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What if healing your gut isn’t just about food, supplements, or antimicrobials — but about rewiring the brain?

In this powerful conversation, Courtney sits down with hypnotherapist and meditation teacher Juliana Sloane to explore the science-backed connection between hypnosis, neuroplasticity, vagus nerve regulation, and chronic conditions like IBS, IBD, anxiety, chronic pain, and autoimmune disorders.

Juliana shares how her personal journey through illness led her to modern hypnotherapy — and why hypnosis today looks nothing like outdated stage stereotypes. Instead, it’s a collaborative, neuroscience-informed process that helps shift entrenched neural pathways related to fear, pain, stress, and self-criticism.

Together, Courtney and Juliana unpack how chronic stress physiology dampens vagus nerve tone, lowers digestive function, and perpetuates IBS and autoimmune flares — even when diet and supplements are dialed in.

You’ll learn:

• What hypnosis actually is (and isn’t)
• How trance states support vagal tone and stress regulation
• The role of neuroplasticity in shifting chronic symptom patterns
• Why anxiety and IBS are so tightly linked
• How hypnotherapy can transform long-standing fear around food and symptoms
• The difference between guided hypnotherapy and self-hypnosis tools
• A simple neuroscience-backed visualization technique to calm symptom flares
• Why nervous system regulation is essential for lasting gut healing

Courtney and Juliana also discuss media consumption, childhood self-criticism, and how unconscious belief patterns can quietly sabotage physical healing — even when someone is “doing everything right.”

If you struggle with IBS, IBD, anxiety-driven flares, or autoimmune symptoms that worsen under stress, this episode will expand your understanding of the gut-brain connection — and offer practical, empowering tools to support real change.

Connect with Juliana Sloane

Website: https://julianasloane.com
Free Gentle Hypnosis Meditation: https://julianasloane.com/free-hypnosis-recording
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julianasloane
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julianasloane/

Link to my free training “The Root Cause Approach to Gut Healing”—my step-by-step framework to stop guessing and start healing

Link to a free 30 minute Gut Check Call

Link to my website

Disclaimer: None of the content discussed is meant to be taken as medical advice. All information presented is for educational purposes only and listeners and viewers assume all responsibility around implementing any changes to their health and medical regimen.

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What if your fatigue, gut flares, hormone issues, and “wired but tired” nights aren’t just about food… but about timing?

In this episode, I’m joined by Jason Yun, a circadian rhythm and mitochondrial health coach (and former fitness studio owner) to talk about the often-missed foundations of health: light, sleep, and circadian signaling—and how modern indoor life quietly disrupts everything from digestion to hormones to mood.

Jason shares his personal health breakdown—upside-down cortisol and melatonin patterns, sleep disruption, and hormonal chaos—and how it led him to completely pivot his career away from traditional fitness and nutrition… and into circadian rhythm work.

If you’ve tried diets, supplements, and protocols but still feel stuck, this conversation will open up a whole new angle to consider.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• What circadian rhythm really is—and why it impacts sleep, digestion, hormones, energy, blood pressure, and bowel movements
• Jason’s story: from gym owner + nutrition coach to chronic hormone disruption… and what helped him turn it around
• Why mitochondrial health is at the center of energy (and why “eat better + exercise more” isn’t always enough)
• The “3-legged stool” of health Jason uses: light, water, magnetism
• The #1 habit for circadian alignment: seeing sunrise with your naked eyes
• Why your eyes are the master circadian control center (hello, SCN / “master clock”)
• Why we’re living backwards: dark days + bright nights (and why that’s a problem)
• How indoor life contributes to circadian disruption—and the surprising “lux” truth even on cloudy days
• How to start sunrise viewing if you’re sensitive to light (and what “blue light toxicity” looks like)
• Why winter should change your routines (more sleep, less intensity, more recovery)
• Jason’s take on SAD lamps, red light panels, and “biohacking”
• How EMFs can affect health—and simple mitigation strategies (especially at night)
• The dopamine connection: how sunlight supports dopamine (and why screens drain it)
• Blue light blocking glasses 101 (day vs orange vs red lenses)
• Why nasal breathing matters—and why mouth tape can be a powerful tool

Jason Yun Links & Resources

Improvement Warrior Podcast

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7fcvZdw1yT2VOJv6agr6Pi
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/improvement-warrior-podcast/id1558708319

Recommended Episodes:

• Winter Sun Log: Episode 71
• Summer Sun Log: Episode 80
• Cell Phones and Wireless Tech: Episode 54
• Leptin Webinars: Episode 55

Breath Webinar (YouTube)

https://youtu.be/1ije5PzsGfE

Improvement Warrior Newsletter

Link to my free training “The Root Cause Approach to Gut Healing”—my step-by-step framework to stop guessing and start healing

Link to a free 30 minute Gut Check Call

Link to my website

Disclaimer: None of the content discussed is meant to be taken as medical advice. All information presented is for educational purposes only and listeners and viewers assume all responsibility around implementing any changes to their health and medical regimen.

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Vitamin D is one of the most important — and most misunderstood — nutrients when it comes to immune health, gut healing, and autoimmune resilience.

In this episode, I break down why so many people still test low for vitamin D…
even when they’re supplementing…
getting sun exposure…
and “doing everything right.”

This conversation was inspired by a real-life situation with a colleague of mine — someone highly knowledgeable about nutrition — who discovered her vitamin D levels were still very low due to a simple dosing and absorption disconnect.

And if that can happen to someone well-trained in functional nutrition?
It can happen to anyone.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why most people need vitamin D supplementation year-round — even in sunny climates
• The optimal vitamin D blood range for immune health (and why conventional “normal” ranges are too low)
• Why people with IBS, autoimmune disease, and chronic inflammation are often poor vitamin D converters
• How much vitamin D most adults actually need to reach sufficiency
• Why liposomal vitamin D is often more effective than capsules for gut-compromised individuals
• The connection between vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin K, and fat-soluble vitamin absorption
• Why vitamin A matters for autoimmune regulation and gut resilience
• How to build a simple, consistent vitamin D routine that actually works
• How to test your vitamin D levels affordably — even without insurance coverage

My Recommended Vitamin D Products

I personally use and recommend liposomal vitamin D for better absorption — especially for people with gut inflammation, malabsorption, IBS, or autoimmune disease.

You can find the exact vitamin D and fat-soluble vitamin formulas I use for myself and my clients here:

Shop my Fullscript dispensary: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/ca-cowie

Link to my free training “The Root Cause Approach to Gut Healing”—my step-by-step framework to stop guessing and start healing

Link to a free 30 minute Gut Check Call

Link to my website

Disclaimer: None of the content discussed is meant to be taken as medical advice. All information presented is for educational purposes only and listeners and viewers assume all responsibility around implementing any changes to their health and medical regimen.