Integrative Wellness Centers

08/05/2025

Feeling tired, gaining weight around your midsection, or craving sugar more than usual? These can be early signs of insulin resistance, a metabolic imbalance that often goes undetected until it becomes something bigger. The good news? You don’t need extreme diets or complicated routines to start turning things around.

Here are 5 things we do with every client to help improve insulin sensitivity and support better energy, mood, and long-term health:

🧃 Balance blood sugar at every meal: Focus on meals that include protein, healthy fat, and fiber, especially at breakfast, to avoid the glucose spikes that drive insulin up.
🪫 Identify hidden blood sugar crashes: If you feel exhausted, shaky, or irritable between meals, that’s a clue. Tracking symptoms (not just glucose) helps personalize support.
😴 Prioritize deep, restorative sleep: Even one night of poor sleep can make you more insulin resistant the next day.
🔥 Reduce systemic inflammation: That means calming the gut, addressing food sensitivities, and supporting adrenal balance...not just cutting sugar.
🚶

08/04/2025

When stress becomes chronic, it doesn’t just affect your mood...it disrupts your hormones, digestion, sleep, and immune health. Cortisol, your primary stress hormone, is at the center of it all.

Adaptogenic herbs can help your body better regulate stress and bring your system back into balance. Here are a few to know:

🌿 Ashwagandha – calming, great for anxiety, sleep, and cortisol regulation
🌿 Rhodiola – energizing and uplifting, especially helpful for mental fatigue
🌿 Holy basil (Tulsi) – balancing for mood, blood sugar, and immune function
🌿 Reishi – grounding and supportive for sleep, immunity, and long-term stress

Choosing the right one depends on your unique stress pattern and symptoms. Working with a practitioner can help you find the best match, and avoid the guesswork. We can help! Click here 👉 https://www.iwcenters.com/calendaly-solp or go to the link in bio to schedule your visit. This is where real healing begins.

07/30/2025

Did you know that raw carrots can help your body detox excess estrogen and support hormone balance? This easy Hormone Balancing Raw Carrot Salad is a functional food designed to support gut health and natural hormone detox pathways.

Ingredients

For The Honey Lime Dressing:
2 tbsp white or apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp lime juice (can sub for lemon)
1 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp raw honey (can sub for pure organic maple syrup)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (can sub for avocado oil)
1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt

For The Raw Carrot Salad:
1-2 large organic raw carrots, outer layer peeled and discarded
1-2 tbsp crunchy nuts or seeds such as pistachio, peanut, sesame, etc.
Fresh herbs such as cilantro, mint and basil

Instructions
Make your dressing by whisking all ingredients except for olive oil together in a small bowl. Once mixed, slowly drizzle in olive oil while continuing to whisk until dressing is well combined. Set aside.
Next, make sure the outer layer of your carrot has been peeled or discarded first, then use a peeler to shred the carrot lengthwise into long ribbons or strips.
Add carrot ribbons into a bowl and toss in all remaining ingredients.
Drizzle dressing over salad, toss together and enjoy.

Recipe adapted from: https://sofreshnsogreen.com/recipes/salads-recipes/raw-carrot-salad/

07/29/2025

If you’ve been feeling off but can’t quite figure out why…
Sometimes the body sends signals before anything shows up on a lab report. Here are a few not-so-obvious symptoms and what they might be trying to tell you:

❌ Chronic hives or random skin flare-ups?
→ Try cutting back on high-histamine foods and supporting gut health with anti-inflammatory nutrients like quercetin and omega-3s.
❌ Waking up every night between 1–3 AM?
→ Add a protein-rich snack before bed and support natural detox with gentle practices like dry brushing or herbal teas.
❌ Persistent bloating, even with healthy eating?
→ Slow down your meals, chew thoroughly, and try digestive bitters to support stomach acid and enzyme release.
❌ Irritability or anxiety right before your period?
→ Load up on leafy greens, magnesium, and vitamin B6, and keep caffeine low during your luteal phase.
❌ Tingling hands or feet out of nowhere?
→ Increase your intake of B12-rich foods like eggs, fish, and nutritional yeast, and stretch regularly to support nerve health.

Small changes can make a big difference, but if symptoms persist, consider getting personalized testing to uncover what your body really needs. We can help! Click here 👉 https://www.iwcenters.com/calendaly-solp or go to the link in bio to schedule a visit. Let’s get to the root of what’s really going on.

07/28/2025

07/28/2025

Hormonal imbalances don’t always show up as major health crises. Often, they're hiding in small, everyday struggles that are easy to overlook...until they aren't.

Here are a few signs your hormones may need more support:

😴 Trouble falling or staying asleep, even when you're tired
🌬️ Bloating or digestive issues that come and go
😟 Anxiety or irritability without a clear trigger
💢 PMS that’s more than just a bad mood...it disrupts your life
⚡ Fatigue that lingers, even with good food and decent sleep

These symptoms may seem unrelated, but they’re often your body’s way of signaling hormone stress or dysregulation. If these feel familiar, it might be time to look beyond surface fixes and explore what’s going on under the hood.

Click here 👉 https://www.iwcenters.com/calendaly-solp or go to the link in bio to schedule your first visit. We specialize in the cases everyone else gives up on.

07/27/2025

Are you struggling with unexplained weight gain, fatigue, or brain fog?

Your thyroid might be the hidden culprit. In this evidence-based guide, I'll walk you through:
✓ The top warning signs of thyroid dysfunction
✓ 5 proven strategies to naturally support thyroid health
✓ Key lifestyle changes that can transform your thyroid function
✓ Critical nutrients your thyroid needs to thrive
✓ Test you need to have to determine next steps for your thyroid

As a functional medicine practitioner, I'll share clinical insights and research-backed approaches to help you take control of your thyroid health. Learn how to identify symptoms early and implement effective solutions that work with your body's natural healing processes.

Ready to go from Chaos to Control? Click the link in the post to watch my new YouTube video where I break everything down for you!

https://youtu.be/hQh8fG8PXCY

Are you struggling with unexplained weight gain, fatigue, or brain fog? Your thyroid might be the hidden culprit. In this evidence-based guide, I'll walk you...

07/27/2025

From ‘you can detox with maple syrup and cayenne pepper’ or ‘eating ice cubes boosts your metabolism’...we’ve heard it all when it comes to health advice.

We’ve met so many patients confused by well-meaning but off-base health tips.

So let’s hear it and bust some myths..what’s the craziest one you’ve come across? Bonus points if it made you pause and say, ‘Wait… what?’ 😂

Sick of feeling dismissed or unheard? You're not alone.
Comment “WEBINAR” to uncover the 5 Pillars of Health we use to help our patients finally feel like themselves again—from healing the gut to restoring energy and balance.

07/27/2025

Daily intense exercise might seem like the fast track to fitness, but without proper recovery, it can actually stall progress and dysregulate key systems.

Recovery is a critical part of the training cycle where the most important adaptations happen. They’re when your body does its deepest healing and recalibration. Here’s what’s happening behind the scenes when you take a day off:

🌀 Lymphatic Flow Increases: Gentle movement (like walking or stretching on rest days) enhances lymph circulation, helping your body clear out waste, reduce inflammation, and boost immune resilience.
🔧 Muscle Repair Happens Off the Mat: Your muscles don’t get stronger during a workout—they get stronger after, during rest. Recovery allows micro-tears in muscle fibers to repair, which builds strength, prevents injury, and supports long-term gains.
🧬 Hormones Rebalance: Overexercising raises cortisol, which can mess with thyroid, s*x hormones, and blood sugar. Rest days lower cortisol and give your body a chance to restore hormonal equilibrium, essential for metabolism, mood, and energy.

Rest days aren’t optional, they’re essential for metabolic health, musculoskeletal integrity, and long-term resilience.

Curious about functional medicine but not sure where to start?
Comment “WEBINAR” to learn how we walk our patients through 5 essential healing pillars to help them reclaim their energy, mood, and hope for the future.

07/23/2025

I got a DEXAfit scan last year when I turned 50 and decided to repeat it a year later to make sure I was moving in the right direction.

I’m happy to report that my body fat dropped from 16% to 12%—a loss of 9 pounds of fat—and I gained nearly 4 pounds of muscle. To put it into perspective, those 9 pounds of fat are basically two of the bricks I'm holding in the photo. That’s a significant reduction in stress on my body and physiology and dropped my biological age from 41 to 33 yoa.

One interesting moment during the scan: the technician asked what I did for a living. I told him I practice functional medicine. He said, “That makes sense—only doctors in the longevity and natural healthcare space seem to come in for these. I never see surgeons or primary care doctors.”

I told him that doctors who focus on surgeries and prescriptions often aren’t as interested in the strategies that actually prevent the need for those interventions.

It’s unfortunate, but many people—including physicians—don’t realize that excess body fat isn’t just stored energy. It actively produces inflammatory compounds and metabolic waste, which stress the system and contribute to heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s, dementia, cancer, and diabetes.

07/20/2025

We often think of gut issues as bloating, gas, or irregular bowel movements. But what if your gut imbalance is showing up somewhere completely different?

Your gut isn’t just for digestion. It’s a central hub for immunity, inflammation, and even mood regulation. When the microbiome is off, it can ripple through your entire body. Even without digestive complaints, gut imbalance can show up in surprising ways:

🔹 Fatigue – Poor nutrient absorption and chronic inflammation can drain your energy.
🔹 Brain Fog – Gut inflammation affects neurotransmitters and cognitive clarity.
🔹 Skin Issues – Acne, eczema, or rosacea can stem from internal imbalances.
🔹 Joint Pain – Food sensitivities and gut-driven inflammation often trigger stiffness.
🔹 Frequent Illness – 70% of your immune system lives in the gut—imbalances weaken your defenses.
🔹 Mood Swings or Anxiety – Gut-brain dysfunction alters your emotional resilience.
🔹 Food Sensitivities or Histamine Reactions – Dysbiosis can heighten reactivity.
🔹 Poor Sleep – Gut health impacts cortisol rhythms and melatonin production.

If you're dealing with symptoms that seem disconnected or hard to explain, it might be time to look in the most overlooked place of all: your gut.

Your gut health impacts everything—from energy and mood to immunity and inflammation.
If you're stuck in a cycle of bloating, food sensitivities, or unpredictable digestion, there is a deeper reason. Comment "WEBINAR" below to get the replay and learn how we uncover the root causes of gut dysfunction—and help you finally feel like yourself again.