Hey everyone! It is Melissa and I am back after taking more than a year off my coaching business and the podcast.

This is a quick update of where I am at personally, but also what is to come in 2024.

As mentioned in the episode, grab your free guide at this link to daily practices that can help you jumpstart your fertility NOW: https://nourishmel.ck.page/jumpstartfertility

Wishing all of you a happy new year :)

Katie Dewhurst is the founder and CEO of Hello Balance, a health and wellness company helping women optimize their health through food. Katie is a certified functional medicine health coach and nutritionist, a cookbook author, and the founder of the Hello Baby Prenatal Nutrition Course which teaches women everything they need to know about optimizing their nutrition for pregnancy. She’s spent the last 6 years living abroad in Singapore and building her private coaching practice.

Research that we discussed:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0955286312000599?via%3Dihub

Anderson OS, Sant KE, Dolinoy DC. Nutrition and epigenetics: an interplay of dietary methyl donors, one-carbon metabolism and DNA methylation. J Nutr Biochem. 2012 Aug;23(8):853-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jnutbio.2012.03.003. Epub 2012 Jun 27. PMID: 22749138; PMCID: PMC3405985.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8181666/

Yen TT, Gill AM, Frigeri LG, Barsh GS, Wolff GL. Obesity, diabetes, and neoplasia in yellow A(vy)/- mice: ectopic expression of the agouti gene. FASEB J. 1994 May;8(8):479-88. doi: 10.1096/fasebj.8.8.8181666. PMID: 8181666.

https://www.nature.com/articles/ng0994-59#citeas

Duhl, D., Vrieling, H., Miller, K. et al. Neomorphic agouti mutations in obese yellow mice. Nat Genet 8, 59–65 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng0994-59

Brown mouses mom got supplemented with methyl-nutrients while white obese mouses mom was not given any methyl-nutrients.

Find Katie online:

https://www.hellobalance.co/ Look out for Katie's Free fertility guide coming at May 03!

Instagram:

@hellobabynutrition (fertility related)

@hellobalance (everything else including blood sugar management)

Shanila Sattar is a 4th generation sound healer, breathwork coach, women’s researcher, national speaker, and host of a Top 6 podcast, The Playground. She is the founder of AlwaysPlay Studios and The Integrative Healing Academy, which trains sound healers and breathwork facilitators, and THE PLAYGROUND which mentors aspiring healers in health and wellness. She practices integrative wellness - considering a person's emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual wellbeing. She loves to mix the science and the woo in her practice and hopes that she’s able to reach people who may feel that wellness is inaccessible to them. She is particularly interested in helping BIPOC healers hone their crafts and close wellness gaps in our communities. In the past years, she’s supported 1000s to do the same through programs, mentorships, and trainings, being one of the first to receive grants from the State of California to bring holistic healing such as sound and breathwork to clinical populations. She’s implemented programs in women’s shelters, veteran’s legions, and underserved school populations to continue this work.

Her background is in tech, having co-founded an award winning web agency, and in women’s research science, specifically in mindsets, implicit bias, perfectionism, women's health, and societal experiences supported through the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Health, and several universities.

Socials:

@shanila.sattar@alwaysplaystudios

YouTube

Pre order Breathe: www.alwaysplay.org/orderbreathe

Free Breathwork Community: tinyurl.com/playground222

Madelaine Golec graduated from McMaster University in 2012 completing her Master’s Degree in Physiotherapy and started her study of Pelvic Health in 2014. Is currently working on her Somatic Experiencing Practitioner certificate.

As a pelvic floor physiotherapist she is passionate about helping uncertain moms-to-be prepare for birth so they feel capable and confident in their bodies ability to birth and recover. She wants women to actualize their full power and potential in their journey to motherhood and beyond.

So many moms-to-be are worried about labour pain, how they are going to handle it, are they going to tear, what medical interventions might be used, fear of something going wrong and what will become of their bodies after birth.

Madelaine gave birth to her daughter in 2016 without any medical management or epidural. She attests her wonderful birth experience to preparation of her body, knowledge she gained about labour and birth and preparation of her mind, which she now wants to share with others, so they can have a positive birth experience. This passion comes from hearing so many clients say, “I wish I had known and why didn’t anyone tell me.”

Madelaine has developed a 5 pillar strategic approach to help women prepare for birth and postpartum recovery, through a mind-body embodied approach focusing on Connection, relaxation, activation, preparation and pain management.

Links:

www.instagram.com/madelainegolec

www.instagram.com/livingabetterlifepodcast

Free Mini-Training: How to work with labour pain to have a more positive birth experience www.ecophysio.com/minitraining

Free Masterclass: How To Prepare Down There for Birth www.ecophysio.com/masterclass

The Better birth method Online DIY Program: www.ecophysio.com/bbm

Allison is a licensed Acupuncturist and a registered member of the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of British Columbia. She is also a fellow of the American Board of Oriental Reproductive Medicine (ABORM), a member of the Obstetrical Acupuncture Association (OBAA), a Certified Laser Technician (CLT), and a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200).

She has specialized training in fertility and reproductive health. As a stage 3 Endo Warrior herself, Allison is extremely passionate in helping treat the pain and symptoms of endometriosis. Allison believes in truly understanding the holistic picture of every individual’s health in order to provide exceptional care that surpasses the boundaries of the physical, mental, and emotional levels. She believes that each patient is a unique case that requires understanding, skill, and above all else, compassion.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sea_of_qi_healing/

Website: https://www.seaofqihealing.com/

Previous episode: #98 TCM and Acupuncture Use for PCOS with Allison Locke 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/98-tcm-and-acupuncture-use-for-pcos-with-allison-locke/id1458622640?i=1000531097809

Dr. Zen is a naturopathic doctor and the founder of NMD Wellness of Scottsdale, a naturopathic medical practice focusing on helping women in their 20s and 30s take a proactive approach to their hormone and fertility health. Dr. Zen has been featured as a lead expert in Forbes, Shape Magazine, and Instyle and is deeply passionate about bridging the gap between traditional and natural medicine in the world of fertility. She works with a variety of hormone related issues including PCOS and endometriosis. Her goal is to help more women get back into the driver’s seat of their own health to make lasting transformational change to their health and bring more cute and adorable babies to the world.

Website: www.nmdwellnessofscottsdale.com

Instagram: @drzennmd

Contact us: [email protected]

Renata is an artist, self-worth coach, designer, writer, and all-around creative being. Originally born in Mexico City, Mexico and raised in Los Angeles, Renata explores themes of identity, creative expression, healing, and self-worth through her work. Inspired by her own immigration experience, she also dedicates herself to guiding other women in their healing journey and to create a life on their own terms.

I wanted to have her on the show to share what it was like to be diagnosed with PCOS, which then led her down the path of trying to find optimal health for herself. 

Website: https://www.renatamcelvany.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/renatamcelvany/

Ara Katz is the co-founder and co-CEO of Seed Health, a microbial sciences company pioneering applications of microbes for human and planetary health. A serial entrepreneur, it was Ara’s breastfeeding experience that led her to the microbiome and inspired her personal mission to explore the importance and impact of microbes. At Seed Health, she leads fundraising, design thinking, brand, insights, commercialization, and the company’s translational work in science communication and storytelling. She is also a co-founder of Seed Health’s environmental initiative, SeedLabs, and its first therapeutics partner company, LUCA Biologics. 

Ara previously co-founded and served as CMO of digital commerce company Spring, where she helped launch ApplePay on iPhone, and was on the founding team of social commerce company BeachMint. As an advisor and angel investor across health tech, ed tech, consumer, and sustainability, Ara has supported companies like RXDefine, Newness, C16 Biosciences, MindBodyGreen, Mahmee Maternal Care, Stadium Goods, and Unicycle. She has been a fellow at the MIT Media Lab’s Center for Future Storytelling and has been listed in Marie Claire’s “The New Guard: The 50 Most Influential Women in America”, Business Insider’s “Silicon Alley Top 100” and “36 Rockstar Women in NYC Tech”, and Create + Cultivate’s 100 List for STEM. She is the author of A Kids Book About Your Microbiome. Ara lives in Venice, California with her husband and five-year-old son, Pax.

Seed Health: https://seed.com/

A Kids Book About Your Microbiome: https://akidsco.com/products/a-kids-book-about-your-microbiome

As a holistic oral health educator, the founder of NoPo Kids Dentistry, and the founder of Happi Floss, Doctor Staci Whitman is on a mission to create a cavity-free world. With her extensive education in both conventional dentistry as well as functional health, Doctor Staci is a trailblazer for holistic and preventative dentistry for both kids and adults.

Look out for:

- hydroxyapatite in your toothpaste

- a functional dentist

- to have your voice heard with your dentist

Links:

NoPo Kids Dentistry: https://nopokids.com/

Dr Staci's Website: https://doctorstaci.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doctor_staci/

Newsletter sign up: https://doctorstaci.com/newsletter/

BOKA toothpaste: https://boka.9i9b.net/b3jAMb .use DOCTORSTACI for 20% off

RISEWELL toothpaste: https://risewell.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwpdqDBhCSARIsAEUJ0hPuipYfPYyq-YkL6k6VEQvTXKYbB9dfv-3SOAa92_pTfhdhR9OJotAaAksjEALw_wcB?. use DOCTORSTACI for 10%off

Resources: 

https://askthedentist.com/ 

Functional Dentist Directory: https://askthedentist.com/directory/

Holistic Dental Association: https://holisticdental.org/

IAOMT (International Academy of Oral Medicine and Technology): https://iaomt.org/

IABDM (International Academy of Biological Dentistry and Medicine): https://iabdm.org/

Bristle Microbiome Kit: https://www.bristlehealth.com/

After years of living with high-functioning anxiety, Ellen eventually reached a tipping point after two hospitalizations related to burn out. Although she appeared like she "had it all together", she struggled internally with never ending negative self-talk, difficulty saying no to others, perfectionism and imposter syndrome. Determined to find a solution to high-functioning anxiety, Ellen combined her clinical expertise, love for women's psychology and even travelled to the happiest countries on earth to learn about happiness. As a Naturopathic Doctor, Self-Talk Transformologist®, and founder of The Joy Avenue, Ellen works with women to transform their overwhelm, worry and anxiousness into calm and confidence. But what she's most passionate about is helping women create joy in every aspect of their lives, one thought at a time.

Take the High Functioning Anxiety Quiz Here!

Website: drellenwong.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejoyavenue/