Ep. 1023 | Optimizing your Preconception Health & Fertility with Dr Ann Shippy

This Episode In this engaging episode, Kimberly Snyder welcomes back Dan Buettner, the renowned author and researcher known for his work on Blue Zones—regions where people live significantly longer, healthier lives. The conversation begins with a nostalgic reflection on their past interactions, leading into a discussion about the natural lifestyle that characterizes Blue Zones. Dan emphasizes the importance of gentle, low-intensity physical activity, such as gardening and cooking, as opposed to the conventional gym workouts many associate with health. He shares insights from his latest research, highlighting that longevity is not about expensive supplements but rather about simple, whole food diets rich in beans, grains, and local fruits. Dan addresses common misconceptions about protein intake, particularly for plant-based diets, reassuring listeners that a well-rounded plant-based diet can provide all necessary nutrients. He also shares practical tips for incorporating Blue Zone principles into daily life, such as cooking at home to control ingredients and costs. The episode wraps up with a focus on finding purpose and community connection, which are vital components of longevity, encouraging listeners to engage in volunteer work or community activities to enhance their sense of purpose and well-being. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Personal Reflections 03:07 The Blue Zones Lifestyle and Longevity 06:02 Plant-Based Diets and Nutritional Myths 08:58 Deliciousness and Cooking Techniques 12:07 Accessibility and Cost of Healthy Eating 15:06 Family and Community in Healthy Living 17:59 Culinary Traditions and Recipe Testing 21:04 Overcoming Cooking Barriers 22:27 Finding Purpose in Modern Society 27:06 Community Connections and Sharing 30:11 Eating Patterns and Intermittent Fasting 35:02 Protein Needs and Plant-Based Diets EPISODE SPONSORS: FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout.   Solluna Feel Good Digestive Enzymes OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Dan Buettner Resources: Website: danbuettner.com Book: Blue Zones Kitchen: One Pot Meals: 100 Recipes to Live to 100 Social: IG: @danbuettner Podcast: The Dan Buettner Podcast Bio: Dan Buettner is an explorer, National Geographic Fellow, award-winning journalist, Netflix Host & Co-producer of the 3x Emmy Award winning: Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones, 5 x New York Times bestselling author, and 3 X Guinness World Record holder for distance cycling. Dan discovered the five places in the world—dubbed blue zones—where people lived the longest, healthiest lives and shared this information with the world. His books, The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest, Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way, The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People, and The Blue Zones of Happiness were all national bestsellers. SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY'S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger Simple Ways to Use the Power of Herbalism in Your Daily Life with Rachelle Robinette The Importance of Nitric Oxide and How to Optimize our Body’s Production of it with Dr. Nathan S. Bryan Heart Healthy, Plant-Based Eating with Dr. Jenneffer Pulapaka The Science of Longevity: Plaque Heart Scans, Cancer Screening, Glutathione & More with Dr. Julianna Lindsey   Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:00.92) Dan, it's so great to have you back. Thank you so much for coming. I think this is the fourth time you've been on the show. Dan Buettner (00:08.527) I never feel like we've said enough and it's always such a great conversation. So glad to be back. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:16.814) Well, it's funny because it's early December as we record this. And a couple of days ago, Dan, I had a memory picture come up. You know how your phone feeds you these random pictures? It was from December 5th, 2019. And it was from your book launch party at Crossroads. And I was pregnant and I hadn't told anyone I was pregnant. But I remember when you signed my book, I told you. Dan Buettner (00:26.946) Yeah. Dan Buettner (00:35.475) my God, I remember that. Dan Buettner (00:45.222) I feel honored. And then I just kept it between me and my 800,000 Instagram followers. So we kept it really tight. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:55.21) Yeah, well, it's so I know you're in Miami and we were just chatting before the show about how since then, Dan, we've gotten this little piece of land and we grow cacao now on our farm. And how many times Dan we say as a family, I feel like I'm really living the Blue Zones lifestyle. the physical labor of working on the land. Here, you know, I try to go on walks every day to break up my work day before my kids come home from school. But just like I've seen in your Netflix series and in your books, I have a hand sawed down, I'm cutting scrub trees, I'm the trees to get the cacao pods. And there's something so Dan Buettner (01:28.715) I love it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:33.802) natural and it feels like whole being health to be in the land and be in nature. And I know you've seen that in a lot of these incredible Blue Zones communities. Dan Buettner (01:44.719) Not only seeing it, the evidence backs it up. I mean, we tend to think the road to longevity is pumping iron going into the gym. But in these blue zones where people manifestly live about 10 years longer, they're doing exactly what you do. They're moving naturally all day long. It's gentle, low intensity physical activity. And it's the type of movement our ancestors have done for tens of thousands of years. It's a... It's cutting things, it's cooking things, it's making things with our hands, it's walking, it's gardening. These are the activities that have optimized the human condition, physically speaking, for millennia. they're the things science will tell you will do the best job of getting you to a healthy age 90 or maybe even 100. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:38.444) Yeah. Well, going back to how it's been a few books since I, you know, since that memory picture came up and are you finding Dan, as you continue to study the blue zones, even more is being uncovered? I mean, these incredible communities weren't trying, like you said, to create all this longevity. was really part of their natural way of living. Or are you going deeper into these tried and true principles such as in your New book which focuses on one-pot meals. Dan Buettner (03:13.271) I've spent most of the last. 20 years working with cities, we get paid by insurance companies to try to incorporate community-wide nudges and defaults that help people mindlessly do the things that we know ladder up to more good years of life. meanwhile, an 84 billion dollar annual anti-aging industry has popped up and that industry has failed to produce even one pill, supplement, peptide, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:18.103) Yeah. Dan Buettner (03:45.703) stem cell, rapamycin metformin, none of them have been shown to stop reverse or even slow aging. So we're spending a lot of money experimenting on ourselves. Meanwhile, we know that eating a whole food, ideally plant-based diet is worth somewhere between 10 to 12 extra years of life expectancy. That's a meta-analysis that fouled over 10 million human beings for 30 years. So it's very hard to dispute them. By the way, that's peasant food. That's not super foods you see on the internet or, you know, some, some, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:21.644) Yeah. Dan Buettner (04:26.389) expensive supplement regimen. It's eating things like beans and grains and fruit, by the way, wild fruits that grow near you. The native Hawaiian diet, which was largely tubers and root vegetables and some fish, but a lot of fruit, but poi and taro, these are the things that fueled the Hawaiian Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:52.865) Yes. Dan Buettner (04:54.265) people for so many years. when Captain Cook arrived in Hawaii three centuries ago, he described them as fit, with beautiful teeth and great health and vitality. And they were largely disease free until our great gift of infectious disease. Most of those diseases originated in animals and then left to humans. And then we brought them to Hawaiians. I try to look for the diets that we know have helped humans thrive for for millennia. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:32.95) I feel like I get some particular, I would say scrutiny, Dan, because I'm plant-based mom, and my kids have been plant-based since conception. And I'll say my older son, who's nine now, is actually the tallest child in his class. Both my kids are exceptionally healthy. We never really have to go to the doctor except for those obligatory yearly or bi-yearly, at this point, appointments. And yet so many... moms in passing will say, well, aren't you worried about your kids getting calcium or protein? And I say, you know, they're really thriving. And, you know, some of the recipes that I love in here echo how we eat lots of bean and veggie soup, lots of black bean burgers, mean, foods that are really simple, but I've, my personal experience is my kids are exceptionally healthy being plant-based. I don't know that's something that people have asked you about as well. Dan Buettner (06:32.205) all the time and they're under the mistaken idea. Well, we've been marketed the idea that to be healthy, our kids need more protein and that is code for animal protein. But as you point out, plant-based protein is much healthier for us. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:40.344) Bye. Dan Buettner (06:53.087) And as long as you're getting your protein or amino acids from a number of sources, beans and grains and other vegetables, you're getting a whole protein. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:02.615) Yes. Dan Buettner (07:04.783) So that's number one, but number two, we're under this mistaken impression that we need more protein. And the average American, if you look at the CDC website, the average American gets about twice as much protein as they need. yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:22.27) No, it's crazy. Well, it's not just kids, Dan, as you know, it's being marketed as anti aging to have more protein. I mean, I have some of these longevity expert conversations and people are recommending a gram per body per pound of body weight like crazy numbers. And the only way people could achieve those is if they're focusing on protein bars and protein shakes, and now they're not having fiber. Now they're really not having whole foods. And it feels like, I don't know about you, but my first book was over 11 years ago now. And first there was this big discussion about protein, and then it felt like it died down, and now it feels huge again. It's like another big fad. Dan Buettner (08:07.0) Yeah. Well, we've seen it before. saw it with the Atkins diet and we saw it with the keto diet. You know, these diets get popular if they give permission for people to eat the crappy food they like to eat, which is bacon and sausage and hot dogs and hamburgers and, I can eat these and they're good for me. Well, people, people love to get permission to do naughty things. You know, what I've tried to do in the Blue Zone kitchen, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:20.63) Right. Dan Buettner (08:37.809) cookbooks. We were maniacally focused on deliciousness and I find that if you can if you can lead with deliciousness. Some people care about the environment and the fact that eating animal-based products is somewhere between 20 to 30 percent of our carbon footprint. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:42.838) Yes. Dan Buettner (08:58.293) Some people care about animals, but it's single digit percentages. I know you have a real soft spot for the pain and suffering of other sentient creatures. Some people kind of care about their health, but they don't care about it that much when they're hungry at lunchtime. What people really care about is deliciousness, which is why in this one pot, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:15.721) Right. Dan Buettner (09:20.591) cookbook that you have there, we reverse engineer deliciousness by working with Stanford to examine 650 recipes and find the patterns. What are the flavor combinations that make Americans go berserk and love? And it turns out it doesn't necessarily have to start with a piece of dead animal. It can just as easily start with a warm savory bowl of soup or a stew. what I learned, I'd say the biggest longevity secret I learned 20 years and studying people in the blue zones is how to make beans taste delicious. We're horrible at it in America. know, the Boston baked beans or refried beans are gross. But let me cook you a minestrone soup with cannellini beans and Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:51.18) Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:07.138) Wait. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:16.355) Mmm. Dan Buettner (10:17.391) lentils and garbanzo and slow cook them with herbs and spices and the right combination of other vegetables and finish it with a beautiful extra virgin olive oil and top it with some nice fatty avocado. You'll be loving me up all day long. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:36.254) You know, I found that really interesting, Dan, you talk about these spiky flavor combinations. Can you explain a little bit what you mean by that? Dan Buettner (10:43.543) Yes, yes. This dates back to an experiment done with Oreos. And it turns out that our developer for Blue Zone's Kitchen, you know, we have a line of frozen food called Blue Zone Kitchen. And so she was in charge of whatever multinational does Oreo cookies and they tried to market Oreo cookies in Asia and Asians didn't like them. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:13.452) Mmm. Dan Buettner (11:13.805) because Asians tend to like really soft. But in America, this combination of a slightly bitter, crunchy outside and this soft, gooey, comforting inside, it creates this tension or this spikiness which Americans like. So that's why in some of these stews we'll put a... crunchy topping on something that's warm and savory on the inside. Americans tend to like this, these extreme of mouthfeels, not necessarily flavors, but mouthfeels. so we try to incorporate, not all of our recipes have that, but I gave seven different flavor profiles, and then we went out into the world and found the most maniacally delicious recipes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:42.966) Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:07.746) They are delicious. I have to say, Dan, one of my favorite is the easy peasy falafel. My kids love falafel, but it's really hard to find baked. It's usually deep fried in crappy seed oil and making it is really easy. And it has that dichotomy, like you said, and it's also sort of mentioned that it's so much cheaper to eat at home and get much quality ingredients. We all know that food costs have gone up so much for all of us. And so what I love about this is it solves that solution of, like you said, tasty, but it's also a lot more inexpensive. You can get bean in bulk, you can get chickpeas in bulk, and then you're making your dollar really stretch. Dan Buettner (12:51.903) If every time you go out to eat in America, you consume about 300 more calories than you would if you ate at home, and those calories tend to be laden with ultra processed foods and more sodium and sugar. When you cook at home, you get to control the ingredients. And it's not only important to you, but it's important to your family who are just following what you provide. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:01.23) Mm. Dan Buettner (13:19.343) Most of the ingredients in the Blue Zone Kitchen cookbooks, or most of the recipes rather, cost under $3 a serving. And people think I don't have time. Well, we've overcome that time argument two ways. The first way, the easy way is everything can be cooked in one pot or one pan or one cookie sheet, or I love the Instapot. But the other thing is, so at Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:41.207) Yes. Dan Buettner (13:47.983) Even at my age, if I optimize my diet away from a standard American diet towards a Blue Zone type diet or the diet you eat, It's worth about six extra years of life expectancy. If I average that those six years back through the rest of my life, that's three extra hours a day that I can do whatever I want on average. Or I gain an extra three hours a day. And to take 20 minutes of those three hours and assemble in one of these Blue Zone Kitchen one-pot meals, push the button. in the morning and come back and have this savory, delicious, healthy, and cruelty free low carbon footprint, maniacally delicious meal. I'll take that deal all day long. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:36.472) Well, it's also simple and not counting all these numbers all the time. And it's, amazing, Dan, how complicated people try to make lifestyle and all these tests and things you're supposed to follow. I love it so much. The Blue Zones is, it just, there's this experiential joy, I would say. I'm in the kitchen making things and I don't have to count how many carbs. There's all this fiber. My kids are healthy, we're healthy, we have a lot of energy. And there's other parts of the lifestyle, like you said, having purpose and living in close connection with nature and gardening. And it just feels uncomplex and more joy comes through. It's hard to put into words. Dan Buettner (15:27.307) If you eat a whole food plant-based diet, you don't have to think. the piece, you know, if you're overweight and unhealthy in America, which is about 80 % of Americans, I don't blame them. Why? Because we are constantly pummeled with marketing messages telling us, first of all, selling us these processed foods. And then when we get sick, selling us these diets and these programs that you have to make it sound proprietary and difficult in order to sell it. It's very hard to sell somebody on the idea that beans and rice. There's a big study that was done in 1950 that prisoners in Puerto Rico were fed beans and rice for three years. They didn't lose any muscle mass. They didn't develop any cardiovascular risk. All these things that these protein enthusiasts will tell you never happened. All they ate was beans and rice, and there was a little oil put in there. And very rarely they had some other plants. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:06.99) You Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:17.582) Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:28.801) No. Dan Buettner (16:35.087) But they're cheap. You can get a pound of beans for a buck or $2 and a pound of rice for two bucks. you can make, add some spices to that. It's about 50 cents a meal. Nobody makes money off of that except your family saves. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:48.206) Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:52.398) I think it was your last book too, Dan, or maybe two books ago where your dad tested all the recipes. And I saw some parts of your interview recently with your parents, which is so beautiful. Thank you for sharing that with us. And it seems like they're such loving, centered people. Can you, and now they're, I think your dad's, they're both in their eighties. when you travel around the world to get the very best recipes as I've done, you can get kind of romance by these really exotic flavors, especially in Southeast Asia. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:59.542) yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:03.512) Wow. Dan Buettner (18:24.802) these umami's and these miso and fermented tofu and that sort of thing. For me, seaweed tastes delicious. The reason I brought Roger Butener, who grew up on a farm in Minnesota, if he... Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:39.33) What kind of farm? Dan Buettner (18:41.185) Well, it was, was, they, no, they grew, there was almost a subsistence farm. They had a cow and a pig and some chickens and then the 10 acres of vegetables. But they, they mostly ate vegetables because meat that, you know, they needed the, the, the, the, the animal, for, for income. But, you know, they were so, they're very poor. My dad for Christmas got an orange, for example, he worked all Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:46.38) Okay. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:53.264) okay. Dan Buettner (19:11.149) summer and got a box of cracker jacks so that kind of gives you the idea but he was you grew up middle America I had him taste every recipe and if he gave it the thumbs down I could be pretty sure that most of America Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:21.015) Yeah. Dan Buettner (19:25.143) would say, this is too fancy for me. So I want these recipes to be right down the strike zone for Americans that, you know, if you live, that they'll be delicious for anybody and not too overpower. There's a few more kind of ambitious recipes in the book, but a lot of them are just, you know, Roger Buten approved. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:49.208) Well, you mentioned taste and we mentioned cost. And the other thing I want to mention, is when my kids love the Blue Zones burgers, is that they're also really, most of them are really easy to make and they don't take a lot of time because we all live such full lives. And I know for me as a working mom, I don't want to end my work day, pick my kids up, take them to chess class and swimming and then spend three hours in the kitchen. So I appreciate that you also made them accessible in terms of time. What you hear all the time is I don't have time. I can't afford to eat healthy. I can't afford to go to Whole Foods. You don't have to go to Whole Foods to eat healthy. I wouldn't mind if you do. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:04.098) Central. Yeah. Dan Buettner (21:29.101) I don't have the equipment, I don't have the know-how, and what I make isn't gonna taste delicious. So this book, the whole book is designed to overcome all five of those objections and make it easy, cheap, fast, and maniacally delicious. And it was an instant New York Times bestseller, I'm proud to say. And I appreciate you talking to me about it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:34.669) Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:51.03) I saw. Congratulations. Dan Buettner (21:58.575) Because I know people listen to you are enlightened. People listen to Kimberly Schneider. They're soulful. They are way above average intelligence. They care about the planet. They care about other creatures. They care about their families. And they want to live with vitality and purpose. so I really appreciate having a chance to talk to all you listeners out there. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:27.884) Yes. Well, know, Dan, your philosophy of losing... Well... Dan Buettner (22:33.743) That was my mom calling me. Dali, she's 87. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:36.574) my gosh. the whole thing. my gosh. Well, I loved seeing, again, the clips. I loved seeing her face. And I think the reason people were so interested, and I was interested, Dan, is because you live with such purpose. And it's an unwavering focus on helping others and sharing this. And there's a curiosity, you know, where did this start? What was your family like? And even on page one in the intro, you talk about a cultural sense of purpose. And that's another aspect of the Blue Zones where elders feel loved and they feel included. So what do you think we can do as a modern society besides eating and sharing food to feel a little bit more of that purpose, Dan? Because obviously a lot of people are lonely. People are on social media, but not interacting as much with other humans. What are some things that you've seen? in your research that could be applied in simple ways in today's life. Dan Buettner (23:39.395) These are counterintuitive and they take some effort, but they make a difference. And I would start a simple self-exercise either with a piece of paper and a pen or a blank screen, four columns, first column, and you just very short phrases what your values are. I'm a feminist, I'm a liberal. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:02.318) Mmm. Dan Buettner (24:06.671) a conservative, I'm a Christian, whatever it is. I love animals, but what your values are. Second column, what I love to do, my passions. I love to be active. I love to travel. love to be with a certain type of person. Third column, what you're good at. I'm good at fixing things. I'm a good caretaker. I'm a good with the first idea. I'm good at dispute resolution. I care. I'm a good listener, whatever they are. So once you write those three columns, then you look, okay, how can I put this to work in my life? How can I put this into action? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:50.275) Mmm. Dan Buettner (24:53.675) And for most Americans, it's not their job. Only about 30 % of Americans find purpose at work. So then you ask yourself, well, where can I put this to work? And one of the most counterintuitively powerful ways to do that is once you know your values, your strengths, your passions, volunteer. And for you or me, it might be the Humane Society walking dogs. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:13.613) Mmm. Dan Buettner (25:21.293) Because purpose that's not put to work is almost meaningless. know, in Kauai you have that kuleana. And the reason I love that word, it's the hybrid of both purpose and altruism. It's what's my responsibility. And it's almost always to the community. And people put their kuleana to work. They take care of the land. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:26.082) Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:39.246) Mmm. Dan Buettner (25:52.449) a child who needs to be looked after. so it says, well, I'm sorry, volunteering is just not for me. Another easy way to find purpose. Over 95 % of Americans were born into a religion, a faith-based community. You may have drifted away from it right now. And I don't care if it's Jewish or Muslim or Christian or Buddhist, but... Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:09.687) I know. Dan Buettner (26:21.561) force yourself to show up a month of Sundays and show up to a faith that might resonate with you. And that's a very easy way to find purpose. But the data is crystal clear that people who feel and can articulate their sense of purpose live about eight years longer. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:29.998) Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:41.9) Yeah. Dan Buettner (26:42.177) And once again, I can't make any money off of you by telling you that. And a marketer can't make any money off of you, but that's why you haven't heard of it. But if you look at at the, at the literature, the, the, the, the evidence for purpose is rock solid and pervasive. And, it also makes life richer. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (27:02.83) Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (27:06.626) It really does. And then you're even more motivated to eat well, I think, and live this life because you feel important just for being you, right? You're not just going to sit on the couch, I think, eat junk food when you don't care or when you're just trying to get through. You know what's cool, Dan, in Hawaii, something we do with our neighbors is we do trades. just organically. So we have over a million bees. So we give honey to our neighbors. One of our neighbors grows a lot of papayas. So he's like, here's papaya's back. And then we give honey to another neighbor who grows eggplants and sweet potatoes. And so there's this really beautiful connection that I think is also, I don't know, call it purpose or just connection with the community around when you can share. you know, it's not barter. We're just giving it out freely. But Dan Buettner (27:37.849) I love Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (27:57.11) Since we started doing that, feel even more fulfilled being on the land. Dan Buettner (28:03.979) I was there recently and somebody told me if you're not eating fruit in Hawaii, it's not because you don't have money, it's because you don't have friends. Because apparently everybody's got a fruit tree and they can't keep up with the mangoes and the papayas and the guavas and yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:17.361) yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:22.926) with guavas. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:06.03) Keeping with some of the research around intermittent fasting and also what we've been doing in our saloon community with just having a glowing green smoothie or waiting instead of having a lot of fat and protein. It's very different than eating breakfast like a king, which some people have said in the past. Can you talk a little bit about what you found in the Blue Zones about this? Dan Buettner (31:27.363) Well, I still think you should eat breakfast like a king just later in the day. The thing to remember in Blue Zones, for the most part, they're done eating by four or five. Yeah, or they don't even have dinner in some cases. But the Adventist template is a giant breakfast at 10 and a smaller but still substantive meal at four, kind of a liner. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:30.338) Mmm. Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:38.818) That was me. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:55.296) Yeah, that's Hawaii. Dan Buettner (31:55.983) But the point is... Yeah, that's pretty so that so the point is you have about 14 hours Where you have a de facto fast? So the problem with you know me living in Miami everybody goes to dinner at seven or eight o'clock So you're not done until eight or nine So in order to get that that time for your digestive system to rest. I'm not eating breakfast until 11 o'clock or something like that's usually a sardinian minestrone for me, but you know if you can manage Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (32:11.787) Yeah. Dan Buettner (32:27.697) to eat. I think the ideal for most of us is 12 to 14 hours and that follows a Blue Zone pattern and you know can shift it back or up depending on you know how you live because we want to make it easy for you otherwise you won't do it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (32:46.998) Yeah. So it's interesting you talk about the minestrone soup for breakfast. I know a lot of the Blue Zones do eat savory foods in the morning. How do you eat, Dan? Do you rotate a couple of recipes that are your favorites and change up the veggies and the beans? Or are you someone that loves to keep trying new recipes at home? because I can be Dan Buettner (33:11.499) I'm kind of a one-pot guy, which is why. So, you know, there's a recipe in there. I think it's called Dan's Mastroni or Melisse Mastroni, but I make that, but. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (33:14.614) Yah. Dan Buettner (33:25.195) whatever vegetable has been sitting in my refrigerator and is starting to get to the sort of end of its life, I put that in there. And so the core ingredients are the same, but I start with them, start eating minestrone almost every single day. And it's a huge bowl. It doesn't have many calories, but it has about half the fiber I need for the day. And then mid afternoon, if I can avoid it, I won't eat anything. But often I'll eat a snack. And snack is I take, I'm a believer that some fermented food is good. So I have this coconut yogurt, and I put a bunch of berries in there and some omega-3 ground up chia seeds. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (34:19.692) Yeah. Dan Buettner (34:20.015) And then, live in Miami. I'm very social. I go out to dinner every night. I go out to dinner six nights a week. And it's always that tonight I'm going out, dinner reservation's at eight, 730. So it's just, at a certain point you gotta enjoy life too. And where I live in Miami, you're not gonna sit home and watch TV. It's too much fun. I go to the faena. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (34:31.064) Really? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (34:35.918) wow. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (34:44.707) Wait. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (34:48.398) Yeah. that's so, it's fun. And you also get some, so much light and sunlight and you're outside and living the life. I can see the beautiful weather behind you. Dan Buettner (34:59.746) Yeah. It's gorgeous day today, actually. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (35:05.953) Well, guess, you again, just wrapping this up, because we get so many questions about the protein, Dan, is if people were to measure, people always say to me, well, you know, am I getting enough protein when I'm eating this way? And, you know, so many times I say, well, you don't have to hyper fixate on the numbers. But naturally, when you're eating beans, and you're eating whole grains, and you're eating fruit, and you're eating amino acid rich vegetables like kale, you're getting enough. protein, can assure people who are. Dan Buettner (35:36.175) if you're eating a bean and a grain, so a bean and a corn tortilla or a bean and rice or tofu is everything, you're getting enough. Now, the only caveat is when you get 65, 70, when you get older, your ability to absorb it diminishes some in that I would, I would. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (35:45.09) Yes. Dan Buettner (36:02.351) talk to my doctor about what the right amount of protein is for you. It's a little harder when you get older, but if you're under 70 and you're talking, listen to me right now, 100 % whole food plant-based diet, forget about it, you're getting enough protein. Whole food plant-based diet with beans and grains, you're good. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (36:17.569) Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (36:21.612) Yes, and also you need more protein when you're pregnant, but that's also with certain recipes. Dan Buettner (36:26.541) Yes, and I'm past the age I can get pregnant. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (36:32.748) Well, Dan, thank you so much for chatting with us. Dan Buettner (36:34.895) I love you. You're so wonderful. Thank you very much. If people, I always really love to thank people for taking the time because there's lots of competition for people's time. And if they sat around and listened to us for... for 50 minutes, that's a gift. So thank you. If anybody has questions for me, I'm at Dan Butener on Instagram and I answer all my direct messages. And you do me a huge favor if you listen to the Dan Butener podcast or give one of our frozen Blue Zone kitchen meals a try, which are in just about every grocery store chain, know, major grocery store chain in the frozen food section. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (36:50.263) Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (37:06.626) enough. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (37:13.632) yeah. It's congratulations on that. I love the line. I've seen it everywhere. It sprouts at Whole Foods and also obviously makes it accessible for people. We're also going to link in the show notes, everyone, mysalooner.com to One Pot Meals, the Blue Zones kitchen book, which is out just a few months of all your recipe books, Dan, because I love One Pot Meals so much. think this is the one that I love the most. Dan Buettner (37:22.841) Target. Dan Buettner (37:40.751) you're such a sweetheart. Thank you. Thank you, Cameron. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (37:44.3) Well, thank you everyone so much. Yeah, thank you for coming. I mean, I could just ask, talk to you endlessly. I always learn more about the Blue Zones and I read all your books. So it's really amazing how it just keeps going deeper and deeper. Dan Buettner (38:00.163) Well, it's endlessly fascinating. Sometimes you go out in the world to discover, but sometimes you go in and the discovery is even richer. So that's what I'm doing now. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (38:07.914) Yeah. Yeah. Well, thank you everyone for tuning in. again, the show notes, mysalooner.com will link to Dan's work, his Instagram, his new book, and I will put information about his Blue Zone's frozen meals otherwise and share this episode, please, with anyone that you think would benefit, which is my opinion, pretty much everyone. all trying to live healthier, longer, happier lives. We'll be back here in just a few days. Till then, take great care and sending you all so much love. Dan Buettner (38:43.789) Aloha. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (38:44.936) Ha!

Summary: Episode Summary In this episode, Dr. B discusses his new book, 'Plant Powered Plus,' which delves into the multifactorial nature of inflammation and the importance of a holistic approach to health. He emphasizes the interconnectedness of gut health, lifestyle choices, and emotional well-being, while also addressing the confusion surrounding dietary guidelines and the role of plant-based nutrition. The discussion highlights the significance of personal journeys in healing, the impact of circadian rhythms on health, and the importance of addressing root causes of health issues rather than solely relying on medications. Dr. B. shares insights on the role of coffee and alcohol in gut health, encouraging listeners to embrace a balanced and informed approach to their wellness journey. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz Resources Website: theguthealthmd.com Book: Plant Powered Plus: Activate the Power of Your Gut to Tame Inflammation and Reclaim Your Health Social: IG: @theguthealthmd, TikTok: theguthealthmd_ YouTube: @theguthealthmd Bio: Will Bulsiewicz, MD MSCI (known as Dr. B), is an award winning gastroenterologist, gut health expert and New York Times bestselling author. He received his medical degree from Georgetown University and a Master’s in Clinical Investigation from Northwestern University. He earned the highest clinical honors in both his residency at Northwestern and his gastroenterology fellowship at UNC—recognition reserved for the top physician in each graduating class. He also completed an NIH-funded fellowship in epidemiology at UNC. He has authored more than twenty five scientific papers, his work has been cited more than 5000 times by other scientists, and he has delivered numerous keynotes as well as briefings to Congress, the USDA, and the NFL Alumni. His books Fiber Fueled and The Fiber Fueled Cookbook have over 500,000 copies in print and are translated into 20 languages. His highly anticipated third book, Plant Powered Plus, is scheduled for publication on January 13, 2026. He lives in Charleston, South Carolina with his wife and four kids and offers free resources at theguthealthmd.com. EPISODE SPONSORS: Solluna SBO Probiotics OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. Chapters 00:00 — Introduction & Book Overview02:10 — Understanding the Multifactorial Nature of Inflammation06:19 — A Personal Journey of Healing10:04 — The Power of Holistic Health & Connection12:31 — Cutting Through Dietary Confusion18:06 — Why Gut Health Matters20:29 — Four Essential Elements for Optimal Health25:45 — The Gut–Immune Connection30:18 — Inflammation & Fertility32:41 — Getting to the Root Cause of Health Issues36:02 — Medications vs. Lifestyle Shifts39:19 — Circadian Rhythms & Gut Health53:52 — Coffee, Alcohol & Their Impact on the Gut OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger Simple Ways to Use the Power of Herbalism in Your Daily Life with Rachelle Robinette The Importance of Nitric Oxide and How to Optimize our Body’s Production of it with Dr. Nathan S. Bryan Heart Healthy, Plant-Based Eating with Dr. Jenneffer Pulapaka The Science of Longevity: Plaque Heart Scans, Cancer Screening, Glutathione & More with Dr. Julianna Lindsey Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Kimberly (00:00.686)Hello and welcome back to our Monday interview show. I’m really excited to share my conversation with Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, also known as Dr. B, who is a plant-based gastroenterologist. He’s the New York Times bestselling author of Fiber Fueled. He happens to be a dear friend of mine who has come to my house several times and we have a very brother-sister-like relationship. And he has a new book out called Plant Powered Plus. Activate the power of your gut to tame inflammation and reclaim your health. So in this new book, he’s focusing on inflammation. He and I share a great passion for the real power of plants and a plant-forward diet. Whether you’re fully plant-based like Dr. B and I, or you are adding more plants to your diet in general, there’s so much power in eating this way. as we’ll talk about in today’s show. I also want to call out if you are interested in this topic of inflammation gut health, if you aren’t aware, my brand, Solluna has an amazing line of digestion-focused supplements, which are aligned with nature and backed by science. Our SBO probiotics, for example, have proper ratios and strains. They’re hardy enough to get through your stomach acid to implant in your gut. And I can’t tell you what a difference these supplements have made in my life personally, detoxing the digestive enzymes as well to make sure you’re getting the maximum amount of nutrition from your food and reducing bloating, getting rid of aging waste. So please head over to mysalunawith2lz.com to check out our amazing line of digestion focused supplements. All right, all that being said, let’s get right into our show today with Dr. B. Kimberly (00:01.64)Dr. B, Will, my dear friend, repeat podcast guest, welcome back and congratulations on your new book. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (00:11.33)Thank you, Kim. It’s always a pleasure to be with you and your audience. So thanks for having me. Kimberly (00:16.628)And this is your third book, if I’m correct? it? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (00:21.294)This is my third book, baby. It’s hard to keep track of because we have four children at home and then I have three book babies. So yeah, this is my third book, baby. First was Fiber Fueled in 2020, the Fiber Fueled Cookbook in 22, and then here we are Plant Powered Plus in 2026. Kimberly (00:36.48)I feel like it’s been this journey, know, collectively in your career and also between you and I, I feel like we met around when your first book came out. And I think that’s when you first came on the show and we connected on so many different levels, sharing, of course, our passion for plant-based eating, for fiber. So we’ve been on our own little journey now six years. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:03.276)We have, and it’s a beautiful journey. And I love that. You’re like a sister to me. You have lot of that. I don’t have any actual sisters in my life. So you sort of helped to fill that void. But also I feel like as I look at your career, it’s actually played out. You’re a little bit more advanced than I am on some levels. But the way it’s played out for you feels a little bit similar to me, which is that you started off really nutrition oriented. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:33.42)And then the conversation expanded and grew into other places. And that’s kind of where I’m at now is of course, I’m going to talk to you about nutrition. And do I think it’s important? Of course, I think it’s important. It’s really important, but it’s not the only thing. Kimberly (01:35.753)Yes. Kimberly (01:48.168)Yes. I felt that in this new book, which we’ll get into right now, The Plant Powered Plus, and you’re really talking about this huge topic, which is so pervasive and multifactorial inflammation. And I love how you get into in this book, lifestyle so much, which we’ll talk about circadian rhythms, meal time, stress, lifestyle, connecting to purpose. Because like you said, it’s not just this narrow granular approach that’s going to heal us, but this whole body, whole being, whole heart, whole soul approach, which is so important for it to be sustainable and work. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (02:29.122)You know, one of the things, a hundred percent. And one of the things that I love about when you and I get to connect is that we come from our own sort of angle into the conversation, but we end up meeting in the same place and we might have our own ways of, of like understanding how we got there, but we’re using the same language, the same words to talk about the same paths to healing. Kimberly (02:58.089)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (02:58.862)And, you know, I think some people have been surprised Rich Roll was taken aback by some of the things in my new book, because he’s like, I really didn’t expect, like as a scientific guy, I really didn’t expect you to go into some of these places. But you know what the truth is, Kim? Everything that has been taught to us by traditional medicine, everything that you’ve been talking about for years, ahead of the curve. Kimberly (03:24.512)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (03:27.732)science has validated. And the pathways, the physiology, which I, of course, I’d love to see and I love to talk about and we can talk about today. The pathways are now proven. So things that people used to dismiss years ago as being, that’s like kind of woo woo, right? Here we are today. This is real. These are real conversations about healing. And I can show you the exact physiology. Kimberly (03:30.335)Yes. Kimberly (03:48.534)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (03:57.816)that involves the brain and the gut and the hormones in between that explains how these different things affect our life. Kimberly (04:07.112)I love how you chose to write this book in terms of a lot of health books feel very disruptive. You can’t get through a sentence without all the different footnote, you know, numbers and just parentheses. And instead you write a chapter and then with confidence you say at the end, there’s 428 citations to support this material. It’s all on the website. And I found that so refreshing. I could actually read the book and glean the subject matter. I think that’s what makes a lot of health books hard to read is there’s just so many references. For the average person, it becomes confusing and it dilutes the message. So there’s a real power in how you did that. I also love how you start the book with a dedication to your mother. It already started from a very heart-based place and it felt very personal. the way you wrote this one. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (05:06.028)Yeah, well, one of the things that happens in this book is I start to open up about some of the challenges that I’ve had in my life, some of the mistakes that I’ve made, but also some of the challenges that we faced as a family when I was a kid. And that involves both of my parents and my dad is deceased. And I, I dedicated fiber fueled to my dad, but, we, Kimberly (05:13.992)Mm-hmm. Kimberly (05:26.891)Yeah. Kimberly (05:31.891)Hmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (05:35.768)had a complex relationship, my father and I. And when I wrote Fiber Fueled, it was very easy for me, Kim, to write in a way where it makes it sound like, hey, in 2012, I was this 32-year-old guy who was struggling with my health, and all I had to do was start drinking some smoothies. And all of a sudden everything fell into place and everything was beautiful, right? It’s so easy to do that. There’s the part of me that there’s some shame there. There’s processing that is still occurring to this day. There’s complex familial dynamics that like in 2020, I wasn’t, I wasn’t going to write about that. It’s not, I wasn’t ready to share that. And, and Kimberly (06:06.73)Yeah. Kimberly (06:16.853)Mm. Kimberly (06:26.847)Yeah. Kimberly (06:32.703)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (06:33.59)You get a little further along and here we are, you know, six years later and I think that there’s opportunities for healing for people in this place through our relationships and also through our connection to other things, to a purpose, to a higher power. I really believe that this is what the world needs right now. And as a medical doctor, if I believe that, if that, if If deep inside of myself, my heart tells me that’s what people truly need to heal. I’m a coward if I don’t come forward and say it. And so, but as a person who is deeply committed to what I set off to do as a teenager, which was to be a medical doctor and help people. That commitment basically says, Hey dude, like this is uncomfortable. You have to step forward and be willing to talk about this. Kimberly (07:08.469)Mm-hmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (07:32.578)So here we are. Kimberly (07:34.494)It’s so beautiful how it’s like the opening of the heart through the different layers. We are so concerned with how we’re perceived by others and our identity. I’m the smart, I’m the medical doctor. I have all the studies behind me, which is really important as a pathway for many people to come in. But then, like you said, there’s more to it. And I love how you’re really talking about that, the complexities, the things that can’t be ignored. know, people kind of put stress in a bucket and then we try to put band-aids on it. But why are we feeling stressed in the first place? Why are we so disconnected? We’re disconnected from our foods and we’re disconnected from our own hearts. We’re disconnected from people around us. We’re disconnected from our communities. And we’re going to be more disconnected. We’re going have disconnection in our gut microbiomes. Like it’s so many different layers that interconnect. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (08:28.002)Well, if you think about it, like this word holistic. Number one, the body does not care that we want to fragment it and talk about it as different things and different compartments of the body. Right? Gut health versus metabolic health versus immune health. Like the body doesn’t care. It’s all part of one body. It’s all interconnected. And there are things that are occurring inside of us. right now as you and I speak to one another, as we speak to one another on a microscopic level that are influencing an entire cascade of physiology, right? But also, we are not separate from our environment. I grew up believing that I was, I grew up believing that, look, like, look in the mirror, this is what you see, this is the person and everything else out there, that’s just the surroundings and I can go out and I Kimberly (09:10.676)Mm-hmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (09:32.586)I can manipulate that I can change that. And now what I realize is actually no, what’s happening is the other way around. The environment is changing me. And the gut microbiome is the story. The gut microbiome is actually the story of my life. And from that, it’s influencing my physiology throughout my entire body. So Kimberly (09:39.785)Yes. Mm-hmm. Kimberly (09:46.997)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (09:59.178)So we are we are part of this, you know, this concept of like oneness, this concept of like, something bigger. We can’t we can’t pull ourselves out of that. We are the product. We are the product of the people that we surround ourselves with. We are the product of our home and our environment that we live in. We are we are the product of our relationships. We are the product of all of these different factors. Kimberly (10:06.165)Yes. Kimberly (10:19.798)And like you said, in keeping with ancient medicinal practices, you talk so much about plant power and the diversity and taking all these different superpowers, the polyphenols and the antioxidants and the different vitamins and supercharging our bodies. When I read your book and when I, know, as from the start and we started connecting, it’s, seems obvious, but also just common sense. And then our mutual friend Dan Buenior has studied these blue zones. And we say, yes, we need plants, we need fiber. But what do you think? Well, now there’s just so much, I feel confusion still and misdirection, you we’re on the heels as you and I chat, the government dietary protocols have just been redone to sort of reflect this collective over emphasis on protein. A lot of people are getting, picking up little tidbits of information on social media and around. And now so much emphasis on beef jerky, beef tallow, know, protein bars, protein shakes all day long. And it’s moving us away. Like we’re talking about this environmental connection, gut health, soil diversity. I mean, I don’t know, the question it’s more just a, you know, a statement or reflection back because sometimes I just think, wow, there’s a, there’s a, there’s a lot of confusion to muddle through for many. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (11:57.964)Yeah, well, and unfortunately, I don’t know that the world is going to make that any easier for us anytime soon, right? Because the truth and the reality, so let me, I would love to frame it this way. And then we can talk about the dietary guidelines and some of my thoughts around that. So getting back to what we were discussing a moment ago of this idea of like, you are one person, you are one body. Kimberly (12:04.426)Yeah. Kimberly (12:13.129)Yes, please. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (12:25.506)There is a way in which your body is functioning and interacting with the surrounding world. And those are facts. Those are the laws of nature. And the laws of nature do not care what you want to believe. Right? And when we conduct science, Kimberly (12:39.606)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (12:52.364)And this word science, it makes me sad that this has become a charged word. It really shouldn’t, it really should not be. Because ultimately this is the tool that we need in order to understand and interpret these laws of nature. And so if the laws of nature are the truth, literally the truth, indisputably, and they’re, and they’re working right now, whether we want to acknowledge them or not, it’s happening as we sit here. Kimberly (12:57.055)Right. Kimberly (13:15.327)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (13:22.496)Science is our approach getting closer to the truth. And that’s not to say that it’s, you know, flawless, clearly mistakes get made. But this is the technique that we’re using to try to ultimately get there. And the more that we can lean into that, the closer that we will get to the truth, and the closer that we get to the truth, the better that we will become at being able to observe the laws of nature and use them to our advantage. So I would, I would actually make an argument that you 5,000 years of Ayurveda, right, or traditional Chinese medicine. They’re not randomized control trials, but there is tremendous wisdom in 5,000 years of information that is human observation. That’s science, right? So anyway, and I think that the problem is, the problem is that Kimberly (14:01.961)Right. Kimberly (14:08.98)Yep, wishin’. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (14:17.24)We live in a world where like I’m actually taken aback and appalled by how much the information can vary depending on where you, what is your entry point? Right? So you click one thing and next thing you know, you will be fed all of these different things. And my wife might be sitting next to me on the couch. She clicks something different and she ends up in a totally different place. And our perspective on the exact same thing is radically divergent. Kimberly (14:27.286)Totally. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (14:47.436)Right? So, and this is the problem that we have is that this is now like, affected nutrition and science. And this has become a, like nutrition should not be political at all. It should not matter. We’re trying to make people healthy period, but now it’s become a political thing. So anyway, with regard to the dietary guidelines, there was a lot about the, there are some things that they got right. And I was grateful that they got right. Right. For the first time, they mentioned gut health. Kimberly (14:47.573)Yeah. Kimberly (15:02.57)Yes. Kimberly (15:07.638)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (15:16.812)right? But how can you mention gut health and talk about the value? They actually said the right thing, which is gut health is important. You need more plant based food, you need fermented food. I’m like giving a standing ovation. And then I look at the rest of the guidelines and I’m like, so you’re not going to talk about the fiber deficiency in America at all, right? But then you’re going to reorganize the food pyramid to prioritize Kimberly (15:34.867)Exactly. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (15:44.79)animal-based foods, specifically red meat and butter and beef tallow. And these are the highest sources of saturated fat. And so here’s the like thing that it just, it doesn’t make sense. You don’t have to be a nutritionist to hear this and hear that it makes no sense. Because in their recommendation, if you actually read the document, they said with total clarity, Kimberly (15:46.986)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (16:12.436)your goal should be less than 10 % of your calories from saturated fat. And Kim, that was the same recommendation that they made in 2020. They haven’t changed that. And the average American gets 12 % of their calories from saturated fat. So if you’re recommending to us that we get less than 10 % of our calories from saturated fat, but you’re simultaneously making recommendations that increase our saturated fat intake, you’re you’re actually making us less likely to fulfill what you’re asking us to do. It doesn’t make any sense. Kimberly (16:42.582)Exactly. just leads to this, you know, kind of honing in on inflammation now. It leads to this chronic confusion, I think that’s out there about what we’re to focus on. I was at my son’s chess tournament the other day and we went next door. It’s convenient. We went to Starbucks and I haven’t been there in a while. And I was amazed, Dr. B, how many drinks you can just add. protein too. It’s everything. Everything is protein, protein, protein. And when we emphasize protein, we have no choice. The average person can’t emphasize so many things at once. So then there’s a de-emphasis on the very things that you’re talking about in your book, this diversity of plants and fiber and all the things that have been proven through these hundreds and hundreds of citations to really help with these conditions. People are Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (17:13.088)It’s become an entire thing. Yeah, the protein thing. Yeah. Kimberly (17:42.098)I love how you also talk about the severity of another big topic, menopause, how menopause symptoms are impacted by inflammation, food allergies, eczema, besides, of course, the pervasiveness of autoimmune conditions. It’s everywhere. And then everybody’s just trying to increase their protein intake every day, become sort of their barometer of whether they’re eating healthy. So there’s this gap here, Dr. B, and you address that head on in your book. not just with protein, just, you know, what’s going on with people and their lifestyle and where the focus really should be. Can you tell us a little bit about, you know, just mounted that in general, and then we’ll get into some of these lines, the three lines of defense, which I found were really interesting. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (18:23.075)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (18:28.78)Yeah, so I think that a sensible approach to nutrition is to say, you’re not going to do every single thing, right? And that would just be, it would drive you bonkers to try to do every single thing. So we need to be strategic and we want to go after the big opportunities, the life changing opportunities. But at the same time, for it to actually be life changing. It has to be something that is missing. If you’re already doing it and you’re doing it to sufficiency, why would you change? Why don’t you just keep it the way it is, right? Whereas the stuff that’s missing, that’s where you could radically transform your health if it’s the right thing. So in the nutrition elements within this book, Kimberly (19:09.372)Right. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (19:25.57)That’s where the conversation starts from my perspective is I’m here to say that like in the event that any listener right now is unsure of whether they’re willing to do a plant powered plus diet. I want you to know that plant powered plus is welcoming many people of many different diets and we could apply different terms. I actually don’t like when we apply labels think that like we’re oversimplifying. Kimberly (19:52.66)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (19:55.458)but we can apply terms and it’s not just vegan and vegetarian. It can include Mediterranean, can include pescatarian, it can include flexitarian. We have options, but the key here is that there are four specific things that I have identified that I see as being essential to gut health and to reduce inflammation. And they are fiber, Kimberly (20:20.15)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (20:24.142)Polyphenols, which polyphenols are the colors of our food. So you walk into the supermarket and you see this beautiful produce section. It’s the rainbow. When we say eat the rainbow, we’re really saying eat polyphenols. Number three, healthy fats. And number four, have trouble getting my hand to do that properly. Sorry. I used to think I was a great athlete until right now, but anyway, yeah, there we go. Number four. Number four is fermented food. Kimberly (20:43.574)you Kimberly (20:47.901)Or, yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (20:54.894)And so, and if you go through these one by one, fiber, 95 % efficient, polyphenols, well, they mostly come from fruits and vegetables. They can come from other things too, but mostly from fruits and vegetables. And at a minimum, 80 to 90 % of Americans are not getting the mark on those particular foods. Healthy fats were again, over consuming saturated fat. And we’re under consuming the fat that’s found in nuts and seeds and avocados. Kimberly (21:13.631)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (21:24.89)And finally, fermented food, even people who eat healthy, the vast majority, they consume less than one serving of fermented food per day. So these four things to me, that’s the opportunity. Because if you did these four things and work them into your nutritional routines, you would feel the difference. Kimberly (21:50.1)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (21:50.316)And it could be any of the symptoms that you described a moment ago and more inflammation is far reaching. Most of us on some level are dealing with something and there is an opportunity here. Kimberly (22:03.284)And these are accessible. You know, we can think of the vast colors and adding variety through the rainbows, the rainbow that is accessible when we walk into the farmer’s market or into the supermarket. When you talk about healthy fats, Dr. B, we talk, know, seeds, nuts, avocados, I know you mentioned in the book, not eating a lot of, you know, high-fried, high-heat foods, like fried foods, which many of us have known for many years. But do you, I wonder if you personally do cook with, like will you saute sometimes with avocado oil or I know some doctors would say, well, just use vegetable broth or try to avoid cooking with oils altogether. I know you say it’s not one size fits all, but in general, if someone’s thinking about coming over more and thinking, well, what are some of the ways in which I can… Tone in on healthy fats. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (23:04.408)So in the plant-based space, and Kimmy, I’m sure you’re familiar with this, there’s camps that have very, very big feelings on the question of oil, whether to include or not include, you know? And… Kimberly (23:12.532)I know. Yeah, Dr. Bernard is in the no oil camp and then some are, you know, amounts of coconut oil and other oils too. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (23:23.436)Yeah, so the way that I would approach this from my perspective is like for the people who are no oil and they’re thriving and their health is great, I wouldn’t change anything. I would stay as you are, right? I still think that you would benefit from healthy fat in your diet and that includes seeds and nuts and avocados, but I’m not saying that you should reintroduce oil if you’ve found that you actually are doing incredibly well without it. People who are trying to lose weight, Kimberly (23:30.805)Yeah. Kimberly (23:42.218)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (23:51.656)Oil is not really helpful when you’re trying to lose weight. It’s the most calorie dense thing that exists. But for the average person who’s listening to us right now, and I’m trying to convince them to increase their plant based food intake, because that’s how we address these four things that we’ve been talking about. Right? We have to acknowledge the reality oil tastes great. And I enjoy my food when it’s included with that. So I don’t personally go out of my way to ramp up my oil intake. But If you are to include oil in your diet, to me, the choice would be extra virgin olive oil at room temperature. I really don’t want people to cook at high heat with oil that much, but if you are, avocado oil is the choice. So like I don’t, I don’t do a ton of sauteing and frying and things like this. I don’t do much of that. I do a lot of slow cooking. and to me, those are the most like, it’s hard to beat slow cooked food, honestly. So, Kimberly (24:39.423)or roast. Thank you. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (24:51.522)But for what it’s worth, if I were to be doing that, I would use avocado oil. Kimberly (24:55.294)Yeah, well said. I think that there’s different types of cooking methods that we can adopt more. For me, we do eat lot of soups and stews in our family, and we don’t need to use a lot of oil when you cook that way. So there’s lots of different methodologies that can adapt as you come into this lifestyle. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (25:17.314)Yeah, so like for me, I just want to welcome people into this lifestyle and I want to change, I want to change their life. I want to change their health. And I sometimes feel like the oil question becomes a blocker to that. I don’t want that to be a blocker. want, I want people to come in and enjoy delicious, colorful food. Kimberly (25:20.424)Yeah. Kimberly (25:29.78)No. Kimberly (25:34.984)I love how there’s so many people suffering with allergic reactions, Dr. B. It could be pet dander, it could be eczema, it could be, I just don’t know. And I love how specifically you break down these lines of defense in our body. Now more and more people are starting to realize how closely our immune system is related to our gut health. But can you just give us a little bit of a… like an overview of the microbes, the gut barrier and our immune system and how they rise and fall together. I found that really well written in the book. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (26:15.136)Yeah, I mean, I’m happy to explain this out of curiosity. I bet you’ve been talking about this for 15 years, but Kimberly (26:20.468)Yeah. You know, it’s funny when I wrote the beauty detox solution and I was talking so much about digestion and it was like this revelation to me, Dr. V, that my skin had such bad acne and it wasn’t until I cleared my constipation and I gave up dairy, which I couldn’t metabolize very well, many things I was like, wow, this really works. And people, you know, had never heard of it. before. Now there’s so much talk about it, which I’m really happy to hear. you know, and of course, our, our event has been talking about agony and digestive health for so many thousands of years, but it’s always like, yeah, things get out. Thankfully that are helpful. Sometimes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (26:57.774)Exactly. Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (27:04.588)Well, and I think I think sometimes what’s necessary is like, people are waiting for the mess mechanistic research to prove what people what the observation that you already are seeing that you already that you already knew, right? So because many of the studies are in the last five years since my first book came out in the last five, six years. So the but what we what we have learned is that Kimberly (27:15.936)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (27:33.8)You know, I guess let me let me start and I’m going to zoom out for a moment and then we’ll narrow in, which is to say that as I entered into writing this book as an author, I had an opportunity I could have written about anything. And as a medical doctor, I want to go where the opportunity exists to help the most people possible. And what I saw is that we have an epidemic of inflammation. And so I started with a question that Kimberly (27:59.359)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (28:02.926)Um, for those of you who grabbed the book, you’ll find this on page, believe 371, 372 of the book. There’s a table where I actually did research to try to figure out how many health conditions can I prove with a, the scientific reference that this health condition is associated with inflammation. And I found over 130, like, I think there’s like 135. And so then I moved to my second question. Kimberly (28:28.502)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (28:32.994)which was out of these health conditions, how many of them have dysbiosis, which means damage to the microbiome. Or another way of asking the same question is what’s up with the microbiome in these people that have these inflammatory health conditions? And the answer to that question was in layman’s terms, the microbiome was jacked up, the gut was jacked up. In fact, I couldn’t find any study. where there was evidence of chronic inflammation and the gut microbiome was appearing healthy. So it’s a hundred percent correlation that basically when we are struggling with chronic inflammatory health conditions, which could be allergic, as you mentioned, it could be autoimmune, but it could be metabolic like diabetes, obesity, these are actually inflammatory. Kimberly (29:09.142)100 % correlation. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (29:29.362)it could be mood disorder. Depression is an inflammatory mood disorder. Could be cognition. Our brain Alzheimer’s comes from inflammation. hormonal polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis, infertility in both men and women. In men, erectile dysfunction in women, perimenopause and menopause symptoms. so anyway, that’s just like a fraction and Kimberly (29:55.542)Well, Dr. Lee, can we pause there for a moment because it’s such a big topic is the infertility and PCOH is rampant. And you talk about here, I found it was really interesting, the glyphosate and some of these external toxins also correlating to fertility issues. But also in your work, seeing when you’re in general, from your diet or other conditions, your gut microbiome is disrupted. Or let’s say someone does have an autoimmune condition. I just met a woman over the break who has, she’s 28 years old and she was just diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and she’s just trying to get pregnant. So how, you know, you can have these really severe or mild to severe autoimmune conditions and how much it affects your fertility. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (30:49.966)Profoundly. Inflammation clearly affects fertility. And in fact, Kim, I’ll have to connect you to my friend, Natalie Crawford. And she is a fertility specialist, OBGYN, in Austin, Texas. She has a new book that’s coming out in April that’s entirely about fertility. And the first thing that she writes about is inflammation. Kimberly (30:54.219)Mm. Kimberly (31:00.906)Hmm. Kimberly (31:18.504)inflammation because there’s like inflammation’s up and infertility is up across the board. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (31:25.14)100%. Infertility is a massive problem in both men and women. So on the men’s health side, some of the statistics are terrifying. Sperm counts have plummeted in the last 30 years. Testosterone levels have plummeted in the last 30 years. So I mean, men are struggling on many different levels. And a lot of this is health conditions driven by chronic low grade inflammation that they’re not even aware, right? Like, you don’t feel well, you don’t feel like yourself, you’re not proud to be the man that you should be. And you don’t realize that there’s this thing that’s driving that that’s actually deeply seated inside of you. So and then in terms of women, 100%, there is no doubt that chronic inflammation is associated with infertility. And that can manifest through health conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome. or through endometriosis, but it’s not just that. And, you know, if you think about like, for example, how fertility can vary where infertility can show up when a person is underweight. Being underweight is inflammatory in the same way that being overweight is inflammatory. When your body is in metabolic balance, then that’s anti-inflammatory. When you’re out of metabolic balance, which is underweight or overweight, then Kimberly (32:34.92)Right? Kimberly (32:38.582)Mmm. Mmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (32:49.464)it’s actually inflammatory and that’s part of what’s happening there. Kimberly (32:53.878)Dr. B, if people aren’t feeling well and they rush to take bioidentical hormones, let’s take testosterone or women going through really rough menopause, and it can help, but do you think there can still be or can mask the underlying inflammatory conditions which aren’t helped necessarily by those hormones? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (33:14.688)I’m of the belief, my approach, like if I were to generalize about my approach to medicine, I’m of the belief that in all health conditions, every single one of them, we should be taking steps to understand what is the root of this health condition? How did we get to where we are today? And what are the steps that we can take to address the root of the health condition? And that doesn’t necessarily mean that we must reject medicine. Right? You can accept Kimberly (33:37.226)Yeah. Kimberly (33:43.186)It means along with that, holistically as well. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (33:48.857)100%. And the problem is that we have a healthcare system that’s built to basically dole out medicine or surgery or whatever it might be, and completely ignores how we got there. So in the example of the person, Kim, who has an autoimmune health issue, and I’ve taken care of many of these people throughout my career, all right, there’s a story that you will hear repeatedly, and I’m quite sure there’s going to be listeners who are going to be like, Oh, my gosh, that’s me. Where Kimberly (34:07.262)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (34:17.102)They come in, let’s pretend they have ulcerative colitis and you put them on a powerful drug, for example, humira, right? $3,000 a month. And this powerful drug will take a flaring person with active ulcerative colitis. And when it properly works, it will put them into remission. But here’s the issue. If the only thing that you do is use the drug and you don’t change anything else about your life, you have something. that is contributing to dysbiosis, contributing to the manifestation of this health conditional sort of colitis. And it will, that engine is still churning. Even though you have patched up the actual like outward signs of it, the engine that drove your disease is still churning. And so what happens is these people then fail that drug, right? Like give it nine months, 12 months, they fail the drug. And you go, no, like this drug was working. Now we have to change it. We have to do something else. You go to a second drug. Well, the second drug lasts three months, right? Because the issue is their disease is actually progressing and their disease is progressing because we never turned towards addressing what’s actually causing the disease. So, the same would, I would argue the same is true when it comes to these questions of like bioidentical hormones, which is that Kimberly (35:24.735)Hmm. Kimberly (35:32.948)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (35:42.848)I want women to be well and healthy and thriving and feeling great. I want that. I also really want to address the root of these issues so that we can make you the healthiest possible person possible. And if we get you to a point where you don’t need the medicine, all medicines have side effects, all of them. If we can get you to a place where you don’t need the medicine, that’s where we should be. Kimberly (35:56.32)Yeah. Kimberly (36:01.919)Yes. Kimberly (36:06.56)I love it. I love how you bravely talk about GLP-1s as well because there’s so many doctors, Dr. Baez, know, just saying, this is great. It’s great for so many reasons. And maybe it does help for many who are in that obese category or pre-diabetic, but it’s still, I just wonder about the long-term effects and it’s not really challenging people to change their underlying lifestyle habits. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (36:38.218)If I could see the future and know what it means to take these drugs for 60 years, it would help me to understand how to properly position them. And the problem is I don’t have a crystal ball to be able to do that. And we have young people who are taking up these drugs and you must understand that first of all, there’s very firmly established side effects that like there’s risks. Kimberly (36:45.331)Right. Kimberly (37:07.882)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (37:09.344)already clearly established. like pretty much everyone that goes on these drugs gets constipation. This is one of the issues that’s going to show up automatically. and there’s other things as well, but even taking that and put it to the side, because in the short term, the benefits may outweigh the risks. But the problem is the drug company will never ever Kimberly (37:18.134)Mmm. Kimberly (37:30.473)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (37:39.01)Like hit me up when they do this because they will never ever do a study that shows us how to get you off of the drug. And if you stop the drug, the weight all comes back. So this is an unfair proposition to the vulnerable person where we’re basically saying you must take this drug and you must commit to taking this drug for the rest of your life. Because if you stop taking this drug, you’re going to gain all your weight back. So, but okay, what does that mean? We have no clue what happens beyond the first few years because we only have a few years of experience with these drugs. So what happens at 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 years? I mean, there’s people young enough taking these drugs right now that they might be taking them for 70 years. We have no clue what’s going to happen. Kimberly (38:46.688)There is this term in Arya Veda, Dr. B, pranayaparata, which means crime against wisdom. And we can just see, you we’re talking about clean environment when our blood is clean, when our colons are cleaned out, there’s more space for prana, shakti, whatever word you want to use, just our natural intelligence to inhabit and heal and rejuvenate. And when you’re not digesting naturally, Let’s say you’re eating a low fiber diet, besides the drugs, let’s say you’re on the carnivore diet, which I saw firsthand and you were at my house, Dr. B, when my husband was on this diet for a very short term. There’s no way someone doesn’t get constipated. There’s no way someone, at least I’ll say most people I saw in him constipation, headaches, just one of the wisdom. One of most important parts about good digestion is you’re getting the toxins out. There’s a wisdom to constantly releasing. There’s a wisdom to eating a high fiber diet, to eating all these colors and polyphenols that you’re talking about in your book. There’s a naturalness to that cycle. We take it and we masticate, we chew, we absorb, and then we also release. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (40:02.229)100 % and there is so much good that comes from that regularity of digestion because our body was designed with a rhythm. And all aspects of our life require that rhythm in order to function properly. And it’s very clear and apparent if you have a heart condition. if I, you know, and I’ve seen this firsthand in the hospital where If you flip a person out of a heart rhythm, they could be a great athlete, they could look like a million dollars and you can cripple them instantly. Like they can’t do anything. Right? Because the heart is out of rhythm. If the gut is out of rhythm, manifesting with constipation or diarrhea, are we so surprised that it has negative consequences on the rest of our body? Right? The gut microbiome cannot be healthy when the gut is out of rhythm. And it’s very clear. We’ve seen this where all you have to tell me All you have to tell me is some basic information about what a person’s poop looks like. And I can already tell you quite a bit about what’s going on with their gut microbiome. And let’s go back to 30 minutes ago, as we started the show, where I said to you, your gut microbiome is the story, the story of your life, and it impacts your physiology. if what I’m saying is that your poop Kimberly (41:16.02)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (41:23.928)tells me about your microbiome, then that means your your poop is your story too. And it tells me a lot about what’s going on. What we want is we want that to be a healthy, satisfying, complete elimination on a regular basis. And when that’s the place that we are, we feel our best. Kimberly (41:45.492)And the lack thereof of poop as well, Dr. B, right? Just not going out of that holding. It’s lack of energy, lack of vitality, lack of abundance, lack of openness. I feel like it’s harder to be in your heart. You’re more irritated. So. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (41:52.803)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (42:02.094)You know, it’s interesting the, the, some of the language that we use that I’ve used since I was a kid, language like anal, anal retentive, right? Tight ass, right? Like uptight, right? The, the very bizarre thing, Kim is that like, we have tests that we run as a gastroenterologist that can measure these types of things. Yeah. And actually like Kimberly (42:10.762)Yeah. True. Kimberly (42:25.845)Wow. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (42:30.668)this sort of pattern of people being sort of like uptight and anal retentive. they, they, you actually will find higher sphincter tone in these people. And they, and, and I do think also there’s like a personality element to this and affects the rest of their body. So it’s so fat. Again, I come back to there’s these ideas of things, observations that we’ve made for a very long time that ultimately proved to be true. Even like some things that are so casually said like that. Kimberly (42:45.012)No. Kimberly (43:07.158)Well, it’s stress, right? Stress is tension you hold. You don’t want to let go. People pulled onto resentments. They’re angry versus this letting go, the fluidity that carries throughout. I love, you know, just mentioning rhythms for a moment. If we could touch on your chapter about the circadian rhythms and how that affects gut health and… inflammation. Could you talk about meal times? You talk about sleep? Can you just give us a little overview of how living in rhythm has a powerful effect as well? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (43:43.778)Well, so first of all, before I even talk about the nerdy science side of things, I want to say to the people who are listening to us that some of the things that I’m about to say, if you do them, like I literally believe on day one, you will feel the difference. So let me start with this, that about half of our genetic code is flipping on or off at specific time points during the day. Kimberly (44:18.9)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (44:20.376)based upon our circadian rhythm, which is our 24 hour clock. In our microbiome, it’s even more than that. Research has shown that more than half of our microbes are rising and falling at specific times of day to meet the moment to make sure that your body has what it needs in order to properly function. And there’s a number of different inputs to this. So it’s not so simple as hey, here’s this one thing, right? Again, All aspects of who you are, how you live your life ultimately will be reflected in this place in your microbiome. But a, an example of this that I find to be quite fascinating is what happens in the morning, which is that overnight, your body, your brain has been producing melatonin and melatonin is the sleepy time hormone. And in our brain, that’s what allows us to get a good night’s rest. But in actually your gut, where believe it or not, you not only have melatonin, you have 400 times more melatonin in your gut than you have in your brain. And all this melatonin in your gut is helping to repair and restore the gut barrier overnight. And when it repairs and restores the gut barrier, that makes the immune system Kimberly (45:38.39)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (45:46.57)And also the gut microbes a lot stronger and healthier. So, but then the morning comes and you get up and what defines the morning? Well, we evolved with light. If you and I went camping, we would know when the day starts because the sun comes up. That’s the way that it is every single day. It’s reproducible. Right? Now the timing may vary a little bit by time of year, like this time of year, obviously it’s a little bit later. Kimberly (45:50.954)Fascinating. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (46:15.468)in the Northern Hemisphere. But the bottom line though is every single day we can count on that the sun is going to come up. And we have been actually trained where the light from the sun in the morning will actually come through our eye, hit the retina in the back of the eye and get picked up by the brain. And instantly, the body will recognize it’s no longer night. It’s now day. And it’s a switch, you actually flip. so melatonin levels, which is your sleeping time hormone, they plummet. And meanwhile, cortisol, which I am happy to discuss the nuance, your listeners probably recognize cortisol as the stress hormone. And when it’s out of balance, and at the wrong time, it has consequences. But when it is properly timed early in the morning, cortisol is 100 % your friend. And so when we make this flip, we drop our melatonin, we spike our cortisol, that cortisol is what allows us to wake up. It allows our body to like all of our different tissues to start getting active. We become more focused, more vigilant. Right? This is why I do my best writing as an author. I don’t know about you, Cam, but like for me, Kimberly (47:16.969)Mm. Kimberly (47:22.431)Mm-hmm. Kimberly (47:44.042)Yes. Me too. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (47:44.14)I write best early in the morning. Yeah, I can like, cause I can get great focus and this is the, this is the product of cortisol actually that hormone is allowing this to happen. Okay. So, the, thing about it is if you step outside, right, I’m not talking about sitting inside and flipping on your lamp and having your cup of coffee. I’m talking about stepping outside of your home and getting natural sunlight, right? Getting natural light. When you do this. Kimberly (48:11.414)Mm-hmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (48:17.294)you will increase your cortisol by 50%. And so in the beginning of this segment, I said, I believe on day one that the people who do this, they will notice and feel the difference. So here’s what I’m saying to you. If you step outside, you start making this a part of your routine in 2026, where you’re going to step outside in the morning, you will notice that you are more awake in the morning, you are more energized, you have better focus. Kimberly (48:20.918)Mmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (48:46.402)you have better cognitive endurance, meaning that you can get more tasks done during the day. So daytime, you become elite. And then Kimberly (48:55.946)direct sunlight, Dr. B, what if, you know, it’s cloudy out, you’re getting light. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (49:01.166)So, um, the, the sort of, uh, amount of time, the calculus on this is just like a change in how much time you have to spend out there. But the key is you can’t look out your window because the glass is actually blocking these rays because what we’re talking about is blue light. So you have to actually get outside. But, um, so on a, on a clear day, it could be five to 10 minutes on a cloudy day. would be 30. So I say, Kimberly (49:06.965)Yeah. Yeah. Kimberly (49:16.95)You have to. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (49:30.766)If you can get outside for 30 and take a walk, get some morning exercise, because light can spike it by 50%. Exercise, depending on the intensity, can spike it by 25 to 50 % in addition to that. those are the two, Kim, those are the two most powerful levers that we have for morning circadian rhythm. And they impact our gut microbiome directly. So the microbes are responsive to the fact that the shift where the basically the melatonin dries up the quarters all rises, the microbes now respond to that. But the other thing that happens is our body produces serotonin. This is why by the way, light exposure is the treatment for seasonal affective disorder. So people that are getting like depressed this time of year, the winter doldrums, light is the treatment for the reasons that I’m describing right now. Kimberly (50:23.446)Mm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (50:23.726)light light exposure increases serotonin production. And that serotonin in the brain, it that’s actually contributing to many of the benefits that we’re talking about. But also serotonin is actually the precursor to melatonin. And so that means two things. Number one, that morning light, the serotonin that you get from that in 14 hours, It will make you sleep like a baby. So if you suffer with insomnia, actually the starting point is to start getting morning sunlight. Because if you do that, it will help you to get into a natural daily bodily rhythm. And that bodily rhythm is what you actually need to get good sleep at night. But the second thing is that I serotonin is the precursor to melatonin. Let’s go back to gut, serotonin, and melatonin. Kimberly (50:56.918)Amazing. Kimberly (51:03.764)Mm-hmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (51:21.582)where we know you and I have discussed on the show in our prior episodes, that 95 % of serotonin is produced in the gut. And now what I’m saying to you is I’m going to expand beyond that to say, yes, all of the serotonin is flooding the gut and the serotonin in the gut becomes the precursor to 400 times more melatonin in the gut than we have in the brain. And that’s going to repair and restore your gut barrier at night. Kimberly (51:30.42)Yes. Kimberly (51:44.598)Mm. Kimberly (51:50.976)such intelligence in the body. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (51:53.102)Yeah, it’s a symphony. Kimberly (51:56.222)You know, when you were talking about it to Dr. B, it’s making it doable. think about dog walkers who get up and they have to take their dogs outside naturally anyway. Or I drop my kids off at school in the morning and then I play with my kindergartner in the yard for 20 minutes before he goes into class. So there’s ways in which we could make this part of our lifestyle, whether you’re a busy mom, a dog walker. Maybe you don’t have dogs or kids, but you can do your morning call or maybe drink your hot tea or your lemon water or your coffee outside. So this just becomes part of your natural lifestyle, not another thing to check off the list that feels unnatural. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (52:37.622)I think that the way that I see this is that if what I am saying to you is legitimate, then you will feel the difference so much that you will not want to give it up. It will become a non-negotiable. And that’s the way that it is for me. And if on the flip side, it doesn’t really have a meaningful impact on how you feel, then you’re not going to be as motivated. But I’m willing to throw, I’m willing to roll the dice and make a gamble. that you’re gonna feel that difference and then you’re gonna want it. I have a private community where I had a large group of people who were all doing this in the month of September every single day. And some of the stories that came out of this of healing, people healing their psoriasis, some of the stories of people improving their digestive symptoms, we didn’t change their diet. We just walked outside, it’s completely free. You just step outside your home. Kimberly (53:16.757)Mmm. Kimberly (53:23.882)Mmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (53:33.976)for 30 minutes in the morning. these people, I don’t have a survey to make it totally clear what percentage, they’re constantly telling me how they do this. Still to this day, many of them are bundling up in the wintertime because this is how much they’re convinced that this is necessary. Kimberly (53:50.516)Yes. That’s so beautiful. I love the experiential and also Dr. B going back to the personal, I love to close out with the personal-ness in your book, the alcohol section. I mean, we all hear now how much alcohol has gone down, thankfully, because there’s so much research and you talk about how it really does damage the gut barrier lining. But you also say, hey, I’m human and sometimes I still want to have a drink, right? Which I think is really beautiful to acknowledge. No one’s perfect. And you see this, you do the research, you’re a gastroenterologist, you’re have drinks sometimes with a friend. People are drinking sometimes in the blue zones, right? Like our friend Dan Buettner talks about. So in the morning, Dr. V, I’d love to know, are you drinking coffee? Because you like how it tastes sometimes. You’re getting the energy from the morning light, but sometimes are you also having some caffeine? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (54:51.212)well, in the event that you didn’t know this about me, Kim, I am very much obsessed with coffee. Kimberly (54:57.654)I didn’t know this. this. I love this because as we hear like, just, you know, ride the quarters all and I also since we had our how we had our cacao farm in Hawaii, Dr. B and I’ve come to visit coffee farms, I appreciate coffee, I drink it sometimes now. So you know, because sometimes people are like, well, no, no, caffeine, these blanket statements, which, you know, we’re human, can enjoy coffee and alcohol at times and still have healthy gut. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (55:23.502)I’ll make, I’ll make my argument for coffee. and, but I’ll lead by acknowledging that I’m very much biased in this space because I’ll believe any study that says the coffee is good for you. And, and, and before I say it, just, just to be, just to be completely fair, there are people that coffee is not a fit and they should not feel bad. And there are, there are alternative choices for those people. so, but like, cause, cause Kimberly (55:36.927)with Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (55:52.654)Coffee can give some people diarrhea, can create anxiety, can give you insomnia. If my wife has one cup of coffee past noon, she can’t sleep that night at all. Whereas for me, I could have cup of coffee at 10.30 at night and go to bed 15 minutes later. So. Kimberly (56:05.172)Done. Yeah. Kimberly (56:11.838)You’re one of those people who drinks coffee at the end of dinner. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (56:15.35)I don’t intentionally do that, but sometimes if we’re going out to a nice dinner and it’s like, you know how it is, it’s like so rich that you’re just like, yeah. So then I feel like kind of like trash. And so I’ll have a cup of coffee at the end of dinner just to kind of reset myself, recalibrate. But anyway, all right. So the case for coffee is this though, is that people don’t realize actually coffee is a microbiome beverage. It has a ton of stuff that’s really good for your microbes. Number one. Kimberly (56:21.045)Yeah, they are. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (56:44.172)It actually has an abundance of polyphenols. Yeah. So, I’ve talked about these four things that I’m trying to everyone, trying to get everyone to get more of. And in the category of polyphenols and antioxidants, believe it or not, the number one source of antioxidants in the American diet is coffee. Kimberly (56:44.726)to know. Mmm. Kimberly (57:01.779)Really. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (57:02.828)Yes. Now that is sad, right? Cause there’s, mean, I’ve said like fruits and vegetables are where that most, it mostly exists. And now here I am, I’m saying the number one source in our diet is coffee. So clearly we’re not getting enough fruits and vegetables. All right. But, coffee is the number one source of that. And then the second thing is coffee actually does have fiber. It’s soluble fiber. So it’s dissolved within the beverage. You wouldn’t know it’s there, but it’s there. And so there’s actually research that Kimberly (57:17.429)right. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (57:32.098)that has been done, you know that I’m, I work with a company, Zoey, that’s a personalized nutrition company. And there’s research that was done by Zoey where they discovered that coffee actually changes over a hundred different microbes and that there’s one particular bacteria called the wasana bacteria that is associated with coffee consumption where we can literally tell based upon your microbiome whether or not you’re a coffee drinker. And Kimberly (58:00.264)Wow. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (58:01.132)And coffee, the last part here is that coffee to me is the perfect way for me to end close out this conversation with something that’s really important for gut health. We’ve talked a lot about variety. Yes, variety is important. Let me talk about something else consistency. Now I’ll separate, I’ll explain cause that sounds like they’re diametrically opposed. I don’t actually see him that way, but let me explain this first. Kimberly (58:19.285)Mmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (58:30.496)of all of the foods that we analyze that Zoe, and we have a database of 300,000 people, the number one in terms of impacting the microbiome was coffee. Kimberly (58:46.667)Wow. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (58:47.852)Why would that be? Well, Kim, coffee, head to head, one v one against turmeric, coffee would lose coffee head to head against kale coffee would lose. But here’s the difference. We drink coffee every single day, people that are like legit coffee drinkers like myself, every single day don’t miss a day. Here’s what’s happening inside my gut. Day one, small little nudge. Thanks to the polyphenols and the fiber. Day two, another small nudge. Day three, another small nudge. And what’s happens is you get 30 days and 60 days and 90 days in, and you have really, really, really reinforced the benefits of this particular beverage through consistency. Whereas the kale, get whatever I get from the kale, but then I don’t have it again for 10 days. And I start to drift back to where I started. So. Kimberly (59:21.514)Mmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (59:45.794)I said that coffee, that consistency and diversity are not actually diametrically opposed. What I mean by that is that you should look to expand your diet into variety as much as possible. It’s delicious. It’s also really, really good for you. But at the same time, you should not be afraid to lean in to the habits and the routines. Kimberly (01:00:02.463)Mmm. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:00:11.128)that can really benefit you. And I see like coffee as being something that could be a daily ritual. And I also see tea as being a daily ritual that can do that. And I see smoothies as opportunity to do that. So I think like, I basically think that there’s a lot of different ways that you can fulfill that. Kimberly (01:00:24.341)was. Wow. Fascinating. I’ve never heard that with Zoe’s research. Timothy came on our podcast as well, Dr. B, and talked about some of the other research, but he didn’t get into that. It’s really fascinating. And I imagine along with other foods, if we can choose organic coffee, it would be beneficial because of pesticides. What do you think? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:00:36.098)Yeah. Yep. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:00:51.616)I mean, are we going to open this can of worms as we walk out? So the answer is yes. Yeah. So it’s a bigger topic. There’s a few arguments here. There’s a few arguments. You know, it’s funny to me when I hear people say, well, organic has pesticides too. Yeah. They’re not the same. Right? They’re not the same. Kimberly (01:00:54.72)Thank Kimberly (01:01:00.905)Okay. Kimberly (01:01:16.566)Right. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:01:17.666)There’s a difference between the pesticides with organic and the pesticides that are non-organic. And unfortunately, I’m quite concerned about the impact of glyphosate on our gut microbiome. So I just want to say this because there’s a lot of people on the internet who have very big feelings every time I start to talk about this topic. If you just simply Google, do your own research and Google glyphosate, gut microbiome. Kimberly (01:01:28.041)Yes. Kimberly (01:01:44.937)Yes. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:01:46.744)PubMed, P-U-B-M-E-D. And this will lead you to a list of many different scientific publications where the scientists, not me, are discussing the impact of glyphosate on the gut microbiome. And what you will read is it’s not pretty. All right, so anyway, so the point is that I want to stay away from that as much as I can. Kimberly (01:02:03.606)Mm-hmm. Mm. Kimberly (01:02:13.654)I love how you phrase it. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:02:16.78)As much as I can. It’s never going to be perfect. It can’t be a hundred percent, but I’m going to try to stay as far away from that as I can. organic is the way for us to accomplish that. Now that doesn’t mean that coffee is sprayed with glyphosate, but a lot of things are that you don’t even realize and it’s not on the packaging. They’re not going to tell you. So the way in which I keep myself away from that is by prioritizing organic. I also think that there’s a strong argument. If you can afford it. I mean, we all have to do what’s within our budget, right? Like I shop, I shop at Costco and Aldi’s because I have so many kids. So. Kimberly (01:02:50.922)Sure. Kimberly (01:02:55.604)and there’s so much more at Costco. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:02:58.228)can do quite a bit there. You can do quite a bit there. I can get a 10 pound bag of organic black beans for 10 bucks. So and that that feeds us for a long time. But anyway, I also think though that like if you can afford it, there’s a there’s also the environmental impact because many of these chemicals that are being sprayed, they don’t go away so easily. Kimberly (01:03:03.627)Yeah. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:03:19.95)and they linger and they impact the environment and even if it’s not on your food it still is depleting the soil and destroying this planet and that’s not what we want to hand off to future generations. Kimberly (01:03:32.564)Right, right. What affects the one affects the all because we are all one. Just where we started our discussion. Well, for what it’s worth Dr. B, this is my favorite book of yours. It’s the one that I found had so I mean, they all have so much fresh new information. But this one was really interesting, as I mentioned earlier, really easy to read because the citations are separate. Come from your heart. It’s holistic. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:03:46.006)Kimberly (01:04:02.358)It touches so many different topics. I think it’s a topic that we all need to be more well-versed in inflammation, whether we’re inflamed or we have a colleague or a family member or a friend. So I encourage all of you amazing community members who are listening to this right now to please share this episode with anyone that you think would benefit, as well as about Dr. B’s new book. Plant Power Plus, activate the power of your gut to tame inflammation and reclaim your health. Dr. B, where can we get your new book? Where can we learn more about you as well and your work? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:04:40.3)My book is available everywhere that books are sold. I, well, well, but no, but I do appreciate the opportunity because actually like, think it’s really important to try to go to your local bookstore if you can. And the reason why is, can you imagine you don’t need, I don’t need data to back this up. Can you imagine how hard their sales have been impacted by, you know, companies that can ship to your door in two days? Kimberly (01:04:43.913)I knew you were going to say this. I had to ask though. Kimberly (01:04:55.455)Agreed. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:05:09.804)So, and I’m not saying I don’t want you to order from that company. can, absolutely. I’m grateful for anyone who wants to support my work. But what I am saying is like, I want these local bookstores to still be in business five years from now. And the only, that only happens if we go and we purchase from them. So, so there’s that. And, and then you can find me, my home base is the got healthmd.com. And from that location, you can find all the different things that I do. I wear many hats and learn about the different aspects of like the different opportunities for healing. Like basically I’m trying to impact people’s lives in as many ways as possible. So, and I have a new YouTube channel, So if this is going on YouTube, we should do it as a collaboration. That’d be really cool. Kimberly (01:05:56.032)Beautiful. amazing. Kimberly (01:06:03.984)Is it the gut health MD? Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:06:06.316)Yes, my handle is at the health MD although I’ve discovered that on YouTube that’s not the same as Instagram. Like you can’t search as easily but you should be able to find me. Kimberly (01:06:15.742)Well, we will link to all those sites and links over on our show notes, mysaluna.com as well. Thank you again so much, Dr. B for being with us, for sharing your wisdom. It’s always so easy to talk to you and just so refreshing to talk to someone who genuinely cares and is passionate about helping others as you so obviously are. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:06:41.774)Well, I’m very grateful for you. You’re as I said, and I really mean this. You’re like a sister. You have like a sisterly energy for me. Um, and I also want to share that it was really funny when my cookbook came out in 2022 and I came over to Kim’s house, uh, to record a podcast together and I asked her, can you do a yoga segment with me? And I am the least flexible person on the planet. And she was walking me through yoga maneuvers that are not highly complex. They’re like pretty basic, that are good for digestion. And it’s just, I don’t know. It’s hilarious, Kim. I got a lot of work to do there. I need some help. Kimberly (01:07:05.622)was thinking about it. Kimberly (01:07:24.668)It is a really fun memory. I remember getting on the floor at my living room and doing twists. Like, come on, Dr. V, you gotta get this colon twisted. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:07:33.966)I’m like, I’m trying, I’m trying. Kimberly (01:07:37.494)Well, you’re doing amazing in so many areas and congratulations again. I’m just so happy for you and your very well deserved success. Just being a voice of real healing, holistic healing in the world. So thank you so much and thank you all so much for tuning in. Like I mentioned, please share the show with anyone and all that you think would benefit. Dr. Will Bulsiewicz (01:07:52.174)I appreciate you, Kim. Thank you so much. Kimberly (01:08:02.644)The show notes again are at mysolluna.com. I’ll see you online as well at underscore Kimberly Snyder. And we’ll be back here in just a few days for our next show. Until then, take great care and sending you all so much love.

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Rachel Swanson Episode Summary In this episode, Kimberly interviews Rachel Swanson and they discuss the holistic approach to fertility and health, emphasizing the importance of understanding the body's natural intelligence. They explore the impact of technology and medical guidance on fertility, the empowerment of women in their reproductive journeys, and the significance of microbiomes in overall health. The discussion also covers metabolic health, methylation, environmental factors, and the importance of heart coherence in managing stress and enhancing fertility outcomes. Sponsors: EPISODE SPONSORS: FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout.   DETOXY OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Rachel Swanson Resources: Book: Trying! A Science-Backed Plan to Optimize Your Fertility Website: https://www.rachelswanson.com/ Chapters 00:00 Holistic Approach to Fertility and Health 02:49 The Role of Technology and Medical Guidance in Fertility 06:05 Empowerment and Support for Women 08:57 Microbiomes: Oral and Vaginal Health 12:06 Metabolic Health and Its Impact on Fertility 14:51 Methylation and Gene Expression 17:55 Environmental Factors and Consumer Choices 20:43 The Importance of Heart Coherence and Stress Management 23:55 Conclusion and Call to Action SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY'S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript:  Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.063)Rachel, thank you so much for coming on today. Rachel (00:04.948)It is such an honor to be here with you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:08.457)Well, I’m really excited to talk about your book, which is about fertility on the cover, but I really feel like it’s this larger plan for health and vitality. And I really appreciate you talking about that because I think it’s easy to, in all ways, our society always likes to take a fragmented approach. Let me just deal with this back pain or just sleep or just exercise versus you know, what we’re so about in our community, which is the holistic lifestyle. So what’s gonna help your, you know, overall lifestyle is going to support your fertility. And even if you’re not specifically ready to have a baby yet, just learning about some of these modalities can be helpful for other things and for later. Rachel (00:57.876)Exactly right. mean, I couldn’t have said it myself. And I guess just to, you know, to open the conversation, I mean, this could go so many different directions with what you’ve just said. But I guess, you know, from just what I’m experiencing, too, I mean, everything that you said, right, it sounds very intuitive in that sense, and it will definitely be intuitive to your community. But kind of what I’m seeing as the lay of the land and in clinic, especially, it’s like when it comes to fertility, we’re witnessing this. extraordinary tech advancement. have the AI accelerating discovery. We have multi-millions being injected into making procedures better. But Kimberly, what I find, at the same time, the guidance that we’re giving women about optimizing their own biology feels like prehistoric. I mean, it’s just there’s nothing proactive about it. There’s nothing personalized about it. so I just think that the reality is it’s become this, this topic has become this over medicalized conversation. And it’s like women are feeling behind, we’re always racing against the clock, right? I know probably someone listening to this right now will probably know that exact feeling. so it’s just, the decisions that are being made are like to start a family and to come into one’s full self. It’s like this. frantic energy when it should be coming from a state of like this abundant energy, right? This is one of the most powerful transitions a woman has and she’s like being stripped of the empowerment. So that’s ultimately why I wrote the book and why I gave it that framework that you just so eloquently spoke about because look, women deserve to understand how to leverage their body’s natural intelligence to optimize reproductive outcomes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:49.041)Yes. Well, I can say for myself that years before I even thought about having kids, I was starting to work on healing my gut health and find holistic tools for anxiety and meditation. And it wasn’t with the specific idea that it would help me get pregnant later. It was really this holistic approach, but you know, I’m really grateful and thankfully for me when I did go to have kids, it happened, you know, nearly on the, pretty much on the first try. And so what I see today is so many people unable to sleep, which is a natural function. So many people unable to poop, which is a natural function. And now we’re seeing, I mean, I read some of these numbers about, you know, IVF in your twenties. And there’s a lot of these influencers documenting their journey. They try a little bit and then it doesn’t work. And I wonder how much people are looking more deeply at some of the things we’ll talk about today, oral microbiome, vaginal microbiome, just so many factors that could help. Rachel (04:04.462)Totally, you know, and I think there’s so many biological hurdles that we’re kind of imposing on ourselves through our diet and lifestyle choices. And, you know, that’s making it harder to conceive. But if we take a step back, you know, that’s also setting us up for a more complicated pregnancy and having a lesser quality health span and a shorter lifespan. And so it kind of gets back to this point of what you do now. It’s, yes, you may not even think about, it’s setting you up for fertility or setting you up for success, but that’s exactly what it’s doing. And so, yes, to your point, if we don’t look at this deeper picture, how do we have the opportunity to kind of intervene and change the entire trajectory with what occurs afterwards? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:51.31)Rachel, are you a mom? Rachel (04:53.486)I’m not a mom. Right now I’m a mom to two amazing cats and hundreds of clients, it seems like. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:01.065)It’s really interesting. Can you tell us a little bit about being drawn to this journey? Because I’ve met some Ayurvedic doulas, several that aren’t moms as well, and their whole focus is taking care of these newborn infants and cooking for moms. And some of them have said, I feel like this is my calling. I mean, it’s really interesting. You write with such passion and you obviously… really heartfelt and wanting to support. you want it? mean, if I could ask these personal questions because I’ve always been in being a mom one day or do you feel like your service is to help women in this way? Rachel (05:32.534)Of course you can, I have an open book. Rachel (05:42.99)I absolutely will have a family one day. ideally, it will be with my child. But I see family in sort of a very different sense. I see it as people that we want to spend our entire lives with and figure out together our purpose and passion while we’re on this planet. And for a lot of people, that can look different than just having one’s own biological kids. But look, of course, I Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:52.434)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:07.325)Yes. Rachel (06:10.848)totally anticipate that being my path that I’ll go down, right, to have my own biological children. It hasn’t happened yet, but I can’t wait for it to happen. until then, I just think I do not need to be a mom in order to support other moms and support them getting pregnant. And I just felt in practice what I was seeing is women coming in and it’s like. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:29.616)Yes. Rachel (06:37.358)They were given fragmented advice. They were given such symptom-focused reactive advice from their doctors. And again, it’s like, see this as going into motherhood. I want women to sort of be the full embodiment of themselves, not in this constricted, restricted sense where they’re making all these changes from a place of fear. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:59.785)Right. Rachel (06:59.918)Right? So again, so that’s actually where the really the passion comes from. And also because like I get fired up knowing that what our conventional sort of, you know, medical system sets them up with, which is from a diet and lifestyle standpoint, nothing. It’s kind of like do whatever you you want, right? Especially if you’re going to be going under, you know, IVF or doing similar procedures of that matter. It’s like we’re we’re taught that, you know, nothing. nothing really matters. What we do sort of outside the clinic when it’s the exact opposite. I have over 400 studies proving that in the book. That’s why I was so passionate about it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:35.262)Yeah. Well, I think it’s nice to have the research to back up what we intuitively know when you go deep, deep, which is, most of all, life is a miracle. The fact that our bodies work and do all these things, we’re blinking our eyes, our hair’s growing, our liver is detoxing, our skin’s regenerating, babies are being created, it’s all a miracle. And there’s this beautiful reverence that we can have for it. And to your point, I think the lifestyle helps. to make it just more easeful for us to get out of the way, for the miracles to happen. We’re not doing it. We don’t have to make it happen. Sometimes it just feels like everything feels so forced and masculine and hardened and linear. And even if we’re, whatever pathway we’re going down, I think it’s really important to, you know, remember the miracle that this all is and soften into that. Rachel (08:35.148)You know, it’s, I love everything that you just said, and it really kind of speaks volumes. And I think it actually even speaks to the work that you do and that you help women and couples with, especially with your new book too. think that’s why this kind of blends, this conversation too, I so appreciate it because it blends so synergistically together, right? Because we’re saying the same things. We’re just kind of giving different. tools and frameworks for how to approach it and they all blend together. think it’s fantastic and that’s actually why I was looking forward to having this conversation because of that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:13.885)Beautiful. So let’s get into some specifics, Rachel. And I love all the different topics you talk about in your book. So for example, in our community, we talk a lot about gut microbiome. So we know we have amazing SBO probiotics that are clinically researched. We are large, or not everyone. I am plant-based. My kids are. A lot of our community eats largely plant-based. My husband is an omnivore. But I’m really interested how you talk about the microbiome throughout, specifically the oral, if we could start there, and then the vaginal microbiome. So a couple of weeks ago, I had an interesting podcast with Dr. Nathan Bryan. I don’t know you’re familiar with him. He’s an expert. So I’m reading the section here and I said, hey, this is the second time I’m reading this in a few weeks, talking about the correlation between mouthwash and blood pressure. Rachel (09:50.764)Yeah. Rachel (09:57.942)Yes I am. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:11.719)And I was reading this in the kitchen and our beloved housekeeper, Ms. Elena, who’s from Guatemala. said, Ms. Elena, have you gotten off the mouthwash yet? She’s like, the scope? And I’m like, yes, you have to stop. And she has blood pressure issues. And she’s like, you know, when I was growing up in Guatemala, we didn’t have all these products and all this stuff, right? It’s just, we’ve gotten so away from nature. We feel we have to sanitize everything. And as you and Dr. Brian talk about, it has huge implications for our oral microbiome. Just mouthwash, fluoride toothpaste. Rachel (10:46.12)So true. I’m so glad you kind of you segue this into the conversation because yes, I mean, just just that one study alone about the mouthwash and how, yes, it’s like we’re going to this over sanitization of all of these ecosystems that are actually there, you know, supporting us. But we’re like trying to wipe it all out, which is which is crazy. Right. So but yes, to your point that that one particular study, I mean, think about it. You’re literally stripping away. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:55.208)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:07.709)What? Rachel (11:15.618)the bacteria that’s going to help convert the nitrates and food into nitric oxide for your body. And we’re just wiping it out with all of our products, including our mouthwash. That’s why in a week, if someone uses mouthwash twice per day, it significantly increases their blood pressure. It’s just wild. Thank you for passing the message to your housekeeper and to everyone you know. It’s amazing what these little microbes can do. And so I, in the book, how it’s related to fertility is that I just see this, think of it as a Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:21.416)Yes. Rachel (11:45.25)you know, a reproductive relevant ecosystem, if you will. So if there’s dysbiosis in the mouth, just think of that as having, you’re having like a, it’s like a power imbalance among the microbes living there. If that’s coupled with inflammation that really sets the stage for what is periodontal disease, that’s actually what can spell trouble for the rest of the body and in other places besides the mouth. And so. I talk about it in the context of fertility, but you’ll also hear about it in the context of other diseases. It’s also associated with cancer. It’s associated with neurodegenerative disease. It’s associated with heart disease. So again, it’s like, yes, I’m zooming in and putting all the research behind how it relates to fertility and how it relates to optimizing reproductive function. But I just want everyone to know that everything that you and I are going to talk about today and everything that’s in the book. It has so much relevance outside of fertility, doesn’t it? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:42.121)I’m laughing Rachel because it is so hard to get my sons to brush their teeth. And I had the Pokemon toothbrush that they love. We are a fluoride free family. I love that bokeh, alpha hydroxy appetite. have kids flavors. So I make their toothpaste taste as good as possible. I don’t know what it is. Rachel (12:57.376)You had everything. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:11.005)what kids don’t like to brush their teeth. Rachel (13:14.508)Nope, not at all. almost have to, you know, it has to be sort of a state where like they are so happy, but also like willing to stand still or sit still for two seconds, right? But it’s like, you could only do the best you can as mom, which is getting all of these amazing, you know, toothbrushes and basically everything you can, but in the most natural way, just to, you know, get a little swipe here and there, right? Get like one tooth floss, but yeah, I get it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:24.852)my god. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:41.661)Well, on the other hand, I’m happy to say my kids drink the Glowing Green Smoothie. I took a picture yesterday of my younger son eating his large strands. We cut it in certain way of his kale salad. So it’s really great to start your kids young, I think, not to get off track here as much as possible with these simple plant-based foods. And even if I have a lot of moms writing in that their kids are struggling, We also have a lot of family-friendly recipes, Rachel, because my older one starts to get into foods that taste good, other sorts of treats, but there really is such amazing creative ways to bring it back. So back to your point, this is a whole lifestyle. It’s for fertility, it’s for families, it’s for just us being healthy in general, all these factors, oral microbiome, not to get off track, and also… vaginal microbiome, which I love that you talk about this. I love that you talk about products, the types of things that we’re using with our periods. I just did a full reset, Rachel, only organic underwear, because you start reading about the pesticides and cotton, right? Like the off gassing. So tell us a little bit about, you know, how these products and chemicals and Rachel (14:56.22)amazing. Well done. Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:09.659)other ways in which we affect our vaginal microbiome and how we can support it. Rachel (15:14.256)I can’t wait. But I guess to seal up the little present of the oral microbiome, you know, I just have to I have to say, look at also all the other things that you’re doing, you know, with your children and the diet that they have. Remember, diet is the lever, like the biggest leverage point for for a healthy oral microbiome. You know, when I did my clinical rotations for my license, it was so cool. One of the rotations that we did was at. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:30.322)Yes. Rachel (15:40.532)NYU School of Pediatric Dentistry, which was like wild that we were even able to have that rotation. And so basically what I was seeing every single day are like, my God, these poor like little kids coming in mouthfuls of cavities. you know, it’s because, you know, their parents were giving them soda all day long, or they were falling asleep with like a little juice bottle that was like rotting out their teeth and having so much candy. So I just think like, I know sometimes the biggest struggle will feel like brushing someone’s teeth, but look at how much you’re doing. And that’s really kind of controlling the oral environment. It really kind of comes down to diet. So, okay, next to the next present, this reproductive relevant ecosystem. Yeah, yeah, definitely. So, it’s the vaginal microbiome. there is newer research on this sort of, again, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:21.457)Yeah. Thank you for. Rachel (16:36.148)ecosystem that no one’s really talking about, but it has major implications for fertility outcomes. this is where for us women, signs and symptoms are our opportunity to kind of listen to what the body is telling us, right? We just have to be receptive to that communication. So a lot of women, luckily, they know if they’re experiencing something that’s abnormal, right? Or they’re having reoccurring symptoms. This is our way, this is our body telling us, like, it could use a little assistance, right? There could. Yes, yeast infections, bacterial vaginosis, these type of infections. And all I could say like, look, there might be like a little, you know, hostile takeover situation happening among these microbes. And lucky for us, we can measure that now at home with like a DIY swab kit. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:08.617)When you say symptoms, do you mean yeast infections specifically? Rachel (17:31.886)right, that we can send back to the lab. It’s amazing. And I guess to just kind of bring this back to a bigger picture, you know, if I were giving getting IVF, but I was having, you reoccurring symptoms for years where I was kind of in and out of the OB-GYN, having to take my antibiotics, this and that, I would sure as heck, you know, do a $200 test kit before spending tens of thousands of dollars on IVF, considering there are certain community state types. It’s called that influence IVF success. Do you see how wild this is? How we can do so much to optimize our own ecosystem, but we aren’t. We’re just kind of, to your earlier point, 10 minutes ago, it’s like we’re not really kind of trying to discover any deeper root causes or anything of that nature. But anyway, I find this really fascinating. And to your point, the products that we’re using, and I love how you just kind of did like an overhaul of all the undergarments. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:15.375)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:20.194)It is. Rachel (18:28.31)A lot of the products that we’re using, unfortunately, I think of it as kind of, in a way, running interference on our bodies’ natural intelligence, right? So what can happen is that all of the products that we’re using, like douching and all these cleansing products, it can strip out the protective species. And what happens is that really sets the stage for more opportunistic bacteria to kind of take hold and cause problems. So yeah, it’s all about this conscious. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:36.851)Yo. Rachel (18:58.222)consumerism really, it’s like all the products that we’re putting in and around that area. mean, heck, we can put estrogen cream and other hormone creams to get absorbed. Like how could we not think that’s happening with all the other products that we’re putting down there, right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:13.843)Well, so it’s funny that you say that word, douching. Rachel, I’m sorry, it’s a funny word. Is it still popular? Rachel (19:24.266)There’s a lot more people that do it than you think. mean, so much so it’s even mentioned in some of these scientific articles of what potentially can strip away bacteria. think you and I are so fortunate that we kind of almost live in these bubbles where it’s just like. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:29.683)Really? Rachel (19:46.454)We couldn’t think of doing that. And it’s like our entire community is like, we already know that we shouldn’t be stripping away all of this beneficial bacteria. But yeah, I mean, all of this is still very, very popular. I mean, just go into any CVS, look at all just the cleansing products there is, right? It’s nice. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:00.446)Right. Well, the good news is this saves money, right? Get rid of the mouthwash, sweep the fluoride free, toothpaste, do not douche, straight up. And then, you know, some of the things you talk about in here, go fragrance free in soaps, body care products, be careful of chemicals in your period products. I use a cup, but if you’re using tampons, make sure that they’re, you know, Rachel (20:08.065)Hahaha Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:34.073)I mean, there’s some crazy stuff in cotton, which I’ve read about recently, which is why I switched to organic underwear, lubricants you talk about, and of course, taking care of our gut microbiome with diet probiotics and so on. Rachel (20:42.125)Yeah. Rachel (20:48.404)Exactly. And I guess one about the the period products, I know we we like automatically our mind jumps to tampons, pads, these sort of things. And, gosh, I actually really hate saying this because I’m so like pro innovation, right. And it was products that help women out. But I kind of think about like all of these brands that are doing this this underwear that like helps to like absorb the blood right during the menstrual cycle. And in reality, like think of how that’s Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:13.852)Yeah. Rachel (21:17.134)possible, like think about how many chemicals that takes to be able to do that. So a lot of these period products unfortunately have a lot of the forever chemicals, the PFAS and like that. And so yeah, it’s a lot. And I think that was kind of a lesser known fact and it definitely surprised me as well. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:27.943)Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:37.501)Well, what do you think about cups? Because it makes sense to me, environmentally, I just wash it out. Rachel (21:44.182)Yeah, yep. So that’s seen as kind of the, you know, one of the best options in that category, right, of all the options that we do have. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:52.679)Yeah. Okay. All right. So let’s, let’s move on, Rachel. Let’s talk about, I love, you know, metabolic health again, back to our overall vitality body composition. And can you speak a little bit how this is related to our overall health and our ability to do natural functions such as get pregnant and have babies. Rachel (22:18.036)Yeah, absolutely. Metabolic health, think, well, to take a step back before we kind of dive too clinical into what this means, I like to think of it as, you know, it just has to do with the flow of energy through our system, right? I mean, that’s what it’s all about. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:33.147)Yeah, but under our spells, our prana, essentially. Rachel (22:37.28)Yeah, thank you for that. So when there’s an imbalance here with our metabolic health, clinically we call that metabolic dysfunction. It’s basically an energetic blockage in our body and it really can interfere with our goal of getting pregnant. I’ll give you just a few examples of what the research has found. Metabolic dysfunction, you know, that can impact egg quality, sperm quality, embryo quality. It can interfere with hormones, the hormonal communication, which influences our monthly cycles, including ovulation, of course, which is necessary to get pregnant. It impacts our chances of conceiving. It impacts our chances of IVF. It can increase complications in our pregnancy. And this also, this conversation also applies to men as well, right? So there, if they have metabolic health or whether they have metabolic dysfunction, this can impact our ability to get pregnant as well as complications we can experience during pregnancy, which is wild. So why do I bring this up? Again, maybe this doesn’t really apply to a lot of your community members. Maybe it does, but let’s look at the country. And in terms of the country stats, know, one in 10 people approximately. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:34.889)Yeah. Rachel (23:51.498)in this country are defined as metabolically healthy, which means I’m like, hey, Kimberly, 90 % of us might have this opportunity to optimize our body in a way that’s going to get us closer to our goal. So there’s a few biomarkers that I speak about in the book that kind of tells us, hey, how is this system functioning? How is energy flowing through our body? And I specifically talk about blood sugar, like knowing your fasting blood sugar, also knowing your Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:59.945)Yeah. Rachel (24:21.102)HbA1c, which is like a three month report card of your blood sugar and knowing your insulin levels. The reason I just I think insulin is so gosh darn important is because, you know, insulin resistance means our cells aren’t responding properly to this hormone, right, as it should. This is what underlies PCOS, which for goodness sakes is the number one cause of anovulatory infertility globally. Right. So that’s what Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:26.983)Mm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:44.04)What? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:48.777)It’s growing too, right Rachel? Is it not going up? Rachel (24:50.824)Yes. So that’s why I actually take this so seriously in the book. And I’m like, we can nourish ourselves in a way that can facilitate better energy production in our body. And of course, there’s the entire chapter on it. There’s action plans, there’s everything and how to personalize it for your body. But that’s kind of just, again, the lay of the land and kind of what we’re dealing with and the opportunity. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:56.445)Yeah. Rachel (25:17.816)that we have to optimize our physiology in our favor. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:22.065)And you also talk about that in regards to methylation, gene selection. And that also is a larger topic around lifestyle, how we eat. Can you touch on methylation briefly? Rachel (25:34.286)my gosh, you bet it is. So methylation, think of this as the process by which your choices, like your food choices, your thoughts, your environment, your stress levels, it essentially can think of it like speaking to your DNA. So we can’t change the genomic sequencing, but we can change how DNA is expressed, which is heritable. That means it’s passed out to your child. And so we can actively create this internal environment. that’s full of vitality and that we can literally pass this vitality down to our child. Think about the health crisis, our children, and teens who are involved in too. I just think we have a responsibility here and that starts with preconception health. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:07.271)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:18.791)You know, it also, I really think, includes heart coherence, Rachel. Think about the difference when you’re in your heart and you’re connected to yourself, to your partner, to others. You’re less likely to eat crappy food. You have these loving thoughts. There’s all the research about heart coherence as well with the hormonal balance and just the energy opening up. So that part too, I think, preparing for preconception is making sure you create stability in your environment. you work through certain things. No one’s gonna be in a, you it doesn’t have to be perfect, but I think all of this is part of that totality. Rachel (26:58.124)You know what, Kimberly, this is why we need you here on this planet. We need your work and we need your books because for goodness sake, I mean, that’s it’s such a cornerstone of what we’re trying to accomplish here. And if we don’t put in the work with exactly what you’re describing, everything else is going to seem so much harder again. So, I mean, I guess I guess I’m here shouting out your book because it’s like everyone can take those little moments for themselves and Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (27:18.258)You Rachel (27:26.382)put their physiology in a better place, right? That is kind of what’s most surprising to me. I know in the book we talk about, say, like the environmental chemicals as an example, right? And all of these stressors in the environment. But here, what you’re talking about, I’m like, this is actually the most underrepresented topic when it comes to of toxic, is toxins in general, because it’s like. How are we speaking to ourselves? How much stress are we dealing with? What are our self-limiting beliefs, right? So on and so forth. I think we could talk about it now or just on that subject alone. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (27:55.113)It’s. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:02.429)I feel like heart and head can work together, right? Knowing the facts, knowing the research, feeling confident that you’re doing everything for your oral microbiome, for methylation, and it’s important to have that knowledge. And then I think it’s also important to marry it with your heart being in it because as we know, stress can really affect fertility and outcomes and stress affects us in our life overall. So I’m really glad you take such a holistic approach to Rachel. Rachel (28:32.896)Yeah, it’s this is this what it’s it’s all about. You know, I always speak to the science. Obviously, the book is crazy evidence based and so many citations. But look, again, this is just validating this kind of like this ancient wisdom to the intelligence that you’re speaking about right now. Right. It’s just kind of, you know, putting evidence behind it. But we all of this, we know it to be true. Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:58.909)Yes, we’re all a miracle. The fact that we’re here. And sometimes again, I think we move away from that and there’s so much fear and panic and anxiety if you start to get too much down the rabbit hole on Google or social media feeds. So, I really appreciate you bringing your wisdom, but also your heart, The through line I always say of our guests and our show, and I can really tell as I’m reviewing all these books, is the authenticity and wanting to help. And obviously you really do have so much love in your heart to want to support other women. And it comes through in the book, it comes through in the way, the clarity and also the succinctness, I will say, with which you write. Because, you know, people are pretty busy and You you say a lot in a readable book, and I think that’s really important to offer people as well. Rachel (30:01.902)I mean, Kimberly, if I told you, like, I don’t even want to admit how many years that took in order to do that and how many rewrites. I mean, it’s almost embarrassing when I think about it. So you saying that is like the biggest compliment for me. Because again, over three years, like rewriting, rewriting to just kind of, you know, get this message so succinctly, having women being able to optimize their physiology in a way that’s, you know, actionable. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (30:12.403)No. Rachel (30:31.79)You know, not just woo woo, but like really also putting evidence behind everything again that your book talks about. It’s amazing. It’s this sort of synergistic energy that we can bring to help lift up other women. So thank you so much for having this conversation. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (30:47.817)Well, thank you so much, Rachel. And I had to say, I’m looking forward to when you do become a mom, because you are going to be this living embodiment of all this work and all your teachings as well, when it’s meant to happen at perfect divine timing. Share with us, Rachel, where we can get your book, Trying a Science-Based Plan. Rachel (31:01.87)Thank you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:12.861)to optimize your fertility and I’m smiling because it’s science-based, but there’s so much heart in it. Your work where we can find out more about you, your book, your work and so on. Rachel (31:23.648)Yes, my gosh, so please pre-order the book. It’s on Amazon. It’s there waiting for you. And you can find out more information on my website, rachelswanson.com. My Instagram is at Rachel’sRx. I’m going to be getting a lot more social with this book launch, because I’m used to being behind the scenes, right, in clinic, kind of one-to-one care. But I’ll be coming out of the woodworks more. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:42.418)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:46.781)So amazing. Well, the world needs your heart, Rachel, and congratulations on your first book. Thank you so much for sharing your, again, your wisdom and your heart. Thank you everyone so much for tuning in. I encourage you to share this episode with anyone that you know that is trying to conceive, that is looking to optimize their health and wellness as you heard today. This isn’t just about fertility, but whole body well-being. think all the information we talked about with the microbiome and the oral microbiome could really help so many people. So please share the show. Our show notes will be at mysaloona.com where we will link directly to Rachel’s book and her work, as well as other articles and shows I think you would enjoy. We will be back here in just a few days. I’ll also see you on social at underscore Kimberly Snyder. Till then take great care and sending you all so much love.  

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Grant Elliot Episode Summary In this episode, Dr. Grant discusses his personal journey from being a competitive athlete to becoming a chiropractor focused on pain management. He emphasizes the importance of movement as a form of medicine, the impact of beliefs on pain perception, and the need for a holistic approach to treatment. The discussion covers the complexities of lower back pain, the risks associated with surgery, and the significance of unique movements in rehabilitation. Dr. Grant also highlights the emotional factors that contribute to pain and offers insights into managing hip pain, particularly in relation to pregnancy. He concludes by providing practical advice on time commitment for pain management and resources for further assistance. Sponsors: LMNT OFFER: Right now, for my listeners LMNT is offering a free sample pack with any LMNT drink mix purchase at DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD. That’s 8 single serving packets FREE with any LMNT any LMNT drink mix purchase. This deal is only available through my link so. Also try the new LMNT Sparkling — a bold, 16-ounce can of sparkling electrolyte water.   Feel Good Digestive Enzymes OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Website: therehabfix.com Social: @rehabfix Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Setting the Stage 00:13 Exploring Wellness and Nutrition 00:16 Introduction to Pain and Healing 03:21 The Journey to Chiropractic Care 06:23 Understanding Lower Back Pain 09:12 The Mechanics of Movement 12:26 The Role of Perception in Pain 15:18 Surgery vs. Conservative Care 18:22 Movement as Medicine 20:44 Understanding Pain: Beyond Posture 24:29 The Emotional Impact on Pain 29:05 The Multifactorial Nature of Back Pain 29:57 Exploring Hip Pain and Its Connections 34:14 Efficient Movement Protocols for Pain Relief 37:12 Resources for Pain Management and Assessment SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY'S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: speaker-0 (00:00.257) Welcome to the Feel Good Podcast, which is all about heart led living and wellness. When we awaken the power of our hearts and let that guide us through our daily choices and decisions, through our four cornerstones, food, body, emotional well-being and spiritual growth, we will experience the most incredible results and create more vitality, health, strength, peace, abundance and love in our lives. I am your host, Kimberly Snyder, New York Times bestselling author, founder of Saluna, creator of the research-based Heart Aligned Meditation, wellness expert, nutritionist, and international speaker. I am passionate about supporting you on your unique heart and wellness journey. Let's get started. speaker-1 (00:57.518) Hi everyone and welcome back to our Monday Interview Show. Very excited to share a conversation with you here today with Dr. Grant Elliott, who is a pain rehab specialist. He is the founder of RehabFix and he specializes specifically in back pain, sciatica, avoiding surgery. In fact, he says 97 % of people don't actually need the back surgery that they're prescribed. He's worked with many different prominent wellness and other types of people, including Dr. Andrew Huberman, helping to relieve pain through simple lifestyle practices and movement, which we'll get into today. Now, I was interested in doing the show because I think pain is really pervasive. If you start to listen to loved ones, to friends, colleagues, you'll start to notice a lot of people complaining about pain. And so the strategies we talk about today are accessible and again, can be a really powerful way to avoid surgery. So I'm really excited to share today's show with you. Whether you have pain or not, this is information that can really be useful to you and also loved ones around you. Before we get into the conversation though, a little reminder that our notes are at mysaloonit.com. We will link to our... links and research that we talk about on today's show, as well as other podcasts, articles that I think you would enjoy. You can also sign up for our newsletter on there to stay on top of our community happenings. We send out so much amazing information, including free recipes, promotions for our saluna digestion focused supplements, which are a really powerful way to elevate your lifestyle. Also, Free community Zooms, we'll have one coming up in January. I'm doing a couple of retreats next year. So it's a great idea to come deeper into our community by joining our newsletter. I also thank you in advance for taking just a minute out of your day to leave us a review on Apple, Spotify, wherever you listen, which is an amazing way to support the show. Also by sharing this episode or the show in general with anyone that you think would benefit. speaker-1 (03:17.57) All right, all that being said, let's get into our conversation today with pain specialist, Dr. Grant Elliott. Grant, thank you so much for being here with us today. I'm very excited to chat with you. Yeah, likewise. Thank you so much for having me. I think your work is fascinating because you're working with a body in such an intelligent, integrated way that many of your clients are not only reducing pain, but they're also reducing their amounts of surgery that they have to get. So I think it's really fascinating what you're doing, but before we dive in, I'm interested how you even were drawn to this line of work in the first place. Did you experience a lot of pain? Did you have it around you? What did your path entail? a few series of interconnected events. I would say the first one was, you know, growing up, me and my brothers were boys in athletics, always, you know, fitness aware, health aware, I would say. And I saw a common trend amongst pretty much all of my grandparents, which were declining health, pill for this, pill for that, injection for this, injection for that, surgery for this. And even at a younger age, I kind of observed that and I was like, you know, what if like you tried speaker-0 (04:35.8) getting healthy, know, novel concept. But I kind of like saw that even at a younger age. once I was in like middle school, high school, and I kind of was starting to think about what do I want to do? And I knew I wanted to go into some form of health fitness related thing. Well, when I was in high school, I was a competitive cyclist and I was doing cross country mountain bike racing and I was good. I was doing scholarship opportunities. and I was, I was competitive. I was good. I started dealing with a little back pain and this back pain started insidiously, which is the most common way back pain comes up. Kind of we, we kind of start to notice it. We wake up with it one day and it starts to last a little bit longer, a little bit longer. And then a few weeks, a few months go by and we realize, Hey, this thing is kind of not going away. This is a majority of scenarios. And that was kind of me. It hurt the most during my races. during my highest output, I'm gonna bend over position, pushing myself hard. And it started to get to the point where within 15, 20 minutes into my race, which they were normally an hour and a half to two hours, my low back just felt so like swelled up and pumped and stiff and achy. had to get off the course, I had to get off the trail, go into the woods, start doing some stretches in the woods to be able to get back on and continue. And I was doing that over almost every 10 minutes. And as you can imagine, you're not competitive anymore if you do that. So I went from winning almost every race, usually first or second every race, to going worse and worse and worse and worse and worse. And so my dad was like, hey, chiropractors, they're the low back specialists. Let's go see one. And what I know now is that we went to see what we would consider a old school, traditional type chiropractor where it's the here's your x-ray, your spine's crooked. You got to come see me multiple times a week. And we didn't know any better. A lot of people don't. And not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's not the most effective form of care. And which is what we're going to talk about today. And so I did that and surprise, surprise, did not get relief, didn't get better. So my performance continued to decline. And so I eventually just stopped racing, lost my scholarships. speaker-1 (06:55.264) It's so hard mentally. Yeah, it's, it's frustrating. Like with anyone, if you're a, you know, a hundred percent into something and you're finding identity in that and you're viewing that as, Hey, this is going to pay for my school. Yeah. Well, you know, there's some attachment to the hat. Um, so that was difficult and yep, that's kind of where I found myself. And then I just had to find a different outlet for athleticism and fitness. So just started working out, just went to a gym. never had a formal gym membership. Uh, at that point I was just in sports. So I joined a local gym, was working out, and I started to notice this one individual there who was doing unique movements, unique like warm-up drills, mobility drills, like activation drills, just unique movements that I hadn't seen before. So I approached him, talked to him, developed a relationship, and he ended up being a chiropractor. So I made the comment to him. I was like, hey, you know what? Like, the things you're doing, like, I've never seen them before, the way you talk, just the things you talk about. seemed completely different than my experience with a chiropractor. And he was like, well, I think he should come shadow me. So I went and shadowed him. And I saw my first example of an evidence-based chiropractor, which is, you know, including rehab and manual therapies and a lot of education, movement education, helping people to become independent as quickly as possible by teaching them how to fix themselves. I witnessed that and I realized, okay, if this is what I had had, probably wouldn't have quit racing. I probably wouldn't have lost my scholarships and my situation would be different. And so that motivated me to become a chiropractor to ensure that I could prevent as many people as possible from having the situation that I did. And that is what ultimately led me to this field. speaker-1 (08:44.238) What an amazing journey, know, the saying the wounded healer, if you hadn't gone through those experiences, maybe you wouldn't be so passionate about the work that you're doing because you lived through that loss and that attachment and pain for so long. Yeah, it definitely creates motivation to say the least. And so it was really just the drive for like, Hey, I wasn't a success. I was a failure. And so I just want to make sure I can go into this, be the best version of this so I can help as many people as possible and reduce the number of failures. Because I quickly realized, and this applies to any profession, any profession of any kind, the majority of any profession is average. I'm seeing all these individuals with low back pain specifically go to their general provider and get general advice and go to general chiro, chiros and general PTs and just get like, you know, kind of just generic stuff. And I was like, yeah, well, this isn't working because low back pain is the number one disability in the world. And so that just, you know, made me put my a hundred percent focus into being a rehab evidence movement based provider for that to do my part of making a dent in it, so to speak. So a couple of things in your story that were interesting, one is that you were a super athlete, sounded like you were training all the time and you got lower back pain. And sometimes we hear, sitting is the new smoking. So lower back pain can affect people that are very active and on the flip side, people that aren't moving very much at all. Is that right? Absolutely. Yeah. And, the term sitting is the new smoking. Actually not a huge fan of that term because there's really, there's really nothing wrong with sitting. The issue is if we stay in the same position too long and we don't move enough, that's the main issue. If you sit for eight hours straight and you don't move, you don't exercise. All right. Yeah. You're smoking, but if you happen to sit at work throughout the day, but you take frequent breaks and you have an exercise routine and you get your walks in, then there's nothing wrong with, you know, speaker-0 (10:51.352) But to your point, yes, obviously anyone who is moving more is healthier, in better shape. That's going to reduce their incidence of injury and chronic disease and all the things that go with it. That is obviously a given, but that does not mean they're immune to it. Not at all. And so we see two main things as know, individuals who are very active, who are pushing themselves, there's usually common patterns that they either fell into or doing that can still perpetuate. low back issues, can still create these symptoms to occur. And then on the other side, like you said, people who are not moving enough, who are just sitting all day, not getting the right movements, don't have mobility routines, yeah, they're also suffering. And what we do know is that, yes, the healthier you are, the more like you are, that the easier these things are to overcome. it's, you know, the couch potatoes, frankly, that have the highest incidence of injury for sure. And yeah, that's not a good recipe for any form of health. Can you share with us anatomically, you say lower back is where a lot of people feel pain. Why is it the lower back, the couch potatoes and all kinds of athletic people versus let's say the shoulders and the upper back since we might be looking down a lot on our phones or computers or driving. What is it about the lower back do you think? Yep. There's two main components here. One is a mechanical perspective and then the other one is a societal conditioning belief perspective. And so what I mean by this is one, our lower back, it's the primary lever arm for all movement. So if I sit, that's where majority of the force is going. If I stand and I bend forward, that's where a majority of the leverage is going. If I'm reaching out to, you know, pick something off the ground or catch something that's still pulling on my lower back, it's the It's a primary lever arm. We use it for everything. It is involved in every position. So therefore it has the most amount of stress on it. Now, one thing I want to say there is don't hear what I'm not saying. I'm not saying that stress is bad for your lower back. Stress is good for us. Stress is good for our muscles, for our bones. When our muscles are under stress, they grow and they get stronger. When our bones are under stress, they grow and get stronger. When our low back is under stress, it can still grow and adapt and get stronger. speaker-0 (13:12.46) It is still a primary lever and it still is stressed the most. You combine that with a societal belief, a societal narrative that's very, very negative about lower back pain and that creates the number one disability in the world, which it is. 80 % of human beings alive will experience low back pain at some point in their life. It is the number one disability. It costs over $100 billion in healthcare expenses and everything. It's massive. It is massive. What I mean by the second point there is if someone, let's just say hurts their elbow, they're telling their friends, they're telling their family, nobody's freaking out. They're probably just saying, that sucks. I'm sure it'll be better in a week or two. Right. You know, it's, no big deal. But the belief system, the narrative about low back pain is such that as someone says, I hurt my low back, then people are responding. my gosh. Should you go get imaging? my gosh. My. My aunt Susie got a back issue and she was never the same for 10 years. She's using a walker now. She didn't get surgery. It's there's all these really, really negative narratives about lower back pain because it's so misunderstood. So well, people don't realize is pain is common. And to a certain extent, pain is normal. It's a part of the normal human experience, but it's how we interpret that pain. And it's what we do with that pain that determines where we go and determines the level of disability and suffering we might occur. So, yeah, somewhat out there, let's say for the last 10 years, they've heard all these horror stories about people and their family who dealt with low back issues or their friends, families who dealt with low back issues. Let's just say that's ingrained in their mind of, my gosh, back issues, super bad, super serious life altering. And that's ingrained in their mind. That's their belief system. Okay, now let's take a very normal incident. Someone is, let's say moderately active. And then there's a particular day where they're working in the garden two extra hours. They sit at work a couple extra hours. They're not moving as much as they normally would have. They have had a really stressful week. They ate maybe a few more inflammatory foods than they otherwise should have. And then, my gosh, I gotta go, you know, move all these boxes, help my friends move. It's a lot of work that maybe their lower back is not used to. And they go to bed and they wake up and... speaker-0 (15:39.278) They're a little back sore. No big deal. No big deal. But because of their belief system, what they've heard for years, they take that very normal, very common experience and they catastrophize it. It's, my gosh, it's doomsday. I just woke up and I'm experienced back pain. This is bad. I need to run to the hospital. I need to run to my doctor. I need to run to imaging. option. It's the perception and that creates an avalanche and a spiral that people get trapped into and it leads them to the wrong forms of care extremely quickly. And that's what turns it into a chronic issue. speaker-1 (16:27.872) Even in these winter months, hydration cannot be forgotten. We don't want our skin and hair to become dried and frayed and for our energy to start to lag. Hydration is about water and also electrolytes, which need to be replenished regularly. You can do that through your diet and also by the insurance of drinking a daily element electrolyte pack. This is something I do as part of my morning practice. Now, in the morning when I drink my room temperature water, I add a element packet in, usually watermelon or raspberry, which are my favorite flavors. And what I find is that it supports consistent energy. It wards off fatigue and it helps my skin to glow. I love the element brand because it contains a science-backed mix of magnesium, sodium and potassium. It doesn't have added sugars or fillers or preservatives. And right now for our amazing community to get in on this. Element is offering a free sample pack with any Element Drink Mix purchase. Please go to www.drinkelement.com slash feelgood. That's eight single serving packets for free with any Element Drink Mix purchase. That's www.drinkelement.com slash feelgood. We are not what we eat, we are what we digest. And to support you each day, Saluna's Digestive Enzyme Supplements support your highest levels of health and beauty and youthful vitality, which is really the life force running through you, your aliveness. Created to aid the body's natural digestive process, these unique digestive enzymes work directly on the food you eat to help break down macronutrients, protein, fat, and carbs, and fiber. into a form that can easily pass through your digestive system and be utilized by your body to benefit your health and beauty. In other words, these saluna digestive enzymes save your body energy, which over the long term helps to preserve your own life force and keep you youthful. Key benefits and ingredients include enhancing digestion and assisting in the absorption of critical nutrients, delivering two to three times more lipase versus other top formulas, speaker-1 (18:49.784) for optimal fat metabolism, including specialized enzymes to help break down plant fiber, helping to reduce bloating, gas, and other sources of digestive distress, providing powerful anti-Candida enzymes for faster healing and detox. Please go to mysaluna.com and use code PODFAM15 for 15 % off your entire order, including these amazing digestive enzymes. Once again, that's mysaluna.com with the code PODFAM15. MySOLLuna.com, code PODFAM15 for 15 % off your entire order. speaker-1 (19:35.63) It's also kind of scary how, I don't want to say knife happy or prone to recommending surgery. A lot of doctors are right off the bat. I have heard, I know people who have gotten back surgery and it said that they said it didn't really help their pain. They still had the same issues. But to your point, when you perceive that something's really scary and wrong, you can be more susceptible to agreeing to surgery without exploring some of these other means. And that is Oof, that is pretty scary. Yep. So we're the number one online low back program in the world. We have over 200 consultations a week with people all over and we get clients every single week who have had one to three surgeries already on their lower back and are in the exact same position or worse positions. Wow. And if we look at what the evidence shows, the evidence is really clear. They call it the third, third, third rule. The goal of a good surgeon is that 30 % of the individuals that undergo low back surgery would be deemed success, which just means their outcomes improve. 30 % of people improving is a good goal. About 30 % will stay the same. No change, just as much pain, no change. But now they've undergone an irreversible procedure. Yeah. And then about 30 % will be worse. So when we average these out, the failure rate is around 50 % or more. my god. speaker-0 (21:04.204) And then what we see is that with every consecutive surgery that is performed, the risk of chronic pain and the outcomes only go down. They get worse and worse and worse with every consecutive surgery. But how does this contrast with what the evidence shows us? And this is why it's so important to understand the evidence and to be an evidence-based provider so that you can have the knowledge and be equipped to make the right decisions. We know that 97 % of lumbar disc herniations, which is one of the most common lower back issues that are operated on, 97 % can recover without surgery. No surgery needed. Wow. the movements that you were talking about. Yes, conservative therapy. only about 3 % of people with painful lumbar disc herniations will require surgery. But I'm telling you this, there's no way, there's no chance if you take the average percentage of lumbar surgeries performed across the world, there is no way it's 3 % of individuals. It is way more than that. Way more. So, surgeons are performing surgeries that are not indicated. Surgeons do not know the clinical indication for surgery, which is crazy to think about, but a lot of them don't. And yeah, it's, you know, this is what I do. This is what I get paid to do, which there's nothing wrong doing what you get paid to do. There's nothing wrong with that. But if, you know, they're not taking into consideration clinical protocols and clinical indications and any MRI they get, that shows a disc, regardless of if the disc is symptomatic or not, they're saying, hey, it's my job to cut this out. speaker-0 (22:39.384) then we're gonna get a lot of really, really poor outcomes. And this is what we're seeing in healthcare. Wow. So going back to, I like this phrase you used earlier, unique movements. And in our society, the way we move is very linear front and back. You mentioned you having a healthy lifestyle moving in general. Some of your videos on your Instagram channel are unique. And I think, know, interesting, but also a lot of them are quite accessible. There's some circular movements, there's different ways in which we move. So can you talk a little bit about your philosophy? I know there's so many different exercises, but moving with in unique ways and how that can help the pain. Yeah, here's the most important and easiest lesson we can, you know, describe in a verbal format. So first and foremost, we all need to understand that movement is medicine. Movement is medicine. Now, with that being said, different movements are different forms of medicine. There's going to be certain movements that are beneficial to someone, and right now I'm primarily talking about people who have pain. They have sciatica, they have a disc herniation, they're symptomatic. Certain movements will make them feel better and certain movements will make them feel worse. So movement is medicine, but different movements are different forms of medicine. And we want to find the right medicine for that person at the right dosage and at the right frequency. Just like your pharmacist would do for an alternative condition, you want to treat movement the same. So yes, movement is medicine, but just understand speaker-0 (24:19.448) my gosh, I tried movement and I'm flared up and I'm worse and my gosh, movement won't help me. That is not true. That is not true. You have to find the right medicine, just like you would for any particular condition. Now, with that being said, the easiest way to evaluate one's movement is to think, okay, what are we doing the most of throughout our day? We need to think about this. So for a majority of individuals, they're going to fall into a category where we are sitting most of the day, which once again, there's Nothing inherently wrong with that. It's if we don't do anything about it that creates the issue. But if we're sitting most of the day, think about the position that that puts our body in and various joints. So most of us are probably sitting right now. Let's think about this. Your knees are bent. Your hips are flexed, meaning your knees are closer to your torso. So there's a short angle in your hip flexors. Your lower back is probably rounded forward. Your mid back is probably rounded forward. Your shoulders are probably rounded forward. This is a position the majority of us are going to be in. So here's how we think about it is if that is the position that our joints and our muscles are getting the most of throughout the day, we want to do the opposite of those motions to undo the stress and the forces that are placed on them. It's like, I'm, imagine I'm bending, this might be a silly example, but sometimes silly and basic examples work the best. Imagine there's a moldable piece of aluminum, let's say, okay? And we're kind of pushing it one direction. We're pushing a little bit more, a little bit more, a little bit more. And it's slowly bending to the side. You're thinking, okay, that piece of aluminum, that's not very straight anymore. How do we straighten it back up? By bending it the other way. So, If our low back and our hips, let's say, if they're getting a whole lot of one motion, one motion, one motion, one motion, a majority of the day, you're putting stressors on that that are, you know, might eventually put it in a position where, hey, we can't tolerate this anymore. So we got to start to bend it back the other way to get it straight. And that's the concept of doing more of the opposite, doing more of the opposite. So if my low back is in a flexed, rounded position most of the day, speaker-0 (26:37.144) I need to do more of the opposite. need to stand up straight. I need to put my back in an extended position. I need to get on the floor, perform a Cobra pose for repetitions, get my back into an arch position. I need to do extension-based movements in the gym for my hips. Okay, if my hips are in a flex position, same thing. I need to get more hip flexor stretches. I need to do hip extension-based movements. I need to do glute motions that involve pushing my hip into extension. This is gonna do the opposite. reverse the motions that are being overdone on these regions to help undo a majority of the stress. And so there's many different movements that can satisfy this protocol. But the easiest way to look at one's situation, because remember, people have different lifestyles and they might be in different positions throughout the day, is if you can analyze your body and think, okay, what position are my joints in eight hours a day, start to do more of the opposite. You mean while you're so there's the movements that are the opposite. But what about grant our posture and manipulating how we're sitting for those hours? Is that part of your protocol too? Well, Not necessarily. Because if we look at the evidence, we know that the evidence does not support a causational relationship between posture and pain. Really? That is interesting. speaker-0 (27:57.302) Yep, doesn't exist. Posture is very commonly a narrative that is inappropriately pushed on a lot of people and is blamed when it otherwise should not be. posture, think about it this way. If I'm sitting down, if I had been forward and I had been back, I was just in like 30 different postures. A posture is just one position at one moment in time. To take someone's entire pain experience and to stamp the label, it's because of your posture. is a huge disservice, it's incredibly negligent to your job as a healthcare provider and to the person who's dealing with pain. Because here's what I mean by this. Pain is influenced by so many things. Yes, it's influenced by mechanical stressors, what we're doing and what we're putting on our body throughout the day and the positions we're in. But also it's influenced by interpersonal relationships. It's influenced by stress at work. It's influenced by diet. It's influenced by sleep. It's influenced by our belief systems. It's influenced by all of these things. So if someone has, you know, situations where it would involve multiple facets and we take all those things, we don't analyze their sleep. We don't analyze their lifestyle. We don't analyze their emotional impact. We don't analyze their belief system. We don't analyze anything. We don't analyze their exercise. We don't analyze their movement. Nothing. And we go, yeah, your back hurts because your posture. man. That's one of the worst things you could tell someone because you're isolating them into a box. It's fractured. Yeah, you're segmenting them. You're fracturing them. And so if you're labeling them with that, and so now the only thing they're doing is, you know, obsessing about their posture, but all these other things are occurring in their life. They're movements off. They're not getting the right movements. They are getting bad sleep. They have bad to all these things. And that's not being adjusted. Then they're going to stay trapped in this box for a really, really long time. Wow. speaker-0 (29:51.95) So we don't want to make that mistake. So posture is only important in the context of being aware of the position you're in too long. So if I sit in a bent position for a really, really long time, that is one posture I'm in for too long. That's not going to feel good. But also if I sit perfectly straight, shoulders back, my gosh, I look beautiful. Okay. If I stay in that position for a long straight, that's not going to feel good either. We don't want to be in any one posture for too long. We want to be in as many different postures as possible as frequently throughout the day because the best posture for you is the one you're in for the next five minutes. It was really interesting too. You just mentioned talking about emotional impact or state. Do your clients self-report that, saying, you know, I'm feeling frazzled or I'm going through a lot of turmoil in my life? How do you measure that? Yeah, this is more of a delicate concept because some people don't believe that emotions, stress, mindset can play a in their pain. Some people don't believe that. They might interpret that as being, you're telling me the pain's in my head. And we say, no, but also, yes, 100 % of our pain. is created by our brain. All pain is created within your brain. All pain is real. Pain is an experience. So one, people might have a belief that, these things aren't involved, so don't even suggest that to me. And that can become a bit of a friction point, if you will. Other people might agree with that, but might be withholding that form of information. There could be a certain level of comfortability that might be needed to disclose those things. So the manner in which speaker-0 (31:49.058) we can breach these topics needs to be delicate. So there's usually a few signs or symptoms that we can identify that usually relate to more of an emotional origin or a stress origin or a mental origin related to it to some capacity. There's many different variables when I say mental origin. There's many different places. But if we hear some things that we think could be related, then some very, very simple questions that could open some doors could just be, hey, do you notice more pain at work? Okay, well, they're going to say yes for one of two reasons. Either one, because the position they're in while they work actually increases their pain, or just the environment they're in increases emotional stressors, increases mental stressors, and therefore that increases their pain. And we can identify that through a little bit of questioning. If not, we might say, Is your pain worse at home? Maybe they feel completely fine at work and maybe they're sitting at work and then they go home and sit and they're not fine. Why would that be? Is there something about your home environment that causes increased emotional stress or anxiety or things that relate to that? Outside of that, additional questions are, when this pain began, was there anything substantial that changed in your life? That's an open question. Other deeper questions could be, Has anything significant happened recently to any close friends or close family members? And there are many scenarios where a loved one to any capacity was either in an accident or was very ill or passed away. And that was in direct relationship with that individual's pain experience. And once we were able to identify that and relay that education and help the individual realize that, that sort of autonomy over their pain experience and that understanding and feeling independent and more in control. That was all they needed to start the healing process. That can be very powerful. speaker-1 (33:54.03) It's so powerful because people do fracture. Like we said, there's a lot of specialists that are like, well, I only treat, you know, your nose and throat and forget about everything else or only your liver, only your bones. But seeing we're whole beings, right? And we have the mind, we have emotions, we have the physical body and they do interplay and they do, they do affect. And there's so many studies now, seeing how stress affects hormonal regulation, affects digestion. So it makes sense that different factors, it's multifactorial when you're looking at back pain. And I'm really happy to hear that you're taking that holistic approach, which some practitioners don't, obviously. Yep. It's, you look at back pain as a whole, 90 % is called non-specific low back pain, which is exactly what, you know, that the title says non-specific. You cannot trace it back to one specific thing. And that's not to say that there can't be a clear mechanism of injury for low back pain. Like a really common presentation is, you know, we'll work with someone who's active, common gym goer. They might have done a heavy squat, done a heavy deadlift, or maybe they just... Maybe they weren't working out, they're in their home and just bent over to pick up their phone and they felt a pop in their lower back or it seized up. And now they're speaking with us. Yes, in that scenario, you might think, that seems pretty specific. It was that one thing they did. But even in that scenario, it's not that clear cut. Yes, that tells us the mechanism of injury. But we have to trace the steps back to, well, why did that thing create the injury? And then we have to look back at everything else that we've discussed up until this point. is nonspecific. It's multifactorial. There's many, many different things involved. So looking at those things, figuring out what might be missing, and then combining that with the proper rehab plan that does address the actual joints, muscles, disc, nerve in the way that they need, that's the recipe. speaker-1 (35:53.528) Sounds like a good recipe. So, Grant, thankfully, not going to go here, I don't have lower back pain except for when I was pregnant twice, right? I think that's pretty common in women. But I have experienced hip pain, and I believe that's fairly common in women, and I don't know if that's related to the lower back and the other factors you were mentioning, if there's a relationship, if it's separate, if it also has to do with hamstrings. Can you share a little bit about hip pain? Yeah. First off, pregnancy is a very, very common period of life for low back, hip or sciatica induced pain. There are things that you can do to manage symptoms in the later stages of pregnancy. But this is a really common onset. There's obviously a lot of stress and a lot of changes going on within your body. you can find symptom management. You can find significant symptom reduction. It's usually difficult. Let's just say, for example, like my wife, I've had three young kids. I got a four year old, a three year old and a seven month old. And my wife, you know, I'm the low back guy, but even still she developed on and off sciatica around, you know, month seven, month eight, you know, month nine. At that point, there's only so much you can do. There's still a lot you can do, but there's only so much you can't, you know, eliminate it. There's stresses going on in your body. So. The main reason for this is not only the force distribution within your body, but then of course the hormone relaxin that relaxes all of your ligaments, increases ligament laxity as a whole, joint laxity throughout your body that can therefore create pain in various places. So the pelvic floor is related to this as well. Pelvic floor strength, pelvic floor integrity, that relates to your hip and the low back relates to your hip. Two things that are affected during So when we look at the hip, we look at above and below. We look, okay, what does the ankle do? What does the knee do? What's the integrity of the pelvic floor, especially as it relates to women primarily who have gone through labor and then the low back, the low back and the hips, they're like best friends. If one isn't happy, usually the other one isn't either. So really the two main things to look at in any area of the body, but primarily the hip would be, okay, is there a joint restriction? Is there a position of your hip that you're not getting enough of? Is the joint itself essentially locked up? speaker-0 (38:19.534) and not going a direction otherwise should be. And then what is the stability of the hip as a whole? That would be impacted by muscular strength and muscular function in different ways. So usually we see a few common patterns of the type of stability that's missing. So to keep things super generic, if someone has hip pain, we want to focus on the lower back because that's a relationship. We want to rule out the lower back, make sure the lower back is not referring to the hip. And then once that Okay. speaker-0 (38:49.568) is checked, okay, then we're focusing on the mobility of the hip that is primarily deficient and then stability of the hip that is deficient. And that's sort of the blueprint approach to addressing hip pain. I remember I went to see a, not a chiropractor grant, but a fascia specialist and he was having me do clam shells to try to stabilize the hip. You're smiling. didn't probably, a bit basic. Well, it's all relative to where the person is at. I clamshells are very basic exercises. It's this minimal load. But if the individual performing them cannot tolerate more load than that, then it would be appropriate for that situation. The only issue is a majority of individuals who are given that exercise, they can usually handle more load than that. The vast majority of individuals dealing with pain are significantly under loaded, which means not enough weight is placed on their body, not enough like stress is placed. So imagine I'm in the gym and I'm double curls with one pound. That's not going to do anything. I should probably do more weight than that. So that's load. So if we look at a healthy individual who's remotely active, clam shell is not going to be enough load most of the time. Yeah. Okay. So if someone's listening to this and they're interested in learning about these movements and they're also saying, which to be honest, I say to myself, Hey, you know, I'm a pretty busy working mom. How much time would I need to a lot? And of course the, you know, the higher the pain, you're, you're, you're more willing to do more. But in general grants, someone's doing your protocols, seeing your videos, doing, you know, going on your website, making consultations. speaker-1 (40:34.702) How much time in general, I know this is a really blanket statement, would one have to dedicate to these movements? You shouldn't be dedicating more than 10 to 15 minutes a day if you have the right plan. Wow, that is not what I expecting her to say. That is amazing. 10 to 15 minutes. Okay, sign me up. That is, it's precise, it's specific, and it's effective. You don't need more time than that. Think about it this way. I used an analogy earlier of movements medicine. You got to find the right medicine. imagine if I walked into a pharmacy and I was like, I don't really know what I'm dealing with, but I got symptoms. I don't really know the names of these medications or what they do, but I'm just going to kind of take everything and like walk around and guess. Okay. That's what it's like for a lot of people dealing with back pain or other pain who are just searching the internet for various exercises, trying random things. That's what they're doing. Now, once again, movement is good. Movement is good, but movement is medicine. And if you have pain, you will do movements that hurt. You will do movements that are better. You've got to identify the right ones. So what we do is we help someone accurately identify their situation. We walk into the pharmacy, know, theoretically, we're not actually doing this. speaker-0 (41:56.994) We clear all the shelves and we say, yep, these are the two that you need to take the first week. These are the two. This is how often, this is how many, just do that. So now we have the most targeted approach towards that specific condition. So they're not wasting their time doing 30 minutes, 60 minutes, two hours of stuff that is not specific or targeted to that particular issue. So when you have a very, very targeted approach, you can do a lot less and get way more significant of a result. once again, don't hear what I'm not saying. I'm not saying people can be super healthy for the rest of their life, only 10 minutes a day. That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying if we have pain and you have a rehab plan, 10 to 15 minutes is all that's necessary. But of course, when we get people healthy and they can get back into the gym and do things, obviously we want to spend more time exercising and moving and investing into our health. Yes, of course, it's the whole lifestyle. Like we said, sleep and food and everything. are you saying, Grant, I can put some weight on my knees and keep doing my clam shelf? Yeah, you can load yourself up. Put a barbell on your back, rip a barbell off the ground. Do some weight, baby. That's good for everybody. So, Dr. Grant, thank you so much for sharing your wisdom with us. I love your holistic approach and the evidence-based and the fact that you're including emotional well-being and the specific, the targeted, pain from a very wide palette. So where can we learn more about your work? And if someone's interested in doing your program, where do we go? speaker-0 (43:40.398) So you can find me and my team and all of our content searching RehabFix on all platforms. I'd like to provide anyone listening or watching is if you go to my Instagram,And you just message us the word podcast. Nothing else. Just message us the word podcast. I will actually send you a do it yourself assessment, which is a process that we normally take our one-on-one clients through. And this isn't shared anywhere. This isn't posted anywhere. This is only going to be exclusive to the people who listen to this podcast where you just message the word podcast. I'll send you a video. It'll take you through a do it yourself assessment. I'll walk you through the tests you should do. I'll walk you through the exercises you should do. And the majority of people see real time diagnosis, real time relief during that so that you can get a direction where to go. And of course, at the end of it, if you want more help and a more plan based on your findings, you'll have the opportunity to reach out for us for that. pain reduction and also as we just spoke about reducing unnecessary surgery. So please share the episode. Please go to mysolluna.com for the show notes. We will also link directly to Dr. Grant's website and his handles. And you can also find me on Instagram at at underscore Kimberly Snyder. We will be back here in just a few days. So till then take great care and sending you all so much love.

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Amy Killen Summary: In this enlightening conversation, Dr. Amy Killen discusses the evolving landscape of wellness technologies and supplements, focusing on collagen, hormone replacement therapy, and the importance of ovarian health. She emphasizes the connection between inner health and outer beauty, particularly skin and hair health, while also addressing the role of lifestyle factors such as diet, stress, and sleep. The discussion extends to the potential benefits of peptides, the impact of sugar and caffeine on health, and the significance of melatonin for sleep. Dr. Killen empowers listeners to take control of their health and well-being through informed choices and lifestyle adjustments. About Dr. Amy Killen A leading longevity and regenerative physician, entrepreneur, speaker, clinical practice owner, author, and frequent media guest, Dr. Killen has become an outspoken advocate for empowering people to look and feel their best by combining lifestyle modification, integrative medicine, body-identical hormones, peptides, and regenerative therapies. Dr. Killen, a former emergency physician, has firsthand experience with the bureaucratic obstacles that can delay critical treatments from reaching patients. Driven by a passion for healthcare innovation, she is dedicated to making effective yet underutilized diagnostics and treatments widely accessible. Dr. Killen is committed to transforming healthcare through entrepreneurship, education, and patient empowerment. She is also the founder and CEO of the Human Optimization Project (HOP), a longevity-focused supplement company dedicated to providing women with unique, science-backed products designed for convenience and effectiveness. These easy-to-use, portable solutions target aging at the cellular level. Additionally, Dr. Killen is the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Humanaut Health, a cutting-edge longevity clinic franchise. Humanaut Health combines hormone therapy, peptides, regenerative medicine, lifestyle medicine, and advanced diagnostics to deliver a tech-enabled, proactive approach to health optimization. In her Utah-based practice, Docere Clinics, Dr. Killen and her colleague, Dr. Harry Adelson, pioneered the Full Body Stem Cell Makeover, one of the most innovative regenerative procedures currently available. Guest Resources: Website: www.dramykillen.com, Hopbox.life Social: @Dr.AmyBKillen Episode Sponsors: FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY GLOWING GREENS POWDER OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. USE LINK: mysolluna.com CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. Episode Chapters 00:00 The Rise of Wellness Technologies 03:03 Collagen: The Controversial Supplement 05:58 Skin Health and Inner Wellness 09:04 Hormone Replacement Therapy: A Deeper Dive 11:51 Understanding Testosterone in Women 15:07 The Role of Ovarian Health 17:57 Peptides: The New Frontier 20:45 Sugar and Women's Health 23:50 Caffeine: Friend or Foe? 26:50 Melatonin: The Sleep Hormone 29:44 Hair Health: Addressing Hair Loss 32:47 Empowerment Through Knowledge SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY'S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.226) Dr. Amy, thank you so much for joining us here today from Utah, right? Amy Killen MD (00:05.902) Yes, yes, I'm in Salt Lake City, Utah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:08.534) It's amazing how connected we can be wherever we are. I was thinking about, I've been excited to talk to you for a couple of weeks. I feel like this is such an exciting time for all the new technologies and wellness products and wellness modalities. But there's also so much confusion out there about what works and what doesn't and what people should be spending money on. So it's exciting, but it's also an interesting time, isn't it? Amy Killen MD (00:40.32) It is. It is. hard to know what's good and what's not sometimes. There's so many options out there these days. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:46.87) And I know you speak to many subjects, but I want to start with one supplement, which we've all seen that just blew up, which is collagen. And I always was, I suspected something was going on with it, Amy, because it just sort of seemed a little strange. And I didn't know if we would actually do anything to eat collagen. It was sort of like this idea, you have to eat hair to grow better hair versus nutrients that support it. I read a really interesting article you wrote about how the research seemed promising and then more started to become uncovered. Can you share a little bit about your findings? Amy Killen MD (01:27.342) Yeah, collagen is one of those things I've kind of changed my mind about. And I don't think it's bad by any means. I think it has purposes. I think it's still probably good for, especially for joints and like musculoskeletal health. But I have changed my opinions about collagen for skin health in that I don't think we have as much data as we thought we did. So there were a series of studies over the last couple of decades on collagen for skin health and... The short version is the initial kind of meta-analyses where they bring all the studies together from like 2021, 2023 were very promising. And it seemed like, you know, taking collagen in orally as a powder or drink or whatever, you know, could actually improve skin hydration and elasticity and make people look a little bit fresher. And so, you know, I'd been recommending collagen for years based on all of those initial studies. But a new study, our review article came out in 2025 that basically, you made me little bit weary about those early results. What they did was they took all those initial studies and they categorized them by who was funding the study. So if it was industry funded, if it was the college and company was funding it, it went in one bucket. If it was not industry funded, it went another bucket. And they found that all the studies essentially that had good results were industry funded. And if you looked, took those off the table, then collagen did not seem to really improve skin health. So it's still, I think the jury is still out. Like we still have more to learn, but at this point, I'm not a hundred percent convinced that collagen is the panacea we thought it was for skin. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:03.476) Right. And in your work, Dr. Amy, I know, you know, so many of us want to look good, like you mentioned, people want to look fresh, they want their skin to look good, they want their hair to look good. But also on a deeper level, and I've always believed this, your skin and your hair and these outer markers, if you will, for beauty do have relevance to your inner health, your organ health, what's going on in the cellular level. Can you speak to that as well? Amy Killen MD (03:33.218) Yeah, absolutely. think the skin is just one more visible marker of health in general. So absolutely, I think the foundation is always going to be the same things that make us healthy, know, clean diet, exercise, sleep, you know, all those kinds of things. For skin, getting some sort of protection from UV light, especially in the skin that's exposed to UV light over and over again is important for aging, for slowing down aging. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:52.907) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (03:57.09) But we always want to start from the inside, but as a sort of midlife woman, I also am very, conscious of like, what else can I do besides live healthy? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:07.092) Yes. And what else would you say if someone wants to go beyond collagen? Like you said, might be great for joint health, but the reasons people, a lot of people were buying those products was because they wanted to improve skin elasticity. So beyond healthy diet, what have you seen that actually does have merit? Amy Killen MD (04:21.388) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (04:26.104) I mean, the biggest things that we know work, we know that sunblock works. So like, like a mineral sunblock, like zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. It sits on top of the skin, doesn't get really absorbed into the skin. And you know, I think that that's really important as just put it on every day before you go outside. I'm a big fan of the sun, but I also think we have to protect the, especially the face and neck and those areas. So that definitely works. Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:32.444) huh. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:47.189) I'm laughing because I just came from Hawaii. I'm like always trying to wear a hat because to be honest, Amy, you know, I try with the sunscreen. I put it on the face, but you know, the hat is always in my, our farm cars. So I try to keep that consistent. Amy Killen MD (05:01.612) Yeah. And you know, mean, some sun is healthy. Like we know that some sun exposure is very important for overall health. know the population that gets sun tend to have lower risks of diabetes and multiple cancers and heart disease and all kinds of things. So some sun is important. It is also one of the biggest drivers of aging in the skin. So the other thing I really like, I think that retinoids have a lot of evidence behind them. They're one of the best studied. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:05.762) Yes. Amy Killen MD (05:28.438) ingredients for skin health. And that's like retinols or a treatinol and retinoids and things like that. And you can get those over the counter or you can get prescriptions for stronger ones, but we know those work. And then good antioxidants applied topically to the skin as well as taken orally can also be helpful. Like astaxanthin, for instance, it's a great, it can be taken orally and it has great skin benefits and also some sun protection benefits actually. And you can also apply it topically. So things like astaxanthin, vitamin C, vitamin E. Some of those have really good research for both oral and topical applications for skin. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:03.562) And he still holds, Dr. Amy, that if we're trying to get pregnant, if we are pregnant, we should avoid retinoids. Amy Killen MD (06:10.86) Yeah, avoid retinoids, especially the stronger ones. Always talk to your doctor before you're taking anything, certainly orally. I don't know about what the research is right now on the weaker topical retinols when you're pregnant, but I would definitely talk to your doctor first. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:27.328) There's also a lot of conversation around hormone replacement therapy these days. There's a lot of conversation, menopause, perimenopause. Is one of the benefits, because I've heard different things of taking hormones, can that improve your skin and bone health as well? Amy Killen MD (06:45.326) Yeah, absolutely. we lose... So women during perimenopause, which you know is about five to 10 years before menopause, and it can start as early as 35 or so and still be normal, perimenopause, estrogen and progesterone start to go down. And estrogen especially is very important for your skin. It helps your body to maintain the collagen in your skin. In fact, when you go through menopause, you lose 30 % of your collagen in your body system-wide. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:55.54) Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:04.758) Mmm. Amy Killen MD (07:15.552) it just drops off a cliff because it loses the estrogen signal that is required to keep the collagen in the tissue. replacing estrogen whenever it's time to do that, usually it's late perimenopause or early menopause, can really help to preserve skin elasticity and hydration and structure and all of those things. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:15.552) Wow. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:36.426) What if you're in your 30s and you don't have any of these symptoms yet? You you still get your period every 28 days and your moods are stabilized, you're sleeping well, you don't have hot flashes. When would be a signal that says, hey, you might want to explore these hormone replacement options? Amy Killen MD (07:56.206) know, if you're in your thirties and you're feeling good and your cycles are good, you're, probably good. Like you don't necessarily have to go do anything at that point. In general, it's usually people when they get a little closer to the forties or when you're starting to have symptoms, like you're all of sudden, you can't sleep at night, especially like the two weeks before your period, or you're really irritable or you're having really bad PMS pain or symptoms. Um, there's a lot of different kinds of symptoms often in the, in the weeks before your period that will signify that, that progesterone is starting to go down and that you might. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:03.285) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (08:25.826) want to talk to your doctor about replacing that. That's the first hormone we usually replace. Or other changes, libido changes, weight changes. There's so many different things that can happen during that timeframe. But if you feel great and everything is going as scheduled, then you don't necessarily have to worry about your hormones in your 30s. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:39.574) Thank Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:43.126) But by 40s and 50s, it's something to explore. Amy Killen MD (08:47.862) Yeah, usually, I I recommend at least talking to your doctor about hormone optimization therapy once you get close to menopause because these hormones have so many long-term health benefits. So not even just treating symptoms, but also preventing osteoporosis or preventing dementia or heart disease or some of these things that are more common in women and especially become common after you lose estrogen and the protection of that. even if you're not having symptoms, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:06.193) Bye. Amy Killen MD (09:14.818) you know, by mid forties or so, I would recommend talking to your doctor about kind of game planning, how you're going to approach hormones later on. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:22.848) Well, maybe some women would need a different doctor or a more specialized hormone doctor because, you know, some doctors don't seem to know that much about this, the general practitioner. With a sigh. Amy Killen MD (09:32.726) Yes. know, unfortunately doctors, yes, doctors I know it's so frustrating. Doctors only receive about like less than two hours in the U.S. less than two hours of training in menopause throughout their entire medical career. Now OBGYNs may get a little bit more and I think we're starting to see more awareness around this. But like when I went through and most doctors went through, we didn't talk about menopause. We didn't talk about replacing hormones. And so most doctors that are out there just haven't had the education. And unless they've taken it upon themselves to take courses and go through programs, they just really don't know that much about what really happens during these transition periods for women and why it's so important to talk about them. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:19.254) What are some of the questions someone should ask a potential doctor? What should they look for? Because again, that becomes confusing. And I've also seen Dr. Amy people giving advice and then you look a little deeper and they're chiropractors or there's something that is not there. They still are a doctor, but something that's unrelated. But maybe they did do the courses. So who knows? I don't know. Amy Killen MD (10:36.28) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (10:41.378) Yeah. Yeah. think that, you know, making sure that you have a medical provider who is able to prescribe drugs in general is important. You chiropractors can't prescribe most drugs. So they're going to be, they'll have a, they have a toolkit that they can use, which a lot of them are very smart and very informed, but their toolkit is not going to include prescribing hormones. So sometimes that will bias them a little bit. Like they'll, they'll, they'll say, well, you shouldn't do hormones because X, Y, and Z, but part of it is cause they can't prescribe hormones. But I would say, talk to doctors and ask them what their experience is prescribing these body identical or bioidentical hormones, which is what we want, and how open they are to it. And are they offering it to most of their patients, or is it just a small number of patients who take it? Are they trying to not just treat symptoms, but also prevent future diseases with these hormones? I think it's also important. And also, talk to your friends if you have people, other friends in the space who have gone to doctors and get recommendations from them, because it can be really hard. It can be hard to find a good doctor, I think. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:45.408) Do you think that with telehealth now, you can meet with a doctor online, you can send in blood work, it sort of opens up the field, doesn't it? Amy Killen MD (11:54.55) It does. think it's definitely getting easier. And, one of my companies is Humanaut Health and we have in-person clinics and then we're building out the telehealth as well. And we do hormones and longevity medicine, but there are a number of other companies that just do telehealth and they do a great job. And I think that, I do think that there's more availability of these services, but they are usually cash pay. Like you're not usually using insurance to pay for these. And so obviously that's not going to work for everybody. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:22.464) Right. So going back to the hormones for a moment, testosterone is something that we usually hear for men, know, replacing their testosterone as they age as well. What about for women? This is an interesting topic. Amy Killen MD (12:34.971) you Yeah, yeah, you know, it's interesting. Women actually have more testosterone in their bodies than they do estrogen. When they're younger, like when you have before menopause and really even after menopause, we make more testosterone and we have more testosterone in our bodies at any given point than we do estrogen. And yet. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:55.446) after you start getting your period or pre-mences. Amy Killen MD (13:00.202) once, yeah, once, once like from puberty on your body's making testosterone and you know, we think of testosterone as being a male hormone, but it's really just a human hormone. We all have it. We all need it. And so absolutely. think that, you know, offering it as, you know, replacing it in women can be important. Not all women will need testosterone replacement. Some people continue to make it and it's testosterone is a little different than estrogen and progesterone because it doesn't like fall off a cliff at. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:03.818) Wow. Amy Killen MD (13:29.782) at menopause. Your body still makes testosterone even as you age, but you're just making less and less each year. So it's similar to men. You just make less and less and less as you get older. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:40.16) So once you get on that train of hormone replacement therapy, how often would you have to get checked to see if the dosages need to be tweaked or how you continue? Because it sounds like there's changes that progress. Amy Killen MD (13:51.672) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (13:57.366) Yeah, you know, and yeah, so usually I recommend patients get seen every three months in the beginning and get lab work done and see your medical provider every three months. And especially in those early months, you're going to have some adjustments to these medications because there's not a single, you know, no, no one dose is going to work for everyone. And there are different ways to take the hormones that you can take them as a pill or a patch or a cream or a trochee under your tongue. There's all these different methods. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:03.724) wow. Amy Killen MD (14:24.054) and each one has pros and cons and each one works differently in different people. So there's a lot of kind of adjusting and tweaking that happens during the first three, six, nine, 10 months or so that you're on hormones. But then once you get on something where you feel good and your levels are pretty steady, then you can space your visits out a little bit more if you want to. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:45.482) What do you think, Dr. Amy, about our grandmothers and our great grandmothers that went through menopause? I just think about my grandma in the Philippines. I don't, I mean, people didn't talk about it as much, but she didn't seem to complain that much about it. Do you think with microplastics and pollution, it's harder on our hormones and shifts, or do you think women just didn't discuss their challenges as much because they didn't have the technology? Yeah. Amy Killen MD (15:12.386) Yeah, I think that's a great question. I don't know the answer for sure. I know that we're not going into menopause earlier necessarily. Like we do know that like endocrine disruptors and microplastics and toxins in the environment can affect our ovaries. And people who have a lot of exposure to those things can go into menopause earlier by about two and a half to three years. So that is a problem, but like population wide, we're not necessarily going in earlier than, you know, our grandmothers did. But Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:31.51) Hmm. Amy Killen MD (15:41.73) whether or not they had as severe a symptoms, I don't know. I think that they probably were just really tough and they just didn't talk about it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:49.522) Right. Now speaking of ovarian health, which is also another issue, fertility is an issue. Just so many issues now that I feel like in the last 10 years are being talked about. People are doing IVF in their 20s. What's going on with our ovaries? Amy Killen MD (16:09.678) You know, the ovaries are really the pacemaker of our female body in terms of determining how quickly you age and kind of how well you age. you know, we don't talk a lot about ovarian health, but the ovaries are much more than just a reproductive organ. So certainly we need them to ovulate and have eggs and to make babies. But because you're making these hormones, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone in the ovaries, as well as, you know, 40 or so other chemicals that are being made, the ovaries kind of decide how quickly the rest of your body is going to age. And it's interesting, but I think, you know, as far as fertility goes, you know, there are, think a lot of it is environmental. A lot of it is, you know, the, the endotoxins and the, the liquid disruptors. And I also think that the lifestyle is a big part of it. We know that stress, for instance, has a very direct result on ovarian health and ovarian function, sleep, diet, exercise, you know, all the things that we know are important. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:43.168) Wow. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:51.798) controls. Amy Killen MD (17:07.392) All of those are sending messages to the ovaries to help the ovaries decide, you know, kind of how healthy they could be and then whether to ovulate or not. And so there's a lot of things that go into it, but the ovaries are very receptive to everything that you're doing in your life, better or worse, to make yourself healthier. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:27.092) that interesting. I wonder what traditional Chinese medicine says, the emotions associated with the ovaries because, livers, anger and spleen is sadness, but I've never heard that about ovaries being an indicator of your overall aging. That's so interesting. Amy Killen MD (17:43.148) Yeah, I don't know either. I don't know much about the Chinese medicine, but I think that we haven't paid enough respect to the ovaries over the last, you know, hundreds of years. And finally, researchers are saying, this is really important for how women age, not just fertility, but also how we age. So I think that they'll finally get some respect and we're studying them, but it's about time. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:04.022) So something as simple as respecting circadian rhythms and wearing blue-light blocking glasses and things like optimizing your sleep can really help ovarian health. Amy Killen MD (18:14.594) Yeah, Overe, you know, when you, the ovaries are really interesting. know, every month you release one egg, right? But what people don't know is that up to a thousand other eggs start to develop throughout the month. And the only one is chosen to ovulate to get released. But the other ones, all the other 500 or thousand eggs that started to mature, those will die. So basically every month you're losing up to a thousand or so of these very precious eggs, which is horrible. I know. And then when you run out of eggs, that's when you hit menopause. And so the question that researchers are asking is, can we slow down the rate that we're losing these eggs? Can we have fewer of these precious eggs start to develop? we're testing drugs, like people are testing drugs like rapamycin. How does lifestyle affect this? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:43.151) It's like a fish with all the eggs, you know. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:50.88) Right? Amy Killen MD (19:07.462) because once the eggs start to, whenever they die in the ovaries, it's called atresia, they start to release these inflammatory signals. And so it makes all the ovary, like all the rest of the ovary becomes like a less hospitable place to the future eggs. So there's a lot of things that are happening in the ovaries that are reflective of health. Some of it's just genetics, but there's a lot also reflective of your health. And so we know that we can move some levers with the ovaries, but we don't have control over genetics, obviously. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:35.99) Oh, it's interesting again, back to my grandmother from the Philippines who lived in a very rural existence and she had healthy babies, Amy, to 48. Right. that was, started at 18, had a few, took a big break, went back to school and started at 36, I believe, and had six more. Amy Killen MD (19:45.666) Wow, that's amazing. Amy Killen MD (19:56.462) How many she have total? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:58.089) She had eight, but one died in infant mortality. Was it very, very early on. But NAD, I read some interesting research about how that can help with ovarian health. What's your opinion on that? Amy Killen MD (20:03.224) Wow. Amy Killen MD (20:14.626) Yeah, there are some animal studies that NAD precursors like NMN or NR might be helpful in improving ovarian health, as well as some of the other kind of longevity supplements that are out there. Some of the antioxidants may be helpful in reducing the oxidative stress in the ovaries and help as well. Melatonin is another one that's been studied and has some good animal research for it, as well as like DHEA, which is another oral hormone that we can take. So there's a lot of animal data. Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of human data yet that these are particularly healthy for us long-term for ovarian health. We just don't know. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:53.386) Now this is a big question Amy, and I know it's individual and it's complex, but another big trend out there is peptides. And it seems like when you go down that rabbit hole, there's so many. And for the person that's like, I want this and I want this, then you can suddenly start taking all these different peptides. I am not as well versed. I don't take peptides myself right now, but wow, I have friends that are taking all sorts of things. Amy Killen MD (21:21.773) Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:22.634) Can they counteract? Do we need all these different peptides? Do they work? I mean, I'm sure that research is also ongoing. Amy Killen MD (21:29.526) Yeah, mean, peptides is a whole category of these molecules that are essentially just short proteins. So a peptide is just like a few amino acids long. So it's a very short protein strand. And most of the ones that are talked about widely are also made by your own body. you know, essentially can we replace some of these peptides that they all do very different things and they all, you know, will bind to receptors and have very direct actions in the body. And I guess the short version is there are, there's hundreds, maybe, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:57.334) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (21:58.488) thousands of peptides out there and they all do different things. Most of the research on most of the peptides is primarily in animals, although certainly, know, peptides like the GLP-1s, which is Ozempic, you know, and Monjaro, those are peptides. And those, of course, have really good strong human data on them at this point. So I think peptides are fascinating. We use them a lot at Humanoid, but you also do want to have a medical provider who understands them because there's so many of them, like you said. They can have interactions. are some of them you want to cycle. You you use, do them for four or six weeks and then you stop them for a period of time. Some of them you can do every day. So it's, it's a whole thing that you want to have someone that really knows what they're doing. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:42.442) And also you still wanna maintain the healthy lifestyle habits. Like we said, you still need a healthy diet, you still need to exercise, you still need to sleep. It's not like a magic needle. Amy Killen MD (22:52.064) It is not. Yeah, it's all always start with the foundational stuff. I think of peptides as being, you know, like an icing on the cake or maybe it's the sprinkles on the icing on the cake hormones or the icing and the peptides are more like sprinkles. But so, you know, those things can be helpful in situations, but that's not the thing you reach for first when you're looking for help. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:11.03) Right, right. It's like the layer, layers up. Can you talk a little bit about sugar, Dr. Amy? We hear a lot about sugar for different aspects of health, but specifically for women's health, ovarian health, of the hormones, some of the topics we've been discussing so far. Refined. Amy Killen MD (23:15.533) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (23:31.918) Yeah, I I think that keeping your blood sugar in a healthy range is very important for longevity. We know that. Certainly simple carbohydrates and actual sugar, like table sugar, if you get too much of it can affect your blood sugar and can cause problems down the line with more rapid aging of all different parts of your body, your ovaries, your blood vessels, your brain. So maintaining a healthy blood sugar is really important. I don't want people, I don't like the idea that we shouldn't have any sugar. I mean, I think that that's a little crazy that, you know, to say that all sugar is bad all the time, but it's like anything else. you, know, moderation is important. know, knowing how sugar affects you specifically is important. Tracking it potentially, like putting on a glucose monitor can be really helpful or at least getting blood work, you know, every three to six months and making sure that your markers of insulin sensitivity and resistance are in a healthy range. So certainly follow it, but you know, I like a dessert at night if I'm Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:03.413) Yeah Amy Killen MD (24:27.648) if I've been pretty good all day, you just don't want to go overboard with those things. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:32.574) Yeah, I mean, we were just in Hawaii. As I mentioned, I love fruit. We're eating papayas off the tree and guavas, but in a fiber-filled form, not the juice, with the whole fruit. And that feels really good in the body as well. Amy Killen MD (24:40.194) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Fruit, think, is amazing. Certainly, you could do too much of it, but it's really hard to get too much fruit. Unless you're diabetic, most people are not eating too much fruit. I'm not worried about that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:57.354) Bradley fruit and fiber, because another big trend with protein, Dr. Amy, I see a lot of people just having protein bars and protein shakes. We need protein, but there's so much, you know, unprocessed foods that can come with that. And then people aren't as focused on fiber. Amy Killen MD (25:07.501) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (25:18.146) Yeah, I think protein and fiber, especially as I get older, know, as I get closer to 50, which is like next month, I start thinking more and more about, you know, how I need to be eating every day. Like how much protein am I getting? How much fiber am I getting? Like those are the two things that I really pay attention to for myself and my patients, especially midlife kind of and older women, because fiber we know is important in so much as far as disease prevention, cancer, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and then protein we know is important for building muscle and maintaining muscle. And that's one of those things that your body doesn't store those amino acids in any form except for your muscles. So if you're not eating the protein, then you can break down your muscles, which is obviously not what we want. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:52.086) right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:59.638) What do you think of amino acid supplements? Amy Killen MD (26:02.83) I think that they're fine. think that, you know, getting amino acids either from like an amino acid supplement, it's an option. I don't think it's any better necessarily than just getting it from, you know, a steak. But certainly if you need to, if you can't get enough from food, I think that supplementing is a fine option. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:19.446) How bad is caffeine for, I keep saying ovarian health because I loved how you made that a central point and for women in general. Amy Killen MD (26:28.833) Yeah. You know, I don't, a good question. I don't know if I've seen much published on caffeine for ovarian health. I think I'm a fan of caffeine. I don't think it's bad. I think certainly you can do too much and maybe there's, you know, don't want to do it, you know, after 2 PM or so, depending on how quickly you process it. Some of us are fast processors and some people are slow processors. It's good to know that, but I think that caffeine has its place, but we probably shouldn't overindulge too much. And certainly if you're Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (26:43.027) you Amy Killen MD (26:58.35) If you're taking a lot of caffeine because you're just super exhausted and you can't get through the day and all of that, it's good to know, like, well, why are you so tired? And get back to what's actually going on versus just drinking a lot of Red Bulls. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (27:11.222) Well, I only started drinking coffee a few years ago because as you and I were chatting, we started to grow cacao and we visited some farms around and the coffee is grown there and I just fell in love with the plant. It's very strong. And then sometimes I read things about how it can affect just your overall your adrenals and your body's functioning. So I'm cognizant of it. But I also think it's a very powerful plant. Amy Killen MD (27:24.077) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (27:38.936) Yeah, I think that I like coffee, I like cacao, I think that caffeine has its place. I don't have any concerns about it for most people, but certainly if you have high blood pressure, if you do have adrenal problems, if you have problems sleeping, there are some cases where you want to limit or get rid of caffeine, but for most people, I think it's perfectly fine and certainly can be helpful. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:01.418) Well, so on the flip side, we see a lot of supplements now with melatonin. And I know you had mentioned that earlier. And again, I've read some conflicting things. Certainly these brands are saying it's okay to take. know people that take it regularly and then some saying, you know, watch out, you don't want to take melatonin too often because then your body will produce it. What do you, what do you think about that? Amy Killen MD (28:20.888) Yeah. Yeah, think that melatonin, it can be helpful for sleep, but it's also a very strong antioxidant, which is probably why it was helpful in some of those animal ovarian aging studies. And I do think it has a place in it for some people. Not everyone responds well to melatonin. Some people, it makes them more wired. Some people has no effect in terms of sleep. And of course, the dosing is all over the map. mean, some people fall asleep and can't wake up at 0.5 milligrams. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:42.677) Hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (28:52.054) my gosh. Amy Killen MD (28:52.108) Some people take a hundred milligrams and it has no effect. And so there's a very wide dosing range. I don't worry as much as some people do about, you know, if you don't, if you take too much, then you won't make your own. I certainly if you take a hundred milligrams a day, you probably won't be making your own, but I'm treating mostly women who are kind of midlife women. And one of the hormones that really goes down as you get older is your ability to make melatonin. And so your body's not making as much as it was, which is part of the reasons that older people have a hard time sleeping. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (29:16.414) Amy Killen MD (29:21.976) So I think that replacing that, if it's helpful for them, I think it's great. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (29:26.682) that's great to know because some of these products or mints or powders have five milligrams, which seems like a sort of a hefty amount if you're not being prescribed melatonin. Amy Killen MD (29:33.39) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (29:40.686) Well, first of all, a lot of the over-the-counter products, as you know, they've done tests and especially melatonin, that many of the over-the-counter melatonins don't have any melatonin in them or they have a very small amount. So it is important to get it from a good source, a company that you or your doctor trust. But I tell patients, start with something like 0.5 or 1 milligrams and then just kind of march up a little bit. I tend to stay less than 10 milligrams from most people unless I'm Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (29:52.246) crazy. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (30:08.694) We're not. Yeah. Amy Killen MD (30:09.814) Once I'm doing some kind of like strong antioxidant protocol with them. And if it's just for sleep, usually I stay, you know, less than 10 for most people, but you'll find kind of a sweet spot. Like it's, very personal. Some people, you know, three milligrams is perfect. Four is, you know, is not, and two is not. Like you really have to kind of experiment. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (30:27.86) Wow. Finally, Amy, it's like asking an encyclopedia for questions. I blast questions at you all day, but we started talking about collagen skin health. I this is really going to, I think, the vulnerable side of women because we want to continue to look good and we know it's correlated with our inner health. But the other part is hair. And there's so much hair loss nowadays, hair thinning. hair breakage, hair not growing. I see so many articles about hair. And I also looked at some of these top hair selling supplements. And a lot of them are essentially, know, multivitamins to an extent with some other ingredients in them. But can you tell us a little bit about why you think this, first of all, the phenomenon of why women are experiencing so much hair loss and hair thinning? Amy Killen MD (31:22.37) Yeah, and I don't know if it's more than it was in previous generations or not. Again, it may just be an awareness that we talk about it more, but we do know that about 50 % of women in midlife will notice hair loss, hair shedding. So half of people, half of women will notice hair loss just from midlife. A lot of it's hormone changes. Estrogen is very good for your hair. And so when estrogen starts to go down, then the hair follicles change. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (31:34.72) Mmm. Amy Killen MD (31:49.262) and you're more likely to lose those follicles and to enter kind of a dormant hair phase. So estrogen loss is very bad for hair, but also progesterone and testosterone have roles in hair. Cortisol is also horrible for your hair. You when you have very high cortisol for very long, because you're stressed out and you're dealing with your multiple to-do lists and you know, all of these things, that is definitely something that will cause hair loss over time. All the environmental, all the... chemicals and toxins and things in the environment is bad for hair. Like all the things that are bad for us is your hair follicles are very sensitive to those things. And so they, yeah, so they're like little barometers to kind of what's happening in your personal life, your physical life and the environmental life. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (32:25.206) much. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (32:34.314) So do you think it's more macro though, again, the diet, the stress, the sleep versus people spending a lot of money on these specific hair growth supplements? Amy Killen MD (32:45.838) think it's both. tell my, I do, I treat a lot of hair loss and I tell my patients, if you really want to regrow hair, you have to like throw the kitchen sink at it. It is not just one thing. So maybe we're doing topical minoxidil, which you can get over the counter. Maybe we're doing an oral minoxidil, which is a prescription. Maybe we're doing red light therapy caps, which do work and can be really effective. Maybe we're doing injections with like PRP or stem cells or regenerative. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (32:56.042) Mmm. Amy Killen MD (33:15.502) you know, things like that in the office every so often. Plus we're working on lifestyle, plus we're working on, you know, making sure they're getting clean, clean diet and blocking certain hormones and things. So there's a lot of things that can go into it. And there's lots of different causes of hair loss too. So figuring out what's the reason, you know, with testing and with a good history and even a scalp biopsy, if you have a dermatologist and then going down how to treat it. know it's a lot. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (33:18.666) Wow. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (33:38.159) my gosh. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (33:42.198) And also, I'm just thinking breakage, taking care of your, mean, for me, it's the basics, getting less sun, washing the salt water out because otherwise the ends get more split and break, which I guess is for any human. Amy Killen MD (33:47.553) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (33:52.054) Mm-hmm. Amy Killen MD (33:56.344) Yeah, totally. Yeah. And the sun, like you mentioned, the sun, is not great for your skin over time is also the same, also not great for your hair follicle. causing the UV damage, causing oxidative stress, and it's essentially causing DNA damage in the cells around the hair follicle, just like it does in your skin. the sun is causing this damage. And if you don't repair it by either wearing sunblocks and hats and then taking maybe antioxidants or applying them. then that can cause hair loss as well. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (34:29.094) Well, thank you so much, Dr. Amy, for sharing about so many different topics. As soon as I ask you a question, there's right there the information, the knowledge, right there to share. Is there anything I didn't ask you or we didn't cover that you feel might benefit our community today? Amy Killen MD (34:50.09) think the main message I like to tell people is that we have, all of us have so much more control over how we age, how we feel, our health, than we sometimes think that we do. And I think in the old days, used to kind of, we used to think that our doctors were gonna keep us healthy, and now we understand that we have to keep ourselves healthy and our doctors are there just to kind of help guide and to be a resource if things go really bad, but it's really on us to stay up on. keeping ourselves healthy and staying up on the knowledge. I hope it's empowering, not stressful, but we do have a lot of control. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (35:26.102) Well, I think it's really empowering how you kept going back to these lifestyle basics, which definitely are in our control, and then saying, OK, well, then we can think about peptides or hormone replacement therapy or things on top. But the basics are tried and true. We'll support our hormonal health, our ovarian health, our bone health. And I think that's really empowering. And then to take the time to learn about other modalities if we feel called. Amy Killen MD (35:38.424) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (35:48.813) Yeah. Amy Killen MD (35:54.83) Absolutely, basics are still the basics. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (35:57.78) Well, Dr. Amy, where can we find out more about your work and keep connected to you? Amy Killen MD (36:05.838) So I have a website which is dramikillen.com, K-I-L-L-E-N. And then I'm also very active on both Instagram and Substack. I do articles every week on Substack and then I do a fair number of posting on Instagram. So it's dramikillen on those areas. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (36:23.016) Amazing. Well, thank you again so much for sharing your wisdom with us. We really appreciate you coming on. Amy Killen MD (36:28.802) Thank you, this was super fun. Have a good day. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (36:30.614) And everyone, thank you so much for logging on today and listening or watching. I really encourage you to share this interview with anyone that you think would benefit, another woman in your life, a colleague, a friend, because all of this is meant to empower, as Dr. Amy said, and the more we share with each other, the more we can support each other. We're on our show notes at mysaloon.com. We will link directly to Dr. Amy's handles. website. So please check that out. We'll also link to other articles and shows I think you would enjoy. be back here in a few days. I'll also see you on Instagram at underscore Kimberly Snyder. Till then, take great care and sending you all so much love.

Summary In this conversation, Kimberly and Michael Hoeppner discuss the concept of the 'confidence trap' in communication, emphasizing that confidence can be fleeting and often leads to self-critique. He advocates for focusing on communication behaviors rather than chasing confidence, suggesting that this approach can lead to more effective speaking and personal development. About Michael Hoeppner Michael Hoeppner is the Founder and CEO of GK Training, a firm dedicated to giving individuals, companies, and organizations the communication skills to reach their highest goals in work and life. He has worked with some of the world’s most influential companies and leaders, across a wide range of industries, universities, and professional sectors. His corporate clients include: three of the top eight financial firms in the world, 45 of the AmLaw 100, and multinational tech, pharma, and food and beverage companies. He teaches his unique approach to communication at Columbia Business School, in both the MBA and PhD programs. Resources Website: michaelchadhoeppner.com Book: Don't Say Um: How to Communicate Effectively to Live a Better Life Company: GK Training Episode Sponsors  FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. SBO PROBIOTICS OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.  SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! How to Believe in Your Self Worth with Jamie Kern Lima How to Raise Your Standards In Your Love Life with Matthew Hussey How to Eat to Beat Your Diet with New York Times best selling author Dr. William Li The issues with consuming vegetable and seed oils with Dr. Catherine Shanahan How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo How to Optimize Your Metabolic Health with Dr. Casey Means

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr, Jenneffer Pulapaka Summary: In this episode, Kimberly and Dr. Jenneffer Pulapaka discuss the importance of heart health and the role of a plant-based diet in achieving it. She shares her journey into lifestyle medicine, emphasizing the need for a holistic approach to health that includes diet, exercise, and sleep. The discussion covers common misconceptions about protein intake, the impact of inflammation on health, and the benefits of cooking with whole foods. Dr. Pulapaka also highlights the affordability of healthy eating and the significance of understanding the nutritional value of everyday foods.   About Dr, Jenneffer Pulapaka JENNEFFER PULAPAKA, DPM, is a Board-Certified Podiatric Physician Diplomate from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine. A trained podiatric surgeon who specializes in diabetic limb salvage, she is the founder of DeLand Foot and Leg Center. She focuses on Peripheral Vascular Disease, holds a Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate, and is a Culinary Health Education Fundamentals (CHEF) Coach. A Certified Sommelier, she also has 15+ years of experience in menu planning and event design in the restaurant industry and has been a featured sommelier at the James Beard Foundation House. Along with her professional chef husband Hari Pulapaka, she founded Cress Restaurant and they both live in DeLand, FL. They are the co-authors of The Heart Healthy Plant-Based Cookbook.   Guest Resources: Website: www.delandpodiatry.com Book: The Heart Healthy Plant-Based Cookbook   Episode Sponsors: FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   GLOWING GREENS POWDER OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. USE LINK: mysolluna.com CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Heart Health and Plant-Based Diets02:56 The Confusion Around Dietary Trends05:58 Understanding Protein and Kidney Health09:10 The Role of Inflammation in Heart Disease11:55 Personal Journey to Plant-Based Living14:47 Cooking with Whole Foods and Spices17:51 The Importance of Fiber and Gut Health20:58 Exploring Nutritional Benefits of Everyday Foods23:51 The Impact of Sleep on Health26:59 Affordable Healthy Eating29:48 Final Thoughts on Heart Health and Lifestyle SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.494)Hi Jennifer, thank you so much for coming on our show today. Jenneffer Pulapaka (00:06.162)Thank you for having me, Kimberly. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:09.282)You know, when your book came across my desk and once again, everyone’s called the Heart Healthy Plant-Based Cookbook, it really caught my eye because I’ve been so interested, especially in the heart lately, the heart, the physical heart, you know, from a health perspective, from a dietary perspective, also from an energetic perspective, a spiritual perspective, how the heart is mentioned in all these different traditions around the world. But I wondered… And you tell a little bit about this in the beginning of your book, but if you could share with us why your focus has really honed in on heart health in particular. Jenneffer Pulapaka (00:46.888)Well, for me, so I am the pioneer of podiatric lifestyle medicine. And a majority of the patients that I see have lower extremity vascular disease with cardiac complications. So that’s the over, the broad overreaching patient population that I treat. And when dealing with patients, I was a typical physician that would treat patients with conventional medicine, was, you want surgery or do you want a pill? And lifestyle medicine allowed me to handle patients more broader with treatments, such as using diet, using sleep, reducing stress, exercise. reducing substance abuse, things like that, that I started to be able to include pillars in their healthcare and see a better outcome in patients. So for me, that’s why it was important. Just because I think I was getting burned out with just, it was the same thing all the time, pills or surgery, pills or surgery, referral, cardiovascular, interventional, cardiologists, what are we doing? And we were not getting off the wheel. You’re just kind of stuck in that cycle. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:00.536)Great. Jenneffer Pulapaka (02:10.875)and you weren’t regaining ground, you weren’t regaining your health, nothing positive was coming out of it except for trying to prevent a catastrophic event. So that’s why a heart healthy cookbook is really key to a majority of my patients. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:21.974)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:31.84)Right. And I want to get into that in a moment. There’s such great information here, but one of the things you said is that we’re on the wheel. Many people are on the wheel. And one of the reasons I think people are on the wheel is because they’re confused. And there’s so much information out there, Jennifer, as you know. And it feels like to me, you know, there is decades of And sort of this general idea that we should limit red meat in particular and these foods that have high cholesterol, foods that feel clogging and common sense as these are really dense foods. But now we’re in a time in culture where there’s, it’s sort of swung, feels like back when I started writing books 11 years ago, I was always talking about this protein question that would come up being plant-based myself. How do you end up protein? And now there’s this such an over emphasis on protein. And what I see, Jennifer, is confusion. People are eating tons of red meat and they’re like, well, I saw such and such and they say that can eat as much red meat as I want or I should sit down and have six eggs. Can you talk to us a little bit about this confusion about cholesterol, foods that are elevating blood pressure, all the research for many decades that don’t correlate necessarily with these health trends or I don’t say health trends. Jenneffer Pulapaka (03:52.72)I mean, that’s great. That is what they are, okay? Bell bottoms, they’re not in fashion right now. They have been in fashion. They went out of fashion. They came back in briefly and they’re out. That’s kind of what we cycle when we deal with food trends. Different diets will keep on coming up historically. But unfortunately, there’s not enough peer-reviewed literature to be behind them. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:53.954)dietary trends. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:06.082)Yes. Jenneffer Pulapaka (04:22.331)We don’t have a big enough population to evaluate certain diets that are out there and nor is there research behind it. So those for me are always risky when it comes to patients. So we’d like to stay when I’m looking at or evaluating diets with patients. I always tell my patients when they were talking about plant-based, they’re like, well, can I add chicken? I’m like, well, you’ve been adding chicken in it and we’re here right now. I’m the thing that’s gotta cause a bump. Why don’t we learn how to not add chicken and not use butter and use a substitute to make it a more healthy option for you? Because what you’ve been doing hasn’t been working. That’s kind of where we are. I only use peer-reviewed literature for the most part. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:05.11)Right. Jenneffer Pulapaka (05:16.677)And it’s for me, it’s very hard because right now I do see a trend of patients who come in, they think they’re on a ketogenic diet. They’re not on a ketogenic diet. They’re never in ketoacidosis. They’re never reducing their amount of carbs to get to that state. And most of my patients are complicated patients, meaning that they have diabetes, vascular disease. Chances are they have chronic kidney disease. When we’re dealing with a lot of comorbidities with patients, we have to be very cognizant when they’re taking high protein diets. One of my biggest concerns is my kidney patients. High protein diets does not bode well for kidney function long term. And Kidego, which Kidney Disease International, when they put out guidelines, the last several years, the primary treatment for Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:58.625)Right. Jenneffer Pulapaka (06:15.719)chronic kidney disease in patients was diet and lifestyle. So it was nice that we saw a really good bump or a really good change in how we’re addressing patients with chronic disease. So now that we had a patient with chronic disease, maybe they don’t even know they’re stage three chronic kidney disease. And now they’re just loading up on all these proteins, which kidneys have to strip off nitrogen and it really taxes the kidneys. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:39.467)Right. Jenneffer Pulapaka (06:46.853)And unfortunately, it usually puts them in a downward spiral towards stage four. And at stage three, we have some really good studies that look at, can we get an improvement in kidney function if we decrease the amount of unused proteins? For the most part, my patients are not active. I am usually negotiating, can I get three days a week? Just three days a week, can you do 30 minutes three days a week? And the standard of care is exercise is five days a week, 30 minutes, moderate intensity. So when my patients tell me I need the protein, I’m like, no, not to walk the Pomeranian, a half a block, that’s not really exercise. I’m glad we’re doing range of motion and I’m glad you’re not doing sedentary, but you’re not really in an exercise state to be getting a lot of benefit. I don’t need to worry about protein issues with you. Now, when I deal with wound care patients, I deal with them. Or if I deal with dialysis patients, when I have a nutritionist, registered dietician that’s on board, then we’re looking at protein loss, but we’re not talking about a majority of patients that are on that. We’re talking about they got a, they went on Pinterest and they got some keto balls, which are hugely high in fat and protein. And nothing about that is gonna help with inflammation, their heart, their blood flow, or their weight. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:58.806)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (08:13.201)Right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:14.752)Yeah. Well, you what you say makes sense and it makes sense to me. And then there’s Dan Buettner, who’s been on our podcast several times. He’s coming back on in December, who’s saying, Hey, look at these human populations, which are eating really fiber rich diets. They’re not hyper fixating on protein. And yet their longevity numbers are the best in the world. Then you have Dr. Michael, Dr. Michael Greger, who also came on with all his thousands of studies. He’s referencing saying, Hey, Look at the research. So why do you think Dr. Jennifer, from your perspective as a physician, you know, it’s like people are going on Pinterest, but I’m also seeing some doctors being like, you know, double the amount of grams that you’re hearing, you know, the recommended doses, one gram per body weight. Where is this coming from? How can, in our culture, we can have such differing views of the research. Jenneffer Pulapaka (08:45.532)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:12.308)And to me, common sense, if you want to open up your blood flow, you don’t want to eat clogging foods and really fatty, dense animal foods all day. But how is this even happening in your opinion? Because it’s mind boggling to me. Jenneffer Pulapaka (09:25.489)Well, we have different specialists that are out there and everyone has a different way of treating patients. For example, okay, for a good example, I have a lot of patients who will come in for lower extremity arthritis and tendonitis and everyone will keep missing kind of the, I don’t wanna say the elephant in the room, but the fact that a lot of my patients have obesity class two, class three, and no one’s even discussed about an oral medication for them at that point in time. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:00.962)Wait. Jenneffer Pulapaka (10:04.165)Some physicians only want to treat with lifestyle medicine or diet or conservative options. So maybe that’s where these practitioners are trying to maybe cause a bump, but I still prefer to stay with evidence-based. I still want lifestyle medicine on my patients. I still talk about diet, but I’m also an advocate for GLP-1, GIPs, phenamine and topramate. I’m an advocate for that. And I’m also very realistic with them that usually when you get on a semi-glutide, you will have to stay on that for life. And then they get upset. And then I just remind them you’re not upset that you’re on lisinopril for life. So now can you look at the benefits of being on a medication long-term, how we’re going to reduce our comorbidities? Maybe you’re going to Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:44.887)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (11:03.105)reduce your diabetes, you’re going to reduce your arthritis and your tendonitis and your like my diabetic patients who have a collapse of the midfoot and I have to deal with all the bone deformity and the ulcerations. So we have a lot of comorbidities that are around obesity as a diagnosis and we haven’t allowed the patients yet flexibility to look at it as a disease and to be treated as such with medication or with diet. So I just don’t only do that. I’m there with conventional medicine, but that may explain why some doctors, like one of my patients today, she was in obesity class three and her doctor was telling her about fiber. Great, wonderful. I am glad he had that discussion, but she’s looking at one total knee on one side and now we have another total knee that’s possibly starting on the other leg. and I had all the tendonitis and tendinopathies in my ankle and in the foot. And he’s still trying to tell her to lose weight and she could lose about a good 75 pounds and then she’ll feel comfortable and then we may see start to see improvement. But he that was the way he wanted to approach it. So that may be the way some physicians want to approach it. It’s not I like better peer reviewed research and A lot of the high fat, high protein diets do not have large scale populations to be looking at. So we don’t hear the nuances. And you know, and I love the Blue Zones. We just had a dinner the other evening that my husband hosted and it was about the Blue Zones. And it was, you know, really… they just the way they eat is healthy. It’s not a planned thing. They don’t make a concerted effort to be like, I’m going to get my fiber in. I’m going to get those things. They actually just eat a more healthy way than we do. And they’ll do conservative, like they’ll have an occasional glass of wine or they’ll eat, you know, fish twice a week or meat every so often. But it’s a more realistic diet. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:07.009)Yeah, it’s Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:19.746)Well, it’s simple, I think, and it’s accessible when you’re cooking one-pot meals and you’re not hyper fixating on numbers. It starts to get really confusing when you start to get heady, I think, versus intuitive and more in your heart, what your body’s drawn to. There’s this section, Jennifer, in your book about inflammation. That’s also one of the things we know is a precursor to heart disease, to many different illnesses in the body. Jenneffer Pulapaka (13:29.084)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (13:40.807)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:47.53)And when you are eating more fiber, it’s feeding those short chain fatty acids, which is helping to reduce inflammation. I, one of my, I’m concerned when people are just focusing on overloading protein, I’ve noticed in people, it’s like protein no matter what. So more meat, more protein bars, more protein shakes. They naturally get less of these colorful fiber-filled anti-inflammatory foods. And so it starts to create this imbalance. Jenneffer Pulapaka (13:51.74)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:17.378)when you’re focusing, your compass is set towards something very different. Jenneffer Pulapaka (14:22.285)find that most patients when they’re focusing on proteins aren’t actually really talking about a whole food. They like to do bars or smoothies or supplements. They’re not actually thinking about food or whole food, whether it’s grains or beans, lentils, seeds, nuts. They’re not really there. They will with their protein. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:29.461)Right. Jenneffer Pulapaka (14:52.045)as in their meats, animal proteins, they will fixate on that. And some of that can be due to the fact that we live in a society that praises wealth and a sign of prosperity has been for a long time that if you eat meats, it’s a status symbol versus I’m going to have a bowl of grains and lentils. there are sometimes we have… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:13.73)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (15:17.767)food can be personal and there are barriers or boundaries that people have to get around when it comes to eating a more healthy way. Because sometimes those family recipes are not healthy. They haven’t been there and that’s why you have a family history of heart attacks, gout, kidney disease, diabetes. It’s, know, the family cycle keeps on feeding you the wrong information. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:39.053)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:44.076)Well, Dr. Jennifer, when did you become plant-based? And I know a lot of this was informed from research. And now, you your husband is, you know, a partner in ways. You guys host a lot of things together. He’s been honored by the James Beer Foundation as a featured chef, working with all these amazing foods. When did you come into this path exactly? Jenneffer Pulapaka (16:05.741)So I first took my turn at 21. I became vegetarian. I decided if I was going to eat meat, I needed to go to a slaughterhouse and appreciate or accept the way the animal was being brought to my table. So after I had that experience, I became a vegetarian. I was not comfortable with Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:18.413)Hmm? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:29.208)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (16:31.463)I was not comfortable and I could not do it and I wouldn’t do it. So I decided at that point in time to become a vegetarian. And that was a pretty rapid change for me. I gave up red meat first. gave up chicken was the last thing. And then I think I finally had like a steak as one last hurrah. And I couldn’t get through eating the steak that I wanted to because I knew it was gonna be great. I couldn’t do it knowing that I went to, it was a… It was a cattle slaughterhouse. I just was like, I can’t. So I’ve been a vegetarian since I was 21. I’m 55. So it’s been a few years. Vegan, I say as much as possible. In my house, I’m vegan. When I go out in public, it is always a battle with how much egg is going to be utilized, dairy. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:24.6)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (17:29.453)in some instances. I’m always able to get vegan vegetarian options, but vegan is a little bit difficult. And if I’m going to get it out in public, it’s usually pretty pretty bad, I say. I usually get pasta primavera. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:36.471)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:44.716)Well, that’s why Dr. Jennifer, I don’t need out very much because I feel like at home there’s, and you can eat these beautiful recipes in your cookbook. It does make it much easier when the more home meals you do eat. Jenneffer Pulapaka (17:56.008)Yeah, you get pasta primavera, plate of sides, you’ll get a salad, or now I can get like a black bean burger. That’s like the, that’s the standard that I get when I eat out. So for me, it’s hard because yes, I do have my husband who is like, you know, a super creative chef when it comes to that. And he was vegetarian until he was 21. After he came to the United States, he was here a few years and then He tried meat. in his professional career as being a chef, he’s been very broad. He cooks a lot of seafood. He’s notoriously known for producing fantastic fish dishes. But I think it was his upbringing that taught him about spice and seasoning and flavor that makes him so good about making plant-based cooking. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:55.786)Right, he grew up in India. Jenneffer Pulapaka (18:55.973)because it was second nature to him, correct. He grew up in India and he came here when he was young. And a lot of us, like I said, we do not have contact with food anymore. And when I do culinary and coaching classes with my patients, we do small group exams. I bring them in foods and we talk about things like that. Like I have an example. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:20.617)Well, and while you’re getting that, I want to mention there’s some call-outs in the book and I want to get into some of the specific information, which is really interesting. But even to educate people, there’s a spice section in the book, you know, and it’s, this is something that everyone in India might know, for example, but here it’s saying, you know, spices are using any part of the plant, but the leaves, if you’re using the leaves, you’re, then it’s considered an herb. And if you’re not using the leaves, it’s a spice. Jenneffer Pulapaka (19:30.961)Yeah. Jenneffer Pulapaka (19:46.737)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:49.006)So I think this appreciation and sort of deeper understanding when we’re looking at any sort of plant and the parts that we’re using starts to create a deeper connection when you’re working with herbs, when you’re working with spices, when you’re cooking. It can be really simple, but it starts to get more, it feels really connected. Jenneffer Pulapaka (19:52.807)Thank Jenneffer Pulapaka (20:08.871)He does a good job. think common spice substitutions like that. was originally we did this in one of the first books that we had. You know what? That’s great. I don’t know how many it’s on page 27. I don’t know how many times my patients will ask. Well, if I don’t have fennel and they get scared about cooking recipes and like, you know, if you don’t have fennel. you know, use a substitute, you know. And if you don’t have it, just don’t use it. Move on. Find something else. Do you like gilding? You know, move forward with something, you know, but they get nervous about substitutions. And I think as you start to cook more and do more and be more hands on, then you’ll realize, you know, I don’t have lemongrass, but yeah, I just use, I just had lemon zest and I use lemon zest and I felt good enough. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:40.926)Right. You said that you- Isn’t that funny? Jenneffer Pulapaka (21:05.957)And then I wanted a little bit more herbaceousness, so I put some basil in it and that was my lemongrass. Perfect. Great substitute. Did you like the food you ate? Yes. Then it was perfect, right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:16.142)Yeah, exactly. Again, less rigid, less heady and confused and more in flow, you know, the energetic part of being living a heart led life. And what I really liked too about the recipes, and I made a bunch of notes if you guys are watching this on her YouTube channel, I’m holding them up. There’s really great information worked into the recipes, which I appreciate. So for example, on page 42, where you talk about kale, Jenneffer Pulapaka (21:23.686)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:45.164)And one of the things that you mentioned is nitrate and nitric oxide and how it helps to open up the blood vessels contributes to the, it’s a vasoactive effector. And then it says, eat it, don’t juice it. And I’ve always been more into smoothies and kale salad instead of juice. Yeah. If you could talk a little bit about that. Jenneffer Pulapaka (21:45.799)it. Jenneffer Pulapaka (21:57.896)Yeah, I love that. Jenneffer Pulapaka (22:06.311)So, and I lecture on this one all the time when I’m talking because you have that nitrate, nitrite, nitric oxide pathway. And nitrates start in the mouth. You start to break it down by chewing. You need mastication with the saliva in order for that enzyme to start as it’s breaking down to your end result is nitric oxide. So it starts in the mouth. So therefore that’s why I’m like, you can’t do it. interesting there was a study that recently came out that was looking at toothpaste and mouthwash. So they were they’re looking into the fact that sometimes when we have this 24-hour toothpaste, well sometimes the bacteria or the enzymes that are in your mouth have a purpose and sometimes those things you know can interfere with that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:35.192)Hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:42.966)yes, I read that in here. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:49.134)you Jenneffer Pulapaka (23:02.915)It wasn’t a robust enough study, not a big enough population, but it’s an interesting point to see how is that going to play out down the line? You know, are they going to be looking more into that? Because we know you talked about inflammation, gut biome. You know, they do poo samples all the time on people who eat vegetarian, vegan, and meat, you know, and they’re looking to see which ones had the healthiest. And out of all of them, when people Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:02.957)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:24.483)Right? Jenneffer Pulapaka (23:30.213)have really aggressive disease states that they have to kill off a lot of their bacteria and restart. They’ve had surgeries, really complicated patients, and then they’re inocula

Summary: In this conversation, Kimberly speaks with Dr. Ingrid Clayton who shares her journey of understanding complex trauma and the Fawn response. After years of therapy and personal work, she reflects on her struggles with self-acceptance and healthy relationships. Through her experiences and education in psychology, she has gained new perspectives that have facilitated her healing process.   Episode Sponsors LMNT: OFFER: To get THE PUREST, MOST DELICIOUS PLANT-POWERED protein blend, infused with real vanilla and harmonizing adaptogens go to Animamundiherbals.com and use code: KIM20 to get 20% off your purchase! USE LINK: Animamundiherbals.com and use code: KIM20 to get 20% off your purchase!   FEEL GOOD PROBIOTICS OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. USE LINK: mysolluna.com CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Episode Chapters 00:00 Understanding the Fawn Response00:35 Signs of Fawning in Relationships   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS The Hidden Power of the Five Hearts Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! How to Believe in Your Self Worth with Jamie Kern Lima How to Raise Your Standards In Your Love Life with Matthew Hussey How to Eat to Beat Your Diet with New York Times best selling author Dr. William Li The issues with consuming vegetable and seed oils with Dr. Catherine Shanahan How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo How to Optimize Your Metabolic Health with Dr. Casey Means TRANSCRIPT: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.436)Hi Ingrid, thank you so much for joining us today. Ingrid (00:04.802)Thanks for having me! Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:07.834)You know, I think your book really stood out to me because I only recently heard of this word fawn and fawning. And we all hear about fight and flight quite a bit because of all the nervous discussion and then freeze. But this whole fawning aspect, which of course we’re going to get into really deeply today, seems to be newer, at least in its identification. Ingrid (00:21.891)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:34.556)Can you tell us a little bit as a clinical psychologist how you even started focusing on this aspect in your work? Ingrid (00:42.666)Yeah, it’s new on the scene to just about everyone, actually. We’ve long talked about fight, flight and freeze, but I feel like fawning has been kind of hiding in plain sight and there are lots of different reasons for that. But one, think when you think about fight, flight and freeze, they look like obvious sort of trauma responses, right? You’re going against the threat. But with fawning, you’re actually leaning in. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:02.138)Yes. Ingrid (01:07.832)the source of harm. And there’s this appeasement factor, which could look like flirting or flattering or going along to get along. There’s a caretaking aspect. So it looks like you have agency. It looks like conscious choice, but actually underneath that is just like a fight, flight and freeze responses and unconscious reflexive survival mechanism. And so, you know, Pete, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:29.519)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:34.864)And why did you focus on this? Ingrid (01:36.782)Yeah, well, so Pete Walker coined the term, the Fawn response, I think in like 2013, but it’s really just coming into the mainstream now. And I come at his work and through this lens of complex trauma, which is relational trauma, in part because I’m a clinical psychologist, but more than that, I’m a childhood trauma survivor. And the reason I became a psychologist to begin with is largely because I’ve been trying to crawl out from under something that I’ve Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:01.754)Yes. Ingrid (02:05.28)lived with my whole life and none of the other frameworks ever freed me, right? Whether you talked about people pleasing or codependency or, know, it just felt like those frameworks were keeping me just as stuck as everything else I tried. And so when I came upon Pete Walker’s work and understanding these behaviors, you know, what we’ve called sort of codependent or people pleasing behaviors, in this trauma-informed lens, it was like, my word, I finally make sense to myself, right? And it just kind of set off this cascade of not only personal understanding, but my work with my clients changed. And now here we have the book on fawning. So hopefully, honestly, more people can make sense to themselves too. That’s the whole point, yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:58.074)You know, I really, think there’s, I think this is a lot more common than we realize. And I also, you know, applaud your bravery and telling some of your story in the book and sharing client stories. And I have to say Ingrid, when I started to read your book, I got a very specific feeling in my body. You know, trauma can get stored somatically and I’ve done so much work on myself, but it brought me back to Ingrid (03:04.992)Yeah. Ingrid (03:10.999)Hmm. Ingrid (03:19.403)Mmm. Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:27.41)my childhood and very early adolescence where I know you talk about being 13 and 12, 13, 14. I just remember walking around in the world and being quite innocent. And I started my period later and I started to get, my aunt said this to me, oh, you’re getting all this attention from men. And they would sort of look and be like, you here’s this, you know, what they would be pretty little girl or teenager. And I didn’t know what to do. I would smile. Ingrid (03:28.59)Mmm. Ingrid (03:33.249)Yeah. Ingrid (03:39.918)Hmm. Ingrid (03:54.349)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:56.144)or sometimes even giggle like you talk about when you’re feeling uncomfortable. And my author said to me, stop smiling. And it was almost like this shame, know, every time we went into public, don’t smile. And I remember being very confused and feeling shame and feeling like I didn’t really know what was going on. And then reading your book and I thought about it, but it just feels very complicated. There’s a complication to finding, cause we’re not trying to flirt. Ingrid (04:00.035)Yeah. Ingrid (04:04.267)Wow. Ingrid (04:09.966)Mmm. Aww. Ingrid (04:19.416)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:24.828)We’re trying to be safe. We’re trying to get out of danger. It’s very uncomfortable. But then there’s this shame that can get wrapped into it. So I started to read the book and I was like, gosh, I didn’t really dig into fawning before, but I really think that’s what was going on. Ingrid (04:33.176)That’s right. Ingrid (04:39.277)Mm-hmm. Ingrid (04:43.438)I think it is very common and I think about it this way that fawning tends to come online when fight, flight and freeze are either unavailable or would make things worse. So if you think about your example there and certainly my childhood, right, fighting back to the powers that be to, you know, largely men or your parents, they’re twice your size, they hold all the power. Yeah, it’s not going, you know, they literally hold your life in their hands. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:56.251)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:06.77)Yeah. Ingrid (05:13.454)The flight response, right, where are going to go? You’re going to be brought right back to the scene of the crime. Where are you going to go? This is wherever you go. This sort of male gaze, this threatening sort of, it’s the waters that we swim in day in, day out. And the freeze response, although also very common response to trauma, when things are so chronic and ongoing and it’s day in and it’s day out, the body found this way to adapt. I believe it is this ultimately genius adaptation to go, This is my reality, right? That I have to navigate. I can’t fight back. I can’t leave and I can’t freeze. I can’t be a deer in headlights. I got to get up and go to school every day and sit at the breakfast table and engage with these people. And so it really struck me, particularly when I was writing the book, just how many systems of power the body is navigating on any given day. And listen, the body knows where it resides in the pecking order. Like it knows that I’m not the one. at the top of the food chain. And so this reflexive thing of like, well, you hold the power. I need to make sure you’re happy in order for me to be safe and the body will always privilege safety and survival. Right? So all these historical ways that we’ve talked about some of these behaviors like, well, know, Kimberly just raised your self-esteem or smile or don’t smile. Right? It’s like you could get either side of the equation. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:22.02)Five. Yes. Ingrid (06:37.026)telling you to just do all of these things that maybe seem so obvious and yet they were not available to us. And this is where the shame comes in. It’s like, you know, well, how could you stay in that relationship or how could you smile when they were being so aggressive or how could you this? How could you that? you know, shame is a deep symptom. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:45.264)Yeah Ingrid (06:59.09)of complex trauma, but you can see why too. goes hand in hand with the Fawn response that in order to keep yourself safe often and not knowingly, sometimes you have a sense of it, but often not knowing, there is this level of self abandonment, of betrayal. We know that I can’t respond to all of my values or all of what’s going to sort of honor who I am. I have to privilege this one piece first and it comes at a cost. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:15.186)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:27.268)Yes. Well, you know what it feels like Ingrid as you’re describing it and I can recall this. am feeling it and just trying to really process this trauma, which is obviously still stored somewhere in me is this feeling of being deeply misunderstood because when the Imam was saying, well, don’t smile like I was doing something wrong. It was like, wait, I didn’t ask for this attention and I don’t want this attention and I’m actually uncomfortable and I don’t know what to do. Ingrid (07:32.78)Mm. Ingrid (07:42.199)Yes. Ingrid (07:46.211)Yeah. Ingrid (07:53.996)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:54.052)And so it’s just feeling like no one else is looking after me, misunderstood on our like kind of on our own, like this feeling of aloneness, abandonment, you know? Ingrid (07:57.592)Mmm. Ingrid (08:03.032)That’s right. I think that that’s real, right? That you’re not really seen for being a whole person. And there tends to be this sort of hyper independence that develops alongside a chronic fawn response for that reason. It’s like, we’re never really fully or wholly seen by anybody else. It’s like, I’m the only one who has my back. So I have to sort of react accordingly. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:19.932)We’ll Ingrid (08:29.59)in the world. And there’s a real sadness even as you talk about it right now. think there’s such a heartbreak there that in order to keep yourself safe, you had to prioritize these men and how they were sort of looking at you. And often with fawning, it’s sort of like, don’t like you, but I need you to like me in order to stay safe. Or maybe if you do like me, you won’t hurt me. And when your body has a sense that you’re being sort of pursued or Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:51.6)Bye. Ingrid (08:56.974)and you don’t really feel safe, like you’re still a child and you’re an old man and you know, it’s like, yeah, it’s a lot. It’s a lot to hold. It’s like you said, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:08.07)Well, Ingrid, you I think like your experiences and my experiences, I imagine a lot of women listening to this would be like, wait, I wasn’t actually sexually assaulted. No one actually, you know, did something physical, but there was uncomfortability. Can you share a little bit about, you know, what happened with your stepdad where he was, you know, having you sit on his lap in the hot tub or going to Vegas and he didn’t actually physically assault you, but there was a lot of uncomfortability. Ingrid (09:14.029)Yeah. Mm-hmm. Ingrid (09:23.032)Yeah. Ingrid (09:27.342)Mm-hmm. Ingrid (09:36.397)Yeah. Yeah. I think it’s very common that a lot of us, and this is based on sort of the old idea of trauma by definition, we looked at it as though a certain event entitled you to use that word. And those events tended to be very clear and obvious and everyone would agree, right? It’s a vet coming back from war time. It’s a car crash. It’s sexual assault. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:37.532)that went on for years. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:52.412)Right. Ingrid (10:01.347)things along those lines. And so a lot of us now, it’s like we have this trauma measuring stick that’s like, well, mine wasn’t that bad, right? And when we do that, unfortunately, we say, well, now I’ve been, I’m not allowed, I can’t avail myself of all of these tools of trauma healing that would actually be the thing that would help me, right? And so A part of what I’m hoping to do is also just educate people on complex trauma generally. Complex trauma is relational trauma. It’s ongoing experiences of threat over time. And it might not be this overt thing that everyone could name. It might be your parents, whether it was culturally or they were doing the best that they could, or maybe there’s generational trauma, but you were left feeling invalidated, like chronically invalidated or unseen. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:36.741)Right. Ingrid (10:49.455)over time, this buildup, this residue, the body learns like, oh, I can’t be my full self. Oh, it’s not safe to be me. And this sort of, know, fawning looks like this masking element of like, well, who do you need me to be in order to be included and seen and valued? And I think, yeah, this misconception of like trauma looks a certain way. It kept me on the outside for a long time, even knowing my own story, because similarly, like you said, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:12.914)Right. Ingrid (11:19.531)My stepdad didn’t like overtly sexually assault me. He was grooming me for years and it started with these, you know, seemingly innocuous, but my body felt that it was not innocuous of, you know, come on over here and sit on my lap and I’m glad we can be this close. And I knew in those moments that I wasn’t safe, but I’m also sort of clocking like, would anyone else think this was bad? Like he’s Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:46.757)Right. Ingrid (11:47.501)He’s my stepdad and he’s being nice and he’s not always nice and I like it better when he’s nice. And so I’m also leaning into that. I knew I couldn’t embarrass him. I knew that I couldn’t push back. I knew that he had another side to him where he really could steamroll me. He could be a rager. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:04.402)What about your mom? You couldn’t go to your mom. Ingrid (12:07.565)I couldn’t go to my mom in part because I saw her disappear as he came into our lives. It was like she just was in his shadow, wouldn’t say anything unless she’d heard him literally say it before. I say in the book that it was like my mom went missing even when she was standing right in front of me. It was just she was not there. Ultimately, I did do the things that we’re all told to do as though we’re all entitled to having a voice and standing up for ourselves and setting healthy boundaries as though it’s that easy. I did attempt to do those things and it made things a lot worse because now I had a stepfather who was grooming me, parading me around as a girlfriend and a mom who didn’t believe me. They were like, you’re a liar. You made it all up. What are you talking about? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:51.825)Ugh. Ingrid (12:59.339)Again, a whole lot happened, but not a whole lot happened. Even when I turned to social services as a child, they were like, is it that bad? Right? And it sort of seemed like the collective, yeah, the collective response was like, well, no, it’s not that bad. We’re not really going to intervene. There’s not much we can do. So my body learned along with the cultural conditioning of what trauma is that it wasn’t that bad. know, this is normal. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:07.908)Right, we’re questioned. Ingrid (13:27.039)And you’re not safe, essentially. If I’m a nervous system perspective, I learned, boy, I am not relationally safe. The only thing I can do to be relationally safe is to go along with your narrative to a certain degree, don’t push back, to swallow this deeper truth that never really got fully validated or metabolized. And ultimately what I now know is that kept me stuck for decades, right? It was like, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:54.438)Yeah. Ingrid (13:55.435)imprisoned in my own body in a way that’s essentially what unmetabolized trauma really is, is that you’re stuck, you’re stuck. So understanding complex trauma and understanding the Fawn response, like I said, after decades, I sat on so many therapist couches, I’ve been sober for decades, I’ve done so much inner work, it wasn’t like I wasn’t trying, I got three degrees in psychology, right? It was like I did all of this to try to overcome Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:17.882)Right. The wounded here. Yeah. Yes. Ingrid (14:21.237)Yes, this feeling of like, what’s wrong with me? I’m still broken. Why can’t I have a healthy relationship? Why can’t I really have this loving relationship with myself? And these were the lenses that allowed me to see myself differently, to access myself differently, and actually to finally heal. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:40.722)Yes, and there’s this whole amazing section in the book about that. But before we go in, Ingrid, and someone’s listening to this, can you explain a little bit about the difference between fawning and people pleasing? Some signs of like, hey, you know, these are some real signs of the fawning. And also, part three, it’s this complex question is, what kind of patterns might you see in relationship where you haven’t addressed fawning or what types of Ingrid (14:53.432)Yeah. Ingrid (15:05.966)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:09.074)people might you attract if you’re in that fawning trauma cycle. So signs, difference with people pleasing and relationships. Ingrid (15:13.751)Yeah, so great questions. Ingrid (15:18.383)So for me, I think both actually people pleasing and the language of codependency, these were our best attempts to name something that is real, right? With whatever information we had at the time. But. the problem that I can have with some of these terms is that they sort of place the problem as it were in an individual’s body as though it just originated out of thin air for no reason, as though it’s a problem that they possess that they need to fix and solve. And to me, the Fawn response, I see it as sort of the engine of these behaviors. It’s the why, right? That’s what has gone. missing this notion that we are relational beings, we are hardwired, we co-regulate, we cohabitate, we literally need one another. So to divorce this notion of needing one another and our dependency, our literal dependency on one another is really shaming and blaming. First of all, to the caregivers, it’s like we go here, here’s the emotional load, do all the heavy lifting. And then when they do it, we go, what’s wrong with you? Why can’t you take care of yourself? Right? There’s this crazy double bind. so fawning to me is the heartbeat of these behaviors that allowed me to go, that’s why I’m privileging. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:31.1)Yeah. Ingrid (16:44.917)external validation or your opinion of me or I’m wondering why you’re mad at me. It’s why I’m so hypervigilant because my entire sense of safety in the world was built on needing to prioritize what was happening outside my body in order to keep my body safe. I had to be divorced from my internal sense of safety and orient to your need first and then come back to me. go, my gosh, that makes perfect sense. And the second thing that Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:49.722)Yeah. Ingrid (17:14.209)I think the fawn response tends to that people pleasing and codependency have not historically is the context that I am not just a dysfunctional person. My body adapted, I think in a very genius way to a deeply dysfunctional environment or context. And again, it’s the piece where I go, my gosh, okay, now it makes sense that I was doing this, right? It’s not just because I love to… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:34.651)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:41.286)Yeah, Ingrid (17:42.893)I’m obsessed with control, right? It’s like, no, I was obsessed with safety. I was obsessed with the feeling that I could exist in the world. And now I understand why. So to me, that’s the sort of, it’s like, we know more now. These terms arose before we understood trauma at all. And they were also steeped in this sort of disease model, which I think we just know better now. Let’s do better. Let’s help people understand where these… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:44.859)Wait! Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:50.63)Yes. Ingrid (18:09.913)these behaviors came from. And so some of the common signs and symptoms then are if I can’t have a voice because it makes it worse, right? It puts me as more of a target and maybe you’re gonna come for me. Well, we’re conflict avoidant, right? So a lot of chronic fauners have kind of lost access to a healthy fight response, which is all these things that we’re told to just go and do, right? Set a healthy boundary. Well, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:20.347)Yeah. Ingrid (18:34.849)setting a boundary might mean that I’m really going to get steamrolled. Saying a no might mean, now you’re really going to come for me. And so the body learned time and time again, like, no, no, no, no, it’s safer not to push back, right? It’s safer. But ultimately, what happened for me and what happens for a lot of my clients is like the FON response is almost 10 steps out ahead of you, like a perpetual protector or a shield. And it’s, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:41.692)Right. Ingrid (19:01.769)acting, even environments that might be perfectly safe, but the body goes, I’m not going to risk it. This is my way to safety. This is how I show up in the world. We tend to be conflict avoidant. We tend to prioritize everyone else’s needs, our own. think even this idea where we started the podcast of like, your trauma matters, but mine doesn’t really. That’s also kind of a common sort of fawning response. It’s like, you’re entitled to have Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:08.166)Well, yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:20.7)Yes. Ingrid (19:31.533)your story and experience and you should have all the resources, but mine don’t really matter that much. What else? Yes. Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:37.083)Yeah. So gets swung down over again, like for decades it took you, I think in the book you said it was 30 years, you know, for you to really sort of unpack that. there’s just, feels at least, you know, in my experience with myself, it feels like there’s all these different energies wrapped in. It’s sort of like that shame as guilty, should I have been doing that? Like, should I have been doing something else? But then fear, I didn’t know what else to do. And then this. Ingrid (19:46.358)Ugh. Ingrid (19:51.214)Yeah. Ingrid (19:58.926)Yeah. Hmm. Yeah. Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:09.02)hollowness in my throat or you can’t really express yourself. And, you know, it affects relationships for a long time, I think, until you can actually find center. Obviously, you when we we heal ourselves, we find that centeredness and compassion. Everything around us changes. But, you know, like you said, sometimes we don’t hear about this for a long time, or we don’t have tools for a while. So it does go on. It’s pervasive. Ingrid (20:11.119)Mmm, yep. Ingrid (20:29.624)Yeah. Ingrid (20:36.621)Well, look what the bind is, right? Because when you say center yourself to me, what that means is you start to grow a sense of internal safety, right? Which is that all my safety doesn’t reside outside of my body. But when your whole life has been built on this very foundation that your sense of safety resides outside of your own body, just telling someone to like center themselves, and it doesn’t make any sense. It’s like, what are you even talking about? Of course, logically, we go, well, I do love myself, right? Like, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:43.408)Yes. Ingrid (21:05.591)It’s not about these ideas that make sense. It’s about a felt sense. It’s a nervous system experience of, don’t care what you say and how you say it, my body is not safe in the world. And so we have to start from a place where we acknowledge someone’s lack of internal safety and go, yep, that’s where we’re starting. I’m not pretending like you have all this access, you’re just not using it. It’s you’ve never had the experience of really feeling autonomous, of feeling maybe like an adult, you know? This language that so many of us use, like you can see now with all this gray hair, I’m in my 50s, but half of the time I go, my God,

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Juliana Lindsay Summary: In this episode, Kimberly and Dr. Julianna Lindsey explore the interconnectedness of emotional and physical health, emphasizing the importance of stability in relationships and the impact of lifestyle choices on overall well-being. They discuss cardiovascular health, the significance of dietary choices, the effects of alcohol, and the role of supplements like glutathione and NAD in promoting longevity. The dialogue highlights the need for self-awareness and critical thinking in navigating health trends and misinformation.   About Dr, Juliana Lindsay Dr. Julianna Lindsey is Board Certified in Internal Medicine with additional training and certifications in anti-aging and regenerative medicine, functional and integrative medicine, lifestyle medicine, bioidentical hormone optimization, and peptide therapy. In addition to her clinical work, she has spent the past fifteen years serving executive leadership roles at Fortune-level companies. During this time, she observed the dysfunction of our health care system on a large scale, an experience that contributed to her motivation in establishing her Radiant Longevity clinic in Southlake, Texas, where she dedicates her life to serving people through personalized care and attention. She is the author of Radiant Longevity: A Physician’s Protocol for Living Your Best Life.   Guest Resources: Website: www.radiantlongevity.com Book: Radiant Longevity: A Physician’s Protocol for Living Your Best Life.   Episode Sponsors: FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   GLOWING GREENS POWDER OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. USE LINK: mysolluna.com CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Episode Chapters 00:00 The Importance of Connection and Stability05:02 Understanding Cardiovascular Health and Screening10:05 Dietary Choices and Their Impact on Health14:54 The Role of Alcohol in Health and Wellness19:41 Exploring Supplements: Glutathione and NAD24:57 Navigating Health Trends and Misinformation SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.23)Hi, Juliana. I was going to say Dr. Lindsay, but I love in your book how you say to call you Juliana. Thank you so much for being here with us today. Calling in from Dallas, I believe. Julianna Lindsey (00:13.333)Yes, Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:15.502)Love technology. You are asking me where I’m calling in from, which is currently California. And I do travel a lot between Hawaii and here. yeah, it’s just so great that we can have these conversations and feel that connection no matter where we are. Also books, you know, we’re both authors that we can really connect with people on the subject matter beyond your realm of patients in Dallas, you can share your ideas in this form, which is really exciting, I think. Julianna Lindsey (00:51.347)It is wonderful and connection is so important. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:54.774)You know, I really liked how you talked about such a variety of subject matters in your new book, Radiant Longevity, a Physician’s Protocol for Living Your Best Life. And I wrote a couple notes of some of the things that really stood out to me. And talking about connection, there’s a whole section in the book where you talk about a stable home life. And I really love that because we hear a lot about social connections and community. And of course, that was really highlighted a lot, especially since COVID, when there was so much isolation. But sometimes I don’t think we talk enough about stability. And that’s true if someone’s married, if they have kids, or a lot of our listeners may be single. But this idea of stability and having less drama in our lives and more nervous system regulation. Can you talk a little bit about why you called that out is so important in your book. Julianna Lindsey (01:54.239)not sure that there’s anything more important to our quality of life than having stability in our relationships. And you don’t have to have 50 friends. If you have one person that you know you can count on when the chips are down. And for me, I’m very fortunate to have a few. And my main person is my husband, but also my children. We have a… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:03.041)and Julianna Lindsey (02:23.115)drama free life. I just don’t have time or space for drama in my life. I don’t see any benefit to it and I try to avoid it like the plague. don’t and it is a plague and I hate it to see people online get wrapped up and trying to get reactions from people and you can just you can opt to just stay out of all that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:34.424)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:47.394)Right. Julianna Lindsey (02:52.277)But you do need people in your life that you can absolutely count on. And I want to be that person for other people as well. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:01.708)Yeah. Well, I think it’s important to talk about that because when we talk about stress and we talk about cortisol levels and, I mean, there’s so many things in daily life that we can do. Like you said, we can create a lifestyle. Maybe some of us grew up and you talk about trauma in the book as well, but maybe we grew up in a home environment that did have a lot of drama or maybe we can start to be aware in our life now. I know for me, Juliana, I can get really triggered by news. Like don’t really, I don’t watch the news, you know, I’ll read selectively, but also what’s coming into our feed. Like you said, there’s a lot of negativity online. So there’s a lot of things that we can do to create that stability. If we just start to be aware relationships, you know, what’s coming in, like our total environment. And that’s really important. You say stability, I also say more calmness, more peace. And that has an obvious, you know, effect. on our physical health, our mental well-being, emotional well-being, spiritual well-being, and so on. Julianna Lindsey (04:05.173)And of course we can’t separate any of that. We can’t separate our emotional wellbeing from our physical wellbeing. It’s all so integrated. And we have be very intentional about the environment that we create around us and the events that we allow to go on in our atmosphere. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:10.584)Yeah, it’s That’s right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:23.842)That’s right. And so if someone is listening to this and they say, wow, you know, there are, there is a lot of drama in my friendships or in my relationship. It’s something to be aware of and something that, you know, we have to look within ourselves and there’s so many different tools and, you know, resources available that it doesn’t have to stay like that. We can, you know, move in transition and it’s an important marker of health and wellbeing stability. Julianna Lindsey (04:51.059)Indeed, and just the ability to an open conversation, an open, authentic conversation with people is an art. Sometimes crucial conversations need to occur, right? People, relationships are not problem free. And if you hit a bump in the road, it doesn’t have to mean there’s drama. know, people should be able to have open, honest, authentic relationships with one another without there being drama involved and just, you know, state the problem and figure out together collaboratively how you want to solve the problem. If it’s a relationship worth having. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:17.006)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:34.123)Yes. Julianna Lindsey (05:34.281)that it’s worth it’s worth an open conversation. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:38.53)Yeah, it’s true and honesty and coming from the heart. Julianna Lindsey (05:42.963)Yes. And I think you can feel your intention, right? If your intentions are good, if you want the best for that other person, if you want the best for your relationship, people know that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:56.694)Yes, that’s right. Well, and then only a few pages prior, and this is another note I had in completely switching gears, which again, I really love a holistic approach. And even a few pages earlier, you were talking about coronary artery calcium scan, the CAES, which my husband had done. And so again, there’s relationships, there’s the things that we can’t see with our physical eyes. And then, okay, there’s plaque. Julianna Lindsey (06:13.493)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:23.97)There’s hardened, there’s calcified plaque. There’s the statistics that we know about cardiovascular incidences. We know that a lot of women and men, all different types of people have heart disease. Now, can you talk a little bit about this scan and this test? Because I remember talking to my husband about this a few months ago and it seems somewhat… recent, it seems that not everybody knows about this. It feels like it could prevent a lot of cardiovascular incidences. I’m not sure if it’s always covered by insurance, but can you just give us more information about this test? Julianna Lindsey (07:02.261)love that you bring up that topic because cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of men and it is the number one killer of women. We hear lot about breast cancer and certainly we want to be aware of our breast cancer risk and keep up on those screenings and breast health but the statistically most likely event to lead to death is cardiovascular disease in women. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:10.189)Wow. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:30.189)Mmm. Julianna Lindsey (07:31.681)And it has historically been underdiagnosed and undertreated in a preventative fashion in women. So women are less likely to get put on cholesterol-lowering medications. They’re less likely to get put on blood pressure-lowering medications. The moment a man’s testosterone drops below 800, somebody wants to start giving him pellets. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:57.795)Right. Julianna Lindsey (07:58.431)Women are allowed to go through periods of estrogen deprivation in perimenopause and menopause, which is so harmful to our cardiovascular health. And we need to raise awareness that that period of estrogen deprivation is when our disease risk of cardiovascular disease rises to equal that of men’s. So I very much try to avoid, want to avoid, and usually can periods of estrogen deprivation from my patients. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:06.382)Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:27.896)So you mean with hormone replacement. Julianna Lindsey (08:28.577)Yes, identical hormone optimization. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:32.94)And then when would you recommend someone start taking this? Is it CACS you would say test? Yes. Julianna Lindsey (08:39.669)The coronary artery calcium score. So I don’t use the coronary artery calcium scoring anymore. So I use a CT angiogram. We specifically opt for the, it’s a branded name, the CLEERLY scan, C-L-E-E-R-L-Y. The CLEERLY scan is a CT angiogram. It is a CT scan, so there is some ionizing radiation involved, but it’s a low amount. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:48.494)Julianna Lindsey (09:09.511)The that scan is superior to the coronary artery calcium score because they use AI algorithms and special cameras to detect both soft plaque and calcified plaque. 30 % of heart attacks occur in people with a calcium score of zero. The calcium score is paid for by insurance. The the CLEARLY scan is typically not paid for by insurance so that that is a barrier, it is absolutely the better test because soft plaque is kind of what gets us in trouble. That’s where the heart attacks happen, but it’s also, we see that as reversible, right? I try to see the glass is always half full. So I look at soft plaque as being a reversible condition and then with lipid lowering and other lifestyle measures, then we can help mitigate and lower people’s risk of developing heart disease. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:11.278)Well, thank you for clarifying that, Juliana. So around when would we consider getting this test and how often should you get this sort of test? And of course, you know, anyone listening to this or a loved one that, hmm, you you might want to inform about this because again, it doesn’t seem like a lot of the general masses know that these are available. Julianna Lindsey (10:35.673)That’s a great question. When to start screening? So we base our screening age on the risk factor of the patient in front of us. So if someone has a high LP little a, that’s a blood marker that you inherit from one of your parents. If you have a high LP little a, which everyone should get checked, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:39.297)Yes. Julianna Lindsey (11:02.579)then we absolutely begin screening much sooner than in someone who doesn’t have this high LP little a. LP little a is an independent risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease. So if you have high LP little a, you are far more likely to have plaque in your arteries, making you more likely to have a heart attack or stroke or peripheral cardiovascular disease. So in the event that, let’s say a woman has Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:09.728)Okay. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:25.07)Mm. Julianna Lindsey (11:31.883)High LP little a I want to get her screened before the age of 50 I also want to get a man screen before the age of 50 with high LP little a if someone has had a history of prolonged like a familial high cholesterol condition then then we may start in early 40s also, so and Of course the family history is important in making these decisions as well, but Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:53.165)Mmm. Julianna Lindsey (12:01.087)You can’t rely solely on family history. We like to add all these variables together and really risk stratify people. And it’s better to get screened earlier than later. We use that screening test to help us determine how aggressive we need to be in lipid lowering. you commonly hear stories from ladies that Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:04.16)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:23.574)Right. Julianna Lindsey (12:30.709)people didn’t want to put them on lipid lowering drugs because this, that, or the other. It’s usually there. Somebody said their cholesterol wasn’t that high because they’re premenopausal or, know, women can, women form plaque prior to menopause under the right conditions. There are also women and men who have very high cholesterol levels. They are very rare who Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:50.606)Mm. Julianna Lindsey (13:00.309)we find don’t have any plaque on their clearly scan. Now, if they don’t have plaque on their clearly scan, then we can often avoid pharmacologic therapy to lower their cholesterol. But those people are rare individuals. I would say maybe one in 500 people with high cholesterol will not be forming plaque. So they are very much the exception. not the rule. And I’m afraid that lot of physicians without having these test results assume that that is a way more common condition than it actually is. People need to get screened and risk stratified. If you’re not forming plaque, fantastic. But if you’re already forming plaque in your arteries, we can see the arteries around the heart with the CLEARLY scan. We cannot see the arteries in the brain. We don’t have good visual vision capability, but we absolutely use those heart arteries and the condition of those arteries as a surrogate marker for what’s going on in your brain. Our brain needs blood flow. Cognitive decline is an epidemic and it is a rising epidemic. We are very cognizant about our patients’ cognitive health. Just as much. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:00.0)it. Julianna Lindsey (14:27.321)as we are about their cardiovascular health because they are highly intertwined. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:33.228)Yes, thank you for explaining that. And then in another section, interrelated section of the book, where you talk about diet, and I love how you lead off with talking, you know, very similar dietary philosophy that we have here at Salona and Beauty Detox, lots of green vegetables, lots of nuts. And also a good friend of mine who’s been on this podcast many times, Dan Buettner, who discovered the blue zones, which you referenced in your book. you know, just having this Julianna Lindsey (14:57.846)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:00.046)whole food based diet and active lifestyle and so on. But I bring this up on the heels of us talking about the calcium scans because it gets really confusing for people, Juliana, as you know, where, you know, for a while it was sort of the general consensus about avoiding eating a lot of red meat. And then there’s sort of different dialogues being put out, especially in social media about, know, cholesterol isn’t really bad. And then there’s the rise of certain diets like the carnivore diet. lots of meat. And then I’ve heard people have even written into me saying, you know, I tried some of these diets and my plaque did go up, even though a lot of people that are pushing these very high meat diets are saying, well, no, it’s not actually going to raise your cholesterol. It just gets very confusing for people when there’s so many people talking about different ways of eating, you know. I don’t know, it sort of blows my mind. And then there’s these, again, these out of just certain studies, which can be extrapolated, they’re studying human populations, like the blue zones and seeing how a lot of these cultures are getting enough protein, but they’re also eating a large 90 % and over plant based. So can you speak a little bit in your work as a physician and your monitoring all these different patients and seeing what’s going on with plaque and just that relationship with eating a high red meat? animal protein diet in relation to what we’re talking about here. Julianna Lindsey (16:32.595)I can tell you with certainty that most people who are eating a high fat diet are going to have higher cholesterol levels. Now people’s bodies respond differently. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:42.978)Thank you. Yeah. Yes. But it sounds obvious and I’m sorry to bring it up this way, but it’s not when you’re listening to all these different dialogues, doctor. It sort of gets sort of bananas out there. Julianna Lindsey (16:59.285)Well, I would advise people to, if they hear something on social media, take that to your actual physician with hopefully with whom you have a relationship and then ask him or her questions about that. And please let it, first of all, let it pass the filter of common sense. Has, has humankind evolved eating solely meat? It’s It doesn’t pass the common sense filter to me. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:31.098)It doesn’t pass the common sense, but unfortunately, doctor, there are doctors like these carnivore MDs out there that are doctors that are also telling people some of these ways of eating, which I think can potentially cause a lot of harm and can certainly confuse a lot of people. So we’re moving away from fiber and anti-inflammatory antioxidant rich foods. And now there just becomes this huge focus on protein, protein, protein more and more. animal foods. Julianna Lindsey (18:02.645)Well, it’s the wrong direction. And if you look at the human microbiome, and we are in our infancy in knowing the power of our microbiome, but we do know that 70 % of our immune system lies in the lining of our gut. Those microorganisms that are in the lining of our gut control so much of what happens in our body. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:13.248)Yes. Julianna Lindsey (18:26.651)and those to have a healthy microbiome, you need those soluble and insoluble fibers that you can only get from non-meat sources. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:38.71)Yeah. And you were talking about, you know, opening up pathways to the brain, to the heart. There’s a clogging effect. Like you said, common sense that happens when we’re eating really dense, fatty, just, I can’t say it in words, but dense foods. Now, and then when we’re focusing on eating so much of those foods and filling our plate with that, then obviously there’s going to be less room for the fiber rich. Julianna Lindsey (18:45.301)Yes. Julianna Lindsey (18:56.682)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:06.346)foods, it just becomes less of a focus, unfortunately, in a lot of these diets. Julianna Lindsey (19:12.255)And if people have a, if they have doubt about that, I would just challenge them to go get your lipid profile checked regularly. Like we check our patients lipid profiles every 90 days because people will go on, you know, they’ll go off on tangents and I can, I can generally tell when they’ve gone off on a tangent and, and they’re, they’re eating it just like red meat every single day. I’m not against red meat. I eat meat myself. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:23.842)Wow. Julianna Lindsey (19:42.081)I also eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. So balance in all things. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:47.444)Yes. Yeah, I can say, I can share and I’ve talked about a little bit on here that actually was a personal experience with my husband. He eats meat, me and the kids are plant based, but he went on a full carnivore diet. And was a day where he was eating his chopped raw liver. And my older son looked at it he said, mama, would you eat papa’s food for a million dollars? And I said, no, he’s like two million. We were trying to come up with a number, but he does get regular blood work and he saw the actual, you know, the impact in his blood work. And I’m happy to say he’s gone back to eating a lot of fiber again. because yeah, to your point when you could measure and you can actually see that difference, instead of just theoretically or just because you want to look the way someone looks on social media and you think it’s because you need more and more and more. of protein and to build yourself up. Julianna Lindsey (20:47.553)Also, we have no idea what those people on social media who look like they look, what they’re doing. You know, we don’t really know what they’re eating. We don’t know what kind of hormones they’re putting in their body. They could be doing any number of unhealthy things. And I can tell you that I see a lot of 50-year-old men walking around, you know, all puffed up, who look horribly unhealthy. I know that they… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:02.091)Right. Julianna Lindsey (21:16.971)They probably perceive themselves as being healthy, but you can spot somebody who’s on too much testosterone and growth hormone, and it is a bad situation for their health. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:28.106)Right. I imagine long-term, especially taking growth hormone. Julianna Lindsey (21:32.255)Well, short and long term. I mean, those people tend to die early. Think about like Rich Piana, for instance. He was a internet craze. And then there’s like the liver king. know, all these people doing these crazy things. And it turns out, I guess the liver king wasn’t actually doing what he said he was doing. And then of course, Rich Piana died when he was relatively young. So. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:44.27)Right. Julianna Lindsey (21:58.933)I don’t think we need to be taking advice from people like that. And you have to always question people’s ulterior motives. What kind of secondary gain are they on social media to get? So the way to get likes and reactions and conversations on social media is to be extreme. The way to live a balanced, healthy life is to avoid extremes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:24.878)Right, centered. And you mentioned that in your protocols overall for eating is to eat less, right? Because we are able to digest more, our bodies utilize more nutrients when we’re not constantly overloading. And I know, know, Dr. you as well as many physicians, there’s a section where you did talk about semi-glutides and… Julianna Lindsey (22:26.815)Yes. Julianna Lindsey (22:34.582)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (22:51.246)and know, Zempik and you know, the crazes out there. And on one hand, people are eating less and they are dropping weight. I wonder, and I don’t know the answer and I haven’t taken, you know, I’m not a physician that’s taking a super deep dive on this, but I wonder doctor about long-term though. And people haven’t learned to eat healthy when they’re taking these drugs, or maybe they’re, you when they get off and then they still have to learn to eat healthy. What do you think about these other aspects? And I know primarily, you know, you’re seeing numbers improve, you’re seeing people eat a lot less. We know obesity is a killer, but long-term effects and then potentia

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Mariza Snyder Summary: In this enlightening conversation, Kimberly speaks with Dr. Marisa Snyder who discusses her new book, ‘The Menopause Revolution,’ focusing on the importance of understanding perimenopause and the holistic approaches to women’s health during this transition. She emphasizes the need for education about hormonal changes, the role of lifestyle in managing symptoms, and the potential benefits of bioidentical hormones. The discussion also covers mental health, postpartum support, skin and hair changes, and the significance of maintaining bone health. Dr. Snyder encourages women to embrace this phase of life as an opportunity for empowerment and growth, redefining their midlife experience with intention and care About Dr. Mariza Snyder Dr. Jason Giles is a triple board-certified physician (Addiction Medicine, Anesthesiology, and Pain Medicine) who has revolutionized addiction treatment through both personal triumph and professional innovation. With 25+ years of sobriety and two decades practicing addiction medicine, Dr. Giles brings an unmatched combination of lived experience and clinical expertise to one of America’s most pressing health crises. As founder and director of Addiction Doctors, a multi-specialty telemedicine group, Dr. Giles oversees the detox and stabilization of hundreds of patients daily across both coasts, partnering with America’s premier treatment centers. His mission: reaching the vast underserved population struggling with addiction by developing technology and models that expand access to life-saving care. Dr. Giles’ journey began with his own fentanyl dependency during anesthesiology residency—a rock-bottom moment when he realized he couldn’t keep his word to himself about stopping. His recovery through a long-term monitored program (which boasts 90-95% ten-year success rates) catalyzed his career transformation from anesthesiologist to addiction medicine pioneer.For 15 years, Dr. Giles operated a boutique specialty practice treating everyone from championship athletes and Fortune 50 executives to billionaires and their families, hand-building long-term recovery programs focused on relationships rather than quick fixes. This elite-level experience, combined with his personal recovery journey, informs his contrarian yet highly effective treatment philosophy. Guest Resources: Website: drmariza.com Book: The Perimenopause Revolution: Reclaim Your Hormones, Metabolism & Energy   Episode Sponsors: ANIMA MUNDI OFFER: To get THE PUREST, MOST DELICIOUS PLANT-POWERED protein blend, infused with real vanilla and harmonizing adaptogens go to Animamundiherbals.com and use code: KIM20 to get 20% off your purchase! USE LINK: Animamundiherbals.com and use code: KIM20 to get 20% off your purchase!   POWER OF THE FIVE HEARTS: USE LINK: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/760283/the-hidden-power-of-the-five-hearts-by-kimberly-snyder/   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Dr. Marisa Snyder and Her Work02:14 Understanding Perimenopause: The Importance of Education04:39 Holistic Approaches to Health During Perimenopause09:05 The Role of Hormones: Natural Shifts vs. Bioidentical Hormones15:54 Navigating Mental Health: Hormones and Postpartum Support20:17 Empowering Women: Access to Hormonal Support and Care22:02 Reproductive Longevity and Choices23:58 Optimizing Cellular Energy for Pregnancy27:15 Navigating Hormonal Changes in Midlife29:03 Skin, Hair, and Hormonal Health33:25 The Importance of Estrogen in Women’s Health35:30 Nutrition and Lifestyle for Metabolic Health39:39 Setting Up for Future Success41:47 Empowerment in Midlife and Beyond   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.016)Hi, everyone. Welcome back to our Monday interview show. I am so excited for our very special guest here with us today, the lovely Dr. Marisa Snyder. She has a brand new book out, which I love, called The Harry Menopause Revolution, Reclaim Your Hormones, Metabolism, and Energy. Dr. Marisa has written many other books on female health, on hormonal health in particular. She is a powerhouse advocate for midlife women, leveraging 17 plus years as a practitioner, author and speaker to spark a massive movement for women in perimenopause and beyond. She is the host of the top rated Energize with Dr. Mariza podcast where we had a wonderful conversation about the heart last year. I’m getting goosebumps because Dr. Mariza, I always say Mariza because I know her personally. Dr. Mariza (00:48.363)Yes! Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:55.394)is a friend of mine and it’s really powerful when someone is really embodying the energy that’s coming forth in their work. She is such a passionate human. She is so in her heart. She’s so authentically cares about helping other women. She’s been through a lot of this herself. She’s coming from firsthand experience. So with all that, Dr. Marisa, thank you so much for joining our feel good community today and be back. Dr. Mariza (01:22.447)Kimberly, it is such a pleasure. Yes, I’m so happy to be back. I’m so happy to be a part of the beautiful feel good community that you have cultivated. You know, what an honor to get to be here and to just speak as two women, as two mamas, know, navigating this beautiful journey and, and really setting not only ourselves up for success in the second half of our lives, but also every single woman who gets to walk this beautiful journey with us. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:45.068)Yes. I love how there’s a lot of conversation. There’s just a lot out there about menopause. And you’re here highlighting in your new book about perimenopause, which I think can feel a little bit more nebulous for many. And there’s sort of this clear, you know, I haven’t gotten my period in a year, so I must be in menopause. But what I’m going to ask you questions as I was reading this, this book, Dr. Marisa, Dr. Mariza (01:51.971)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:14.83)It’s like, know, just sort of questions I think a lot of women have, including myself. So the first is, and I love in the beginning of the book, you say it’s really important that we educate ourselves about these processes even before we’re in them. So we have, you know, a sense of knowledge, we can empower ourselves. But if you’re in your 30s and 40s, and you’re still getting your period every 28 days, and you’re not experiencing symptoms like hot flashes or you some of you have a whole quiz in here. Yes. Exactly. like, you know, like myself where I’m like, Hey, I’m still getting my period and I don’t have any symptoms. Then we say we’re not in perimenopause yet, but it’s still good to know about it. Dr. Mariza (02:45.327)kind of the classic menopause, late perimenopause symptoms. Dr. Mariza (02:55.043)Me too. Dr. Mariza (03:01.899)Absolutely. Just like it’s important for us to know as little girls what puberty is, you know, being prepared for your first bleed and also those four to six years where our brain is coming online for our reproductive years. That’s a huge neuroendocrine transition that I think we could even do a better job at preparing our girls for. But then, you know, we prepare women for pregnancy and postpartum. And equally as important, we should be preparing women Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:26.338)Yes. Dr. Mariza (03:30.681)for perimenopause. Anytime we go through a big hormone shift that deserves our attention and a new level of support, women should be educated about their bodies and what to expect and how they can really shore up their health and feel amazing as they move through that journey. I mean, I think that every woman deserves that pathway through. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:54.35)Yes. So a lot of, and I love how holistic your book is covering things like diet and sleep and exercise. And a question I have for you, and this is a really broad question, before perimenopause, see during perimenopause and after perimenopause, a lot of these amazing suggestions, eating more fiber, you talk about gut health, you talk about all these things. Dr. Mariza (04:05.901)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:18.424)How is it different within the perimenopause? Because wouldn’t we already be wanting to focus on whole foods and exercise? What is the specific shift, if any? And for many, maybe it’s saying, hey, everything’s changing. I have no choice but to focus on this as my protocol is because I’m starting to feel more moody or I’m starting to get these hot flashes. Dr. Mariza (04:28.792)Mm-hmm. Dr. Mariza (04:34.691)Yes. Dr. Mariza (04:39.021)Yeah, I think that’s what it is. You’re absolutely right, Kimberly. If we could, as soon as we have a cycle, we have a menstrual cycle, we are optimizing our blood sugar, we are sleeping like our life depends on it, we are managing our heart, we are regulating our nervous system, girl, I would say start as early as you can. However, the truth is that a lot of us can get away with cheats. You we can get away with a little less sleep. You maybe we’re in grad school or maybe we have kids early or, you know, we just have some wiggle. You know, when I was growing up, I was taught that I diet to stay thin. That was a big part. That was like, okay, we, you put on a little bit of weight, you get on that treadmill. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:16.321)Yes. Dr. Mariza (05:21.121)treadmill or your that treadmaster, you calorie restrict a little bit for a couple of weeks, you get back down to that size, right? And then you just, and then you go back to doing what you’re doing. And you kind of, you kind of go into these loops where you’re like, okay, I need to like really buckle down and get disciplined. And then you lose the weight. And then, you know, again, you go back to doing life. But in pre-menopause, and mind you, I always believed that we should be eating for our gut health and our metabolic health, but this was just the narrative in the 80s and the 90s and even 2000s when we weren’t talking about the profound changes that were going on. And also we were just, it was all about being thin or whatever that goal was that the magazines were touting. But as we step, yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:02.35)Well, the I was laughing because now it’s like people are just taking ozempic before. I everybody’s just like, let me take ozempic and lose the weight and then I’ll change how I eat, you know. Dr. Mariza (06:07.042)Right, yeah. Dr. Mariza (06:13.679)Exactly, yeah, I mean, there’s always a new strategy, right? But when we go through perimenopause, we have to understand that the hormones that are changing, these are hormones that have been rhythmically showing up every single month throughout our menstrual cycle to run hundreds of physiological processes. We’re talking about estrogen and progesterone being immune system modulators. metabolic boosters. They are managing water retention and gut microbiome diversity. They’re helping us to grow our bones and our muscles. They’re protecting our heart. They’re helping our brain to function. They’re getting us to sleep at night. They’re helping us to regulate our mood and help us to feel more peaceful and calm during parts of our cycle. You know, I always joke that everybody loves Day 12 us, right? Two days before ovulation, estrogen is peaking at our highest peak. We feel energized. We want to be out and about. We feel sensual. We’re connected with our partners. And mind you, can it be that way a lot through our cycle? Sure. But there’s something about that pre-ovulation boost that feels so good. You know, we were taught to not really honor and appreciate day 27 us. You know, the one that wants the girl version of us that wants to go inward, that wants to have some time to herself, that needs a little alone time to kind of regulate because progesterone and estrogen are declining. Well, in perimenopause, now these hormones are not rhythmically regulating and releasing the way that they were for the last 25 to 30 years. Now these hormones are erratically declining. And as a result, these protective shill hormones that are doing so much more than bikini medicine. For a long time, we used to believe that the only difference between us and men was the parts of the bikini cupboard. So our boobs and our ovaries and our uterus, and that was it. But now we know that these hormones are helping to modulate and regulate multiple areas of the body, including the brain. And as they begin to falter, for each and every one of us, it’s gonna be a unique journey. But as they begin to decline, and it’s not linear linearly, and it definitely doesn’t announce itself, Dr. Mariza (08:28.207)we’re gonna feel that protective shield begin to falter. And we may realize that that, you only six hours of sleep on a Saturday night or us just randomly dieting, it just isn’t working anymore. Our bodies are calling in a new level of support and a deeper understanding of our bodies. And that’s what perimenopause really ushers in, is having to understand our bodies in a new way, having to really honor what our body is going through. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:45.677)Hmm. Dr. Mariza (08:57.684)and be more consistent with the lifestyle strategies that are going to support our bodies along the way. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:05.484)Yes, I love that. There’s more, and I don’t ever like to use the word mindfulness, right? Because we talk so much about intuition in the heart, but there’s more, let’s say, intention around what we’re eating. And we’ll get into that in a moment and about the metabolic changes. But right off the bat, Dr. Maurice, I’m reading this and thinking about it within myself, and a lot of women have this question. was talking to my hairdresser about this and she’s in full menopause. Dr. Mariza (09:14.434)intention. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:35.06)And there’s this sort of balance between really honoring the natural lifestyle. of course, know, whole foods were about organic, were about great soil, were about exercise and lifting weights, more all these things. And then there’s the bio-identical hormone conversation, which You know, we had Dr. Erica Schwartz on here as well, who’s like a big advocate for bioidentical hormones. And so there’s the side of, hey, the women are having these symptoms and the bioidentical hormones can help. It’s like another, you know, medicinal strategy. And then there’s the other side and other people having the conversation or say, mother nature knows that we go through these shifts. And then there’s a decline of certain hormones. And why are we as a culture manipulating taking hormones when nature decided these hormones to shift. Dr. Mariza (10:28.015)Hmm, I love this question. You know, there’s a, it’s a big one. It’s a huge one. Let me, I wanna first just share where I’d land on this is that I believe that women deserve all the tools in the toolbox. Whatever is gonna move you towards feeling more alive in your body and feeling more optimized, I would never deny a woman anything that is gonna move the needle in that meaningful way. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:30.606)It’s a big one. It’s a big Get out. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:37.314)Yes. Dr. Mariza (10:54.425)You know, we live in a modern day world where our soil is impacted and where we are living in, you know, dark boxes most of the time of the day. And, and, there’s a lot of things about this life, this modern day life that isn’t conducive to optimized hormones or even an optimized body. If we aren’t intentional about it, right. We can easily get sucked into all the blue light and eating. packaged foods and doing a lot of takeout and not really honoring our heart and our nervous system. Like, you know, that can really wear on us. And I will say that as our hormones are declining erratically, you know, we didn’t kind of live with the same stressors that we’re living in today. And so I think that that’s a major part of this conversation is that we kind of weren’t being bombarded as hard. as we are with all of the different chemical, physical, and emotional stressors that we are contending with today. And so I feel like our menopause and perimenopause journey can feel even more intense, can feel more exacerbated due to these other stressors that oftentimes some of us aren’t able to mitigate. You I think about all the single mamas out there who, you know, I wish, I know, I wish for them that they had more free time, that they had, you know, more, more… resources to make some of the changes. if bioidentical, you know, hormone replacement therapy or oral micronized progesterone can help get the sleep that they desperately need so that they can show up to be the best mama that they can be for morning routine the next day, then I am a full body yes to that option for them. And so I think that it’s a yes and hormones are powerful optimizers, but we need lifestyle in place as well. 100%. Could I tell you that hormones have been the game changer, the end all be all for me in terms of this journey? No. I would say that honoring my heart and my nervous system has been huge part of this journey. Moving my body meaningfully has been a beautiful part of this journey. Having community and eating towards having less inflammation in my body, those have been the biggest levers. And hormones have been super helpful too. I think it is very much a yes end depending on your journey. Dr. Mariza (13:13.517)but that women should not be denied any level of care. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:17.944)beautifully said, you know, I had a few friends over for dinner the other day and one of them is in, you know, she would define perimenopause and she said she just sort of woke up feeling very tired and off for a while. And then she did get her blood work done and she was working with a doctor and she got the hormones and you know, she, but then she was struggling with this question, you know, aren’t we supposed to have these natural hormonal shifts? And everybody was kind of talking about it. And I said to her, But do you feel better? She said, yeah. infinite possibilities. There isn’t a right or wrong, right? We step into that field of just there is and where y’all have unique bodies and unique journeys. And so I think it’s really, and I think about my grandmother, my mother, who didn’t really talk about menopause. And when I did ask my mother once, she just said, it wasn’t a big deal. But to your point, maybe she didn’t. Dr. Mariza (13:51.683)Well, there we go. Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:17.754)wasn’t aware of certain things and maybe there was less microplastics and it affected her in a different way, who knows? But there is a, you there are lots of possibilities out there. There’s a lot of conversation, including your wonderful book, and everybody has to decide for their bodies. Dr. Mariza (14:34.713)what’s gonna help them feel amazing, absolutely. Yeah, I think, you there’s a couple of reasons why we women, lot of the generations before us, especially our grandmothers, maybe even our mothers, my mom, she knew. She knew about perimetapos and metapos, it was very obvious. And she, yeah, she was like, what is happening right now to me? And she made some really powerful pivots that changed the course of her life in such a positive way. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:49.262)I knew you knew. Dr. Mariza (15:02.091)But she had to, know, again, we’re all kind of mitigating some of these big constants that a lot of us are working and maybe some of us don’t even necessarily love what we’re doing every single day, but we got to show up. And then we’ve got our families to take care of and we have our households to take care of. so, you know, anything that can help a woman feel, again, better, help her to mitigate her symptoms and really future proof her health is… to me is the number one priority. And when we look at the statistics, you know, just whether it’s hormone replacement therapy or not, although we do live longer than men, you 25 % more of our lives are spent in debilitating health. And, you know, one could argue that it’s 100 % because of hormones. Others could argue that it’s lifestyle, but I have a feeling that it’s a combination of the two. And so whatever we can do to support women, I will always be a yes to that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:56.366)There are some sobering statistics about women, particularly with brain health, mental health, you mentioned in here, dementia, Alzheimer’s. So can you talk a little bit about how this knowledge and working with perimenopause and menopause can help protect us and hormones potentially, and lifestyle of course, can help protect us against these neurodegenerative conditions. Dr. Mariza (16:22.977)I love this question. As I mentioned earlier, whether it’s puberty or postpartum or perimenopause, these are all big neuroendocrine transitions. And what a gift that our brains can go through such massive upgrades to be mothers, to step into childbearing years, and to step into our wise woman years. Now in this upgrade, I will tell you, it doesn’t always feel like an upgrade. My first couple of weeks of postpartum, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:33.25)Dr. Mariza (16:52.623)It didn’t really feel like an upgrade. I was like, I need some sleep. you know, and when you step into motherhood in that big, beautiful way, as your hormones are, know, postpartum is where we have some of our lowest hormone states and women really experience that and feel that. Same thing with perimenopause. When we are going through that… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:11.63)Dr. Mariza, sorry to interrupt Dr. Mariza. On that point, if anyone’s listening to this and they’re having a lot of struggles postpartum, are some doctors, such as yourself, prescribing progesterone and hormones to help with postpartum? Dr. Mariza (17:17.411)Mm-hmm. Dr. Mariza (17:25.271)Yes, absolutely. Yes, oral micronized progesterone or even progesterone injections in those really difficult times, those first three months of postpartum can completely change the game in terms of a woman’s mental health outcomes, pulling them out of suicidal ideation. And again, that really severe postpartum depression. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:31.148)Mmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:40.418)Wow, thank you for. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:46.488)Thank you. And for anyone listening to that, think that’s important to know. I certainly didn’t know that was an option. And I remember feeling a lot of moods and I don’t know if it was strong postpartum depression, but I think there was blues, there was just all sorts of feelings. Dr. Mariza (18:00.665)Yeah, all sorts of feelings that we’re trying to grapple with, right? Because the society tells us we should be so grateful that we have these beautiful babies. And we are. It’s a very conflicting and confusing time where you want to be so present for your baby. You want to make sure you keep them alive. That’s the number one. That’s what our brains are literally rewired for is their survival. We want to be appreciative and loving and being this beautiful heart centered place. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:11.106)Yeah. Dr. Mariza (18:30.347)And then we’re also having these conflicting emotions, these really intense emotions from baby blues to maybe even more severe depression, anxiety, and really this level of things are feeling insurmountable. And we have to understand that the brain is still massively reorganizing in postpartum big time to rewire for that baby. And it’s also depleted of some of the most critical hormones that it needs, including allopregnenolone. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:44.29)Yeah. Dr. Mariza (18:58.261)And if we can give women a little bit of a booster to kind of get over that hump, then why wouldn’t we do that? So I’m a big fan. I also was on oral micronized progesterone in the beginning, because I was, I think more so it felt like deeper sleep deprivation in the beginning. It’s so hard to tell. You’re like, am I just losing it because I’m not getting enough sleep or am I losing it because I’m just feeling very low? It’s a challenging time. It’s just all over the place. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:04.758)Amazing. Thank Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:22.798)It’s so cool. Dr. Mariza (19:26.927)It breaks my heart that so many women don’t necessarily feel as supported as they should. And that these tools are not easily and readily accessible when they come and report these types of symptoms. But I want you to know that oral micronized progesterone or even progesterone injections are so inexpensive. They’re so cheap. We’re talking about less than 12 bucks for a prescription for a month. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:37.997)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:48.952)Mm-hmm. Dr. Mariza (19:54.575)So it can really change the game. if you are listening to this and you’ve got either you’re in your postpartum, especially perimenopausal postpartum, like I was, like so many women today are, we’re having children later and what a blessing that is that we can get to do that. But that comes with perimenopause and postpartum together. So if you’re listening to this and either you’re thinking about having a child or you’re in postpartum right now, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:09.07)Yeah. Dr. Mariza (20:18.989)I just, hope you hear this and know that you deserve support and that there are doctors out there that will absolutely give it to you. And that solution of oral micronized progesterone or even injections is very easy to get your hands on in terms of accessibility. It’s FDA approved, it’s been proven safe time and time again. It’s what I use to even get pregnant at 41 years old. So I just want women to know that that should be available to them. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:44.096)naturally you got pregnant. Dr. Mariza (20:45.839)I did, well, I naturally got pregnant my first month trying when I was 40 years old. Mind you, I primed up for an entire year. So I was very aware that I was prepping to get pregnant for a long time. I got pregnant and I lost that baby about six weeks in, six or seven weeks in. By the time we did the ultrasound, I already lost the baby. And we weren’t sure if it was low levels of progesterone or maybe it was genetics. I wasn’t sure. Bu

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Jason Giles Summary: In this enlightening conversation, Dr. Jason Giles shares his personal journey from addiction to recovery, emphasizing the importance of connection, spirituality, and understanding the complexities of addiction. He discusses how his experiences as a patient have shaped his approach to addiction medicine, highlighting the need for empathy and individualized care. The discussion also touches on modern solutions for addiction, the role of community support, and the deeper emotional and spiritual aspects of recovery.   About Dr, Jason Giles Dr. Jason Giles is a triple board-certified physician (Addiction Medicine, Anesthesiology, and Pain Medicine) who has revolutionized addiction treatment through both personal triumph and professional innovation. With 25+ years of sobriety and two decades practicing addiction medicine, Dr. Giles brings an unmatched combination of lived experience and clinical expertise to one of America’s most pressing health crises. As founder and director of Addiction Doctors, a multi-specialty telemedicine group, Dr. Giles oversees the detox and stabilization of hundreds of patients daily across both coasts, partnering with America’s premier treatment centers. His mission: reaching the vast underserved population struggling with addiction by developing technology and models that expand access to life-saving care. Dr. Giles’ journey began with his own fentanyl dependency during anesthesiology residency—a rock-bottom moment when he realized he couldn’t keep his word to himself about stopping. His recovery through a long-term monitored program (which boasts 90-95% ten-year success rates) catalyzed his career transformation from anesthesiologist to addiction medicine pioneer.For 15 years, Dr. Giles operated a boutique specialty practice treating everyone from championship athletes and Fortune 50 executives to billionaires and their families, hand-building long-term recovery programs focused on relationships rather than quick fixes. This elite-level experience, combined with his personal recovery journey, informs his contrarian yet highly effective treatment philosophy. Guest Resources: Website: www.ororecovery.com/dr-jason-giles/ Book: Outsmart Your Addiction   Episode Sponsors: FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY MOMENTOUS: OFFER: Head to livemomentous.com and use code KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription. That’s code KIMBERLY at livemomentous.com for 35% off your first subscription. USE LINK: livemomentous.com Code: KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription.   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Background02:10 Journey into Addiction Medicine09:20 Personal Experience with Addiction13:01 Combining Science and Heart in Treatment16:46 Recognizing Addiction: Signs and Symptoms22:55 Addiction in Professionals: A Common Struggle26:08 Breaking the Silence on Addiction28:43 Understanding Food Addiction and GLP-131:56 The Complexity of Weight Loss and Hormonal Signals34:19 The Role of Spirituality in Recovery43:09 The Journey of Self-Discovery and Healing   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:01.863)So great to have you, Dr. Giles. Thank you so much for being here with our feel good community. Jason Giles MD (00:07.31)Thank you for having me. It’s my honor to be here. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:10.267)Where are you calling in from today? Jason Giles MD (00:13.96)I am in my office. currently I’m at the, place on the East coast in New Hampshire, enjoying, enjoying beautiful weather. The leaves are just starting to turn in the fall here, although it’s still warm. It’s not, it’s not chilly yet. It’s not sweater weather, but we had a bit of a drought this summer. So I think the trees are just ready for a rest. That’s how they’re acting. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:21.543)I’m giggling because I grew up on the East Coast too, Dr. Dries, I’m from Connecticut, but I don’t miss that. are like, love fall season. I don’t, sorry, I’m between now Southern California and Hawaii. Once I could choose, I really just wanted sunshine, but I appreciate the beautiful leaves. I think when people love winter, I know people that love skiing. Jason Giles MD (00:43.626)down the road. You don’t miss the weather. Yeah. Jason Giles MD (00:55.086)Mm-hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:06.961)We all like different things, don’t we? Jason Giles MD (01:08.654)It’s a funny paradox. I’m from Southern California and moved here just a few years ago. And it was a shock. It was a shock dealing with the seasons and it gets very cold here in the winter. But I figured it out. I look forward to the change and I’m in Southern California a lot. So I haven’t had time to completely miss it. My mother is still there. So I visit her. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:12.637)are ill. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:23.773)Yeah! Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:28.689)Okay. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:33.935)Are you scared? Jason Giles MD (01:36.32)I used to be, and then I had two kids, one played baseball eventually at a very high level. One did ballet, eventually professionally. And so the kids didn’t want to get hurt. So we, we, we set that aside, but I do like being outside. like, I like, I like the snow. I like a good, I like a good hike. do snow shoeing here. I did some snowmobiling some years ago. I hope to get back to that. That’s, that’s super fun. Maybe skiing. don’t know. There’s it’s just hard. It’s. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:49.628)Yeah. Jason Giles MD (02:05.198)I’m not in a ski group, but I do like it. It’s super fun. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:08.902)was available. Jason Giles MD (02:10.85)Yes. Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:12.027)Dr. Giles, coming down to business here, you have a really interesting focus in your work on addiction. And even when I hear that word, it feels like there’s so many ways in which we can get addicted. We can addicted to coffee, to sugar, to drugs, to sex, to working overtime. Well, first of all, tell us how you sort of narrowed into this. focus in your work, I imagine it wasn’t something you may have set out to do when you were starting out. Jason Giles MD (02:47.186)no, that’s good pickup. Not, not, not at all. I, I went a traditional route college and then medical school and my, Achilles heel, suppose is that I was interested in all sorts of things. liked pretty much every rotation I went through when I was on pediatrics. I wanted to be a pediatrician. And when I was on neurology, I was going to be a neurologist. I liked all kinds of stuff. There is a specialty that embraces all the specialties and it’s anesthesia. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:16.669)Mmm. Jason Giles MD (03:16.994)And that’s, that’s, that’s what I wound up doing. And anesthesia is, you know, taking away pain and awareness so that the surgeons can work their magic, fix whatever needs to be done. And I, I liked it. It was really, it was great. All different people, right? So from newborns or premature newborns all the way up to centenarians, ever, ever need surgery. They all have all different medical problems. So pretty much everything in the book. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:40.562)Wow. Jason Giles MD (03:46.85)can be a complicating factor. And then there’s all different surgery. So I liked it all. I wound up doing a specialty that I liked it all. But two things happened along the way. I wound up being a cardiac anesthesiologist. So doing the big cases, transplants and heart surgery and stuff like that. But along the way, two things happened. One, I went through the recovery process myself. So I developed my own addiction and needed to get help for that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:03.229)That was intense. Jason Giles MD (04:14.24)And that changed my perspective. That was sort of the first blow. then there’s a drug that many, years ago when I was telling this little story, I would have to repeat it because people hadn’t heard of it before. So I would say it again and they would say, well, what’s that? What does that do? But unfortunately, I’ll say it that way. I don’t have to repeat it anymore. It’s the drug that I was on was called fentanyl. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:17.329)What were you addicted to? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:38.651)When we hear that term, think, that’s what’s in drugs that kills people. Jason Giles MD (04:42.466)That’s what’s in drugs that kills people. And it nearly killed me. I got very extremely fortunate that it didn’t. Very, very lucky. Due in large part to my department chairman who had his snivers out or his antenna. And I thought I was being clever and only using after work and, you know, being meticulous. But… He w he watched my decline over, over about a year and made, made a move and, suggested that maybe I had a problem and it was well deep up to my neck by that point. And this is grace here, by the way, this is, this is a divine part, which is I accepted to help. didn’t, I didn’t try to keep running. So that led me on a journey of self discovery. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:28.53)Yeah. Jason Giles MD (05:37.006)The stuff that you talk about in your show, it runs through all of that, right? So early motivations and self-concept and the drive to become one of the most difficult types of specialty doctors is the same drive that I didn’t feel comfortable with myself. I didn’t think I was okay. I thought there was something missing. In some part, the fentanyl is what I thought was missing because… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:01.021)Mm-hmm. Jason Giles MD (06:05.036)I couldn’t relax. couldn’t settle down after work. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:08.231)How does it make you feel? it like a painkiller in that? Jason Giles MD (06:11.214)Yeah, it’s like a super, yeah, super intense painkiller, like super like the kills all the pain, all the suffering, all the worry. Say again. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:21.703)like Valium? Jason Giles MD (06:23.678)different, different. It’s if, if Valium gave you energy, it’d be kind of like that a little bit. So if it gave, if it, if it made you feel, safe and comfortable as well as, alert and capable, like at ease. So those are all the feelings that I wanted. I wanted those feelings. That’s why I went in through academics. That’s why I went to medicine. That’s why, that’s why I worked so hard was to get that sense of being okay. And of course. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:40.455)So how do some people. Jason Giles MD (06:53.102)that doesn’t come that way. You don’t get it that way. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:54.575)Exactly. You get it from the identity and the job titles and everybody, you know, saying, you’re so smart, Dr. Giles, even though you are, it’s all this. Jason Giles MD (07:04.558)You know, because inside you say, if you only knew, if you knew the real story, you wouldn’t say that I was smart, which is of course, arrogant, very arrogant to reject compliments, to reject reality. And that’s where I was. I was miserable and cut off and isolated and separate. And my work performance was fantastic. I overdid at work, I over-prepared. But that’s like being on farther and farther out on that bar that they carry to get across the high wire. It was like being on both ends of it at the same time. Fortunately, I had a very gentle intervention in the form of a loving phone call and. I was terrified when I got that call. My heart’s pounding and my mouth is dry and my palms are sweaty because I could not see that there was anything good going to come of this. couldn’t see that there was a life on the other side that I was about to go on a different kind of adventure. I didn’t know that. I was really, really scared. But Dr. Moore was my department chair. It’s very warm. Australian fellow, super achieved academic himself. And he told me, said, we saw this before. had another doctor in the department a few years ago who we found too late. He overdosed and died and we found him in the morning in the call room. And I could see that the things that you were doing, the way you looked, your responses, while your work was preserved, while you’re… Jason Giles MD (08:57.094)you know, your casework was still great. That frightened him enough, he could see the pattern. And so that was my exit. in beginning, so was step one, was this new life as a sober person. Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:14.813)Dr. Giles. Jason Giles MD (09:19.586)Are we having bad internet? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:24.797)Hold on, I’m gonna log off and log back in. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:46.874)Hey, so we were 10 minutes into the show and it froze and it kicked him off. So I just logged off and logged back in. Can you call him to come back? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:00.268)Okay, thank you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:25.486)Dr. Giles. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:33.656)There you are. You know, technology, it’s okay. Our editor will fix it. It happens sometimes. It’s not all the time, but don’t worry. So go back to your story. Remember, yeah, when we got cut off. And we’ll just patch this part right back. Jason Giles MD (12:36.531)There I am. I don’t know what happened. We had problems. Jason Giles MD (12:45.682)Okay. Jason Giles MD (12:52.211)Yeah. So I was, I, I, I got very lucky. and I owe, some of that for good fortune, to a fellow who preceded me at the department and wound up, you know, not, not making it. I never met him. I didn’t, didn’t, didn’t know him, but he set the, set the pattern so that when I followed fell into the same, trap or fell into the same, yeah, addiction fentanyl. I had somebody who was looking out for me. So, enormously fortunate there. So that was step one. Second part was when I came back, I, at that. I fell in love with, that’s crazy. I fell in love with talking to people because anesthesia, of course, there’s not much talking going on. It’s a little bit of consent and then staring at the top of somebody’s head for an hour or two while the surgeon does her thing and. and I, I enjoyed talking with the patients and so talking with the patients and then going through my own experience where I became a patient is what finally I stayed in anesthesia for awhile, but it finally convinced me to let that go and pursue this really very new field. know that things like alcoholics, anonymous and stuff had been around for almost a hundred years, but as an organized, discipline or specialty in medicine, addiction medicine is really very new. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:20.472)Yeah. Jason Giles MD (14:20.717)And our understanding of it is very rudimentary. It’s not very sophisticated compared with other specialties like nephrology or that sort of thing. So it’s a frontier and that excites me. And the same drive that I had of wanting to know and wanting to learn, wanting to grow and do something exciting, now I get to do that with this. And I’ll say one last thing about it, which is… The cool part about this field, so if you haven’t, heaven forbid, break a bone and go to the bone doctor to get it fixed, if everything goes perfectly, then you get your, let’s say broken arm back like it was. That’s the best thing that can happen. But in this field, what happens when people turn their lives around is their lives come out way better than how they started. Way better. Same with what you’re doing, right? Same with what you’re doing. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:13.721)Yeah. Well, my gosh, Dr. Giles. Well, the first thing I want to say is thank you for sharing that amazing story with us. The second thing, and I got a lot of goosebumps when you literally use the phrase, I let it go, right? Because our mind has these ideas. I’m going to have this job and then I’m going to get this specialty and I’m going to get these accolades. I’m going to go this way and this way. And it’s, you know, whether you to use the term God, spirit, universe, higher intelligence, whatever it is. There’s the greater plan that we’re part of and you went through this experience and then you let go of your mind’s ideas. And then you, it’s like you got led into this pathway where you can really, not that you weren’t helping people before, but because you’ve been through addiction. I imagine now, can you tell me how you approach it as a, know, obviously as a doctor, with science, as a clinician, but also, Jason Giles MD (16:04.425)Changed everything. Changed everything. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:15.138)your heart, working with people, knowing what it feels like to be addicted, to be in the throes of feeling out of control. And obviously people are because they’re feeling that lack inside of themselves, which you had experienced. How do you combine that, your intuition, your heart with the science? Jason Giles MD (16:26.429)Yeah. Yeah. Jason Giles MD (16:34.779)Excellent question. Excellent question. Yeah. And every person’s unique. That’s the thing. It’s a, is one of the, one of the challenges of the field is it doesn’t, it doesn’t standardize very easily. So you can’t just say, okay, everybody do these, these, the, you know, these, 10 exercises and it’ll, and you’ll, you’ll come out great on the other side or have this, have this surgery will cut out the cancer and then you won’t have cancer. It’s not, it’s not like that because everyone’s relationship to their story is. is, is individual, it’s unique. So what has to change in order to get better, and this doesn’t sound very scientific, it doesn’t sound, it doesn’t sound very medical maybe, but what has to change is the story you tell yourself about yourself and all aspects, things you tell yourself about your past, things you tell yourself about your family, about your, about your future. And so to use me as exhibit A again, I was telling myself that I wasn’t okay. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:21.924)So yeah. Jason Giles MD (17:32.519)didn’t have all the compliment of things that normal human beings had, that there was something missing, that I wasn’t good enough and that I didn’t fit. Now, those turn out to be pretty common things. A lot of people feel that way from time to time, pretty much everybody from time to time. But what’s really bad is when you think like I did, I know how to fix this. And then you set off to… In my case, was, you know, achieve academically, be really great at work. You talked about that, about addictions to work. I definitely had that. And the better I got at work, the more that feeling grew. was like scratching poison oak. It just felt good at the time, but then a worse feeling came afterwards. So the question about connecting with people, think that’s, you know, Johan Hari says the opposite of. addiction is connection, right? It’s this sense of alienation that we, that we amend by connecting to one another. Honestly, I think that’s critical ingredient. You know, this office has all this paper. That’s my medical degree behind me, but there’s all this stuff that says, you know, I got board certified in this and that and whatever. Nobody cares about that. Those, those things are not what matters. What matters is whether or not you care about the patient you’re talking to or the person suffering through the addiction. and whether or not the person you’re talking to trust you. And there’s something that’s really strange. So I told you at the beginning, this story of feeling like it was that my life was over when my fentanyl addiction came to light, but really it was the beginning of my life. So the patients, there’s been tens of thousands of patients that I’ve been able to work with since then and admit and help along their way. And Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:15.672)Mm. Jason Giles MD (19:23.931)The thing that gives me the most credibility is not the academic achievements. It’s the personal failing that then I got help with, but that turned my life around. So they know I’m not judging. I think that’s one of the most important ingredients is to meet people where they are and to not prejudice your opinions of them based on how they present or what you think you know is going on. Everyone has his own story of suffering. Everyone’s going through something you have no idea. So coming to it from that standpoint is probably half the journey. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:02.554)So along those lines, doctor, for anyone listening to this now, and they think, well, how do I know I’m addicted? And I like how you mentioned the opposite is connection. And I can say for myself, and I’ve shared this with the community many times, when I was in high school and I became bulimic, feel good, it was a sort of addiction to binging and then purging. And I can definitely say there was a complete disconnection from my body. Jason Giles MD (20:28.494)Butter croissants, if I recall. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:31.33)my god. Anything like fatty butter. And you know, sometimes there’d be blood throwing up and no connection, right? So someone is saying, okay, because sometimes we throw around the word addiction a little bit, casually, like I’m really addicted to coffee or this or that. How do we know or how does anyone know or they’d be like, okay, I’m doing, you know, doing the Jason Giles MD (20:35.677)Mm-hmm. Jason Giles MD (20:41.161)Sure. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:56.95)whatever, weed, cocaine sometimes, and like you said, you thought you were in control. What are some of the defining signs that we can say, hey, we need to take this a bit more seriously? Jason Giles MD (21:09.149)Sure. Excellent question. Well, first of all, what we think of addiction, think of as addiction is actually, it’s actually normal behavior. So it’s, it’s normal to do something over and over again, until you get good at it. That’s what we all did when we learned to walk or learn to speak. Certainly when you learn to ride a bicycle or learn to host a hit podcast, you know, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:32.505)Yeah. Jason Giles MD (21:38.409)We’re bad at it in the beginning and we’re awkward and we’re crummy and we don’t know what we’re doing. And then one foot in front of the other. And the next thing you know, you start to get some speed and you figure it out and you can ride your bike around the neighborhood or, or help, you know, help many, many people. And, and it’s the same with when you, when you pick up a substance. So alcohol is probably the most common one. I don’t know. I don’t know anybody who the first drink was delicious and it went down great. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:59.31)Yeah, good example. Jason Giles MD (22:05.957)Everybody is like, this doesn’t taste very good. And they, they work through it and overshoot or causes them embarrassment. to develop a problem with alcohol, you have to keep at it. You have to keep learning how to use it and keep pursuing that feeling until you’re really good at drinking to manage your feelings or using fentanyl to manage your feelings or eating butter croissants until you feel like I can do this. The rules don’t apply. And I’m just. I’m putting words in your mouth, but the rules don’t apply to me. I’m different. And then, look, I can eat and not have the consequences if I just do this thing, but then the thing makes you feel bad. And that whole, that whole nexus of emotions that go together, that is something that we figure out when I do this, I feel a certain way. The reason that’s important is we want to control our feelings. want to manage our internal world. That’s what success is. Yes, that’s what success is. We want love in our lives. And so we present a certain way, we say certain things, we go to the gym, we get good at whatever, and then we attract love in our lives and then we feel that’s a lot of work. But that’s what’s necessary to have a authentic good relationship is to be the best you can be in the relationship, which is a lot of effort. But we pursue the feeling. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:05.216)Control. Jason Giles MD (23:31.441)Addiction is just pursuing the feeling. It’s just another learning loop. So that’s why it’s not a disease. You know, people give me dirty looks when I say that because it’s so popular to say, it’s a disease. It’s just something that you learn. Unfortunately, the things that we use too much of or too many, it could be anything, right? I’m drinking a little glass of water, but if I was drinking gallons and gallons of water, I would get sick. And if you, if you… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:59.086)Yeah, exercise too much. Jason Giles MD (24:01.979)If you eat a croissant, you’re probably okay. But if you eat 20, you’re definitely not. If you exercise to the point where you break down your body and you develop all sorts of problems or where you cost you other things, right? some like ultra marathoners or triathlon people or people pursuing excellence in the Olympics or professional realms, those things take a lot of time. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (24:31.268)Yeah. Jason Giles MD (24:31.569)And they affect the rest of your life. There’s only so much time. So it affects your relationships. It affects your earning power. It affects your health. All these things are affected by whatever we’re disproportionately doing. Drinking, cocaine, work, religion, even religion can become ripe where people are murdered to be around. They’re insufferable because they’re just, everything is that and they’re over. They’re over invested in it and they don’t, and it, and it ruins their relationship. So addiction is just like that. And everybody has something. Everybody has something. Your question is, how do you know if right? I get this question all the time. So if I go to a party and it gets around to the, do you do? What do you do? And I tell them people have a glass of wine or they, or something. And they say, well, do I have a problem? So this is very, very common question. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:11.587)Yeah. Jason Giles MD (25:30.118)And The way to answer that question is, know. So if you’re asking that question, you know, you know, you know. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:36.121)Bye. I agree, you know, and maybe you don’t wanna know because it’s giving you that comfort, you know. Jason Giles MD (25:44.989)You can, yeah,

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Alyssa Trask Campbell Summary: In this episode, Kimberly and Alyssa Black Campbell discuss her journey as a parenting expert and author, focusing on the emotional landscape of parenting. She emphasizes the importance of understanding emotions, connection, and the needs behind children’s behaviors. The discussion covers various topics including self-regulation, co-regulation, the significance of creating safe spaces for communication, and navigating challenges like lying and bullying. Alyssa shares insights from her personal experiences and highlights the role of neuroscience in understanding children’s emotional needs.   About Alyssa Blask Campbell Alyssa Blask Campbell is CEO of Seed & Sew, a platform that offers consultations and courses on emotional intelligence, as well as creating a modern parenting village. She has a master’s degree in early childhood education and is a leading expert in emotional development and travels the globe speaking on the topic. Her first book, Tiny Humans, Big Emotions, published in October 2023 from HarperCollins. Follow @seed.and.sew.   Guest Resources: Website: Seed & Sew Book: Big Kids, Bigger Feelings: Navigating Defiance, Meltdowns, Anxiety to Raise Confident, Connected Kids   Episode Sponsors: LMNT OFFER: Right now, for my listeners LMNT is offering a free sample pack with any LMNT drink mix purchase at DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD. That’s 8 single serving packets FREE with any LMNT any LMNT drink mix purchase. This deal is only available through my link so. Also try the new LMNT Sparkling — a bold, 16-ounce can of sparkling electrolyte water. USE LINK: DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD ANIMA MUNDI OFFER: To get THE PUREST, MOST DELICIOUS PLANT-POWERED protein blend, infused with real vanilla and harmonizing adaptogens go to Animamundiherbals.com and use code: KIM20 to get 20% off your purchase! USE LINK: Animamundiherbals.com and use code: KIM20 to get 20% off your purchase!   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Parenting and Emotions02:48 Understanding Emotions in Parenting06:01 The Role of Connection in Parenting08:50 Identifying Needs Behind Behaviors12:09 Navigating Punishment and Connection14:48 The Importance of Self-Regulation17:51 Co-Regulation and Emotional Intelligence21:09 Addressing Lying and Trust23:47 Creating a Safe Space for Sharing27:00 Understanding Fear and Vulnerability29:45 The Impact of Trauma on Parenting32:59 Conclusion and Resources   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Welcome to the Feel Good Podcast, which is all about heart-led living and wellness. When we awaken the power of our hearts and let that guide us through our daily choices and decisions, through our four cornerstones, food, body, emotional well-being, and spiritual growth, we will experience the most incredible results and create more vitality, health, strength, peace, abundance, and love in our lives. I am your host, Kimberly Snyder, New York Times bestselling author, founder of Solluna, creator of the research-based Heart Aligned Meditation, wellness expert, nutritionist, and international speaker. I am passionate about supporting you on your unique heart and wellness journey. For more information on todays show please go to mysolluna.com for show notes and links. Let’s get started. Speaker 1 (01:29.13)So thank you so much for being here with us today and congrats on your new book. This is your second one. Speaker 2 (01:30.73) Yeah, yeah, my first one, Tiny Human’s Big Emotions came out in 2023. I was like 32 weeks pregnant when that one published, was a whirlwind. Wow. Yeah, that one hit the New York Times bestseller list, which was exciting. Yeah. And then a few weeks after it published, was doing well. Our editor reached out and was like, Alyssa, will you write another book? I was like, actually, I just need a nap. I’m so tired. And so I turned to Rachel, who I’ve worked with, had the privilege of working with now for seven years. And she works with me at my company. And I asked her she would write this bad boy with me. And she said, yeah. So we were able to do it. Well, I think this is so great because many of us are parents in the community or are thinking about being parents in the future or even not. feel like parenting books help us understand ourselves. And I can say as a parent, there’s been this incredible experience of feeling like I’m reparenting myself. And most of us are not learned. You we don’t learn. to handle emotions, have tools as you talk about in your book. And I went through this period of this, where it’s like, hmm, you know, it just felt a little sad and I had to process that. But I also think we’re given the, you know, the childhoods that were meant to be given. But I feel like this is, you know, this is big stuff we’re talking about here. Yeah, people often say they like come for their kids, but they stay for themselves. That so much of this work. We say if you have a nervous system like this works for you. We are really just talking about neuroscience and what it’s like to be a human on planet Earth and be in relationship with other humans. And man, it’s doozy sometimes. Yeah. Speaker 1 (02:55.63)Yeah, and I like how you talk about upfront. It’s not about trying to shield ourselves or our children from hardships because you know my nine-year-old now I can see him being more self-conscious about what he wears to school and Then he told me that there was a child like in one of the older grades who kind of made fun of his dog man sure now he won’t wear it and it just brings up stuff and It’s a lot like all the layers of kind of reliving what we’ve been through as parents. 100%. And I find for myself as a parent, there’s nothing harder than just watching your child experience something hard, like being made fun of, feeling left out, feeling that shame or embarrassment. And knowing that it’s not our job to take it away, but instead to be with them through those hard things to let them know that they can navigate this and survive it. It’s so hard. to do in practice as a parent is allowing it. Well, I’m not sure that all of us were even raised with parents that were aware that there was hardship. I wasn’t. I’m not just blaming my parents or anything. just I don’t think that’s how they were raised either. So I just know that there was a lot of things that I pushed down because I couldn’t handle them. Speaker 1 (04:26.614)And I think that’s ultimately why I turned to certain things like bulimia and eating disorders. I couldn’t digest life. And, you know, as adults, we continue to learn and grow and pass on, you know, more tools to our children. Totally, and we’re not gonna heal all the things and that’s okay too. I think of my friend, Dr. Linietta Willis, she’s an intergenerational trauma therapist. And she talks about our legacy blessings and our legacy burdens. And our legacy blessings are those things that we wanna pass on, that we inherited and that we want to pass on to our children in the next gen. And our legacy burdens are those things that maybe we don’t want to pass on, but also knowing that we’re not going to heal all the burdens, that some of them will get passed on and that’s okay. We get to give our kids the tools and the outlets to continue to heal and process. Yeah Speaker 1 (05:24.078)Well, I love how, and we’ll get into some of the more specific tools you talk about, but there’s a underlying theme of connection, which is, you know, in my work with the heart and just being connected to self and always, even if we’re not perfect parents, if we can stay empathetic, we can be connected. Our children will really feel that. 100%. And when we’re talking about different topics in big kids in this book, we talk about a number of different topics, but you’re right, the through line is not it. The goal isn’t to say, Hey, say this script at this time, or say these exact words or do this exact thing. The through line for us is how do you maintain connection and just stay in relationship with each other and recognizing that Yeah. Speaker 2 (06:13.336)Sometimes relationship is messy and hard and sometimes it feels good and easy and you’re not failing if you’re in conflict in relationship or you’re in the messy hard parts. That’s just a part of being in relationship with each other. Right. Well, you know, as you say, these tiny humans and then middle childhood, there’s different things happening on in their brain and their prefrontal cortex and the way that they process information. So I want to ask you as a parent, you know, some real questions. And then of course, it will illustrate some of the information that you share in big kids, bigger, bigger feelings. either you or Rachel use an example where, obviously paraphrasing here, but I think it was one of the daughters. was teasing the sibling. then the mama, which was you, Rachel, said, well, no screen time tomorrow, if you remember this. And I think as a parent, sometimes we see behaviors in our children. And in our family dynamic, our older son, who’s four years older than our younger son, who’s now five, sometimes he’ll take his choice because he can, and he’s bigger, or he’ll do things. And as hard as a parent, like we don’t know. Sometimes you wanna say, because my kids don’t get screen time except on the weekends. So sometimes I’ll say something, well, next Saturday you’re not gonna get your 30 minutes of screen time. like you said, it’s punishment, give, take, but sometimes you don’t know what else to do. Totally, yeah. Well, and that’s real and a part of just being a human on planet Earth too, that you’re not always gonna in the moment have the answers. So giving ourselves grace is so key here too. But in an ideal world, what we’re looking at is trying to identify, we get to be like a detective and see what’s the need that’s driving this behavior. So when your older son comes and takes that toy from his younger son, is it a need for connection? Speaker 2 (08:08.768)Is he really trying to connect or engage or get somebody’s attention, which is a connection? You get so much attention though. Some of our kids, it’s like a leaky cup. It can feel like a leaky cup for connection. I have a high connection seeker. My daughter’s a high connection seeker. And it can feel like there’s not enough connection in the world that will be enough for her. And my son is not a high connection seeker. It’s almost like it feels easier to fill his connection cup. But also for him, his sensory needs are more demanding than hers. we all just have our own little blueprint walking through this world. But when we can look at what is the need driving the behavior and we break these down into two categories. We have sensory needs and we talk about the nervous system, the nine sensory systems which we can get into. But when we’re looking at that, we’re really looking at are they under stimulated or overstimulated? Are they hungry? Are they tired? Do they need to move their body? Do they need a break from stim? They need to chill. Right, okay. That’s more easier to decode in a way. Speaker 2 (09:11.822)For a lot of us, we grew up in cultures where sensory needs were seen as needs. Food, water, movement, were seen as needs. And connection needs were often seen as wants. It was like attention-seeking behavior, and that was a negative thing. And it wasn’t seen as, you need attention, that you have this need for inclusion or belonging or knowing that you’re loved or worthy or valued. so for a lot of us, the connection needs can actually be quite triggering. where it can feel like, my gosh, this kid’s so needy. They need so much. And that’s our own bias coming up into play and being able to recognize that is half the battle. And then really being able to see like, okay, this is a need for connection. And maybe I just spent a bunch of time connecting with this kiddo and maybe they’re a high connection needs kid. And so what are the outlets for that? Great. Speaker 2 (10:07.154)And we give some examples in the book. And I was actually, was just at an event down in LA where we were, I was met with a group of a hundred moms and we were talking about exactly this. Like what are ways that we can help our kids? Like if I can’t give them more connection in this moment, I’m cooking dinner or I’m trying to do something. What are outlets for that? And we have things like journaling back and forth or being able to call a friend and chat with them on the phone or. FaceTime a grandparent or a cousin or a friend or an aunt or uncle and find ways to have that outlet that’s not always directly from you as the parent or maybe even from the sibling who might have lower connection needs and kind of needs a break to be by themselves for a little bit. Right. Okay. So would you say as a parenting expert, Alyssa, punishment or taking things away doesn’t really work? It just doesn’t solve the problem. What we’re going to do is we’re responding to the behavior on the surface. As long as we’re not meeting that need, you’re going to keep seeing new behaviors pop up because the need doesn’t go away. Right? In the same way that if you had like a baby who was hungry, you could bounce them and shush them all day long, but until you feed them, they’re not going to stop crying because they’re hungry. And if we have a child who needs to move their body or a child who needs to connect, we might put out the fires on the surface, but until we meet that need, you’re just gonna see new ones pop up. Speaker 1 (11:40.226)Do you think that there’s some children in the way that they’re, you know, finding their way in the world? Like my older son is very mischievous, for example. Slime in my farm boots and he thinks it’s hilarious and he laughs like he’s always… Pranks like he loves it. And he just thinks it’s hilarious. And he gets so much attention. Again, like always, all the time. Do you feel like maybe some of this behavior is, you he wants his… He would. Speaker 2 (11:54.888)Such a connection seeker. Speaker 1 (12:09.57)get a rise out of his brother and. really from a place of connection. I want your attention. want you to notice me. brother. From anybody, right? Our high connection seekers, they’ll seek it out anywhere. we can help them identify that. I would say things like, that was a silly prank that you did, or that was silly joke. Did you want me to laugh? Were you trying to connect with me and help kind of bridge that awareness for them of when you’re doing these things, it’s because you want to connect. That’s how we help build their awareness of what is my need. So then when they grow up in the world, they can move through the world knowing, when I feel this way, it’s because I’m hungry. When I feel that way, it’s because I’m tired. When I feel this way, I need to move my body. When I’m doing these things, it’s because I need to connect with somebody, because I need to feel that sense of connection and belong. you Speaker 1 (13:07.278)As many of you know, I’ve been drinking our beloved Power Protein Smoothie Community Recipe for many years. And I do this day to day as a great way to get energizing protein into my day without feeling too heavy. Usually I drink it in the early or mid afternoons. And lately for the protein, I’ve been using the most pure, delicious vanilla chai plant-based protein blend that I want to share with you by Anima Mundi. This protein is made from pumpkin seeds, brown rice, sacha inchi, and pea, and it contains adaptogens like astralagus, ashwagandha, and aluthero, which all have been known to help support recovery, enhance performance, and help the body adapt to everyday stress. It also has digestion-boosting warming ingredients. You know we love that, like cardamom, cinnamon, and ginger. This protein tastes delicious and there’s a subtle sweetness to it which comes from the vanilla and the monk fruit. It’s a way to deeply nourish your cells with amino acids, complete plant-based protein. To get this delicious plant-based blend, please go to anemamundiherbals.com and use code Kim20 to get 20 % off your purchase. Again, we’re talking about the amazing vanilla chai protein powder. That’s anemomundierbals.com code Kim20, A-N-I-M-A-M-U-N-D-I-H-E-R-B-A-L-S.com code Kim20 to get 20 % off your purchase. In a world that is constantly promoting health fads and quick fixes, we can never get past the importance of the basics, such as creating optimal digestion, eating whole foods, and hydration. Yes, hydration. When we are optimally hydrated, our skin glows and is nourished, and it greatly helps us avoid headaches, cramps, fatigue, brain fog, and weakness. Besides water, we need electrolytes, which need to be replenished like probiotics. Every morning in my room temperature water that I drink first thing, Speaker 1 (15:27.99)I add a packet of Element electrolytes, usually the watermelon or raspberry flavors, which contain a science-backed mix of magnesium, potassium, and sodium. Element contains no sugar or artificial colors or fillers. I highly recommend that you also incorporate electrolytes into your routine as well to optimize your hydration, which your body, mind, and heart will greatly benefit from. And for now, our amazing community listeners, We’ll get a free sample pack with any element drink mix at www.drinkelement.com slash feel good. That’s eight single serving packets for free with any element drink mix purchase. Please go to www.drinkelement.com slash feel good. That’s www.drinklmnt.com slash feel good. Also check out the new element sparkling, which is a sparkly, fizzy electrolyte water if you love fizzy drinks. Speaker 1 (16:34.958)I’ll just tell you a fear as a parent hearing this is, again, he gets so much attention. Again, everybody says it, right? I pay so much attention to E. So I guess my fear is if he’s still wanting more, what if when he grows up, he gets into unhealthy relationships or he just always has to be in a relationship because of that. I want to reframe, like, you’re looking at intimate relationships. I see most often with our high connection seekers, they often actually seek it out even much outside of intimate relationships in friendships and in other spaces where, like, they might be the human who corrals kids to, like, all get together and play a game or they can often be, like, leaders in a pack where they… are so many outlets for connection that it’s not just an intimate one-to-one relationship. There are so many avenues for it. And as they continue to grow, they’ll find places to connect in different ways to make that happen. And we can support them along the way. But these are humans who it’s a superpower and we need them in this world. My daughter is like this. She is a high connection seeker. She walks into a room of 100 people she doesn’t know. And she’s like, my God, yes, 100 new friends. She’s 20 months. And she’s four? my gosh. and do you think that correlates with being an extrovert? Yeah, a lot of way. Speaker 2 (18:00.494)A lot of our high connection seeking kiddos are also extroverted. You a little bit have to be because it’s going to fill that cup, right? That like when you’re in that, although I just had a kid pop into my head who I when I was teaching and he was five years old and he had high connection needs, but he was an introvert and he would seek out more one to one like peer connection connection for me as a teacher. But he would look forward in those kind of smaller groups. activities and avenues, but he would glom on to like other kids and just want to be near them and want to talk to them and want to share and yada yada. But it was like he had one or two good friends in each space. He wasn’t like, I want to hang out with everyone in the class. Well, so there’s natural extroverts, introverts, connectors, like you said. How do you think this relates to, and you know, this is sort of on a spiritual level and in yogic traditions, you talk about the true self and self connection, which is self-effulgence and fulfilling and being so connected to the love inside that you wanna share it with people, but you’re not needing it. Yeah, I think that we’re, I’m going to pull in the like neuroscience and too. When we’re looking at this, I want to recognize that there’s not a human on the planet where there’s a one size fits all. Right? all of us, our nervous systems operate differently in the way that we integrate stimuli, the way that we integrate the world around us and make sense of it is different for all of us. And for some kids, they are their superpowers. I can noticing the details. or they know if something moves in their environment. They can get really dysregulated by like piles or clutter or things like that because they’re super attuned to the visual stimuli in their space. Some humans who sound, they’re really aware of the sounds in their environment and they can get really overstimulated by sound, especially if there’s competing sounds happening. Some kids who notice the details of how clothing feels in a heightened way. It’s too itchy, it’s too tight, it’s too something. Speaker 2 (20:02.378)And I look at these as superpowers, that they’re really good at noticing, they’re very attuned to those senses. And there are some humans who aren’t as attuned, and for them, can, it then appears as though they can maybe be more easygoing or they can move through the world differently, because their brain isn’t so hyper-focused on like, my gosh, what is that noise? I can’t stop hearing that clicking sound in the background and kind of tuning into those things in different ways. And so when we’re looking at the integration of all of that stimuli. We go through the nine senses in the book and outline it. But I think it’s really important in then saying like how you integrate them then determines how you show up in the world and what you need from the world around you based on how your nervous system is integrating that stimuli, because it’s going to find kind of homeostasis and regulation in different ways based on your unique nervous system. Does that make sense? It does to me. It sounds a little complicated to explain to a child. for sure. I’m going to break it down in different words to Yeah, to a kid. we this so the bulk of the work that we do at Seed is in school systems. I work in schools, elementary, middle schools, and then in childcare programs. And we teach teachers like how to talk to kids about this. How do you teach them about their nervous system? Totally. Well, there’s this idea of self-regulation even is something I think we need to really break down that and self-regulation. Speaker 2 (21:32.404)You teach self-regulation through co-regulation and self-regulation isn’t one size fits all. Wait, so say that again for a moment. mean co-regulation, you regulate yourself and then you’re in the space and then… You know, it’s like goosebumps. It’s almost like the science of heart coherence. Well, our hearts are giving off a magnetic field that’s 100 times stronger than the brain. So when we’re more emotionally calm, you talk about emotional intelligence and the more coherent, our heart rhythms are smooth and our… borrowing your comms. Speaker 2 (21:52.108)Not anymore. Speaker 1 (22:06.306)Brains are nervous, everything’s in sync. People around you feel that. Totally. So as we calm ourselves, we can calm our children more. That’s right. I think of it like the difference between a thermometer and a thermostat. A thermometer is just going to read the temperature of the room, you’re going to join it. A thermostat sets that temperature. And in order to set that temperature, you have to be mindful of your own regulation. So often we want kids to regulate for us. We want them to get calm for us when we can’t. Right. Yeah, I see parents who are literally screaming in public. Yeah. And they’re like, you calm down. We’re at the playground and I heard this, this mom didn’t know we were there. We were in the bathroom and she was like talking to her two girls and then me and my younger son came out and she was like embarrassed. I mean, I felt bad for her because obviously she didn’t want, no one wants to be that person. Nobody wants to be in that state where their body feels so out of control that you’re like, need the humans around me to change their behavior so I can feel in control. And so so much, that’s why I said so many folks, they come for the kids, but stay for themselves that we dive into what is, how does your nervous system work? What does it look like to learn how to build your own self-awareness and self-regulation so that we can then navigate co-regulation with our kids so that Speaker 2 (23:28.098)when our kid comes in and they roll their eyes and they slam the door and they give a sass or the sarcasm or whatever, that we can be the calm force in that moment. And it doesn’t mean I don’t hold boundaries. It doesn’t mean that any behavior is allowed. It does mean that I am really working on, okay, how do I calm my body so that I can respond with intention instead of react from a place of dysregulation. So let’s play this out for any mamas out there who have teenagers or getting close to teenagers, not there yet. But although I’ve seen some behavior from my nine-year-old defiance and disrespect, which you talk about in the book. Let’s say your teenager comes home and you say, or, hey, I’ll be the teenager. Well, it seems like something happened at school today. I’m fine. Yeah, I am here if you want to chat. Would you like space or do you want to talk about? Speaker 1 (24:30.862)Why are you so annoying? Why are you always trying to say that to me? I love you so much. I’m going to be cooking in the kitchen. If you want to come touch base, that’s where I’ll be That’s not a fun. Okay. Let’s do another one. Yeah. I mean, so it’s a center. You’re the center and you’re not trying to grab. Okay. I love it. I’m not taking the bait. Right? Like the bait is all, that would be me joining their energy. And I’m saying like, I’ve got you. I’m still calm in your storm. Okay, let’s do this one, which I have experienced where my son will call me by my first name and I don’t like it. Sure. Okay, so I’ll be the teenager tween, okay? Yeah. Comes home from school. Hey, Alyssa. Speaker 2 (25:15.544)Hey, did you want my attention? I heard you use my first name. Alisha? Yeah, it does sound like you want my attention. I’m here if you want to chat or hang. Lyssa, Lyssa! Yeah, come

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Henry Abbott Summary: In this episode Kimberly Snyder speaks with Henry Abbott, a former ESPN journalist and physical movement expert, discussing his new book ‘Ballistic: The New Science of Injury-Free Athletic Performance.’ They explore the importance of heart-led living, the connection between movement and emotional well-being, and the significance of understanding our body’s mechanics to prevent injuries. The conversation emphasizes the need for diverse movement practices, the role of weightlifting, and the impact of hydration and nutrition on overall health. Abbott shares insights on how to improve mobility and stability, particularly focusing on the hips, and the importance of trusting our bodies to move freely and joyfully. About Henry Abbott Henry Abbott is an award-winning journalist and founder of TrueHoop. He led ESPN’s Networks 60-person NBA (National Basketball Association) digital and print team, which published several groundbreaking articles on sports science and body injury prevention. He also won a National Magazine Award. Abbott currently lives in New Jersey.   Guest Resources: Website: treuhoop.com Book: Ballistic: The New Science of Injury-Free Athletic Performance   Episode Sponsors: LMNT OFFER: Right now, for my listeners LMNT is offering a free sample pack with any LMNT drink mix purchase at DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD. That’s 8 single serving packets FREE with any LMNT any LMNT drink mix purchase. This deal is only available through my link so. Also try the new LMNT Sparkling — a bold, 16-ounce can of sparkling electrolyte water. USE LINK: DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   Episode Chapters 00:00 Heart-Led Living and Wellness Introduction00:53 Exploring Athletic Performance and Injury Prevention03:06 The Importance of Connection to Movement05:42 Understanding Movement Patterns and Injury Risks09:01 The Role of Hips in Mobility and Stability12:00 Weightlifting and Its Benefits for Women15:00 Hydration and Nutrition for Optimal Performance17:38 The Science of Movement and Body Awareness20:50 Fascial Release and Its Impact on Mobility23:31 The Interconnection of Physical and Emotional Health26:35 Embracing Diverse Movement Practices29:31 The Role of Animals in Understanding Movement32:41 Conclusion and Call to Action SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Speaker 1 (00:00.302)Welcome to the Feel Good Podcast, which is all about heart led living and wellness. When we awaken the power of our hearts and let that guide us through our daily choices and decisions, through our four cornerstones, food, body, emotional well being and spiritual growth, we will experience the most incredible results and create more vitality, health, strength, peace. abundance and love in our lives. I am your host, Kimberly Snyder, New York Times bestselling author, founder of Saluna, creator of the research-based Heart Aligned Meditation, wellness expert, nutritionist and international speaker. I am passionate about supporting you on your unique heart and wellness journey. Let’s get started. Speaker 1 (00:57.518)Hi everyone, welcome back to our Monday interview show. I am so excited for our very special guest. Joining us here today, Henry Abbott, who is a former ESPN journalist, a physical movement expert, and he has a new bestselling book out called Ballistic, the New Science of Injury-Free Athletic Performance. He talks about research on pain, psychology, biomechanics, and neuroplasticity. And as we all know, this is such an important topic today to increasing our mobility, keeping our mobility going for decades to come, to really enjoying our lives, to living with our hearts, to living with passion, to avoiding injuries and aches and pains, which really detract so much from our enjoyment of life, our spiritual growth, so many things. So Henry, thank you so much for being here with us today. It’s a delight. Thank you for having me. And so you and I were chatting a little bit before about your daughter, who I know is involved in soccer, and I was saying, Henry, I love your book. Really cool cover, by the way. If any of you guys are watching this on YouTube or if you’re listening, check out our YouTube so you can see the beautiful cover. And I said, you know, at first, you you say, oh, athletic performance. And some could say, hey, well, I’m not really an athlete. So this doesn’t apply to me. But as I got into the research and the book, and there’s some really interesting things that you’ll talk about here about glutes, really helping with back pain, hips, like lots of things. I said, you know, this is such an important topic for women and everyday women like me and moms. So that’s, you know, it just, it’s a lot broader. It’s really for everyone actually, we could say. Speaker 2 (02:41.718)I know this sounds like super salesy and woo woo or whatever, this really is like these people that we’ll talk about have a different lens for looking at the human body. They’re looking at it with biomechanical, granular biomechanical movement data. Who cares? Why is that fun? like, if you look this way, you start unlocking all kinds of crazy stuff about how to manage your body a little better. You kind of end up with a better owner’s manual to your own body. and get to age better. I’m trying to do it myself right now, right? So I feel like we have MRIs, we have x-rays, they solve a bunch of problems, but they don’t solve all the problems. And a lot of us are struggling with things that we can see in how we move. And that’s kind of, I think, important revelation for all of us moving forward. Well, one of the things we talk about here so much, Henry, in the community is connection, right? Connection to your heart, connection to your intuition, connection to what foods would best serve you and so on. And I think a lot of us develop movement patterns that maybe we’re not really connected to or fully aware of that form from an early age or some sort of emotional trauma or something can. cause our feet to turn out, or I know I can dump a lot in my hips, or I lean on one side, and I noticed a lot, you know, I held my babies on one side of my body. And so I think it’s really important to bring that connection back to movement because we’re in this physical bodily temple to house us through. And if we’re abusing it in these microwaves or not really nourishing proper movement, it does have a profound effect on our life’s experience. It’s super real and your doctor doesn’t know about this, unless you have a really good doctor, right? But like they, there’s a kind of a dumb example in the book of the guy who’s the founder of P3 that the book is about. His name is Marcus Elliott. was suspecting there was a better way to prevent injury while he was training to become an elite triathlete. And he would reach his hand forward in the pool and, you know, end up with pain in his shoulder. And then his coach was like, just move your hand a little bit out to the side, right? Speaker 2 (04:52.34)and all the pain went away. We all understand this could happen, right? Of course how you move can have these effects, right? But he was like, well, look at that. That’s kind of like he was going to have an injury and then he moved a little differently and then he was fine. I think so that’s one little super basic example. We all are doing this to ourselves. I think we’re open to the idea that maybe if you jog the way that you land on the ground or the way that you know, there’s People debate should you land on your heels or on the ball of your foot or on your toes or should you get these shoes or those shoes. Like we’re used to the idea that these things could, with all those steps, pounding again and again, end up with like maybe your knees hurt or maybe your hips hurt, right? And so I think we’re used to the idea that how you move can inform whether or not you get injured. These are the people who are just taking that and really making a scientific approach out of it, making a systematic scientific study of like what kinds of movements tend to connect to what kinds of outcomes. You know, it’s interesting in the beginning of the book, you say, know, trainers say that we often go back to the type of movement that we did in high school or earlier. And it’s funny because I played soccer, you know, when I was younger and then I stopped. And now my older son is nine and we play a lot of soccer and I’m experiencing some those knee pains. I’m oh, don’t run like this anymore. It’s sort of taking me back to that period in time. And I just stopped Henry, right? Instead of trying to figure out like maybe I’m not really running correctly or, I did some marathons too. And I don’t know. It was just interesting because it’s like, huh, I don’t know if this is the pounding or my son’s place a little rough, it’s, you know, it’s funny. He’s a rough nine year old, that’s what’s happening. Speaker 1 (06:33.422)He’s a rough nine-year-old. We have a lawn and we love to, know, anyways, sort of rough house. But I think it’s amazing when we can sort of say, like you said, I think what’s interesting is micro shifts. You know, people are experiencing towards injury, but so many aches and pains. As you know, Henry, it’s really common back pain. For me, a lot of women, hip pain. And so how do we sort of take this research and some of the things you talk about in the book and apply it to, again, the everyday movement and our workouts so we can benefit? Yeah, so I think there’s so much to unpack there. One for me is just thinking about the goal. And after spending three years marinating in all of this super geeky stuff about, you know, hips and knees and ankles and how we move and all this stuff, you know, I think it was important for me to kind of think about what is the real goal of all this. to me, my personal answer is like two dogs playing on the beach, like off leash dogs just romping around. maybe they’re in the ocean, maybe they aren’t, they’re covered in sand, they’re throwing each other down, but they’re having the time of their lives, right? And that’s movement, right? That’s really moving, right? And so to me, moving with joy, I’m not a dog, but to me, that kind of fun, driving that amount of fun from how you move is to me the goal. And so I’ve done a lot of physical therapy in my life. I’ve done a bunch of, injured myself a bunch of different ways. And I know that sometimes you have to go, or this place from writing about P3, know, NBA players, NFL players, MLB players, WNBA players, they’re in there doing their prescribed workouts with coaches watching carefully and it’s work, it’s real work. But that’s not the goal, right? The goal is for you to play soccer with your son, hopefully to be feeling great doing that, right? Like the goal is to have this body just move how you want it to move. And so what’s keeping us from that? Speaker 2 (08:36.662)And it’s tricky. We all have different bodies and there’s not going to be one answer for all of us. But some big themes do emerge from all of the thousands of athletes that they’ve studied. And one of the big ones is that basically every single one of us needs to work on our hips. Yes. In different ways. your hips, women tend to be more mobile than men, but plenty of women are not mobile enough. And so either your hips need work on mobility or stability. when mobility is not exactly the same as yoga, but you could think of it as a yoga type move or stability would be more weightlifting. You need to put muscles around your hips to keep them from being dangerously unstable. It’s to know which one of those you’re in. Yes. when you say that, obviously men, everybody has a different body, but in general, can say women’s hips, you know, kind of go out and they don’t align with your waist and they don’t drop straight down to your knees. So how does that affect injuries for women, whether we’re talking about stabilizing or mobility versus a man’s body, which is more linear. There’s all kinds of, like we’re hundreds of years into kind of guessing around that issue, right? And one of the big topics is ACL tears, right? This is where women athletes tend to have eight times the ACL tear rate of men. So why is that? It’s like a big mystery, right? And if you want that, you can go and watch like the finest experts in the land have given lectures on this and like they’re all like one theory is hormones. One theory is exactly as you described, like the just the geometry, right? There’s theories about how big is the actual ligament, right? Women tend to have a smaller ligament or how big is the canal the ligament sits in and on and on. All these things that are easy to study with MRI and x-ray or blood tests, they’ve been studied. if you go and look at these lectures, the answer is everything is wrong. Every single theory has a study that proves it and one that disproves it. It’s all messy. Speaker 2 (10:45.454)It’s hard to find a bright thing. So when you just look at movement, you see that there is like 100 % of NBA players who tour the ACL land on the outside of their foot and then roll to the inside. It’s a little movement that no one studies that is 100 % or like another very common thing. Big theory that’s gone around and probably we all have trainers who will cite this, right, is about cue angles. Do you know about cue angles? Have you heard this phrase before? Okay, so this is exactly what you’re describing with like if your hips are wider, there’s a chance for your legs to like your knees to basically have a can travel in towards each other as you squat. Yeah, it’s like they call it valgus collapse. Please explain. Speaker 1 (11:34.177)I Speaker 2 (11:37.964)Right? And so if you were to squat in front of a trainer and your knees were to dive in together, they would like have a cow. They would be very upset about this. Right? So this Q angle thing is seen as like a major risk factor for catastrophic knee injury. what they found in a bazillion, studying thousands, literally thousands of athletes and how they move at P3 is that just having your knees dive in like that is not a giant risk factor. Instead, Some of those cases where you need to dive in, have something happening that’s very hard to see with the naked eye, which is your femur, your upper leg bone, is rotating. And it ends up being kind of like twisting the drumstick off the turkey. And it like, that tears your ACL, is your upper leg bone rotating. And so when I talked about needing hip stability, this is what we’re talking about, is like, you can literally lift weights to build the muscles to hold your femur in place so it doesn’t rotate. That’s like the kind of work we should all be doing, but that so far most of us don’t even know to think about. you Healthy fats are essential for our health and wellbeing. And I’m so excited to share with you a very exciting scientific breakthrough to support our long-term health, wellness, and beauty. C15. This is the first essential fatty acid to be discovered in 90 years. Studies have confirmed that C15 is three times better, broader, and safer than taking omega-3s. Speaker 1 (13:14.254)C15 works by strengthening our cells, improving our mitochondrial function, and protecting us against damaging free radicals. The result is better long-term metabolic, liver, and heart health. Taking C15 can help to slow aging, boost your sleep and your skin, hair, and nail health. The most pure brand that I found that I absolutely love and take every day is Fatty 15. This is a vegan friendly supplement of pure C15. It’s a tiny little capsule that you take every day and it helps to replenish your cells with essential C15. You can get 15 % off your Fatty 15 subscription or 90 day subscription when you go to fatty15.com slash Kimberly and use code Kimberly at checkout. Please check it out for yourself and take it every day as I do. Once again, that’s fatty15.com slash Kimberly. That’s fatty15.com slash Kimberly to get 15 % off your 90 day subscription. It’s the small consistent things that we do on a regular basis that give us great results over the long term. And one of the easiest and most effective steps that we can do on a regular basis is to create optimal hydration in our body. It’s really the difference between a grape and a raisin. Of course, the grape is beautiful and looks supple and is full of water. And that’s what we want our energy to feel like. That’s what we want our skin to look like, glowy and supple and just full of that beautiful hydration. So it comes down to water, of course. That’s quite obvious. But also electrolytes, right? Electrolytes are a really important part of hydration and we need to replace them regularly. And I’ve been talking about certain foods for years, like celery and chard and certain foods, which are really great to help with electrolyte levels. But in our modern busy days, and because we’re running around and we’re sweating and there’s stress, I also recommend adding a packet of electrolyte to your room temperature water every day as I do. And the reason for this is that in one packet, you’ll get a hefty dose of science-backed electrolytes. Speaker 1 (15:38.894)including sodium, potassium, and magnesium. It has no added sugars or filler. And it’s just a great way to ensure that you’re really staying hydrated. And this is one of the easiest, I find, and most effective wellness steps because hydration is fundamental to our organs functioning at their best and also to enhance detoxification and many other things. So right now, Element is offering our amazing feel-good community. free sample pack with any element drink mix that’s drink element comm slash feel good D R I N K LM NT comm slash feel good to get your eight single serving packets for free once again drink element comm slash feel good Speaker 1 (16:36.012)the diagrams in the book as well. The visual because unless we’re, you know, a trainer or we studied a lot, it’s like it can be hard to visualize on a level with these detailed bones and the muscles. Yeah, no, this guy, John Early did these illustrations and they were like, they’re hard to do because they have to be like medically accurate, but also hopefully kind of like fun to look at. Right. This one is I think maybe important. I don’t know if you’re if you’re watching. Yes. OK. So when I mentioned that everybody’s hips need help with mobility or stability, you can do a little test. Right. If you can side plank all 10 toes pointing forward with your leg elevated, your body like in a big X. If you can hold that for 30 seconds, just lock it out, then they would say that your hip stability is sufficient, right? Like your hips are stable enough. Similarly, if you can do this standing figure four, so you’re like, take your, let’s say your right ankle and hook it over your left knee, rest it on top of your left knee, and then sit down and get so that like your hips are are level with your knees. If you can sit down like that, then your hips are mobile enough. But If you’re like me, then you can’t do either of those things and you have to work on it. Right? So we all got to work on these things. Yeah, it’s cool. These are both yoga poses or asanas that can be incorporated in a routine. This is a version of an ukta asana. Yeah, and that’s, I love that. That’s really interesting, seeing the diagrams, because I’m like, hey, I’ve done these movements before. I never thought about them in terms of this language, but they’re kind of fun to do. Speaker 2 (18:21.688)Do think you can lock out that side plank like that for 30 seconds? Gosh, Henry, it’s, you I used to have such a serious asana practice. It was every day, hour and a half. And then I started shifting to walking for different reasons, to getting outside. It’s just a break in the middle of my day. And it’s really hilly where I live. I live in the mountains, so it’s like quite a tough walk. But, you know, my husband keeps saying, you know, got to do more upper body lifting, you know, for bone health. And I got some weights. And so I’m… thinking about shifting the routine. So I’ll report back to you because I don’t know. Honestly, I used to do it a lot and definitely hold it for that long, but it’s been some years. So it’ll be interesting to see what I try. I’d be interested to know. It’s hard. I mean, it’s hard. My wife is amazing at that kind of stuff. She can do it. She can do all that stuff. she’s very, she can go to any yoga class and just fall right into whatever the teacher is doing and just fine with it. But me, I don’t have that kind of, that’s not my forte. Well, know, injuries even within yoga in the last few years of my practice, I noticed when you’re doing the warrior poses, because people think, yoga is great for injuries and it doesn’t have slow impact. But I would experience towards the end hip pain from doing the warriors. And again, I don’t know if that’s dumping into my hip or not having enough hip stability, but I did experience some pain from the asanas. What do you think about that? Speaker 2 (19:54.54)Yeah, that brings up an interesting point. I grew up, my family, have, parents and sister, we have really tight hamstrings. And so to me, anyone with hip mobility is like a magician. And clearly you’re better off, clearly you’re better injury resistance, et cetera. So I’m always working on trying to get more hip mobility. And so I’ve been to a bunch of yoga classes and I always think the teacher is probably someone who’s just in a better category than me in terms of injury risk, right? But Marcus Elliott, who this book is largely about, he was explaining that when his first yoga teacher in Santa Barbara, where he lives, she had the most incredibly mobile hips and she would show off. She could do all these crazy yoga moves that no one else could do. But she had both hips replaced in her early 50s. he would explain the reason why is because she didn’t have hip stability. Right? Like she worked crazy on hip mobility, he’s like, but if she had just done basic weightlifting to just, you know, she could move that hip super mobile, but like she didn’t have the control of it to keep it from getting out of place. And for things like our femur rotating other lots of other things from hips ability, like she didn’t have very stable hips and you want both. What kind of weightlifting would you do to stabilize your hips? There’s a fair amount of that kind of stuff in the book. I think there’s different flavors of hip instability, but they do recommend basically for everyone really good form as you squat and do hinging motions. I follow their routines now and I spend a lot of time doing single leg RDLs. There’s also in the book, most of what they prescribe is individual to the athlete. Speaker 2 (21:44.28)The warm up is the same. There’s a 13 step warm up, includes a fair amount. Your hips will be like, the hips will notice the warm up. I don’t know, it takes 15 minutes maybe depending how careful you do it. But there’s a ton of like Romanian dead lifts. You know this move, the Romanian dead lift? It’s like the most basic form is you stand on one leg and then you keep your torso and the other leg in a line as you like. pitch forward and touch the floor in front of you. You’ve done something like this, I’m sure, a bazillion times. And you can do that with a weight, starting with a lightweight, et cetera. But that’s a hinging motion, right? Which will put a pretty good bunch of tension on the back of your hip. I’ll tell you, for me, they obsess about the form of how you do that. And I would tend to do it leaning a little too far forward, which means I wasn’t using the proper muscles in my hip. they have to have me like… Yes. Speaker 2 (22:42.018)I mean now I still as a little cue like when I get in the form for that I like try to really like shift back a little bit so that when I bend over and come back up I’m pulling on like the very back of my glute as opposed to recruiting other muscles from your hips to kind of cheat. Right. You know, this is so, it’s so interesting we’re talking about this, Henry, because I can say, you for me, I really like walking in nature and it feels good or doing my yoga poses sort of like that teacher you described where I could put both of my feet behind my head and do these crazy poses. But sometimes it’s like what we need is not, not to say our favorite thing or the other thing that we’re most drawn to, but it is the balance. And Dr. Suhas was an Ayurvedic teacher and doctor came on here and he was talking about how, he talks about in different contexts, weightlifting is really important to women for that cough of that groundedness to balance. we’re in our heads and Vata energy and it actually makes you feel strong so you can feel strong on the decisions you make in your life. And, know, in terms of what you’re talking about preventing injury and just feeling really stable. So maybe it’s, you if you’re like me and you’re like, well, I don’t know, like I never, I never go to these like weight, I don’t go to the gym and I don’t really lift, you know, I’m not drawn to weightlifting classes or whatever. But what you’re talking about the book is things that we can incorporate and you can make a huge difference in balance. Because if we’re just doing the things that we like, can, that’s, that’s probably why I started to feel some injuries from yoga because I wasn’t doing the stabilizing aspect. Yeah, that’s definitely a factor. I think they do. There aren’t a lot of things they recommend for everybody at this place, but like they do recommend there’s some kind of weights in everybody’s program, right? Like it’s just, it’s just maybe there are ways around it, but I think it’s, it’s, you know, your husband’s probably right, which I hate to say, you know what I mean? There’s all these studies and stuff, you know, like, Speaker 1 (24:40.226)Right? But then it’s like, again, you’re talking about patterns. It’s making space in our life and creating a new habit. It’s also I mean, I never thought I’d be a weightlifter. I was a runner and just like never had any interest in that. And then I started having like hip trouble basically. And and a friend of mine, she is a kinesiologist who runs a gym. And so I started going to her gym and it’s I don’t know, it’s 75 % women and like, which matters to me because like, it’s fun as hell to go there because everyone’s very supportive, right? Like, like, it’s just not it is not the like, it is technically a CrossFit gym. But I don’t know, they got that certification for whatever reason. the fact is, no

Summary: In the September Solluna Power Hour, Kimberly Snyder discusses the essential rhythms and rituals needed to feel grounded, clear, and energized as we transition from summer to fall. She emphasizes the importance of maintaining balance through food, body care, emotional well-being, and spiritual growth. The conversation highlights the significance of daily practices, nourishing foods, and emotional processing to enhance overall well-being and resilience during this seasonal shift. Episode Sponsors MOMENTOUS: MOMENTOUS OFFER: Head to livemomentous.com and use code KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription. That’s code KIMBERLY at livemomentous.com for 35% off your first subscription. USE LINK: livemomentous.com Code: KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription. GLOWING GREENS POWDER OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order. USE LINK: mysolluna.com CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Episode Chapters Chapters 00:00 Transitioning into Fall: Grounding and Clarity 10:14 The Importance of Rhythms and Rituals 20:26 Nourishing the Body: Food Cornerstone 26:04 Body Care: Rituals for Well-Being 34:04 Emotional Well-Being: Processing Feelings 42:14 Spiritual Growth: Cultivating Stillness and Gratitude   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS The Hidden Power of the Five Hearts Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! How to Believe in Your Self Worth with Jamie Kern Lima How to Raise Your Standards In Your Love Life with Matthew Hussey How to Eat to Beat Your Diet with New York Times best selling author Dr. William Li The issues with consuming vegetable and seed oils with Dr. Catherine Shanahan How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo How to Optimize Your Metabolic Health with Dr. Casey Means TRANSCRIPT: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:00.888)Hi everyone, welcome back to our September Power Hour show. I’m so excited for this very relevant topic this month, which is essential rhythms and rituals to feel grounded, clear, and energized. And I know for myself, transitioning from summer into the fall, with the busyness of school ramping back up and work, and there’s just so much more on the schedule. Can you relate that these three words grounded, clear, and energized are really important, especially right now. There’s always a shift between seasons and between months, as we know, but there’s a really big shift in particular from summer into fall. And I’ll share that personally, I just, we just got back a few days ago from Hawaii and there’s a very different. rhythm that we have on the island. There’s a lot of physical labor and farm work and expansiveness and just running through the woods and freedom. And now there is a reality into coming back to LA and there’s still a lot of road work in our area from the fires and our kids’ school burned. I mentioned here to our beloved community a few months ago and now there’s a new campus, there’s a longer drive, there’s just many things. And so I’m really feeling the call, maybe along with you, to ground in to have these really sacred rhythms and routines and rituals which really do help us stay healthy and they help to regulate our bodily systems such as digestion and immunity. And they regulate our mind and they regulate our emotions and they allow us to stay connected to our hearts even as things in the external world around us become more full, can we say, and there’s just a bit more going on or a lot more going on. And what I’ve been doing is I’ve gotten back the last few days is really we will talk about this when we get to some of the later quarterstones. We’ll talk about this in emotional and spiritual. Is this idea of surrendering the resistance to our preferences more and more? Maybe I don’t want to be driving so much or why does it have to be so busy right now? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:20.418)you know, why can’t it still be summer? And starting to sink into this deeper place of connection and resilience inside of us, in our hearts, in the center of our being, so that even as we glide around the world and maybe things aren’t our preference, we can find a deep sense of well-being and root into our own energy and our own true self connection. So we’re going to be covering all of this today through the lens, of course, of our Four Cornerstones, our power hour show, has a theme. And then we’re still gonna cover food, body, emotional well-being, and spiritual growth during this show, which is at the top of each month, to give you the best tips and tools to really utilize throughout the month. So I’ll say right here, right now, if there’s anyone that you think would benefit from this show, please forward it to them. We really wanna share this information and to get it out in the world. We also really appreciate reviews. If you could just take a moment to write us a review on Spotify or Apple, wherever you listen to our podcast. It’s such a wonderful way to support the mission of the podcast, of our feel good community, which is to support others. And that has been the mission, by the way, since I started my free Kimberly Snyder.net blog many years ago now and wrote my first book, The Beauty Detox Solution. And I really want to stay rooted in that mission. And I think our community attracts like-minded souls that really do want to spread love and support for others. So sharing the show, whether it’s a screenshot or a link to a direct episode, is such a wonderful way to support. Okay, let’s get right into our… and another quick thing I want to mention is you can also join our newsletter at mysaloona.com to stay more connected to the community as well. So what does it mean to feel more grounded and clear and energized? I really love this word grounded. And what it means to me is that we are complex beings. have so many different layers of our being. We have the emotional body, the soul or the Atman or the spiritual body. We have the mental part of us. We have the physicality. And when we’re grounded, it means that every part of us Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:43.118)centered and synergized and we feel very much present where we are. We’re having an embodied experience and so what that means is that in this particular lifetime in this dimension, depending on what you believe in, we’re here in a there’s a you know a physicality to the realm that we’re in and so when we’re grounded it means that we are connected to all layers of our being, included very much our bodies. And we can be really connected to the present moment, which means we’re looking into the person’s eyes that we’re talking to, whether it’s our child or the teacher at our child’s school or a coworker or someone that you’re chatting to on a Zoom for work or whatever it is. Instead of not really being in conversations or not really being where your body happens to be, you know, those experiences where you’re sort of, you know… how did I just go shopping at the grocery store and I’m walking out with my bags? I don’t even remember being there, right? That’s when we’re disassociated from the body and we feel so hurried or life is so fast paced that we start to miss the magic of the moments and things start to get faster and faster, which creates a sense of incoherence, which means our nervous systems start to go into overdrive. We start to feel more tension perhaps in our bodies. And this disables our ability to be in flow and efficiency and energy efficiency. So what happens as this cascade of all different sorts of biochemical processes starts to get a little bit off kilter is that we end up aging more quickly and we end up feeling more depleted in our energy. So this sense of groundedness is a very important theme as we go into fall. because one of the things that ancient wisdom teaches us through Aryaveda in particular is this is the season of Vata. So Pitta is what we’re coming from through August and the summer, which is a lot of fire element. The sun is very strong. And now we’re moving into more of the wind, air, energy. And when it’s not balanced, what happens, the potential is there for anxiety, for confusion. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:00.216)for feeling excess stress, for our digestion getting thrown off, for our immunity getting thrown off. So we want to eat in a way and live in a way that really grounds our energy through this very important transition. So the important of rhythms and rituals is that, again, there’s so much fullness in our schedule and we don’t control the traffic and we don’t control so many after school events coming on. And right now I’m trying to just figure out with my boys. you know, the swim class overlapping with the chess classes. So, you know, one has to sit at one event and then I drive to the next and the other one has to read or sit during the other event. And there’s just a lot of scheduling. If you can relate to that, whether you’re a mom or you just have a lot going on in your plate, getting together with friends, different work projects, you know, lots of, things that are calling us and calling for our attention. So let’s, let’s start to. talk about our first cornerstone now because when we have these rhythms and rituals it helps to ground us so that we don’t get swept up in the vata in the air and also I want to mention from another ancient wisdom system traditional Chinese medicine that fall is associated with the metal element and the lungs so again back to that air coming in through the lungs, there’s a focus in this area, and we need to create inner strength in order to feel that balance and carry us through the fall. It’s interesting because lungs also govern the heart chakra and all energies related to the heart, this whole area right here. And so as we move into more fullness, I don’t really like to say the word busyness because busy can imply just getting things. done off a to-do list versus just there’s fullness that requires our presence and our energy and our love, right? So we can lean, it’s an opportunity to lean more into our inner connection and to strengthen our heart coherence and the power of our heart and allowing that to keep us rooted in our bodies, right? Rooted into making decisions that are really the best decisions for us and having these sacred Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:18.516)rituals through the day, these touch points to bring us back if we start to go up into our head too much or we start to believe some of the incoherent thoughts or we just start to get overwhelmed by how much there is going on. We want the rhythms and the rituals to keep pulling us back, pulling us back. And this is part of Dinacharya, the Ayurvedic daily rhythm, which I’ve also spoken about quite a bit on the podcast. which is this idea that as we regulate these simple daily practices and we consistently follow them, in turn we become more regulated in our nervous system, in our coherence, our heart-brain nervous system connection, in our overall bodily efficiency, in our overall bodily well-being, and we start to feel more flow as we glide through a very full day. And there’s just a deeper sense of peace and we can be really engaged, but also a bit from the inside, less caught up in the ups and downs and feeling so reactive about things that don’t go according to our expectations. I was in a really beautiful, I was at a baby shower over the weekend and one of the women was talking about her perspective of how important it was to dance in the gap. between how you expect things to go and how life is really showing up. And I love that, you know, that symbology, this idea of dancing between that and finding a way to meld and flow with life. And when we feel more grounded in our bodies through the Four Cornerstones, I think it’s easier to have more of that lightness and to be able to dance with whatever life is doling out to us versus feeling really frustrated and easily triggered and worn down, which is What can happen when we don’t have our rituals to carry us through? So from a food perspective, let’s jump into our first cornerstone now. Remember that how you eat has a profound effect on these different layers of your being. And this is what ancient wisdom has always talked about. It’s not this reductionist approach to food, but really seeing that how we eat affects us emotionally, mentally, physically, and even spiritually. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:42.284)So our bodies during the fall are in September are craving a sense of steadiness. And there’s a very different feeling in your body when you start to feel full, satiated from having, let’s say a hot bowl of soup, something very grounding, feeling very comforting versus just reaching for a bag of, you know, a processed snack, even if it’s You know, the numbers add up, let’s just say like a processed protein bar, this cold processed item just going into your body. There’s a very different energetic quality to it. And I’m not saying we have to be perfect all the time and there’s times where you’re traveling or you’re in a bind and that protein bar may be the best option, but more and more we want to develop rhythms of creating stability in the body. I also want to mention that my friend this month, Dan Buettner, who is the founder of the Blue Zones. We’re actually doing a, depending when you listen to this, you check my socials at underscore Kimberly Snyder. We’ll be doing a live together to talk about his new Blue Zones book, which is all about one pot meals. So I’m really excited about that because we have to find and utilize really easy ways to eat in a way that feels really grounding, which stabilization means healthy fats. It means lots of fiber, lots of nutrients, and as natural and whole as possible. We also have some fantastic recipes, which are on our website, mysaluna.com. And one of my intentions for the fall is to get more organized with meal planning for the family because it is getting so full so that I will focus on what we’re eating for dinner. And of course, packing all the school lunches and have a general plan for at least Monday through Friday and get organized. So I myself have been looking back at our vast storehouse of recipes. And there’s ones that I, you know, created years ago. I kind of forgot about that and bringing it back in. On my Instagram, I recently posted about our gorilla wraps, which are these amazing walnut tacos, basically. And it was a recipe that I got away from. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:04.702)and I brought it back in and it just felt so grounding and great to have the healthy fats from the walnuts and all those beautiful oils and the collard greens. So we definitely want to have that stabilizing food. And I mentioned hot soups because one of the things that happens in the vata season is that there’s a coolness. When you think about wind blowing through, it’s very welcome in the summer when it’s 100 degrees outside and we want a nice cool breeze. But as the wind starts to pick up, it can start to bring a chill into the bones, into the body, into the throat. And so sipping on warm elixirs and having more warm foods, particularly for lunch and dinner, becomes a very important ritual and routine. So I’ll be planning lots of one pot meals. I’ll be going back to dahl, which is, you know, a wonderful recipe that we also offer on the website. And so, It’s, and also if you go to our podcast tab, just for being a member of a beloved member of our community, you can also get a free download, which we’ve created recently, which has all different, recipes for you. the doll version is one of them. So it’s, I believe, or you could email love at mysaloon.com and ask about the, download. So we still want to have. raw nutrients. So I do start the day with a nice warm hot water with ginger and lemon, particularly a hot water with lemon. And then I like to drink my smoothies room temperature, including the Glowing Green smoothie. I’ve never been a icy smoothie person. And I know some people love iced coffee and my kids love coconut ice cream and cold smoothies, but I just I’ve gotten used to over the years really having things closer to room temperature. So if that works for you to have your beautiful glowing green smoothie, hopefully with a glowing greens powder added in, that’s wonderful, or at least a little bit less cool and moving towards that as we start to go into fall and also winter. Another great rhythm and routine. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:23.68)is to bring in more grounding root vegetables right now, which naturally start to become more seasonal. And I’m talking about certain squashes and also things grown into the earth, beets and carrots and so on and so forth, which are really great for your digestion. And they bring in that kaffa quality, which means earthness, earthiness, and they’re literally grown in the earth. And besides grounding root vegetables, another great rhythm and routine to get back into or into is almonds and almond milk and nuts. So I’ve been posting about almond milk lately because I’ve gotten back into it and I feel so much vitality from making my own almond milk to get that essential o-just, that incredible vitality enhancing the essence of the almonds. And so it feels really grounding to my body. make almond milk maybe every other day or every two days or so. And it’s, know, when you think about nuts and the property of nuts, there is a stabilizing quality to them. So I just want to point out a bit of research from this one is from the journal BMC microbiology from 2020 and it found significant seasonal variability in gut microbiota. So what this means is that as we essentially what it means, and you can read the study if you would like to, we will link to it in the show notes at mysaluna.com. And I’ve read other similar studies with similar results is that as we adjust to seasonal foods and we shift our diet, just like we shift our clothes between season to season, we will see a greater strengthening and resilience in our microbiota, which is really important. for feeling grounded, our gut health is so important as we talk about quite a bit here. And so it’s important to again, reaching for seasonal veggies and shifting our diet. And this is the moment again, besides the seasonal root veggies and a bit more heaviness to also have warmer foods to start bringing that in. And I know for some of us here in LA, September can still be quite hot. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:38.51)but starting to bring it in because it will start to increase as the season continues. There was another great review in 2025 in the International Ayurvedic Medical Journal showing how Agni, which I love this word, or digestive fire, naturally fluctuates as the environment changes around us. And Ritucharya is the Ayurvedic principle of living in tune with seasonal shifts. And we want to emphasize supporting our digestion right now with warm, grounding foods. So there’s something really beautiful about attuning to the environment around us instead of just plowing forward and not really considering that, which I know you can maybe think of some people that eat the same way completely all year round or start to follow a diet or something they see and they don’t really take into account seasonal foods or how their body’s really feeling in a particular environment or what needs to shift. I know that years ago when I lived in New York and I was following a raw food diet for a couple years, and I really wanted to follow this diet and it worked really well for me for a while, but I remember being so cold at times in New York City and just really wanting a hot vegetable soup. Be no, no, no, I can’t because it has to be raw. And these rigid rules don’t always serve us. Maybe sometimes we want to shift over or clear something in the body or heal our gut or candida or whatever it is. And so we have to be a little bit more regimented. But I really do believe part of listening to our bodies is listening to our hearts intuition about what our body needs. So over time it very well may shift how we eat, particularly around your menstrual cycle, around seasons, like we’re talking about here. And I do think it’s important to have those natural fluctuations. And finally, a 2019 publication in Frontiers and Immunology from 2019 found that greater daily dietary diversity is linked to a more stable, resilient gut microbiome composition. So for again, we listen to the autumn root vegetables, which actually actively support our digestive health. A podcast that I did some months ago, maybe a year or so ago with Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:01.484)Dr. B, who was a plant-based gastroenterologist, we discussed how in an ideal world, he said we should have 30 to 35 different vegetables in a week, which is creating that real diversity. And maybe that sounds like a lot, but if you think about the vegetables that are in the Glowing Green Smoothie, for example, if you put romaine and spinach and parsley and cilantro, it starts to add up. And maybe 30 is just seems completely out of the ballpark right now. But, you know, if you’re just, if you notice you’re only having, you know, three, five, six, seven, you can start to work to stretch towards, let’s say 11, 12, and then maybe 15 and start to see ways in which you can create more of that diversity, which will make your gut very happy and your body very resilient. So just start to notice. If you’re feeling anxious, you’re feeling spacey, if you’re feeling, you’re just craving so much sugar, you’re feeling bloated in your body, you’re feeling like there’s just an irregularity to any of your bodily systems, but especially digestion. And now that your body’s calling for these sacred rhythms and rituals to feel more grounded. So just to review for some of the top tips is to start and end the day with warm elixirs. It’s very easy to make some of these elixirs. Again, you can go to our website, mysaluna.com to get some recipes, but even simple hot water with lemon in the morning and hot water with ginger sliced in it in the evening is a really great place to start. And then leaning into seasonal grounding foods such as the root vegetables, such as the nuts. warmer dishes, particularly for lunch and dinner. You could have something like a salad and a lentil veggie soup with quinoa or rice. This is something that we eat a lot as a family. Dinner last night was a kale salad. I’m really happy to say that both my kids are really into kale right now. Again, who knows how things shift and change, but both my kids really love the Dharma’s kale salad. And then I made a soup with lentils and all the veggies that we had in the house. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (23:17.132)broccoli and carrots and spinach. I made a soup and then rice and that was our dinner and it was really easy, relatively easy to make and felt really grounding. It’s also important to avoid stimulating foods. So this is not a great time. I mean, it’s never really a great time, but particularly now to have excess caffeine to overload your body with processed foods or sugary foods. We want to keep that groundedness with the wholeness that can come from foods. And we want to bring a rhythm to meal times. So as much as possible, if you can eat around the same time every day, if you can say grace or a gratitude practice to create a ritual to sitting down, hopefully without devices or screens in a hopefully non-rushed way, and to enjoy the time that you’re eating and time with your family, that would be really beautiful. I would also encourage you in particular to go back to the fiber-filled glowing green smoothie if you got away from it and to check the recipe on my site if you’ve never tried it and to add the glowing greens powder into it. There is a lot of powerful greens in this whole combination and ones that you wouldn’t have fresh in the glowing greens powder such as Amalaki, Ashitaba, Moringa. I’m actually starting this week going into double doses. of the glowing greens powder, so two scoops instead of one, which I do sometimes when I feel the call to ground, but also cleanse at the same time. There’s a relationship between cleansing out heavy metals and wastes and then re-revifying, just nourishing yourself with very deep, nutrient-tense plants, which is what is in the glowing greens powder. So I just… I’m feeling like I need that right now as I move from summer to fall. So I’ll be having two scoops a day of the Glowing Greens powder, which will help again cleanse the heavy metals and the toxins, but also really nourish. And you’ll start to see even more of a glow to your skin. You’ll see an even more bounce to your hair, your hair’s growth, just across every cell of your being. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (25:39.128)And if you’re also feeling like the need to support greater digestion, mean, you know, you’re getting, there’s more bloating and we want to absorb more nutrients, I highly recommend adding in the digestive enzymes as an important way to absorb more nutrition from your food. You take them right before you eat. And then also, which has been really important, I’ve been taking it more often in the fall because my vata can definitely get imbalanced. is detoxi. And that one you take in the evening, it’s magnesium and oxygen and stable vitamin C. And it helps you have larger bowel movements without being a laxative and without being habit forming. So let’s move on to our next cornerstone, is body. Your sacred, unique, amazing body needs to be cared for, especially in the season. Why? Because Vata and winds and, you know, more full schedules and lots going on tends to drive the energy up, up into the mind, up into our, you know, We’re in our heads where anxiety can start to manifest and excess worry and excess fears and

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Estelle Bingham Summary: In this conversation, Kimberly and Brittany Piper delve into the profound impact of trauma on the nervous system and the importance of somatic healing. Brittany shares insights from her new book, ‘Body First Healing,’ discussing how trauma is stored in the body and how somatic work can help individuals reconnect with their bodies to facilitate healing. They explore the concept of intergenerational trauma, the natural responses to trauma observed in animals, and the significance of body awareness in the healing process. Brittany also shares her personal journey of overcoming trauma and the tools that can aid in navigating trauma responses, emphasizing the importance of building resilience and capacity for emotions. The conversation concludes with a message of empowerment, encouraging individuals to trust their bodies and recognize their innate ability to heal. About Britt Piper Brittany Piper is a renowned speaker, author, and Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner specializing in sexual violence prevention and trauma-informed care. As a survivor and leading advocate, she has educated thousands worldwide, including the U.S. Army and Department of Justice. Her book, Body-First Healing: A Revolutionary Guide to Nervous System Recovery, offers a groundbreaking approach to nervous system regulation and recovery through harnessing the wisdom of the body. Guest Resources: Website: https://www.bodyfirsthealing.com/about Book: Body-First Healing: A Revolutionary Guide to Nervous System Recovery Episode Sponsors:   LMNT OFFER: Right now, for my listeners LMNT is offering a free sample pack with any LMNT drink mix purchase at DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD. That’s 8 single serving packets FREE with any LMNT any LMNT drink mix purchase. This deal is only available through my link so. Also try the new LMNT Sparkling — a bold, 16-ounce can of sparkling electrolyte water. USE LINK: DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD   FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Somatic Healing and Trauma02:59 Understanding Trauma and the Nervous System06:07 The Role of Body Memory in Healing08:56 Intergenerational Trauma and Its Impact11:57 Lessons from Animal Behavior on Trauma Recovery14:50 Cultural Disconnection from Somatic Practices17:52 Personal Stories of Healing and Resilience21:05 Justice and Advocacy for Survivors of Trauma24:31 The Journey Through Trauma and Justice28:49 Understanding the Body’s Response to Trauma33:51 Navigating Anger and Emotional Regulation39:32 Empowerment Through Somatic Healing46:41 The Path to Self-Healing   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Kimberly Snyder (00:00.718)Hi everyone and welcome back to our Monday interview show. I am so excited for our very special guest today and our conversation with Brittany Piper, who is a speaker and somatic and trauma trained practitioner specializing in somatic experiencing. She has a brand new book out called Body First Healing, Get Unstuck and Recover from Trauma with Somatic Healing. Brittany and I were speaking just a little bit before the podcast about how amazing it is to talk about trauma and healing on such a deep level now, which wasn’t really happening a generation earlier. So Brittany, thank you so much. Welcome to our show and congratulations on your new book all at the same time. Brittany Piper (00:43.95)Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, I’m excited to have a conversation today. So I appreciate you having me here. Kimberly Snyder (00:51.118)You know, it’s very close to my heart, literally. My recent book was about the heart and dropping into this deeper place beyond the linear mind. And I found that really reflected in your book as well, this idea that things happen to us, challenging experiences happen of all different degrees, and we can’t just think our way out of it. Can you talk a little bit about how experiences can actually get stored? in our nervous system and in our body, similarly to how we might not properly digest certain foods. Brittany Piper (01:26.124)Yeah. Yeah, the, so I think that there’ve been so many different definitions surrounding trauma over the years. And I think that the one that lands best with me is that trauma is any experience that overwhelms the nervous system’s capacity to cope. And when that happens, your nervous system can get stuck in chronic states of survival. Or in other words, it gets stuck. Kimberly Snyder (01:42.381)Mm. Kimberly Snyder (01:50.062)Okay. Brittany Piper (01:54.016)in the states or the responses that it used in the past. And it’s as if somatic work, which is body-based healing work, we work with the nervous system and with the body, and more specifically body memory rather than verbal memory to help the body and the nervous system to know that the trauma is over, essentially catching up with what the mind already knows. Like the mind knows that the trauma was, you know, maybe seemingly back then, but maybe the nervous system doesn’t know that. Kimberly Snyder (02:14.473)Right. Brittany Piper (02:23.714)and it’s not a rational system. Yeah, it’s a system that operates through experience, through this felt sense. And so what we really try to do is help people in their nervous system to kind of disarm and to recognize you don’t have to be stuck in survival mode anymore. So, yeah. Kimberly Snyder (02:25.516)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (02:43.904)Survival mode is that feeling of almost, when you say that word, it conjures up frantic, irrational, big emotions, freezing, like all sorts of ways that can manifest and not feeling safe. Brittany Piper (02:59.01)Yes, yeah. Yeah, it’s kind of the best way I describe it is like an analogy I like to use is like, we’re armored up, but you can think of like this night suit of armor. It’s like we’re battled up to go or we’re armored up to go into battle. But at some point it’s like our nervous system didn’t get the memo that the battle is over. And so we kind of remain with like this armor on and this armor can start to, know, what once started off as self protective in nature. Kimberly Snyder (03:06.582)Yes. Brittany Piper (03:25.486)it can start to show up in almost the self-destructive or self-sabotaging ways, which I think is such a more compassionate way to look at it as this is self-protection, not self-sabotage. And we can kind of like lose sight of ourselves. We can disconnect from ourselves because we get so lost in this armor. Yeah, and I’m sure you experienced the same. A lot of the people that I work with, they come to me and they’re like, I just feel stuck. Kimberly Snyder (03:43.854)Right. Brittany Piper (03:52.168)And I feel like I’m not myself and I don’t know how to get out of this. And that stuckness is really what it boils down to is a nervous system that is stuck in those active defenses still. Kimberly Snyder (04:03.99)And has it been your experience that no matter what we’ve been through, we can reteach the nervous system through some of the tools that are in your book, which we’ll talk about in a moment and through this more body-based experience, because I’ve met people, and I’m sure you talk about in the book, that have been in therapy, because we’ve been talking, go to therapy, but they’ve been talking about the same story. for years and years. I’ve met people that seem to have the same narrative, victimhood, I wasn’t treated like this, and they almost still sound angry. So it’s like, are we really clearing it out by continuing to reinforce and talk about it? Brittany Piper (04:35.0)Yeah. Brittany Piper (04:39.992)Mm-hmm. Brittany Piper (04:46.54)Yeah, exactly. So I think what I can maybe like describe a little bit is what we call the stress or the threat response cycle. And so when your nervous system goes into an active state of survival, know, fight, flight, shut down, freeze, fawn or functional freeze, what happens is first, your body is kind of inundated or flooded with survival hormones, stress hormones, adrenaline and cortisol. Kimberly Snyder (04:54.231)Yes, please. Kimberly Snyder (05:13.644)Yes. Brittany Piper (05:13.74)and this helps to mobilize you to fight or flee. And so when you have an experience though that overwhelms that stress response, you can kind of think of it like a pressure cooker. All of that adrenaline and cortisol is still stuck within the body and the physiology. And so there’s no amount of talking that out of your body. You have to be able to move through that experience and express or what we call discharge all of that adrenaline and cortisol. So. You you see this, I’ll use an example of maybe abuse or, you know, something that was violent in nature where you weren’t able to fight back. You might find that you now have what we call a thwarted fight response. And so you have likely a lot of suppressed anger that’s being held down within the body and the system. And so the work actually starts with not throwing someone into the deep end of their trauma. Kimberly Snyder (05:50.765)Right. Brittany Piper (06:07.276)like we commonly do in therapy, right? That’s what we’re used to. I just wanna talk about it. I wanna get into it. Instead, we actually walk them into like the shallow end and we’re like, hey, what would it be like to think about a moment recently where you felt a little frustrated, a little angry by something and maybe it’s, yeah, someone cut me off the other day and it kind of like pissed me off. And you’re like, okay, and as you’re thinking about that, what do you notice in your body? Wow, there’s some heat here and I’m actually noticing my jaw is clenching. And so, we touch into more gentle moments of activation, which allows that, again, that pressure cooker, we just gently open the lid for a second and close it back down. And it lets out and discharges some of that adrenaline and cortisol, getting these chronic stress hormones out of the body. And we do that consistently over time. But what’s also great about that is that you’re showing the nervous system or you’re giving it evidence that, hey, you can be with an experience of anger. Kimberly Snyder (06:54.627)Mm. Brittany Piper (07:05.358)maybe like you weren’t able to do in the past and you can be okay. And so it’s this evidence that over time is like, yeah, when I do feel anger in my body, like this frustration of, don’t like the way that person talked to me. Instead of shutting it down like it automatically do, or instead of running away or avoiding conflict, my body now has this muscle memory of like, I can be with that anger and I can express it. so trauma work doesn’t necessarily mean that we have to go back into all the hard stuff. Kimberly Snyder (07:28.078)Well. Brittany Piper (07:35.692)Right? We’re working with the body memory here in the present and untethering that, like, from the past. If that makes sense, Kimberly Snyder (07:42.851)Mm. And it’s, imagine it’s different for each person. noticed in, you know, the heart work awakening, the heart or heart coherence, it’s not linear. Like, you had this much trauma, so it’s going to take this prescribed amount of time to reteach. It could be big awakenings or big realizations. Certain junctures are maybe a little bit more time to work through. that? Yeah. Brittany Piper (07:48.611)Yes. Brittany Piper (08:01.998)Mm-hmm. Brittany Piper (08:05.804)Exactly. Yeah, yeah, because every year you’re working with each individual person, their nervous system, but also the nervous systems that came before them. So like a lot of the work that we do is we work with a lot of, you know, it’s important to know like intergenerationally, what was your life like in your earliest years, because our first three years of life really lay the foundation for our nervous system. Kimberly Snyder (08:23.286)Yes. Brittany Piper (08:30.306)And so that surprises people when they get into somatic work. They’re like, well, I can’t even remember that. And it’s like, your body remembers. And yeah. And then even before that, even when you’re, exactly. Yeah. And even, you know, what were the experiences of your mother and your grandmother? So, and that’s something I, you know, deeply explored in my book with my experience was that journey of intergenerational trauma, you know, cause I’m not. Kimberly Snyder (08:32.535)Thank Kimberly Snyder (08:36.724)so much or even when you were pregnant or when your mother was pregnant with you. Brittany Piper (08:56.578)I’m not sure if people probably come to you with this of like, think I have the signs and symptoms of trauma, but like, I don’t think I’ve experienced anything. And so we explore indirect trauma, which is like, yeah, but I think there’s also like, you know, getting to the, well, trauma might not be what you think it is. I think we have these ideas of, yeah. Kimberly Snyder (09:05.058)Kimberly Snyder (09:15.982)Well, when I read the body keeps the score, it blew me away that statistic, which really stayed in my head from Bessel van der Kolk, that was 75 % of Americans experience some form of trauma. Because I think some of us hear that word and we think about accidents or a one-time incident. one of the things that, because I wouldn’t have used that word in the past, Brittany, but for me, it was learning, not being seen and heard, like different levels of neglect is actually a really big form of trauma throughout childhood, which is something that I did go through. well-intentioned parents that were busy, were hustling, they were working, but there was a lot of coping mechanisms and perfectionism and eating disorders and just constant achieving to sort of fill that unworthiness feeling. So. Brittany Piper (10:02.99)Yeah. Brittany Piper (10:09.027)Yeah. Kimberly Snyder (10:09.688)Thank you for bringing up that it is actually much more than we realize. And I love how you delve into Peter Levine’s work. We could touch on that for a moment where he researched animals to see that, you know, they don’t have trauma the same way we do and they’re like naturally shaking and trembling after something happens. Can you share a little bit about, you know, that work and how we can, what we can learn from it as humans? Brittany Piper (10:33.888)Yeah. Yeah. So I first want to touch on what you just mentioned is, you know, in hearing about your experience, it reminds me a little bit. So in the somatic experiencing world, we use the definition of trauma is that it’s anything that feels like too much, too fast, too soon, or not enough. And so like when you talk about neglect or things like that, those are things that often get overlooked. Kimberly Snyder (10:54.156)Mmm. Kimberly Snyder (11:00.993)Yeah. Brittany Piper (11:01.026)You there are such experiences that are overlooked in our culture today. And I think because they kind of fly below the radar, they sometimes can fester, you know, in our lives in much more intense ways. And so, yeah, just thank you for mentioning that. Yeah, Peter’s work was profound for me to the point where I became a somatic experiencing practitioner. So, SE is what I’m professionally trained in, but… Kimberly Snyder (11:10.647)Yes. Brittany Piper (11:28.31)Yeah, his book, Waking the Tiger, he explored how animals in the wild, they experience threat all the time. They go into these survival responses, yet they don’t remain, and I’m using air quotes, traumatized in the way that humans do. And humans, mean, we have the same primal systems, subcortical systems that animals in the wild do. In other words, our nervous systems are nearly identical to nervous systems of animals in the wild. And what he found is that animals in the wild don’t have this wonderful conscious human brain, right? And so they’re often not talking themselves out of their feelings. So animals, when they experience activation and they go into fight or flight and they have that adrenaline and cortisol, they will naturally discharge all of these, know, press hormones. And I remember in my SE training, they’re like, okay, we’re gonna watch some animal videos today. And I’m like, we’re all looking at each other like we’re watching animal videos. Kimberly Snyder (12:18.06)Wait. Brittany Piper (12:27.202)But it was fascinating to see how a gazelle would run from a cheetah, would get away, but it would go into a shutdown or a freeze response and it would faint. And then we watched this video as it would kind of seemingly come back to life and it would lay there and it would do this labored breathing and then it would start trembling and shaking. And then you see the mouth kind of salivating. And then the next thing you know, it’s standing up, shaking its body and it’s running off. Kimberly Snyder (12:55.402)All innately, it’s just in their knowing, their intuitive knowing. Brittany Piper (12:58.56)Exactly. Yes, exactly. And we have those same mechanisms and those same responses. So like, you know, as a professional speaker, I had debilitating stage fright. And for years I was like, I need to go to Toastmasters to figure out how to get over my fear. I need to do like exposure therapy. Like I got to figure this out because I would freeze on stage. Like I’d get dry mouth. I wouldn’t be able to talk. And when I learned that it was less about like calming down and like making the shakes go away, and it was more so like, how can I actually allow some of that to be here and move it through my body? Like our body naturally knows how to metabolize the charge of emotions. If we just stopped getting in our way and overriding what the body knows how to do, or… And I don’t want to say that we always consciously do that. Sometimes it’s done to us and we remain kind of stuck, dissociated, and our body doesn’t know how to contain or move through those emotions. But yeah, the study of animals in the wild is a really big part of the SE framework. Kimberly Snyder (14:10.126)You know, I think about these ancient cultures where there was a lot of tribal dancing and gathering around fires. And I wonder if that was embedded in these earlier cultures. We’ve unfortunately moved away from a lot of that innate knowing. when I was backpacking in Africa, I saw almost, I think it was a funeral gathering and it was, the dancing was like so, intense and it was just beautiful, but dramatic. And it was. Brittany Piper (14:23.084)Yeah, absolutely. Brittany Piper (14:29.613)Hmm. Kimberly Snyder (14:40.11)Like they were moving the grief through their body. I had never seen anything like that in any sort of funeral. And it was amazing. It was somatic as you were describing. Brittany Piper (14:50.51)Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah, even as you’re talking about that, I’m getting goosebumps now because that’s, I feel like in this world that we live in, in kind of a modernized culture, we’ve become so disconnected and associated and detached from our bodies. You know, this fast-paced world that we live in, we’re very mind heavy, which is fine. However, our body in many ways, a lot of the upgraded science shows that our body is really in the driver’s seat. the vagus nerve, which is like the longest nerve in the body. It’s known as the information superhighway. But in the early 2000s, we found that this bidirectional informational nerve, 80 % of those messages go from the body up to the brain and only 20 % go from the brain down to the body. And so, yeah, the body holds so much ancient. Kimberly Snyder (15:40.279)Yes. Brittany Piper (15:45.934)primal wisdom and I feel like we oftentimes we’re scared of our bodies. We don’t know how to connect with our bodies and that’s why like in my book, but also if you were to work with any somatic experiencing practitioner, they give you a vocabulary of sensations to like learn the language of the body and I feel like this is something that I do believe is innately built within us, but it’s become so we’re so disconnected from it that it feels so foreign. Kimberly Snyder (16:00.728)Mmm. Brittany Piper (16:14.351)We kind of forget that we have bodies sometimes and then we… Kimberly Snyder (16:18.11)Yeah, it becomes very heady. It’s the same thing with the heart work. know, so surprised to learn the heart is another brain with 40,000 neurons and it too is sending more messages up because we do get so rational and linear. You know, how we started the conversation trying to think our way rationally, well, I’m not in danger anymore or this is safe, but it’s still in there until we feel. And I want to get into some of those tools you share, but first I just want to acknowledge Britt how vulnerable and Brittany Piper (16:28.91)Mm-hmm. Brittany Piper (16:37.421)Mm-hmm. Kimberly Snyder (16:47.49)beautiful it was that you shared parts of your story as not someone just teaching about this, but someone that’s gone through profound healing and embodies what it can be like to live in far more peace in your body. And you mentioned about your brother’s car accident and also your, you know, the sexual assault, which, know, is, you know, as a woman, could say it’s like the, you know, one of the worst things that we could imagine happening to our sense of safety. Brittany Piper (17:17.016)Mm-hmm. Kimberly Snyder (17:17.462)And to have gone through that and teach about it now is amazing. Brittany Piper (17:22.263)Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, I always say a lot of my work started off as me search. You know, I would say probably most of us in this space, right, where a lot of our work is informed by our own personal experiences. And, you know, I had been in and out of conventional therapy for a lot of my life and on different medications. And it was supportive, but I felt like it would bring temporary relief, but I never found like resolution. And I would get in these cycles of like, Kimberly Snyder (17:27.66)Sure. Brittany Piper (17:52.44)Britney’s drinking again or, Britney’s in jail now or, Britney’s in the hospital. And I just felt like every couple of years I was in this cycle of self-destruction, like just destroying myself from within. And I had an experience, which I share about in the book, when I ended up in a jail cell. And it was in that jail cell over three days that my body was able, I feel like, to process decades old grief and trauma. that I had become such an expert at running from. And I also came from a family where we just put everything under the rug. You just muscle through, you armor through, right? And in my early 20s, I realized that avoiding isn’t the same thing as healing and that eventually you have to do the work. So yeah, coming out of that jail cell, I felt like a literal different person. And I remember the judge, this was shortly after my sexual assault case, she remembered who I was. And she said, we’re gonna drop the charges, but she said, you need to learn to live with your pain better. And that was kind of like a big moment because she didn’t say, get over it, get past it. She said, learn to with, yes, with it. Which was a totally new concept, right? Like that’s not what I, you you muscle through, you move on, you get past it. And that was also a message that was passed down. Kimberly Snyder (19:03.775)with Brittany Piper (19:15.95)through generations in my family, in my lineage. And when I looked at the history of the women in my family, we’re all very much the same, right? We just, keep it pushing, we keep going, we stay busy, we focus on work, we overachieve, we’re perfectionist, kind of like you said. But the masking could only last for so long. And so I got into somatic healing back in 2012, just on my personal. in my own personal journey, because I was like, what happened to me in that jail cell? My body felt different. Something happened. And as I started to learn about the literature and also started experiencing it myself as a client, I was like, how does the world not know about this? And so that’s kind of what started that process for me of just trying to share with anyone that I could, because I was like, this needs to be more widely known. Kimberly Snyder (20:08.589)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (20:12.428)Before we move on from your story, Britt, I also want to acknowledge, and what an amazing judge to have been put in your path. It was like a messenger, right, from the divine to say that. But I also want to acknowledge in our society when these sorts of things happen, how easy it is to pretend, like you said, like to not take someone to trial for rape. I have a friend who was raped in college and her parents were like, no, this is going to be too big a deal, just get over it. And so she never pressed charges. And now, you know, a couple of decades later, I don’t know if she ever fully healed. She has never had any other long-term relationships. And so the bravery it must have took to go on trial for two years. And there was a short trauma from that, but maybe a healing that you actually saw it all the way through. Brittany Piper (21:05.26)Yeah. Yeah, there was. I think justice looks so different for every survivor. My work in the trauma space started. I was working in sexual violence and rape crisis centers here in the States, but mainly abroad. And justice shows up in so many ways. unfortunately, we live in a time where favor is not in the hands of the victim. It’s often most times in the hands of the perpetrator. It’s a systemic issue and one that I still fight to end. Like every day this past week, I was in Pennsylvania. I had three programs talking to college students through different universities in Pennsylvania. And I always ask this question at the beginning of every program, like, will you please quietly stand if you know someone who’s experienced sexual violence? And usually it’s like, I’m just tearing up talking about it. Usually it’s like, I don’t know, 50 to 75 % of the audience will stand, which is like gut wrenching. The second question is then, for those of you standing, will you please stay standing if you know that that person reported it? Half of them sit down. And then the people that are still standing all then ask, if you know that the perpetrator received justice, please stay standing. If they did not, can you quietly sit down? And usually it’s a handful. And I’ll talk to audience of like hundreds, thousands, handful of people. An event I had this past week, there were probably about 250 people standing. <

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Nicole Cain About Dr. Nicole Cain Nicole Cain, ND, MA, is a pioneer in integrative approaches for mental and emotional wellness. With a degree in clinical psychology, training in EMDR, and a license as a Naturopathic Physician in the state of Arizona, her approach to mental health is multidisciplinary: medical, psychological, and holistic. A sought after speaker and writer, Dr. Nicole Cain has shared her expertise on the Tamron Hall Show and presented alongside renowned doctors like Deepak Chopra. Her insights have been regularly featured in such publications as Psychology Today, Health Magazine, Huff Post, The Daily Mail, Katie Couric Media, Salon, Spirituality & Health Magazine, and more. Dr. Nicole Cain has been a guest on popular podcasts such as This Genius Life, Brendan Burchard’s Growth Day, Therapy Jeff, Heal Thyself, Well with Arielle, Love Happiness and Success, KPCW’s Cool Science, Just Between Us, and many more. A comprehensive list of media appearances by Dr. Nicole Cain, ND MA. Dr. Nicole is also the founder of the Holistic Wellness Collective, a one-stop-shop membership program designed to support self-healers. This program guides users through the practical application of Panic Proof’s wisdom, offering helpful videos and a supportive community. Guest Resources: Website: drnicolecain.com Book: Panic Proof: The New Holistic Solutions to End Your Anxiety Forever! Social: @drnicolecain   Episode Sponsors: MOMENTOUS OFFER: Head to livemomentous.com and use code KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription. That’s code KIMBERLY at livemomentous.com for 35% off your first subscription. USE LINK: livemomentous.com Code: KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription.   FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Hormonal Health and Dr. Erica Schwartz01:52 The Importance of Bioidentical Hormones05:57 Misconceptions and Historical Context of Hormone Therapy09:50 Empowering Women to Understand Their Bodies13:53 Navigating Hormone Therapy: Timing and Longevity17:40 Balancing Hormones for Fertility and Overall Health19:30 Understanding Hormone Supplementation21:46 The Role of Hormones in Aging25:39 Proactive vs. Reactive Hormone Use28:11 Hormones and Disease Prevention30:30 Muscle Health and Aging33:53 The Importance of Supplements and Lifestyle   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Kimberly Snyder (00:00.57)Hi everyone and welcome back to our Monday interview show. I am so excited for our very special guest today, Dr. Nicole Kane. She has this newly published book called Panic Proof, The New Holistic Solution to End Your Anxiety Forever. Very powerful title. Dr. Nicole is a pioneer in integrative approaches for mental and emotional wellness. She holds a degree in clinical psychology and is trained in EMDR. She’s also licensed as a naturopathic physician. So Dr. Nicole, thank you so much first of all for being with us on the show and congratulations on your new book, Dr. Nicole Cain (00:41.314)Thank you so much. I’m really happy to be here and I love talking about emotional well-being more than almost anything else. So we’re gonna have, I think, beautiful conversation. Kimberly Snyder (00:52.436)I know we will, especially after reading your book. And emotional wellbeing is one of our four cornerstones. And it just came about so organically creating these cornerstones, Dr. Nicole. I worked with clients, there was always this focus on food initially, but then it started to become so clear. Our wellness is holistic. And that really was how my journey unfolded into these cornerstones. It’s like, okay, food, then we have our body. And then there’s this emotional piece, which we know affects our hormones, it affects our digestion. So before we go into the book and some of your tools and teachings, can you tell us a little bit about your story? Just a little bit why you were drawn to focus so much on emotional wellness and a little bit about your own journey with anxiety and panic. Dr. Nicole Cain (01:46.688)Yes, yeah, I’m a wounded healer as many of us are. And we were really intentional when creating the title, End Anxiety Forever. Wow, that activates a lot in a lot of us. End anxiety forever. It’s not just manage anxiety or suppress anxiety or how to stay calm all the time, but end anxiety forever. And Kimberly Snyder (01:51.138)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (02:02.938)you Dr. Nicole Cain (02:16.554)It started with a question. I remember asking myself, can I actually heal from anxiety or is this something I’m gonna have for the rest of my life? And it began with a lot of stress in childhood and thank goodness when we’re kids that we are so adaptable. And I grew up in a stressful household and my little self learned how to adapt. I became hypervigilant. Kimberly Snyder (02:24.282)Mmm. Dr. Nicole Cain (02:45.582)I noticed everything that was happening around me. could see changes in the environment. I could see changes in facial expressions. So I was really good at being hyper aware. And I developed all these skills to then try to manage my environment, whether by fawning or cleaning the house for my parents or whatever it was. But those same traits for those who are listening, if you resonate with that, Kimberly Snyder (03:00.13)Right. Dr. Nicole Cain (03:12.342)that yeah, I grew up and I was really hyper aware. I was really attuned. I’m a people pleaser. We always say people pleasers often start out as parent pleasers that those very adaptations that helped us survive could be the seeds that produce feelings of fear or disempowerment or anxiety or panic. Or as you talk about a lack of that coherence in the mind, the body and the spirit. Kimberly Snyder (03:22.499)Right. Dr. Nicole Cain (03:41.864)And so when I would go to the doctor, the doctor was all about management. And the doctor would say, know, Nicole, anxiety is just a part of the human experience. You just have to deal with it. Our ways of dealing with it is you use top-down strategies, try to talk yourself out of it, or we correct the chemical imbalance with antidepressants. And then going into counseling, I realized that there is Kimberly Snyder (04:04.314)Mm-hmm. Dr. Nicole Cain (04:11.63)a limit to how much we could talk ourselves out of things. I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced it, but I sure have where my body may be having an experience and it doesn’t really care what my logical brain has to say. so for those who feel frustrated and they’ve had people say, you know, just calm down, good vibes only think positively. That doesn’t always work, especially Kimberly Snyder (04:25.977)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (04:38.444)Yes. Dr. Nicole Cain (04:39.788)because these adaptations can get stored in non-logical parts of the mind, body, and spirit, non-temporal meaning they could feel like they’re happening inside and outside of time. So as I’m kind of saying that, it sounds like I see you nodding. I feel like you’re kind of resonating with us. Kimberly Snyder (04:57.602)Yes. I mean, first of all, when we define a stressful household or things that happened in our childhood, it wasn’t until I started to read the first book that really sort of woke me up to this was The Body Keeps the Score by Wiesel van der Kolk. And it’s amazing, I think, how much people are talking about trauma now and maladaptive coping mechanisms from childhood. you know, it really doesn’t, it can be Dr. Nicole Cain (05:14.68)Bessel van der Kolk, yeah. Kimberly Snyder (05:27.34)an accident or one particular thing, but it can also be these ways in which our parents made us feel like we had to vie for love or attention. There’s so many ways I think that we develop patterns that can create anxiety. So I think now we realize how widespread this really is. And so that’s why I think it’s really amazing that this conversation is happening between us and also in the collective. And the second thing I wanted to say about this mental idea is yes, we can be logical in our mind, but the body work has been so powerful for me personally and being able to shift out of patterns, including eating disorders and just anxiety myself. And really for me, it’s been going into the heart, the physical heart. Dr. Nicole Cain (05:56.451)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (06:21.336)like focusing on the heart and work with heart coherence and also the energetic heart and taking that pause. And I think it’s powerful to have these other strategies because to your point, I know people that have been in talk therapy for many years and they seem to be still trapped in that victim mindset or just the same story. So I think it’s great that this is becoming something that so many people are talking about. Dr. Nicole Cain (06:44.055)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (06:50.714)And I’m also interested, you know, because we’re talking about anxiety in your subtitle, but then panic in your title. So it’s almost like you’re using them synonymously or how would you actually define the difference? Because now a lot of us can say, you know, I feel anxious or I have anxiety, but then panic and panic attacks almost seems to be a separate thing. Dr. Nicole Cain (06:57.005)Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (07:11.192)Yes, that’s a really wise question. And when we’re talking about ending anxiety, what does that actually mean? And what does that look like? And how does panic fit into all of this? And if we look at the conventional medical model, they use a book called the DSM, the Diagnostic Statistical Manual, we’re on number five at this point, it’s a big purple book. And they categorize anxiety into agoraphobia, which would be anxiety in public places like bus stops or baseball games. You know, when we’re outside amongst lots of people, they may say, it’s generalized anxiety, or they may say you have panic attacks or panic disorder. And so they look at those separately. But if we were to put on our researcher hat and go into downtown LA, or New York or any city and ask Kimberly Snyder (07:46.927)Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (08:07.114)everybody, what does it feel like when you get a little bit stressed, overwhelmed, or activated? They’ll give you a whole list of symptoms that can affect them from head to toe. And if we reorganize and recategorize all of those symptoms, which I did, is we can put them into approximately nine categories, and I call those the nine types of anxiety. Kimberly Snyder (08:28.43)Why? Dr. Nicole Cain (08:31.272)And then now that we know all the different types of ways people can experience arousal and activation, then we look at how it can occur on a continuum. Because we see from the research that it isn’t distinct separate, now I’m anxious, now I’m not anxious, now I’m panicking, that it’s an ever-growing process. And if we can learn how to hear the body when it whispers, we’ll be able to Kimberly Snyder (08:42.468)Mm. Dr. Nicole Cain (09:00.384)understand its language, listen to it, and then meet the needs that it’s telling us it has before it has to accelerate and amplify into a shout, which would be mild annoyance, mild overwhelm, all the way up into panic, rage, crisis. Kimberly Snyder (09:16.938)Okay, so even annoyance is a type of, I’m getting thrown off, like this is a type of anxiety all the way to the extreme panic. Dr. Nicole Cain (09:26.57)And exactly, I teach it like stoplight strategies. So green light is when you’re feeling really good. You’re in the flow, you have good coherence, you’re creative, it’s that alpha state centered. And then as you get a little bit like more maybe happening more stimuli, maybe from the screen, or maybe your head’s just facing forward and you’re reading a book, but the body is like, I’m getting a little stressed, like it’s a deer in headlight position in that Kimberly Snyder (09:37.248)Yes, sector. Dr. Nicole Cain (09:56.248)feedback loop gets activated. And then there’s a moment, I call that the pay attention zone, where, ooh, I’m not feeling calm and creative and relaxed anymore. I’m feeling a little activated. And if that activation is paired with a sense of a lack of personal power or agency, then that’s fear, that’s anxiety. And so then as that mounts, maybe you started with a little butterfly in your chest. Kimberly Snyder (10:08.633)Mm-hmm. Kimberly Snyder (10:19.704)Hmm. Dr. Nicole Cain (10:25.43)Or maybe your worry brain started going a little faster. And if that continues to amplify more and more and more, we’ll get into the yellow zone, which is moderate activation. And if it goes from there and goes into the red light zone, that’s crisis. weak, like a panic attack. Yes. And we can actually stop, reliably stop panic attacks from happening. Kimberly Snyder (10:43.258)Like a panic attack. Dr. Nicole Cain (10:54.924)And we can often teach people how to reprogram the mind, the body, and the other complementary systems so that anxiety is more data and it’s no longer anxiety. It’s just data like, I’m feeling a little tension in my chest. What could that be about? I’ve got this. I’m not afraid. I’m listening. And so suddenly the whole conversation changes. Kimberly Snyder (11:08.334)Okay. Kimberly Snyder (11:20.138)let’s use a real example so we can break that down because then it starts to feel like we’re still talking and I think what you’re referencing is more of this somatic experience. So two of my family members, Dr. Nicole, have very intense plane phobia. One of them is my grandmother and one time she tried to get back on the plane and she caused such a fuss they actually had to stop the plane. Dr. Nicole Cain (11:32.056)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (11:47.512)It hadn’t taken off yet, but you when you’re going down the runway and go back and let her off, like super intense. So if someone has, and we have a friend who’s really, really anxious about getting in elevators, right? These are like very tangible examples. Even if he’s in New York, he will walk up 20 flights of stairs. So someone starts to feel, and what David described to me is this claustrophobia. Dr. Nicole Cain (11:52.163)Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (12:01.528)Yeah. Yes. Dr. Nicole Cain (12:06.766)Yes. Kimberly Snyder (12:14.136)I don’t know where did it get created, maybe something else from their childhood. But if someone’s feeling that feeling on the extreme end of your scale, I imagine, what are some of the very things we do? Because you’ve been sitting on the plane, you can tell yourself, hey, there’s not a threat, but your body is registering a pretty big threat at that time. Dr. Nicole Cain (12:25.4)Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (12:37.25)love how in sync we are with this Kimberly. I was thinking about a tangible example of flying because I used to have a horrible fear of flying. I was on a plane and we’re coming into Phoenix and there’s a lot of mountain air like hot air rising from the mountains. We hit a pocket of air in the plane like did this really quick kind of side tip and everyone around me had a very big emotional reaction which set my nervous system into like, Kimberly Snyder (12:42.701)Yeah. Kimberly Snyder (12:47.682)Bye. Kimberly Snyder (13:05.57)Dr. Nicole Cain (13:06.434)we’re gonna die. So I PTSD for over a decade flying, but I travel all the time. So I just had to keep getting on these flights and I just cry in the fetal position the whole time. And so I love the example of the flying and the way that it’s different for me. And then we could kind of unpack this a little bit more. Kimberly Snyder (13:09.305)Yeah Kimberly Snyder (13:17.124)Wow. Dr. Nicole Cain (13:26.744)But the way that it’s different for me now is I actually just flew into Michigan two days ago and we followed this huge storm front. There were tornadoes in Michigan. It was like this giant storm front that went through like the entire north part of the US all the way across. And so I’m getting alerts like tornadoes, severe weather, and I’m getting on a plane and I’m in recovery from really horrible fear of flying. So my body remembered that a little bit. So I’m on the plane and I notice that the skin of my hand is starting to feel a little hot. And that’s my pay attention is oftentimes it will start with like a little bit my body is heating up. And then if I don’t address it and back in the day it would then turn into burning, which would then turn into electric zaps running through my teeth and claustrophobia and like, Kimberly Snyder (14:05.274)Mmm. Kimberly Snyder (14:20.354)Hmm. Yes. Like I’m s- Dr. Nicole Cain (14:23.362)chewing on ice, trapped in there, right? And so there’s a couple of things if we unpack what happens in that moment for those who are like, my gosh, I’m here, happens to me in the highway, Kane’s talking about a plane, it’s the same biological process. So in that moment, there’s something, a memory or an activating event, an adaptation. that in that moment when the plane starts bumping or whatever it is, that the amygdala, that emotional processing part of the brain decides that we’re in danger for whatever reason. And we could totally unpack whatever those root causes are. And we do that in the book. But we’ll walk through kind of the biology of it first. And so the amygdala is like, we might be in danger. We’re getting alerts and there’s storms. what if this? What if that? And so that sends an automatic cascade down to the body, which will result in cortisol, stress hormone being produced, adrenaline being produced. And so we experience this autonomic arousal, this kind of fight, flight, freeze, flop, fawn, or fracture response. And what will happen then as a result of all those chemicals is the logical brain gets down-regulated. So that top down, when you go to the therapist and they’re like, just think logically, you know that the plane loves to fly, can go through hurricanes, it’s fine, it’s all safe, you’re just feeling nervous. That part of your brain isn’t accessible. So like your grandmother, when she gets really frightened on the flight, she doesn’t have access to this logical part of herself because the body is like, we’re not analyzing the tiger. We don’t care about your wellbeing. We care about your safety. So we’re just gonna run away. Kimberly Snyder (16:08.729)Right. Dr. Nicole Cain (16:16.824)but she’s stuck on a plane, right? So I have a four step process for how to reprogram this. And so that when I was on the flight yesterday after practicing these four steps, I noticed my skin getting a little hot and I didn’t have the fear or the anxiety paired with it. And that’s the key difference is how can we feel the information from the body with compassion and curiosity Kimberly Snyder (16:41.113)Mm. Dr. Nicole Cain (16:45.814)and then respond to that. So what I knew is that my amygdala was getting a little louder. And instead of almost jumping in the stream and being carried downstream is I was like, I need to activate my logical brain. so using before things become red light zone, once we’re in that little pay attention zone, we still have the opportunity to activate logical brain. and logical brain can shut down that fear cascade. So I was on the plane, I noticed a little heat, I was like, thank you, body. And then I started doing some of these techniques and I had a great flight and I didn’t cry and I didn’t have a panic attack and it was wonderful. So there’s the beginning and we can totally unpack that more. Kimberly Snyder (17:17.306)Mm. Kimberly Snyder (17:31.992)Mm-hmm. Kimberly Snyder (17:36.802)Yeah, I really have that personal experience of the thoughts spinning. I think a lot of us start to feel like, you know, there’s nowhere to go. I can’t get off. We’re up in the air. I’m trapped in here. And it can start to feel so terrifying to even be in your body. So yeah, that whole brain. so, you know, for me, with this body work, Dr. Nicole, it has been so much. Dr. Nicole Cain (17:42.478)Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (17:55.053)Yeah. Kimberly Snyder (18:03.236)coming to this other brain, right? Because the heart is a brain too with 40,000 neurons. And all this research helped me with, first of the spiritual, but then Dr. Roland McCready, who’s with HeartMath, is that we can change our perceptions in this other way of dropping in, because then there’s actually more messages from the heart up to the brain. So it’s like these tools, which I’m really interested in learning about all the heart work and other ones, where it’s not just relying. on the brain. And then of course, as we get regulated, then it does start to bring in that common sense thinking again, and not the circular thinking and, you know, going around and around. I noticed it this weekend, Dr. Nicole, because I was at a very crowded chess tournament. My older son plays chess, and I don’t like crowds, like you were saying back to your spectrum. It’s not that I don’t, I do a lot of speaking or, you I’ll be on stage, but then there’s kind of like, it’s like organized. There’s a book signing afterwards or whatever, but I’ve never liked music festivals where I’m sort of in the throes of everyone moving around. And that’s what this chess tournament was, like the jostling of all the parents and the kids. and I did notice that activation. And then I dropped in and soothed myself where I think in the past, and if we don’t have these tools, it’s easy to just spend. Dr. Nicole Cain (19:10.327)Mm. Dr. Nicole Cain (19:16.91)Mm. Kimberly Snyder (19:23.474)And then like you said, the cortisol, the hormones can get out of whack. So what’s an actual physical practice? You know, I talk a lot about the heart coherence work that you have, that you talk about in your book. As you mentioned, a bottom-up approach, not just talk therapy, but how we can regulate the nervous system in our bodies when we notice we’re activated. Dr. Nicole Cain (19:38.872)Yeah. Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (19:46.648)I want to begin by honoring you for noticing that and allowing yourself. Yeah. Kimberly Snyder (19:50.106)It’s like in time, Because we learn, as you said, to listen to our bodies again. Dr. Nicole Cain (19:55.572)Yeah, yeah, you could have just popped a Xanax and suppressed it and or you could have been like, what is an herb like theanine or kava kava. And so I want to honor you for doing the harder work that takes the time to listen to notice to honor, and then to soothe. So I honor that. And so in that moment, it sounds like what you were describing is a little bit of yellow light. So you’re a little bit more activated. It wasn’t at that moment where it was still like, ooh, I’m noticing I can still cognitively manage this. It sounds like your body was getting a little bit more yellow light. So in that yellow light zone, we want to do exactly what you said. We want to use bottom up because that logical brain, it’s not going to change the body. We just start with the body. And so I’d love to actually just to make it Kimberly Snyder (20:37.315)Yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (20:53.748)organized for people who may be newer to this conversation is go through it one step at a time, each of the four steps of what that bottom up might look like. Would that be okay? Super. step one is any time that we notice that we’re activated, we want to go to the body. And the best way I found to go to the body is with sound, touch, taste, temperature, breath. Kimberly Snyder (21:00.9)Okay. Air. Dr. Nicole Cain (21:21.142)And you mentioned that you went to the heart, you went to the breath. Our breath is always with us. Our breath is free and it can be very powerful. And just like for those who’ve seen heart math, you can actually watch how the breath can change your heart coherence. You can watch out, can change the way that your nervous system is responding in real time. And so for those who need the proof, who need to see it, heart math is good for that. I also have a hack for how you can do that. Kimberly Snyder (21:21.274)Mm. Dr. Nicole Cain (21:51.104)if you don’t have an aura ring, if you don’t have a biofeedback device, and it’s by feeling our very own pulse. May I show you? Kimberly Snyder (21:59.404)Yes. And when I say heart math, we did a research study with heart math and you’re not that you ever have to, you know, do an H, you don’t have to have any sort of HRV device. Although HR, you know, heart math does have their wave pro equipment. it’s more about, you know, tuning in to how your heart, starts to calm your thoughts, but you don’t have to have, just to be clear, I don’t mean you need any sort of numerical feedback device, cause I don’t use one myself. Dr. Nicole Cain (22:08.6)Yeah, yeah. Dr. Nicole Cain (22:15.406)Mm. Dr. Nicole Cain (22:27.988)my gosh, it’s so brilliant. I actually, when I was learning about all this, I loved heart math because I needed to see it. I was like, don’t tell me to breathe. I don’t feel any differe

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Oliver Niño Summary: In this enlightening conversation, Oliver Nino, a New York Times bestselling author and energy healer, shares his insights on the importance of energy in self-healing and personal growth. He discusses his journey from skepticism to becoming a healer, emphasizing that everyone has the potential to tap into their own healing abilities. The conversation explores the significance of setting intentions, the role of love in healing, and practical nighttime practices to manage energy effectively. Oliver also highlights the importance of relationships in the healing process and how love can facilitate deeper healing. The discussion concludes with practical tips for energy cleansing and the transformative power of intention in finding love and purpose. About Oliver Niño Oliver Niño is a New York Times best-selling author, entrepreneur, energy healer, and spiritual activation expert and the creator of Geo Love Healing, an online company designed to help individuals master their energy and unblock themselves. His latest book is called Spiritual Activator: 5 Steps to Clearing, Unblocking, and Protecting Your Energy to Attract More Love, Joy, and Purpose. Guest Resources: Website: dothisbeforebed.com Book: Book Do This Before Bed: Simple 5-Minute Practices That Will Change Your Life     Episode Sponsors: LMNT OFFER: Right now, for my listeners LMNT is offering a free sample pack with any LMNT drink mix purchase at DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD. That’s 8 single serving packets FREE with any LMNT any LMNT drink mix purchase. This deal is only available through my link so. Also try the new LMNT Sparkling — a bold, 16-ounce can of sparkling electrolyte water. USE LINK: DrinkLMNT.com/FEELGOOD   FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Energy Healing and Oliver Nino 02:00 The Importance of Energy in Self-Healing 05:59 Personal Journey into Energy Work 09:53 Becoming Your Own Healer 11:51 The Role of Relationships in Healing 18:08 Setting Intentions for Transformation 21:58 The Power of Love in Healing 30:02 Mastering Nighttime Practices for Energy Management 36:04 Practical Tips for Energy Cleansing and Self-Care 39:58 Finding Love Through Healing and Intention   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:00.876)Hi everyone, welcome back to our Monday show. I am so excited for our very special guest here with me today, Oliver Nino, who is a New York Times bestselling author, an entrepreneur, energy healer, spiritual activation expert, and creator of Geo Love Healing, an online company designed to help individuals master their energy and unblock themselves. Such a powerful word, unblock. His new Oliver Nino (00:25.071)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:29.868)His latest book is called Spiritual Activator, Five Steps to Clearing, Unblocking and Protecting Your Energy to Attract More Love, Joy and Purpose. And his other book, which I also want to talk about today, Do This Before Bed, Simple Five Minute Practices That Will Change Your Life. Oliver, thank you so much for being here with us today. Oliver Nino (00:50.028)Kimberly, thank you so much. I’ve been so excited for this. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:53.07)I’m so excited. I love your background, by the way. If you guys are listening to this, please hop on our YouTube channel to see this very cosmic, expansive background behind Oliver. just matches energy wise, what you’re talking about in your books. just, you feel this openness, right? Oliver Nino (01:13.61)Yeah, mean, honestly, like to me, I wanted something that’s like, what can I have in the background that’s kind of like gets people’s energy kind of like in a good place. So we, know, chalk in our tech folk or the tech folk behind there. They’re the ones that are making sure everyone’s like visual experience is also amazing, right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:30.808)So I love, know, even talking about energy just feels so expansive. And some people may say like, energy healing, what’s that? So I love how in your books you go right into, hey, everything’s energy, right? And we’ve been, we’ve heard so much about quantum physics now and just how this limited Newtonian view of separation has been so outdated for so long and this interconnectivity. In my last book, all it was about the heart and heart coherence and how all these fields intersect. So can you first tell us a little bit about, you know, energy in general, how energy, mean, such a big question, but just, you know, just top line, why it’s so fundamental that we’re working with energy when we’re talking about self healing, unblocking, expansion, attraction, and also a little bit about how you came into this work in the first place. Oliver Nino (02:21.142)Mm. Oliver Nino (02:25.28)Yeah. Yeah. to me, the way I look at energy, it’s almost like it’s, it’s oxygen, it’s sunlight, right? Whether people believe in it or not, it’s something that affects us. And to me, I think the unique thing about my background is like, I didn’t start out with, with energy. Actually, I started out as an entrepreneur, very successful in different ventures, you know, and, and, and throughout the process, you know, wanting to better myself, wanting to heal, wanting to have abundance in all areas of life. felt like. You know, I felt like there was more to life than what I was experiencing, but I couldn’t experience what, you know, what that was. And I didn’t know why it wasn’t for lack of trying out. I tried a lot of different modalities, but you know, some work, some work for the moment, but nothing really got me to where I wanted to go. And that was my first focus is I just wanted a better life. I just wanted to heal from pain, heal from trauma. You know, I just wanted, you know, to like release resentment and anger. wanted to feel good in my body. wanted to, you know, have. better finances and then better relationships and the whole thing. And what I realized is energy is the one thing that affects us all that nobody talks about. Because to me, funny enough, like you mentioned, you’re in California, my first awakening was, gosh, was 20 years ago, I had a energy healing from a healer in Tabanga Canyon. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:51.405)Hmm Oliver Nino (03:52.29)For the very first time, I was very, very skeptical. cause I, and that was before, like right before the secret came out, before energy was even a thing. And I was very skeptical, but I was open-minded. I was like, I’m going to try it once. If you come highly. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:02.744)with absence or hands-on healing. Oliver Nino (04:05.57)Um, I went to see him, this person, he was visiting from Australia and he didn’t touch me. He was like, he was close. He had crystals and doing all those different things, but he didn’t, he, he wasn’t hands on like a massage, like a body worker. It was just waving a lot of crystals, making a lot of sounds. And I thought I was like, gosh, one is, is this a, is this a cult? And what, kind of stuff did I sign up for? My mind was very, very negative the entire time. And, and I was skeptical. didn’t see anything. I didn’t feel anything. I was very, very irritated. And at of the healing, I remember he said, you know what? I released a lot of abundance blocks that you had in your heart. And these abundance blocks were passed on to you generationally. Your dad had it, his dad had it. And that was what was stopping you. And for me, went to one ear, came out the other. I was like, okay, sure. Now I’ve got abundance blocks. Great. you know, not only did I get a healing, I got his Australian fortune cookie too. Tell him you my fortune, right? so I left there and he goes like, before I left, he was like, the next four to five weeks, you’re going to have a windfall of abundance. And I’m like, okay, you know, walked out, didn’t think anything of it. You know, four to five weeks later, you know, I, opportunity came and I ended up making more in one day than in an entire year. Right. And I was like, what is this energy thing? What’s going on? What, how can it do this? How can it do something that is so impossible in my mind and do it even if I’m Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:20.216)Mmm. Oliver Nino (05:31.458)skeptical, right? So to me, that’s my first introduction to it. That’s that got me down the rabbit hole of like, if this is what one session can do, then what do I not know about energy? What else can it do? How else can it change my life? And that started my passion and earlier on obsession and passion, for, energy work. But to me, energy is the thing that affects us all. Like if you think about it, even if you don’t believe in energy, you can all relate to, if you go into a mall, right. And next thing you know, there’s a little bit. too many people around you or someone’s anxious, we tend to feel it. Like not only in energetic system, sometimes some people is like the nervous system feels it and our body reacts, right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:09.154)I feel it very much. I’m like, yes, I understand. Oliver Nino (06:11.97)Yeah. And to me, it’s almost, it’s the same thing. I hear people all the time, but I don’t believe in energy. then they, don’t know what it is, but then they’re the type of people where, someone’s, you know, you feel like someone’s staring at you and you look and they are staring at you. can feel it. Like they’re looking at you. Or for me, it’s like those crazy things to where you’re thinking of somebody you haven’t thought of them for a while. Next thing you know, they call, they text, you bump into them and you’re like, what’s going on? Cause to us, there’s this invisible field that connects us all. And that’s energy. And to me, I think it’s one of the things that’s always been there since the beginning of time. And the more we become aware of it, I think the better we’re able to navigate life itself, you know? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:49.238)Absolutely. I also love that this was your first experience was going to someone and you were skeptical and then you had this incredible experience and now you’re working with energy all the time and doing healings and having all these events and teaching people and teaching teachers. So do you believe Oliver, we all have this potential to tune in or do you think in this lifetime, some maybe more, depending on what we believe with reincarnation like Oliver Nino (06:57.12)Yep. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:18.964)know, able to tune in more and be, I’ll use the word healers. Oliver Nino (07:24.704)Yeah. Yeah. It was, it was interesting because like, most healers that you see out there, like, you know, they’re, I’m, I’m, I’m a little bit different in a way to, I’m mostly left brain. I’m mostly analytical. I’m mostly in business. I’m mostly ground. I, kind of figured out all the other stuff before I jumped into it. and what I realized is I met so many people, and maybe because I’m a little bit more biased. but everyone that I’ve met in my experience in the last, in the last 20 years, are people that. are gifted. The question is, will they step into their gift in this lifetime is another question. Because I’ve met people that are, you know, their lives have spiraled and they’re in a dark place. And when people are around them, they’re like, they feel like they get drained of energy. And when I’m around that person, I’m like, person has a gift, right? But are they willing to explore? Are they willing to heal? Are they willing to step into it is another question. So to me, I’ve come from the belief based on what I’ve seen. And what I’ve, you what I’ve, what I’ve known is that everybody has it within them. Right. And at certain times, you know, whether it’s a heartbreak, like, you know, you know, you get a diagnosis, like you can do an accident, midlife crisis, like, something happens in your life where we reevaluate and we’re like, you know, things have to be better. And we tap into what we have within the light within sometimes things have to happen for us to tap into it. And sometimes we just seek it out because we feel like life’s Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:46.775)Yes. Oliver Nino (08:50.9)not as fulfilling as it can be, right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:53.174)Yes. And also, you know, back to your story, for many of us listening, we’re like, that sounds great. I can just go to a guy and he can wave crystals over me and I get all this money. It sounds amazing. But in your books, you also talk about, you know, working with our own self-conscious, subconscious work we have to do, doing the affirmations, doing practices before bed. So there is, you know, free will involved. It’s not that we want to show up at You know the healers and keep going or Oliver Nino (09:24.778)Yeah. I mean, I, I tell people I’m a big believer because this is what I did. To me, I’m glad and thankful that there are people out there that, you know, shine their light and did healing back then. And I was able to experience, but I’m, I’ve been in the very beginning. I was a little bit more of a control freak in a way to like, that’s great. But what if I need healing every week or every other week or every other day? Cause life happens. I don’t want to, you know, be at the mercy of somebody doing a healing. Right. And cause I wanted to. have the skills. that’s that led me that opened my eyes, show me what was possible. you know, shortly after that, I went deep dive into how can I become my own healer? How can and what I realized is we all have the ability to affect our energetic fields, you know, and, and really cause our bodies, our minds, our emotions and to go into a self healing state to where it rectifies things and we, you know, we feel better, think better, you know, and and experience good things as a result of it. So to me, I am a big believer that yes, the beginning, yeah, you can have people show you the way, you can have crystals, you can have things that are training wheels, but ultimately I believe that we all have it within and we are our own healers. And that’s a journey that I wish a lot of people took up more. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:44.59)You know, it’s unfolding all the time, right Oliver? I’ll give you an example. When I met my husband and it was this like incredible love and then we got together and there was this closeness and then this trauma came up that wasn’t, I wasn’t aware of in my prior relationships and I hadn’t loved in the same way. And then in front of all this old stuff, was like unfolding and then that comes up, old patterns, right? And then, you know, it’s that awareness and working with that energy. And I wouldn’t have worked with that energy, you know, 10 years ago. So it’s like, we just keep evolving, I think, as humans. And like you said, modalities and tools to keep supporting ourselves. It’s such an important part of self care. Oliver Nino (11:24.866)Yeah, it’s super important because to me, I feel like we’re never done growing. mean, yeah. Can you get to a place to where you’ve got everything that you want in life? And I have people that I’ve helped that you would look at their lives and you’re like, they have everything they want in life. What else could they possibly have? And to me, a lot of times when you have it all and then you’re supported and when you have that bandwidth is at times when the next layer of healing shows up because you’re strong enough to handle it. Because in the past, you’re not You know, if you haven’t, you don’t have the resources, whether it’s the environment or internal, right. then you’re the toughest stuff won’t, won’t come up to heal because it’s not ready to be healed. The environment’s not there to heal it, or it’s not relevant to be healed. But to me, a lot of my biggest growth happened, you know, happens in relationships, right? It, it, makes us feel safe enough at times to be like, I can now process this stuff. And then when we process it, life gets better, right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:09.005)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:18.126)So when you’re working with energy, Oliver, and I’m getting goosebumps now, is it something you’re just feeling or are you seeing colors or is there any visual component or is it more, is it just a different type of sense? Oliver Nino (12:25.729)Mm. Oliver Nino (12:33.938)It’s different because like, so I teach people how to do it as well. And it’s very, very different for everybody. I, I, I look at it as people have different ways they process energy. I’m more of a feeler. So when I’m working with somebody, I can try to imagine stuff, but to me, I feel the heat. I feel where the block is. feel, you know, where the resistance, I feel where trauma is stuck. I might have another healer, you know, that I’ve trained and they don’t feel stuff when they’re doing that. They can see it. They can see it vividly. They can see it clearly. I might have other people like when they’re doing. You know, when they’re running their hands over, you know, they get the information, like it’s just coming to them what it is. Not even, not even seeing, not even feeling it’s snowing. Right. So to me, the way I look at it is we’re all different. some people see, some people feel, some people know, some people smell, some people hear. And we, but just because that’s where you start, doesn’t mean that’s all available to you. To me, that’s, those are like the ones that are awake right now. And as you explore more can actually open up for you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:31.158)And can you turn it on and off? Or you just start looking at the grocery store and you’re like, this person in line ahead of me is like some big drop. Oliver Nino (13:33.899)Yo. Mm, mm. Well, to me, honestly, like, I feel like we are all born with it on. If you look at kids, they’re very, you know, in tune, very sensitive, very in tune, very just knowledgeable. And they, they, they’re high vibrational and through life, we actually turn it off. We actually dim our lights to, fit in so that we’re not judged or maybe as a kid, we feel too much and it’s no one gave us a tool. So we shut it off. So we’re not feeling too much. Right. Or at times I’ve seen it to where. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:44.045)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:06.253)Yeah. Oliver Nino (14:08.789)You you might, you might get rejected or ridiculed for it or your parents or someone’s afraid of it. So you turn it off just to fit in. So there’s a lot of reasons why we turn it. We try to turn it off, but to me, it’s, it’s, it’s running underneath the surface. It always, it’s always there and it’s going to visit us later, later in life to remind us that we have it. But yeah, to me at the very beginning, it’s tough. went to when, when I was the very beginning of my journey. I would go to grocery stores and I would feel everyone’s energy. would, you know, and I would, I would be affected by it. And I want to protect myself. Right. And the longer I’ve done this, I realized that that was one way of doing it. And at different levels, like, you know, your, your, your vibration becomes your protection. So when you, when you work on yourself in a lot, you’re in a high vibration, you walk into that store. And in the past, if people are negative, they’re affecting you. But when you’re in a high vibration, it kind of flips. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:53.602)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:04.824)Yes. Oliver Nino (15:04.916)You’re affecting people positively because energy goes both ways. If they can drag you down, you can lift them up. So to me, what I’ve realized long-term is working on your vibration, your energy puts you high to where that becomes your best protection. Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:18.872)my gosh, it’s so funny, Oliver, when I used to teach yoga, when I first got back from backpacking, I would go in the bathroom before I would teach and I would do these Reiki protection symbols over myself. And then I realized over time, like you’re saying, like when I feel really strong in my energy, I’m not scared to be around people or touch them. I may notice, like you said, like, this person feels a little bit, you know. Oliver Nino (15:42.562)Yeah. And it kind of becomes more empowering because at the very beginning, think, you know, a lot of people go through it for like, they, they take on energy and they’re like, Ooh, people can affect me. But then I’ve seen people, I’m like, how is it that there are people that walk into the room and they just lift the whole room up with their energy? And that fascinated me. mean, the first experience that I’ve had was, um, have you heard of, um, The hugging saints. So I know we, got, I got exposed to her in 2005 and I was just, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:05.302)Yes, on the hug. Oliver Nino (16:12.662)baffled to where like, know, in LA, when she landed, I would feel the energy shift and I was, you know, 30, 40 minutes away from the hotel. would feel the energy of the city shift and I would walk into the hotel room, you know, and see people and they were crying before they even saw her because her energy field was so healing. She has done a lot of work that anyone that’s in that field, they experienced the shifts. So to me, That was one of my first, examples of like, wow, there are people that can actually impact other people by just their presence without even talking to them. Right. So I kind of started seeing two parts of the picture or more than one of just like, wow, they can affect me negatively. was like, Hmm. People can also affect you positively. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:01.198)So back to your practical work and your books. And there’s a part in the book, and it’s in the beginning where you talk about to manifest, to create what we want. There’s also this, I’m paraphrasing here, this detoxing, healing that’s also so important because we’re saying we want something, but our underlying subconscious beliefs are blocking us. And then it’s not really working. Oliver Nino (17:27.413)Yes. Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:30.51)How would we even get started? What are some of really preliminary ways in which you would tell people, Is the unblocking first? Is the expanding? Is there a practice that does both? Oliver Nino (17:41.189)Right. so it’s a good example. Like some people that are like, you know, they might be like, I want to find love, like, you know, I want to find love and I want to just someone to love me and I want them to be healthy and I want them to be a happy relationship. Right. And then maybe one of their, their beliefs, conscious or unconscious is like, everyone’s going to hurt me. They can see me, they can hurt me. Right. Or it could even be like, I want to make more money. But then one of their beliefs that I heard from their parents is like, money’s a root of all evil or you’re lonely at top. Right. So To me, there’s these conflicting things. And a lot of the times, you you’d be surprised when somebody just sets an intention of like, you know, I don’t know what’s blocking me, right? But I want to release them. Anything that’s blocking me, anything that’s blocking me from more love of abundance, I’m ready to release them. When people set an intention, to me, it’s like the power of prayer. Like, and I’ve seen a lot of stories, you know, of it to where people… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:21.23)Mm. Oliver Nino (18:37.346)pray and they have strong intentions and then somebody has spontaneous healing or this miracle happens and they didn’t do any energy work other than prayer and intention, which to me is a form of energy work. When you’re sending an intention and a prayer, it’s not your illogical mind asking, it’s your soul making the request at the highest level. to me, it gets processed at higher levels. to me, You know, if you, if you want to change at times, you can just start with the intention of like, I don’t know what the next steps are, but I am open. And when things show up, I’ll take action on it. And you’d be surprised with how many people that that step alone starts this ripple effect of, of transformation and change, right? It doesn’t have to be, you know, you got to do this and this and this and that. I mean, that can come up, but to me, it all starts with the intention and decision that, you know, what I want to, I want my life to be better and I’m open for it to be better. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:29.518)Well, and it sounds so genuine the way you’re putting it, right? It’s sort of like I’m down on my knees. I know something’s not working. I really want my life to shift. It feels so heartfelt. Oliver Nino (19:39.217)It’s heartfelt. It’s surrender. It is surrender. is us being like, you know, I’m not going to use my mind to figure it out. I surrender it to a higher power or whatever people believe in. I’m just getting out of the way to let, you know, to be led. And to me, it’s one of the most powerful things I’ve seen cross culture, cross country, cross time is like power of intention and prayer. I mean, of course there’s a lot of other things people can do, but to me, that’s probably one of the most underrated things because it’s so simple. You know, we think we think we got to do 10 steps, but in reality, like my wife, the same thing to me, you know, when I met her, she was the master of intention and prayer, right? She, you know, in her life, she leaned on that a lot and it moved mountains for her. and to me, it’s one of the things to where people think, it’s step number one to me. can be, like, yeah, it’s that number one, but it can also be the only set that you do. I’ve seen people’s lives change. just that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:32.522)And do you think, like, you know, we’re talking about heartfelt, like, it’s kind of like superseding the mind, we’re going into the soul, that it’s not necessary for some, maybe for some it can be important, but to kind of delve into all the trauma and like understand or try to understand mentally all the things that happened. And I’m not saying bypass, but if you surrender and say, well, I know there’s all these blocks and I want to change my energy. Can you go that way? Oliver Nino (20:58.314)Yeah. I mean, to me,

Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Erika Schwartz About Dr. Erika Schwartz In this engaging conversation, Kimberly Snyder interviews Dr. Caroline Leaf, a renowned neuroscientist and author, about her latest book, ‘Help in a Hurry.’ They explore the profound distinction between the mind and the brain, emphasizing the importance of understanding the non-conscious mind and its role in managing thoughts and emotions. Dr. Leaf shares practical tools for self-regulation, particularly in moments of stress and regret, and discusses the impact of our thoughts on our physical health. The conversation highlights the power of self-awareness and the ability to create positive energy in the world. Guest Resources: Website: https://drerika.com/ Podcast: Redefining Medicine podcast Book: Don’t Let Your Doctor Kill You: How to Beat Physician Arrogance, Corporate Greed and a Broken System   Episode Sponsors: MOMENTOUS OFFER: Head to livemomentous.com and use code KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription. That’s code KIMBERLY at livemomentous.com for 35% off your first subscription. USE LINK: livemomentous.com Code: KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription.   FATTY15 OFFER: Fatty15 is on a mission to replenish your C15 levels and restore your long-term health. You can get an additional 15% off their 90-day subscription Starter Kit by going to fatty15.com/KIMBERLY and using code KIMBERLY at checkout. USE LINK: fatty15.com/KIMBERLY   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Hormonal Health and Dr. Erica Schwartz01:52 The Importance of Bioidentical Hormones05:57 Misconceptions and Historical Context of Hormone Therapy09:50 Empowering Women to Understand Their Bodies13:53 Navigating Hormone Therapy: Timing and Longevity17:40 Balancing Hormones for Fertility and Overall Health19:30 Understanding Hormone Supplementation21:46 The Role of Hormones in Aging25:39 Proactive vs. Reactive Hormone Use28:11 Hormones and Disease Prevention30:30 Muscle Health and Aging33:53 The Importance of Supplements and Lifestyle   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:02.595)Hi everyone and welcome back for our Monday show. We have a very special guest here with us today. I’m so excited to chat with Dr. Erica Schwartz, who is a bestselling author. She’s the founder of Evolved Science, a world renowned medical practice based in New York City, built on the recognition that bioidentical hormones are the foundation for better health. She has eight books out. She’s been featured in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Daily Mail, Vogue. Town and Country, the New York Post, and regularly on many television shows. goes on and on. Dr. Erica, thank you so much for being here with us today and sharing some of your wisdom. Dr Erika (00:44.782)Kimberly, thank you for having me. It’s such a pleasure. kidding? I think you have accomplished just as much, if not more, than I have. So I think that’s pretty impressive. You’re impressive. And I’m really honored to be on your show. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (00:55.631)your energy is so beautiful, Dr. Erica. I can feel your heart. I can feel your authentic, really wanting to support, especially women. I feel like, you now, Dr. Erica, there’s so much discussion around hormones. When I think about my mom’s generation and my grandmother, especially in different parts of the world, you my mom’s side is from the Philippines. I feel like we didn’t talk about hormones that much. And now all of a sudden it’s sort of like everywhere. You’ve been talking about this for, wow, yeah. Dr Erika (01:30.798)30 years. So yes, it’s, you know what I say, I am thrilled to have lived long enough to see it happen. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:39.822)Yes. Dr Erika (01:39.886)because 30 years ago when I started working with hormones, people thought I had lost my mind. And I was like, no, all this data is wrong. Everything that they’re coming up with is wrong. And it was really rough. now it turns out that I have patients who’ve been with me for more than 30 years, that I’ve been taking hormones more than 30 years. And it turns out that it was the right thing. And it’s just… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (01:56.877)Wow. Dr Erika (02:04.82)unfair for these poor women who still suffering because the information is still missing. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:11.661)Yes. Well, let me ask you, Dr. Erica, let’s talk about some of this information because I know you’re a proponent of lifestyle as well and healthy food and exercise and all these aspects, which I want to talk about. But since, you know, the bioidentical hormones, is this something that we should pursue only when we start to feel adverse symptoms? Is it possible for many women to not feel those symptoms, to sort of glide through perimenopause and menopause? Dr Erika (02:21.07)Thank you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:39.339)Or is it something that’s more your opinion proactive? Dr Erika (02:44.6)Kimberly, that’s such a great question. So this is the thing. I think that everybody should be on hormones. I think that when you go on hormones, depends on your own individual needs. I think that because there’s such confusing and mixed messaging coming around, but there’s more and more realistic stuff coming through. I think it depends on, you know, there are a lot of women who don’t even know that there are such things as symptoms around menopause. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (02:50.244)Mmm. Dr Erika (03:13.262)They don’t even know that that exists. So if you start having symptoms, by all means you should be on hormones. You should see a doctor or a provider, nurse practitioner, SPAs, they know how to provide services because they know how to take the bloods. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:13.646)Right. Dr Erika (03:32.438)evaluate you, you want to find somebody who cares about you, individual, the person, and who actually knows what they’re talking about. Because recently, there’s like a total on, you know, onslaught of Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:36.845)Yes. Dr Erika (03:49.464)hormone experts. And the truth is they’re not because they haven’t known about it long enough to know what do. You know, I teach at the American College of Anti-Aging Medicine, A4M, and we train a lot of doctors and a lot of providers. But the thing is, there’s still many, many more who need help. And in the conventional medical system, the medical education is completely zero on it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (03:54.945)Wait! Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:11.097)Right? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:19.001)Wait. Dr Erika (04:19.408)no education, the North American Menopause Society, the menopause practitioners, they really are very, far behind. And I’ll give you an example that when this whole thing started in 2002 with that study that really put us behind the eight ball, was the, they sent out, and this is the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology in North America Menopause Society, where all women turned to, and I’m a conventional doctor, trained doctor and what they did is they sent out this like a pamphlet telling women that what you should tell your patients since you couldn’t give them hormones anymore was that they should wear layers they should stay in dark rooms Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (04:50.093)Yes. Dr Erika (05:12.078)It was so offensive to me because I was working with hormones already. I couldn’t believe it. But you have to think that this is where they’re coming from. And that was only in 2003. So you’re talking about 23 years, 22 years ago. So there’s a long way to go to get the information out to everybody and get the right information out. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (05:34.848)That study you’re referring to, doctor, was linking hormones to cancer, correct? Dr Erika (05:41.482)It was a study that did not use bioidentical hormones. They used a synthetic form of hormones that came from Franklin Horse’s urine. And that study said that came out stopped early because supposedly there was an increased incidence of breast cancer. in the study and strokes and, you know, strokes and blood clots. The truth is that the study was wrong. The women that were studied in the study were women that were older. They were more than 10 years after menopause. They were, a lot of them had pre-existing conditions, meaning like there were smokers, they had all kinds of other medical problems. So, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:19.567)Huh. Dr Erika (06:30.05)the study was just wrong. The fact that it was wrong, it just was wrong. And then what happened is that the principal investigators did take back the information, but unfortunately the media never covered that. So doctors never knew about it. The women never knew about it. And it took until in the past four or five years, 10 years maybe that Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:31.695)It was spewed. Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (06:45.827)Hmm. Dr Erika (06:58.344)Women are now talking about menopause, peri-menopause, they’re talking about hormones, and the information is very clear. And you know, the surgeon general and the FDA right now, they’re taking off the black box warning off of estrogens because there was no connection between taking estrogen and breast cancer and taking estrogen and getting ovarian cancer or whatever. It was just crazy. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:00.45)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:22.829)Great. Dr Erika (07:26.816)The truth behind it is that it was all about money and it was about Big Pharma having paid for the study that was supposedly the government sponsored study, but it wasn’t. It was Big Pharma paid for it. And Big Pharma paid for the hormones that they were using in the study. And then they thought that it was going to be the eternal, you know, the fountain of use, but it turns out that it wasn’t. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (07:36.047)Mmm. Dr Erika (07:54.198)It wasn’t even right because it was the wrong population. So anyway, make our long story short, they got scared because the last thing they wanted was for the public to know that it was the government had taken money from big pharma to conduct a study that wasn’t right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:14.937)So Big Pharma didn’t want women to know about bioidentical hormones so they could potentially sell other medications or aids for women to deal with the symptoms. Is that sort of the gist? Dr Erika (08:26.784)Right. So, yeah, that’s the gist because essentially, and this is the funny thing, know, women get antidepressants when they’re perimenopause. I mean, women take more antidepressants than anything else. And you think about it, are we missing antidepressants in our system? Well, I don’t think so. I bet you don’t think so. We don’t have antidepressants there. There are a lot of ways to get rid of the depression and Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (08:54.671)Great. Dr Erika (08:55.342)lifestyle being the number one that you talk about so eloquently and so correctly and Diet exercise stress management everything you talk about and talking about for 30 years So I agree with you a hundred percent and then hormones you missing hormones when the hormones start going out of whack Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:06.018)Yes. Dr Erika (09:17.878)That’s what you need to do is balance the hormones, not give women antidepressants and basically take them out of the workforce, take them out of society, make them basically unnecessary. It’s terrible. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:23.18)Right. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:33.325)Let’s get a little specific, Dr. Erica, when you say hormones, you mentioned estrogen. Are we also talking about progesterone, testosterone? Dr Erika (09:42.306)Thyroid, adrenal, yes. We’re talking. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:44.495)So there’s a whole mix that you would have to meet with a doctor such as yourself to see what’s right for your body. Dr Erika (09:50.124)Well, I think it would be best to do that. People become their own doctors. you know, sometimes that’s not so bad, because I think that in the conventional world, we’re not helping our patients. You know, I have this book coming out, re-released actually, September 2nd, it’s called Don’t Let Your Doctor Kill You. And it’s the truth. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (09:57.465)right Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:07.524)Hmm. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:15.915)What a great title. Dr Erika (10:17.886)Thanks. But you know, it’s coming back out and we’ve expanded. The first time it came out was like 10 years ago. And then we added COVID and AI and a lot of pieces to it and more stories. And the thing is that in the conventional world, you really don’t get the help you need. And women, and I think that one of the most important messages is you live in your own body. I don’t live in your body. The doctor doesn’t live in your body. So listen to your body, learn to listen. And once you listen to your body, then you can actually follow advice or not. It’s your decision. And in the conventional world, unfortunately, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (10:36.239)Mmm. Dr Erika (11:02.892)That decision is based on fear because it’s about intimidating the woman, scaring her into, my God, I might have cancer that I’m missing so I can have a million tests. But at the end of the day, nobody stops to see what’s going on inside. How could I improve my life because I live in here? So that’s kind of the goal. My goal is to eliminate fear. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:19.748)Wait. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:29.944)Yes. Dr Erika (11:30.08)and to empower women to learn as much as possible about themselves. And yes, you’re right. You do need a prescription for estrogen. You might not necessarily need a prescription for progesterone. You do need a prescription for testosterone, for thyroid, adrenal. You may not need a prescription because they’re supplements. But the thing is you want to work with someone who cares about you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (11:52.587)Yeah, it’s just even hearing you say all these things, Dr. Erica, it just, I don’t know, for me, and I haven’t gone into this yet, it just feels like someone being their own doctor when hormones are so specific, that feels scary, like you’re just kind of prescribing to yourself. So let me ask you some specific, yes. Dr Erika (12:01.801)Yeah. Dr Erika (12:11.192)Well, can’t. You can’t prescribe for yourself. But if you understand how your body’s functioning, you’ll start living inside your body, right? That’s what you teach, is live inside your body. Be present, understand. Don’t react to the outside, react to the inside. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:24.749)Yes, be present. Dr Erika (12:32.593)then you can get right help because then you can, you’ll go to a doctor, let’s say, or some kind of provider and they say stuff that doesn’t make sense. You’re not going to be intimidated. You’re not going to be afraid. You’re not going to make a mistake of like, okay, I’m going to follow it. You’re going to say, well, that doesn’t make sense. Let me run. Go somewhere else. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (12:55.631)So Dr. Schwartz, I’m gonna ask you a three-part question. And if you forget one of them, don’t worry, we’ll go back. as you’re… Oh, sorry, sorry. I’m so sorry. Dr. Erica. Dr Erika (13:01.736)This is not much work, it’s my god. I’m just kidding. I just have people to call me like the shorts as much as I don’t like it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:10.959)Might sound so formal, right? We’re sisters here. Yes, yes. So three parts. Number one, which is a fear women have once you start taking the hormones, do you have to be on them for the rest of your life? So we’ll talk about timing a little bit, because I read something recently, you have to start before 60. Number two, the symptoms. Dr Erika (13:14.154)Yes, we are. We’re all one. We’re all one. That’s it. Dr Erika (13:21.463)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (13:37.453)that we keep referring to, if we could elaborate a little bit more about when we know something’s off. And number three, I’d love to know not just about alleviating symptoms, but potential further benefits, whether that’s protecting our bone health. Like you talked about mental health, physical health. So if we could go into those three more specific things, Erica, I’d love to hear. First one, do we have to be on hormones forever? Dr Erika (13:53.774)Great job. Dr Erika (14:00.302)Okay. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:06.593)timing wise, like some people may experience symptoms in perimenopause. Some people, I think my mother went through menopause in her mid-50s. Dr Erika (14:16.862)Yeah, that’s because you’re half Filipino. The Filipinos go into menopause later in general. But let’s answer. So first of all, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:20.184)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:25.752)Okay. Dr Erika (14:29.684)Yeah, you should stay on hormones forever because you want to stay young and healthy, right? It’s not about chronologic age. It’s about physiologic age. I’m 75. I don’t think my body looks or feels or I feel the same I felt when I was 40 only maybe 35 only I work a lot harder at it. You know what I mean? What I do Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:32.345)Got it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:42.702)Wow. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (14:54.721)Adrienne, it’s amazing. I mean, you look like you’re in your 40s. Dr Erika (14:58.674)I love you. you know what? They have that new app that my one of my grandchildren had and about what your age is, right? And you put it up and it said 48. It’s funny that you said that. That was the sweet. No, but I have to tell you. So yeah, if you stay on hormones, your chances of staying healthy and staying well. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:06.349)yeah, yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:10.18)Wow. Dr Erika (15:20.982)are much higher. So why would I ever stop hormones? I started at 46 and I can promise you, I will die with my taking hormones because look at how I feel, look at what happens. But it’s not just the hormones. We’ll talk about that. So anyway, so the other part of it is you don’t have to stay on hormones or anything forever. You could do whatever you want. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:36.856)Yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (15:52.152)Yeah. Dr Erika (15:55.146)And I mean, most of my patients are now 30. You start having symptoms of hormone imbalances as a teenager. When you get acne, when you first take the period, you get PMS, those are hormone imbalances. And they’re all very easily treated with very low dose progesterone, very low dose. And it’s really easy. So if you have somebody like my first book, The Hormone Solution, that… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:03.801)Right. Dr Erika (16:20.662)That’s what I wrote in it and that came out in 1999. think about, no, maybe 2002. So it’s so obvious that it’s a continuum, right? I mean, why don’t we address the fact that it’s a continuum and it’s okay. Yeah, go for it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (16:36.889)But Dr. Schwarz, now you’re talking about that young, what about worries with fertility if you start taking progesterone or messing with hormones, let’s say before you have your kids? Dr Erika (16:51.128)Kimberly, you’re not messing with them, I promise you, because what I’m gonna teach you is how to support your system. You know, when you’re messing with them is when you’re taking birth control pills. And when you take birth control pills, it suppresses everything and you’re creating a menopausal hormone levels, which is not okay, right? So when you’re taking progesterone, by the way, that’ll help with fertility. As a matter of fact, if you do IVF or something like that, Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:02.539)Yes, which… Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:10.797)Yes. Dr Erika (17:20.172)they will give you additional progesterone. And most women who get pregnant that are under like really good medical care will take supplemental progesterone for up to 20 weeks of the pregnancy. So progesterone will never harm any future pregnancies. that’s… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:34.424)Really? Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:38.979)Well, my doctors who were very, I just say conventional, never prescribed for my pregnancies. I never took any of that. Dr Erika (17:45.39)I think we should move you away from that. Yeah, I’m sure, but you know what? Maybe we should move away from that, because that didn’t work out well. It worked out well for you, but it doesn’t work out. I have patients right now, I have three patients who are in their 30s and they’re all three pregnant. And we have them all three couldn’t get pregnant, they were gonna do IVF. They wound up not doing IVF because we balanced their hormones. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (17:55.63)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:13.411)Wow. Dr Erika (18:13.632)And one of the things they got was progesterone. The other one was thyroid. The other one was DHE. But there are a lot of things you could do to help women get pregnant by balancing their hormones. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:18.142)yes. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:25.807)That’s amazing, doctor, and that gives people a lot of hope. Is there any downside to taking progesterone, let’s say that young, you start in your 30s for the next 60 years? Dr Erika (18:28.846)the end Dr Erika (18:34.094)No, no, no, you know what, but you take it when you need it. You take it like when you’re in need. Yeah, or you take it just like for PMS, you take it for four or five days before your period. That’s the only time you need it. So it’s not gonna stay in your system. It leaves your system. It goes away, goodbye, it doesn’t exist. So it just supports, it makes your system better. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:39.859)you cycle it. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:46.703)Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (18:54.927)Wow. Dr Erika (18:59.106)You know what I mean? So that’s one thing. The other thing is, remember, when you think birth control pills, you’re putting women into menopause. So all this stuff. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:07.297)Yeah, I never did it, doctor. It always felt, for me, not the right choice. Dr Erika (19:12.396)Right. No, I agree with you. Me too. I agree. But women will take it because what other options do you have? I mean, I tell everybody to put an IUD and, without hormones. But the thing is, it’s really hard. And think about it. We, you need something. You don’t want to get pregnant anytime, really. So think about that. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:35.819)There’s always good old, you know, we call pull and pray. Dr Erika (19:39.19)Yeah, pull and pray. The rhythm method, yes. There’s a lot of praying going on there. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:47.543)Not so exacting, yeah. Dr Erika (19:49.836)No, right. all right, so we’re still on number one. Okay, so number one was, can you take it forever? You should take it forever. If you don’t wanna take it, you could stop any time, and that’s what you were saying, right? You could stop any time. Nothing will happen because… Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (19:53.358)Yeah. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:00.109)Wow. Dr Erika (20:12.64)It goes out of your system within a few days. So within a few days, you go back to what your baseline is. So if you have symptoms, they’ll come back. If you don’t have symptoms, they won’t come back. The thing is that I have a lot of patients that I’ve encouraged over the years when they said, I don’t think I need it anymore. I don’t think this, you know, cause once you feel good, everybody thinks, I don’t need anything. So I will say stop taking them. And then within a month, a week, three weeks, three months, they’ll be back and they’ll say, okay, well, you know, what do you think? Now, to go to number three. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (20:50.533)wait, hold on, before we move on from number one, Dr. Erica, this is so interesting. Can I ask you one more detailed question? So sometimes you hear this, and I know it’s different sorts of compounds and hormones, know, with melatonin, for instance, what you take, you don’t make. So there’s, know, people are taking so much melatonin and then they get off it and then it sort of messes up their sleep. And I know it’s different for men. My husband was on testosterone. Dr Erika (20:56.128)You can ask me as many as you want. Dr Erika (21:07.982)Thank you. Solluna By Kimberly Snyder (21:18.103)and then he tried to get off it, he got off it so we could get pregnant and then his levels went down because he was on it so long. So he had to get back on it. So what about this idea that, yeah, when your body gets used to not making something when you’re taking it. Dr Erika (21:34.786)But I’m not suggesting that we’re overriding the system. So melatonin, I’m not a big fan of, especially as you get older. Whereas the problem with melatonin is that we’ve been giving the dosing that you could get, that you buy from whatever stor

This Week’s Episode Special Guest: Dr. Caroline Leaf About Dr. Caroline Leaf In this engaging conversation, Kimberly Snyder interviews Dr. Caroline Leaf, a renowned neuroscientist and author, about her latest book, ‘Help in a Hurry.’ They explore the profound distinction between the mind and the brain, emphasizing the importance of understanding the non-conscious mind and its role in managing thoughts and emotions. Dr. Leaf shares practical tools for self-regulation, particularly in moments of stress and regret, and discusses the impact of our thoughts on our physical health. The conversation highlights the power of self-awareness and the ability to create positive energy in the world.   Guest Resources: Website: drleaf.com   New Book: Help in a Hurry: Simple Tips for Finding Peace When You’re Overwhelmed, Anxious, or Stressed   Social Media: @drcaolineleaf   Episode Sponsors: MOMENTOUS OFFER: Head to livemomentous.com and use code KIMBERLY for 35% off your first subscription.      GLOWING GREENS POWDER OFFER: Go to mysolluna.com and use the CODE: PODFAM15 for 15% off your entire order.   Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Dr. Caroline Lee and Her Work 02:53 The Mind vs. The Brain: Understanding the Distinction 06:00 The Non-Conscious Mind: Tapping into True Self 08:48 The Role of Thoughts in Shaping Reality 12:05 The Tree Analogy: Visualizing Mind and Brain Connections 15:00 Managing Emotions and Patterns for Mental Strength 18:00 Practical Tools for Overcoming Emotional Challenges 20:47 Conclusion: Integrating Techniques for Mind Management 23:05 The Power of 63 Seconds 24:58 Self-Regulation Techniques for Emotional Control 27:46 Understanding and Managing Regret 30:08 Practical Tools for Emotional Clarity 32:50 Breathing Techniques for Stress Relief 35:38 The Camera Technique for Perspective 38:41 Harnessing Personal Power for Positive Change 44:57 Introduction to Intimacy and Sexuality Coaching 46:42 The Power of Partnership in Coaching 49:05 Dismantling Masks and Embracing Vulnerability 52:49 Body Image and Sexual Confidence 55:45 Cultivating Erotic Energy and Self-Expression 58:29 The Connection Between Sexual Energy and Overall Wellness 01:01:08 Healing from Shame and Cultural Beliefs 01:04:30 Daily Practices for Sexual Energy and Connection 01:07:32 Navigating Pornography and Intimacy in Relationships 01:08:00 Exploring Intimacy Through Pornography 01:09:03 The Connection Between Vulnerability and Sexuality 01:12:47 Overcoming Blocks to Sexual Energy 01:16:52 The Evolution of Sexual Desires Over Time 01:20:14 Understanding Trauma and Fantasy in Sexuality 01:24:40 Empowerment Through Self-Connection and Healing   SOLLUNA PRODUCT LINKS Glowing Greens Powder™ Feel Good SBO Probiotics Feel Good Detoxy Feel Good Digestive Enzymes Feel Good Starter Kit Feel Good Skincare KIMBERLY’S BOOKS Chilla Gorilla & Lanky Lemur Journey to the Heart The Beauty Detox Solution Beauty Detox Foods Beauty Detox Power Radical Beauty Recipes For Your Perfectly Imperfect Life You Are More Than You Think You Are OTHER PODCASTS YOU MAY ENJOY! Wellness Insights: How to Listen to Your Body for Nutritional Guidance How the Power Foods Diet helps with Weight Loss with Dr. Neal Barnard EP. 877 How Not to Age with New York Times best-selling author Dr. Michael Greger How to eat to reduce anxiety with Harvard nutritional psychiatrist Dr. Uma Naidoo   Powered and Distributed by: PodcastOne Transcript: Kimberly Snyder (00:00.75)Hi everyone, welcome back to our Monday interview show. I am so excited to have back on our show, sitting right next to me, the amazing, brilliant, beautiful Dr. Caroline Lee, who I love so much. I love you so She’s one of my favorite authors, one of my favorite people, a dear friend of mine. She also happens to be a researcher, communication pathologist, audiologist, am I saying that right? Yes, you are. Author of how many books now? 19. 19, 24 languages. my gosh. I’m getting goosebumps. I have read so many of Dr. Carolyn’s books, but when I read this new one, which is out now, by the time we’re listening to this, help in a hurry, simple tips for finding peace when you’re overwhelmed, anxious or stressed. I said, Carolyn, this is your best book. thank you. That’s really a lot coming from you. Thank you. Well, I it was a lot of love and emotion. I felt like it was written. in connection with what’s so needed now. And I love how you make it simple, but really practical and really powerful and based as a researcher. What I love about you is you’re full of heart and that’s a very rare combination. Thank you. think, you know, often what I feel, I’m a clinical research neuroscientist as well. And my field is psychoneurobiology and that’s really heavy science. Right. But that’s where I find my spirituality. And people often ask, you know, are they die quite? They almost sound like a dichotomy, but they’re not because they’re two sides of the same coin. the more when you see science and you see how incredible things work, how the mind changes the brain and the field that you cannot know that there’s more than just this physical time, this little bit of time that being on physical bodies and that soul is just so much bigger than unconscious mind is just so much bigger. There’s just so much more. And it’s so important that we know how to manage our mind because it’s such a responsibility. You know, one of the things that you talk about in this book that really stood out to me is how you really make the distinction that the mind is not the physical brain. Yes, that is that is so important. Because a lot of people say it’s synonymously. Well, that’s the thing. And that’s been a 40 year journey. So basically in the 80s, the mind and the brain were still spoken about separately. So up until about the 80s, it was mind and brain. But they didn’t believe that the brain could change. I’ve been in this field 40 years now. I’m 61. Kimberly Snyder (02:27.382)So I’m old now. Don’t feel old. Yeah, you’re ageless. As Yogananda says, your energy and your vitality and just your skin, like everything just shows how this, you know, biological age or, know, chronologically is not our reality. I agree with you. We can. And we know epigenetics. I mean, there’s so much that’s influenced by, you know, your living this work. It’s coming through your heart. managing your mind, which controls so much stress. And here you are. Thank you. It’s well, I’ve had some of the research you’ve done works on telomeres and yes, the telomere research up until quite recently said that you can’t change telomeres over shorter than a five year time period. And generally with exercise and, and diet and that kind of thing. And so I saw Lisa Apple, is Elizabeth Blackburn and Lisa Apple I’ve interviewed, they, the leaders in telomere research and they started talking about maybe my meditation may change telomeres and so on. So I well, let me do a clinical trial, add a component in where we teach mind management. let’s see, because mind management, the whole system that I’ve developed around mind management includes meditation and preparing the brain and all those kinds of things and preparing the neurophysiology. And then it goes further into mind management techniques. And we show that you can change your telomeres in nine weeks, which is wow, and it’s significantly and your telomeres are the things that respond to your mind, your mind does everything. And they basically telomeres are, are needed for other ends of chromosomes. And that’s what we need to make cells. And we make 800,000 to a million new cells every second. And those, the ability to make those cells is based on telomeres, but the ability, the thing that makes the telomeres work are our thoughts. the energy from our thoughts, So we are not managing our mind and our thoughts are chaotic. We send chaotic energy through to the telomeres and this is science. This is not anything weird. is pure science. Science and spirituality are the same thing. Yeah, I love this. They’re the same thing. And that energy from our thoughts is going to influence how the telomeres function and how the telomeres function determines how your cells are formed, which is how your organs are formed and your systems and therefore physically how we function. And that’s why Kimberly Snyder (04:44.194)mind is not the brain. mean, the brain is simply a host. We need to think in a particular model here. The is simply a host and our body is a host to something much bigger. And that is the word that is, I use the word mind because it’s been used for thousands of words by so many ancient spiritual wisdom. And in current day science, we use mind. incorrectly, it tends to be used, and not all scientists, but it tends to be used synonymously with the brain. But the brain is not the mind. The brain is a physical organ. It weighs around about three and half pounds. And it is when you die, your brain just disintegrates. When your heart stops within 10 seconds, your brain flatlines. And all the energy then reverses. the minute that your heart stops, there’s no energy flowing through the physical anymore. And that energy is your mind. So when we Physically when our body dies physically our energy moves out and what is that energy? That’s your mind So your mind drives your psychology So it’s your your intelligence your ability to love your personality your preferences how you see life how you have this conversation your choices that is mind and then the brain is the host that Hosted so it’s simply a host It responds to the brain. I mean, sorry, it responds to the mind. So the brain responds to the mind. makes sense. it’s only one percent. The brain and body are one percent. The mind is infinite energy. And when we’re on this earth in this physical body, our mind can’t even encapsulate all of our brain can’t even encapsulate all of the mind because the mind is too big. So we have a big portion called the non conscious mind. You in not unconscious, unconscious is when you’re asleep or in anesthesia. Or yoga would call the true self. The non-conscious would be the true self. The non-conscious is the true self. So the unconscious is a sleep state. the non, that would be your true self. The non-conscious is your deepest spiritual wisdom. where every experience you have all day long is absorbed and every memory that you’ve ever had, that’s where it is. And that’s the part of you that drives you. It’s an energy force that is connected to the source of energy, whatever you believe that is. Kimberly Snyder (07:00.832)everyone, God, whether it’s God, the source, the universe, whatever you believe, we, there’s more than just us, but us, the true Kimberly, the true Caroline is in the non-conscious. And in the non-conscious, it’s infinite beyond space and time, so fast that it’s faster than 400 billion actions per second, way faster than the speed of light. And it basically generates electromagnetic fields. the heart field, the heart field, So their heart field is coming from the non-conscious. The non-conscious puts that into the heart. And the heart is basically generating from the non-conscious, generating the true self. You know, it’s so amazing about this, work and the science and what we talked about with my last book on your podcast. Yes, your beautiful book. Is how, you know, this managing the mind that you give such practical tips about is so important because if we’re in reactivity, If we’re in our old memories all the time and just reacting in patterns, it keeps us from being that true self. keeps us from living with love and kindness and compassion because we’re sort of in survival, you know, just these states. We are, we are. And I can, and I can describe that. can give you the simple science explanation. That’s okay. bouncing off what you’ve just said now of your first question, the difference between mind and the brain. So they talk about the mind for a moment and then they this question. So the mind, then we’ve got the non-conscious level and then you’ve got the conscious level and in between you’ve got the subconscious. So it’s non-conscious, subconscious and conscious. Conscious is tiny. It’s messy. It’s chaotic. It’s where we make our decisions. It’s very powerful because it’s where we make our decisions. We can choose to do the work of change. We can choose to love. We can choose to hate. We can choose to… our non conscious has no no hatred, pure love, and it’s pure wisdom. And everything we need is inside the non conscious. Yes. And that we’ve got to learn to tap into it. Now the subconscious is like a waiting room. So what the non conscious does a true self is going through all of our experiences, which become memories inside thoughts. So every experience is broken down into memories and encapsulated into a thought. And that’s what’s in the non conscious, all these thoughts, which are all our experiences that we’ve had. Plus, Kimberly Snyder (09:19.448)from whatever your belief system or everything about you, which could be include all kinds of things that pass. Every thought is stored somewhere. Every single thought that you have, every experience becomes a thought. Every thought is stored in the non conscious and the non conscious then basically process it’s received by the conscious mind. So the experience is received by the conscious mind and the non conscious mind at the same time. But the conscious mind is very limited. can only, for example, the conscious mind can only handle one. conversation at a time. The non conscious can handle an infinite number of conversations. So when as we sitting here, we having one conversation, that’s what the conscious mind is dealing with. But the non conscious or non conscious is absorbing everything else, the energy, the everything in this room, all the things that you’re going through, the things that I’m going through, the connection, but all the things that are unseen, right, which is most things unseen by the physical. Exactly. And Dr. Kailin, this is like again, with the third eye. It’s like the vision opens up perception. Exactly. That’s exactly. So that’s what the non-conscious, that third eye, that wisdom, that spiritual part of us, that is on our side. And it looks through at the patterns that we’ve chosen to make with our conscious mind into habits, the way we’ve chosen a thought pathway and we haven’t dealt with something. And they get strengthened. And it gets strengthened and it goes into the non-conscious, but the non-conscious sees it as like a wound. So then it tries to, it basically grabs that and puts it into the subconscious. And then the subconscious, because it’s much slower than the non-conscious, it’s at some interim level. the non-conscious subconscious then sends messages to the conscious mind via our emotions, how we feel in our body, which they are coming from the, the heart generates signals, our behaviors, our perceptions, that to grab our attention. And when we pay attention to those signals, then we can start tuning back into the wisdom of the non conscious mind. And then it influences eventually the consciously how we’re behaving, we’re behaving, loving, loving. Exactly. So if we, if we exactly, so if we learn to listen to those signals and we learn to listen to the messages of the non conscious mind, which identifies these disrupt the most disruptive thought in the moment in our lives in order and puts them into the subconscious is around about the subconscious can hold about Kimberly Snyder (11:40.75)four to seven of these disruptive thoughts. Also what’s good thoughts in that you, that’s non-conscious minds want you to think about because gratitude and joy and those great experience because those increase your resilience. So that subconscious is holding those and then the subconscious as I said, send signals to get your attention. Now what we need to do as humans is we need to listen to those signals so that we grow the good thoughts because it increases our resilience and helps us to get stronger in our base, which is our non-conscious. And then we function at a high level and it wants us to break down, deconstruct and reconstruct the toxic thoughts. If we don’t, if they go into and we ignore the signal or we hear the signal, but we just stay in that same pattern, it goes back stronger into the non-conscious than before. And then we feel worse because now it’s this boil in the non-conscious. It’s not right. It’s not right. It’s this kind of thing. Oh yeah. love that. The tree is awesome. If you guys are listening to this, please check out the YouTube as well. to see these amazing tools that Dr. Caroline has brought, which really bring the work to life. I love analogies, I love physical. So tell us about the tree. So basically, as I said, the brain is 1%. The brain and body are 1%. The mind is 99%. So the 99 % brain, which has these three levels, conscious, subconscious, non-conscious, is energy. It’s electromagnetic and gravitational fields and quantum energy and whatever. When we do something like an EKG of your heart or an ECG when you do QEEG in the brain, when you have a sonogram when you’re pregnant, if you have MRI, all of those machines, that technology is just measuring the mind. So the mind is the thing that not only is your psychology, your ability to love, feel, intelligence, personality, preferences, it’s also the thing that runs your heart and your brain. So it runs your physiology. So it does two things, the mind, it runs your physiology. which is your body and it runs your brain, which is your body and it runs your psychology. It’s you. And so what we’re supposed to do is we are supposed to listen to the non-conscious, but we can ignore the messages of the non-conscious via the subconscious because the non-conscious puts the messages, the four to seven top priorities into the subconscious. And if we ignore them, then we’re going to get worse. We’re not going to get stronger. to, so before I explain these to you, you had your one question was we get stuck in these patterns. Kimberly Snyder (14:03.662)So when you say stronger, mean mentally stronger, like physically stronger and mentally stronger. they get, and I’m going to explain that whole route exactly. I’m going to give you a really strong visual leading to this visual, but you asked a question earlier on. want to make sure that I answer that and link it all into this. You mentioned about how we can get stuck in those patterns. Notice how we both did this with our fingers. That’s so accurate because the conscious mind is kind of up here and the non-conscious mind is. everywhere. subconscious, the non-conscious mind is, mean, the non-conscious mind is massive. It’s, it’s, it’s this field all around us. It’s the crown chakra, like everyone. It’s almost like a big, we’ve got a biofield and it’s connected to the universe. The conscious mind is a tiny little part of it and the conscious mind is only awake when you’re awake. The subconscious is this bridge in between. So conscious mind can handle one conversation, subconscious can handle about four to seven conversations. When I say conversation, it’s in really common, it’s a thought. and then non conscious infinite. Okay. So that’s all energy. And then that energy of the three minds then uses the brain and the body so that we can be in life, that we can talk to each other, that we can eat and live and be physical. So what the mind does, the non conscious mind working with the conscious mind is it takes an experience or conversation now. And that’s a whole bunch of energy. And it grabs the details of the energy and builds it into like a little thought pattern that looks like a cloud. So imagine around me or around you, those that are listening, that there’s a circle of energy around you. If you stretch your arms out, this is kind of the circle all around you. That’s your mind and it’s around and through you, even in your toes and in your fingers, the mind is all of it. And so that mind and that’s composed of the three different levels. Okay. The conscious being small and awake when you’re awake, the unconscious, infinite subconscious in between. So this conversation comes in as words, those words cluster together to form thoughts. Those thoughts are like clouds. So imagine all these clouds around me. Those are all my experiences that are happening currently. And then what the mind does is it takes the thought that first the information comes in, it builds the cloud, and then it makes a photocopy, copies, and it puts it into the brain. And then the brain as an energy force. Kimberly Snyder (16:21.29)little cluster of energy force. So it’s a copy. So it’s still in the mind. There’s still the cloud floating around, but a copy of it’s put into the brain. And that causes a reaction in the brain, a chemical, neurochemical, genetic, and a tree is formed, a tree like network. So we talk about net, sorry, we talk about networks. Yes. So this is a protein network. So our words now are clouds in the mind. and copies are being made at 400 million actions per second into a tree in the brain. there’s infinite trees in your brain, infinite trees in your brain, because you’re going to infinite trees in your mind. And so there’s, and there’s, so the brain just hosts and it just creates these networks. So this is as a tree has roots, lots of roots, and it has lots of branches. So our conversation, we’re saying lots of words, like each little branches, like a word or a phrase or a concept. So as we keep adding more and more and more, By end of our conversation, we’ll have maybe two or three thousand words that we’ve spoken or concepts we’ve spoken. They’re all going to build into this tree. But what we say is the root. What we say and the listeners and viewers, are taking that into what our words become the root and the branches of their interpretation of what we’re saying, because their mind filters what we’re saying to their unique tree. So everyone listening is building. So this is what it looks like inside the brain. So the cloud in the mind and then it’s net copy into the brain and it’s connected. Then then the mind then makes copies of this and puts it in every cell of the body as a tiny little hedge. So take this and squish it up into a little hedge and inside the inside every cell and you have 37 to 100 trillion cells in our brain and between our brain and our body. And there’s a copy in the brain. It looks like a tree in the body. It looks like a little hedge. So every thought, every single, well, Dr. Kiran, it’s crazy. also one of the things that I’ve always felt intuitively, and we talked about here before is really managing what you’re taking in. Like, our uvata says digestion is the senses, right? So who you’re following on social media, the news you’re watching, everything is affecting these trees. It all goes into that minefield. Right. And it’s all forming clouds. and that’s the conscious mind is not very good at filtering. Kimberly Snyder (18:29.186)That’s why the conscious mind needs the non-conscious and the conscious mind is like a toddler. You’ve got young children. Imagine if you just didn’t watch your children. They’ve hurt themselves. They would burn themselves. They would get up to all kinds of things. That’s what our conscious mind does. So when we get stuck, our conscious mind doesn’t listen to the subconscious or the non-conscious. It’s just doing its thing. just So it’s taking the social media. It’s taking the toxic thoughts. It’s taking the experiences. It’s taking the arguments. It’s taking the politics. It’s taking whatever. And those clouds are not beautiful clouds. They’re ugly stormy rain clouds. And it’s making those ugly stormy. So instead of this, it’s building this. Right. And then those are the hedges in the body. And now that’s counter to our mind, brain, body connection because we want it for love. So we have a worldwide web between the clouds of our mind, the trees of our brain and the hedges in our souls. It’s a network. So every experience is in the mind, brain and entire body. So it’s not your brain that’s doing anything. Right. It’s just the host. It’s all of it. So that’s that and that process is happening all the time. And your brain and your body is plastic, which means it can change. Yeah. So if you’ve got these in your brain, the good news is that you can change them and that’s neuroplasticity and you can direct that change. And so everybody listening to this, what Dr. Carol was saying, it looks like this, it’s this ugly sort of gray. Worry. Right, that’s, know, again, these, what we say in terms of the heart, incoherence, just feeling like you’re not really connected to your, you’re not living your truth, you’re not living in love, there’s a lot of fear, there’s a lot of sadness. In the book, you actually write down topics, which is what I love how practical this book is, you talked about, you kn