Brief summary of the show:
In this part, Dr. Romy Mushtag talks about healing the busy brain. We discuss the protocol for healing, which includes steps such as taking the busy brain test, addressing the three evil cousins (denial, projection, and rejection), implementing a seven-day sleep challenge, practicing digital detox, incorporating sound healing, and getting necessary lab tests. Dr. Romy emphasizes the importance of self-compassion and finding balance in life. The conversation highlights the need to prioritize mental health and provides practical strategies for managing a busy brain.
Listen in as we talk about:
00:00 - Introduction and Recap of Part 1
02:29 - Getting to the Nitty Gritty: Steps for Healing
03:26 - Addressing the Three Evil Cousins
05:20 - Implementing the Seven-Day Sleep Challenge
06:45 - Practicing Digital Detox
08:29 - Incorporating Sound Healing
09:20 - Taking Charge of Your Health: Lab Tests
Notes from Natalie:
Seeking Health: www.natalietysdal.com/favorites
Cortisol cocktail: https://amare.com/en-us/g10/NATALIE10
Connect with Me
Connect with Dr. Romie
View Transcript of the show:
Natalie Tysdal
Hi everyone, it's Natalie. Hope you're having a wonderful day. It's graduation season and I am celebrating with all of my students and it's almost summer. I'm so excited. Did you tune in last week? Because if not, you are going to want to go back and listen to part one of my busy brain episode with Dr. Romy Mushtag. She is incredible. And I split this episode into two parts for a couple of reasons. First of all, sometimes I just need the time to
process things and the episode was just that good. Also, I've heard from many of you that you like the episodes that are around 20 minutes and so do I. It gives me just enough time to run an errand, do some laundry, take my son to school and I like those 20 minute episodes. So last week we discussed the problem of chronic stress in today's world. Also adult onset ADHD and the
busy brain that so many of us struggle with. This week, Dr. Mushtag, she goes by Dr. Romy, she gives us her protocol for healing. And it's not complicated. You can do this. She walks us through it step by step. And if you don't know Dr. Romy, she's incredible, so inspiring. She's a board certified physician. She is an author. She is a specialist in the brain and neurology.
also integrative medicine and mindfulness. And in my own busy brain world, I have to confess, I didn't have my professional microphone switched on during the interview. So you're going to hear Dr. Romy loud and clear. My sound not as dynamic as you're hearing right now. It kind of sounds like I'm back on the other side of the room, but she does most of the talking. I was going to ask her to rerecord she offered to, but then I realized, Hey, this is a
good reminder to me and to everyone else to slow down, to double check things and to just take the time you need instead of being in a hurry. I was in such a hurry that day when I did the episode with her. So let it serve as that reminder. All right. I would love for you to hit subscribe, leave me a review, all those really important things. You'll find links for that and many other things in the show notes down below. Now,
Now let's talk about answers. We spend a lot of time talking about why we are where we are, how the brain is overstimulated, all of this. What can we do short of, I'm going to turn off the phone. I'm not going to check emails after work, which probably won't happen. Let's get to the nitty gritty. Even though I say it's going to happen, it's probably not going to happen. Okay. Let's talk about it. Let's talk about it. Let's get real nitty gritty, right to chapter 10 of the book. Step one.
I'm pragmatic, I wanna know what your brain score is. So let's take the busy brain test. We give it to you for free. Get your score. If you're above a 30, hey, welcome to the eight week program. Find a bestie to join you. And by the way, give a copy to your doctor because I'm going to be getting labs. Step one, okay? So step one is let's do that. And then I call it in step one, the three evil cousins that live in our brain. The three evil aunties. Denial, projection,
and rejection. You just did it for me. I know I should turn off my digital devices before bed, but I'm not gonna do it. You just rejected the answer right there. Yes. We do that when we have a busy brain. And by the way, I do too. I've researched this for a living and it happens to me sometimes. So can we have human moments and compassion? Yes. Yes. My fear and my big question is we live in a different world. We do.
And there's the expectation of getting these things done or I'm just going to sit down at my desk for a minute and I'm just going to work. It's really a hobby for me. So I'm just going to work on my, you know, my social media or something. So I enjoy it. So I look at it as this is enjoyment for me, but I know, and I hope, I think you're going to tell me it's not healthy to do that. Even though I'm not buying it as a.
You know, you asked me in the last episode how I got everything done. It's because I, when I'm practicing what I preach, which is 90 % of the time I'm human and we have deadlines and things can be tough sometimes. So I want to be authentic is I'm getting more done during the day and I'm productive. So that social media post you were talking about, we, the time slot that it's there each week, or that I'm working with my team member that helps with social media, it gets done.
The scheduled time I have to respond to social media posts, it's there. So we're doing that and I'm mindful of my relaxation time at night. And so, can I get to step two first after taking the time? We could spend the whole time once. And I'm saying, I have, okay, I'm having an Indian Art Deque moment every time I move, something happens on my Mac. And so if you're watching video, the balloons just went up. So yay, people are excited about step two. This is it.
I ask for one week with the seven day sleep challenge. And by the way, if you have a team that you work with, companies we work with love this. I'm like print it out, take it to your whole team, take it to the loved one that lives in your house and do it together. It's cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia techniques, but two secret supplements that we research, magnesium glycinate and 5 -HTP, 5 -hydroxy tryptophan.
that will reset your circadian rhythm. It'll help you fall asleep. It'll help you stay asleep. And let me tell you, in seven to 10 days, people feel like a miracle descended upon them. So much so that when we're running this program inside companies, Natalie, CHROs will send me an email being like, what's happening? You know, the people that were fighting on the team, one of them that was going through an investigation, all of a sudden they're happy and they love to work here every day and they're not complaining.
Teams are getting along. People are meeting their deadlines. And I was like, it is and restoring their circadian rhythm so that you can focus during the day. So that's just in week one, you do that. Ready for week two? Okay, that's where we week three, technically, because we did, you know, you got the book, you did the busy brain test, you practice self -compassion instead of judgment week two, sleep, seven day sleep challenge. Then we start the digital detox.
And so we don't take it all away right away. We just say 30 to 60 minutes. So Natalie, I'm going to work on this with you. What's an activity you can do to keep your sight, your sound, your aroma, your taste, your hands busy other than a laptop. So for me, it's kind of nasty. I leave all the dirty dishes in my sink. So, cause I know with soapy hands on Indian curry, I'm not going to pick up my phone. And then my senior dog, Roger, who's 17, he used to go faster to the front door. Now he kind of slowly goes there cause he knows.
He's getting another time out. It's fantastic. So what's something you could do that doesn't involve a digital device 30 to 60 minutes before about that? You feel useful. My husband and I talk about this stuff for assets. Go on that 20 minute walk. It's lovely. Like, yeah.
Let's actually spend time doing this and enjoying it, not just rushing through it so we can all eat to move on to our own. So romantic. And by the way, people will read in chapter nine of the book, we did this at evolution hospitality. Nobody had studied digital detox in the workplace. And we did that first research study and they manage hotels that are open 24 seven, like a new studio or like a hospital. And four couples and 21 days like rekindled their romance because they realized like we can't use our iPads. We.
have to talk to each other. I sent one couple to couples counseling because they were like, I don't know how to talk to this person anymore. We were with iPads at bedtime. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it just it's everywhere. It's everywhere from even sometimes even when I'm on a walk, I get this little like, oh, I should check my phone. Oh, you know, and I know it's a busy brain. No, no, it's going to be fun. Classic. I'm sure I'm at the top. I am too. Yeah.
We both are so so listen, it's good. So just 30 to 60 minutes before bed. That's all Week four is the secret sauce during the day people who would say I can't quiet my mind and meditate I can't do a walking meditation or just listen to music. I'm worried about this We introduce the power of sound healing especially binaural beats I first learned about music therapy and neurology residency. They were studying
certain types of music to heal patients who had a stroke and were learning to move their limbs again or talk again. And if you had music, you were more likely to heal the brain. Well, it turns out same with healing a busy brain. Certain types of music can help us. So literally in the book and on the companion website, we give you resources and apps to use. You put on the headphones, you want to work, you want to just take a timeout before bed.
It will literally change your frequency of your brain waves to help you calm or focus. So that's the first four weeks of that. Okay. And you, and already I'll say half the people drop out cause they're feeling good, but then other people are like, I'm curious. I'm going to keep going. So do I get to tell you the best part of the protocol? We're not putting anybody on a diet and comfort food is allowed. In fact, diet and cleanse is like a curse word in the brain shift protocol.
That's what, but so much of what we consume is important to our brains, right? Yeah, it is. And well, here's where this started from two things. I'm a chief wellness officer to over 12 ,000 employees. We want everyone to feel like they belong, whatever your ancestral foods are, your religious foods, your vegan, your paleo, your keto, your carb lover, your chocoholic, everyone belongs, right? Number one. Number two, I know is when I put.
you or anyone else on a strict diet protocol, it's going to give you a worse busy brain. That's so true. And the trauma and the shame around, oh my God, I had chocolate when I was supposed to be eating kale. Yeah. Or I'm counting calories. I'm watching. I messed up. My macros. I messed up my macros. I can't go to bed. I didn't get enough protein. Lord. Right. Instead, could I make it simple and say, pick what your comfort food is this week or in the moment?
and schedule it once to twice a week. So for all the moms that are out there, please, when it's your child's birthday and they want cake or cupcakes or whatever that treat is, hot dogs, eat it with them with joy. Don't be picking at it and be like, ew, because now you're sending the energy to your child. Like, enjoy that moment of that taco, that cupcake. But every other meal, your nutrition protocol is this. You get to pick caffeine.
Or you get to pick a high glycemic carb, white sugar, white flour, white potato, white rice. So if you're going to eat rice, because I love rice or pasta or a bagel, then no caffeine for an hour. Okay. Okay. That's that we can do that because that caffeine, I know we talked to science in the last episode, but can I tell this part really quickly? A little bit of caffeine is good for you, but a little too much caffeine and it's stressing insulin and adenosine receptors in your brain.
and it's going to make you more anxious. You can't focus when you throw something kind of food that spikes your blood sugar in with that. It makes your ADHD and your anxiety even worse. So you pick one or the other. That's it. Now, most high functioning people like you are, we pick caffeine all day long. Yeah. Yeah. And it doesn't always work like, well, then here's step two week one and week five. You're going to just split up carbs and caffeine.
And then week six, we add a healthy fat to every meal. Okay. I literally put coconut oil, olive oil on everything I eat, avocado, agrava nuts in this. Fats are not the enemy. They help your brain. This has been life transformative for people. They're like, my focus is on the MCT oil. You can throw in your coffee, go for it. Just don't add sugar. And I, these two steps for your brain.
is literally refueling our energy. And we give you some supplement advice there too. So by this time, most people are already healing and feeling better. We're six weeks in week seven. I say, could you rip out the lab slip that's in chapter 16 or in the appendix of the book and take it to your primary care doctor? You and I both had similar histories of burning out and maybe not still feeling our best selves a six months or a year later. There are particular labs. I especially want women to get checked.
your full thyroid panel and your vitamin D three levels because living under chronic stress and having a busy brain, those two things can be negatively impacted and they can be healed easily. Are you looking for ways to stay energized, healthy and help your family stay healthy? I've started taking supplements from seeking health and it has changed the game for me. I no longer worry that my family is getting enough of the vitamins we need. And I know the quality of what we're taking is top notch. I take an immunity support supplement, magnesium, and several others, including electrolytes to stay hydrated. So many people ask me about these supplements that I've made it really easy for you to find right on my website, natalie .com slash favorites. Also bonus, I have a coupon code to help you save 10 % on your order. You will find that coupon code on the website as well. Go to natalie .com slash favorites, click on seeking health. I may earn a small commission if you purchase there, but that's just to help my small business grow the website and the podcast to keep this news and good interviews coming your way again, natalie tisdle .com slash favorites and click on seeking health. And when you talk about healing those two, three things, two things you just mentioned, thyroid panel and vitamin D is it healed through through foods, through vitamins? Vitamin D3, we do need the supplement. Most people are low, women especially, if you've been under chronic stress. And so there aren't foods that could give you enough that you need. And when you're under stress, you may not metabolize it properly. The thyroid will need medication too. There are additional supplements or nutritional protocols. If you have autoimmune, we put people on a gluten -free diet, but yes, be open to meds. And I really wanna double click on this here. And I share my story of knowing something was wrong with my thyroid as a doctor and not getting it diagnosed until the full panel was done, which is in the book for you. And I'll give it to you in your show notes too, the labs to demand from your doctor is 40 % of women who are running around thinking, you know what, I'm just a tired mom. I'm just an anxious hormonal woman. Maybe I'm not cut out for this job. I'm not performing and your confidence is hacked, that anxiety, that ADHD is actually subclinical thyroidism. One in eight women, I know we weren't gonna talk science, but just really wanna drive this in. And so when women are told you don't have a regular period, you have PCOS, you may be in perimenopause early, or menopause, all those things could be true, but maybe it all started from a thyroid that hasn't been assessed and treated. One in eight women in America. Yeah.
I mean, I can, it's a crisis, but it is a crisis. And one of the panels that I did, I would love to have done the protocol that you get, but one of the first things I found was very low vitamin D. Yes. Very low thyroid levels. I mean, I'm, I'm, I'm walking. I have the same story. And Natalie, you know, I shared this in the book for a reason, like intuitively, like you, I knew something was wrong and the doctors only checked.
the TSH and T3, T4, and they told me I'm fine. And I'm like, I've never had a regular period in my life. I'm having fertility issues. Hair is falling out and chunks, you're just stressed. No, that was thyroid disease. And it wasn't until I went through surgery and I did my integrative medicine boards and I went to a colleague and I said, I've always wondered, I was 39 by the time it got diagnosed. And that was the first time I had a regular period in my life.
You know, one of the greatest things I learned as a health reporter was to take your health into your own hands, to ask the questions, to push, to say, I don't really understand instead of this first, well, the doctor said, and you know, that's not saying that doctors are bad, but busy and they have the same issues we do with busy brain.
And unfortunately, sometimes they have limited amount of time. Well, most people see a primary care doctor or we GYN and they weren't trained in what I was trained in. Like I boarded in neurology and an integrative medicine. So it's kind of like this, Natalie, like if somebody is having a garbage disposal that stopped working in their kitchen right now and there's that gunk coming back up and the kitchen stinks, are they going to call you or me to come fix it right now? No, not the best people. Yeah, right.
I mean, I'll probably vomit in your kitchen because I'm really sensitive to bad smells. Like it's the same thing, you know? And that's why I made it easy because I was like, I want to create a lab system that you don't have to pay thousands of dollars to go to integrated functional medicine for that traditional health insurance will cover in America because I work with corporate clients. So the lab stuff is there. I have a dream, Natalie, this is, can we put this on both of our vision board that the brain shift lab protocol start showing up in primary care clinics everywhere in America? Yeah.
That's it. I love that. And I'm so glad that you put that in the book because people will say to me, I went to the doctor and they took labs and they all seemed fine. And I said, but what did they ask? What levels did you actually get? And so I put it there. And if your doctor is questioning it, hand them a copy of the book because all the references are there. And then they're like, Oh, an MD wrote this. Okay. Yes. Yes. Yes. Okay. So you've gone through these seven, eight weeks, right? That's it. Yeah.
What else would you tell people at this stage as we kind of wrap up that what advice would you have for just living a more balanced life? I don't know that I believe in that word balance, that work -life balance. What I say that is is who do I need to show up in in this moment and allow me to be fully present? When I have a busy brain, I can't do that. But when I brain shift, I'm full of hope again.
to serve my mission, to live my personal life, to scale a business, to do all those things. But if you've listened to this and you're overwhelmed, I was there once and so was Natalie. I want to tell you what I wish someone had told me when I was going into surgery and scared that like my life as I knew it is over. I wish someone had said this, my sister, your brain is not broken. Your mind is not a mess and hope did not depart your soul.
Let's just start by healing your busy brain. Beautiful. And I love that so much because you wouldn't be helping the millions of people you're helping if you hadn't gone through that crisis. And all of the things I always tell people when they're like, I don't want to leave because so many people come to me now and they say, how do I leave the news business? Like I trained for this. I'm good at this. And I will say, you're not giving anything up. All those skills, all of those amazing things you've learned.
are gonna serve you somewhere else and serve other people somewhere else. You're not sweeping that up. Yeah. And that's a part of life. I mean, I think if you and I are sitting here and giving all of our sisters career advice, that's exactly it. And we know in today's world, people will have seven to 12 different careers in their life, not just jobs like switching from one medical clinic or a news station to another, right? And...
that when we really say, how can I be of service and make just one life breathe easier? And Ralph Waldo Emerson's quote, my favorite quote, this poem success I learned as a child of to know that even one life has breathed easier today because I've lived that's to have succeeded. Then it takes that worry away and that need to prove myself and buy another pair of overpriced shoes and say, okay, and then you just figure it out and all those skills. I mean, you wouldn't be here today talking to me if it wasn't for this
incredible career arc you've had being a health reporter. And you're right. Thank you for reflecting me. I didn't write this book because I'm only a doctor. I also wrote it because I suffered and I don't want someone else to suffer. Yeah. Yeah. You never see it when we're going through it, right? Girl, right? Yes. And it's a talking point that we did in a 20, 30 minute podcast, but it can take months or years and that's okay. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I'm so grateful and I'm, I'm
can't wait to share the book with other people and we'll put everything in the show notes. I follow you on social media, but give that out quickly so people can find your website and your social media. Thank you. Well, I'm Dr. Romi, R -O -M -I -E and website and social media. And if you want to do both of us a favor, go into iTunes or wherever you're listening to Natalie's podcast and hit five stars and leave a review. And you know what, sister? Share this episode with the bestie. Yeah. Someone who needs it because a lot of people do.
We can change this. We can, we can set these boundaries and retrain our brain and all of the things. It just takes awareness, right? Be aware of what the issue is. And then some guidelines, the eight weeks that you just outlined. Yeah. Eight weeks. That's it. Amazing. Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure. And honor Natalie. Thank you.
