Stress isn’t just in your head — it affects your hormones, metabolism, digestion, sleep, and mood. In this episode of Zen & Tonic: Wellness Unfiltered, we dive deep into why chronic stress hijacks your body, what it happens when we're in states of high cortisol, and what modern and ancient medicine approaches we can use to actually restore balance.

We’ll cover:

• How stress shifts your hormones and steals from your vitality
• The fight-or-flight response and why it’s still active in our modern lives
• Functional medicine insights: oxygen, mitochondria, nutrients, and blood sugar
• Eastern medicine wisdom: Ojas, Vata balance, and restoring your vital reserves
• Practical, everyday ways to calm your nervous system and bring balance
• Breathwork, movement, liver and digestive support, sleep, and lifestyle hacks

Whether you’re dealing with work pressure, anxiety, hormonal issues, or stress-related weight gain, this episode gives you a holistic roadmap to reclaim your energy, hormones, and well-being.

Tune in and learn how to turn stress into an opportunity to restore balance and thrive.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

In this episode, we’re talking about the feminine art of being — and why our world desperately needs more of it.

We live in a culture that praises doing, productivity, achievement, and output. But true health comes from balance — not just in how we eat or move, but in how we live. Passion, creativity, social energy, hustle, and drive all require an equal opposite force: rest, grounding, softness, inward time, presence, and stillness.

Being is not “nothing.” Being is medicine.

We explore:

• the difference between feminine energy (being, intuition, receiving) and masculine energy (doing, structure, action)

• how constant doing dysregulates our nervous system and traps emotions in our body

• why we lose our joy, creativity, and flow when we only operate from masculine

• why our feminine energy actually makes us more effective at what we do

• practical ways to bring tiny pockets of being into your day

We also look at the spiritual layer — the truth that God meets us in quiet. Flowers bloom with no audience. Sunsets paint the sky every night. Beauty exists simply to be.

This episode is an invitation to slow down, soften, breathe deeper into your body, and reconnect with the part of you that already knows how to receive, rest, and allow life to unfold.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

In this episode, we’re giving your liver the spotlight it deserves. Often overlooked, this powerhouse organ performs over 500 functions in the body — from filtering toxins and balancing hormones to supporting digestion, immunity, and even your mood. When your liver is out of balance, you feel it everywhere — in your energy, sleep, skin, emotions, and hormones.

We dive into:

✨ The key signs your liver might need extra love — like fatigue, mood swings, acne, or PMS

🌿 How Ayurveda views liver health through the lens of digestion and balance

🧘‍♀️ Simple daily rituals to reduce stress, regulate your digestive fire, and bring your liver back into harmony

🥬 Why greens, bitter foods, and mindful routines are your liver’s best friends

☀️ The importance of routines, self-care, and honoring your body’s natural rhythms

If you’ve been feeling sluggish, moody, or just off, this episode will help you reconnect with one of your body’s most vital organs — and learn how to support it naturally through food, lifestyle, and Ayurvedic wisdom.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

As the leaves fall, we’re invited to release too. In this episode, we explore how to cleanse and ground through Ayurveda’s fall wisdom—balancing body and mind with nourishing foods, self-care rituals, and emotional release practices to prepare for the calm and stillness of winter.

Fall is nature’s reminder that letting go is part of growth. In Ayurveda, this season marks the transition from Pitta (fire) to Vata (air and ether) — a time to release excess heat, slow down, and create warmth and grounding in your life.

In this episode of Zen and Tonic: Wellness Unfiltered, we'll discuss how to align with autumn through Ayurvedic principles, emotional cleansing, and gentle self-care. You’ll discover what to eat, what routines to bring in, and how to emotionally reset for a balanced transition into winter.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

In this episode of the Zen & Tonic Podcast: Wellness Unflitered, we dive into the fascinating science of neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to adapt, change, and rewire itself throughout life. You’ll learn how your daily thoughts, habits, and environment shape your neural pathways and how you can consciously reorient them to create the life you want.

I’ll share practical ways to hack your brain so you can form new habits, release old patterns, and strengthen beliefs that serve your highest self. From mindfulness and visualization, to the role of sleep, repetition, and emotional intensity, you’ll discover how to harness your brain’s natural ability to learn, grow, and heal.

Whether you’re looking to overcome anxiety, break free from unhealthy cycles, improve memory, or simply become more resilient as you age, this episode gives you holistic, science-backed tools rooted in Ayurveda, wellness, and mind-body connection.

***Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am an Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

Join us on Today's Episode of the Zen & Tonic Podcast, to learn about the real reasons behind stubborn fat, and why no matter how much you focus on eating less and exercising more it still won't go away. Stubborn fat or weight loss plateaus can be so frustrating, yet the answers often don't lie in our modern diet culture. So many people get stuck in frustration after changing nothing to their routines, and gaining weight for no seen reason; or struggling with stubborn fat that won't go away no matter what they try.

Today you'll learn about the real reasons your body holds on to fat like its life depends on it, because in reality that might just be the case. Learn about how and why our body stores toxins in our fat cells, and why that can create extra water weight that just won't budge. We'll also dive into the different hormones that can affect our metabolism and fat storage, and what we can do to help bring balance and healing to get to the root cause of the reason our body is holding on to fat so stubbornly! Lastly, we'll take a look into the energetic and emotional blockages that may cause us to hold on to extra fat, and what we can do to bring in healing and balance to this.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

Today we continue our gut health series, focusing on the second underlying cause of gut issues: imbalances in our microbiome!!

Our microbiome is the ecosystem of the trillions of bacteria that live in our gut. When the balance of bacteria is off, we can experience a plethora of gut issues like IBS, anxiety, indigestion, weight issues, immune function and so much more. Our gut is at the root of so much that happens within our bodies, which is why when there's imbalances within the gut that go unchecked, we can see it leading to bigger imbalances and dis-ease later on.

Our gut is home to 80% of our immune system, meaning that it has a major effect on our overall health, energy, and vitality. A healthy, balanced gut is crucial for our wellness, which is why today we're learning the most common causes of imbalance within our gut microbiome, how we can notice when it's imbalanced, and what we can do to bring balance to our gut, short and long term.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

In this episode of Zen and Tonic: Wellness Unfiltered, we’re zeroing in on one of the most misunderstood yet widespread root causes of chronic health issues: leaky gut (aka intestinal permeability).

We break down what leaky gut actually is, why it’s become so common, and how it contributes to symptoms like bloating, food sensitivities, fatigue, acne, autoimmunity, and brain fog. You'll learn how the gut lining functions as your body's protective barrier — and what happens when that barrier breaks down.

We also share natural tools to start healing, including gut-loving staples like ghee, bone broth, glutamine, and butyrate, plus the biggest foods and habits that could be harming your gut lining without you even realizing it.

If you’ve been feeling "off" with no clear answers, this episode will help you connect the dots and begin your gut-healing journey with clarity and confidence.

Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

If you're struggling with PMS, mood swings, irregular cycles, or other symptoms of hormonal imbalance, this episode is for you. Today on Zen and Tonic, we’re diving into seed cycling—a gentle, natural method that uses the nutritional power of specific seeds to support hormonal balance throughout the phases of your menstrual cycle.

Learn how flax, pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds work to harmonize estrogen and progesterone levels, reduce PMS symptoms, and enhance your energy, mood, and fertility. Whether you're on hormonal birth control or not, seed cycling offers a nourishing, food-based tool to reconnect with your cycle and support your body’s natural rhythm.

We’ll cover:

• How your hormones shift during the follicular and luteal phases
• Why each seed is perfectly matched to a phase of your cycle
• What phytoestrogens are and how they support hormonal regulation
• The exact amounts to eat and when to start
• Simple ways to add these seeds into your daily routine
• Holistic tips to boost results, from liver support to stress relief

This is a practical and empowering guide to syncing with your cycle and restoring hormonal harmony—naturally.

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness coach, not a licensed medical doctor.

Join us on this week's episode of the Zen & Tonic Podcast, where we dive into the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system is so important to our health, immune system, and detoxification. It also has another side that's often overlooked. Today, we explore the connection our lymphatic system has to other systems within our physical body, and it's connection to our emotional health, and sense of vitality and balance in life.

Taken from an Ayurvedic Perspective, the Eastern Medicine tradition from India, we'll explore how it connects to a tissue layer defined as 'Rasa', which connects not just to our lymphatic system, but our menstrual flow, our mucous membranes, and our white blood cells. We'll explore how we can understand whether this tissue layer is depleted, or in excess; and what we can do to bring it back into balance. We also discuss the ways it connects to our clarity, sense of love and trust, and our emotional flow; and why understanding this connection will allow us to support optimal health of these systems within us.

Lastly, we talk about tips on how to support your lymphatic system, why lymphatic drainage is so important, and what you can bring in on a daily basis for optimal lymphatic health!!

**Disclaimer: The information shared on this podcast is for educational and entertainment purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine. I am a certified Ayurvedic Wellness Coach, not a licensed medical doctor.