Better Everyday With Sarah And Dr. Brooke

In this episode I tackle a few very big questions from you all when it comes to stress. The bulk of all of our concerns come down to something along the lines of: how do I find the time, money and energy to take care of myself and my family/friends/loved ones? With so much information about stress and so much “how to '' available to us for meal prep, various hormone and sleep hacks, workout tips, here we are: despite all our stress management tools we are still very stressed about how to get it all done and find some joy in doing it. In this episode and the upcoming #359, I dig into the why behind us still feeling so stressed, how mindfulness actually works, where we have control and how to intervene and how to create a compass to guide the choices that stress you out.  Grab my FREE downloadable guide to finding your Inner Compass here. This is an encore Dr. Brooke Show, this episode originally aired in 2022 - but it was so great I’m airing it again! To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this epi

Grab your notebooks, this episode is jam packed with information that will help you make sense of when to use prebiotics vs. probiotics, how antibiotics and probiotics differ in efficacy of treating common gut infections like H.Pylori and if you should really take antibiotics and probiotics together. Most importantly this episode will give you a roadmap for how to think about utilizing these various options when one isn’t working well for you right now. As well I get into stomach acid, or HCL, and how to figure out what dose is best for this widely available supplement. 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 minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Jo

Root cause medicine is all the rage if you follow any functional medicine experts and while that is an important part of treating you as a whole, root causes are not the only thing we need to think about.  My guest on this episode, functional nutritionist Andrea Nakayama, so beautifully talks about the roots but also the branches, the various systems and terrains of our body and lifestyles. She also shares the developing science of omics, the reason some of us react differently to foods, medicines, supplements, viruses, etc. than someone else. Andrea also shares much of her journey with her own health as well as the loss of her husband and how her experiences with autoimmunity and her husband’s cancer have shaped the way she sees functional medicine and health.    Learn more about Andrea’s work 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

Did you know that 95% of women taking a prenatal are still nutrient deficient? The founders of Needed saw this as a big problem and I couldn’t agree more! But Needed quickly became a bigger solution to a bigger problem by providing more options for new moms and moms to be. Women need so much support during the time from thinking about getting pregnant all the way to having little ones and so often they are left with options that don’t fully or adequately address their needs (prenatals that have missing ingredients or nutrients in the wrong forms or that they can’t take due to nausea) or they are left with low energy, anxiety or even colds/flus while they are pregnant or nursing because there aren’t natural products that are considered safe during these times. Needed solved all of these problems as well as created a community of no-guilt, education and support for new moms and moms to be. I was thrilled to have the time to talk with Julie Saway, one of the founders of Needed about all of these issues and how t

Fall is in the air and often with a change of season or the end of summer fun we feel the need to “get back on track” or hit restart. Some of you may also be feeling like you’ve been meaning to get started for a long time now but just can’t quite make it happen. This is usually the time when we want to grab a quick fix or a 30 day plan or do a juice fast or a detox. All of these things *can* be helpful but they can also be overwhelming or not quite what you need for the longhaul. Let’s face it, we’ve all done a lot of 30 day plans!  In this episode I go over the easiest ways to get started or get started again, the habits that matter the most and small, low effort shifts you can make for often better results than a full diet and lifestyle overhaul.  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 t

Focusing on simply “reducing your stress” can end up leaving us feeling more stressed out because the truth is, there are some stresses you can’t just opt out of, stop or reduce. I talk a lot about those in various episodes of the show, but this episode is about stresses you CAN do something about. Sometimes it’s about getting help or gaining better stress skills to manage the stresses that you can’t totally get rid of, but many things that are stressing you out may not be things you think of as stress at all. Things like infections, oxidative stress, blood sugar imbalances, hormone disruptors or nutrient deficiencies. In this show I break down a number of stresses we can absolutely take off your plate and they don’t involve a housekeeper, nanny or personal assistant. They are all within your physiology and we can resolve or much better manage all of them.  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 em

I try not to play favorites with my episodes, but this is going down as one of my favorite episodes to record because I have found this framework so profoundly helpful. On this show I talk about letting go of the idea of striking a balance in life because this notion is nonsense and leave us always stressed and guilty because the truth is every day one are of your life will demand more of your time and attention. Sick kid? Deadline? Going through a divorce? Up for a promotion? Training for an event or managing a flare up in your health? You have to be able to direct your resources where they are needed BUT to avoid the guilt of neglecting one area of your life for too long you have to have a system in place with checks and balances so that everything that matters to you gets your care when it’s needed and can sit on the back burner when something else needs your focus. The idea of the four burners is what I share in this episode and it’s the antidote to the stress of “balance”. Please share this episode with

Low back pain can be so disruptive to your training, your sleep and your hormones given that inflammation from nagging injuries can impact hormones across the board. One of the key aspects of treating this condition is knowing where you need to be stronger and where you need less focus on strength and more on flexibility. Megan covers all that as well as her favorite - and least favorite - core strengthening exercises if you’re dealing with low back pain. We talk as well about changes during perimenopause and menopause that impact joint health and injury healing.   Learn more about Megan 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 minded women like YOU

A follow up podcast to episode #349 where I answer questions from you about perimenopause and menopause. This episode covers a range of symptom questions, how to know if what’s happening with your cycle is perimenopause or something else, when to see your doctor, how menopause looks different for women who have had a hysterectomy and much more!   Episodes Mentioned in this show:    Dr Brooke Show #345: Q&A on HRT (hormone replacement therapy)   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 minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Join us!   Partners of the Dr. Brooke Show (Stuff I Know You Will Love!)   This episode is sponsored by Shuteye Chai from N

In this episode, I go over all aspects of this dicey hormonal time, the symptoms that can arise, when to see your doc and of course what you can do to feel better! This time in a woman’s life can be stressful for so many reasons relating to transitions, up and down hormones, reflecting and reassessing our lives and so many changes in family and relationships. But it doesn't have to be miserable! I cover a range of symptoms in this episode from joint pain to brain fog to sleep disruption and hot flashes as well as options in addition to or in place of HRT.   Dr Brooke Show #345: Q&A on HRT (hormone replacement therapy)   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 amazi

Even if you never have a sip of wine this interview is fascinating! Zack is a wealth of knowledge about the microbiome as well as how to “teach” a favorable, safe bacteria that’s already in our gut how to metabolize a breakdown product of alcohol through genetic modification. It sounds like science fiction -  and it sounds scary. I mean GMO right?? But it turns out how bacteria are modified is very different than modifying plants in our food source for a couple of reasons making this FDA regulated product very safe and without immune or inflammatory consequences that could come from changing the food we eat (i.e. GMO soy or hybridized wheat). And this product is very effective! I share with Zack in the interview how skeptical I was of ZBiotic having any effect on how I felt the next day after having a glass of wine. Truth be told it was like it never happened. So I was thrilled to have Zack on the show to talk about how this product works and how they created it.  Learn more about Zach and Zbiotics here.   To

I often say if you can’t fix sleep problems, you can’t fix any hormone problems. Sleep comes up in a lot of my podcast episodes for that reason! However on this episode I’m joined by Dr. Valerie Cacho to talk about several things I have covered less often on the show including sleep studies, sleep apnea and other medical issues that can impact our sleep. We touch on various types of sleep studies as well so you can know if you’re really being evaluated the way you need to for your unique sleep issues.    Learn more about Dr. Val and her company Sleephoria which focuses on helping women sleep better so they can be engaged, confident and supported in their wellbeing.    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 &

This episode is a Dr. Brooke Show Greatest Hits! It was one of the most downloaded episodes of 2023 so if you missed it, now's your chance. If you loved it, enjoy all the new nuggest of wisdom you'll catch this time around.  Get your notebooks out cuz this episode is jam packed with info about one of my favorite topics that always deserves more attention and unpacking: protein. I’m joined by founder of KION, Angelo Keely and expert in all things amino acids. We discuss precisely why protein is so foundational for aging and metabolism and the unique considerations for women. We also make sense of the myriad of powered options you have from protein shakes to collagen peptides to branch chain amino acids, as well as what you need to know about animal vs. plant protein sources - and it's not just about a complete vs. an incomplete protein! Angelo also shares how we can use a complete amino acid blend to up our daily protein intake, support our workouts and a ton of other benefits from supporting mood, balancing h

I put a call out for podcast questions in my free Facebook group (join us here) and there were so many on HRT specifically that I did an entire episode on it. I cover delivery methods, what bioidentical HRT actually means (hint: it is not the same as compounded and they do not have to come from a functional doc), how to know when your dose is just right and when is the ideal time to start and stop HRT. As well, I talk about what your other options are besides HRT or in addition to HRT. Women do not have to choose one or the other, in fact, many herbs and nutrients will actually improve your experience on HRT - especially those that support hormone metabolism and gut health. It’s a big episode, please share it with another woman that needs clarification around this confusing topic!    If you’re going through perimenopause, let me help. Join my coaching group The PeriParty!   To work with Dr Brooke or if you have any questions about her practice of the PeriParty group here and if you loved this episode please l

I cover a whole lot of ground on this episode answering questions on the validity of at home blood tests, insurance coverage for more functional tests like the DUTCH test, how to support yourself during the postpartum period, what it means if you’re spotting both before your cycle or  around day 21, getting to the bottom of hormonal acne and how to take the herb vitex (aka chaste tree berry).    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 minded women like YOU are already hanging out! Join us! Partners of the Dr. Brooke Show (Stuff I Know You Will Love!) Want skincare that is natural yet actually works? Look no further than Purity Woods! Their Age Defying

Oh if I had a dollar….honestly…I hear this literally every single day. I hear is so often that I decided to dedicate an entire episode to it! So many of you have a body comp or weight loss goal - this applies to working on a chronic health issue too - and you feel like you’re doing so much and when you describe your efforts you can’t understand why, for all the energy, time and money you’re spending, you aren’t getting better results. Most of us feel like we are doing everything right and can feel frustrated or confused why things aren’t improving as quickly or as profoundly as we want them to. In this episode, I break down the most common reasons “doing all the right things” isn’t working and what to do instead.  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

Originally intended to treat type II diabetes, these injectable drugs are now widely available (and quite pricey) as medications for weight loss - and they do produce weight loss! However, because these medications work on hormones that are secreted from the digestive tract, they of course have a host of gastric side effects that can make them unpleasant but again effective. When you look a bit closer though at the quality of the weight loss we see it isn’t such a magic bullet after all. This means we are losing as much muscle as body fat, in some cases more and that’s about the last thing we want - especially as we get into our 40s. In this episode I talk about how these medications work, what can be done to counter this unwanted consequence or what to consider if you’re thinking about taking these meds. As well, I talk about a few other effects of these meds that we need to keep an eye on such as lowering HRV and raising resting heart rate. These meds are definitely an options for a certain population but w

On the whole, we know exercise is helpful to balance blood sugar. However, for those of you that feel badly after exercise or those of you that get a strange reading on your CGM (continuous glucose monitor) after a workout I wanted to clear up any confusion as to what’s happening and why. In this episode I also cover what types of training cause various types of blood sugar highs and lows, what’s a problem and what’s not as well as how to adjust if you’re not feeling great after a workout or running out of energy and suspect it’s your blood sugar that’s the cause.     Are you dealing with all that comes with perimenopause and need a little help? Be sure to email me about joining my amazing perimenopause coaching group: the PeriParty! We’re tackling this dicey time with the right information, exercise and nutrition - and having a lot of fun in the process! Just reach out for more info.    To work with Dr Brooke click here and if you loved this episode please leave a review!     Follow Dr Brooke on Instagram an

With more and more of my patients testing positive for mold derived mycotoxins in my practice, I wanted to welcome back to the show environmental professional Michael Schrantz to answer specific questions about how to take the next steps. When we find mycotoxins on a urine test in my practice, the next step is trying to figure out where the mold is coming from in the patient’s environment. This is often when things get very overwhelming! And potentially, very expensive.    With the wide variety of mold testing you can do in your home, how do you know what to trust? Which test is best? Should you even open this can of worms that may involve remediation of your home which is emotionally and financially taxing? I trust Michael and really wanted to have him back on the show to specifically answer testing on what tests are the most accurate and your next best steps to investigate mold sources in your home.    Learn more about Michael and how he can help you here.   Are you dealing with all that comes with perimeno

I was lucky enough to stumble upon Britt’s work on Instagram and I’m so glad I did because after I devoured her book (The Science of Stuck, Breaking Through Inertia to Find Your Path Forward) in a day, I asked her to be on the show! We’ve all felt stuck at one time or another and it can leave us asking disempowering questions like “what's wrong with me” or “why can’t I do what I need to do” that leave us more stuck and anxious than we already were! In this episode, Britt (a licensed neuropsychotherapist) helps us ask the right questions to produce forward progress, get moving with “micro-yeses” and to honor and understand ourselves better - turns out we may be stuck because somehow we feel it’s the safe place to be. I shared my story of being super stuck about a year ago and how I fell precisely into this trap of doing a lot of the wrong things to get unstuck and how I’m using these tools to keep moving forward.    Learn more about Britt Frank and her book here.   Are you dealing with all that comes with peri