shop for these at the Holisticwellness Shop

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Healthy Hormones for Women Podcast Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

What is the vagus nerve and what are some simple strategies that we can do to activate it? Get a load of some really amazing information from Activate Your Vagus Nerve author, Dr. Navaz Habib. Enjoy!

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode51.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• The vagus nerve
• Some common signs of vagus nerve dysfunction.
• The effect of stress on the vagus nerve
• The four major functions of the vagus nerve
• Strategies and tips to activate the vagus nerve
• Where sleep and digestion come into play
• Autoimmune conditions

Key Takeaways:

• If you have poor vagus nerve function, you will experience poor digestion, inflammation, IBS, issues of liver detoxification, even autoimmunity.
• 12 to 24 hours after you eat a meal, you should be eventually releasing the waste of that meal. Optimally, around 16 hours is the best amount of time.
• When you don’t have a gallbladder, what’s actually going on is you’re living is going to be extra stressed in being able to push out bile and get toxins out of the body but help to absorb the fats.
• The four major functions of the vagus nerve:

1. Afferent function
2. Parasympathetic function
3. Motor functions
4. Sensory function to a portion of the ear

• One of the tools that you can use to see if the vagus nerve isn’t working well is the tone of voice. If you know somebody that has a very monotonous voice and they aren’t able to raise pitch or go up and down with their voice, then that is a sign that the signaling in the vagus nerve is actually quite poor because the muscles aren’t being used correctly.
• We can actually use auricular acupuncture to treat vagus nerve dysfunction.
• Gargling is a great tool for activating the vagus nerve. But you have to gargle the right way, up to the point that you tear up. If you’re not able to tear out of our eyes, you’re probably not activating the nuclei inside the brain stem of vagus enough.
• Heart rate variability is actually a direct sign of vagus nerve function.
• People that sleep on their right side tend to have higher heart rate variability and tend to be better nose breathers.

Action Steps:

• Monitor your bowel transit time. If it’s too fast or too slow, that’s a sign that the vagus nerve is not doing its job correctly.
• Get auricular acupuncture treatment to stimulate vagus nerve activity.
• Practice gargling every morning and evening, in the right way.
• Make sure that you breathe through your nose, not through your mouth. Try using Breathe Right strips or a mouth tape.
• Make sure that you chew your food very well and that you’re not eating under stressed circumstances.
• Go away from the stressful environment of your desk or your work station and get out and do something a little bit different. Be in a calm, relaxed environment.
• Before you eat, do some humming or chanting or some deep breathing exercises to help activate the vagus nerve.

Navaz said:

“What the vagus nerve really is, is the major connection between the gut and all of the organs inside our body directly to our brain. It is the gut-brain axis… It is essentially the controlling pathway by which our body is able to recover, rest, digest, and actually function optimally.”

“You are what you eat, digest, absorb, and don’t eliminate… If you’re not absorbing it, it’s not going to get into your body, it’s going to get into your cells, and then it’s not doing the job that it needs to do.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

SIGN UP by tonight (March 5th, 2019) to Access the Exclusive Hormone Masterclass.

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• Activate Your Vagus Nerve: Unleash Your Body’s Natural Ability to Overcome Gut Sensitivities, Inflammation, Autoimmunity, Brain Fog, Anxiety and Depression by Navaz Habib

Where you can find Dr. Navaz Habib:

Dr. Habib’s Instagram (@DrNavazHabib)

Dr. Habib's Facebook

Dr. Habib's Website

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Healthy Hormones for Women Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Are you a breast cancer survivor or want to know more about breast cancer prevention? Find out how you can be a breast cancer thriver with holistic nutritionist Lauren Neuburger. As a breast cancer survivor herself, she is living proof that certain tools and strategies can have a tremendous impact on your overall health and quality of life.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode50.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• How Lauren handled getting diagnosed with breast cancer at age 26
• Estrogen dominance and why hormonal imbalance is not to blame for when you get cancer
• The beneficial qualities of phytoestrogens
• The DUTCH test and why you should take it
• The effects of chemotherapy on your hormones and ovarian health
• The dietary changes that Lauren started to implement early on after her breast cancer diagnosis
• Commonalities among anti-cancer diets that we can all benefit from
• Lauren’s non-negotiables when it comes to health and wellbeing
• Mammograms and thermography

Key Takeaways:

• Managing your internal environment and managing your mindset can play a really pivotal role in your health and whether or not a disease can manifest in your body.
• When you get breast cancer, your hormones are not the problem. It’s not the hormonal imbalance that’s causing cancer but the misalignment in other areas of your life.
• If you have a symptom of estrogen dominance, it’s really just a sign to take a closer look at the message that this imbalance is showing you and look at the other areas in your life that could be contributing to this imbalance.
• When it comes to breast cancer, especially ones that are estrogen receptor-positive, it is important to look at the estrogen picture. Estrogen is actually a parent term and there are many different estrogen metabolites. Some of these metabolites are very protective, and some of them are more harmful.
• Any good breast cancer prevention protocol is going to address several things. It’s going to boost the immune system, it’s going to be super high in antioxidants, it’s going to be very anti-inflammatory, and it’s going to work on balancing blood sugar.
• Alcohol is absolutely something that should be addressed as part of any anti-cancer protocol. When it comes to breast cancer, there really is no safe amount of alcohol that can be consumed.

Action Steps:

• Do a breast self-exam. Know where your breasts are now and how they are when they’re healthy, and knowing what they feel like so that you can really monitor some changes.
• Pay attention to your cycle. It is a window into what’s really going on with your hormonal health.
• Test your hormones, especially after a breast cancer diagnosis.
• Make present-moment food choices that honor your highest self.
• Attend to your soul needs and do things that bring you joy.

Lauren said:

“The best anti-cancer diet for anybody is one that serves them the best.

“By taking care of yourself, you are saying yes to yourself. You are saying yes to the universe that you matter and you choose YOU. That is such a powerful message that can be sent… And when you choose YOU, you end up creating more space in your life to serve others.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• Download Lauren's Anti-Cancer Breakfast eBook here
• Join me IN PERSON for my 4-week Group Coaching Program - Clean, Lean and Green. Check out more info here.
• Join my online 6-week Healthy Hormones for Women Program. Join before March 1st and get TWO incredible bonuses ($400 Value). Sign up and learn more here.

Where you can find Lauren Neuburger:

Lauren’s Instagram (@nutritious.delicious.life)

Lauren's Website

Lauren's Facebook

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Holistic Wellness Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Just how good are herbs for supporting hormonal health? Find out as I highlight the top 10 herbs that I’m using in my practice that have given some really wonderful results!

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode49.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• The celery juice craze
• The top 10 herbs for hormonal health

Key Takeaways:

The Top 10 Herbs for Hormonal Health

• Black Cohosh
• It’s great for hormonal regulation and also for treating rheumatic pain.
• It’s wonderful for women’s reproductive health and has been used to treat almost every condition related to the menstrual cycle.
• Studies have shown that it’s really effective in supporting and reducing hot flashes and mood swings that are often associated with menopause.
• It’s been shown to improve ovulation and fertility in women who are specifically taking Clomid.
• It’s also very inflammatory and can help reduce muscle pain by lowering hormonal levels.

• Chaste Tree

• Also known as Chaste Berry or Vitex, it’s considered one of the best herbs for regulating hormones and is used a lot with infertility and PMS.
• It works best when a specific hormone called prolactin is high.
• As is typically the case with most herbs, you have to stay on it for quite long-term, at least a good three to four months, before you can see any difference.
• Take it first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.
• It works directly with your pituitary gland to help regulate estrogen and progesterone production.

• Garlic

• It’s wonderful for treating high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
• It has a ton of antibacterial properties.
• Studies have shown that it effectively treats both bacterial vaginosis and vaginal yeast infections caused by candida.

• Ginger

• It’s great for colds and cases of flu, indigestion, menstrual cramps, and even arthritis.
• It has a lot of anti-inflammatory properties.
• It’s not going to specifically treat hormonal imbalances, but if you have menstrual cramps, or if you have nausea, specifically from pregnancy, ginger is a wonderful natural alternative.
• If you’ve gone through chemotherapy or are going through chemotherapy and you have a lot of nausea, ginger will be great for that.
• It’s also great for reducing pain that’s associated with both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

• Lavender

• It’s great for anxiety and depression, and for calming the body.
• It can be great for headaches as well and can really help to promote restful sleep.
• Research has shown that lavender is effective at reducing generalized anxiety and depression both when used as aromatherapy and when taken internally.

• Turmeric

• Curcumin is the main active plant chemical that’s found in turmeric, and it can treat numerous illnesses, diseases, and symptoms.
• It’s very anti-inflammatory, which is wonderful for treating arthritis, endometriosis, or any type of chronic pain, and great for ulcerative colitis.
• It’s also really potent in antioxidants.

• Yarrow

• It is wonderful for excess bleeding of any kind, as well as fibroids and endometriosis.
• It’s great for ensuring a healthy flow of flood.

• Ashwagandha

• It’s used in many adrenal complexes because it can help to reduce cortisol levels and help regulate your endocrine system.
• It can also help increase your libido.
• It supports thyroid health by helping in the conversion of T4 to T3.

• Rehmannia

• It’s great for treating disorders that are related to the kidneys and to the adrenal glands.
• It’s known as a longevity herb.
• It’s a cooling herb that has the ability to balance what Chinese medicine calls yin in the body.

• Clary Sage

• It helps to regulate estrogen levels and reduce mood fluctuations

Action Steps:

• Understand how these herbs can really be beneficial to your health. But don’t spend your money where you don’t need to. Check if you already have these herbs at home, in your fridge or on your kitchen counter.

Samantha said:

“Sometimes if there is something that’s too good to be true, well, it probably is. And especially in the health and wellness industry, there is not just one thing that’s going to be the healer for you… It is a combination of things, and we really can’t forget the foundational things.”

“It’s so unfortunate so many women are going on the pill because they’re using the pill to treat their menstrual pain or irregularity, and it’s not doing that. The pill is not addressing the underlying root causes of why you’re experiencing the pain.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

Join us in the Healthy Hormones for Women Online Program before March 1st and grab your Bonuses!

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• Medical Medium
• Medical Medium Life-Changing Foods by Anthony William

Episodes mentioned that you shouldn’t miss:

• Podcast Episode 46: What We’re Not Told About the Birth Control Pill and Post Birth Control Syndrome
• Podcast Episode 10 – Balancing Hormones with Essential Oils with Dr. Mariza Snyder

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Holistic Wellness Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Have you heard about SIBO before? What exactly is it and what can we do to heal it? Let’s dive into all things SIBO in this episode with Dr. Jason Piken and understand more about the gut-brain connection and its impact on hormonal health.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode48

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• What SIBO is and how people get it
• The symptoms that show up with SIBO
• How to test for SIBO
• What your diet should look like if you have SIBO
• What leaky gut is and how it impairs digestion and leads to inflammation
• Understanding the gut-brain axis
• Some healing strategies for acid reflux
• How to improve gut health overall

Key Takeaways:

• There are hundreds of trillions of microbes that live in and on our body, and the vast majority of them should live in our gut, especially the large intestine.
• If there is a breakdown in the barrier system that separates the large intestine from the small intestine, microbes from the large intestine crawl up into the small intestine and live along the intestinal walls. If nothing is stopping them from migrating even further, they keep migrating up, and this is what we call SIBO, small intestine bacterial overgrowth.
• The symptom that you see the most when you have SIBO is bloating.
• The standard start of care for SIBO diet-wise is a low FODMAP diet (fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polysaccharides)
• Only 9% of your entire nervous system is capable of sensing pain, so it’s possible that you have SIBO but not feel the symptoms. But also some people with SIBO develop visceral hypersensitivity.
• The most common cause of SIBO outside of an infection in your gut is the use of antacids.

Action Steps:

• Consider getting tested for SIBO.
• If you have SIBO, work with a functional practitioner. And even if you’re not working on SIBO, when you get the right diet, it makes a world of difference.
• Prevent acid reflux by making sure your B12 levels are good; making sure your zinc status is good; and having L-glutamine, aloe, and licorice.
• Experiment with an elimination-reintroduction diet and understand how certain foods have been affecting you.

Jason said:

“The problem with testing is testing is great but testing has false-negatives… And if you’re not with a doctor that understands how to interpret a SIBO test, they can actually see a false-positive.”

“Everybody, no matter what your health status is, should play with, experiment with an elimination-reintroduction diet… If you feel wonderful eating that way for a number of weeks, fantastic, you’ve learned something.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• Better!: 11 Simple Habits to Improve Your Life by Jason Piken
• Learn more about the 7-Week Fast Track to Healing Leaky Gut Program here
• Get the FREE SIBO eBook

Recommended Products:

• *Designs for Health PurePaleo Protein
• Metagenics Candibactin-AR
• Atrantil

Where you can find Dr. Jason Piken:

Jason's Website

Jason's Instagram (@drjasonpiken)

Jason's Facebook

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Holistic Wellness Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Sponsor Link:

• *Holisticwellness Shop - Save 15% off ALL supplements on shop.holisticwellness.ca with coupon code - SAVE15

Do you have emotional blocks that are holding you back from achieving what you want in life? Outside of hormone health and nutrition, there are so many other areas to look at when it comes to our wellbeing and achieving what’s possible for us in our lives. Take a listen as Selena Moon talks about trusting our intuition and what we can do to step more into our power.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode47.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• Psychosomatic therapy and what it involves
• Developing your clairvoyant abilities
• Trust in the unknown
• Emotional blocks that powerful women face
• Breaking up with belief systems and stepping into your personal power
• Strategies on how to tune into your autobiography in a deeper way

Key Takeaways:

• Psychosomatic therapy is very different from psychotherapy or typical psychology. It is understanding how our body is our autobiography.
• No two people look exactly alike. We all have such different characteristics and we’re so unique as individuals, and it is really because our bodies are a representation of our soul and our soul’s experience.
• People are either very physical or very spiritual. But there needs to be a bridge in understanding that the spiritual has a significant effect on the physical.
• There is infinite abundance available to us at all times, and it’s our belief systems and our mindset that we really have to work on in order to access that abundance.
• There are so many rigid belief systems and structures that we need to overcome and override in order to be able to wake up to the right mindset.

Action Steps:

• Write down what you want but allow for 20% flexibility when you find something almost exactly the same.
• Consider your WHY.
• Know yourself, understand your emotions, and overcome the fear of diving into your true self.
• Establish a new belief system to override the old one. Make yourself connect to a higher belief system the moment that you catch yourself.

Selena said:

“Emotions are a place where we need to spend way more time and energy identifying within ourselves because our society so frequently tells us that we’re not supposed to have these emotions or that emotions are bad.”

“Every being on this planet is so worthy of being here. We all have such a unique purpose and we all have such a unique mission, and the ways in which we actually get to this place of achievement and success within our being... doesn’t replicate anyone else’s way.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us on. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• EAT READ LOVE INC. YouTube Channel
• Minnow Pond Tarot YouTube Channel
• Astrology Zone by Susan Miller

Where you can find Selena Moon:

Selena’s Instagram (@selenamoonmagic)

Selena’s Facebook

Selena’s Website

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Holistic Wellness Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Sponsor Link:

*Perfect Keto - Save 15% off all products with code - HOLISTICWELLNESS

Are you thinking of getting on the birth control pill or coming off of it? You’ll be surprised at the number of things we actually don’t know about it because we haven’t been informed. Fortunately for us, Dr. Jolene Brighten is here to talk about all things post-birth control syndrome and insights from her most-awaited book, Beyond the Pill.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode46.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• Why Dr. Jolene Brighten felt compelled to write her book Beyond the Pill
• Why the negative impacts of hormonal birth control is a topic that isn’t being discussed in mainstream Western medicine
• Some of the issues that the pill can cause that women just aren’t told about
• Post-birth control syndrome and its symptoms
• Some strategies that you can implement to support your body if you do want to stay on the pill
• What to do if you want to come off the pill
• The issues that arise when you dive right into conceiving after coming off the pill
• The non-hormonal birth control methods

Key Takeaways:

• Most women are not told that the pill can cause nutrient depletion, which impacts thyroid function, mitochondrial health, and adrenal health.
• Hormonal birth control has been associated with triggering autoimmune disease. It lowers microbial diversity; it causes intestinal hyperpermeability; it can lead to yeast overgrowth in your mouth, in your gut, and in your vagina; and it causes pain during intercourse and vaginal atrophy.
• Use of hormonal birth control has mood-associated side effects as well, such as depression, anxiety, and panic attacks. We now have epidemiological studies showing us that teenage girls are at high risk of suicide within those first few months of starting hormonal birth control.
• Other risks associated with hormonal birth control use include cancer, stroke, and heart attack.
• Hormonal birth control is going to wreck your microbiome. It’s also super rough on the liver, in that it causes structural and genetic alterations to it.
• For the most part, when it comes to your health, YOU live in your body, YOU know it better than anyone else, so don’t let people dismiss your symptoms.
• Babies who are conceived within six months after the mother came off of hormonal birth control have an increased risk of childhood cancer.

Action Steps:

Strategies that you can implement if you want to stay on the pill:

• If you want to stay on the pill, your diet is non-negotiable. You’ve got to eat nutrient-dense foods and foods that support your microbiome and your liver.
• Take multivitamins to help counter the nutrient depletion caused by the pill.
• Put yourself through a two-week detox every three to four months, using physician-grade supplements.

What to do if you want to come off the pill:

• Always have your back up birth control method.
• Consider how should you come off of it, when should you come off of it, and then how long will you need to continue doing these things.

Jolene said:

“If you’re doing your own research and you know what’s true for you, you’re finding this out and somebody calls you crazy, understand that you’re challenging the story they’re choosing to live. It doesn’t have to do with you… Stay humble, stay curious, learn better, do better.”

“Taking charge of your own body, healing yourself, doing better for yourself -- it’s going to affect everybody in your life. And we need to keep demanding that medicine does better for us.”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

If you have any questions, connect with me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie. And it would mean so much if you would leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you’re listening to us to. Take a screenshot of your review and email it over to us, and get our FREE 3-Day Hormone Balancing Meal Plan.

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• My Kitchen Sink Smoothie Recipe
• How to Ditch Hormonal Birth Control eGuide
• Dr. Brighten's Post-Birth Control Syndrome Detox Diet Quick Start Guide
• Beyond the Pill Book Bonuses
• Purchase Beyond the Pill on Amazon in the US here
• Purchase Beyond the Pill on Amazon in Canada here

Recommended Products:

• Yerba Mate Tea from Flora Health
• *Perfect Keto Matcha Latte MCT Oil Powder

Where you can find Dr. Jolene Brighten:

Jolene’s Instagram (@drjolenebrighten)

Jolene’s Website

Jolene’s Facebook

Jolene’s YouTube

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Holistic Wellness Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Sponsor Link:

• *Perfect Keto - Save 15% off all products with code - HOLISTICWELLNESS

Is supplementing really necessary? What are some of the essential nutrients that you might be missing in your diet? Find out how you can have a strategic supplement regimen and use supplements along with natural food sources to really support the imbalances that you might be experiencing with your diet and nutrition.

You can find all the info and links about this episode at https://holisticwellness.ca/episode45.

Topics Discussed in this Episode:

• 7 vitamins and minerals that are often overlooked but are really important for women’s health
• Calcium
• Zinc
• Iron
• Chromium
• B Vitamins
• Vitamin D
• Magnesium
• What these vitamins and minerals do for you
• How much of these vitamins and minerals you need daily
• How you can tell if you are deficient in these nutrients
• What happens when you don’t have enough of these nutrients
• The best food sources of each of these vitamins and minerals

Key Takeaways:

Calcium

• Not only is calcium important for building and maintaining our strong bones, as we know, but it’s also really important for energy metabolism and muscle contraction. Because your body doesn’t produce calcium on its own, getting it from foods or from supplementation is going to be really important.
• If your diet is lacking calcium, and especially if you’re physically active, your body will end up leeching off calcium from your bones, which, over time, can lead to osteoporosis. And as our estrogen declines, this can also start to have an impact on our bone health.
• If you are eating a very acidic diet, this will also impact your bone health because, in order for your body to buffer that acidity, it will have to leech off the calcium from your bones.
• Daily requirement: 1000 mg for women aged 50 and younger, and 1200 mg to 1500 mg for women over 50
• Best food sources (other than dairy): Kale, colored greens, bok choy, sardines, and sesame seeds.

Zinc

• Zinc deficiency can directly affect strength and fitness, especially if you are over-exercising.
• If you’re dealing with cystic acne, hormonal imbalances, issues with your cycle, PCOS, and PMS, then zinc can be really helpful.
• If you find that you’re having a lot of issues with digestion or heartburn or acid reflux, this might mean that you have low amounts of hydrochloric acid, so using zinc is going to be great to support your HCl production.
• Daily requirement: 18 mg to 30 mg

Iron

• It’s an essential mineral that’s found in your red blood cells that helps to transport oxygen throughout your body.
• If you’re feeling tired or you’re feeling exhausted, or you just can’t get the energy to maybe go work out, this can be because of iron deficiency.
• Iron deficiency anemia is pretty common in women, especially those who are very active.
• Daily requirement: 18 mg for 18 years and older, 27 mg for pregnant women, and about 10 mg for lactating women.
• Best food sources: Spinach, pasture-raised organic grass-fed beef, turkey, and beans.

Chromium

• Chromium in an insulin cofactor, and it helps to transport branch chain amino acids into the muscle.
• Without sufficient amounts of chromium, you could be at risk for uncontrolled blood sugar and insulin resistance.
• Chromium deficiency will typically leave you feeling sluggish, fatigued, weak, moody, and maybe even anxious.
• Daily requirement: About 25 μg for women between the ages 19 and 50, about 30 μg for pregnant women, and roughly around 45 μg for lactating women.
• Best food sources: broccoli, white potatoes, green beans, and turkey.

B Vitamins

• The B vitamins - B12, B6, thiamine, riboflavin - are all required for energy production. Folate and B12, specifically, are required for red blood cell production and repair.
• Research suggests that dieting and exercising can really increase your requirements for thiamine, riboflavin, and B6. And if you’re really, really stressed, you’re going to need some B5.
• Daily requirement: A B-100 complex will pretty much cover the bases.
• Best food sources: Leafy green vegetables and animal proteins.

Vitamin D

• Vitamin D has its hands in a number of physiological functions in the body. It helps to strengthen your bones by helping your body to absorb calcium, it supports your immune function, and it can reduce and control blood pressure. It always plays an important role in your insulin and blood sugar management.
• Recommended daily amount: 600 IU
• Best sources: Sunlight, fish oil, eggs, and wild caught fish.

Magnesium

• Approximately 67% of the magnesium in the body is found in the bones and the teeth. This is why it’s so important when we are supporting our bone health that we make sure that magnesium is in the mix.
• Magnesium is also important for supporting progesterone production as well as for detoxification.
• It’s great for stress and for helping to relieve any coronary artery spasm that can lead to a severe heart attack.
• Best food sources: Dark leafy greens, different seeds, and cacao.

Action Steps:

• Take supplements, but also focus on eating a really clean whole foods diet at the same time.
• Get tested and check your bone strength and bone health and make sure that there are no issues like osteoporosis. If there are issues like that, make sure that you’re not just supplementing with calcium but that you’re supplementing with a mineral bone complex.
• Zinc and copper compete for absorption in the body, so make sure that as you are supplementing with zinc, you are also getting that tiny dose of copper.
• Take an iron supplement that is chelated, like iron bisglycinate, which means it’s chelated with an amino acid that helps with its absorbability.
• If you have a heavy cycle, get your iron levels tested and check your ferritin levels. If your levels are low, then you probably need to supplement with iron.
• Take vitamin C along with your iron supplement for better absorption.
• Take a B-100 complex to cover your B vitamin needs.
• Get tested for your B12. If you’re really low in B12, then on top of the B-100 complex, supplement with a sublingual B12.
• Get your vitamin D levels tested, and test at multiple points throughout the year after you start supplementing.
• Go outside and get enough sunlight.

Samantha said:

“What we want to do is look at our diet and really be choosing a variety of whole foods in order to really use our diet as like our multivitamin.”

“You’re going to get way more support by taking these whole foods forms of fruits and vegetables or a greens powder, and I feel that those will oftentimes be more beneficial than a [multivitamin].”

Thanks for listening!

Important Announcements:

If you have any questions, come find me over on Instagram, @holisticwellnessfoodie.

You can leave us a rating or a review over on iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher, or whichever platform you listen to us to. That would mean so much!

Links to things we talk about in the show:

• Raw Chocolate Coconut Brownies Recipe
• Chocolate Matcha PMS Amaze-Balls Recipe

Recommended Products:

• Bone supplements from AOR, Designs for Health, and Metagenics
• AOR Zinc-Copper Balance
• Iron supplements from Lorna Vanderhaeghe Health Solutions, Salus, Flora, AOR, Metagenics, Designs for Health, and Platinum
• Magnesium bisglycinate
• Magnesium L-threonate
• Magnesium citrate
• PaleoGreens
• Organifi Green Juice
• Chlorella powder
• Juice Plus+

Where you can find me:

Samantha’s Facebook

Samantha’s Instagram

Samantha’s Website

Samantha’s Twitter

Holistic Wellness Private Community on Facebook

How you can work with me:

• 6 Week Healthy Hormones for Women Intensive - Use the coupon code PODCAST at checkout to save 60%.
• Healing & Dealing with Hashi’s

Sponsor Link:

Activation Products - Save 15% off ALL orders with coupon code HW15.