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Guiding Your Child: Fostering a Healthy Relationship with Food
Navigating the journey of parenting, we are often confronted with challenges that require us to rethink our strategies and develop fresh perspectives. One of these challenges is fostering a healthy relationship between our children and food. This topic is not just about ensuring a balanced diet, but also about cultivating a positive attitude towards food and a healthy body image. In a recent podcast episode, I dove into this subject, sharing my personal journey and providing valuable insights for parents. We can encourage a positive food & body image relationship for our children by being intentional about how we talk about our own food choices, health, and wellness. It’s crucial…
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Investing in Your Health: The Right Time and Approach
In the latest episode of my podcast, I do a deep dive into the journey towards investing in a personalized wellness plan. The aim is to help guide listeners to feel confident in whether they are ready to invest in their wellness journey, or not quite yet. One of the critical aspects we discuss in this episode is the role of HTMA (Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis) and DUTCH testing in designing a customized care plan. These tests provide actionable results, enabling us to devise a comprehensive care plan that includes lifestyle modifications, dietary changes, and supplement suggestions. The discussion highlights the importance of these tests in gaining insights into your…
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Seasonal Affective Disorder: From Personal Insights to Empowering Strategies
In my recent podcast episode, I did a deep dive into a mental health condition that often gets cloaked in misunderstanding – Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). If you’ve ever felt more anxious or down during the fall and winter months, you might be dealing with SAD. This condition affects more women than men and its exact cause is unknown. However, it’s thought to be related to decreased light exposure during the winter and fall months. In this exploration of SAD, I unpack the latest research, symptomatology, and diagnosis criteria include feelings of depression, fatigue, low energy, loss of interest in activities, and increased cravings for carbs. The most common treatment…
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Exploring what Holistic Wellness Means to Me
Today I launched the very first Wellness with Vanda podcast episode! In this episode I’m sharing what holistic wellness means to me and why I chose “wellness” for my branding. One of the concepts I delve into is the profound influence our thoughts have on our overall wellbeing. We live in an era where the mind-body connection is no longer a mysterious concept but a well-established fact. It’s not just about being disease-free; wellness is about complete physical, mental, and social well-being. I discuss traditional and functional medicine, underscoring the importance of setting long-term health goals. Traditional medicine tends to focus on treating diseases after they occur, whereas functional medicine…
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Regulating Cortisol for Wellness and Rediscovering Everyday Joy
In today’s modern, fast-paced world, we often find ourselves chasing after the elusive concept of happiness. However, we may be overlooking the key role our hormonal health plays in our overall well-being and our ability to find joy in everyday life. One of the most important hormones in this regard is cortisol. Known as the ‘stress hormone,’ cortisol plays a vital role in various body functions. However, an imbalance in this hormone can significantly impact our physical and mental health. Modern lifestyle, including exposure to toxins and blue light, along with other stressors, can throw our cortisol levels off balance. This can lead to various issues, ranging from weight gain…
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A Crash Course in Getting Better Sleep
This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something, we may earn a commission. Thanks! Getting quality, restful sleep is very important for our hormonal health & balance because of the many processes our brain and body does while we’re resting. These processes include cellular repair, hormone release, the brain stores new information, detoxification occurs, muscle repair, and much more! Tips for Better Sleep My hope is that you can walk away from this blog post, implement 1 or 2 of these tips, and start to see improvements in your sleep (& energy) pretty quickly! Then, with some time you’ll begin noticing improvements with you other…
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Using a CGM to Optimize Health
This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something we may earn a commission. Thanks Today feels like a good day to share about my experience using a CGM for the past 3ish weeks. I learned a lot about my body that I can now use to make more informed food, exercise, & lifestyle choices! Getting the CGM Prescription I used the company Tastermonial to obtain the prescription for my CGM. The process is very easy & simple, you add the prescription to your cart, check out, & then you are emailed a form to fill out that their physician uses to write your prescription. I…
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Sneaking more Protein into your Diet
I was recently asked by a community member to share some ways that I sneak extra protein into my diet. She didn’t say this, but I feel like that question came up because if we’re honest, it’s really freaking hard to get enough protein unless you are an absolute lover of meat and eat really meat heavy dishes. If you’re unfamiliar with how much protein you should be getting, in general, my recommendation is 0.8-1 gram per pound of body weight. That sounds a little complicated, so let me give you an example. For someone that is 150 pounds I would take 150 * 0.8 = 120grams and then 150…
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Why Boosting Fertility Matters Even When You Aren’t Trying to Conceive
Many women associate fertility with the goal of getting pregnant, but did you know that having regular menstrual cycles with minimal symptoms is actually a sign of good overall health for a woman? In this blog post, we’ll explore why boosting fertility matters, even if you aren’t actively trying to conceive. Understanding the connection between fertility and your well-being can empower you to prioritize your reproductive health so you can live a vibrant, balanced life. Having regular menstrual cycles indicates a properly functioning reproductive system and hormonal balance. Irregular periods or skipped cycles may indicate underlying health issues that need attention. Tracking your menstrual cycles and associated symptoms can provide…
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Fertility Boosting Foods–Fueling your Body for Conception
This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something we may earn a commission. Thanks. Once you’re ready to expand your family, optimizing fertility becomes a priority. While there are various factors that contribute to fertility, including hormonal balance and overall wellness, nutrition plays a crucial role in preparing your body for conception. By incorporating fertility-boosting foods into your diet, you can nourish your body with the essential nutrients it needs to support reproductive health and increase your chances of successful conception. In this blog post, we’ll explore a selection of fertility-boosting foods that can help fuel your body for the journey of conception. By incorporating…
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