11 Wellness Writers' Turning Points in Functional Mental Health
11 powerful stories from people who have realized that the mind and body are not separate entities like we've been led to believe.
How Did We Get Here?
To a time where I have to write Functional, Holistic, Integrative, or Ancestral in front of the words "Mental Health" and expect you will know what I mean?
Somewhere along the way, we had to add those same words in front of "medicine" to indicate that we were treating people as people, the way things used to be, with a root-cause and preventative approach, instead of seeing every body part as separate and using drugs as the first line of treatment.
It hasn't always been this way—for medicine or for mental health.
In fact, we didn't even start studying the mind as separate from the body until the 1800s, when people like Freud (and others) promoted the rise of the "science of the mind."
Soon followed the fields of psychology and psychiatry and neurology and the belief that mental illness is something that occurs—in isolation—inside the brain.
There began this divide between physical health and mental health. We stopped viewing the brain as part of an interconnected system and started treating it like a machine to be fixed.
It makes sense that this happened, seeing as we were doing the same reductionism in our medical system: creating specialties—
Cardiology for the heart, Endocrinology for hormones, Gastroenterology for the gut, Neurology for the brain, Psychiatry for the mind, Dermatology for the skin, Pulmonology for the lungs, Rheumatology for joints, Nephrology for kidneys, Hematology for blood, Oncology for cancer, Orthopedics for bones, Urology for the urinary tract, Otolaryngology for the ears, nose, and throat, Ophthalmology for the eyes, Immunology for the immune system, Gynecology for the female reproductive system, Pediatrics for children, Geriatrics for the elderly, Palliative care for the dying.
Each system got its own silo. Each doctor learned their one part. And the whole person got lost in the process.
As these fields grew, the body became an afterthought and mental illness became a brain disease. The drug companies jumped on the opportunity to create pills for the hundreds of new disorders we created.
Xanax and Klonopin and Ativan for anxiety; Prozac and Zoloft and Lexapro and Paxil for depression; Ritalin and Adderall for ADHD; Seroquel for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
There is money in medication, so the industry kept booming.
I'm simply relaying the events that have occurred.
The events that have led us to today—where mental health care has become so reductionist that we've have to attach those silly words I mentioned earlier to indicate a whole-person approach.
A whole-person approach—recognizing a person for everything they are, listening to their presenting symptoms, and attempting to figure out what has gone wrong to cause those symptoms.
Does it sound old-school? That's because it is.
If, by old school, you mean the way things have been for longer than the past 200 years.
This brings me to today.
To me, writing this post about functional mental health and you, reading this post about how we got here and why a a disconnection that began by separating the brain and body has morphed into a system that has failed you and the people you love.
Do you want to understand how? Then you need to understand the people who have found it out the hard way.
That's why I've included 11 powerful stories from people who have realized that the mind and body are not separate entities like we've been led to believe.
1. Mental Health is Not a Solo Project
, Zenith Within
After losing my mother, I experienced firsthand how grief can unravel your mental health. I fell into anxiety, depression, and relentless insomnia. At first, I isolated myself, thinking I needed space—but that only made things worse.
What truly helped me heal was reconnecting—with loved ones, with movement, and with my body. Sharing time with family and close friends gave me emotional grounding and reminded me I wasn’t alone. That sense of connection created a safety net I didn’t know I needed. At the same time, returning to physical activity became a turning point. Exercise gave structure to my days and helped me reconnect with my body. The endorphins set off a ripple effect: lifted my mood, helped me sleep, and I began to eat better. Slowly, things started to flow again.
The mind doesn’t heal in isolation. Mental health isn’t separate from the body. Everything is connected, and the relationship between body and mind flows in both directions. It’s all part of the same conversation.
2. When Coffee Shakes the System
, NutriMindFit
For years, coffee was my daily companion, just one cup, or sometimes even two or three when work got intense. I never questioned it. It kept me going. Until one morning it didn't.
After my usual brew, my hands began to shake. My heart was racing. My stomach turned sour. I felt exhilarated, but not well. The next day, same routine, same reaction.
That's when I stopped and asked: could it be the coffee?
I stopped drinking it. And within a few days, the symptoms had disappeared. Curious, I investigated further. I learnt that coffee can spike synthetic adrenaline levels and keep the body in a false state of urgency.
This moment redefined my understanding of mental wellbeing. It wasn't just about energy, it was about stability. I began to choose what nourished me instead of overstimulating myself. This was the birth of a more functional, nutritional approach to my mindset.
NutriMindFit is based on choices like these.
Simple shifts. A clearer mind. A body you can trust again.
👋🏻 hey there! If you’re new to my page, please introduce yourself in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.
3. When the Mind Isn't Enough
, The Wellness Equation
I’m a psychoanalyst by nature and by training. I’ve spent much of my life listening for when the mind in conflict shows up and under what conditions it does.
Over time, I began to notice my own mind caught in deeper conflict, in ways I didn’t fully understand until I explored the mind-body connection and how profoundly it shapes our experience.
A patient of mine, let’s call him Sigmund, came in with crippling anxiety and bouts of depression. A revered professor, his mind was brilliant, but he neglected his body: late nights, little sunlight, no movement, heavy food laced with sugar.
We explored his fears of inadequacy and the inner critic fueling his depression. He gained insight, but lasting change only stirred when I pointed out how remarkable his mind was despite how poorly he treated his body — and he recalled how his beloved father had done the same.
That conversation mirrored something I was reckoning with myself. Without tending to what I call the Trifecta of Health and Wellness — sleep, exercise, and diet — both mind and body suffer.
Taking the Trifecta seriously transformed how I live, how I think, and how I guide others toward fuller healing.
4. Good-Mood Foods
, Grace and Greens
Nourishing foods have the power to change how you feel and it wasn’t until I started eating more of them that I realized the impact they could have on mood, energy, and overall health.
Growing up as a picky eater meant that there were very few fruits or veggies that I liked to eat. I remember struggling with digestive issues and visiting the doctor often, always fighting off a sickness. Fortunately, as I got older I began to explore healthy eating in hopes of fueling me to keep up with the many activities and athletics I was involved in. I also wanted to feel good, just as most all people do.
I was shocked to learn about the gut-brain connection; that almost 90% of serotonin or the "feel good" hormone is produced in the gut. This means the foods that I consumed made a direct impact on how I felt.
Once I minimized regular fast-food dinners and sugary desserts, while incorporating in many more nourishing foods, I felt the impact almost immediately.
My energy shifted, my mood was more balanced, and visits to the doctor were minimized to wellness check-ups.
Support your body in feeling good, choosing nourishing foods that fuel your body well.
5. How We Feel About Food Matters
, Wellness Redefined
I’ve always been a big believer that our mental and physical health are deeply connected, but years ago, I read a study that really drove this concept home for me.
In the study, the participants were all given the same beverage. The only difference? One was marketed as “healthy” with 0 grams of sugar, the other as a sugary soda containing 30 grams of sugar.
The interesting part? Even though the drinks were identical, the blood sugar responses weren’t. In the participants who thought they were consuming a sugary soda, there was a real, measurable spike in their blood sugar. In other words: how we feel about the food we eat can matter as much as what we’re actually eating.
It’s a good reminder for me that if our “healthy” habits are creating more stress than support, it’s probably time to rethink our routines.
Less rigidity, more joy. Because the best routines are the ones you can actually enjoy.
6. Motherhood, Blood Sugar, & Burnout
, Back to Wholesome
They say life makes sense backwards, and motherhood proved that true for me.
It began with wake-up calls - gestational diabetes, hypothyroidism, and eventually, burnout. But it was in the thick of it, between sleepless nights and quick pasta meals, that I started connecting the dots and realizing how deeply food and sleep were shaping my mental health. Though the gestational diabetes resolved after birth, it was a signal pointing to deeper imbalances that resurfaced later as burnout.
One of the most pivotal realizations was how blood sugar affects mood and energy.
My old routine (coffee first thing, followed by oats, banana, and maple syrup) left me jittery, anxious, and snacking all day. Once I began prioritizing balanced meals with protein, healthy fats, and fiber, my mood became more stable, and my energy felt more sustained.
Sleep was another missing piece.
I never truly valued rest until I became a mom. Fragmented sleep led to more mood swings and brain fog because poor sleep doesn’t just make you tired; it worsens insulin resistance, disrupts cortisol, and throws your hormones off balance. Now, I focus on quality, not just quantity, and my mental health thanks me for it.
7. Blood Sugar & My Mysterious Chest Pain
, Nest Wellness
At 23, I began experiencing chest pain that sent me to numerous specialists.
Despite EKGs, stress tests, and exams showing a healthy heart, the episodes continued unpredictably. Doctors suggested anxiety as the culprit, but their solutions never resolved my symptoms.
By 35, I received a diagnosis of mitral valve prolapse syndrome and discovered that increased hydration, magnesium supplementation, and eliminating sugar made me feel better. A true lightbulb moment came years later when I was developing recipes for Levels Health. Wearing a continuous glucose monitor revealed what countless medical visits had missed: my chest pain perfectly correlated with dramatic blood sugar spikes and subsequent crashes.
The discomfort I'd attributed to heart problems was actually my body's response to glycemic rollercoasters.
This discovery transformed my approach to health.
By focusing on blood sugar stability—incorporating protein, fiber and healthy fat with every meal, and eliminating simple carbs—I finally understood the chest pain that had puzzled doctors (and me!) for decades.
8. Overweight and Unhappy
, Not Your Average Athlete
At 11 years old, I was 130 pounds, overweight, and unhappy.
My weight hindered my figure skating progress, made me a target for bullies, and crushed my self-esteem. Discovering food intolerances changed everything.
After an elimination diet, I lost 30 pounds in six months and began winning gold medals. Yet food struggles persisted. My ADHD made me vulnerable to binge eating, using food as both stimulant and stress reliever. Straying from my food plan always resulted in weight gain—five pounds, then ten, eventually twenty. I would then train the weight off, a process that got harder every time.
This weight cycle continued until age 32, when a bike accident left me immobilized for two weeks.
Seeking comfort, I indulged in all my favorite intolerance-triggering foods, gaining 20 pounds. I'm still struggling to get back to my pre-injury fitness and body.
Now, back on my eating plan, I've accepted an uncomfortable truth: despite wanting to believe otherwise, what I eat profoundly shapes my life. What we eat only gets more important as we get older.
"You are what you eat" indeed.
9. Daily Yoga, Running, & Grief
, A Dose of Wonder
For many people, grief can play havoc with your mental health.
My mom died in December 2015, and, as a new years resolution, I decided to do at-home yoga daily to help me through the grieving process. I had done yoga once in a while before then, and knew it helped give my monkey mind a break - it paused my thoughts while I focused on breathing and moving through the yoga poses. And I knew I could do with a pause from the heaviness of emotions.
On January 1st 2016 I started my daily yoga practice - and I'm still going!
As of writing I've done 3,400 days and it has become a non-negotiable part of my routine. I find it meditative and calming - along with my recently rediscovered love of running, which I also find infinitely helpful for my mental health. I've realized movement gives my mind a little spa day, while both my body and mind are focused on whatever type of movement I'm doing.
There's no room for my inner critic to be berating me when I'm focused on Yoga or putting one foot in front of the other on a run- I'm fully in the present moment.
10. A ‘Hangry’ Revelation
, Back To Basics of Nutrition
At our wedding 27 years ago, my bridesmaids joked in their speech that my husband should always carry snacks because I tend to get ‘hangry’.
Hangry is defined as the state of being irritable, emotional or moody due to hunger and this can affect our hormones levels like cortisol and adrenaline which can trigger negative emotions and behaviors. This was just the joke with me, and I never really understood why my emotions were all over the place.
Fast forward about 5 years when my Dad was diagnosed with cancer and my journey into educating myself on health and nutrition. I had that lightbulb “aha” moment of when I changed what I was eating, a version of the standard American diet to a whole foods diet.
When I started learning and changing, my moods stabilized, and I no longer felt out of control when it came to behavior.
I can honestly say and others will say as well, I have become a more calm and less emotional person over the years and I one hundred percent attribute that to the food I eat.
11. Running For Your Mind
, Back on Track for Good
Like many people, I have had an overthinking mind and a sensitive heart from a young age.
From teas to tinctures, essential oils to meditations, I have tried it all over the years to calm my busy mind and ease my worries. While I first started running consistently for my body, I never expected how much of an impact it would have on my mind.
I would go to the forested trail to begin my runs with stress or worries or dilemmas and come back out of the woods with answers… Every. Single. Time.
I would come out with clarity, calmness, and confidence even.
People often say that if you could bottle the benefits of exercise into a pill, it would be the cure to almost anything. I encourage everyone to make the time to find movement you enjoy and keep prioritizing it again and again. You are worth the time. You are worth the effort.
Your body and mind will benefit in ways you may not even imagine.
I hope these amazing writers’ words inspire you like they’ve inspired me.
I hope that—if you haven’t already— you start to see the connection between mind, body, and environment.
I hope this realization prompts you to start making changes in your life, one small step at a time, to become the best version of you.
And lastly…I hope you check out these writers’ work! 😌
As always, thanks for reading. Please tell me in the comments: what’s a turning point you’ve had in realizing the connection between mind and body? I want to hear from you!
And—if you feel so inspired—share this with a friend!
With love and health,
Sophie
@Sophie Francis - I just wanted to say thank you for this beautifully woven piece! 11 Wellness Writers' Turning Points isn’t just a roundup—but an amazing reminder of where we’ve come from and what we’ve lost in the name of modern “progress.”
You capture with clarity and care what so many of us in the mental health and wellness space have felt for years: the separation of mind and body was never natural. Thus, I'm glad your piece brings us full circle, showing how healing begins the moment we remember our mind, body, spirt wholeness if you will.
It was an honor to be included alongside so many courageous voices. Thank you for holding space for stories that matter and for helping bring the conversation back to where it belongs: with the person, not just the symptom.
With great appreciation,
Bronce
I love this array of stories. What a beautiful collaboration!