The post How a Neurodivergent-Affirming Naturopath Supports ADHD – Addressing the root causes of ADHD symptoms appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

PCOS, also known as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is a complex condition that can significantly affect a woman’s quality of life. One of the biggest ways it does this is by impacting on a women’s ability to conceive and maintain a pregnancy, but it can also impact a woman’s self-esteem by making it difficult to lose weight, it causes acne and hair issues, such as too much hair where a woman doesn’t want it to be, and potentially thinning of scalp hair.

Of course, there is more to it than that, but those are the major things that women report as the issues they’re most upset by.

In this article and podcast I will discuss the lack of awareness and poor understanding surrounding PCOS, how it is often misunderstood and why its name has a role in this. I discuss the common, and not so common signs and symptoms of PCOS and talk about the driving factors that can cause PCOS to develop. I talk about how PCOS is often diagnosed and discuss some of the key ways PCOS can be addressed naturally.

You can listen to this article on the podcast links below, or in the embedded player.

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Understanding PCOS

Lack of awareness

Sadly, but not unexpectedly there is a lack of awareness and understanding of PCOS, with many people who have not been diagnosed not aware of the condition at all, but also women who have been diagnosed, and some health practitioners as well, not properly understanding the condition. A big part of this lack of awareness is the lack of research into the condition, but also I believe it is part of the bigger picture of gender bias in medicine, and many conditions that are specific to women do not have the attention they deserve, perhaps the exception being breast cancer. One of the other things that doesn’t help this lack of awareness and understanding is the name of the condition itself – polycystic ovarian syndrome.

The name makes a few false implications which cause overall confusion – so here are a few points I want you to know:

1. The condition doesn’t originate in ovaries and the condition is not all about ovaries either, after menopause, the condition can persist. It is more of a metabolic condition, with systemic high androgens and insulin resistance being the core drivers.
2. A PCOS ovary doesn’t actually have ‘cysts’, rather what you can see on ultrasound is immature follicles. Follicles are the little sacks that your oocyte, or eggs sit in waiting for the hormones from the brain to tell it to mature and then ovulate. The issue is these follicles in PCOS is they aren’t developing properly, so if we got them to develop fully these so-called cysts would be a baby (if met with a sperm).

A new name?

Many physicians and researchers have proposed a name change for PCOS, however, that was being proposed in 2013 and it’s 2020, so who knows when that will happen. I agree the condition does need a name change, as I feel PCOS is not a good representation. One of the names suggested which I like is ‘metabolic reproductive syndrome’, however other names suggested were Poly-follicular ovarian syndrome with metabolic dysfunction and/or hyperandrogenic manifestations (PFOS-MD and/or -HM).

The list of potential signs and symptoms is long for PCOS, which explains why there are so many women out there that don’t know why they have the symptoms they do.

PCOS Symptoms

Most common symptoms of PCOS include:

• Irregular periods or absent periods
• Acne
• Weight gain
• Excessive hair growth, also known as hirsutism. This can vary in locations and intensity and it will also be different dependant on your nationality.

Less well known, but still common symptoms:

• Anxiety and/or depression
• Fatigue
• Brain fog
• Skin tags
• dark patches on the skin
• low libido
• Sleep disturbances and snoring (Sleep apnoea can also be more common due to the higher level of androgens. Poor sleep can worsen PCOS by worsening insulin resistance.)

And more than that, there are other complications, especially regarding fertility and baby’s health. The higher levels of androgens can increase the risk of miscarriage and are also linked with some increased risk for baby such as higher birth weight. Women with PCOS also tend to have difficulty with breastfeeding and a higher risk of diabetes after birth.

Thankfully, many of these risks are modifiable by correcting the underlying causes of PCOS, which I will discuss later.

Causes of PCOS – How does the switch get turned on

There are different ways PCOS can express, and for these different subtypes, there are different causes.

The main cause is insulin resistance, which causes the male hormones androgens to become high. Insulin, when it is too high, can trigger more production of testosterone, but it can also lower the amount of SHBG (sex hormone-binding globulin) which means our bodies can’t bind up the excessive testosterone as well, and so more is circulating our body, causing the symptoms of PCOS such as acne and hair issues. Insulin excess also affects our FSH : LH ratio which is important for ovulation, and high testosterone stops our follicles from maturing completely, so this means woman’s ability to ovulate is affected, and if that is affected their chances of conceiving is reduced, and oestrogen and progesterone balance is also affected.

There are different types of androgens, such as testosterone, DHEA and androstenedione, and depending on which one is elevated we can get an idea of what is driving your PCOS. For instance, if DHEA is high, we know that stress is a big driver.

It is also possible to have PCOS without insulin resistance and this is typically due to inflammation. this is a much rarer subtype, but certainly something to consider.

Something else to consider is your gut health can play a role in both hormone balance and metabolism. Your gut bacteria are responsible for so many things in the body, and if you’ve listened to my previous podcasts or read some of my other blog posts you’ll know that your microbiome is of vital importance in improving health. How does it affect PCOS? Well, if your microbiome is out of balance it can affect your metabolism, which can worsen insulin resistance. And an out of balance microbiome can also cause hormone problems, by allowing more of your ‘bad’ hormone metabolites to cycle back through the body.

Why do you have a PCOS ‘switch’ in the first place?

We know there is a genetic component to it, and there is some possibility that your genetic likelihood can be influenced by exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals in past generations, substances that are passed through generations. So effectively, what chemicals and diet your Grandmother was exposed to will impact your risk for PCOS.

This transgenerational effect has been demonstrated in animal studies when mice were fed an obesogenic diet and were given substances that mimic a high androgen state to bring about a metabolic state of PCOS, and it was found that their subsequent generations also expressed this condition.

It was also found that women with PCOS had levels of chemicals in their system that were not in use anymore and was found to have been passed through in utero from their mothers and grandmothers.

These chemicals are increasing the activity of the androgens and also acting as obesogens, contributing to the weight gain and insulin resistance.

Diagnosis issues

So how common is PCOS? The prevalence is about 8-13%, effectively 1 in 10 women. But it is a condition that is it is both over-diagnosed in young girls, and under-diagnosed in older women.

One of the issues in getting diagnosed is that there isn’t one specific diagnostic criteria, so you can get mixed messages.

Three main diagnostic criteria exist- the National Institutes of Health, the Rotterdam criteria and the Androgen Excess Society criteria.

All of the criteria require all other possible endocrine disorders to be excluded.

My criteria of choice is the Rotterdam diagnostic criteria. It requires a female to have two of these three criteria:

1. Irregular periods
2. Clinical and/or biochemical hyperandrogenism
3. “Polycystic ovaries”

Many young girls are being prematurely diagnosed with PCOS. But it is normal for young girls to present with some symptoms of PCOS and this often resolves in a few years without intervention. It can take 3-6 years for a menstrual cycle to regulate itself, however if there is early intervention this can prolong this process, and it is thought that the most common recommendation given at this time – the oral contraceptive pill (OCP) can worsen insulin resistance, which perpetuates the condition.

What are the other causes that need to be excluded?

This could be conditions such as Cushing’s, Adrenal tumours or congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Screening would include blood tests for TSH, prolactin, FSH and anything else your practitioner feels warranted based on your signs and symptoms.

PCOS and Teens

Getting back to teenage girls and their periods, it’s not uncommon for girls to have irregular periods when they’re young, and this will usually regulate itself within 6 years. My personal preference in clinic is to not interfere with hormones in young girls but to allow their bodies to regulate themselves. If hormones are interfered with too early, then it will typically delay the regulation until later. This is relevant to not just herbs, but especially to things such as hormonal contraceptives.

A common understanding is that women with PCOS literally have cysts on their ovaries. But this isn’t the case, as the name implies. the polycystic ovarian appearance that some (but important to note, not all) women have on ultrasound is actually a higher count of immature eggs within their follicles. These eggs aren’t getting the signal from the brain to mature further, triggering ovulation and release.

If you can remember the diagnostic criteria, the presence of 2 of the 3 criteria is what it takes to get diagnosed, so if a woman has irregular periods and signs of high androgens, she can have PCOS without the presences of any ‘cysts’ on her ovaries at all.

A more positive perspective.

One of the perspectives I have heard before about PCOS which I love is that this is an evolutionary trait which in years gone by was protective. if you consider that being pregnant and giving birth was a life-threatening thing at worst, and a depleting event at best, it can make sense why a condition like PCOS which can reduce one’s fertility may be protective in tough times. Insulin resistance is beneficial in times of scarcity as it allows you to store more of the energy from foods, which in famine times if beneficial. In times of plenty such as now, this, unfortunately, works against us. In a time without contraception, women may have gone from one baby to the next without a break, which can be quite a high level of stress and depletion. So, for women with PCOS who have longer times between ovulation, and so fewer opportunities to conceive, this could be considered a positive thing. Nowadays this might not be much comfort especially if you’re wanting to conceive, but I believe anytime you can view your health from more a positive light it is beneficial, so ladies with PCOS you might like to shift your frame of thinking to more of an ‘I’m a survivor’ mindset.  

Other considerations for PCOS

Sleep

Sleep disturbances are reported to be twice as likely for women with PCOS. Studies show found that women with PCOS are more likely to report difficulty falling asleep, to have restless sleep occasionally and often feel severely tired. Sleep problems also occurred in women with PCOS who were in the normal weight range.

It’s still unclear how PCOS affects sleep but we know that the metabolic impacts of the condition play a big role. The hormones melatonin and cortisol are responsible for our sleep cycles to a large degree and these are strongly influenced by insulin resistance and elevated testosterone, as well as the stress placed on the body if obese.

Sleep apnoea is also often reported in women with PCOS, more often in those who are overweight. In those people who are considered to be ‘severely obese’, (BMI >40kg/m2) the prevalence of sleep apnoea in both men and women can be as high as 92%.

The mental health impacts of PCOS which is an increase of anxiety and depression have a bidirectional association with poor sleep quality and insomnia.

Weight loss and exercise is one of the best ways to improve sleep quality in women with PCOS, and if needed there are herbal medicines which can be of support.

Nutrients such as magnesium and calcium and the amino acid l-theanine can also be supportive to calm the nervous system and promote relaxation and sleep.

PCOS and Mental Health

Women with PCOS have higher rates of anxiety and depression. PCOS can be a very distressing condition for many women and this varies from person to person, with some of the highest reported contributors to the anxiety and depression is the impact to fertility, the impact on physical appearance and self-esteem such as weight issues, hirsutism and acne, and also the frustration about the lack of a clear cut solution, and a lack of awareness and understanding of the condition. There was a study that found that women with PCOS were physically active reported less depression and anxiety than those who were inactive. So, while I love to use herbal medicines to support mood and the nervous system, I do frequently recommend exercise to support mood in women with PCOS.

Potential pregnancy risks

There are a few things to consider when trying to conceive, as women with PCOS have an increased risk of some complications during pregnancy. The good news is that if PCOS has been treated, these risks return to almost the same levels as women who do not have PCOS. The risks include an increased likelihood of developing gestational diabetes, pregnancy-induced hypertension and preterm birth, and an increased risk of neonatal complications.

The increase in birth weight of babies born to women with PCOS also suggests an increased likelihood of c-section deliveries.

The treatment used in the study I mentioned before was anti-androgenic therapy, which means correcting hormonal balance before conceiving will improve pregnancy outcomes.

one small study looked at the incidence of gestational diabetes in women with PCOS and found the prevalence was 30.2%, and that these women had impaired blood sugar levels after having their babies. What we can take from this is that PCOS can have a long term impact on glucose metabolism, and again it highlights how important it is to try and take steps to improve your hormones and blood sugar level balance before conceiving.

I recommend that all couples do a preconception care program before conceiving, which at a minimum entails taking a high quality preconception care nutrient complex for 3-4 months before conceiving but if there are hormonal imbalances its important to work on this with a practitioner before trying to conceive.

Complications with breastfeeding

A lesser-known complication with PCOS is that it can cause some difficulties with breastfeeding and milk supply – however, this can also be supported by working on hormones before pregnancy, and with the support of a lactation consultant after birth. Thankfully not all women with PCOS experience difficulties breastfeeding and the information that says it is potentially problematic is only based on small studies. In the research that we do have available, the breastfeeding difficulties were only experienced in the first 3 months and seemed to regulate after that time.

Breastfeeding requires the hormones prolactin and oxytocin to work properly, but we also need adequate progesterone during pregnancy for the breast tissue to develop properly. Insulin resistance and high androgens can affect hormones in all these aspects.

How to manage PCOS

There are so many options for treating PCOS, and as it usually the case with naturopathic remedies, you get the best results when you are treated holistically. This means considering various things like what exactly is happening with your PCOS subtype.

The information I am giving you is a starting point to take to your practitioner to discuss whether it is right for you and to give you hope that there are so many possibilities to help.

while there have not been studies finding some remedies that tend to be universally helpful for most PCOS sub-types, and one of that does seem to be of great benefit is the amino acid Inositol. Taking 2g twice a day is my recommended dose for this.

Diet and lifestyle changes are great for treating insulin resistance, and while it’s tricky to find research specifically for this in PCOS we know it helps address the cause.

I recommend 150 minutes of exercise a week, which can be split into small blocks of exercise such as 30 minutes 5 times a week, or larger chunks such as 50 minutes three times a week. Eating a low GI/GL diet is also very important to address insulin resistance, and having a diet rich in antioxidants and low in inflammatory foods is also very helpful.

If you are overweight and have PCOS, then aiming to lose 5-10% of your body weight is a fantastic goal, and this amount seems to be the magic number that improves fertility rates and reduces risks for diabetes. Losing weight ideally would be done through a combination of diet and exercise.

Nutrients such as magnesium, b vitamins, particularly activated B vitamins, vitamin D and chromium can also be helpful.

Omega-3 fatty acids such as fish oil or algae oil can also help with some of the components of PCOS such as high cholesterol and inflammation.

Other herbs that I would consider is Berberine containing herbs such as Phelledendron which helps with improving insulin resistance and regulates blood lipid levels. There is also evidence showing that Black Cohosh can be helpful alongside other PCOS treatment.

The combination of Peony and Licorice has been looked at in Chinese medicine studies, and this is still a good inclusion in treatment, depending on the individual. Bulgarian Tribulus can also be helpful to regulate ovulation.

Spearmint can be helpful to reduce excessive androgens. I like this when used in a tea and is why I included it in one of my tea blends that supports skin health, to address this aspect.

Supporting gut health is also very important, as a poor microbiome can impair metabolism and worsen inflammation. So eating a diet rich in vegetables with lots of diversity is fantastic for improving the flora diversity in the gut, but it can also be helpful to take probiotics or prebiotics, so discuss this with your practitioner to make sure you’ve got the right type for you.

References

Bahri Khomami, M., Boyle, J. A., Tay, C. T., Vanky, E., Teede, H. J., Joham, A. E., & Moran, L. J. (2018). Polycystic ovary syndrome and adverse pregnancy outcomes: Current state of knowledge, challenges and potential implications for practice. Clinical Endocrinology, 88(6), 761-769. https://doi.org/10.1111/cen.13579

Bahri Khomami, M, Joham, AE, Boyle, JA, et al. Increased maternal pregnancy complications in polycystic ovary syndrome appear to be independent of obesity—A systematic review, meta‐analysis, and meta‐regression. Obesity Reviews. 2019; 20: 659– 674. https://doi.org/10.1111/obr.12829

Fernandez, R. C., Moore, V. M., Van Ryswyk, E. M., Varcoe, T. J., Rodgers, R. J., March, W. A., Moran, L. J., Avery, J. C., McEvoy, R. D., & Davies, M. J. (2018). Sleep disturbances in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: prevalence, pathophysiology, impact and management strategies. Nature and science of sleep, 10, 45–64. https://doi.org/10.2147/NSS.S127475

Guerrero-Bosagna C, Weeks S, Skinner MK (2014) Identification of Genomic Features in Environmentally Induced Epigenetic Transgenerational Inherited Sperm Epimutations. PLOS ONE 9(6): e100194. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0100194

Guo Z, Qiu H, Wang L, et al. Association of serum organochlorine pesticides concentrations with reproductive hormone levels and polycystic ovary syndrome in a Chinese population. Chemosphere. 2017 Mar;171:595-600. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.12.127.

Holton, S., Papanikolaou, V., Hammarberg, K., Rowe, H., Kirkman, M., Jordan, L., McNamee, K., Bayly, C., McBain, J., Sinnott, V., & Fisher, J. (2018). Fertility management experiences of women with polycystic ovary syndrome in Australia. European Journal of Contraception and Reproductive Health Care, 23(4), 282-287. https://doi.org/10.1080/13625187.2018.1483020

Mo L, Mansfield DR, Joham A, et al. Sleep disturbances in women with and without polycystic ovary syndrome in an Australian national cohort [published online December 26, 2018]. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). doi:10.1111/cen.13922

Rosenwaks, Z. (2017). Polycystic ovary syndrome, an enigmatic syndrome begging for a name change. Fertility and Sterility, 108(5), 748–749. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2017.09.030

The post A Holistic Guide to PCOS appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Guts and Girl Bits – Podcast Episode #46

I am joined once again by Naturopath Lisa Costa-Bir to discuss the topic of thyroid nodules.

Thyroid nodules are typically identified via an ultrasound and indicate the presence of growth of abnormal cells within the thyroid gland. Nodules vary in their sizes and impact, and while some may wish to manage this, many people may be told they have a nodule yet can observe no negative impact from it. It can be a diagnosis that brings uncertainty and confusion, and so we would like to share information about what thyroid nodules can mean, as well as how to help manage them naturally.

The Podcast

Have a listen here or on the embedded player below:

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Get in touch with Lisa…

Lisa is a leading Naturopath in the Sutherland Shire. Lisa strives to show her clients that good health is not be simply the absence of disease but rather a state where they find mental, physical and spiritual balance in all aspects of their life.

Lisa is also a lecturer and clinical supervisor at Endeavour College of Natural Therapies where she mentors students completing degrees in Nutrition and Naturopathy and has  taught nutrition to dancers at ED5 performing Arts School.

• https://www.lisacostabirnaturopath.com
• 0404 070 142
• lisa@lisacostabirnaturopath.com

Check out previous podcasts that have featured Lisa here:

• PMS and PMDD
• Thyroid Health
• Ayurvedic Medicine
• How to lose weight without changing your diet (much)
• Adrenal fatigue (part 1)
• Adrenal fatigue (part 2)

Featured Webinar

Understanding Underactive Thyroid – Webinar

Have you been diagnosed as having hypothyroidism?

Do you struggle trying to understand the right things to do to help your thyroid out?

Perhaps you’re on thyroid medication but you still don’t feel any better for it.

Maybe you feel like you’ve got some symptoms that suggest your thyroid might be a bit sluggish, but your blood test come back as “normal”.

If that sounds like you then this webinar is for you. It will shed some light on the topic of under active thyroid and provide you with some tips to help yourself.

We will talk about:

• What are some of the common symptoms of under active thyroid
• How to interpret your test results and what to do if your test come back as normal but you still feel like something’s going on
• What it means if you’ve got high antibodies but your hormones are in normal range
• How to get the most out of your thyroid medication
• What are the nutrients that your thyroid needs to work properly
• What is peripheral thyroid hormone conversion and why is it important
• The right type of exercise to do for someone with hypothyroidism
• How your thyroid affects the hormones in your body such as in PCOS and adrenal fatigue
• How your diet can make a big impact on thyroid health
• What a naturopath can do to help thyroid problems

 

This webinar is awesome value at only $25 so to register today to get access .

 

As a bonus you will get my cheat sheet to understanding your thyroid hormone test results, plus 5 recipes to nourish the thyroid.

$27.50

Shop now

The post How to Manage Thyroid Nodules Naturally appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Below is listed the range of infused herbal oils that can be added onto your massage.

Read more about infused herbal oils, and complete a mini quiz to select which is best most indicated oil for you here.

Lavender

Well known for it’s calming and relaxing properties, it is soothing to your mind and body.

For those who feel uptight and tense, Lavender is beneficial as it helps to soothe anxiety but also to relax tight muscles. It also contains some anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.

Lavender is well suited to those with a dominance of Air and Ether elements, such as those closer to a Vata constitution.

Rose

Cooling and calming, rose oil balances excess heat in your muscles, joints and nervous system. It can lend both strength and softness to your nervous system. Think of the image of a rose with it’s delicate flowers which reminds us to embrace our softness, yet it is surrounded with sharp thorns that help to remind us to maintain our barriers.

Rose has an affinity with women’s health and the reproductive organs and has been used traditionally for menstrual concerns and period pain. It energetically assists in clearing and healing trauma that sits in this area.

If this is something that resonates with you, you may like to incorporate abdominal massage into your treatment with rose oil.

Rose is also vulnerary (wound healing), anti-inflammatory and astringent which makes is a lovely choice for skin that needs tightening and soothing.

Rose is well suited to those with a dominance of Fire and Water elements, such as those with a Pitta constitution.  

St Johns Wort

A classic nerve nourisher, St Johns Wort oil soothes all aspects of your nerves, helpful for those with tension, nerve pain and sore muscles, and is also healing to your skin.

It is well known as a herbal extract for it’s use as a mood balancer however it also offers some aspect of this as an oil infusion, providing a protective and restorative element. It can be helpful for those who experienced ‘frazzled’ nerves emotionally or have been going through high amounts of stress.

If you experience nerve pain, this can also be helpful to apply topically as an oil.

These pretty little yellow flowers will make a stunning red oil when infused.

St Johns Wort is well suited to those with a dominance of Fire and Water or Earth elements such as those with a Pitta or Kapha constitution.

Rosemary and Lemon

This blend is warming and stimulating to your nervous system, muscles and circulation. Rosemary is a popular choice for those with cold, sore muscles or who need some extra support with their blood flow such as those with cold hands and feet, fluid retention or feelings of stiffness and sluggishness.

An old wives tail says to place a sprig of rosemary under your pillow to enhance your memory, which have elements of truth as rosemary has been used as a herbal extract to support brain health and cognition. It is also commonly use to support the livers detoxification processes and to stimulate the digestion.

The blend of rosemary and lemon is well suited to those with a dominance of earth and water elements, such as those with a Kapha constitution.

Calendula

Deeply nourishing to the skin, this golden oil has anti-microbial and soothing properties and is renowned for it’s healing abilities.

Calendula is considered to be one of nature’s best healers, it has antimicrobial and vulnerary (healing) properties.

Those with skin concerns would benefit greatly from the use of this oil, such as those with eczema, dermatitis, dry skin, acne or aged skin.

Calendula is well suited to with a dominance of the elements earth and water, or air and ether, such as those with a Vata or Kapha constitution.

The post Herbal Oils appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Guts and Girl Bits Podcast #42 with Renae Bartlett

If you’ve just had a baby, chances are you’re feeling tired and worn out. But what is that feeling is not just normal Mum fatigue, but instead a sign that something else is a bit out of balance.

The thyroid is a delicate, butterfly shaped gland that sits on your neck. It is responsible for your metabolism, and when it goes out of whack you can feel tired, cold, depressed and you can experience things like hair loss and dry skin. Sometimes the thyroid can become too overactive, which can make you feel irritable and cranky and cause unwanted weight loss.

During pregnancy and early motherhood your thyroid glands are sensitive to changes in your immune system and nutritional status, and so this is a time where your thyroid is susceptible to having issues.

In this episode I chat with nutritionist Renae Bartlett about her journey with postpartum thyroiditis, what women need to look out for, how to get screened if you suspect an issue, and we discuss some of the ways you can support your thyroid health as a new mother through your diet.

The Podcast

Listen here or via the embedded player below.

Scroll down to read the transcript.

Subscribe Here

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Renae Bartlett is a Clinical Nutritionist who until 12 months ago, was based in Adelaide South Australia. She is currently residing in Canada for the next two years with her husband, one year old daughter and their dog Diego. Renae assists people by focussing heavily on the fundamental basics of using ‘food first’ for healing, health and wellbeing. Renae was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s in 2016 and Post-Partum Thyroiditis following the birth of their daughter in 2018. This has led Renae down a path focussed on helping women who may have been diagnosed with post-partum thyroiditis, or who are at risk of developing this condition.

https://www.instagram.com/rebornhealthnutrition/

http://www.rebornhealth.com.au/

https://www.facebook.com/RebornHealthNutrition/

Podcast Transcript

Alison Mitchell 0:05
Hi everyone, you’re listening to Guts and Girl Bits. I’m Alison Mitchell a practicing Naturopath. I hope to share with you all sorts of information about women’s health and digestive health to educate and empower you to make informed choices about your own health. Please remember that only information is general and does not replace consulting with a practitioner.

You’re listening to Gut’s and Girl Bits. Today I’m joined with Renae Bartlett, who is a clinical nutritionist who until 12 months ago was based in Adelaide, South Australia. She’s currently residing in Canada for the next two years with her husband, one year old daughter and their dog Diego, and she assists people by focusing heavily on the fundamental basics of using food first for healing, health and well being. Renee was diagnosed with Hashimotos in 2016, and postpartum thyroiditis, following the birth of her Daughter in 2018. This has led Renae down a path focused on helping women who hope may have been diagnosed with postpartum thyroiditis, or who are at risk of developing this condition. So thank you so much for joining me today.

Renae Bartlett 1:14
Thanks, Alison. I’m really glad to be able to speak with you today and your podcast.

Alison Mitchell 1:19
Yay. So let’s start with some basics. So what’s the thyroid gland responsible for in the body.

Renae Bartlett 1:27
So it’s a very important organ that’s part of the body. So it’s part of the endocrine system and its role is centered around producing the hormones that control the metabolism of all of ourselves. So to put that in simple terms, so some of the body functions that it’s involved in is breathing, regulating our heart rate, regulating body weight and body temperature, menstrual cycles, brain function, mood, just to name a few Very, very important organ that’s part of our body.

Alison Mitchell 2:04
Yes, so important so much.

Renae Bartlett 2:06
Yes, a lot.

Alison Mitchell 2:09
All right, and then let’s talk about what is postpartum thyroiditis.

Renae Bartlett 2:15
So postpartum thyroiditis, if we look at the two terms separately, so thyroid-itis means inflammation of the thyroid and postpartum being post pregnancy. So essentially it is a inflammation of the thyroid as a result of having a baby and it causes both hyperthyroidism, so overactive and hypo thyroidism. So an underactive thyroid with hyperthyroid or even happening at first in that instance. So, the main the main difference between postpartum thyroiditis and say other inflammation conditions of the thyroid is that it’s that pregnancy that really triggers it.

Alison Mitchell 3:06
Okay. And how common is it?

Renae Bartlett 3:09
So it’s believed that it’s between five to 10% of all pregnant women will be diagnosed with this condition. But a point tonight is it’s often misdiagnosed. And the reason for this is the symptoms can be very similar to those that are women may experience just by virtue of having a baby. So, for example, you know, the the things such as being fatigued, losing hair, insomnia, weight fluctuations, can easily be attributed to just having a baby when in fact, it may actually be postpartum thyroiditis.

Alison Mitchell 3:49
Yeah. So many of those things people would just get dismissed about like it’s just because you’re a mom, or something along those lines, but it could be so much more.

Renae Bartlett 3:58
Absolutely. And postnatal depression is also something that can be closely linked to postpartum thyroiditis. So it may in fact be the thyroid that’s causing the depression state rather than depression as an as an isolated incident. So, even though it’s five to 10%, it may actually be be more than that.

Alison Mitchell 4:21
For sure, yeah. And how do you go about getting it tested.

Renae Bartlett 4:27
So it’s simply a blood test after having a baby. Important to note that symptoms generally won’t start until about six weeks after having a baby. So it’s probably important to speak to clinician about the independent factors that may require the blood test at certain times. But generally recommendation would be around about that. Two month period postpartum and then monitoring after that.

Alison Mitchell 4:57
So if say a woman has been feeling Okay for the early stages of the postpartum period, and then she starts to feel a bit more downhill is that way you’d be thinking maybe it’s the thyroid connection,

Renae Bartlett 5:09
it could very well way and it’s just simply a blood test that it there’s nothing terribly invasive about really saying whether someone may have a thyroid condition after having a baby. And it can simply confirm whether that is something that needs to be further looked at and treated, or it can, it can then be be lumped into another condition and go down that path. So I would certainly recommend for women who have had a baby to have their thyroid tested, regardless after they’ve had had their baby, but certainly those that are in the risk group of developing the condition.

Alison Mitchell 5:50
And does your thyroid function actually changed during pregnancy as well like is this process starting earlier than postpartum?

Renae Bartlett 5:59
So Things happen a lot with pregnancy and the thyroid, think of it like a stress test for your thyroid when you fall pregnant. And the reason for this is that the first trimester, the baby is 100% dependent on the woman’s thyroid. So if there’s already an underlying issue there or even a known issue of of thyroid dysfunction, the that can have have severe implications for the woman’s first trimester of pregnancy. And unfortunately, in some cases, this is where complications such as miscarriage can occur. Between because the thyroid and the body in general cannot sustain the mother let alone the baby as well. If the pregnancy does manage to continue, the baby will then start in that second trimester to use its own thyroid to function and then from about 18 to 20 weeks. The baby will then start producing time for thyroid hormones. So when you look at that, for for someone that may have dysfunction, you’ve got the first potentially 20 weeks where that that woman needs to produce enough thyroid hormones for herself and for her baby as well.

Alison Mitchell 7:19
Yeah, okay. So it’s under a lot more pressure during that period of time. Yeah. And I guess because you know, your thyroid is dependent on certain nutrients as well. So if there’s going to be a funneling of nutrients into the baby, then that’s going to be leaving the mother a bit more deficient, possibly. And then, like you said, there’s an immune involvement too. So I guess that would have an impact.

Renae Bartlett 7:47
Yeah, absolutely. So, an important thing to differentiate is the the immune system is suppressed during pregnancy to account for the fact that the body is essentially creating something that’s foreign. So some people may actually notice if they have a autoimmune condition that their symptoms tend to be a lot better when they’re pregnant in some cases, because that immune suppression, that rebound effect after pregnancy, typically from about the six weeks and certainly in postpartum thyroiditis is is what really drives this, this thyroid inflammation and it’s that rebound of the immune system kicking back in and then going into overdrive. So there really is that the two parts playing in developing this condition, certainly.

Alison Mitchell 8:39
For sure. Okay, so, we’ve talked about, you know, how some of the symptoms that are very similar to that postpartum period generally for women like insomnia and fatigue and possibly depression, are there any other symptoms that women should look out for that might suggest that they have a thyroid issue, possibly during and post pregnancy.

Renae Bartlett 9:02
Yes. So during can be incredibly difficult when you’re just looking at symptoms. And that is because the symptoms are very similar to those that you would experience as a result of being pregnant. So for example, there can be weight changes, typically, weight gain, there can be lack of sleep, there can be irritability, anxiety, there can be mood changes, there can be skin and nail changes. So dry skin, brittle nails, all of those are quite common symptoms in particularly hypothyroid saints, but also their common symptoms that you get when you’re pregnant. Right. So, diagnosing during pregnancy is most often by blood tests, but that usually is monitoring the thyroid to see how it is coping with pregnant. Certainly after pregnancy, if a woman is in that hyperthyroid state, she’s going to experience things like increased heart rate. That could be tremors, heart palpitations, overheating, heat intolerance, insomnia, irritability, anxiety. And then when the condition swings to hyperthyroid, if that does occur, then it goes the other way. So things like fatigue, hair loss, poor memory, constipation, cold intolerance and depression are some of the main things that you would say. Okay.

Alison Mitchell 10:43
So the blood test that we’d be looking at is that typically your TSH and if that’s out of balance, then your T3, T4 and your thyroid antibodies is fairly similar to your standard thorough tests.

Renae Bartlett 10:56
Yeah, that’s correct. Yeah. Okay.

Alison Mitchell 11:00
Are there any predisposing factors for developing past postpartum thyroiditis?

Renae Bartlett 11:05
Yeah, there is. So there’s certainly a strong link between having thyroid autoimmunity before pregnancy. So typically the the TPO antibodies. Also there’s a history of thyroid dysfunction previously, and that can even be transients or may not even be be permanent. If there’s been a family history of any thyroid disorders, or a previous history of postpartum thyroiditis in another pregnancy, and also other autoimmune disorders, particularly type one diabetes, they’re at high ris k of developing this condition.

Alison Mitchell 11:51
Okay. And so it is something that does tend to recur so like if you’ve had it one pregnancy, you’re likely to get it another time.

Renae Bartlett 12:00
Not necessarily at the moment, it’s estimated that about 20% of recurring. So that is some good news that it doesn’t mean that for every pregnancy a woman is necessarily going to continue to have postpartum thyroiditis. It may be one time timeline in which is good news as for that, that 20% it tends to be women that have very high anti thyroid antibodies, where their TSH levels are not in the normal range when they fell pregnant, so certainly about about five I believe or even above 10 and that that is the most likely risk factor for perhaps having it recur.

Alison Mitchell 12:51
Okay. Now, I know that you’ve had a bit of a journey yourself with this, is it something that you would be able to share Your journey with postpartum thyroiditis?

Renae Bartlett 13:02
Yes, certainly. So, I was aware that I had a pre existing thyroid condition before I fell pregnant. And I did have some some difficulties falling pregnant. And I do believe it was it was probably due to my thyroid condition. So once I was successful in falling pregnant, I made sure that I monitored my thyroid levels throughout pregnancy. And I wasn’t on any thyroid medication either. So it was more to just make sure that my body was handling it appropriately. Thankfully, it was everything went along really, really well. I had a really wonderful pregnancy, wonderful birth. And then after having my baby at about three months postpartum, I felt generally quite well but I thought I really need to go and just make sure that my thyroid is functioning as it should. And knowing that I had a previous history I thought that would be a good idea. As it turned out, I was very hypothyroid. Much to the surprise to myself and my, my doctor, because I wasn’t really presenting with very strong symptoms, which I came to find is relatively common. It’s more of a hypothyroid state. If it does swing to that word becomes quite known that there may be an issue. And so I monitored my bloods every four weeks, and I believe after about two months, I then transitioned into hypothyroid. And I did then certainly start to notice symptoms. For me, I had extreme fatigue. I would say quite Moody, you know, crying without really understanding what I was crying about. I can remember one day I was out walking my dog and it was a beautiful day and I started crying and I’m like, Why on earth? am I crying? This is not know. I don’t really understand what’s going on. So luckily for me, I knew that it wasn’t just as a result of having a baby and I knew that wasn’t me going crazy and thinking, you know what? What’s going on? I knew that it was my thyroid driving this and I think that really helped me in dealing with it appropriately and just letting my body try and regulate itself, rather than trying to figure out what was wrong with me, in an essence, so I thought, quite lucky that I managed to do that. And then I ended up deciding to take thyroxine because I felt as though I was lucky that my symptoms were okay but I didn’t know how bad I could get and given my history of having a thyroid condition, I thought it best to go that action. And my doctor said, You know what, let’s, let’s give it a go. And if it’s at a time we feel it appropriate, we can see if we can when you offer and take it off and see how your body handles. So I really liked that approach that, you know, we can just try and manage it how we can and then and then see how my body adapts to it at some point, so. So yeah, that’s kind of been my, my journey with it so far.

Alison Mitchell 16:30
Well, thank you for sharing that. Yeah. And I love how much you were trusting your own body to go through those processes as well.

Renae Bartlett 16:37
Yes, sometimes you’ve just got to take your hand off the wheel, I think and just let it do its thing.

Alison Mitchell 16:42
Yeah. So did you find that it affects breastfeeding?

Renae Bartlett 16:49
I was very fortunate that it didn’t affect my milk supply. I was able to breastfeed and I still am now. My baby will be one in two weeks. So thankfully, I am have been able to do that. But it certainly can affect milk production and is a common symptom in women that have thyroid issues. So it’s certainly can can impair that. Hmm,

Alison Mitchell 17:14
well, hooray for extended breastfeeding. I’m a big fan of that.

Renae Bartlett 17:17
Yeah. Yeah. I felt a sigh of relief when I knew that. That was something that I didn’t have to worry about. Yeah,

Alison Mitchell 17:25
yeah. But it’s so interesting, the way that it expresses differently and everyone and how this the different interplay. So it’s not just a straightforward thyroid effects product and no, it’s there’s other things involved.

Renae Bartlett 17:39
Yeah, yeah. Yeah. And you’re so right. And this is where really getting to know yourself, I could have easily spent my entire postpartum period, not even knowing that I had postpartum thyroiditis. Honestly, I really could have because you could have just easily put the things I experienced down to having a baby It’s just it just really presents so differently to any to everyone really? Yeah, symptoms really do vary.

Alison Mitchell 18:08
Yeah, and I do observe quite a lot of the time that it is uncommon to get this thorough testing done even as a general screening. And sometimes, you know, you can be having done it too early, or you might because the thyroid changes so much as well. Like sometimes you do need to repeat a TSH and go up and down and by itself, it’s not always that great an indicator, so you might need to get that complete picture of the testing with antibodies.

Renae Bartlett 18:37
Yeah, absolutely.

Alison Mitchell 18:40
Alright, so knowing what you know now, like say, theoretically if you were to have another bubby. would you do anything to look after your thyroid, preconception or during pregnancy to try and prevent this from happening or, or how would you advise other women to look after their thyroid to prevent it.

Renae Bartlett 19:01
Yeah, so that’s a really good question. Because I have looked back and gone ‘What What could I have done?’ I was really good at at having having a really great, very varied diet you know, a good amount of vegetables, fruits, quality protein fats, I started taking a really good quality prenatal vitamin, three months before pregnancy, fish oil, all of that. The one thing that I didn’t do that I would be really interested to see how that would go and that is taking a supplement of selenium. And the reason why I say Selenium is there has been some clinical studies done that shows some promise in that Selenium supplementation during pregnancy. Even with women that has positive antibodies does significantly reduce the risk of postpartum thyroiditis so I caution that we saying further studies need to be done and certainly it’s not the be all and end all that you know, you take Selenium and you’ll be fine but it is quite promising to show that that nutrient did show some improvements in a study that was done I believe in 2011 so that’s one thing that I didn’t do and I think that’s something that I would I would probably look at and I doing with my next pregnancy

Alison Mitchell 20:35
Yeah, it’s interesting and you know, there’s a lot of multivitamins out there that are pregnancy targeted that have virtually like, you know, very little Selenium in them. Yeah, taking a better quality multivitamin is advisable and or taking some additional selenium anymore. At the very least, I guess eating more Selenium rich foods. but that’s so hard to do, isn’t it? Because

Renae Bartlett 21:01
Yeah,

Alison Mitchell 21:03
A bit hit and miss in foods.

Renae Bartlett 21:05
It is and it varies so MUCH. And then of course, you know, you want to you don’t want to just be taking taking pills all the time, you know, and trying to remember to do that, especially if you’ve already got got children I’m a big advocate for trying to use food as much as you can rather than relying on supplements but with pregnancy there is that increased demand and you know, if it means that it could, could possibly help you after pregnancy then it’s it’s a it’s something worth looking at, if you if you can.

Alison Mitchell 21:42
For sure. And what sort of dosages he generally looking to work within the range of because I know that many people are a bit hesitant to do higher doses of selenium.

Renae Bartlett 21:55
Yeah, so, the study that I that I spoke about that showed some Promise the supplementation was at 200 micrograms a day. The upper limit for Selenium is often recommended for 150 micrograms per day. I feel quite comfortable that if someone wanted to try, try that under the useful direction of a qualified nutritionist or naturopath, that 200 micrograms would be suitable and ensuring that there isn’t Selenium coming from other sources that might push that too much further over the edge. I think I think that that is a safe, a safe way and actually shining in studies that it might be useful.

Alison Mitchell 22:43
Yeah. And you know, a nutritionist or a naturopath could guide you with that, I guess. Yeah, absolutely. even look at monitoring your levels through your Bloods and making sure that they’re not going in a pattern that’s a bit uncomfortable for you.

Renae Bartlett 22:57
Yeah, yeah, that’s right. Yeah. Cool.

Alison Mitchell 23:01
So are there some other areas that you often look at supporting women with postpartum thyroiditis?

Renae Bartlett 23:08
Yeah, look, stress is a huge, huge, huge factor. And I know that gets thrown around a lot. I know, you know, nearly every condition you can think of, you know, you get told look out for stress, but honestly, it is so big in driving this condition, it’s not funny and it can be so difficult. You’ve just had a baby, and then you’ve got someone telling you to Oh, you know, just don’t stress so much. And you know, look at that, yeah, that’s really great. But if there are things that you can try and do, whatever it is, whether it be five minutes of meditation just before you go to sleep, or maybe it might be just going out for a walk with your baby or maybe just catching up with some girlfriends, for coffee once a week, whatever it is, just try and do that. That whatever it is that kind of makes you feel that you can just let it out, you know, be writing things in a journal or exercising and he can, you know, all of these things really will play a part in, in trying to reduce that that cortisol and that stress that can really be making this condition a lot worse than what it should be.

Yeah, for sure.

Alison Mitchell 24:22
Yeah.

So stress is a really big one.

Renae Bartlett 24:25
Yeah, yeah. It’s huge. Yeah.

Alison Mitchell 24:30
Great. Are there any other areas that you often look at?

Renae Bartlett 24:34
So nutritionally, we’ve spoken about Selenium. There is also, I guess, when we look back at the pregnancy status is having sufficient iodine to support the thyroid function during pregnancy, and then continuing that for breastfeeding as well. That’s really important. And I think it’s often a nutrient that does get overlooked when you look at prenatal support. So that’s something that really is important. So iodine and selenium for that nutritional and then for postpartum when I look at nutrition, I like to try and simplify it and go you know you’re already trying to reduce your stress let’s not stress it out anymore by you know, throwing these hardcore diet things in there. Let’s make it really simple. You know, think of food first try and think of of getting things as fresh as possible. By you know, going and getting vegetables and fruit just starting with that getting some protein sources. Even if you need to buy frozen vegetables and and cook that up on a meal that’s perfectly fine. You know if that’s going to save you a trip to the supermarket, when you’ve got other things going on. Do that you know, if you need to keep eggs in the fridge so that you can just do some scrambled eggs for dinner. Do that, you know, try and simplify your nutritional routine. Don’t overthink it. Don’t. Don’t try to be this fantastic mom who can just do it all just simplify it, you know, as long as you’re able to eat well. With basics, you’ll be fine. You really will.

Alison Mitchell 26:27
Brilliant. Yeah, yeah. It’s so important for mothers to just eat.

Renae Bartlett 26:32
Yeah.

Alison Mitchell 26:33
Yeah. So easy to just like, you know, let that part of your life to stop because you know, you’re worried about the baby and of course, but you gotta eat.

Renae Bartlett 26:44
You do, you do have to eat and you know what, get when people come to visit you don’t get them to bring gifts of you know, more baby clothes and things like that. Tell them to bring food. Say: “Bring food! What I need, you know, that’s the best gift you can give a new Mama.” Yeah. Yeah, certainly in the month after Don’t forget, you know, they’re still trying to to raise a little human being there. So. Mm hmm. For sure.

Alison Mitchell 27:15
Yeah, for sure. And I always think about iron when it comes to thyroid health as well. Is that something that you look at?

Renae Bartlett 27:23
Yeah, absolutely. And particularly after giving birth, because women will often lose blood as a result of childbirth. So making sure that iron levels are adequate is is really important for that for the thyroid to function. Now, so yeah, that’s that is a very important nutrient. Absolutely. Yeah, for sure.

Alison Mitchell 27:46
Okay, and any, any other areas?

Renae Bartlett 27:50
So we, I guess we’ve touched a bit on nutritional and then the emotional or sorry, well, the lifestyle side of trying to reduce stress, but I think that emotional support is Well, because postpartum thyroiditis is really not known by many people, I think it’s really important to be open and honest with those in your family, your support networks, let them know that, you know, you don’t just have the baby blues that you you know, you are going through something and it can be transients at times between your symptoms, and to just get that added support. So that’s probably my my main take home is look at your emotional support. Lifestyle, you know, try and reduce your stress and nutritionally try and keep it simple by eating the best that you can when you can and don’t overcomplicate it. Yeah, for sure.

Alison Mitchell 28:44
Yeah. Okay. So, can you give some women that have having postpartum thyroiditis or worried about it, three actionable actionable steps that they can do?

Renae Bartlett 28:57
Yeah, so, I guess Further on to what I just I just mentioned then, first of all, figure out who your support network is. Talk to someone about your your condition and how you’re feeling and and really get them to help you in whatever that is for you. It may be getting someone to bring you food, it may be someone helping out with the baby might be someone to just catch up with the coffee, whatever that is. Number two, really try and figure out a way that you can reduce stress in your life. As much as that may be a difficult task for you, even if it’s just five minutes to try and have some time where you just sit there and and write in a journal, read a book, meditate, whatever it is go for a walk. It’s really important. And then third of all, really try and figure out with your nutrition, what you can do with minimal stress on yourself. So whether that Is meal planning so planning out your meals for the week and doing one shop if that works for you brilliant do it if that’s going to enable you to eat the best way you can then do it. If it’s cooking a lot of food and freezing it do that. If it’s having frozen vegetables, boiled eggs, nuts in the fridge, things that you are ready to go because maybe you’re not someone that doesn’t batch cook you’re not someone that doesn’t meal plan you just ate as you go has those things ready there for you. So try to simplify it but stick to foods that are going to give you the most nutrient dense so you know any of you vegetables, fruit quality protein sources, so eggs, meat, tofu. Lovely whole grains think of quinoa, think of making some lovely muffins with spelt, buckwheat, all of those kind of things are really going to be helpful for you. In that postpartum phase, make sure you’re ea ting.

Brilliant. All right and last question for you. What is your favorite food for thyroid health?

Okay, so this is difficult because there’s so many great ones but I’m going to have to go with the very simple egg. The reason being is it’s full of so many wonderful nutrients that are going to support your thyroid so it does have iodine, it has a lovely amount have a really lovely fats which is going to do wonders for your your skin, can do wonders for your hair, protein as well that’s going to support your immune system. And it’s such a versatile food, boil it up, have it as a snack. scramble it have it for breakfast, mixing something vegetables, all that kind of thing. So I think I’m going to go with the humble egg.

Alison Mitchell 32:04
I think that’s a great answer. Great. So thank you so much Now Renae, do you have any offerings on at the moment?

Renae Bartlett 32:14
So at the moment, I’m currently working on a couple of things within my business. So at the moment, I’m looking at putting together a series of helpful, simplified food tips. So that’ll be a compilation of videos, how to shop guides, how to cook guides, but simply for your family. I’m hoping to have that finalized within the next six to 12 months. And also some ebooks on how to look after your thyroid after having a baby.

Alison Mitchell 32:50
Beautiful. Yeah. Oh, well, that’d be so good. Yeah. Okay. Thank you. And if people want to know more, how can they get in touch with you?

Renae Bartlett 32:59
So They can get in touch with me My business is Reborn Health. So the most effective way is just send me a message on facebook Rerbon Health Nutrition. And I’m also on Instagram as well, which is also Reborn Health and Nutrition.

Alison Mitchell 33:15
Great. And I’ll put the links for those in the show notes as well.

Renae Bartlett 33:18
Great.

Alison Mitchell 33:19
So thank you so much for sharing all this wonderful information today. It’s been an absolute pleasure talking with you.

Renae Bartlett 33:26
It’s been great, thanks so much for having me.

Alison Mitchell 33:29
Yay. So thanks, everyone for listening. Please hop on and leave us a five star review. And if you have anything you want to learn about in the future, don’t hesitate to ask. So thank you, everyone.

Renae Bartlett 33:42
Bye bye.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

The post Thyroid Problems After Having a Baby appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Guts and Girl Bits Podcast #41 with Jenn Malecha

In this episode I’m joined with Jenn Malecha – also know as the (W)holistic Health Boss. I had a great time chatting with Jenn about her own health journey but she shared a lot of knowledge about functioning testing and considerations for chronic health conditions.

We talk about how if you have a chronic illness, you need to look at getting your hormones and gut health under control to achieve long lasting results, and we also chat about black mould.

We discuss:

• Jenn’s journey with her health overcoming autoimmune disease by battling hormone imbalance, mould and gut issues.
• The benefit of functional testing to put together the puzzle of your health, especially talking about the DUTCH test to look at your hormones and stress hormones indepth, and microbiome (stool) test options.
• How for some people, black mould can dramatically affect your health, and what to do to get on top of it.
• What major hormonal issues Jenn sees affecting women’s health.
• How to work out the causes of why you are chronically ill and putting that information together.
• Adrenal fatigue and nervous exhaustion.
• What are the nutrients and supplements Jenn thinks most people would benefit from.
• Her top lifestyle recommendations to improve health and wellbeing.

The Podcast

Have a listen here on on the embedded player below.

Subscribe.

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You can find out more about Jenn here:

the W(holisitic) Health Boss

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The post Healing Autoimmune Disease by sorting out gut health, hormonal health and mould appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

PCOS affects so many women but it’s not spoken about as much as it should be. This condition has many faces and because of that it can be really confusing to understand.

In this webinar I will help you to understand what’s going on in your body with PCOS , and what you can do to help it.

We will go through :

• What is happening in PCOS
• How is PCOS properly diagnosed
• What are the symptoms you might experience with PCOS
• What are some nutrients that you can take to help with PCOS
• How PCOS affects other hormones
• How you can improve PCOS with your diet
• Herbs that can help with PCOS

The live recording is 26th July 2019 – 12:30pm AEST

If you can’t make the life event there will be a replay available afterwards.

As an extra bonus you will receive 5 healing recipes to help with PCOS.

Related articles:

https://www.naturopathnsw.com.au/busting-pcos-myths

The post All About PCOS – Webinar appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Need some inspiration for gift giving this Christmas? I’ve compiled a list of present ideas for those people in your life who are interested in looking after the environment, reducing waste in their household and looking after their health. These gift ideas aren’t just good for Christmas, they’re good for any time of the year really – Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthday presents, you name it!
With present ideas ranging from $4 to $149 there’s plenty of options for everyone.

Beauty and Body Care

Massage voucher

I don’t know many people who don’t enjoy massage. I think that a voucher for a pamper session may get you more brownie points than a pretty or useful object, because it sends the message to your recipient that you care, you think they deserve some pampering, and you’re acknowledging all the things they do for you that makes them need that pampering.

You can purchase a voucher for a massage with myself here.
30 minutes – $55
60 minutes – $100

Silk pillow

While initially the idea of gifting a silk pillow might seem a bit strange, silk pillows are a great way to look after the delicate face on your skin, as well as your hair. Cotton absorbs moisture from your skin, can cause friction on the surface of the skin which can lead to wrinkles over time, and can pull on your hair, which leads to more fly aways and split ends. Silk doesn’t do these things and so can be a simple way to look after your skin. They are more expensive than your typical pillowcase but when it comes to the investment that many women put into their skin care, its worth it in the long run.

Go-To has a pure silk pillowcase for $65, or Slip has a variety of colours and patterns at $85

Foam Roller

One of the things I recommend to my massage patients frequently is to stretch and foam roll. Using a foam roller helps you to reduce tension and tightness in muscles, and is also good for fascia.

There’s lots around, but this one is more affordable and straight forward. – Foam roller

Weleda Skin Food and Lip Balm

If you haven’t tried the Weleda Skin Food, then you’re missing out. This gorgeous cream is great for all sorts of skin issues, I love it for all the drier areas such as feet and elbows. This pack is good value and comes with a soothing rose fragranced lip balm.

Weleda Gift Pack – Beauty Essentials – $24.95

Lip Gloss & polish Kit

I use this mineral lip gloss a lot and it leaves a lovely feel, and is a pretty colour. This is a good price with the polish as well.

Mineral Fusion Lip & Tip Kit – $18

Waste Less

Stainless Steel Lunch Box

I’m a fan of a stainless steel lunch box as a way to reduce the amount of plastic we’re exposing out kids to. Most companies will use BPA free plastics, but I’m leaning towards the ‘better safe than sorry’ mentality and avoiding as much plastic as I can, because we don’t have the long term safety data on the new plastic that has replaced the old BPA type.

I like this one because it seals nicely – Seed & Sprout $44

Reusable coffee cup

Given that we know how big an impact disposable coffee cups are making on our landfill AND we want to reduce plastic exposure where possible, reusable coffee cups are a great idea for my fellow caffeine lovers.

I love my glass KeepCup and it gets used more than my other reusable coffee cups because of it’s sturdiness and lack of leaks, however my favourite is my very pretty Pottery for the Planet cup.

KeepCup Medium LongPlay – $34

Joco Medium Glass Cup – $29.95

Biome Ceramic Coffee Cup – $34.95

Metal straws

A great stocking filler is a metal straw – it looks pretty but it’s good for the environment. The more people using less disposable plastic straws, the better. There’s different colours and shapes to choose from, and prices range from $3.50 to $16.95.

Reusable Food Wraps

Instead of going through gladwrap like there’s no tomorrow, reusable food wraps are gentler on the environment, but also your health (less plastic exposure).

I use beeswax food covers like these ones but for a vegan alternative you can use these silicon wraps – $27.

Handkerchief

Save all those tissues heading into landfill and look cute at the same time by using a hanky. There’s lots of reasons why carrying a hanky is a good idea, and it’s not nearly as gross as some may think.

If you accidently leave it in your pocket it won’t cover your clothes in lint. It’ll just get clean.

If you haven’t blown your nose on it already you can mop your brow with it, use it as a barrier for unclean doorknobs, clean your glasses or phone screen and more, plus you can offer it chivalrously to a friend in need.

Ideally you’d have one for every day of the week, and change to a fresh one every day, washing at the end of the week. Hankies are pretty big so if you do need to blow your nose a few times on it there’s plenty of space.

Check out these gorgeous designs at $11.95.

 

Produce Bag

A lightweight string bag is a great option for putting your fruit and veg into at the grocers, because it won’t add too much onto the scales.

Choose one like this and you’ll be looking trendy at the same time.

Organic Cotton String Shopping Bag – $14.95

Composters

I’ve asked my parents to get me a pet waste composter for Christmas. Yes a bit strange I know, but that’s me.

I like that it will save the plastic bag usage in collecting the poos (I have a Labrador so have to collect daily), but with time it will improve my soil.

Just dig a hole, bury the composter and then start adding the dog poo along with the starter grains and it will start composting the poo down into the soil.

For a more traditional type of composter you have plenty of options.

I love my worm farm – since I’ve gotten the hang out how much to feed and water the worms they are thriving and I’m regularly getting liquid fertiliser for my garden. I got mine with a discount from my local council through https://compostrevolution.com.au.

Books

Recipe Books

Who doesn’t love a nice fresh bit of cooking inspiration! I for one love getting a new recipe book, and will keep it on the bench for weeks at a time while I chip away at the new recipes.

There’s endless choices, but here are some of my favourites.

Deliciously Ella The Plant Based Cookbook: 100 simple vegan recipes to make every day delicious  by Ella Mills – this has some gorgeous flavour combinations and is very inspiring for increasing the diversity of ways you have vegetables in your diet. I will have the meals as a side to a serve of meat or it’s fine to have it on it’s own. I love the Harissa Eggplant and the Cauliflower and turmeric salad.

Living the Healthy Life by Jessica Sepel – Gorgeous recipes and a lot of healthy eating and lifestyle tips as well. A very pretty book to look at and the recipes as tasty and easy to make.

Wholesome Child by Mandy Sacher. This one is a great choice for people who have young kids, because it’s meals are family focused as well as being great for cooking for kids. I’ve written a review of this book here, so feel free to check it out.

Kitchen Novice eBook and Meal Plan by Alison Mitchell (that’s me!) – Oh and did you know that I have a meal plan and recipe book? It’s designed around whole food for people who are getting familiar with cooking, so if you like the idea of a recipe book and healthy eating but don’t feel confident in the kitchen, check this one out. It also has a guide on learning to eat well, a meal plan and a shopping list, all for $24.95.

Other Books

Not everyone wants a recipe book, so here are some other great books you can consider.

One Bite At A Time by Sarah Lantz & Tabitha McIntosh – This book delves into the issues facing our health and our environment as a result of chemical exposure. It is a gorgeous book as well so would make a beautiful coffee table book, something that will certainly be a conversation starter.

The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape – Touted as being the only money guide you’ll ever need, this could be a great idea for friends or family alike. This book has ranked #1 on Amazon multiple times and is currently still #1 in wealth books. Financial stress is a big one and cutting this down will make this gift recipient grateful for your thoughts.

Idaho by Emily Ruskovich – There’s nothing quite like sitting with a good book and a cup of tea to relax and take your mind off the worries of life. Sadly I haven’t read a fiction book in over a year, so I asked my book loving husband what his favourite book of the last year was, and this was it. I asked ‘What do you like about it’, and true to his English Teacher form he replied: “An engaging story with well written prose and emotional poignancy.” Sounds good to me.

Audiobooks

Since having kids I don’t get much time to sit down and read, but not prepared to give up my fantasy novels I turned to audiobooks. When I’m cooking, driving by myself or going for a run I will put on an audio book and it helps me to chill out, but I’m still getting things done.

Audible books vary in price but if you get a membership you get a credit each month, making the books much cheaper in the long run.

I have gifted Audible Memberships before and it’s been well received. But you might just want to get it for yourself. I love my audiobooks – I went through the entire Outlander series on Audible, and my recent favourites are The Millenium Series (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), The Kingkiller Chronicles (The Name of the Wind) and The Sellout.

I’ve also done a fair few non-fiction books on Audible such as Work Rules by Lazlo Block, Eat The Yolks, Gut and Food Politics.

Gift a membership here.

Other

Seed Card

A seed packet and gift card all in one, these cute little cards are a great gift for all ages.

Sow ‘n Sow Seed Card $9.95

Herbal Teas

I’ve tried a lot of different herbal tea blends and I keep coming back to Burton Health Tea. I love the herbal blends in each of them, but the flavours of the teas are carefully thought out and well executed. A 30 serve bag of tea is very cost effective and a great gift idea.

Perhaps you might like to give the TeaStress blend to a person who is under a bit of pressure in their life.

Or perhaps you know someone who gets sick all the time, in which case Immunitea might be a good choice.

Rest and Digest is one of my favourite blends – it helps to get he nervous system and digestive system talking to each other again, switching you back into a parasympathetic nervous system state.

Or the other option is Dandy Chai, a delicious blend that is warming and good for your digestion.

Check out the teas here, and if you use code NATNSW at checkout you will receive a 10% discount.

Burton Health Tea – from $9.00

Spiraliser

Spiralizer – Making zucchini noodles can be loads of fun, but if you get a good quality spiralizer you can make noodles out of loads more vegetables. Increase your vegetable intake and have fun doing it.

Water Filter

Remove the bad stuff, and put back in the good stuff with a water filter. I like this little one because it’s cost effective and can be carried around with you when travelling. It is made from plastic but you could fill it up, let it filter through them tip it into a stainless steel or glass bottle.

Mini Waterman Water Filter Bottle 600ml – $79.95

Why would you want to filter your water?

Chlorine in tap water is thought to negatively affect our gut bacteria balance, and it can also affect our iodine levels. Flouride is another chemical that can affect iodine levels and thyroid health, but if you’re still wanting to get the fluoride for your teeth, the amount you’re exposed to when rinsing your teeth when brushing them is enough to do it’s job. It also helps to filter our pesticide residue and other heavy metals.

Blue Blocking Glasses

Did you know that we are constantly exposed to blue light through TV screens, computers, phones and tablets. It affects our melatonin levels, a hormone that we make through our eyes in response to orange light. Altered melatonin levels can cause issues with hormone balance but mostly affects our sleep.

Blue light from the sky is actually important in the day to normalise our circadian rhythms and promote mental wellbeing, but when we’re being exposed to excessive amounts of it from our screens this can be a problem, and in addition the wavelengths from the screen are different to the blue in our natural environment which makes them harmful.

Clever people have found ways to counter this effect by tinting glasses – these glasses used to be very uncool, bright orange safety type glasses, but now there are glasses that look like normal glasses, and they even come with the option to put your prescription into them.

BLUblox is an Australian company that has created three types of lenses – the standard clear lense filters blue light from your computer screens which reduces eye strain and reduce the impact of the blue light on melatonin and other hormones.

You’ve also got the option of red lenses for that extra melatonin boost in the hours before bed, and yellow glasses to promote a heightened sense of happiness in the day.

So if you know somebody who works in front of a computer screen all the time, why not share this with them or pair for Christmas.

BluBlox – $149.95

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase from using that link. This helps contribute to the ongoing costs of running this website. Thank you for your support.

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We all feel different emotions when faced with different situations, it’s part of being human. When you were late for work because your alarm didn’t work, it’s okay to be frustrated. If you lost a loved one to a disease, it’s a typical reaction to grieve. And when you’re about to take an exam which can make or break your career, most of the time, you’d be anxious. And while it’s normal to be anxious at times, it can be very uncontrollable and can affect your decisions and your well being. To prevent this from happening, there are some techniques you can utilise to reduce the impact of anxiety.

Consider the natural ways to keep your mind calm during anxious times:

1. Write down what you feel: When you’re anxious, you might think that no one can understand what you feel that’s why you end up keeping everything to yourself. Doing this might be an easy way out for you but keeping all of your emotions can worsen your anxiety in the long run. That’s when writing can help you. When you feel anxious, write everything you feel in your own journal. This will be an avenue for you to release your emotions in a healthy manner, while allowing you to determine which could possibly trigger this emotion.
2. Talk to someone who understands: Some of your family and friends understand what you’re going through. Determine who these people are and when you feel like anxiety is slowly taking over you, call them and talk to them. Be open as possible and let them know what you’re going through. You’ll not only feel good after talking to them but you’ll also gain pieces of advice from these people which can help you battle anxiety.
3. Find your own mantra: There’ll be times when you’ll act out depending on your emotions – and most often than not, you’ll soon regret doing any of these. You can avoid committing this mistake by finding your own mantra. For some people, they would count 1-10 when they’re on the verge of a panic attack. Others would take three deep breaths before saying or doing anything when they’re anxious. You can mimic these but you can also come up with your own. Look for a mantra you’re comfortable with and stick to it when you’re at the peak of your anxiety.
4. Take the time to walk: One of the reasons why you’re experiencing anxiety is because of the adrenaline buildup in your body. If you don’t do anything about it, you’ll experience anxiety for longer periods of time. You can use all the extra adrenaline in your body by walking or doing any kind of physical activities. You’ll have the time to think things through and relieve yourself from stress – it’s a win-win for you!
5. Listen to music: Songs are linked to your emotions which can be a very effective stress management tool. It can soothe your emotions to prevent your anxiety from worsening. So when you feel like your mind is going haywire because of a business presentation which will start in minutes, grab your iPod and listen to your favorite songs.
6. Have some time alone: And while the company of friends and family are fun to be with it, being alone when you’re anxious can bring several benefits to your well-being. When you’re alone, you’ll have the time to assess your actions and decisions. So the moment you’re anxious, go to the gym alone or visit your favorite novelty store. Take a walk in the park and bask in the moment of being alone. Look for activities which you enjoy doing alone so your anxiety levels will decrease.

These tips might work and not work for different people. And if you see yourself experience the latter, you can always work with professionals like a Naturopath or a Psychologist such as those at Endeavour Wellness.

Too much of anything is harmful – and how your mind is affected during anxious times is no exemption. It’s normal to feel anxious when you’re faced with a situation where you’re not prepared, but too much of it can disrupt your daily functions. When you’re always anxious, you’ll end up making rash decisions. Learn how to keep your mind calm during anxious times by using this article. And don’t worry if you can’t get it right the first time; managing your emotions will take time and practice.

Joel Curtis

Joel Curtis is a registered Psychologists with Endeavour Wellness and has over 17 years of experience. Joel holds a Masters’ Degree in Psychology from Western Sydney University. Joel owns a number of private practices in Sydney and provides expert content for several national TV and Radio programmes.

The post Natural Ways To Keep Your Mind Calm During Anxious Times appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Health & Wellbeing Podcast #25

After almost a year, I finally bring to you another podcast episode. 2017 has been a big year for me in many ways: Clinic has been busy, I have been working as a lecturer at Endeavour College of Natural Health and also being a Mum. This has all meant that podcast creation has been put on the back burner. But I return with a wonderful episode for you, The Anxious and Sick Merry-Go-Round.

Some of you may feel frustrated, if you feel like you are doing all the right things but your health issues don’t seem to be resolving. Every one of you are individuals and have individual reasons for why you are stuck. However, if you suffer from a tendency to be anxious this may be the reason you aren’t resolving your health issues. Research shows that if you have anxiety you are highly likely to also have thyroid disease, respiratory disease, gastrointestinal disease, arthritis, migraine headaches and allergic conditions.

I’ve invited my next guest to talk to you about the link between anxiety and health issues. Kimberly Charlotte Vucurovic is a psychology trained clinical naturopath who specialises in treating anxiety related health issues. She has worked in the field of natural medicine for 18 years. She runs a busy practice, is an academic lecturer at Endeavour College of Natural Health and is continuing her research by currently completing an Honours in Psychology.

I feel this episode may be an ‘A-ha!’ moment for many people, allowing you to connect the pieces of your health together by understanding the way that anxiety and stress can feed into other health issues, and be fed by other health issues. (And of course, we couldn’t get through an episode without talking about gut health 😉 )

You can connect with Kimberly on her website www.thenmc.com.au and Youtube.

iPhone   Stitcher   Youtube   Soundcloud  Spotify 

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