Better Everyday With Sarah And Dr. Brooke

You’ve likely heard a lot about gut health and how it is a key foundation to your health and it’s absolutely true that gut health directly impacts hormone health. In this episode I get into the exact interplays between estrogen and your gut, how the microbiome as a whole impacts estrogen and a subset of bacteria known as the estrobolome have an even bigger impact on your estrogen levels. I discuss knowing tested values like beta-glucuronidase which needs to be just right, not too high and not too low, in order for you to have healthy estrogen levels.  As well I dive into how the gut and both thyroid hormones and cortisol interact. And because so many of us are dealing with diagnosed autoimmunity or have a positive family history of autoimmune diseases, I cover specific infections that are seen on functional stool testing that can be potential triggers for various autoimmune issues. If you have any questions about stool testing or working on your gut health and hormones please reach out to me at drbrooke@bette

I’m thrilled to have Mae Steigler of Organifi with me on this episode! We talk all about the company’s start, its mission and  how they formulate their incredible line of wellness support. It’s so fun when I can interview partners of the show and hear how much care goes into the products.   I love Organfi’s greens and have been using them for the past couple of years and I credit this superior antioxidant formula with getting my exercise motivation and stamina back after being wiped out from repeated viral infections, high stress and well, everything the Pandemic brought us. It’s high in things I want like matcha and spirulina and avoids cheap, immune aggravating ingredients like alfalfa. And their greens are hardly their only product! Their superb female hormone product called Harmony hits all the highlights with support for both estrogen and progesterone in a delicious cacao base.   This episode is sponsored by Organifi whose green juice is my absolute favorite on the market. It’s certified USDA organic, co

Wellness on the internet is shiny. It’s perfect. It looks like, if we do those same things in such a seemingly effortless way, we’ll look and feel great too. But real life isn’t perfect or shiny all the time, some days it’s messy and can on occasion be downright ugly. The perception of what it takes to be well and healthy these days has a lot of us feeling like we can self-care and health to the list of things we are not able to pull off, that feel utterly overwhelming or one more reason to beat ourselves up.    In this episode I talk about what real wellness and real self care come down to - it’s literally one thing. Just one thing, and though it’s hard to do, if we can get this right more often than not the rest falls right into place.    To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   Be

You’ve likely heard about glutathione, a key compound in your body known commonly as your “master antioxidant”. It’s vital for managing inflammation, regulating your immune system, dealing with oxidative stress making it important for most health conditions including autoimmunity, hormone imbalances, exercise recovery and any chronic health issue.  In this episode I talk about the most important daily habits to boost your glutathione as well as (and perhaps even more importantly) not deplete it. I also talk about various supplements that will support glutathione synthesis and recycling (a key second step that’s often overlooked) and how to know which one is the best for you to take (i.e. NAC, liposomal glutathione, etc.). To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!   Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too. Be sure you connect with

Paleo, AIP, Carnivore, Keto, Low Histamine - what is best for you? Dietary elimination of certain types of triggers can be a really important part of your health journey but there are so many out there AND most importantly, they are meant as a tool and not meant to be a diet you live on forever - for the most part - or even meant to be the only tool you use. They are a great way to uncover sensitivities, decrease inflammation and relieve symptoms but again, they should ideally be part of a more holistic plan to heal so that ultimately you can get back on a more diverse diet without symptoms. Because eliminating an entire food groups (i.e. carbs, gluten, grains, etc.) or larger amounts of types of foods (i.e. lectins, high histamine foods) is not only logistically and emotionally challenging, strict diets that are not diverse in various foods can impact our microbiome negatively as variety is key.  So understanding how and when to use various elimination diets, how to come off of them, what you should be doing

Changing our approach to stress has been a big part of my message these past few years because stress is inevitable - and some stress is even good for you. The problem many of us have is of course, unrelenting, continuous stress without recovery. As well our only response to a stressful situation is fight or flight, full sympathetic mode fueled by adrenaline and cortisol. What most of us don’t know is that fight or flight is just one of our possible stress responses that we can have. Sometimes it will take therapy or treatment (of a variety of types) to be able to make a more conscious choice to respond to stress differently, but the first step is knowing that we have options. And some of those options are a really powerful move for you that will allow you to grow from stress, create something from the stress and allow that recovery post stress that we all need.  In this episode I cover five different types of stress response, the particular biochemical and hormonal cocktail they release and ways to be more

As a follow up to episode #314 where I gave a bigger picture view of the stages of autoimmunity, symptoms that may indicate autoimmunity and a variety of root causes and foundational support for a more balanced immune system this episode answers questions from you: the listeners! I cover how autoimmunity gets undiagnosed so easily, what’s really going on with your immune system with autoimmune (over active, underactive or unregulated), why we’re at risk for developing multiple autoimmune diseases and everything we can do to both prevent and manage autoimmune issues as they are so very common in women these days!   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   Be sure you connect with me in my FREE PRIVATE Facebook group: Hormones & Happiness with Dr Brooke where other amazing, like m

 Autoimmune is a big topic and women often fall into two categories: not understanding what they can do to impact their immune system and autoimmune issue OR they’ve been promised a cure or have been lured by a “root cause” and end up frustrated and still feeling badly. In this episode I talk about signs of autoimmunity that might surprise you, the three stages of autoimmunity (hint: early detection and intervention is ideal!), why there are almost always multiple root causes as well the biggies in terms of diet, lifestyle and exercise when it comes to living with autoimmunity - and how to use them to feel better!    This episode is followed up by a Q&A episode and my top ten reasons why your autoimmunity may not be improving despite your efforts - so tune in to the next episode as well!   DEALING WITH MIDLIFE & PERIMENOPAUSE ISSUES? Here’s your invite to my new coaching group: the Peri-Party! As of this recording there are only TWO spots available so act fast if you’d like to join me. More info and r

The title of her new book, Feeling Seen really says it all! Whether it be due to social media, social distancing or just all our past heartache and trauma, most of us feel disconnected these days. With all the ability to connect right in the palm of our hands, why does it feel so hard? It seems to get that true connection where we feel heard and seen and understood is a tall order, but in this episode we talk about how regulating our nervous system, focusing on clear communication and “walking each other home” can help us see and be seen with those we love.    To learn more about Jody or get her book, click here.    To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   Be sure you connect with me in my FREE PRIVATE Facebook group: Hormones & Happiness with Dr Brooke where other amazing, like

As a follow up to episode #311, on this show I’m getting into the details of various hormone conditions that make fat loss a more frustrating battle than usual. These include autoimmune or chronic infections that generate a lot of inflammation and fatigue. As well I talk about dealing with low thyroid and thus a slow metabolism, hypothalamic amenorrhea and some strategies to think about finding your perfect calorie or macro number. And of course, I get into one super juicy question about the exact hormone changes that occur in menopause/perimenopause that we need to work with so differently when it comes to our metabolism than we did in our 30s.  With all of these issues it can be harder - but it is not impossible! I cover a few levers to pull to move you toward you fat loss goal without wrecking your hormones.   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great e

Let’s end the debate: which matters, calories or hormones? And dig into why they both matter and some strategies that actually work when you’re trying to lose body fat with wonky hormones.    Now I’m not going to say it’s always easy or it is always even worth it to you, but there are a few things that we want to remember if we’re frustrated trying to move the needle with our weight loss goals. In this episode I talk about the biggest mistakes I see women (including myself) make when it comes to estimating their calories or macros, why just addressing calories or macros alone doesn't work well for many women (and what works better) as well as some tips and tools for both nutrition and exercise to work with particularly challenging hormones issues like cortisol, thyroid, insulin resistance and of course perimenopause/menopause.    And tune back in for the next episodes where I answer questions on fat loss from you the listeners! In that episode we get into more nitty gritty when it comes to Hashimoto’s, low th

This episode is about loss and grief and the ways we keep people we’ve lost living on with us. Do you have a special object or small item that reminds you of someone you love that you’ve lost? I have a lot, a whole lot! I’ve often said I’m the most sentimental person in the world but turns out writer, former editor of O the Oprah Magazine, Ms. Debora Way has me beat!   After leaving the magazine world, Deborah combined her passion for writing, for stories and for sentimentality in a new project that lives on Instagram called The Keepthings. Her project collects stories of everything from a guitar pic to a recipe card to a flash drive to a special fork (the gravy fork, one of my fav stories) and what they meant to the people that just had to keep them.   What I love most about these stories is how they connect us all in a shared experience of losing someone we love. As well, with these stories we keep those we’ve lost alive in some way and allow others to know them as well. And all this connection and nostalgi

Hot flashes are often thought to be synonymous with perimenopause and menopause and while fluctuating and decreasing estrogen levels can be one cause of hot flashes and night sweats, it’s far from the only thing to cause them.     And even the role estrogen plays with these symptoms is more complicated than just a lower estrogen level, as it can be complicated by low progesterone and how well you metabolize your estrogen. But we often forget the impact that blood sugar, stress and even thyroid hormones play in hot flashes. And what’s more: of course you can have more than one of these things going on! I cover it all here and help you make sense of all these variables so you can deal with this pesky symptom.   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth, makers of sustainable, deliciously soft and incredibly luxurious sheets from 100% viscose bamboo and they are so indulgent you’ll never want to get out of bed! This revoluti

I covered all sorts of ground on this episode! How much sodium should you aim for daily with your electrolyte supplement and diet combined, feedback and tech that can help you know if you’re over or under doing it in the gym, what to look for in a light box if you’re trying to stimulate your cortisol awakening response and support a better circadian rhythm and how much you blood sugar should fluctuate during the day. Lots of great, practical info on this show!   If you have questions for the show, please join my private Facebook group: Hormones & Happiness with Dr Brooke where other amazing, like minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Join us! This is a great place to post questions or topics you want me to cover or suggest guests for the show.    Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please lea

Very vulnerable episode alert! This is not my usual style of show that typically has a deep dive into the physiology of how your hormones work or an interview with an fellow expert or a how-to episode that gives you lots of tangible takeaways. While I always strive to give you the answers to the questions you have, this episode is more observations and a whole lot of questions vs. advice.    The midlife conversation currently is about hormones (to take them or not), how to look younger and the almost completely contradictory advice to embrace aging, age gracefully and simply be grateful for making it this far. This is not only contradictory but it is absolutely incomplete.   Arriving at the middle, in my late 40s has felt confusing, surprising, disappointing in some ways and incredibly stressful. I felt utterly unprepared to deal with the emotions and challenges of a new stage in my life, in my family’s life, in my parent’s life, in my career, in my body….all of it. So many questions and as I struggled I foun

What if perfectionism was your greatest superpower instead of your biggest weakness? I’ve often called myself a “recovering perfectionist” but I won’t use that term again after reading Katherine Morgan Schafler’s new book! This insightful book will let you breathe a sigh of relief because turns out your perfectionism isn’t necessarily something you need to fix after all. In this episode we cover a whole new way to view this tendency, how to stop it from being a maladaptive trait and use it to your major advantage and an entire reframe on how we view our right to joy and pleasure and satisfaction. Hint: you don’t have to be perfect to earn it.   This is an amazing episode and I hope you share it with every “recovering perfectionist” or type A friend you have!   To learn more about Katherine and get the Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control, click here. Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like

One of the gifts of that past few years and living into my 40s was learning while a whole bunch of really hard stuff happened, I was able to also live out some of the tools I teach and come away with a clear understanding of which ones really do help. In this episode I share my favorite tools, mindsets and perspectives that really do work when everything is going wrong.    Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   Be sure you connect with me in my FREE PRIVATE Facebook group: Hormones & Happiness with Dr Brooke where other amazing, like minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Join us!   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Grab the FREE Guide To Finding Your Core Values exercise mentioned in this episode here. This episode is also sponsored by Organifi whose green juice is my absolute favorite on the market.

When it comes to protein, some women simply need to focus on it as a staple in each meal and other women are mindful of protein but are often quite surprised they are eating about half of what they need per day. When it comes to wanting to build lean muscle mass, boost your metabolism, improve insulin sensitivity (thus overall hormone balance) or just have more energy we need our lean muscle. Because of this we lift weights and eat protein right and it turns to muscle? Not quite. Turns out triggering muscle protein synthesis (AKA building muscle) requires us to be a bit more precise in how much and how often we eat protein - but once you know this, it’s actually quite simple to get it done!   In this episode I talk about the leucine trigger for muscle protein synthesis, dig into what all this protein looks like in real meals like soups or stirfrys or chili vs. a chicken breast on a salad and when during your day you can capitalize a bit extra on building more muscle.     To work with Dr Brooke click here and

This episode is chock full of tools that will help you break a habit or create a new habit. The new Year is rife with good intentions and because life will get all lifey, March often looks more like last December. While shiny new plans are always intriguing, most successful people do the same boring things over and over so for me it always comes back to habits. This show will help you learn some tricks that make it easier for your new habits to really take hold and have you feeling more successful this year! Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   Be sure you connect with me in my FREE PRIVATE Facebook group: Hormones & Happiness with Dr Brooke where other amazing, like minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Join us!   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     This episode is sponsored by Shuteye Chai from Ned.

Something about New Year New You is full of pressure and the sense that you’re wrong in December and need to change in January. I share a “fresher” take on the turning over of the calender, how to tackle a 30 day plan for longer term results should you feel that’s right for you, how to choose a word for 2023 and how “pivot points” can help you make you new habits stick for good this year.    Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram and get signed up for my awesome emails here. Seriously,I write really great emails, or so 1000s of women tell me and I’d like to send you one too.   Be sure you connect with me in my FREE PRIVATE Facebook group: Hormones & Happiness with Dr Brooke where other amazing, like minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Join us!   To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Grab the FREE Guide To Finding Your Core Values exercise mentioned in this episode here.   This episode is also sponsored by Organifi whose green juice is my absolute fav