Alsop Naturopathic Wellness

05/27/2026

Are you trying to hydrate with microplastic soup?
The dementia finding in this study is the part I keep coming back to. Brains of people with a dementia diagnosis had 2 to 10 times more microplastic accumulation than those without. We don't fully understand the relationship yet, but the pattern is hard to ignore.

Full breakdown in the video. Here's a practical exposure reduction list to save:
➡️Stainless steel or glass water bottle. Use it.
➡️ Filtered tap over bottled whenever possible.
➡️ Never drink water from a bottle sitting in heat or direct sun.
➡️ Don't microwave food in plastic containers — ever.
➡️ Store food in glass or stainless steel when you can.
➡️ Avoid plastic wrap directly on food, especially warm food.
➡️ Reduce single-use plastic packaging where you have a choice.

Bottled water isn't the only source, but it's one of the largest and one of the easiest to control.
Nobody needs microplastic soup.

Save this and share it with someone who leaves water bottles in their car.

05/24/2026

Endometriosis. Hashimoto's. Thyroid cancer. Celiac disease. Chronic fatigue. For a long time I thought more about my diagnoses than my plans.

I spent so many years watching my life pass by instead of living it.

There's a version of this story where it gets better. I'm in it. 😊

❤️ if you've been there.
Follow for more.

05/21/2026

Getting outside in the first hour after waking up is one of the highest-return things you can do for your health. Early morning light, even on a cloudy day, hits specialized receptors in your eyes that signal your brain to anchor your cortisol rhythm for the day.

Cortisol is supposed to peak in the morning and taper off by evening. When it does that correctly, you have energy when you need it and can actually wind down at night.

Think of it like setting your body's internal clock. A morning walk does this beautifully — but even just standing outside with your coffee counts.

Do it before you check your phone. The morning light is doing more than you think. Let it.

05/21/2026

They did the Black Knight scene in Spamalot last night. I felt seen. 😂

We headed out to the theater for a 7pm showing on a Tuesday. Totally worth it. Hilarious from start to finish. The cast is singing and dancing full out for two hours straight — incredibly impressive to someone who can only sing in her car when it's loud enough that she can't hear herself.

That meme is just my actual 2pm from a few years back. Grateful to be on the other side of it. If it's yours right now — you're not alone, and it doesn't have to stay that way.

05/16/2026

Gardening is my favorite cardio.🐛

The best exercise is genuinely the exercise you'll actually do. It doesn't have to look like a workout. It just has to move your body and not feel like punishment.

138 bpm and 488 calories of pulling weeds, hauling soil, and getting things in the ground. Sounds like cardio to me!

What's your favorite "it doesn't look like a workout but it absolutely counts" activity?

05/14/2026

Cool. Which labs? Compared to what reference range?
Most people leave their doctor's office with no idea what was even tested, what those tests were looking for, or why those particular tests were chosen in the first place. Just a portal notification that says "normal" and a vague sense that they're supposed to feel reassured.

Normal means you didn't fall outside the reference range on the tests that were ordered. It doesn't mean nothing is going on. It doesn't mean you're not paying attention to your own body. It doesn't mean you're making it up.
It means no one has looked closely enough yet.

"Normal" and "nothing is wrong" are not the same thing.

Drop a 😤 if this has been you.

05/10/2026

PR day at the Starved Rock 10k. 🎉
Comparison is the thief of joy, and nowhere is that more true than in a race corral.
A few years ago I had to stop and sit on a park bench twice during a one-mile walk near my house. Not being dramatic — I just couldn't finish it.
Today I run/walked 6.23 miles in 1h 25m, and I am not even a little bit sorry about that pace.
Most people out there aren't judging you. They're too busy managing their own bodies, their own history, their own comeback. My husband is a lifelong athlete who has run Spartan ultras — and four months ago he had a cardiac ablation for AFib. Today he ran a half marathon PR with a heart that stayed in rhythm the whole way. We're both just out here doing the math on what our bodies can actually do today.
Start where you are. Push when you can. Sit on the bench when you need to.

05/07/2026

Medicine that actually looks for the answer — not just the next prescription.
That's the foundation of naturopathic medicine, and it's why I practice the way I do. Instead of layering solutions on top of symptoms, I work to understand what's actually driving them — whether that's gut imbalance, nutrient gaps, blood sugar instability, an autoimmune process that's been flying under the radar, or something else that's been dismissed for years because the labs "looked fine."
When you get to the root of what's going on, you don't just feel better temporarily. You understand your body in a way that actually changes things long-term.
That's the goal every time.
Happy 🌿

Graphic credit: The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians

04/29/2026

You're not imagining it, and its not that supplements and anti-histamines don't work. You're just probably taking the wrong one for your picture.

Seasonal allergies aren't one-size-fits-all. The supplement that works for someone else's sneezing and congestion may do nothing for yours because the underlying drivers are different.

I put together a full guide that breaks down what's actually going on with seasonal allergies, what to eat during peak pollen season, and an interactive quiz that walks you through finding the right supplement protocol for your specific situation in three steps.

All products in the guide are on sale through April 30 in my Fullscript dispensary.

Take the Quiz! (and read the guide): https://anwnaturopathic.com/seasonal-allergy-supplement-guide/
FullScript Community Plan: https://us.fullscript.com/plans/anw-seasonal-allergy-support

A few of the professional-grade supplements discussed in this post are currently on sale in the ANW Fullscript dispensary — details at the end. (Sale ends April 30, 2026)

04/25/2026

The biggest allergy mistake I see? Waiting until you're already miserable to start support.

The supplements that work best for seasonal allergies build up in your system over time. They help to stabilize your mast cells BEFORE they start releasing the dreaded histamine. Starting before peak pollen season is ideal — but if you're already sneezing, starting now still beats waiting another week.

Not sure what to take? I put together a full guide with an interactive quiz to help you find the right fit for your specific picture — plus a limited sale running through April 30 in my Fullscript dispensary.

https://anwnaturopathic.com/seasonal-allergy-supplement-guide/

04/20/2026

I ask because I see a pattern constantly in the women I work with.
By the time they reach out, they've been managing everyone else's needs for so long that their own symptoms have become background noise.
Bloating every day? Normal. Exhausted by noon? Normal. Mood all over the place? Normal.
It's not normal. It's just been normalized.
I call it mom syndrome, and it's one of the most common things I see. Not a diagnosis. Just a pattern. And the first step out of it is deciding that you are worth the same effort you give everyone else.

You've been on the back burner long enough.

↓ Tell me in the comments: when did you last do something just for you?