EP 303 The Impact of Stress and Gut Health on Fertility | Dr. Melissa Levy

The Wholesome Fertility Podcast

I am thrilled to have one of my practitioner certification graduates and fellow acupuncturist, Dr. Melissa Levy. Dr. Levy is a practitioner with a passion for health, wellness, and fertility. Originally from the Philadelphia area, she ventured to Florida to pursue her education at the University of Tampa. A personal health journey changed the course of Dr. Levy's life. Facing health issues that Western medicine couldn't address, she discovered holistic practitioners who listened and considered the full body as a unit. This holistic perspective helped her understand her body better and manage her hormonal imbalances through acupuncture. This transformative experience inspired her to become a Doctor of Acupuncture and Functional Medicine Practitioner. Dr. Levy holds numerous certifications, including Certified Functional Medicine Practitioner, Certified Health Coach, and Certified Fertility Coach. As a board-certified diplomate of Oriental Medicine by NCCAOM and a licensed Acupuncture Physician in Florida, she founded the Integrative Wellness Center (IWC) in 2019. Her vision was to create a healing sanctuary for individuals, especially those who have lost hope. Her evidence-based practice model combines patient values, the best research evidence, and her clinical expertise to offer exceptional care. Initially, her onsite clinic in Jacksonville allowed her to help only local patients. Realizing the need to reach more people, she created online programs and coaching services to share her knowledge with individuals in different locations. Dr. Levy's goal is to provide the best comprehensive care to those who need it and are willing to make changes to better their health and lives. She aims to change how healthcare is delivered by providing exceptional, holistic care. Her mission extends beyond treatment; she strives to educate all her patients about the advantages of living a holistic life. Each encounter is an opportunity for her to positively impact her patients' lives, and she approaches this with unwavering dedication and care. Dr. Levy offers in-person appointments at her clinic in Jacksonville and provides virtual functional medicine consultations for Florida residents and functional health coaching for individuals everywhere. Websites: https://www.healthbymelissa.com https://www.iwcjacksonville.com Instagram: @dr.melissa_levy For more information about Michelle, visit: www.michelleoravitz.com The Wholesome FertilityFacebook group is where you can find free resources and support: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2149554308396504/ Instagram: @thewholesomelotusfertility Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewholesomelotus/ Transcript: Michelle (00:00) Welcome to the podcast, Dr. Melissa Levy. I'm so excited to have you on. Melissa Levy (00:04) Yes, I'm so excited. I'm looking forward to this, being able to talk with you again and just dive into what I do and the world of fertility. Michelle (00:12) Yes, and I'm so I was lucky enough to work with Dr. Melissa Levy and she was one of my students for my fertility practitioner course. I have to say, I just have to say this. Well, she's kind of stands on her own anyway. Yes, she got an extra certification, but she's like just a phenomenal like knows what she's doing type of practitioner and I mean, you really like went into everything like no stone unturned. I just love your motivation, your passion. Like, and it was it's legit. I just want to say that. Melissa Levy (00:46) Well, I think we even talked about this, like we're kind of just a lifetime learner. even though, you know, when I saw this course that you had, I was like, well, why not learn a little bit more? You know, I'm always diving into something, learning something new. And it just, the field that we're in, it's just kind of never ending of things you can learn and kind of better your education and further it. So it was great to just learn a little bit more and then the more you learn, the more you're open to and the more people you meet. So it was a great experience. So thank you. Michelle (01:13) Yeah, and I feel like you were already well versed. I mean, you stand alone on your own. So it was just awesome working with you. But I would love for you to share your background and how you got into wanting to do this Melissa Levy (01:26) Yeah, of course. I just remember being, I think most people have a similar story is like growing up, you're not really taught anything about your cycle. I had issues with my cycle. It's probably about 16 and I really didn't get my cycle yet. So I just remember going to the OB and they're saying, oh, all right, well, here's birth control. And I'm thinking in my head, great, now I'll be normal and... you know, have a normal cycle. And so I didn't know any better and most people don't. So from the age of 16, I was on birth control to help regulate my cycle. And then also having ovarian cyst, I had surgery, I believe my junior year of high school for like a big ovarian cyst, which they thought was endometriosis. So, you know, I'm 16 and they're telling me, hey, you've endometriosis without even looking, you know, looking at anything, just throwing names out there, which I think is something that happens a You know, people just kind of throw diagnoses and needs out there without really having an idea of exactly that's what it was. So being young thinking, I've endometriosis. What is this? You know, looking it up, being scared, and then getting surgery and them telling me it was a dermoid cyst, which is completely different, which was still kind of weird. But so that was just my first experience. And I just never had normal cycles really ever. And then going. Michelle (02:32) Wow. Yeah. Melissa Levy (02:41) into my college years. I was always an athlete, so I was personal trainer. I was working a lot, really stressed, a lot of stress on my body. So I just didn't feel good. I ended up getting Bell's palsy, which would not get better. And I was just on antibiotics and steroids for about a year or two years, just seeing tons of different doctors. Michelle (03:00) wow. Melissa Levy (03:03) not getting any answers. I think the thing that really frustrated me the most was going to a neurologist that I drove two hours to see and saw him for maybe five seconds. So it was just taking medicine, being on birth control, being on prednisone for that long, you feel terrible. So my gut health, my skin health, acne, hormones, nothing felt right. And I look back at pictures of myself from those years and Michelle (03:14) Wow. Melissa Levy (03:29) thinking I was healthy because I was a trainer and constantly working out and I had a lot of stress in my life as well. Looking back, I just looked unhealthy. I looked puffy and just all the medicines that they had me on, I didn't know any better until I got into the world of more holistic healing and learning more, being in that fitness and health. I was a personal trainer, group fitness instructor, yoga. I always wanted to help people and I think... Michelle (03:42) with her. Melissa Levy (03:54) this experience really helped me want to understand the body more and I know there's a better way of healing. So I was introduced into more like holistic health and acupuncture. And then from there, I just kind of fell in love with the medicine. when I started acupuncture school, as a student, you're able to get, you know, like $5 treatment. So we were getting treatment constantly and I was actually able to get off birth control and regulate my cycle, which took a little bit going off birth control. skin was... a hot mess, probably because being on the antibiotics for so long, not even thinking twice about it. But I think within like the three months of just Chinese medicine, herbs, and getting acupuncture pretty consistently, I was finally able to get at least a regular cycle and, you know, just been working on it and haven't really had too many hormonal issues, you know, since then, but it's just a lot. You learn a lot about yourself, I think. And in a way, it's a good thing because then it brought me to where I'm and I can have a lot of empathy for my patients and saying, hey, you I've been there, you know, I had the horrible migraines, I had the horrible skin and all things I just were told were normal. And last thing I'll say, I'll never forget. I remember I went, I was in acupuncture school. So I was learning a lot, as you know, you start learning things, you know, things that, you know, maybe aren't right that doctors sometimes may tell you. I remember I went to the OB and I was like, hey, you know, I was told I had, I had an ultrasound done and the tech told me, Hey, it looks like you PCOS. Once again, just throwing things out there. And I was like, so I brought it up to my doctor. was like, I had an ultrasound. said it looked like I had something called PCOS. She's like, no, you don't. You just probably have endometriosis. take some Advil and birth control. And that was my conversation. I, I just left and I was like, what in the world? was because I knew better at that point. And I just left. Michelle (05:21) Wow. my god. Wow. Yeah, so you could recognize, yeah, that wasn't cool. Melissa Levy (05:43) Never going back to this doctor again and not saying everyone's like that. But I think for women, just, we're so, we're just, we're told that, you know, that's just normal, you know, having pain from menstrual cycles, having hormonal balances, all that stuff's normal. you know, Advil and birth control are the solutions to everything. the more I learn and especially getting into functional medicine now, you know, having the acupuncture practice for several years, I've got more into functional medicine and I think that really connects the dots a lot for me too. I'm getting in hormone health and know, detoxification. So there's so much that as women that we're not even taught about our cycles or so I think just spreading the awareness, I think more women are wanting to know more and Michelle (06:28) Yeah, for sure. I know one of the things that really struck me when I was going to school. Of course, I had a very similar situation as you or story where I was given birth control pills as well. I think our stories are actually very common. A lot of people go through this. Yeah, I was so many. I've had so many guests, just guests tell me this, but then I've also had patients come to me and say that they've been put on birth control for this, that and the other. Melissa Levy (06:42) Really? Michelle (06:54) that had nothing to do with like their actual like root cause. Yeah, it's crazy. It really is crazy. being told, you know, or believing that certain menstrual cycle irregularities are normal. I think that that was the biggest aha for me when I was going to school is that certain things that we thought were normal, like having diarrhea if you have your period or constipation before or breast tenderness Melissa Levy (06:59) That's crazy. Mm -hmm. Michelle (07:20) PMS or even cramps that it's actually common. So we think it's normal, but it's actually not normal. So, so what are some of the things that kind of like you saw that you felt like, my God, like I can actually resolve Melissa Levy (07:26) Yeah. Yeah, I think a lot of it was just the mood stuff too. Like I would turn into like just a different person. Like along with that, just hormonal stuff like PMS, just all that stuff that we're told is just normal. I just like dread it heading my cycle all the time. And so I think it gets to a point where it might not always be perfect. know, things happen, whether it's stress induced, you know, if you're having a month, you know, maybe some of those symptoms pop up and it's a way of your body telling you like, Hey, maybe, you know, check in with yourself, check in with your hormones. What's going on this month that some of these symptoms came back. And I think what you said is definitely true is I'll even do my interviews with my patients and I'll say, so how's your menstrual cycle? it's like perfect. It's normal. Okay, good. So what's that like? Tell me like, do you have PMS? yeah. Yeah. I always have PMS. had My breasts hurt so bad. I get really moody the first day and cry. I'm like, you know, so that we're told that that's still normal, which is still a thing, but yeah. Michelle (08:24) Mm Yeah, it becomes almost like a background thing that's just like, oh, that's just that. Like it's normal, it's okay. And I think another thing too is just having that something I frequently see, oh, I have a perfect 28 day cycle like textbook, so everything's perfect. But then you start to really dig in like, when are you ovulating? You know, is it early or you know, nobody really knows because they'll either just do LH or not really look into Melissa Levy (08:35) Yeah. Michelle (08:59) if it's confirmed ovulation, because you could still get a bleed. So there's a lot of those little intricacies that you often don't find in mainstream medicine. Melissa Levy (09:08) And I think that's another thing is like we're never taught to really understand our cycle. So when I am working with fertility patients, I'm saying, oh, are you ovulating every month? Yeah, on day 14. Okay. Are you checking your basal body temperature to see that rise in progesterone? No, no. Like I just, on day 14, I just ovulate. know, so it's, some people don't even understand that there are signs that our body tells And it's not just day 14 that we ovulate, which could really impact fertility because then we could be missing our fertility windows. So there's just that lack of education and how we need to understand. we're never taught, I mean, no one ever taught me that. I had no idea until I got into this medicine that, day 14, or what is cervical mucus? Am I having that? And sometimes I ask women, do you have cervical mucus? Oh, I have no idea. One of those things that were never, I mean, no one's taught me. And I just think there's not enough time, obviously, in appointments and with your regular OB. So I think that definitely impacts fertility for sure. Michelle (10:05) Yeah, I often find too that people don't even really know much about their blood because they use tampons the whole time. That's another thing that I often talk about because it is, first of all, I don't love shoving anything up there. When your body's trying to release, you're basically putting a stopper in a sense. I mean, of course it doesn't stop, it absorbs, but still it's not quite the same. Melissa Levy (10:12) Mmm, yeah. Yeah. Michelle (10:29) as really letting it out and letting it flow and letting that gravitational pull release, whatever, not stagnate it. But if you have to, if you must, I'm not saying everything's 100%, but seeing what the blood looks like actually can tell you so much about your period or tell your acupuncture so much, but even you, there's a lot of information out Melissa Levy (10:36) Yeah, of course. Of course, mean, once again, lot of my patients, unless they've been coming to me for a while, they know to look. Otherwise they're like, you said, I have no idea. I use a tampon. Are there clots? I have no idea. know, it's those things that, know, until, unless you've had acupuncture, you're probably not looking for it. And it tells us. a lot. Our body gives us these signs and symptoms, the tongue, the pulse, the color of the nails, the skin. So all those things give us lot of information, especially the blood. What does it look like? How many days are you bleeding? Are you clots? it spotting? Are you bleeding a lot? Little, is it scanty? So definitely that's a great point. And same thing with the tampons. It's a really good point about stopping and not stagnating the blood. Michelle (11:34) Yeah. And I think that because our life is so busy, it's like, you know, it's almost like too busy and really kind of, it's important to allow yourself that rest if you can, with the menstrual cycle. I think that we don't really get that accommodation often just in the world. But yeah, you know, so you see a lot of those kinds of things just from asking people questions and how did you decide you wanted to work with fertility? What was your your initial pull. Melissa Levy (11:59) Yeah, so I was. pretty much a general seeing a little bit of everything. And I still do, but I think women's health is something that I've always had that love for just because there is such a lack of it and such a need for it. And then I think once I had my son, it kind of gave me that extra like fuel and that like just to learn more and more to, because it's such an amazing love to be a mom. And I want to be able just to give that to as many people and help as many women as I can. So I think that is the thing that really kind pushed it to kind of dive all into fertility. What all can I learn? How many people can I help? And what is going on? And why is our fertility issues seem like it's kind of becoming more common. And it's one of those things where like cycle issues are an issue or they're prevalent. But now it seems like same thing fertility. It's just like, yeah, I'm having trouble getting pregnant. So it seems one of those things that's just becoming a normal common thing, which I think is sad. Michelle (12:51) Yeah, yeah, for sure. What are some of the things that you see just clinically? Like what are some of the things that you notice that might be contributing to people having trouble conceiving? Melissa Levy (13:03) Yeah, definitely. So I see stress, definitely, as you probably know. know, we've been, acupuncture has been saying for thousands and thousands of years, the connection between our uterus and our shin, which is our mind. So most women, we have a lot of responsibility. Michelle (13:06) Mm -hmm. Right, and just if people don't know, the heart houses the mind. So the heart houses Shen, which is kind of like the spiritual aspect. Well, spirit, mind, combined. Melissa Levy (13:26) Mm -hmm. Yeah, and it's so we've known this for about 3 ,500 years or more. But I think nowadays women are living in a more stressful environment. There's so many responsibilities that we have. Some women have multiple kids already and they're juggling work and family and. just the pressure. So there's definitely a lot more stress. And if your body's in that fight or flight, you know, it's not going to prioritize, you know, reproduction. If your body thinks, my gosh, I'm in immediate danger. Your body's not like, okay, well it's great time to get pregnant. So I think definitely stress is something I see. I see gut health definitely. you know, so many things come down to our gut and they say, you know, they talk about, you know, our Michelle (13:51) Yes. I want to talk about that. That's a good, yeah, it's important. Melissa Levy (14:10) hormones or our body kind of being like that bathtub analogy where, you know, our gut is kind of like that sewer line kind of taking everything out. And if things are clogged up and backed up due to underlying gut infections, which I see very common and, you know, from a Chinese medicine perspective, we look at that as the dampness, the spleen. So the other thing I find so cool and interesting is, you know, Chinese medicine has been talking about all this stuff for 3500 years. And then when you learn like more of the conventional and functional medicine, it's the same stuff, you know, just in different terminology. So gut health is so important for fertility. And then from a Chinese medicine perspective, we talk about the spleen and the stomach, and it has a huge relationship to our fertility and our overall health. So that's deficient. And we've known that forever. So it's one of those things where I think gut health is so common and such a big topic right now. But it's not a new thing. I think it's something that we've known for so long, Michelle (14:53) Yeah. Melissa Levy (15:04) Now we're recognizing, wow, our gut is really, important. And so I think that's huge. Michelle (15:10) for sure. I will say too, like the gut mind connection, also that's spleen and stomach, they govern thoughts. So literally our thoughts can impact our digestion. Like if there are stressful thoughts, overwork, overworrying, that can impact our digestion. But now they're seeing it's fascinating because I've been researching it, the enteric system, which is your gut nervous system. And then the CNS, which is essential nervous system, which is connected to the brain. Melissa Levy (15:17) Mm -hmm. Mm -hmm. Michelle (15:36) And so how your thoughts can impact your via the vagus nerve, like there's this back and forth bi -directional communication. And it's fascinating how like Chinese medicine has been saying this forever. And now we're like literally seeing that they're seeing that people with certain types of mental disorders have a different gut microbiome than... Melissa Levy (15:49) I know. Mm -hmm, so interesting. Michelle (16:00) It's fascinating. And then also they're saying that people that meditate for a long time have a different gut microbiome that's more diverse and more rich, enriched. Melissa Levy (16:10) Yeah, I mean, our mind is, I you talk about that so much, and it's like, how much can we stress it? It plays a big role in, it's sometimes not something that's easy to overcome, and it takes sometimes time to maybe make some lifestyle changes or be able to do things that, sometimes you obviously can't change your environment around you if it's situational, but do things for your body that can kind of offset some of that stress. And then also, working with the gut. Michelle (16:34) Yes. Melissa Levy (16:36) going to be really important. it's kind of like that vicious cycle of, if your guts impaired, then it can affect your mind and your mind is going to affect your gut. So it kind of just rotates through. So, you know, when we talk about holistic medicine, we're talking about not just singling in on one thing. We're looking at everything. We're looking at the gut, right? Because if you just want one, you know, you're forgetting about everything else and everything is so connected. So you have to look at everything. Michelle (16:54) Yes. Yeah. It is, without a doubt. It's a, cause you were just mentioning two like major things, which is stress and then the gut. But those things are interconnected. They're like pieces of a puzzle. And that's, that's really the beauty I think of Chinese medicine is that, and also functional medicine is that it looks at things holistically, like in all the different parts. And I love that you also do functional medicine and testing. And because I think it's really important to really look beneath the hood. and see what does your gut microbiome look like. So what could people get from like say a gut testing? Melissa Levy (17:37) so much. So your whole gut microbiome, can tell us so much. So what I see a lot is I'll have a patient come in and they'll say, hey, you know, I'm not feeling good. My hormones are a mess. I can't get pregnant, but my blood work, everything looks fine. So then, you know, I look at it. Yes, everything looks fine. Yeah. And then as an acupuncturist, we take two seconds. We look at their tongue and pulse and we can say, whoa, there's definitely a lot going on. And Michelle (17:53) So then they get the unexplained infertility diagnosis, right? And then they come to you. Melissa Levy (18:04) I like to order things like the GI map, which definitely is my favorite test by far, because it doesn't just say yes or no, you have something. It will give you the value. So it's qualitative PCR. So it looks at all the gut microbiomes, looks at parasites. It looks at H. pylori, which is so common. Yeah, so our gut microbiome. And it's not even like looking at... know, what can we do to fix it? So sometimes I've had patients, looks at beta glucuronidase. It looks at calprotectin levels. it looks at so many different things to see if there's any gut inflammation in the body. is there dysbiosis? Is there maldigestion? Maybe you're not absorbing all the nutrients. So there's definitely a lot. And, if people even have cycle issues, I've had patients who have irregular cycles and we don't do anything else, but do a GI map and heal the gut. And their cycle regulates by itself on that. So there's so Michelle (18:53) That's amazing. Melissa Levy (18:54) much if you have someone that can actually read the GI map and knows how to understand it and what the patterns are, it is so beneficial. So I really love the GI map. It could tell us so much about the gut. Michelle (19:04) Amazing. And so what are some of the things or implementations and just to kind of give us examples of different conditions. And clearly this is not a one size fits all, which is why you have to test. Cause you could see like what's going on specific to the patient. Melissa Levy (19:10) Yeah. Of course. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, so I mean, I would say some things that I see a lot on the, just on the GI map, for example, like I'll see H. pylori a lot. And then with H. pylori, you'll see things like strep and staph infections as well in the gut. And what that does a lot of times is cause hypochlorhydrial low stomach acid, which is sometimes called things like parasites. You're not killing off things if you have low stomach acid and then maldigestion issues. So just doing things like mindful eating. So taking time and chewing your food, digestive. enzymes are really important. And then I love antimicrobials like olive leaf and oregano. They're really great. Olive leaf is antioxidant. It's antimicrobial, antiparasitic, anti -yeast. So that's something I use a lot with my patients that have any type of dysbiosis or overgrowth or opportunistic growth in their GI map. Michelle (20:08) Have you heard of Mastic for... Yeah. Rachael. Melissa Levy (20:10) Yeah, mastectomy. Yes, that's really common. And usually if you have, it depends like what bacteria or overgrowth you have. For example, like H. pylori typically means at least like three types of urge to kill because it is very stubborn. So usually using mastectomy, leaf, oregano, black cumin seed oil is amazing. And that is good against H. pylori. It also helps regulate blood sugar, which is another huge thing I see with fertility issues is blood sugar regulation. That's another thing that can affect our cortisol levels and our hormones. So I put a lot of people on black cumin seed oil as well, and that's antioxidant as well. So those are things that I definitely recommend for things, but it really depends on what bacteria, what overgrowth, what patterns you're showing. But just common things I see is like hypochloridia, low stomach acid. I see a lot of like dysbiosis, leaky gut, and then really just taking the measured measures and really just putting it into phases what can we do, remove the gut infections and then build up that gut wall and build up that diverse microbiome again. So it takes time. It's not something that happens overnight. But then I also think looking at why, why do we have this in the first place? Why do we have these gut infections? Why is it stress? it our diet, environmental things as well? Michelle (21:19) Right, right. Yeah, you think of like Sleen Yang deficiency because the fire, know, that digestive fire really is in Ayurvedic medicine, Agni, fire is really what kind of kills off all of those opportunistic bacteria and infections. But if we don't have that digestive fire, all the things that we learn about don't eat ice cream, don't have ice cold drinks, because what you're doing is you're actually diluting that fire. Melissa Levy (21:28) Yeah, exactly. Mm -hmm. Yeah. Yeah, no, I love that. never thought about that as like the that looking at that as like the stomach acid and that's such a great, great way to look at that. And that's the thing I always come back and find these awesome like relationships between Chinese medicine and conventional or functional medicine. It's like, it's all the same stuff. We just called it different things in a sense. it's, and now that we've all this research that shows and validates everything we've known for a long time. So I do like, you know, combining the two of those in such a great. Michelle (22:06) Yeah. Yes. Melissa Levy (22:17) great practice to be able to do Michelle (22:18) Yeah, no doubt. when it comes to certain conditions, have you had people where you suggested, okay, you you'd need antibiotics for this because it is kind of like really strong where they sometimes they need a stronger one. And then with that kind of help to navigate and kind of work it out with probiotics. Melissa Levy (22:38) Yeah, so I haven't had to really refer out for any antibiotics because most herbs and supplements usually are. There's research that shows that they are pretty good at eradicating most things and they have multiple functions and a more broad spectrum. But then, yeah, then adding in the probiotics and different types like espilarity is really good at helping with H. pylori and then doing, that's another thing I love about the GI map is it'll let you know like what's overgrown, what's deficient. So let's say you're a Michelle (22:49) Mm -hmm. Mm Melissa Levy (23:04) huge overgrowth of lactobacillus because of maybe hypochondria, right? You're not breaking down the food, so then it starts fermenting and you get that overgrowth patterns, which we see a lot. Then you probably might not want to take lactobacillus probiotic. You probably want to do something a little bit more diverse. Michelle (23:22) Right, or maybe a spore -based, right? A spore -based. Melissa Levy (23:24) Yeah, or like a school -based probiotic, which are getting more popular now. But then another thing I see a lot too, which I've been seeing a lot more recently is there's something called acromantia. And I see a lot of people that have none detected at all in their gut. And that's a really good thing. And that helps with our gut mucosal lining. And also they show that people have low acromantia, have more things like insulin resistance and obesity. And that's something I keep seeing a lot is there's... Michelle (23:38) wow. Wow. Melissa Levy (23:52) like zero detected in the gut. Michelle (23:53) Wow, that's so interesting. You know, I have learned a lot that some of the ingredients that we see in processed foods actually shift the gut microbiome dramatically. And I wonder, I mean, if it's like that or toxins that we're exposed to, I mean, there are things that are really literally like we don't even realize have a role or play a role in our Melissa Levy (24:04) Yeah, I believe it. Yeah. And I think another thing is like we, that I see a lot too, is we get into like routines of food and we'll eat the same food over and over again. And I remember like Chinese medicine school, they talk about that. They say your body doesn't want to eat the same thing over and over again, like mix it up. Don't eat, you know, chicken and broccoli for every, you know, every lunch the whole week, because your body wants that diversity. And now we see that with the gut microbiome is like the more diverse you eat, the more different foods you're eating, the more diverse your gut microbiome. You don't want to keep eating. Michelle (24:34) Yeah, it's Melissa Levy (24:44) the same seven foods all week long, you and I know some people kind of get into that routine of things is that's all they eat. Michelle (24:48) Yes. Right, and they talk about eating for seasons too, because during that season, whatever that weather or the climate, your body's reacting and what will grow around you, the food that grows typically is there to balance that Melissa Levy (24:54) yeah. Mm -hmm. Yeah, like the seasons and that's something I mean, I think a lot of people don't do as well as eating up the seasons and it's one of the things we don't think about. Michelle (25:06) fascinating. you don't think about it because you don't even know because everything gets shipped from everywhere. So you're like, I don't know what's growing now, like here, you know, and I think that that that's like another thing that that and also the endocrine disruptors, all these things that you have to do a little more homework for, but it's not as intimidating as it originally sounds. It seems a lot worse. This is actually why I will say worth hiring a fertility coach. because you have a lot of that extra time, like all of that is done for you. And, you know, that's the benefit. Melissa Levy (25:44) Yeah, for sure. And I also think, like everything's so individualized too. Like what might be good for one person, you know, isn't the main focus that someone else needs. There's so much and it can definitely be overwhelming. Like when you start to think about it, like detoxification and basal body temperature and ovulation, the food, it's like, sometimes that stresses people out and it's like, we don't want this to be stressful. And I also have had patients that'd be like, Michelle (26:00) Yeah. Yeah. Melissa Levy (26:07) you know, they're like, well, this person get pregnant and they're not eating, you know, super, super healthy, but everyone's bodies are different. You know, we have epigenetics and different stress and everyone's bodies can handle things differently and like that toxic load. And so it's hard to compare yourself to someone else, which is never a good thing to Michelle (26:14) Right. Yeah. It's true. no, absolutely. somebody might be less tolerant for one thing, but more tolerant for another. And that might be completely opposite from the next person. So you just never know. You really need to like honor your own like body's personality type, I like to kind of say, because it has its own signature, its own personality. Like everything is unique, you know, even though we have the same makeup, you know, we all have like the same organs Melissa Levy (26:34) Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Exactly. Michelle (26:53) of but each person responds differently really to food, environment. I love the saying, one man's is another man's poison, it's could be something incredibly healthy, but one person could be allergic to it and have a horrible reaction to Melissa Levy (27:02) yeah. Yeah, exactly. even going, I always go back to Chinese medicine, but no, it's like food therapy and you know, I have patients come in and they're like, I look at their tongue and pulse and I'm like, well, you shouldn't be eating these foods. They're like, yeah, but they're so healthy, blah, blah, blah. I'm like, they are healthy foods, but not healthy for you at this time of what you have going on in your body. If you've got a heat and inflammation and you're eating spicy, hot, warming foods, you're going to feel a little worse, right? Versus someone who's maybe a little bit more deficient. Michelle (27:35) bright. Melissa Levy (27:37) and really needs more of that warming food. it always comes down to individuality, whereas everything similar is yes, we want to make sure we have a good healthy gut and blood flow and mind, but everyone's situation is going to be a little Michelle (27:50) totally. Like it makes me think of like the somebody who's really thin and like super cold all the time, but all they want to eat is raw foods and salads and like juice. You know, all of that has such a cold nature. You're just exacerbating like the symptoms and making it worse. Melissa Levy (28:06) yeah. Yeah. It's not as people don't want to hear that. I'm like, well, stop juicing. And I'm like, well, it's so wealthy. going eat a little bit more soups in it. And it's not like you can ever do it, but it's all about balance. And I think, you know, things always come back to balance. And we live in a world now where everything's such an extreme, we're either completely vegan or completely keto or completely, you know, one thing and it's, we're working out so hard and won't do anything or we're not working out at all. So it's how can you find that balance Michelle (28:17) Yes. Right, yeah. Melissa Levy (28:34) eating a whole diet and maybe doing more yin or calm or exercises during certain part of the cycle and then doing more intense if you want. everything comes back to balance, which is something I think is hard. Michelle (28:47) Yeah, no doubt. But it's an art. then once you figure it out, because I think that we're primed for it, we're designed for balance, our bodies know, and our bodies communicate with us when things are out of balance. If we're too hot to want to cool down and vice versa. So it knows what to do. It's always communicating. Sometimes we want to ignore that communication. Over time, we stop hearing it, but it's kind Melissa Levy (29:03) We have. Michelle (29:11) coming back to it is a lot easier than I think a lot of people think because we're primed for it. We're designed to be connected to that. So I know that you work with a lot of people online. So you're able to basically have consultations with people and do testing of all kinds, like different functional testing based on that either customize, but also that you have a program for people who may not commit to like Melissa Levy (29:35) yeah. Michelle (29:37) a one -to -one, but they can also just take your course as Melissa Levy (29:41) Yeah, of course. So, yeah, so I wanted to try to make a course that was like great for like good for anyone, right? So it's easy to understand, but it kind of covers a little bit of everything. A lot of education, like I said, a lot of it is sometimes women don't understand their cycles or even know when they're ovulating. So there's modules that talk about cycle education. How can we, you know, increase our sperm or egg qualities to talk about the man and the woman talking functional tests. So if you're like, hey, I want to get some testing, but I don't want to work with someone or I don't know anyone or my doctor won't run these, you can go online to our Rupa store and just put in your own order. You know, I always recommend obviously going over with it with a doctor, but I give you the option, the option of like functional ranges and the standard ranges, which are going to be different. Functional ranges are like optimal where we want you to really be. And we talk about yoga, mindfulness. supplements. So we talk about a lot in the program. It's self -paced, which is so nice. So had people say, I love it because I can go back and listen to it over and over and over again. And so it was a really fun to make and I love being able to provide that information to people. Michelle (30:50) Awesome. And I actually got to see behind the scenes, look at it and it is really, really very thorough. It has a lot of information, really, really well done. I have to say, I really admire you as a practitioner. think you are amazing at your craft, like truly. Really so honored to have been able to work with you and like get to know you, but you really are amazing at what you do. I think that part of it Melissa Levy (30:58) Thank you. Michelle (31:15) just being really passionate, but also having that drive to keep learning and learning and learning. And I think that that's what keeps us going as practitioners. Melissa Levy (31:23) Yeah, definitely. thank you. So sweet. Yeah. We love what you do. You just want to keep learning and it's fun. Michelle (31:30) It is fun, right? Well, that's what you want to find. You want to find a coach or has fun doing what they're doing because that's that's ultimately it's a good sign that they love what they do and they're good at it. So, Melissa, such a pleasure having you. If people want to find you, how can they find you? Melissa Levy (31:37) Yeah. Yeah, of Yes, thank So I actually have a clinic in Jacksonville. Then I also work online with people with Health by Melissa .com or Integrative Wellness Center of Jacksonville .com. do virtual and in -person visits. Michelle (32:01) Awesome. Melissa, thank you so much for coming on. was such a pleasure talking to Melissa Levy (32:04) Yes, thank you. Thank you.