health and wellness

Toxic Overload

/ Katie P. Tolley, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC / Leave a comment

Toxic. That’s a pretty strong word, with a lot of negativity attached to it, especially when we’re talking about health. It’s so important to think about toxins when thinking about health. “Toxic load” is exactly what we need to be focused on when we want to get to the root of chronic health symptoms.

Toxins are all those substances that make your body work harder. Toxins are things like chemicals, metals, infections, microorganisms… basically any foreign matter we inject or ingest. These foreign substances create an immune response, that immune response is ongoing, which makes for an immune system that is always working, on guard, and not functioning as well as it could be, and should be.

Where do these toxins come from?

Not to overwhelm, but they really are everywhere. They are the glyphosate (RoundUp) in your kid’s cereal. They are in your homes and schools, think about old water-damages building and mold. So many of the old buildings in the USA are water damaged. Think about the fumes you smell when you’re pumping your gas, or lighting a candle. Think about the scents in body care products like makeup, lotion, shampoos, and such. These toxins are right in our own backyard, think about ticks, mosquitos, and fleas that carry diseases like Lyme, Bartonella, Babesia, and such.

So, why should we care about toxic overload?

The more toxins we’re exposed to, the harder our body has to work to filter them out. Our filter organs, liver, kidneys, and lymphatic system help to eliminate these toxins. The problems arise when the amount of toxins we ask the body to filter outweigh the work the filtration system is capable of and the body isn’t able to eliminate toxins fast enough. The more toxins, the slower the filters work. When there are more toxins going in than coming out, that creates toxic overload.

What does toxic overload look like?

Health problems that don’t go away. When the body is suffering from chronic, ongoing health issues, it’s usually because the immune system is stressed from toxic overload. It looks different in everyone… in some people, it’s allergies or eczema, in others it’s asthma, migraines, or insulin resistance. It depends on the individual, their genetics, and the toxins they’ve been exposed to, some are much worse than others. Toxins like mold, Lyme disease and heavy metals leave neurological damage along with other systemic damage that is unresolved even after the toxins are eliminated.

I decided to write this because i need to share what I know. I keep telling people about toxic load, but I can’t talk to everyone that needs to know, so, I decided to write it down. It’s been quite a while since I wrote, and i guess it’s time to jump back in. A lot has happened in the past few years, and I haven’t written much about it, although I have A LOT to say. Maybe it’s time to get it all out, and maybe this is how I need to do it. If you have questions, feel free to leave them in the comments. If you have topics you’ve wondered about the past couple years, let me know and maybe I can address them, I’m always open to writing suggestions.

Until next time, which hopefully will be sooner than later, enjoy the journey. ✌️

Homemade Southwest Chicken Soup

/ Katie P. Tolley, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC / Leave a comment

Ok, it’s taken me forever to finally sit down and write this, it’s because i don’t measure everything and throw it all together, but I’ve done this twice and it’s been great both times, so here it is.

Y’all know I’m not good at measurements, so everything is kinda approximate so feel free to adjust to your taste.

XRXU1G4dTd+TX+038jIZJwIngredients

  • 2 onions
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 8-9 mini sweet peppers
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 box organic chicken broth
  • 1 jar/box organic chicken bone broth (I make mine or buy Kettle & Fire)
  • 1 box organic veggie broth
  •  4-5 tsp taco seasoning (made from Wellness Mama’s recipe)
  • 3 lbs chicken thighs
  • 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes
  • 1 can/bag black beans
  • 1 bag frozen corn
  • 1 c sprouted rice
  • 2-3 sprigs cilantro
  • Himalayan salt
  • Black Pepper
  • coconut oil/ghee

As with most of my recipes, I started with 2 sauteed onions, I add 3-4 cloves of garlic. I also add turmeric and oregano. I usually start most of my meals this way. Onions and garlic are gut healing. Turmeric is anti-inflammatory and oregano is good for the immune system. I also add Himalayan salt and black pepper (the black pepper activates the turmeric).

While the onions start to cook down, I start the broth. I add chicken bone broth, chicken broth, vegetable broth, filtered water, fire roasted tomatoes, black beans, corn, cilantro, sweet peppers, squeeze in the lime, and add taco seasoning. Bring to a boil.

Once the onions have cooked down a bit, I add them to the broth. I leave a few onions in the pan to flavor the chicken while I’m grilling it (via stove top). My family prefers chicken thighs. I buy organic when I can, when I can’t I buy as natural as I can find. I prep the chicken thighs by sprinkling them with all of the above spices including the taco seasoning. I grill my chicken in coconut oil or ghee. Once the chicken is completely done, cut it up and add it to the soup.

Bring all of the above to a boil. Boil for approx 30 min. Add rice, cover and reduce to low/low-medium heat for approx 40 min or until rice is completely cooked. Stir occasionally so rice doesn’t stick to the bottom.

And the next time I make it, I’ll take a picture because I don’t have one to share. If you try my soup, I’d love to know how it turns out for you! If you read this and it doesn’t make sense, just let me know, I might have forgotten something, but I think I put it all in there for y’all.

Where I buy:

A lot of the ingredients above, like the sprouted rice,

I purchase online via Thrive Market. As a member of Thrive, I have saved thousands of dollars on groceries over the past few years. When you purchase a Thrive Market membership they donate a membership to a disadvantaged family, that’s awesome!

 

***Affiliate links in this post, thank you for supporting my family by using these links when you make your purchase.

 

Adaptogenic Herbs: Mother Nature’s Secret Medicine

/ Katie P. Tolley, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC / Leave a comment

It wasn’t until a few years ago that I’d even heard the term “Adaptogenic Herbs” and when I did I still wasn’t quite sure what they were or what they did.

Adapt means to modify, change or restructure. Adaptgenic herbs have the amazing ability to modify, change and restructure our body at a cellular level.

According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of an adaptogen is “a nontoxic substance and especially a plant extract that is held to increase the body’s ability to resist the damaging effects of stress and promote or restore normal physiological functioning”.

So, let’s think about this a minute, there is a natural substance, actually multiple substances that will help the body combat stress. Our bodies are stressed by a plethera of environmental factors daily. So many health issues are stress related. Could this be an answer?

Over the past week, I’ve watched a video series on Herbal medicine. Did you know that Herbalism as a medical practice was outlawed in the United States over 100 years ago? This is downright sad, because it has started to erase the knowledge we need to have about natural forms of medical treatments, treatments that are successfully practiced in other parts of the world everyday.

So many ailments that are considered common health issues could be reveresed with the addition of adaptogens. Adaptogenic herbs can treat and prevent diseases like Depression, Anxiety, ADHD, Chronic Fatigue, Insomnia, Brain Fog, Demenitia problems, neurological disorders like MS and Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular disorders like high cholesterol and high blood pressure, digestive disorders, adrenal fatigue, thyroid imbalance, and the list goes on and on. If you name any chronic disease, adaptognic herbs will probably make it better. They get to the source of the problem.

Often times, we take pills for symptoms, but we forget that those symptoms are signs, they show up for a reason. Adaptognic herbs get to the source of the problem. Adding adaptogenic herbs to my nutrition plan has decrease the need for all the medications that I used to take for asthma, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome, fibormalgia, allergies, migraines and more. It’s been an incredible transformation. I rarely even go to the pharmacy anymore.

Boosting my immune system and fighting the chronic inflammation and stress that my body is constantly battling with adaptogenic herbs and other holistic nutrition remedies has changed my health 100%. It’s hard to believe I’m the same sick person that cried and suffered with pain from IBS and Fibro and Migraines.

Let me share a list of things adaptogens can do:

  • increase endurance
  • increase libido
  • decrease stress (actually decrease cortisol levels!!)
  • boost immune function
  • decrease inflammation
  • provide allergy relief
  • decrease anxiety and elevate mood
  • regulate sleep
  • strengthen digestive system
  • strengthen cardivascular system
  • calm the nervous system
  • balance hormones
  • balances adrenal function

These adaptogenic herbs are plants and fungi; and with some the roots hold the magic elixir. These are herbs like Ashaganda, Astragalus, Holy Basil, Reishi, Miataki, Shiitake, Rhodiola, Maca, Chaga, Shishandra and Cordyceps, just to name a few. You’ve probably heard their names buzzing around, but weren’t really sure what was so great about them. Now you know!

Now you need to know how your get your hands on them, right?? Um, y’all… why do you think I keep talking about my superfoods? THIS! THESE! These amazing Adaptogens! All of the above are in Shakeology! All of the health issues listed above that people struggle with, that I’ve struggled with, are better now that I have the antiinflammatory effects of these amazing superfoods helping my body.

“THIS IS WHERE I GET MY ENERGY,” says the girl with the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

We all deal with stress, we can’t avoid it, that’s just how life is in the 21st century. If we want to live our healthiest, we need to actively do what we can to combat the enrionmental stress our bodies are exposed to each and every day. Counteracting that stress at the cellular level in our body is the secret to staying well.

And, let’s face it, we all know we can’t get those adaptogenic effects in the Standard American Diet no matter how well we eat, our food just doesn’t have the nutrition we need. We need immune boosting, antiinflammatory nutrition to be healthy. That’s why I add my adaptogens, along with some other superfoods.

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I can’t wait to help you learn more about getting healthy and feeling better!

If you need help navitaging your wellness journey, I’d be happy to help. I love helping people learn what they can do to take control of their health and the health of their family.  It’s empowering for them, and it fills my cup right up! If you want to work with me, just send me a message and we can chat up a plan for you! If you want to check out my website to place an order or start working with me, click here. I can’t wait to hear from you!

Feel free to contact me: Facebook – Instagram – or Email me: katie@katiepinktolley.com

 

 

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If you want to read a little more about some of the scientific stuff, like the info I found in this article, just click on the text: “..recent pharmacological studies of a number of adaptogens have provided a rationale for these effects also at the molecular level. It was discovered that the stress—protective activity of adaptogens was associated with regulation of homeostasis via several mechanisms of action, which was linked with the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the regulation of key mediators of stress response…”  (*info from US National Library of Medical National Institute of Health)