5 Simple Ways to Support Your Nervous System
I talk about the nervous system a lot.
Probably enough that if you’ve been around for a while, you’re like, “Yes Leah, we get it.” 😂
But there’s a reason I keep coming back to it.
Your nervous system is involved in so much of how you feel day to day. Stress, sleep, digestion, energy, mood, cravings, focus, and even how well you recover from workouts can all be influenced by whether your body feels relatively safe and regulated or like it’s constantly running from a tiger.
And unfortunately, modern life gives us a lot of tiny “tigers.”
Emails. Deadlines. Traffic. Notifications. Under-eating. Overtraining. Poor sleep. Financial stress. Relationship stress. Never actually sitting down.
You do not need to become a completely calm person who meditates for two hours a day (but that would be kind of fun).
But there are some things you can do to give your nervous system a little more support.
1. Breathe on Purpose
Yes, you are already breathing.
But there’s a difference between shallow, stressed breathing all day and intentionally slowing your breath down for a few minutes.
Research on slow, controlled breathing has found that it can increase heart rate variability, which is often used as a marker of parasympathetic, or “rest-and-digest,” activity. In other words, slowing your breathing can help shift your body away from constant high-alert mode and toward a calmer physiological state. PubMed
Try inhaling slowly through your nose, letting your belly expand, and making your exhale a little longer than your inhale.
Nothing fancy.
Just enough to remind your body that it can come down a notch.
2. Prioritize Quality Sleep
I know this is not groundbreaking advice. But sleep affects almost everything.
When you’re under-slept, your stress response tends to feel louder, cravings can increase, energy drops, and normal life can suddenly feel much harder than it should.
There’s actual physiology behind that. Sleep restriction has been associated with changes in cortisol, glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity, and appetite-regulating hormones like ghrelin and leptin. In plain English: poor sleep can make you feel hungrier, more stressed, and less metabolically steady. PubMed
A consistent bedtime, dimming lights at night, getting off your phone earlier, and keeping your room cool and dark can all help.
And if you’re waking up constantly or never feeling rested, that’s worth paying attention to too.
3. Get Outside
There is something about going outside that can completely change how your body feels. Natural light is one of the strongest environmental cues for your circadian rhythm, and research consistently shows that the timing of light exposure matters. Brighter light earlier in the day can help shift sleep timing earlier, while brighter evening light can push sleep later. PubMed Central (PMC)
So yes, sitting outside with your coffee actually counts for something.
Walking can help too. A systematic review found that post-meal activity, including walking, can reduce post-meal glucose excursions compared with staying inactive. That’s one more reason a short walk can be useful for both blood sugar and how your body feels overall. PubMed Central (PMC)
You do not need to go on a three-hour hike.
Sit outside with your coffee. Walk around the block. Stand in the sun for a few minutes.
It still counts.
4. Nourish Your Body
Your nervous system does not exist separately from food.
If you’re skipping meals, running on caffeine, under-eating, or constantly riding a blood sugar roller coaster, that can feel like stress to the body too.
Balanced meals with enough protein, carbohydrates, healthy fats, and fiber can help create more stability.
And sometimes the most regulating thing you can do is simply eat lunch before you get to the point where you’re shaky, angry, and ready to fight someone over a snack.
5. Do More of What Feels Good
This sounds almost too obvious, but a lot of adults are really bad at it. We spend so much time doing what we have to do that we forget to do things that actually feel enjoyable.
Listen to music. Sit in the sun. Call someone you love. Cook something because you want to. Take a bath. Read. Dance in your kitchen. Go somewhere beautiful.
Pleasure, connection, and rest are not extras. They matter too.
The Goal Is Not to Never Feel Stressed
Stress is part of life. The goal is not to eliminate it completely.
It’s to help your body move out of stress more easily instead of living there all day, every day. Small things, done consistently, can make a real difference. Sometimes supporting your health looks like a supplement or a workout.
And sometimes it looks like eating lunch, taking a walk, getting some daylight, breathing slowly for a few minutes, and going to bed.
Signs Your Hormones Might Be Out of Balance
Sometimes your body is trying to get your attention long before you realize it.
Maybe your period suddenly feels harder than it used to. Maybe you’re exhausted all the time, craving sugar every afternoon, waking up in the middle of the night, or feeling like your mood changes completely depending on where you are in your cycle. And because so many of these things are common, women are often told they’re simply normal.
Common? Yes. Something you always have to ignore? Not necessarily.
Your hormones affect so much more than your period. They’re connected to energy, sleep, appetite, mood, digestion, metabolism, reproduction, and the way your body responds to stress. And one important thing to remember is that having one of these symptoms does not automatically mean you have a “hormone imbalance.” Symptoms can have a lot of different causes. But they can give you useful information about what may be happening in your body and whether something deserves a closer look.
So if you’ve been feeling “off,” here are a few things I would pay attention to.
Your Period Feels Miserable Every Month
Cramping, bloating, headaches, breast tenderness, irritability, feeling emotional, and wanting to cancel your entire life before your period are incredibly common. But common does not automatically mean optimal.
Estrogen and progesterone naturally rise and fall throughout the menstrual cycle, and those shifts can influence things like mood, appetite, sleep, and how you feel physically. Some fluctuation is completely normal. But if your symptoms are intense, getting worse, or regularly interfering with your ability to live your life, I wouldn’t just assume that suffering through it every month is your only option.
Your cycle gives you information about what is happening in your body. It is worth listening to it.
Your Energy Is All Over the Place
If you wake up tired, rely on caffeine to get through the morning, crash in the afternoon, and then somehow get a second wind at night, your body may be asking for more support.
Energy issues can be connected to blood sugar, sleep, stress, thyroid function, iron and other nutrient levels, how much you are eating, and a long list of other factors. Thyroid hormones in particular play an important role in regulating metabolism and energy production, which is one reason persistent fatigue deserves a bigger-picture look rather than simply blaming yourself for being tired.
This is one of the reasons I don’t love isolating one hormone and making it responsible for everything. Your body is a system, and energy is often one of the places we can see that most clearly.
You Have Intense Sugar or Carb Cravings
Wanting chocolate before your period does not mean you have no willpower.
Your appetite can genuinely shift throughout your cycle. Research has found that food and energy intake can be higher during the luteal phase, the time after ovulation and before your period, compared with earlier in the cycle. So if you suddenly feel hungrier the week before your period, that is not necessarily something you invented in your head.
Blood sugar can play into this too. If you regularly feel like you need sugar to function, particularly in the afternoon or evening, I would start by looking at what you ate earlier in the day. Did you have breakfast? Was there enough protein at lunch? Did you eat enough food overall? Were your meals actually satisfying?
Sometimes cravings are not a discipline problem. Sometimes your body is just hungry.
Your Sleep Is a Mess
Maybe you fall asleep easily but wake up at 2 or 3 a.m. Maybe you’re exhausted all day and then suddenly wide awake when it’s time for bed. Or maybe you technically sleep eight hours but still wake up feeling like you barely slept at all.
Sleep and hormones have a very close relationship, and it goes both ways. Hormonal changes can affect sleep, while inadequate or disrupted sleep can affect appetite regulation, insulin sensitivity, stress hormones, and how your body handles glucose the following day.
That means a few nights of crappy sleep don’t always stay contained to nighttime. They can show up the next day as stronger cravings, lower energy, more irritability, and feeling much less resilient to stress.
It becomes a loop pretty quickly.
Your Mood Feels Different Depending on the Week
One week you feel social, productive, confident, and ready to take on the world. The next week, everyone is annoying and you would like to be left alone with snacks.
Some variation throughout the menstrual cycle is completely normal because estrogen and progesterone naturally change throughout the month. Those hormones also interact with systems in the brain involved in mood and neurotransmitter activity, which is part of why many women notice emotional changes at particular points in their cycle.
But there is a difference between noticing that you feel a little more inward before your period and experiencing mood changes that feel extreme, overwhelming, or disruptive.
This is where tracking your cycle can be incredibly useful. You start to see patterns instead of feeling like your emotions are appearing out of nowhere.
You’re Constantly Bloated
A little fluctuation throughout your cycle is normal. Feeling painfully bloated all the time is something I would pay attention to.
Digestion and hormones are very connected, but bloating can also have plenty of non-hormonal causes. Stress, constipation, food sensitivities, gut health, meal patterns, and where you are in your cycle can all affect how your stomach feels.
Again, this is why I don’t love looking at symptoms in isolation. Your body is one connected system, and sometimes the symptom showing up in one place has roots somewhere completely different.
Your Period Is Irregular or Has Changed
Cycles can shift because of stress, travel, illness, age, changes in eating or exercise, and plenty of other factors. But if your period suddenly becomes very irregular, disappears, gets dramatically heavier, or changes significantly from what is normal for you, it is worth investigating.
Your brain, ovaries, and reproductive hormones are constantly communicating with each other. That system can be influenced by things like stress, illness, energy availability, thyroid function, age, and other health conditions. In other words, your menstrual cycle is not happening in its own little bubble.
You do not have to obsess over every single day of your cycle, but knowing what is normal for you can make it much easier to recognize when something changes.
Your Libido Has Disappeared
Libido is influenced by a lot more than sex hormones.
Stress, exhaustion, relationship dynamics, medications, sleep, body image, mental health, and whether your body has enough energy available can all affect desire. So if your libido has disappeared, I wouldn’t immediately decide something is “wrong” with you or assume there must be one hormone to blame.
I would get curious about what else is happening in your body and your life.
Are you exhausted? Are you stressed all the time? Are you sleeping? Eating enough? Do you feel connected to your body? Are there medications or relationship factors involved?
Sometimes libido is one more piece of information in a much bigger picture.
So, Does This Mean Your Hormones Are “Broken”?
No.
And I actually really dislike the idea that every symptom means your hormones are broken.
Symptoms are information. They are clues that can help you understand where your body may need more support.
That support might look like stabilizing your blood sugar, eating enough, prioritizing sleep, managing stress, moving your body, addressing nutrient deficiencies, or talking with your healthcare provider about something that deserves a deeper look.
The goal is not to become obsessed with every symptom or convince yourself that every bad day is a hormonal emergency.
The goal is to understand your body well enough that you can recognize patterns, ask better questions, and respond to what it may be telling you.
That’s exactly what I teach inside Hormone Harmony, how blood sugar, nutrition, stress, movement, sleep, and your cycle all connect so you can stop guessing and start understanding what your body actually needs.
I used to love cooking. I’m talking: it was fun, exciting, and, if nothing else, it helped me learn a lot of things.
When I was in gen chem (no thank you to ever doing that again), I was having such a hard time figuring out how to combine different elements or make something make sense in an equation. And lo and behold, my tutor said, “Think of it like a recipe you’re making in the kitchen.”
I was all of a sudden far more interested in what might be going on with all of these elements.
Bottom line: sometimes you want a bit of a complicated recipe, and other times you’re just over it and want to throw shit on a pan and call it a day.
This is exactly what this recipe mostly is: throw shit on a pan and call it a delicious day.
Sheet Pan Fajita Tofu & Black Beans
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 10 oz extra-firm organic tofu, pressed and sliced
- 1 1/3 cups black beans, cooked and rinsed
- 1/2 large red bell pepper, sliced
- 1/2 large yellow bell pepper, sliced
- 1/2 cup red onion, sliced
- 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp fajita seasoning
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 2 large brown rice tortillas, warmed
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Toss the organic tofu, black beans, peppers, onion, olive oil, and fajita seasoning together on the prepared pan.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring halfway through, until the vegetables are tender and lightly browned.
- Top with cilantro and serve with warm tortillas and lime wedges.
- Enjoy.
8 Things That Might Be Throwing Your Hormones Off
If you’re tired, bloated, moody, craving sugar, sleeping poorly, or just generally feeling off, it can be really tempting to assume you need some complicated hormone protocol. Sometimes that’s true. But honestly, there are also a lot of very basic things that can make a huge difference in how your hormones are functioning and how you feel day to day.
And no, this isn’t about being perfect. It’s about getting curious and looking at the bigger picture.
🥚You’re skipping breakfast
Breakfast is very controversial, odd but true. There was a time that eating breakfast wasn't healthy, then it was and then it wasn't - right now we're in the phase of it is healthy to eat breakfast. So if you’re waking up, drinking coffee, running around, and not eating until noon, that can be a lot for your body, especially if you’re already stressed, sleeping poorly, or not eating enough overall. Starting the day with protein, healthy fat, fiber, and carbohydrates can help support steadier blood sugar and energy instead of setting you up for a crash later in the day.
⬇️You’re not eating enough
This is a big one. You can eat the cleanest diet in the world and still not be giving your body enough energy. I see this all the time with women eating salads, smoothies, lean protein, cutting carbs, fasting, and genuinely trying so hard to be healthy. Your body needs adequate calories, protein, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals to make hormones, support your thyroid, regulate your cycle, and recover from stress. Food is not the enemy. Your body actually needs it.
🍩You’re eating too much sugar without much else
I am not here to tell you sugar is poison or that you can never have dessert again. Please eat the chocolate. But if most of your snacks and meals are heavy on sugar and refined carbs without much protein, fiber, or fat, you may be riding a blood sugar roller coaster all day. That can look like cravings, irritability, energy crashes, headaches, and feeling hungry again an hour later. Pairing carbohydrates with protein, fiber, and fat can make a huge difference.
🍸You’re drinking a lot of alcohol
I used to close down bars. Now I close down at 9 p.m. 😂 I am not anti-fun, but alcohol can affect sleep, blood sugar, liver function, mood, and energy. Even if you tolerate it well socially, it’s worth paying attention to how you actually feel afterward. How do you sleep? How is your energy the next day? Are your cravings worse? Does your anxiety go up? Your body gives you a lot of information if you actually listen to it.
🏃🏻♀️You’re barely moving
You absolutely do not need to destroy yourself in the gym six days a week. In fact, for some women, overtraining while under-eating and stressed can make things worse. But being completely sedentary isn’t great either. Walking after meals, strength training, stretching, gardening, taking the stairs, and just moving your body regularly can support blood sugar, insulin sensitivity, circulation, sleep, digestion, and overall metabolic health.
💄You’re exposed to endocrine disruptors constantly
This does not mean you need to panic and throw away your entire house. But we are exposed to chemicals through plastics, fragrances, personal-care products, cleaning products, food packaging, and our environment, and some of these can interfere with hormone signaling. Start small. Don’t heat food in plastic. Switch out heavily fragranced products when they run out. Use glass or stainless steel more often. You do not have to overhaul your whole life in one day.
💊You’re on hormonal birth control and no one ever explained what it does
Hormonal birth control can be incredibly useful, and there are plenty of reasons women choose to use it. But it also changes your natural hormone patterns, and depending on the method, it can suppress ovulation and alter estrogen and progesterone signaling. That does not automatically make it bad. It means you deserve to understand what it is doing in your body, what benefits it offers, what side effects you’re experiencing, and what your options are. I am very big on informed decisions, not fear.
🤺Your nervous system is living in fight-or-flight
Nervous system. Nervous system. Nervous system. I know I sound like a broken record, but I’m okay with that. You can eat incredibly well, take all the supplements, exercise, and drink your water, but if your body constantly feels like it is under threat, that stress can affect sleep, digestion, blood sugar, appetite, mood, and reproductive hormones. Sometimes supporting your hormones looks less like adding another supplement and more like teaching your body that it is safe to slow down.
The biggest thing I want you to take from this is that you do not need to fix all of these things at once. Pick one place to start. Eat breakfast. Add more protein. Take a walk after dinner. Drink a little less alcohol. Go to bed earlier. Ask better questions. Your body does not need perfection. It needs support.
And once you start understanding how blood sugar, stress, nutrition, movement, sleep, and your cycle all work together, it becomes a lot easier to stop guessing and actually support your body in a way that makes sense for you.
This is exactly the kind of thing I teach inside Hormone Harmony
Walk into any health food store or scroll through social media for five minutes and it can feel like you need an entire cabinet of supplements just to be healthy.
Magnesium. Vitamin D. Probiotics. Greens powders. Electrolytes. Adaptogens.
But do you really need all these supplements?
The short answer is: maybe. But taking more supplements doesn’t automatically mean better health.
Why Food May Not Always Be Enough
I’m a big believer in a food-first approach. A balanced, varied diet gives your body important vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and other nutrients that support energy, digestion, hormone health, and overall wellness.
However, our food may not always provide the amount of nutrients we expect. Farming practices, soil quality, transportation, food storage, and cooking methods can all affect the nutrient content of the foods we eat.
Your individual needs matter too. Certain factors may increase your risk of a nutrient deficiency, including:
- Chronic stress
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding
- Digestive issues
- Restrictive diets
- Certain medications
- Health conditions
- Genetics
- A lack of variety in your diet
In these situations, targeted supplementation may provide helpful support.
More Supplements Don’t Always Mean Better Health
It’s easy to fall into the trap of adding a new supplement every time you feel tired, bloated, stressed, or “off.” But symptoms can have many different causes, and randomly taking supplements may not address the actual problem.
Some nutrients can also interact with medications or build up in the body when taken in high amounts. That’s why it’s important to avoid assuming that every supplement is safe or necessary simply because it’s available over the counter.
How to Know Which Supplements You Need
- Before starting another supplement, I recommend looking at the full picture:
- What symptoms are you experiencing?
- What does your typical diet look like?
- Are you taking medications?
- Do you have any diagnosed health conditions?
- Have you had recent lab work?
- Are your basic nutrition and lifestyle foundations being supported?
Ideally, supplements should be selected based on your symptoms, health history, individual needs, and lab results—not because someone on Instagram said everyone needs them.
The Bottom Line
Supplements can be incredibly helpful when they’re used intentionally. But they aren’t a replacement for balanced meals, adequate protein, quality sleep, stress support, movement, hydration, or a healthy digestive system.
I
always recommend starting with food and the foundational habits that support your body. From there, targeted supplements can help fill specific gaps.
Because supplements should supplement what you’re already doing - not replace the foundations.
