Chews Food Wisely with Nicole Fennell, RD

You’ve cut gluten, added selenium, tracked your TSH like a full-time job… and still feel like garbage. 😩

What gives?!

If you’ve been doing all the “right” thyroid things but still feel tired, puffy, bloated, foggy, and cranky—here’s the real talk:
🧠 It’s probably not just your thyroid.
It’s what’s happening around it that’s throwing everything off.�Think: 👇
🩸 Blood sugar chaos (those energy crashes aren’t just “a busy life”)�😵‍💫 Stress overload (yep, even the “I’m fine” kind)�🥗 Eating like a bird (or skipping meals entirely)�💊 Nutrient gaps (vitamins & minerals that help your metabolism run… you need all the tools)�🦠 Gut issues (leaky gut, bloating, poor absorption—fun stuff)

The truth? Your thyroid might be doing the best it can.
�It’s just trying to keep up in a system that’s out of sync.

So if you’re:
🚫 Living on caffeine�🚫 Having smoothies instead of meals�🚫 Skipping breakfast (or only eating when you’re starving)�🚫 Taking 12 supplements with no plan�🚫 Feeling like a mystery your doctor can’t solve...
…you’re not alone. And it’s not all in your head.

💛 You deserve to feel like you again. And it starts with getting to the real root cause.

👋 Comment ROOTCAUSE if you’re ready to stop guessing and start healing—for real.

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The month I had a migraine every single day should have been my tip off, but no, it took several more years before my Hashimoto’s was identified. 😑 Which of these are you currently struggling with that has you scratching your head and wondering if your thyroid could be to blame?
🔹 Migraines – Hypothyroidism can reduce circulation and affect neurotransmitters, triggering headaches.
🔹 Acne – Low thyroid function can slow skin turnover, causing clogged pores and breakouts.
🔹 Bloating – A sluggish metabolism from hypothyroidism can cause digestive issues and bloating.
🔹 Puffy Face – Fluid retention is common when thyroid hormones aren’t regulating sodium and water balance.
🔹 Heat/Cold Intolerance – Hypothyroidism slows metabolism, making it harder to regulate body temperature.
🔹 Sensitivity to Caffeine – Slower metabolism and adrenal stress from hypothyroidism can make you more sensitive to caffeine.
🔹 Light Sensitivity – Thyroid imbalances affect the nervous system, making bright lights harder to tolerate.
🔹 Yawning – Chronic fatigue from hypothyroidism leaves you tired even after a full night’s rest.
🔹 Vivid Dreams – Hormonal disruptions from hypothyroidism can interfere with your sleep cycle, causing vivid dreams.

If you’re experiencing these symptoms, it’s time to take action. Hypothyroidism doesn’t just affect energy—it impacts your whole body.

💬 Comment BOOTCAMPLABS to get your hands on comprehensive blood work and HTMA (hair tissue mineral analysis) to get a deep-dive analysis on your thyroid situation!

Your thyroid doesn’t work in a vacuum—it’s part of an entire system that needs to function in sync for you to feel your best.

That’s why we use "The BRAIN Method" 🧠—our very own science-backed framework to balance your thyroid hormones and pinpoint exactly where your body needs the most support with a root-cause approach.

Unlike the one-size-fits-all advice you’ve probably Googled, we don’t guess—we test. 👏 We assess your unique story, symptoms, and order specialty labs to uncover where your thyroid needs the MOST help—whether it’s inflammation, stress, gut health, or nutrients (spoiler: it’s usually a combo).

Here’s how each piece of the BRAIN puzzle influences your thyroid hormones👇

✅ Blood sugar balance – Your thyroid hates blood sugar swings. Highs and lows throw off T4-to-T3 conversion (the active form of thyroid hormone) and contribute to fatigue, cravings, and stubborn weight gain.

✅ Regulate inflammation – Chronic inflammation (from stress, gut issues, or even hidden food sensitivities) can block your thyroid hormone from doing its job, making you feel drained and sluggish.

✅ Adrenal resiliency – Your adrenals and thyroid are BFFs, but when stress is high, cortisol steals resources your thyroid needs, slowing your metabolism and making you feel wired but tired.

✅ Intestinal support – Your gut is where 20% of T4 converts into active T3! If your digestion is off, your thyroid can’t function optimally, leaving you bloated, moody, and struggling to lose weight.

✅ Nutrient repletion – Your thyroid runs on key nutrients like selenium, iodine, iron, magnesium, tyrosine, and zinc. But if you’re running low or burning through those, your thyroid and metabolism will feel it.

✨ The best part? Once we identify your unique root causes, we create a personalized plan to restore balance—so you can finally have more energy, less bloating, and lose weight without feeling like you're fighting your body.

Your next step? Comment APPLY to see if you're a good fit for 1:1 support with our team of functional dietitians! 🚀 We'll have a private convo in the DMs to figure out the best plan of action for your unique needs.

🚨 PSA: Not all “thyroid diets” actually heal your thyroid! If you’ve been told that a strict elimination diet is the only way to support your thyroid… you’ve been punked. 🛑

Staying on these restrictive diets too long can actually make things worse. In fact, they’re not even intended to be long-term strategies. The hallmark of an elimination diet is eventual reintroduction 🤯

Here’s why cutting out a gazillion foods won’t solve the problem:
🔹Doesn’t address the ROOT of WHY you’re reacting: Food sensitivities give you symptoms, but they are a symptom in and of themselves. This of cutting out foods sort of like having a clogged drain and just never turning the faucet on. You may prevent an overflowing sink, but never turning on the faucet doesn’t address the clog.
🔹 Your “safe” foods will eventually become unsafe foods. Yep, it’s sort of like a game of “whack-a-mole”.
🔹 Nutrient Deficiencies – Cutting out too many foods for too long can leave you low in key thyroid-supporting nutrients. And without those? Your thyroid struggles to function properly. 😵‍💫
🔹 Gut Health Disruptions – Your gut is the command center for your immune system and thyroid hormone absorption and conversion. But restrictive diets can starve your microbiome of the diversity it needs to thrive, making thyroid and immune dysfunction even worse.
🔹 Stress & Restriction – Your body (and brain) thrive on abundance, not fear and scarcity. Chronically restricting foods can send stress signals to your system, which isn’t exactly helping your thyroid or metabolism. 😬
Chronic food restriction can:
❌ Increase stress hormones (which can slow thyroid function)
❌ Decrease metabolism and make weight loss harder
❌ Lead to an unhealthy relationship with food (hello, guilt & anxiety!)

Our approach is different. We focus on nourishment, diversity, and abundance—because healing happens when your body has enough of what it needs, not when it’s running on empty. 💛

✨ Heal while enjoying food, not fearing it. That’s what we help our clients do every day. If you’re ready to ditch the elimination cycle and feel better for good, comment APPLY today to see if you’re a good fit for our 1:1 program.

[Comment ROOTCAUSE for more info!] So your bloodwork is 'normal,' but you still feel like a tired, bloated, brain-fogged version of yourself? 🤔

One of our clients heard the same thing: 'You're young and healthy! Nothing to worry about!' Meanwhile, she was dragging through work, skipping plans with friends, and barely surviving her to-do list. 🥴

When she came to us, we dug deeper with advanced labs and found her thyroid was waving a big red flag 🚩 (despite those 'normal' results). We tailored a plan, got her body back in balance, and now? She’s crushing work deadlines, saying yes to fun plans, and finally feels like herself again. 💃

Feeling stuck in the 'normal labs but terrible symptoms' loop? Let’s change that. 👉 Comment the word ROOTCAUSE and I'll send you a sneak peak into an exclusive, first-come, first-serve, deeply discounted new service we're offering (until it sells out).

Merry Christmas from the Fennell family 🎄 Thankful to have each of you here!

Sit down for this one because we need to talk. 🪑

Here’s the tea: eating too little is like trying to drive your car cross-country on an empty tank. 🚗💨 Your body’s not just like, "Oh, cool, less food! Time to drop 10 lbs and call it a day!" Nope. It’s more like, “Wait, are we in a famine? Better slow everything down so we don’t run out of fuel!” 🛑

Metabolism? Slows. Energy? Gone. Hormones? 🌀 All over the place.

Your body is smart AF and its #1 job is survival. When you consistently under-eat, it holds on to everything because it’s not sure when you’re gonna feed it next. It’s not being stubborn—it’s literally saving your life. 👏

So, eat the dang food. 🍳🥑🍠 Fuel your body. Prioritize protein, carbs (yes, carbs!), and healthy fats. Trust me, when your body feels safe and nourished, that’s when it starts to chill out and let go of the extra.

Because 1200 calories is for toddlers, not grown, bad-A humans like you. 😏 When you're ready to eat more food and feel awesome in your body at the same time, we're here to help. Shoot me a DM with the words "FEED ME" and we'll chat!

Oh, sweet girl. I see you. I see the frustration in your eyes when the doctor hands you a prescription but no answers. I see the overwhelm as you Google Hashimoto's and feel like you're reading another language. I see the defeat when the "healthy" choices you're trying just aren’t working.

You’re not lazy. You’re not overreacting. And you’re not broken.

You’re tired because your body is tired. You’re overwhelmed because no one told you how complex hormones truly are. And you’re frustrated because you know deep down there’s more to this story than what you’ve been told.

If only you knew how much better things could get. 💛

You’ll find your answers. You’ll learn to work with your body, not against it. You’ll stop blaming yourself for things out of your control.

And one day, this chapter will be the reason you help others write a different one for themselves.

So, hang in there. 🌟 You’ve got this.

😳 Who knew your eyebrows could be giving you clues about your thyroid?

For years, I blamed over-plucking in the 2000s for my barely-there outer eyebrows (thanks, tweezers 🫠). Turns out, the real culprit was my thyroid!

Hypothyroidism slows down your hair growth cycle, causing eyebrow thinning—especially in the outer third, where hairs are already more fragile. 👀

But that’s not the only weirdly specific thyroid symptom.

Feeling cold no matter how many blankets you pile on 🥶?
Craving salty snacks like you’re prepping for a snack apocalypse 🧂?
Or maybe your mood swings could rival a rom-com plot twist?

👉 Now it’s your turn: What’s the weirdest symptom your body has thrown your way? Share it in the comments—I promise, no symptom is too strange! 👇

Make 2025 the year you show up in pictures again 📸

My life’s work: educating and empowering you to not accept “normal labs” at face value when you feel like garbage 😘