Overview
This episode is a crossover from the Feel Better Be Better podcast hosted by Dinara Muk, where Dinara interviews Rachel about her own health journey, autoimmune disease, mold illness, copper toxicity, and nervous system regulation. Rachel shares the story that most listeners have never heard in full, including a $100,000 heart surgery that found nothing, the moment she finally got her Hashimoto’s diagnosis, and what actually turned her health around. This is one of the most personal and information-dense episodes of the show.
You’ll Learn
- Rachel’s full health story from childhood lung issues and hospitalizations through athletes asthma, hair loss, brain fog, and panic attacks in her early 20s to a terrifying middle-of-the-night heart surgery that found nothing and led her to functional medicine for good
- Why 75 percent of autoimmune disease patients are women, and why the combination of cyclical hormone fluctuations, the tendency to push through without recovery, and unaddressed stress and trauma may be driving that disparity
- Why autoimmune disease is not a life sentence and how addressing the actual root causes including leaky gut, gut infections, environmental toxins, stress, and genetics through epigenetics can put symptoms into full remission without lifelong medication
- What mold illness actually is, how approximately 50 percent of buildings have some level of mold, why mycotoxins are invisible and can travel through air ducts and blow through your home undetected, and which foods including coffee, peanuts, cashews, corn, and dried fruits most commonly carry mycotoxins
- The key warning signs that mold may be affecting your health including chronic headaches, joint pain, skin issues, vertigo, mood disruption, and the triggering of conditions like lupus, Sjogren’s, fibromyalgia, and Hashimoto’s
- How to assess mold in your home including checking indoor humidity, looking for water damage history, investigating recurring leaks, noting musty smells, and when to hire an indoor environmental professional for an ERMI test
- The mold-free coffee brands Rachel recommends including Purity Coffee, Kion Coffee, and Bulletproof Coffee, as well as the Micro Balance product line for non-toxic home remediation of belongings
- How copper toxicity shows up especially in women with copper IUDs or copper pipes, why it can mimic anxiety, bipolar disorder, and manic episodes on lab results, and why copper dumping must be managed very carefully and slowly with professional guidance
- The polyvagal framework for understanding chronic stress including sympathetic fight-or-flight and dorsal vagal shutdown, how both suppress digestion and immune function, and which tools including EFT tapping, box breathing, cold exposure, and shaking can help regulate the nervous system daily
- Why EFT tapping works like acupressure on Meridian points while using verbal affirmations to reduce emotional intensity, and where to find guided sessions through Brad Yates on YouTube
Yes, focus on healing. But don’t get so obsessed that it becomes its own source of stress. Go on your calendar and delete something you’ve been dreading. Put in something you love. Laugh more. Play more. You are not here that long.
Read to uncover your root causes and heal?
If you’re struggling with an autoimmune disease, thyroid issues, gut problems, or mystery health issues that conventional medicine can’t explain, I can help. Through functional medicine lab testing, we will uncover what’s really going on in your body and create customized protocols to help you heal. If you’re ready to reverse your health issues naturally, you can book a health consultation with myself or someone on my team below.
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