Natural PMS and Anxiety Support

Brian Strickland  00:00

Hey everyone, we wanted to pause for a moment and tell you about our sponsor for this week. And that is, of course, Lifeseasons. They believe in the body’s own innate healing force, which is, of course, something that we do as well. And this is what drives them to be a leader in health education, and formulate products that combine the wisdom and nature and the progress of science. Their formulation team has over 150 years of combined experience in the natural product industry. And with you in mind, they go to nature to formulate the most thoughtful, and synergistic solutions that have evidence based ingredients, as they like to say nature works and science proves it. If you haven’t tried any of Lifeseasons formulations, you are missing out, they’re absolutely fantastic, including the two that we talked about today, the premens-t and the anxie-t formula. To learn more about Lifeseasons, their philosophy and a really cool story about how their company began, you can visit lifeseasons.com.

 

Sarah Burden  01:04

Okay, so when I first came on board with Lifeseasons back in 2016, I assumed this would be something that a woman would need to take, you know, cycle after cycle, maybe for three or four cycles before she would see a balancing benefit. And so I went around, you know, around the country connecting with all these health food stores talking to customers in the aisle. And what I kept hearing was, no, I just take this on the days that I feel PMS. And I was like, what? I can’t believe that’s really happening, you know, but I have heard it over and over again. And now we have a huge team of customer service reps, and I just met with them today. I think we have 20 folks now on that team. And they hear the same thing that because to see. I do. Yeah. That’s so cool to hear. Yeah. So it doesn’t even need to be taken every day to get the benefit. That’s pretty remarkable.

 

Brian Strickland  01:57

You’re listening to the Nutrition World podcast, a show about navigating the intricacies of holistic wellness. We’re a natural health food store located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and we believe that optimal health and peak performance should be accessible to everyone. Hey guys, welcome back to the Nutrition World Podcast. My name is Brian Strickland on the producer of the show. And on today’s episode, Cady is going to sit down with Sarah Burden. Sarah is the VP of education and communication for a company called Lifeseasons. And if you’re unfamiliar with them, their whole philosophy is really centered around the fact that nature provides what we need for healing. And then that is backed up with scientific and clinical evidence. They have a ton of great formulations. But today we’re going to focus on two specific ones. And that is their premens-T formula. And their anxie-t formula. This one is going to be mostly centered around a women’s health. But obviously some of the things can be applied to everyone. And we have a ton of information to cover on today’s episode. So we hope that you enjoy this conversation with Cady and Sarah Burden.

 

Cady Kuhlman  03:05

Welcome, Sarah, thank you so much for joining us.

 

Sarah Burden  03:08

Oh, I’m so glad to be here. Good to see you, Cady. Thanks.

 

Cady Kuhlman  03:11

Thank you, same to you. And so I hope you and your family have been well and you know, kind of we’re doing a virtual thing here. And that seems to be the way of the world right now. And so, you know, we’re just doing what we can with the thankful for technology?

 

Sarah Burden  03:26

Absolutely. What a time for zoom.

 

Cady Kuhlman  03:27

I know. Exactly. So I want to just really hop right into it. Because this is, this is a passion of mine. Here at our store, women’s Health is I would say women’s and babies are really my focus. And it feels like my calling and passion in life to kind of bring forth and bring to light a lot of issues that females have no idea are even really issues and don’t realize that there’s holistic ways, natural ways to help them through these, these stages and through the symptoms. And so I want to dive into talking about PMS. So I want to talk about those, those seven to 10 days before your menstrual cycle that most women at some point in their life I could I could imagine have felt either moody either short tempered, cramping, bloating, food allergies, headaches, I mean, the list goes on and on. Wouldn’t you say that in something in your practice that you hear often?

 

Sarah Burden  04:27

There is a long list of very uncomfortable and life disrupting symptoms that can start like you said seven to 10 days before the start of the first day of your menstrual flow. And you’re absolutely right. So many women walk around with these issues and have no idea that there are options for them. So things like moodiness, cramping, obviously once the cycle starts breast tenderness, bloating, breaking out right in this area in traditional Chinese medicine, this relates to ovaries and so for a lot of women they’ll get an acne flare up right here right before their cycle starts. A lot of digestive disturbance, things like, you know, either constipation and then diarrhea going back and forth, headaches, fatigue, and then food cravings are all very common symptoms of PMS.

 

Cady Kuhlman  05:19

And traditionally, most women, what do they do about this? Like, it seems as if they just feel like it’s something that they have to deal with, or they have to go grab an over the counter Mydol, Tylenol, something that’s really just suppressing the symptoms, but they aren’t aware that maybe there’s something else they could do.

 

Sarah Burden  05:39

No, you nailed it. This was one of those shocking statistics to me. So 85% of women in the United States have some or all of those symptoms before the start of each menstrual cycle, and 79% of women in the United States buy supplements. But guess how many are buying supplements for themselves for those PMS symptoms? It’s only 4%. Only 4% of American women are taking something to help balance their hormones and promote an easier time pre menstrualy, because we are thinking about our families, we’re buying something for our husbands, we’re buying something for our kids, maybe we’re buying other things for ourselves and just dealing with it, like you said, just figuring that there’s no other option, or we turn to something like mydol or Excedrin or Tylenol. And quite frankly, there are issues with those over the counter drugs. A lot of people think that there’s no issue because it’s available over the counter. But our Chief Research Officer at Lifeseasons, nurse practitioner Jamie Langston said liver issues from Tylenol is one of the most major things that they see in her clinical practice. People don’t think about the fact that there are long term liver effects to to that taking that kind of over the counter.

 

Cady Kuhlman  06:52

Definitely. Oh, definitely. And, you know, I kind of wonder I’m like, how do people how do people not know that that something is, is is wrong when they have the symptoms? Or how do they not know that maybe there’s something that needs to have a deeper look. But, you know, I go back to even when I was 18 and 19, and I had some of that acne around my chin and, and I would go to the OBGYN and I still was in this same path of holistic health. But I, I did enjoy kind of asking and digging a little deeper with the OB and saying, What can I do about this? What can I do about that hormonal acne here? And then what can I do about these? I think at that time, it was maybe five to six days of just kind of real tender, emotional moods that would come on, and everything seemed upsetting to me and everything made me weep. That kind of feeling. Yeah. And sadly, the only answer was birth control pills. That was the answer that I was told. And I I actually did go down that route. And it actually made my PMS 30 days rather than five days. So yeah, the whole month and then in a tender emotional state and didn’t receive the help that I was looking for.

 

Sarah Burden  08:08

It unfortunately, it is the go to for for Western trained doctors, right is that they are taught, you know, in medical school, by the pharmaceutical reps that, that these you know, synthetic hormones will lock in and manage your hormones all month long. And what people don’t often think about is that being on, you know, cyclical birth control puts you at risk for many different nutrient deficiencies, including all of the B vitamins, which of course, are so important to mood and energy levels, right. So we may be further tanking things and throwing things out of balance. They also put us at risks of certain types of cancers and blood clots. And so if the purpose that you know, a person is taking birth control is not really even about preventing pregnancy, but trying to bring balance their hormones, those side effects may not be worth that might not be an OK equation for someone, right? Especially knowing that there are natural alternatives that really can bring actual healing and balance rather than just trying to contain the symptom.

 

Cady Kuhlman  09:11

I totally agree. And I think that’s a conversation I’ll have with my clients and my customers is, you know, why are you on that hormonal birth control pill? Is it actually for birth control reasons? Are you you know, actually, right, not desiring to have a child right now. And that’s just something that you feel led to take or is it because you’re trying to manage a symptom and if it’s the managing a symptom, it’s just, I can’t wait to get them educated on the other alternatives and options out there to really feel their best self one of my favorites, psychiatrist Kelly Brogan, you’re probably familiar with her but she has a book out Own Yourself and it’s basically about how awful the birth control pills in that industry is for thinking there is a purpose for them and I’m not going to slander all medications or all birth control. There is a purpose but sure the it’s not the answer for symptoms of PMS, it generally is not the answer. And so she really encourages women to get off of the birth control pills if it’s possible for them, and start seeing how they feel within two to three menstrual cycles and seeing if that vitality in that mood and, and whatnot may actually balance back out or find a natural route or eat anti inflammatory foods and start, you know, digging a little bit deeper here. And so I know as you know, a holistic lifestyle involves, it involves a lot of modalities. It’s not just a pill, it’s not just a food. But what else you know what else in a life could kind of balances out for our PMS? Is there certain foods that you like? Is there certain activities, sleep guidance, anything you have for, for females?

 

Sarah Burden  10:50

Yeah, and so that’s the that is the other thing, right? That often, we’re called to do a little bit more work. And we like the idea that taking a pill every day could fix everything. And unfortunately, that’s just not the case, whether it’s a supplement pill or a pharmaceutical pill. So people that I have talked to, you know, women who I have talked to who deal with intense PMS have found that daily active activity, moving their body even as little as 30 minutes, if something that’s a little bit more high intensity that really gets their blood pumping, but blood pumping and heart racing a little bit, does really mitigate a lot of those PMS symptoms. Enough water is really important as well, because when someone is constipated, the hormones aren’t leaving the body as quickly as they should. And when that fecal matter is hanging out, in the body, long term, those hormones can get reabsorbed into the bloodstream, and then the balance becomes even more and even more imbalanced, really tipping things wildly out of whack so that we have even more extreme hormonal imbalance. So keeping the bowels moving, having lots of you know, fresh fruits and veggies, plenty of fiber, plenty of water, you know, to keep things moving along, maybe aloe, you know, some good things to help lubricate, move things along, if there could be some liver issues going on. And one indication, you know, on the face, we talked about this for hormonal acne, meaning kind of related to the cycle. This is liver in traditional Chinese medicine. So lines here, breakouts here, are often related to liver. And so someone knows that they’ve worked in a situation where they’ve been exposed to a lot of chemicals. You know, I grew up in central Illinois, around a lot of farmland, the ponds we swam in, we’re just probably 50%, you know, pesticide runoff from the farm. And even being somebody at a lot of trade shows or in new construction homes. Any placed that you’re exposed to a lot of sort of like volatile organic compounds, things like that could be a good idea to help love your liver a little bit, maybe with a regular cleanse or an ongoing, you know, supplement to help support that so that as the liver breaks apart, hormones that are no longer needed in my body, it can dismantle them properly and neutralize them, and then help move them out through the bowel as fast as they should. So that helps keep everything in balance.

 

Cady Kuhlman  13:12

Sure, those are great tips. That’s so so helpful. So I guess talk to me, at this point, a little bit about the premens-t formula by Lifeseasons, I know for sure, a couple employees at our store. I know from clients, this has actually changed their life. And I don’t say that like on a mild level, there’s literally some people that I know that were dreading that one week before their period, dreading the weepiness, dreading the bloating, couldn’t fit into the clothes that they wanted for that week literally had a separate like area of their closet, they would actually have to pull from for that one week of the month, because of the intense bloating. So I mean, those symptoms that are disrupting your daily life and are, you know, causing causing stress and strain to keep up with the activities that you want to do. What is this formula about? And kind of how was it formulated and why? Yeah, so premense-t, and you may have a newer label on the shelves, that nutrition world. The premense-t is our formulation from lifeseasons, that provides all of the ingredients that have been traditionally used to help bring balance at this time of the month in milligram amounts that are backed by research. So that’s really lifeseasons claim to fame is looking at traditional use and science to give the right therapeutic dose so that somebody really does have that life changing experience. And I never get tired of hearing that I absolutely love that kind of feedback. And that’s something that we get to enjoy a lot working at this company because those hefty therapeutic doses at most of your viewers are probably going to be too young to remember the commercials that I grew up with. But the raisin bran commercials the son used to put in two scoops of raisins. It was so much more raisin than other kinds of cereal. And I always say Think of that with life seasons, like two whole scoops of all the good herbal ingredients, you know, vitamins, minerals, botanicals that have been proven to help with this health challenge, all in those nice hefty doses that you really can have life changing effects. I love that. And I think that’s something unique with lifeseasons that you just touched on is the fact of the therapeutic dosing. So it’s not just a sprinkle of something, it’s not something that right that, you know, you’re going to have to take six have to see a difference, they have somehow figured out a way to formulate enough ingredients to hit different ways of helping the body find balance, you know, when I get when I turn it around, and like look at it, I mean, we have B vitamins, which are known to help with mental stability and known to help with kind of handling stress. And then we go into herbs, and then we go into actually anti inflammatory ginger, and then we go into, we go into berries, Chasteberry. And dong quai in Chinese herbal go to I mean, there’s so many different ingredients. But there’s probably such a synergistic effect I could imagine between them all. And that’s another big component.

 

Sarah Burden  16:09

That’s absolutely right. No, you nailed it, we always look at at lifeseasons, the the formulation team has over 150 years of experience formulating in the natural products industry. And one thing I really appreciate, and that I think customers end up appreciating without even knowing it’s going on, is that the formulation team sits down and thinks about what is happening in the body of a woman who is having premenstrual syndrome issues, right. And so rather than just trying to mitigate or turn off a particular symptom, or even a set of symptoms, they really look at the underlying causes, causes and conditions that have contributed to the point where this person is now at that pain point that they went into the health food store to seek a remedy. And so looking at the underlying issues, and then turning to that traditional wisdom about, you know, the different pathways in the body that are involved the different metabolic processes, like you said, and then putting in those ingredients at the full research back dosages. And then the synergistic benefit of taking them all together. Lifeseasons does quite a bit of research. In fact, we are the leader in the industry, in funding, third party research, you know, gold standard clinical trials on our finished formulas, and one recently, which happened to be an immune product, it was set up in a very clever way because each individual ingredient was tested for immune response. And then as a whole tested in vitro and there was a 350% increase in activation of the NK cells when all of those ingredients were taken together. And so that was just kind of the tip of the iceberg. We’d like to do further research across all of our formulations, but it gives us a really good indication that taking those botanicals, nutritional ingredients, this nutraceutical approach really does provide those synergistic benefits that gives someone much more than taking one or two or even a couple of these ingredients on their own.

 

Cady Kuhlman  18:03

That’s fascinating. Thank you for sharing that system on that’s, that’s amazing. I so believe in the synergistic effect, I think that you know, synergy is found and even the ways that you can combine food, you won’t we already know that and the ways that certain foods can help other foods digest better, and some kind of hinder the digestion of others. And so I think synergy is such a cool concept in our, in our industry. And I know you guys are big on that. So tell me like, with your clients and with your customers. Is this something that you say to take all month long? Or is this something that you say to take like the week before?

 

Sarah Burden  18:36

Okay, so when I first came on board with life seasons back in 2016, I assumed this would be something that a woman would need to take, you know, cycle after cycle, maybe for three or four cycles before she would see a balancing benefit. And so I went around, you know, around the country connecting with all these health food stores talking to customers in the aisle. And what I kept hearing was, No, I just take this on the days that I feel PMS. And I was like, what? I can’t believe that’s really happening, you know, but I have heard it over and over again. And now we have a huge team of customer service reps. And I just met with them today. I think we have 20 folks now on that team. And they hear the same thing that because to see. Do you ever hear Cust I do? Yeah, that’s so cool to hear. Yeah. So it doesn’t even need to be taken every day to get the benefit. That’s pretty remarkable. It

 

Cady Kuhlman  19:28

is because honestly, it’s funny that you told that story. I did the same thing. When we first were introduced to this at our store I told I told the customers and clients I’m like, this is something you have to take daily because it’s got to get into the system. It’s got to start working. And I would tell them, you know we’re not treating this as if it’s a medication which we’re still not treating as a medication but I I said we’re going to we need to use it to really create a shift in the body. Well then, the way things kind of naturally occur. People didn’t want to take it all month long and started experimenting to see Could I just take it when I feel bad, and then people are coming back in and telling me that they that is what they in fact did. And it was working just great for them. So then my advice changed based upon those anecdotal reviews. So, yes,

 

Sarah Burden  20:13

Isn’t it so funny, and I’m all in favor of that, right. So if somebody has really intense issues, right, like maybe very irregular cycles that are very unpredictable, and that causes a lot of issues in their life, they may be motivated to take it all month long, every month, right to help bring things into balance. But for somebody who’s really only experiencing PMS, you know, seven to 10 days a month, she may take it just on those days, and get all the benefit. And all of us get to a point. I mean, I know, I know, Ed is like the ultimate champion of taking supplements, I take a lot, and I’m still nowhere close to him. But all of us have our own threshold of where we hit pill fatigue. And so for every customer, I say, absolutely take it when you need it, because then you might be able to take something else on those other days only take something for hair, skin and nails or for, you know, cognitive function or for your joints. So maybe kind of opens up a little room in your supplement routine. Yeah, totally take something else.

 

Cady Kuhlman  21:10

I agree. I don’t think everyone has the, the desire to take as many days as Ed. So I think it’s I think it’s awesome that he wants to do that. But oftentimes customers come in and they their question is, is how many do I have to take and how often and so kind of from a place of what can be a little easier for their lifestyle or what cannot throw a huge wrench in in their day to day, you know, routine. And so this is phenomenal that it doesn’t have to throw a big monthly rent, she can just throw a few days before the cycle a week before a cycle. Yeah, yeah,

 

Sarah Burden  21:42

I think that compliance is easier.

 

Cady Kuhlman  21:45

I think so too. And we’ll we’ll have to see if any, they’re pregnant or breastfeeding now for so many years that I haven’t had PMS so I you know, once I finished one cycle and season of my life, it may be something that I’ll try so

 

Sarah Burden  21:58

Yeah, yeah, no, it’s so fantastic. It’s got you know, like you said, some of those go to women’s herbs on the Chasteberry. That dong quai, like you said Dong quai, in traditional Chinese medicine is sort of considered like like women’s ginseng, or like the women’s all purpose, panacea herb, it will kind of do everything. cramp bark is one of the first herbs that I really fell in love with. Back when I first started working in a health food store, because it was so experiential, I was just like, miserable with menstrual cramps. And one of my co workers, you know, told me to buy it on my break. And I didn’t took the tincture, and it was like Angel fingers relaxed, the uterine contraction that I was like agonizing with. And so I loved that cramp bark is this formula, it’s being becoming harder to find as a standalone product. So I love that that’s woven in here. The ginger, like you said, for the inflammation that comes along with like the tender breasts, and you know, all throughout the body, but also really the digestive disturbances, the gas and bloating and the kind of, you know, getting your bowels thrown out of whack that happens. Along with hormonal imbalance, the ginger really helps with that, and the B vitamins, not only for mood, but also healthy brain messaging and hormone production. It’s critical. And I think so many of us are stressed, when we’re stressed, we burn through a lot of B vitamins, and we may need a lot more, they’re water soluble, we may need a lot more. And so that’s built right in to sort of support your body. In that normal hormone.

 

Cady Kuhlman  23:26

I love that. B vitamins I feel like are a catch 22 because it’s like your body needs them. But the more stressed you are, the more your body’s using them up. And so it’s kind of a vicious cycle aware, they’re so important, they’re grabbed at by the body. And so that’s why we have to replenish them. I’m so big on B vitamins I can, I can always see a difference in people’s adaptability to stress and able to manage stress a little bit better with those ones, once the B vitamins are actually at a good recommended dose.

 

Sarah Burden  23:53

I agree.

 

Cady Kuhlman  23:54

One thing that I I happen to talk earlier with a co worker about is and I want to throw this in just so it’s heard. But using organic tampons and organic pads is such a key factor in helping the menstrual cycle pain, maybe even the PMs because as you probably know, and I’m sure you’ve kind of advised other people on is the chemicals within those tampons and pads are just tragic. And that’s going straight into the bloodstream through the porous vaginal walls. And so that’s just always one little tip I could offer a female in terms of a lifestyle change is to look for the organic tampons, the organic pads, and when I was doing a little research on this, I didn’t realize what tampons are actually a medical registered as a medical device. And I didn’t realize that but that means that they don’t have to be. It doesn’t have to be on the label what chemicals were used what chlorines in it. Yeah. And so just a small little tip for the females that are listening to this is I mean imagine pairing organic tampons or pads if that is what the female chooses to use with the premense-t and I could imagine some wonderful feeling days, you know, out. Yeah,

 

Sarah Burden  25:02

No, that’s a great point. Well, and I will say from personal experience and from talking to a lot of my friends, even organic tampons for people who are really prone to cramps, some women find that not using tampons reduces their cramps, especially for someone who gets clotting with your cycle. And so sticking with a pad or even sometimes the, the reusable absorbing underwear, that the different period underwear can be really helpful because then you’re not inhibiting any of the flow. And so then the kind of the cramping can stop. Yeah, so that’s another pro tip.

 

Cady Kuhlman  25:36

That’s a great tip. I haven’t wrapped my mind around the underwear yet. But I think that’s a great,

 

Sarah Burden  25:39

They’re amazing.

 

Cady Kuhlman  25:40

Are they?

 

Sarah Burden  25:41

They’re amazing. Yes.

 

Cady Kuhlman  25:42

I’ve heard that from probably five or six people in the last couple of years. So

 

Sarah Burden  25:47

Especially overnight, it is a game changer.

 

Cady Kuhlman  25:49

Wonderful. Oh, that’s so cool. Thank you for sharing. So yeah, so let’s move into the other product that and the other real topic that I kind of want to get to here because even bigger than PMS and even bigger than us kind of discussing, you know, menstrual symptoms. I honestly think that one of the biggest topics that we get asked about in our store is anxiety. I think that it’s so unfortunate, I think people are really plagued with anxiety right now. I think that the pandemic, I think that lifestyle changes, I think even social media, perhaps I think even reason or maybe we can’t exactly know why, but you live in a really anxious culture and world right now. And I hate that I you know, I hope that there’s going to be a shift at some point that doesn’t keep us all living in this manner and in this way. But for now, I think that we kind of need to touch on, you know, is there relief for people that are feeling anxious? And what does even anxiety feel like? Like, what are the symptoms, and some people aren’t even aware that maybe they’ve been living in an anxious headspace.

 

Sarah Burden  27:00

So this is one of my favorite topics. This is my very favorite formula. Anxie-T, my gosh, this this one? I yeah, I am the target market for this and so many people are. So I was one of those people who I did not feel like I resonated with the concept of anxiety at all. And I can remember the first time I went and saw an acupuncturist. She kept bringing up stress and anxiety with me. And I assumed that she was assuming that because of my job as a traveling, salesperson covering 11 states that she must think I’m really spread thin. And so I kept saying no, no, no, like, I really liked my job. It’s not stressful to me, I’m not stressed. And finally, she just kind of stopped me and she said your body is guess what, you know what I mean? And that was a big lightbulb moment for me. And I thought that anxiety would look like someone who was too scared to talk too shy to participate. And I’m like, you know, I have no problem with like dancing in front of a crowd or whatever, you know, I thought it would be someone who was biting their nails. Somebody who couldn’t sleep at night, like I had a very narrow idea of what anxiety would look like. And when I saw a list a while later that said, do you go back and revisit the same media whether a book or movie over and over? Because it brings you an instant sense of comfort? I was like, wait, what? Yeah, my whole life. I read the same book twice a year from second grade through the end of high school really, because it always brought me comfort The Phantom Tollbooth is great. But but, you know, I go back and watch Pride and Prejudice over and over again, like I go and I, you know, got through college, watching the 10 Commandments over and over again, something about the way Ann Baxter said Moses always made me feel like instantly comforted. And so I was always turning to the same media and I talked to friends who are like, Oh, I just put The Office on all the time, because it just instantly like de stresses me. Well, that’s somebody whose body has been so keyed up with anxiety, that they are looking for predictability, they are looking for something that they know exactly how this plot is going to go and seeing that predictability brings me that sense of like ease and comfort in my body. So scrolling, picking up foods, especially carb heavy and sugar, heavy foods, sometimes salt and sugar both act on our stress hormones. So it’s kind of a form of it’s an attempt to self medicate, when those hormones are just sort of out of control. But yeah, picking up the phone and you know, texting an ex is a way that some people try to like, get some good brain chemistry going and picking or you know, habitual sort of behaviors can certainly be but yeah, it doesn’t always look like someone who’s too timid to talk. It can look like I’m controlling or you know, Creating a situation, that’s like a pretty narrow situation that I can be okay,

 

Cady Kuhlman  30:05

I can relate to that I actually, I very much can my form has always been perfectionism. So the need to kind of have everything worked out in a perfect way or me analyzing my life or my home or my office or this and needing it to work out perfectly. And so I think that kind of fits into your, your idea of like, the control and trying to kind of fit things into a narrow, like schematic kind of situation, so that it’s comforting to know. And the other ideas, the inability to kind of adapt with change, I love to know like this, I can do new things, but I need to know and I want to know about exactly how to plan and perfect that before. And so that all those things I did not realize either until my you know, last years and more adult life, I suppose, is a way of trying to manage anxiety because I’m the same way I sleep perfect. I’ve always never been biting my nails, I can talk to people I don’t know, it’s just, I would dance in front of people to no problem like that. Like, exactly. And so but yet that perfectionism and need to like fit into a little box to comfort me has has definitely been, yeah, something in my life. So I think we can relate.

 

Sarah Burden  31:20

I’m glad we’re talking about this. I feel like so many so many people in so many women. Yeah, this message right that need to control the outside, in an attempt to change how I’m feeling inside is a very common thing that I think we women go to. So one thing that you touched on there that is such a perfect segue into talking about how this formula works is that sort of the need to know how things are going to go so I can kind of anticipate and predict that can be indicative that our vagus nerve is not well toned. And so the vagus nerve. For years, we’ve kind of heard like the mind body connection, the brain gut connection. The vagus nerve is the literal brain gut connection, and it kind of wanders all over the body. So it’s vagus as in Vagrant, and wandering all over the body. But when the vagus nerve is really well toned, our body can move in and out of fight or flight, and rest and digest with ease. Because as a human like an adaptable, well balanced, healthy human, I do need to be able to move into fight or flight very quickly. Sometimes someone swerves and cuts me off in traffic, there’s an emergency situation, I need to react, right, I need to maybe run innovate from a predator, you know, in prehistoric times. And so it is important to be able to quickly move into fight or flight, but it is just as important to quickly move back out when the threat has passed. And so a poorly toned vagus nerve means I hang out in that jittery, fight or flight state well beyond when the emergency situation has passed. And the longer I’m there and the more stress hormones I’m pumping out, the more inflammation that is being produced throughout my body, the more of a number it’s doing on my mental state, my gut health, everything. Same thing I need to be able to move into rest and digest when it’s time to eat. So a lot of people with high stress also develop digestive issues, because they’re not able to move out of fight or flight into rest and digest. And then a lot of people with a lot of stress can’t turn off at night to get into the sleep state. So a well toned vagus nerve helps us be flexible and adaptable, literally within our body. And the vagus nerve. It turns out one of the most important nutrients for it neuro chemicals is GABA. And there is not only GABA and anxiety, but almost every ingredient also enhances how the body produces or utilizes GABA. So this whole thing is food for your vagus nerve. So it helps you kind of be more resilient. And GABA also pumps the brakes on that mental chatter, that perfectionist thinking that cyclical thinking, the list making past the point where it’s helpful. The review of the day past the point where it’s helpful laying in bed at night thinking, that embarrassing thing that happened in Sister Margaret Murphy’s class in third grade, like it just quiets all of that, and so I can be useful and actually move forward into my day.

 

Cady Kuhlman  34:20

That was a beautiful description that makes it really was I mean, that makes perfect sense. I think that the vagus nerve is something that in the last probably two three years keeps coming up into my life. So different symposiums I’ve been to, different podcast, just different research about the vagus nerve and its role in our health in the way you described it. And, you know, what comes to my mind is is like, why are we not able to? Why are our vagus nerve so stressed out and why are they not able to jump a little more fluidly back and forth? Why can’t we go between fight and flight and back to rest and digest? What do you think? Do you have a thought on why that is?

 

Sarah Burden  34:58

I have a few thoughts. And, you know, there are certainly experts more well versed in this than I am, who have put a lot more time and effort into the research of this. But I think just having constant small panics throughout the day, and things like social media, you know, honestly, just as little surges constantly, I feel like probably isn’t helpful. And then we also I think, don’t do a lot of things that nourish and help. So I think that you guys at your store are also into a lot of the things that turned out to be beneficial, like hot and cold exposure therapy turns out to be really tonifying for the vagus nerve. So some of these really old traditional human practices that cross a lot of cultures. I love finding out that oh, look at this unifying factor is they all benefit the vagus nerve. So kind of going from like a hot sauna into an ice bath and back into the hot sauna or hot tub cold plunge hot tub. So that’s really tonifying even you can do just do it with your shower, you know, a nice hot shower and then at the end, turn it cold. One thing that is so Joy promoting to me is that singing tonifies, the vagus nerve humming deep gargling, anything that’s sort of causing a vibration of the vocal cords, actually is tonifying to the vagus nerve. So I feel like that’s part of like that beautiful high that you can get if you’re like singing your heart out, you know, with your family in the car, or your place of worship or wherever, where you’re just really singing from the gut. It’s tonifying, your vagus nerve. Isn’t that cool? Cool. I love that. Yeah,

 

Cady Kuhlman  36:33

That’s so neat. That’s yeah, it’s so cool. Sometimes how I think, maybe we don’t know the reason we do something. But there’s a reason behind it. And I’ve oftentimes caught myself and my husband pointed out that I’ll hum in like a maybe a little bit of a nervous situation. And so he started picking up on, are you nervous in the situation? And I’m like, I mean, not really. But then actually a little bit, you know, and so my natural response was kind of my body. I was humming,

 

Sarah Burden  37:00

That yeah, that gives me chills. That instinctual wisdom that is so cool.

 

Cady Kuhlman  37:06

I love that I know. And so sometimes I think if we kind of remove our, our thinking in our talking brain, our bodies almost may naturally know a little bit more what to do. But we we’ve disconnected ourselves a little bit from that intuitive living, perhaps because we’re in the age of information where we can quickly find an answer on Google or we’re, as you mentioned, social media, that constant dopamine surge that can go on with the addiction of the likes, and the dislikes, and the scrolling and the the new thing, every second flashing in front of our face.

 

Sarah Burden  37:40

Absolutely. And I also I feel like I’m getting news, I feel like I’m informing myself, maybe I’m keeping up on political issues that are important to me. Right. So I there’s that false sense that nothing important or good to do. But the algorithm is all designed to get me to spend money, and I spend more money when I’m stressed. You know, and I’ve absolutely watched, you know, when there was like, you know, big upheavals in the country, and I’m scrolling through like news story after news story. And then an ad would pop up, like, do you like these shiny earrings? I was like, yes, add to cart, do you know what I mean? And that was, that was like a stress response. That was me looking for that dopamine hit. So I think a social media fast is probably good for everybody. And also, I think our culture right now is so hyped on multitasking, you know, that I can be listening to a podcast about nutrition as I’m making my kids lunch, as I’m, you know, sweeping. And I feel like I’m maximizing my time. But really, my brain is never getting a pause, or any quiet. And so I think taking time maybe for meditation, or just some quiet is really critical.

 

Cady Kuhlman  38:47

I agree. I think people would be surprised how few minutes they would be able to sit and quiet. I know for me, when I first started doing that, I thought I can do that. And by two minutes, I’m like, Whoa, can I get up you know, like, go do something I need to make this list that’s very important. And so stretching your mind or stretching your your whole body and soul and allowing yourself to sit and allowing those feelings to come up but not act on them not go write the list, but actually stay seated. is it’s a good challenge, I think for the mental state. And so I guess with anxiety, my question would be like, how do you suggest people taking it again? Is it a if they’re in that if they’re really in that state where they’ve been viciously anxious for years and years and years? Do they take it all the time? Or do they take it as needed?

 

Sarah Burden  39:32

So once I took this formula, I would not want to not take it because of the way I feel when I when I took it from the very first day actually, this is one of my most profound experiences with a supplement ever. I took it and I had just started with lifeseasons so I had a whole new account list a whole new sales territory, all new products to learn. And in spite of all that I was driving in my car and I was like, Man, I feel really okay like I feel need absence of worry or stress. I feel right now like I just finished a great yoga class or just had a massage. I feel so centered in my body and clear about what else I should do today. There was no racing thought, no, you know, thready heartbeat or sweaty palms. All of that was gone. And I realized it had been 20 minutes since I took my very first serving of anxiety. And I fell in love. It turned out I talked to one of the formulators who’s a nutritional biochemist, and he said, Do you know why that happened? Well, the whole formula obviously is working. But there is a two to one ratio of L theanine to Kava Kava in this formula, and in a small clinical study that particular ratio so l theanine is the amino acid like compound that’s found in green tea and especially in Matcha tea. It’s the compound that helps get our brain into that nice, healthy Alpha role of rolling Brainwave. And it’s also the state that our brain gets into after meditation right? So that l theanine helps with that. So that’s very calming. And then Kava Kava is very calming, right can be used almost for like sedative effects. But something interesting happens. And this is where herbs sort of get into alchemy is that two to one ratio of L theanine to kava, instead of being doubly sedating or doubly relaxing, it actually produces a slightly different effect in that combination, where it brightens brain energy, and brings that feeling of like still calm in the midst of a storm. And I think that’s what we’ve all been looking for. As we’ve tried to like control and manage everything around us. We want that calm feeling inside. And that ratio of those two nutrients does that.

 

Cady Kuhlman  41:39

Wow, I had no idea about that.

 

Sarah Burden  41:41

I love this formula.

 

Cady Kuhlman  41:43

That is amazing. I’m gonna have to Def I mean, the staff may know this already, but I’m going to be training on that. And I will be sharing this with more people. That’s, that’s phenomenal. I know, a lot of times we have trouble sourcing Kava Kava in our store from a standpoint of safety and efficacy and all of that. And so, going back to lifeseasons, and its manufacturing practices, I know when we get something from you guys that I can trust that and so I think that’s such a beautiful thing to know that this really unique herb, pairing it with L theanine of which I had no idea about that small study and then knowing that it is yeah, a trustworthy source of the Kava Kava and, and that you all are doing all the testing behind it. And, and yeah, I’ve taken Kava Kava, maybe two or three times in my life, and it was a powder form and my tongue went numb. I don’t know if you’ve ever taken. Yeah, my tongue was numb. And I’m like, Yes, I’m like, Is this supposed to happen? And, and I can say, I think it took a little too much. And I can’t say it was the perfect remedy for me, but knowing that it with it when it’s paired with the L theanine. That’s really, really cool.

 

Sarah Burden  42:49

Nno, I’m the same way. It is such a fascinating thing that alchemy of the herbs because I don’t really care for kava on its own GABA by itself. I don’t feel great when I take just GABA by itself. But this combination of ingredients makes for me makes me feel exactly like what I was looking for. Because other stress formulas, I had tried many stress formulas or like a stress B complex, that sort of amps you up and if you’re already a little thready, and like over wired. That’s not a great feeling. It doesn’t feel like it solves the stress problem is maybe putting back nutrients you’re burning through but it doesn’t make me feel better in that moment. So they either maybe feel like that, or they were so sensitive, that maybe they had skullcap or valerian for during the day, I felt like I was stoned. And I would just be like, you can do whatever you want. I don’t know. For me, this makes me feel like I know exactly what to do next. And I’m already capable. What was I worried about? You know.

 

Cady Kuhlman  43:48

I don’t I’m going to be trying once I’m done breastfeeding. Phenomenal. Wow.

 

Sarah Burden  43:53

So the great thing about it is you can take it in the morning, you can take it at noon, you can take it at night, it’s a two day serving, you can put that wherever you feel your peak of stress. I was always doing mine in the mornings I do like it for a work day. You know, it really does help me feel in my body and centered and clear about you know, without the mental chatter without the sort of like if you give a mouse a cookie like hyper you know, scattered focus, but when my daughter was in kindergarten we started having clashes when my husband would bring her home from school at the end of the day I you know kind of like put your coat away, hang your backpack up like and he pointed out that those fights were starting on my side of the street. So I started taking my anxiety 20 minutes before they got home and I’d be like, Hey, honey, how was your day?

 

Cady Kuhlman  44:39

Oh, wonderful wisdom, though to be able to step back and see it was on your side because I don’t know now with having a toddler. They can sense what the mom is feeling. And so if you’re coming at it from a tense place, she probably had her tense self coming in.

 

Sarah Burden  44:52

Yeah, she Yeah, luckily, luckily, good husband who was like um,

 

Cady Kuhlman  44:58

Let’s step back and analyze that and then thankful for anxiety to come in and

 

Sarah Burden  45:03

It made a huge difference. But I also know a lot of people who feel like they they don’t relate to what you and I are talking about through the day until the moment their head hits the pillow. And I’ve heard I’ve had a couple people say it’s like all the browser tabs open back up in their brain, and that’s when it gets very loud. So those people like anxie-t at bedtime, but if not sedative, but it’ll quiet that mental chatter.

 

Cady Kuhlman  45:22

Sure. Okay. Wow, that I’m I’m absolutely blown away. So thank you for those descriptions on the on the anxie-t and and you know, I think I think that covered everything, honestly, for me with with lifeseasons, and when these two formulas and I just feel so grateful we’ve had the opportunity to chat and just have this conversation and you know, it’d be wonderful to see you again in person, but I’m so jazzed that we have these these formulas to offer to people and really help them live their absolute best life.

 

Sarah Burden  45:54

Absolutely. Well, I would love to talk to you again on some other product topics, maybe yeah, I love that. A lot of fun.

 

Cady Kuhlman  46:00

This was thank you so much, Sarah. Yeah.

 

Sarah Burden  46:02

Thanks for having me. Bye.

 

Cady Kuhlman  46:03

Talk to you soon.