Advertise on podcast: Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine

You know what would make you feel better—so why is it still so difficult to do? When exhaustion, brain fog, low mood, and overwhelm become your normal, it's easy to blame yourself for lacking motivation or discipline. Psychologist Dr. Matthew Campbell sits down with Dr. Rob to offer a more compassionate—and actionable—explanation: you may be depleted of five primal needs your body was built to receive. He reveals why sunlight, sleep, movement, genuine connection, and intentional consumption can influence how you feel more profoundly than another complicated health protocol—and how to restore them without attempting a total life overhaul. You'll leave with a simple way to reduce friction, create momentum, and begin feeling like yourself again.  Connect with Dr. Campbell here: http://www.ourprimal5.com Key takeaways: • Depletion often masquerades as laziness. Before judging your motivation, examine whether your body is receiving enough sunlight, sleep, movement, connection, and nourishing input. • Foundational health is more powerful than it looks. Complicated interventions cannot consistently compensate for neglected biological and emotional needs. • Movement should feel inviting, not punitive. Walking, playing, exploring, or moving with friends can combine physical activity with joy, nature, and connection. • Make healthy behavior easier than unhealthy behavior. Reduce friction by placing helpful choices within reach, removing common temptations, and creating routines that require less daily negotiation. • Progress begins with one attainable action. Drink your coffee outside, walk with your dog, protect your bedtime, or call someone you care about. Momentum matters more than perfection.

What if the way you manage your money isn't all that different from the way you manage your health? In this episode of Field Notes, host Heather Moon sits down with financial planner Tanner Link for a fascinating conversation about the surprising parallels between financial wellness and functional medicine. Just like chronic health issues rarely start with symptoms alone, financial stress often stems from deeper patterns hiding beneath the surface — impulse behaviors, lack of awareness, misaligned priorities, and operating on autopilot. Together, Heather and Tanner unpack how budgeting, mindful spending, long-term habits, and small daily decisions compound over time, proving that whether you're healing your body or building financial freedom, sustainable change doesn't come from quick fixes… it comes from understanding the root cause and making better choices consistently. Connect with Tanner here: https://www.linkassetmgmt.com/ Key Takeaways • Financial health and physical health follow the same principle: symptoms often point to deeper underlying patterns. • Budgeting isn't a restriction — it creates awareness around unconscious habits and spending behaviors.  • Small daily decisions compound over time, whether you're building wealth or improving health.  • Impulse spending can quietly sabotage long-term financial stability, just like unhealthy habits impact long-term wellness. • True financial freedom isn't about becoming rich — it's about reaching a place where money no longer controls your peace of mind.

What if burnout isn't the price of success—but proof you're doing success wrong? In this powerful conversation, Garrett Wood shares the heartbreaking story that transformed his understanding of achievement, stress, and identity. Drawing from his work in hypnotherapy, nervous system regulation, and executive well-being coaching, Garrett explains why grit, hustle, and pushing harder eventually fail—even for the most driven people. He reveals the hidden drivers of burnout, from misaligned values and sensory overload to subconscious beliefs and emotional labor, and offers a radically different model: one where success comes from alignment, not sacrifice. If you've ever felt exhausted despite doing everything "right," this episode may completely change how you think about performance, purpose, and fulfillment. Connect with Garrett here: https://www.gnosistherapy.com/ Key Takeaways • Burnout isn't a badge of honor. Caring deeply about your work can actually increase your risk if you don't have the right recovery and support systems. • Your environment matters more than you think. Many people aren't broken—they're simply operating in environments that clash with their nervous system needs. • Grit is a useful tool, not a lifestyle. The ability to push through adversity is valuable, but relying on it exclusively eventually leads to burnout. • Success requires alignment. Sustainable performance happens when your values, strengths, role, and environment work together instead of against each other.  • Small changes create massive results. The fastest path out of burnout often isn't a dramatic life overhaul—it's identifying and improving the few areas creating the most friction.

Most athletes spend countless hours training their bodies, but what if the biggest factor holding them back is something they rarely train at all? In this insightful episode of Field Notes, sports psychologist and former Olympic ski coach Andy Liebner reveals why mental performance may be just as important as physical preparation. Drawing from his own journey as an elite athlete, coach, and PhD candidate in sports psychology, Andy shares practical strategies for building confidence, overcoming self-doubt, mastering visualization, and staying focused under pressure. Whether you're a competitive athlete, weekend warrior, coach, parent, or simply someone pursuing better health and performance, this conversation offers powerful lessons on how your mindset can either limit your potential or unlock it. Connect with Andy here: https://www.facebook.com/p/Coach-Andy-Liebner-100046294872992/ Key Takeaways • The conversations you have with yourself matter most. Your self-talk shapes confidence, resilience, and performance more than any outside influence. • Mental training is often the missing piece. Many athletes believe performance is 50% mental, yet spend almost no time actively training their minds. • Visualization is a powerful performance tool. Mentally rehearsing success can help your brain respond as if you've already experienced the moment before it happens. • Focus on what you want, not what you fear. High performers direct their attention toward desired outcomes instead of trying to avoid mistakes. • Parents, coaches, and mentors have enormous influence. A few well-timed words of encouragement can change an athlete's confidence, mindset, and trajectory.

In this powerful episode of Field Notes, Heather Moon sits down with Jenny Loudon, co-founder of the Alaska Eating Disorders Alliance, for a compassionate and eye-opening conversation about the reality of eating disorders. Jenny explains why these illnesses are so often misunderstood, overlooked, or minimized — especially when someone does not "look sick." The discussion explores how eating disorders impact the mind, body, relationships, and identity, while challenging many common assumptions around food, weight, and health. From social media pressure and perfectionism to atypical anorexia, binge eating disorder, orthorexia, and the lack of treatment access in Alaska, this episode offers both education and hope. Most importantly, it reminds listeners that eating disorders are serious, but recovery is absolutely possible with the right support. Learn more about Jenny and AKEDA here: https://www.akeatingdisordersalliance.org/ Key Takeaways: • Eating disorders are both mental and physical illnesses — and they can be life-threatening. • You cannot tell if someone has an eating disorder just by looking at their body.  • Disordered eating exists on a spectrum, and people deserve help before things become extreme. • Social media can fuel shame, rigidity, and body comparison, so auditing your feed matters. • Recovery is possible, especially when people get specialized support early.

Season 5 of the Field Notes podcast continues with a thoughtful conversation hosted by Heather Moon, who is stepping into a larger hosting role this season with her signature warmth, curiosity, and whole-person approach to health. In this episode, Heather sits down with returning guest and Alaska-based personal trainer Heidi Cox to explore what fitness really looks like when it's aligned with real life, changing hormones, injury recovery, mental health, and sustainable wellness. Together, they unpack the importance of individualized care, behavior change, movement as medicine, and why true health goes far beyond the number on a scale. From navigating perimenopause and burnout to rebuilding trust with your body after injury, this episode offers an honest, encouraging, and deeply practical conversation about creating strength, resilience, and vitality from the inside out. Learn more about Heidi here: https://changingtidesfitness.com/ Key Takeaways: • Movement should be viewed as a powerful tool for healing and resilience — not punishment or a checkbox to complete. • Sustainable fitness starts with individualized care: what works for one person may not work for another, especially during hormonal changes, injury recovery, or periods of burnout. • Small, consistent habits often create the biggest long-term results. Simple daily movement, hydration, better sleep, and realistic goals matter more than extreme routines. • Real transformation happens when people connect with their deeper "why" — the emotional reason behind wanting to feel stronger, healthier, or more confident. • True wellness requires a whole-person approach that supports physical health, mental health, nutrition, stress management, and long-term behavior change together.

What if the headaches, fatigue, brain fog, poor sleep, allergies, or "mysterious symptoms" you've been chasing for years aren't just about food, supplements, or stress… but the environment inside your own home? In this fascinating episode of the Field Notes podcast, Dr. Rob Downey and Joe Rignola dive into the emerging concept of "functional medicine for the home" — exploring how air quality, lighting, EMFs, water, cleaning products, and even the items in your pantry may be silently taxing your body every single day. Dr. Rob shares why he partnered with Clean Elements and Lindenhaus, how simple changes like improving lighting or opening windows can dramatically support health, and why creating a safer, lower-stress home environment may unlock healing for people who feel stuck despite "doing everything right."  If you want to have a talk with me or a Lindenhaus team member, or sign up to have your home assessed, here's my link (this is also where you would express interest in becoming an Advisor on my team in Alaska): https://www.cleanelements.co/rob-downey  More broadly, if you live in Alaska and want to know more, explore the full service here: https://www.cleanelements.co/alaska-team Most broadly of all, If you live or have a home in the United States, take a look at how it works here (there's a good chance there's a Lindenhaus team near you, part of what I want to spread the word about): https://www.cleanelements.co/how-it-works Key Takeaways: • Your home environment may be contributing to fatigue, headaches, brain fog, poor sleep, and chronic inflammation. • Air quality, lighting, EMF exposure, water contaminants, and personal care products all play a role in overall health.  • Simple changes — like improving airflow, adjusting evening lighting, and reducing nighttime screen exposure — can support better sleep and recovery. • Clean Elements home assessments provide personalized insights and practical "swap-out" recommendations without fear-based messaging. • Dr. Rob emphasizes a balanced, step-by-step approach: focus on reducing unnecessary stressors while remembering the body is naturally resilient and designed to heal.

In this fascinating episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Dr. Shawn Talbott to unpack the powerful connection between the gut and the brain—and why your microbiome may have far more influence over your mental fitness than most people realize.  Together, they explore how gut bacteria can affect stress resilience, mood, sleep, motivation, and even cognitive clarity through pathways involving neurotransmitters, inflammation, and the immune system.  What makes this conversation especially compelling is that it stays grounded in both science and practicality: yes, there are exciting advances in psychobiotics and targeted supplements, but the real foundation still comes back to everyday choices like eating more fiber, adding fermented foods, improving sleep, and creating the conditions for your body to work with you instead of against you. It's a smart, hopeful episode that makes a complex topic feel clear, relevant, and actionable. Learn more about Dr. Talbott here: http://3WavesWellness.com 5 Key Takeaways: The gut-brain axis is a two-way communication system, meaning your gut affects your brain, and your stress levels can also directly affect your gut. Certain gut bacteria may influence the production of key neurochemicals like GABA, serotonin, and dopamine, impacting mood, relaxation, motivation, and sleep. Dr. Talbott emphasizes the "3 Fs" for gut health: fiber, fermented foods, and flavonoids. Supplements can be helpful, but they work best when used strategically and alongside lifestyle changes, not as a replacement for them. Better gut health can create a positive upward spiral—helping people feel better, which often leads to better choices around food, movement, and sleep.

In this fascinating episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Greg Lee—a former NASA systems engineer turned acupuncturist and chronic illness specialist—to explore a radically integrative approach to complex health conditions. Drawing from decades of clinical experience, Greg explains how hidden drivers like mold toxicity, stealth infections, nervous system dysregulation, inflammation, and mitochondrial dysfunction can keep people sick even when their labs look "normal." He walks through the tools he uses to uncover and address these deeper patterns, including advanced medical scanning, frequency-specific microcurrent, nanoparticle botanical therapies, molecular hydrogen, peptides, and insights from Chinese medicine. The result is a conversation that feels both deeply technical and surprisingly hopeful—especially for people who have tried everything and still feel stuck.  Learn more about Greg Lee here: https://www.lymeresearchcenter.com/FIELD Key takeaways:  • Greg Lee blends systems engineering, Chinese medicine, and functional healing to approach chronic illness from a completely different angle.  • Many chronically ill patients may be dealing with hidden root causes such as mold, co-infections, biofilms, neuroinflammation, and energy depletion.  • Greg uses a noninvasive scan to assess stress patterns related to infections, organs, neurotransmitters, detox pathways, and mitochondrial function. • Molecular hydrogen stood out as a major tool for reducing brain fog, calming inflammation, and supporting detoxification and neurological recovery. The episode offers hope for people with complex cases by showing how sequencing the right therapies in the right order can help the body regain stability and resilience.

In this powerful episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob sits down with Christine Ruch to explore one of the most overlooked pieces of true healing: the nervous system. Christine shares her own journey from being diagnosed with MS and doing everything "right" in the world of diet, supplements, and holistic health—yet still getting sicker—until she discovered that deeper healing required more than a perfect protocol. Together, she and Dr. Rob unpack how unresolved stress, trauma, hypervigilance, and emotional suppression can quietly block recovery, and why embodiment, surrender, and nervous system regulation may be the missing link for so many people with chronic illness. This is a deeply hopeful conversation about learning to trust the body's wisdom, slow down, and create the inner safety that allows real healing to unfold.  Key takeaways: • Healing is not always about doing more. Sometimes it starts by addressing nervous system dysregulation beneath the surface. • You can eat perfectly, take the right supplements, and still stay stuck if stress and trauma are running the show • Embodiment is not a concept to think about. It is a felt experience of being present in your body and learning to listen to it. • Real healing often requires surrender, allowance, and trust rather than rigid control and constant striving.  • One simple starting point: sit with discomfort for 30 seconds at a time and remind yourself, "There is nothing to fix." Learn more about Christine here: https://www.christineruch.com/

This episode of Field Notes, hosted by Nurse Practitioner Heather Moon, explores the often-overlooked intersection between functional medicine and spirituality through a deeply human conversation with hospital chaplain Frank Alioto. Together, they move beyond protocols and lab results to examine how meaning, connection, and presence shape the healing process just as much as biology. Frank shares powerful insights from his work with patients and families in moments of uncertainty, emphasizing that true care isn't about having the right answers—it's about showing up, asking the right questions, and honoring what matters most to each person. The conversation reveals that healing is not simply the absence of disease, but a holistic experience that includes emotional, relational, and spiritual well-being—and that sometimes, the most profound intervention is simply being present. Key Takeaways: • Healing is multidimensional—true wellness includes physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual health. • The question "What matters most to you right now?" often reveals deeper needs than symptoms alone. • Presence—not just treatment—is one of the most powerful forms of care in both medicine and life. • Spiritual distress and unresolved emotional issues can manifest physically and impact long-term health. • Illness can be both something to address clinically and a catalyst for deeper reflection, growth, and meaning.

In this powerful Field Notes episode, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Dr. Jeff Brown to unpack a topic that far too many women have been told to simply endure: painful periods, hormone imbalance, and the deeper systemic issues driving their symptoms.  Dr. Brown shares his journey from conventional medicine into functional and regenerative care, explaining why he became frustrated with symptom management and was drawn to a root-cause approach that actually helps people heal.  Together, they explore why women are so often dismissed in traditional medical settings, why common does not mean normal when it comes to menstrual pain, and how conditions like endometriosis can dramatically improve when the body is supported through better testing, nutrition, stress reduction, gut healing, detoxification, and properly balanced hormones.  It's an eye-opening conversation that offers both validation and hope for women who are tired of being told to "push through" symptoms that deserve real attention. Learn more about Dr. Brown here: http://hormonehealthwithdrbrown.com Painful periods are common, but they are not normal and should be seen as a sign that something deeper needs to be addressed. Dr. Brown explains why many women feel dismissed in conventional medicine, especially in rushed, insurance-based models that leave little room for complex root-cause care. Proper hormone testing matters, and timing is key—especially testing during the luteal phase to better understand estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone balance. Healing often requires a whole-body approach, including gut health, inflammation reduction, detoxification support, movement, and nervous system regulation. Dr. Brown shares a transformative endometriosis case that shows how powerful the right functional approach can be in restoring hope, balance, and quality of life.

In this episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob sits down with functional health practitioner Kim Heintz to explore the long and frustrating journey that led her from chronic illness to vibrant health.    Kim shares how debilitating migraines that began in childhood eventually spiraled into anxiety, fatigue, brain fog, and digestive issues—symptoms that conventional medicine struggled to explain or resolve.    After being told she might simply have to live with these problems, Kim began digging deeper and discovered the power of functional medicine testing, root-cause investigation, and lifestyle changes.    Together, Kim and Dr. Rob discuss how hidden stressors—ranging from gut dysfunction and food sensitivities to mineral imbalances and environmental stress—can quietly accumulate until the body reaches a breaking point.    Kim's story offers both a cautionary tale about ignoring subtle health signals and an empowering reminder that when we identify and address the real drivers of illness, meaningful healing is possible. Learn more about Kim here: https://www.kimheintz.com/   Key Takeaways   • Chronic symptoms often have deeper root causes. Migraines, fatigue, anxiety, and digestive issues are frequently connected through underlying imbalances rather than being isolated problems.   • The "bucket theory" explains symptom overload. When stressors like poor diet, toxins, infections, and emotional stress pile up, the body eventually reaches a tipping point where symptoms appear.   • Functional testing can reveal hidden drivers of illness. Tools like GI testing and mineral analysis can uncover imbalances that traditional labs often miss.   • Gut health plays a central role in whole-body wellness. Many chronic symptoms—from migraines to mood changes—can be linked back to gut dysfunction and inflammation.   • Small foundational habits can create big health shifts. Hydration, mineral balance, diet changes, and stress management can dramatically reduce symptom burden when applied consistently.

In this Field Notes conversation, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with speech-language pathologist and holistic feeding specialist, Lena Livinsky to reframe "picky eating" as a whole-body, whole-family issue—less about willpower or "bad behavior," and more about safety, biology, skills, and environment. Lena shares how conventional feeding therapy often over-focuses on behavior, and how working through her own child's selective eating helped her connect the dots: when a child's nervous system is dysregulated or their gut and sensory systems are off, eating can feel threatening, not nourishing. She introduces her BLOOM Framework—rooted in connection—to help caregivers zoom out, identify the real bottleneck, and create steady, realistic shifts that help kids feel safe enough to explore food again. Learn more about Lene here: https://lenalivinsky.com/ Key takeaways • Connection and nervous system regulation are the "root" of progress—kids can't "rest and digest" when they don't feel safe. • "Picky eating" is often better understood as selective eating with underlying drivers (discomfort, sensory load, stress, gut imbalance). • Lena's BLOOM Framework maps the core levers: Balanced health, Learned oral skills, Optimal microbiome, Open exploration, Mealtime boundaries. • You can do a lot at home before (or alongside) extensive testing: simplify gut disruptors, support circadian/light hygiene, and create low-pressure exposure to food. If something feels off (limited foods, gagging/choking, food pocketing), trust your gut and seek the right-fit, interdisciplinary support—small changes, started early or late, can still move the needle. If you have a child (or grandchild) in your life who struggles at the dinner table… this conversation might change how you see everything.

In this episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with integrative psychiatric provider Dr. Josh Waddell to unpack mental health through a functional medicine lens—moving beyond symptom labels and "chemical imbalance" shortcuts to ask what's actually driving anxiety, depression, and emotional instability in the first place. Dr. Waddell lays out a clear roadmap for understanding mental illness as a progression—from real-world triggers to cellular/mitochondrial disruption to downstream neurotransmitter changes—then introduces his practical "Four Pillars" framework (Body, Mind, Spirit, Environment) to help people pinpoint where their system is wobbling and what to address first. The conversation is equal parts compassionate and actionable, emphasizing that mental health struggles are not a character flaw, that healing is often about restoring stability in the right pillar(s), and that the best plan is the one that meets you where you are—sometimes including medication as a bridge so deeper root-cause work can actually stick. Learn more about Dr. Josh Waddell here: http://www.arukahwell.co 5 Key Takeaways Mental health symptoms often follow a progression: triggers → mitochondrial/cellular dysfunction → neurotransmitter changes, so "root cause" usually sits upstream of brain chemicals. The Four Pillars (Body, Mind, Spirit, Environment) offer a simple way to identify what's most off—and why progress can stall when you're only focusing on one area. You can't out-supplement a toxic context: chronic stress, unhealthy relationships, burnout jobs, or constant distressing media exposure can keep the nervous system stuck. A timeline exercise (mapping life events, illnesses, stressors, and turning points) can reveal the earliest catalyst and clarify where to start. Supplements can help, but basics matter: food-first, third-party testing, avoid vague proprietary blends, and match herbs/supports to your symptom pattern—not trends.