What to Do When ‘Your Lab Results Are Normal’ but You Feel Awful

00:00You go to the doctor, you ask them for labs. You're hoping to see something that confirms what you're feeling. And then everything comes back normal. But what does normal even mean? Most standard lab ranges are based on population averages. Oh man. That means the ranges are wide enough to include up to like 95% of the population, guys. Including people who are unhealthy, including people who are insulin resistant, including people who are sedentary, and including people who are already symptomatic.

00:38What's going on, everybody? Hey, you guys. Welcome back to another episode of The WarriorBabe Show. Or if this is one of your first episodes, welcome to the show with your host, Nikkie Stott. And on these podcast episodes, we talk about mindset, methodology, and tactics that will help you lose body fat, build muscle, be strong, and feel insanely confident. So with today's episode, you guys, episode number 297.

01:11Today, I want to tackle a topic that I feel like hits so many of you guys right in the gut. And this is probably going to get a little bit spicy. But you know, what's a podcast without a little bit of spice? So let's just kind of get right into it. Have you gone to your doctor? And I'm talking about like a PCP, like your medical doctor. And said, I'm tired all the time. I'm gaining weight for no reason.

01:41My mood's all over the place. I'm doing everything right. And I still feel off. And what do you get? A shrug. Maybe a your labs are normal. Maybe a up. This is just your age. Something you got to get used to now as you're getting older. Maybe a prescription for an antidepressant. Or a suggestion to just, oh, what is your nutrition like? Maybe you should just be eating less like processed foods.

02:12Eat less. Move more. Get your workout on. Get some exercise in. If that's been your experience, I want you to know something. Your doctor isn't wrong. They're just not trained in this field. And that's what we're going to dive into tonight. And this episode isn't about like bashing healthcare. I want to educate and empower you so that you can stop questioning your sanity and start taking control of your health and confidence. If you guys have listened to some of the recent episodes that I've shared with you, specifically

02:46the one that is titled like life update, I go into, hey, this is what I was experiencing, but I have a background in nine years in the medical field. And I'm aware that some of these doctors, they're not trained in nutrition as much as, you know, I feel like I have an understanding of or what I know what other doctors are because they've specifically trained for, you know, this. And that's what I'm going to talk about. I'm going to talk about those doctors, the functional health medicine doctors. I'm going to dive into that. But, you know, I didn't take that outlet of going to the healthcare.

03:20I took the outlet of going down this path where I feel like my symptoms are actually looked at a little bit more in depth. Like it's not just like, oh, you're tired. Well, here's this. Or, oh, your mood's all over the place. Well, here's this. Or you're feeling bloated. You know, your hair's thinning. It's falling out. Like all of this stuff. So I talk about my life update if you guys want to go hear that. And that's why I kind of wanted to expand upon this because ever since I've been getting, you know, DMs or questions or thoughts or like, what do I look for? And how do I advocate for myself?

03:51So I want you guys to be able to stop questioning your sanity and start really taking control of your health with confidence. And so I want to kind of like pull back the curtain on why I personally feel like in my opinion, traditional healthcare keeps failing women, especially women over 35 in perimenopause and menopause and beyond. And I want to dive into on this episode with you guys, like what I feel like is the massive gaps in medical training when it comes to hormones. So metabolism and nutrition, I want to talk about like why standard lab ranges are kind

04:22of misleading and a little bit outdated. The difference between like being normal and being optimal and diving into like functional testing, what that will reveal about your blood work that standard blood work won't and how to advocate for yourself so that you stop feeling dismissed. Like I felt back in the day, like kind of brushed off, like here's this. Maybe that'll solve it. And like instead of feeling dismissed or brushed off, you start to feel better because your symptoms are not, I want you to know this, they're not all in your head.

04:53Like your body's not betraying you. You're just working, your body's trying to tell you something and you guys know your body better than anybody else. But we're kind of just working with an outdated system at the time. And I want you guys to be able to take your time, your power back. So let me start with first just like prefacing this. I am not anti-doctor. I need to make that clear. I am not anti-medicine. I need to make that clear. I am not anti-science. I'm going to make that clear too.

05:24What I am is I am pro-woman. I am pro-listening. I am pro in equipping you with the tools to take your health into your own hands. Because here's the hard truth and a truth that some of you guys may not even be aware of. But most primary care physicians, your PCP, your doctor, the ones we all go to when something feels off. They get less than 20 hours of nutritional education in med school.

05:59And many get zero hours dedicated to hormone health, to perimenopause, to adrenal dysfunction, or to metabolic adaptation. Their training is absolutely phenomenal for acute disease, for trauma care, for diagnostics, for emergencies. You know, we're talking like broken bones. We're talking infections. We're talking heart attacks. We're talking chronic diseases like cancer and diabetes. They are apps.

06:30I saw firsthand when I worked in the emergency room. They're apps and there's in the specialties all throughout the hospital. They're absolute rock stars in those fields. What about when you don't have a disease, you just feel off? Off and off can be such a broad type of description. But you feel like hell. Like your brain fog won't lift. Your weight gain, you can't explain. The fatigue, no matter how much you sleep, it's still there.

07:02Mood swings that make you feel like you're totally losing it. Am I right here, my friends? Like these things like digestive issues, period changes, anxiety out of nowhere. Like those symptoms, they don't get flagged as emergencies. They don't really qualify as a diagnosis. So then what happens? You get told, oh, it's your age. Oh, it's stress. You're probably really stressed at work.

07:34No shit. Excuse my language. No, really. I think we're all stressed, right? Or your labs are fine. Your labs are normal. But you know something isn't right. And your intuition is like screaming. And yet, the system shrugs. It's just this. It's just stress. That's the problem. Not the doctors themselves. Like I just want to make that clear. But the system that they were trained in. So let me talk about labs now. Because this is a huge source of confusion and frustration for so many women, especially for me.

08:10You finally get the courage to advocate for yourself, right? You go to the doctor. You ask them for labs. You're hoping to see something that confirms what you're feeling. And then everything comes back normal. But what does normal even mean? And I remember asking this back in the day. This is what it means. Most standard lab ranges are based on population averages. Nikki, say less. Right there. You're just like, oh, man. That means the ranges are wide enough to include up to like 95% of the population, guys.

08:47Including people who are unhealthy. Including people who are insulin resistant. Including people who are sedentary. And including people who are already symptomatic. So if your TSH, your thyroid stimulating hormone, comes back, let's say at 4.4. Technically, technically, that's in range. But functionally, that is a red flag for a sluggish thyroid. Or let's say that your progesterone is low.

09:17But it's still above the lab's cutoff. So your doctor says it's fine. Meanwhile, you're experiencing insomnia. You're experiencing anxiety. You're experiencing short cycles. Or you're experiencing heavy bleeding. Here's the deal, my friends. And I want you guys to hear me loud and clear and understand. Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control.

09:49If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, Warrior Babe is here for you. At Warrior Babe, we've helped over 18,000 women just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle, and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results and results that last. Look, don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women.

10:22Visit warriorbabe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's warriorbabe.com forward slash apply. All right, let's get back to the show. Normal doesn't mean that it's optimal. In range, quote unquote, doesn't mean that your thyroid or that those things are functioning well. And being told that you are, quote unquote, fine doesn't mean that you actually are.

10:57Again, I don't want you guys to think that you are crazy when you're feeling all of these things. And this is why so many people feel invalidated. They feel so confused and they feel so stuck because the professional, the one that we look to because they have all of this knowledge, they have all this expertise, they have more than we do. We're going to like believe the words that they say. And when they say that you're fine, but you're experiencing all these things, doesn't mean that you actually are. So I just want you to know that. This is where functional and integrative medicine like absolutely shines.

11:31Functional testing looks for patterns, right? Not just problems. It's about understanding how your body is working. Not just whether a number is like flagged on a lab report. So some things that some tests, some things that you guys could be equipped to learn about or understand. Maybe some of you guys have already heard about these tests before. These types of tests will help get you answers when traditional medicine won't.

12:01And I promise you guys that if I felt like this is a side note to the test. If I felt like the company that I was working with when I shared that life update podcast, for some of you guys that may know, for some of you that don't, my thyroid has downregulated. So I have a low thyroid and my testosterone, my DHEA, they're low too as well. My cortisol is elevated. Prolactin and some other things are also off. So I'm being treated. I'm about three and a half-ish weeks into my protocol.

12:33I will say that I feel like my body is definitely getting used to these new routine. And I haven't really experienced much like difference, but I know that that takes time. Okay. Because I'm currently like in an adaptation period. I said in that podcast that if I, you know, was having a good experience and I felt the company was awesome, that I would share it with you guys. So the company is called Merrick. I'm not even endorsed by them or sponsored by them. I just feel like they're a great company so far that I've been working with them.

13:05So check it out, Merrick, if you guys are interested. But in the time being, if you guys want to do tests that will give you guys some answers that traditional medicine can't, I'm sure you guys have heard of the Dutch test. If you haven't heard the Dutch test, that is a hormone, specifically around hormones. It's the gold standard for hormone analysis. It's a urine test. But I don't want you guys that to fool you because it does tell you how much estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, cortisol is that your body is producing, how your body is metabolizing that estrogen,

13:36which is huge for any type of like potential cancer risk. And whether your cortisol rhythm is like introverted, aka like you're wired and tired at night, and then you're tired in the morning. Or you're wired, you're wired, yeah, wired and tired at night, or you're like awake at night, and you can't, it's having a hard time falling asleep, and then you're tired in the morning. That's me. So it's really, that's a really cool test. It's like a complete map of what's going on with your sex and stress hormones. Another really good one is a GI map test, like a digestive health test that looks at your stool.

14:07Another one is, it's one of the most underused ones in my recommendations, but it is the HTMA, hair tissue mineral analysis, which is good for adrenal function, for your nervous system stress, for mineral imbalances that affect your mood, your energy, and your metabolism. So if you feel like you're wired and tired at night, your nervous system is always on. This test is an absolute game changer. Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause?

14:37It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, Warrior Babe is here for you. At Warrior Babe, we've helped over 18,000 women just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle, and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results and results that last. Look, don't wait anymore.

15:09Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warriorbabe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's warriorbabe.com forward slash apply. All right, let's get back to the show. And then this is the one main thing that I wanted you guys to have a takeaway on is like, I've gotten a couple of DMs on my Instagram that are like, well, what did this company test you for? Because I was like, I had 11 vials of blood taken. And that's pretty extensive.

15:40And like I said, like functional medicine goes a little bit deeper than your traditional medicine will. And they will look at specifically like a regular blood draw, but it's analyzed through a functional lens. Like what I specifically mean is that they're looking at fasting insulin, not just like your glucose level. They're looking at your cortisol. Like I can't remember a PCP last time that looked at my cortisol levels or had me do a saliva test, which looked at the whole course of my cortisol throughout an entire day.

16:10Typically cortisol is taken once and done, but there's also saliva tests where you can take it throughout the quarter course of the day. But with this, if you do take a blood test, you look at cortisol, like I said earlier, it's about looking at the pattern of your cortisol when you go and take a follow-up test. Anyway, a full thyroid panel. This includes your antibodies. Some PCPs don't take a full look at your thyroid. And that's where you can fall in the range of normal when it's really not normal.

16:40Looking at inflammation markers, like your CRP and your homocystamine. Like these are things that give you so much deeper insights. Vitamin D, B12, iron, ferritin, all of that. This gives us a real look at your metabolic, your immune, and your energy systems in action. Those types of blood panels. I'm going to repeat this thing. I want you guys, I'm going to break it down. It's like a tangible list for you to feel equipped to know, like to be able to just assess

17:12things to advocate for yourself. So now you know, like, okay, these are the gaps. You're probably like, yeah, Nikki, like 100%, like I totally agree with what you're saying. Some of this is probably causing a little bit of controversy. And that's okay, because this is what I firmly believe in. It's my opinion. If you have something that you maybe want to talk to me about, debate about, whatever, I'm happy to have those types of conversations in my DMs. More than happy. I think I love that. But now you guys know where the gaps are, right? You know where standard medicine falls short. You know what tests are out there to try.

17:44But how do you put this all into action? Like, how do you start showing up for your own health? How do you start advocating for your own health, even if your doctor and when your doctor won't? So the next time that you walk into an appointment, maybe you absolutely love your doctor and you have an amazing relationship with them. But this is how things have gone with your relationship. And you kind of want to like turn it around and take a little bit more control. Speak up. There's nothing wrong with that. But don't walk into an appointment saying like, I just feel off. Be specific. Like keep a weekly log of your sleep patterns, your energy dips, your cycle changes, your mood shifts, your digestion, your cravings, your soreness, your recovery.

18:25Because that is your evidence. It makes it way harder when you have that type of evidence and over like course of weeks to be dismissed. Or to be looked at as like, ah, you're just getting older and the shrugs and like here's this and hope is to fix it. Because if you just say off, like I said earlier, it's like that's very broad. Where do you feel off? And then you're thinking about what happened yesterday. But forget what happened last week, right? Or even the week before that. Or even the patterns that like personally from experience, me being in the moment in a doctor's office and I say it's something like that.

19:00And they're like, well, you know, can you elaborate? And like I'll just kind of go deer in headlights. And I'm like, dang, I wish I kept a journal or something, right? So that I can be like, this is my evidence and feel more confident in delivery of what I'm experiencing, what my symptoms are. So I highly recommend that by taking like a weekly log of what you're experiencing. Because then you have legs to stand on, right? When you're having that conversation. And then when they just say, oh, you're fine. You can be like, no, no, no, no, no, no. Like two weeks ago, I experienced this.

19:30Like a week ago, I experienced this. Like this pattern is still happening. And that's you being able to advocate for yourself. And then most importantly, know what to ask for. So go in with this list. Go in with the list of asking for a full thyroid panel. That is your TSH, your free T3, your free T4, your reverse T3, and your antibodies. Go in asking for cortisol. Go in asking for your progesterone, your estrogen, your testosterone. Go in asking for vitamin D, B12, your iron, and then insulin and your A1C.

20:02If your doctor won't run them, because I've heard this, I've seen this, you can use a direct-to-consumer labs or work with like, you can find like Mary, the company I just said, or even, you know, Equal Life. We used to be a partner with them. They kind of went a different route and kind of went a little off-brand of what we were agreeing personally with in alignment. I'm sure if you go to the website, you might see what. But they were great with the tests that they offered too as well in the functional medicine

20:33realm. Or even, you know, like if you're a warrior babe, your coach, like asking about how you can advocate for yourself and deeper and warrior babes, something is coming soon. So stay tuned. That's all I'm going to say. And know that you are allowed to change doctors. You are allowed to get second opinions. Like, don't ever just take at face value what somebody is saying, but you have a gut feeling that it's off. You are allowed to say, I hear you, but I am not okay.

21:04And I want to just dig a little bit deeper. Dude, that is okay to say that. This is your body. This is your life. This is your future. Okay? So I want to bring it home. First of all, a story from the front lines. It's me. While I don't feel like I could share my full experience now, and some things like I'm still in the midst of a body adaptation, my body adapting to this protocol, I will say I knew something was off. I knew that my hair thinning, me being tired and wired, me crashing out midday, me sleeping

21:41for eight to nine hours, and then waking up feeling exhausted and feeling like I can go back to sleep. I knew that that wasn't right. But if I knew, if I know, because personally, I've spent time in the healthcare field, right? I know that if I went to a doctor with that type of information, like a PCP, it would have surmounted to here's some sleeping medication, or here's some, I don't know, I'm making this up. It could be just protocols that are the medicine that will treat a diagnosis, as I was saying

22:14earlier. What they are well equipped in doing is they are well equipped in emergencies, they are well equipped in like diagnosing something, you know, heart attacks, chronic diseases, all those types of things. Those doctors are really well equipped into doing those, like being able to recognize that. And they've spent years in that type of training. But when it comes to like this type of stuff we're talking about kind of is like, well, what

22:48about getting just a little bit deeper with it, right? And you can get a little bit deeper when you work with somebody that's been trained in nutrition, it's been trained in hormones, it's been trained in metabolism for more than 20 hours in school. They made it their passion, their understanding, they wanted to learn more. But anyway, I say all of that. I didn't go the PCP route, because I knew that would be the outcome. So I advocated for myself, I did a bunch of research online, then I found this company. And it was refreshing, knowing that like, they were like, yeah, you know, you're not alone.

23:20Like, this is how there's a lot of women experiences, like, it's everywhere. So know that like me sharing my story with you guys, knowing that my thyroid is off, my testosterone is off, like my hormones are off. First of all, being at 35 years old, like I said in the other podcast, it's like, it's important to get checked. Like, I'm not saying all this to scare you. I'm saying that to like, empower you to get checked out. Okay, so I want to bring it home. If you've felt like you've been dismissed or kind of like brushed off, if you've like been told that, oh, you're fine, when you don't feel fine,

23:51the system is only looking at numbers, not at your experience. Okay, so this is your reminder. One, you're not crazy, you're not lazy, and you're not broken. You're just working with like an outdated playbook, one that's going off of, I hope that like stuck and landed, like the one that's going off of population being normal, when our population is majority of the people are unhealthy. Okay, so going off of those numbers is crazy. And it's just, it's time to change the game with the way you look at things. I'm hoping that this episode brought more awareness.

24:22It's my favorite word. Brought a different type of outlook, right? You deserve like a practitioner or a doctor who listens. Labs that go way deeper. And like a strategy that's built around your body, your biofeedback, your goals. And I say all this too and why like I knew something was off. I'm going to go with that broad. Like I knew something was off. Of all those symptoms that I just shared with you, it's not that you're getting older. It's not what you're meant to feel like. You are meant to feel alive and vibrant and strong and resilient and like free in your body.

24:59Okay. So I hope this all again, it empowered you, give you the confidence, made an advocate for yourself when you go into your doctor next time. Know what to ask for, know how to show up, have your evidence. Because that way it's again, like it's just really hard to feel dismissed at that point. Okay. So I hope this landed for you guys. If it did, pop into my DMs. I would love to have a chat. I've been talking to a lot of you guys. I've been creating some, building some really cool relationships with some of you guys through IG, which I'm loving.

25:32So yeah, if you have questions about this or thoughts about this, happy to talk, happy to chat. Hit me up in DMs. And until then, I will see you guys in the next episode. Peace out. Hey, really quick before you go, I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference. Helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey.

26:06Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much.

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