I just want to share some awesome books, podcasts, documentaries, etc. that have absolutely changed my life and tremendously helped me along my healing journey.
Books
Health, Nutrition, & Autoimmune Issues
The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat & Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet by Nina Teicholz – Regarding the low-fat diet, diet-heart hypothesis, lipid hypothesis, whatever you want to call it. It is proving fatal to the general human population. I love how Teicholz took 9 years of meticulous research to write this book. She breaks down all of the studies that are “in favor” of this hypothesis and illustrates how flawed they are. One of my absolute favorites.
Practical Paleo: A Customized Approach to Health and a Whole-Foods Lifestyle by Diane Sanfilippo – First off, Sanfilippo’s recipes are delicious. Second, she was a graphic designer in a past life. So she has tons of colorful illustrations of all of the “science-y” stuff, which makes it super easy to understand. I love that she has meal plans for lots of different health issues. From digestion to neurological issues to autoimmune conditions to fat loss.
Why Stomach Acid is Good For You: Natural Relief from Heartburn, Indigestion, Reflux & GERD by Dr. Jonathan V. Wright and Dr. Lane Lenard – Indigestion is actually caused by having too little stomach acid. That’s contrary to what we’ve all been told and sold, right. Dr. Wright demonstrates why, and gives natural ways to overcome having low stomach acid. Still convinced you have “too much” stomach acid? Request the Heidelberg Stomach Acid Test from your healthcare practitioner – I’d be interested to hear what your results are!
The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan – The Omnivore’s Dilemma perfectly and philosophically describes the genesis and journey of four completely different meals. The author really delves into the struggle we have as humans to answer the age-old question, “What’s for dinner?” and eloquently illustrates how we, as a society, are so far removed from where our food originates. My favorite new fact is that places such as Polyface Farms exist. Their full-circle approach to food was eye-opening, and I’m so excited they’re only one state away in Virginia. I hope to get up there soon to visit. Also, the entire story of corn was incredibly fascinating. To learn about all of the ingredients that food giants make from corn and put into our food products and animal feed was astounding. We really are a society built on one plant alone.
Cholesterol Clarity: What the HDL is Wrong with My Numbers? by Jimmy Moore with Dr. Eric C. Westman – This book is for anyone who has been told they have high cholesterol. It may not be as detrimental as you think. Jimmy breaks everything down so that everyone can understand what exactly having “high cholesterol” really means. Fun fact #1: HDL cholesterol and triglycerides are more predictive of health concerns than LDL and total cholesterol. Fun fact #2: Carbohydrate-based foods can actually worsen cholesterol numbers. And consuming foods with saturated fat (from good sources) can be beneficial to heart health. Mind. Blown.
Put Your Heart in Your Mouth! What really is HEART DISEASE and what can we do to prevent and even reverse it by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MMedSci (neurology), MMedSci (nutrition) – Dr. Campbell-McBride illustrates how the “diet-heart hypothesis” is causing health problems across the entire globe. This hypothesis says that “all dietary fats cause heart disease. Therefore people should avoid all dietary fats in order to avoid heart disease.” Every cell in our bodies, however, contains and/ or uses fat. So avoiding dietary fats is actually very harmful. I already knew that personal care products and household cleaners can contribute to endocrine (hormone) disfunction. But I learned from this book that they could also have an effect on one’s risk for developing heart disease. It’s a good idea to check the ingredients of your favorite products: deodorant, shampoo, makeup, etc.
Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome by Dr. James L. Wilson – Stress really can do terrible things to a person’s body. Sometimes a person has a stressful event and seemingly “handles it well.” But that event could have a lasting impact. Both the person’s overall health and well-being could suffer down the road if the person doesn’t allow himself/ herself time for adequate recovery. Dr. Wilson shows readers how to determine if they have adrenal fatigue (with both at-home tests and tests to ask your healthcare provider about) and gives step-by-step instructions on how to overcome it.
The Thyroid Connection: Why you feel tired, brain-fogged, and overweight – and how to get your life back by Dr. Amy Myers – I love the way that Dr. Myers presents all of the information in her book – super easy to understand. She explains all about proper thyroid testing and shows you what to eat. Also, she describes how to determine what medication is right for you, busts some thyroid myths. She ends with an easy 28-day plan to follow.
Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: Lifestyle Interventions for Finding and Treating the Root Cause by Izabella Wentz, PharmD, FASCP with Dr. Marta Nowosadzka – This was the book that started it all, started my journey. My functional nurse practitioner recommended I read it after she diagnosed me with Hashimoto’s in 2016. I learned Hashimoto’s can have several different triggers. This book gave me hope that it can be put into remission. I will be eternally grateful for the 3 years Dr. Wentz spent writing and researching this book because without it, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
Hashimoto’s Protocol: A 90-Day Plan for Reversing Thyroid Symptoms and Getting Your Life Back by Izabella Wentz, Pharm D, FASCP – In Dr. Wentz’s 2nd book, she gives you a specific 3-tier protocol for reversing your thyroid symptoms. Once again, she is super comprehensive and drops a ton of thyroid knowledge on her readers.
The Healing Kitchen: 175+ Quick & Easy Paleo Recipes to Help You Thrive by Alaena Haber, MS, OTR and Dr. Sarah Ballantyne – In the fall of 2016, I decided to start the AutoImmune Protocol (AIP). It was clear that simply giving up gluten wasn’t benefitting my thyroid antibodies. I needed to try giving up other food categories known to cause issues with people with autoimmune conditions. This cookbook was tremendously helpful in figuring out what I could eat (instead of focusing on what I couldn’t eat). Not to mention that everything I’ve tried has been scrumptious!
Taking Charge of Your Fertility: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health by Toni Weschler, MPH – I wish I had read this book back in high school. It taught me more about my body than I had ever learned from public education and reading Cosmopolitan magazine. Not to mention all of the helpful tips regarding birth control and/or achieving pregnancy. A must-read for any female of the human race, for sure.
Mindset, Dharma, & Lifestyle
The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life Before 8am by Hal Elrod – Everyone’s got to have their own secret to life, right? This is mine (and Elrod’s!). I’m on Day 30 of Miracle Mornings and feel so energized and empowered. I plan to chronicle my experience into a blog post soon. Since I’m writing for 10 minutes a day during my Miracle Morning anyway. If you wake up and complete these 6 activities before you start your day, your life will change dramatically for the better. I can’t wait!
The Four Tendencies: The Indispensable Personality Profiles That Reveal How to Make Your Life Better (and Other People’s Lives Better, Too) by Gretchen Rubin – This isn’t just another one of those boring personality type books. The Four Tendencies actually make sense, they deal with how a person handles expectations. This book will be super beneficial to me with my Nutritional Therapy clients. Bust your hiney to perform so well at work, but can’t make yourself stick to a workout regimen? You might be an Obliger. Personally, I’m an Upholder that leans toward Questioner. Rubin has a quick quiz on her website if you’re interested in seeing what you are. I’d be interested too, so feel free to zap me an email.
The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living by Meik Wiking – This was a quick and colorful read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I printed out the “Hygge Manifesto” and taped it to our refrigerator. I wanted to remind us to slow down and enjoy the small things in life. Which is hard to do nowadays.
Awakening Joy: 10 Steps to Happiness by James Baraz with Shoshana Alexander – This book has tons of tips, exercises, and stories to guide readers to let go of the need for perfection and find the joy in life. One author has taught meditation for over 30 years. The other has studied Buddhism for over 40 years. So they’re the perfect people to have written such an excellent resource for us Type-A personalities!
The Great Work of Your Life: A Guide for the Journey to Your True Calling by Stephen Cope – This was very inspirational and motivational. Cope walks readers through the Bhagavad Gita (a 2,000-year-old Hindu religious text) to guide them in how to discover their dharma, or life’s purpose. He provides stories from the lives of ordinary people as well as Western historical figures (Walt Whitman, Harriet Tubman, Jane Goodall, etc.) to illustrate how they exemplified the principles of the Bhagavad Gita.
Awakening the Brain: The Neuropsychology of Grace by Dr. Charlotte A. Tomaino – I’ve always been interested in neuropsychology and this book did not disappoint. Dr. Tomaino proposes evidence for links between our brain and the divine. She offers exercises for you to hone your intuition and your link with the divine. This book aptly illustrates the power of the mind.
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: A Simple, Effective Way to Banish Clutter Forever by Marie Kondo – In her first book, Kondo guides us through her famous step-by-step method to rid ourselves of soul-sucking clutter. For me, the category-by-category method is a fantastic idea. Compared to using the dusty old room-by-room method, of course!
Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up by Marie Kondo – The concept of “does this spark joy?” resonates more with me than the concept of minimalism (and they’re both very similar). Both of Kondo’s books aided me in being able to prepare for our recent first home purchase and subsequent move. I recommend them to anyone who will listen! I binge-watched all her shows on Netflix already.
Business, Leadership, & Entrepreneurship
The PEACE Process by Miriam G. Zacharias – This book was written to help holistic practitioners grow their businesses successfully. Not having much of a business education or background, I thought this book had tons of useful tips. She explained everything very easily without using a bunch of business jargon. I had the privilege of taking a Career Development Course by Miriam through the Nutritional Therapy Association after I read this book. She is so knowledgeable and has lots of great (and not-so-great) first-hand experiences to share. And is very sweet in person!
Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown – Essentialism is like minimalism for your mind! Basically, McKeown teaches readers how to discern which items on their to-do lists are top priorities. And which ones readers should just get rid of. Essentialists do less, but do those things better than people who are trying “to do it all.”
Radical Candor: How to Be a Great Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott – The biggest lesson I took away from this book was that a manager’s duty is to lead employees to do their best, be their best, and achieve their dreams. No matter what those dreams are. Let’s say the person isn’t comfortable with cold-calling but excels at public speaking. Have the person do more presentations and less sales. Empower the person to develop his/ her strengths. Scott’s tagline is “Care Personally and Challenge Directly.” Apparently there’s a podcast too!
Lean In: Women, Work, & the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg – Either it’s how we’re raised, or it’s just the subliminal messages we receive from society as we grow up, but women unknowingly hold themselves back in their careers. Sandberg’s messages in this book greatly inspired me to go out and “get it done!” — I mean, achieve my dreams, of course.
Podcasts
Balanced Bites with Diane Sanfilippo and Liz Wolfe – Health, wellness, and lifestyle
Build a Badass Business with Diane Sanfilippo – Business
Found My Fitness with Dr. Rhonda Patrick – Health and wellness
Get Merry with Emma and Carla Papas – Business, health, wellness, and lifestyle
Keto Lifestyle with Jessica Tye – Health, wellness, and lifestyle
Mastering Nutrition with Chris Masterjohn – Health and wellness
Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn – Business
Documentaries
Websites
Nutritional Therapy Association – become a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (like me!) or Consultant. If you do sign up, please let them know I sent you. They offer referral rewards and I’ll send you a little thank-you gift!