The Functional Nurse Academy Podcast

Specializing in Peptides NAD and Exosomes as a Functional Nurse: Liz’s Story

• Melissa Schreibfeder • Episode 15

Share episode

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 58:11

This episode is brought to you by Functional Nurse Academy

In this episode I am joined by functional nurse Liz Sandt, RN, BC-FMP, founder of Elevate Wellness, a private functional medicine practice she launched after graduating from Functional Nurse Academy. In this episode, we dive into the cutting-edge world of peptide and regenerative therapies. They explore how advanced modalities like BPC-157, Thymosin Alpha-1, GLP-1 agonists, NAD+, methylene blue, and exosomes can be used safely and effectively to support healing, immune function, and whole-body wellness. Liz also shares her journey from nurse to practice owner and how she incorporates functional medicine into her work today.

Guest Links:


🔗 Liz's website: https://lizsandtwellness.com/

🔗 Peptide Therapy  (Use code: esadnt for a free consult with provider): https://telewellnessmd.com/special-of...

🔗 Crunchi: https://crunchi.com/?als=lizsandt

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Functional medicine training for all other healthcare specialties and health and wellness coaches:

This show is also syndicated every Tuesday at 10am EST on The Nurses Report on America Out Loud Talk Radio 

SPEAKER_00

Hello, and welcome to the Functional Nurse Academy podcast. This is your host, Melissa Schreibwetter, owner and founder of the Functional Nurse Academy. Welcome everyone. I have another wonderful show lined up for you all. And as you all know, the United States is kind of dealing with a chronic health crisis right now. There are so many people who are really struggling day to day with their health. And I just am so passionate about bringing forth more information because there are additional tools that we can use to heal our bodies. So I am going to have another graduate of the Functional Nurse Academy on the show today to talk about some of these cutting edge therapies. We're going to talk about everything from peptides to methylene blue to the use of exosomes. Cause again, there are things that are out there, but we just need to provide that information and then, you know, let people know how they can access these things. So I am so happy to have Liz Sant with me. Now, Liz is a super experienced nurse. She does not look like it, but she's been a nurse for 23 years. And she's been in the functional medicine space for about eight years. And she is the founder of Elevate Wellness. Welcome, Liz. Hi, thanks for having me. This is very exciting. Yes, anytime. So Liz and I met at a conference back in 2022. And it was one of those, like, you know, nurse freedom type conferences, because we all know that like everything just went to hell over during COVID and especially in the nursing profession. So it was so great to connect um with other like-minded nurses and especially other functional medicine nurses because there's so much, there's so much that nurses can do in this space. So I know that we um recently were chatting about doing a show together. And in your practice, you've been doing a lot of work with peptides. And I would love for you guys, for you to um give our audience a little bit of an overview. Like what are peptides and what kind of health benefits, what kind of health benefits can they offer?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, peptides are really hot right now. And I have a feeling within the next year, I think it's gonna be more mainstream and more people are going to know about them. Um, so I feel really honored to be bringing this um little intro to to your audience here. Um, so they're peptides are essentially small proteins. They're um amino acids, like short short chains of amino acids, and they um are naturally occurring or they are synthetic. Um they're um antimicrobial, some act as hormones like insulin, um, neurotransmitters, or um like uh collagen like uh peptides that signal the body to build more collagen are used in skincare. Um, so there's so many of them out there. I feel like when people hear peptides, they just think of um GLP1s. And that's actually what kind of piqued my interest into peptides because I really didn't understand a lot about them or um or how many there are available for use. There's a lot that are used in the longevity space um in functional and longevity medicine. And um I I really hope that more conventional doctors get on board with a lot of the different peptides, especially like the thymocin that we were talking about and uh BPA.

SPEAKER_00

Yes. So I also have been interested in peptides for a while because when I was just suffering like crazy with Lyme disease, and again, praise the Lord that I have been healed from this and I actually feel like a normal human again. So, but anyway, when I was really sick with Lyme, I had issues with like chronic fatigue. I was also hypersensitive, I had hypersensitivity to all these foods and chemicals, and I also had mold illness. I mean, the list just like goes on, right? And that was um, so so I was trying to just throw the kitchen sink at it and I wasn't having good success. And one of the tools that helped me kind of early in on the journey was peptides, um, specifically thymicin alpha 1 and BPC 157. I actually noticed when I was really, really sick that like I started to have improvements in my energy. And um, some of these peptides have the capacity to modulate the immune system. And if someone is sick as a dog with chronic Lyme disease, you have mold illness, we know that there is a factor of immune dysregulation, which I think a lot of people are walking around with immune dysregulation today because of all these things we've been exposed to. And then you get immune dysregulation, and then you end up with reactivated infections and stealth infections and all of these things. So um with these, with these peptides, so I wanted to ask you specifically about like the capability for them to modulate the immune system. So, in the clients that you have worked with, have you worked with anyone that was having um, you also mentioned they're antimicrobial. Have you worked with anyone that was using them that was having success for people that have things like chronic infections or other immune health disorders?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, here in Florida, especially, there's so much uh mold infection. And I think that um people there again just aren't even aware of it. Um, conventional doctors. I actually asked my son's pediatrician if they offered a mold test. And she said there isn't one. And I said, Well, I know there's one because I order them for my clients, but I was just wondering if you would order one. And she said, Oh, well, there's there's some out there, but we don't do that. So at first she said there isn't one, and then it went from that to, oh, it's there, you know, it exists. But um there are uh so many people who have been helped with the thymicin alpha. And, you know, you and I know that Epstein bar is at the source of a lot of chronic illness. And Epstein Barr, Lyme, um, and mold, I think are the top three, along with, you know, even just taking it as a preventative. I plan definitely on getting some to have as a preventative um for this uh upcoming season, so I don't get sick.

SPEAKER_00

Yes. So I know thymus and alpha one is is huge for for the immune system. And again, you know, when your immune system is dysregulated, it is not because you have a deficiency in thymus and alpha one. But again, these are tools that people should know are available for them to use. Because again, you know, when we let just to give you an example, when I did um, I wrote like a deep dive um mentorship on Lyme disease, you know, and the CDC finally started recognizing chronic Lyme, but they were call calling it post-Lyme disease treatment syndrome. And they were basically recognizing, okay, people that maybe had acute Lyme and were treated, okay, maybe they might still be sick, but oh, we don't recommend treating the infection. No, no. We just recommend treating your symptoms, you know, giving you some, you know, pain medications and some antidepressants and things like that. So that is what people are being told when they go to these run-of-the-mill providers that, like, oh, this is all that we have for you. And this is one of the reasons why I love nursing and I love functional nursing because we can stay more up to date with what is out there. Because as functional nurses, we know good and well that there's kind of a, you know, 17-year lag in transational research. And we discover something in the literature that can be helpful. On average, it takes about 17 years for that to get implemented. It takes that long for that information to get in the hands of your medical professional. And then it may not even ever get into their hands if this uh, you know, modality is a competitor for, you know, big industry. So I think that's interesting. You mentioned that um your son's pediatrician was like, oh, there's no mold test out there. So um, I know there's one. Yeah, yeah. And so another one, um, BPC 157. So that one is like really hot right now. Can you tell us a little bit about that peptide?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, so there's um there's an injectable form and there's oral form. Um it is effective for joint healing, um, soft tissue healing. It's also effective for gut healing. It heals the gut lining. So I actually have a client who started taking it for um a joint issue as well as a gut issue. And she feels so much better. She's way less bloated, she can tolerate eating more foods, she's able to exercise now because her injuries are healing, and um, and she's just so grateful. And it's it's really a remarkable uh peptide.

SPEAKER_00

And and again, guys, I do not just know this. I looked this up. So BPC 157 is technically a synthetically derived peptide, but it is derived from partial sequence of a protein found in human gastric juice. But um, you may have heard about this. A lot of biohackers are using things like BPC 157, as well as, you know, a lot of your, we're starting to see this more in the field of regenerative medicine. But we know when we're working with people on the foundations of wellness, right? We want to help to get people active. There are so many health benefits to getting out there and becoming active. But I mean, you know, the client that you just referenced that like wasn't exercising because of her joint pain, that's awful. So there's ways that we can help to mediate that. And also, the client that you just mentioned that she had improvement on BPC 157, did she need to stay on it to continue to have improvement with her symptoms? Or is this something she was able to use for like a specific time frame and then stop?

SPEAKER_01

I think everyone's different. She actually just texted me as we were starting, and I think she wants she wants to have a discussion about like what's next because she's just finishing her third month. Um and she elected to take the oral form versus the injectable form. So um everyone's different and it depends on on their situation on which one is um better. But I think typically if there's a soft tissue situation or joint situation, the injectable form is from what I understand, better to inject directly at the site of injury. And then the oral form is better for a gut health issue. Um y'all know how many people are suffering from gut health issues, right?

SPEAKER_00

Yes. And and and this is a clinical pearl for everyone. If you have if there's just multifactorial things going on in the body, say you were a practitioner and you're working with this complicated case and you're like, I don't know where to start. Start in the gut. If your gut is a mess that is really gonna inhibit your body's ability to properly absorb and utilize all of those amazing nutrients that we get from food. So but yeah, I was well aware even before I got into functional medicine, I had heard about functional and holistic providers using this to aid in the healing of leaky gut, aka intestinal permeability, because we know that this is an issue for so many people. And now, also, okay, so we mentioned thymus and alpha one, BPC 157. Now, um, now tell me, because you you're a registered nurse, correct? With board certifications and functional medicine, super experienced. Now, with your practice, um, something I there's so much confusion. A lot of nurses are like, well, I don't think I'm allowed to start a practice because I'm not a nurse practitioner and I'm always trying to educate. There are so many things that we can do under the scope of practice as a registered nurse, especially when we are partnering with other, um, especially when we have partners where we have access to MDs. I mean, you know, for an example, you know, with my practice and how I teach nurses that I train, I'm like, you can order labs. But again, um, you're not just doing that on your own. You're partnering with a laboratory and you're ordering under an MD. Is this also similar? How when you work with a client and you support them through paptides, are you also partnering with another company that gives you access to a medical doctor to where you're able to offer this as a service?

SPEAKER_01

Yes. And actually, I had such a great experience, and I know we're gonna talk about this later, with um using trzipatide, the GLP1 GIP, um that I thought to myself, I need to refer so many people for this, if it's right for them, of course. Um, and also when I started learning about all of these other peptides, I'm like, oh my gosh, there's so many people who can benefit from these. I actually went on a search to find an MD or someone to partner with and to see if there was some sort of like affiliate partnership out there. Um, because I was like, I'm just gonna be referring people left and right here. And I I needed to find someone I could trust, um, someone who was knowledgeable. And of course, it's nice to have uh an affiliate type of compensation for a referral fee. Um, so I found a company, it's Telewellness MD. And um, I was able to join their affiliate program. Now, they don't allow just anyone to join their affiliate program. They want to have knowledgeable affiliates, preferably in the the medical or the wellness space. Um, but it's um founded by an MD. He is a functional and longevity uh doctor. He has a brick and mortar in Clearwater, Florida. He also has a program for practitioners to learn, for um nurse practitioners, PAs, and MDs to learn about peptides so they can prescribe them. Um, but for people like myself who have never really had a desire to prescribe anything, and my my goal is always to get people off of things they don't need, you know, so they don't need prescriptions. Um, the affiliate program was just exactly what I was looking for. And they provide education. We have weekly phone calls, and Dr. Aigan's on the calls like 90% of the time, I would say. And um, we can ask questions as affiliates, we receive all kinds of educational information. Um, and it's really fascinating. And he genuinely wants people to be well, and that's refreshing. It's not about like the money for him at all. Like he actually will help people with addiction. Um, and then if they follow the protocol that he recommends, he'll give them their money back. I've heard him say that recently.

SPEAKER_00

Oh, oh, that's wonderful. So I actually I used to be an addiction nurse. And I have I have a really big heart for these people because there's a lot of suffering. And um, so are you saying that with the peptides that they can help people suffering with addiction?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, the GLP ones, GLPs. Oh, interesting. For addiction right now, an addiction also um in Alzheimer's, they um they reduce inflammation in and they increase neuroplasticity. So there, I think we don't even know all of the things yet that they're gonna be good. Yeah, healing.

SPEAKER_00

So and I do think it's good to touch on the GLP1 agonists because now um these are, if you've seen the commercials for Ozimpic, Wagovi, things like that. Those are types of GLP1 agonists. And and get, and again, there is an uproar right now in like the holistic and functional medicine communities about the GLP 1 agonist because there is so much inappropriate use of it, guys. Um, it also there's a variety of uses for them if they're used appropriately. However, we see them just being doled out left and right like candy to people who want to lose, you know, 10, 15 extra pounds. And a lot of times they're used inappropriately, especially in these weight loss resistant cases, when we haven't even properly evaluated what's going on with that person's hormones. So they can be there, like now the GLP ones, um, they can be very high risk. There are a lot of side effects associated with them. However, I know that we have had a variety of differing perspectives on this on the show. We've had providers that don't like to use them. We have providers that advocate for them that have come on and they're like, hey, it can be a miracle drug if they're dosed appropriately and if they're used appropriately. So um, that is something um new to me. I did not know that they could help with addiction. So um, and I wanted to ask, because I know you had a good experience with this. So something else that I hear being said in the wellness community when it cut talks when it comes to weight loss is they're like, well, once people start on these medications, they're on it for a lifetime. Is that true, Liz?

SPEAKER_01

I I don't think so. Although I, with my experience and the way I feel, I don't know that I want to go off of it. Because uh, so I'll just I'll just backtrack and tell the the whole the whole story now. So I started a little over a year ago working per diem at a local functional medicine office. Um it's owned by a PA and she is so brilliant. She is like smarter than most doctors I have ever met, and she dedicates her entire, like it's her passion. She's always at a different conference in every weekend, like Miami in Vegas. Like she just got back from a peptide conference. I I really, really respect her. And when I first started working there, she knew I had my practice and then I had completed your program, and I'm like, I just I just can't lose weight. I just keep gaining weight. I felt I felt like I had um almost like, you know, how am I gonna help my clients because I can't even help myself? And like imposter syndrome, you know, and I and I'm like, what is going on with me? I I have been eating clean for years. I have tried um intermittent fasting. I have tried keto, I've been at the gym doing various workouts for years and years, like burn boot camp for a year, another gym before that for two years. I joined Lifetime Fitness, which is like the most bougie gym in the whole area, and you can do unlimited classes, and I'm in there five days a week and just gaining and gaining. And so my mother, my brother, and my grandmother, and her six brothers and sisters were all diabetic. So I have a genetic tendency to have insulin resistance, and that's what was going on with me. Um, and she said, Well, why don't you just try to zippitide? And I was like, What? Like, I can't even believe she suggested this. Like, you know, I don't want to do any farm in a pharma, like I'm so like anti-pig pharma. And then I started seeing the clients, her clients, per patients coming in who didn't even need to lose weight for their terzipatite injections every week. And I'm giving these injections to these people, like, what is going on? Why am I doing this? And I started talking to them, and they were taking it for uh anti-inflammatory, so they didn't have joint pain. Um, or some, you know, for various reasons, but microdosed. And then I heard a um podcast, Dr. Tina Moore, that someone recommended in a Facebook group about GLP ones. And and I thought, she's a chiropractor and a naturopathic physician, and she's like in support of this. Like, I something I have to listen to this. So she sold me. Like everything she said resonated with me, and I decided to try it. And um, with trzepotite, I lost 40 pounds. And I had the only side effect I had was um reflux. And I um at the suggestion of uh the PA, Elizabeth, I took a GI supporting um beverage from Nutritional Frontiers with like aloe and marshmallow, and I think it's like GI protect or something. And then I was fine after after the first few injections, but my joint pain disappeared. I had um stiff and and uh a lot of inflammation in my hips in the mornings when I would first wake up, and that disappeared. My brain fog disappeared. Um I did lift weights. Um I was listening to Tina Moore's uh podcast, and she's a big advocate of heavy weightlifting for women, especially as we get older. And so I started weightlifting, I stopped the hit and the high the hardcore cardio um and just started walking on the beach. And slow and steady is how I lost. And I I'm grateful for that because I, you know, didn't want the the GI upset and the saggy skin and all of the things that come with the the quick weight loss. But what's happening with people who are having the side effects is that they aren't changing their diet, like we talked about briefly. Like I saw a TikTok once and it was like, what a what I eat in a day on semaglutide or on a Zumpic, and it was like three Doritos and a half of a McDonald's cheeseburger. Like, what? I mean, I just continued with my healthy diet and really focused on protein, like trying to get to 100 grams of protein a day. That's so hard for me. I think I average about 80. Um, but the people aren't changing their diets and they're losing too fast because with the pharmaceutical, the um Ozimpic and Manjaro, they come in these pre-filled plastic pins, and one pin is the dose. And what functional medicine providers and longevity medicine providers are doing is starting at maybe a quarter of that dose and gradually working their way up slowly so that people aren't hit with all of these side effects. Um also, there's a lot of people who aren't changing their diet and not moving and not taking in enough fluid, and they're constipated. And then they wait. I think I read one woman who sued one of the companies waited 10 days after before she went to the ER. She hadn't had a bowel movement in 10 days. So that I feel like the providers who are prescribing these things just aren't they're not following through with their patients and they're not giving them the tool, you know. This I feel like it's a tool. The GLP ones and GIPs are are a tool to help with other lifestyle changes, but they're just not making sure that people are are doing these things. And it's really sad because I feel like I've talked to so many people who have benefited from them, and I am just a big advocate. I feel great. I really do. Um, and especially with the Alzheimer studies, there's so many studies where it's helping stop or reverse Alzheimer's and the um it reduces cravings, which never was my problem. I never had a big appetite, I never had sugar cravings. It was just my insulin resistance was in full effect, like not allowing my my metabolism to function. And um, so yeah, I I'm I'm a big fan.

SPEAKER_00

Well, I'm so glad that you had benefit and you're feeling better because again, it's another tool, but with any any type of medicine, any type of therapy, they must be used appropriately. And people need to be given that proper informed consent. So I do want to pause for a moment to remind our listeners. This show is also syndicated on America Out Loud Talk Radio on the Nurses Report radio show and podcast. So you can also find me there on any major app. Hello and welcome back. This is Melissa Schreibfadder. And today I am joined by one of my functional nurse academy graduates, Liz Sant, owner of Elevate Wellness. And Liz has been real busy helping people with lifestyle and nutrition, helping people to heal from the inside out. And she also has been using tools in her practice, such as peptides and things like methylene blue. So we're gonna be talking about those things today because again, there are so many tools in the toolbox of medicine. And a lot of these things people don't eat, people don't even know about them. So I really want to get the information out. Welcome back, Liz. Thank you. So fun to be here. Yes, it's always so fun to talk about these things because again, like I learned something, I feel like I learned something new every day about another tool that can be helpful because there are so many suffering people. And it's just like if there's something that we can use to help them, you know, it is just it's good, it's good for them to know about it. So um, the first half of the show, we talked about some of the benefits of some of the most common peptides, VPC 157, thymus and alpha 1. We also know almost everyone has heard about the controversy of GLP1 agonists. And we just talked about how Liz had a really good experience and how they are being used improperly, they are being dosed improperly, and how there may be really significant side effects when they are microdosed and when they are used responsibly. So I did want to touch on real quick for um now I know that you mentioned as an RN having your own functional medicine practice. If you're working with a client and they want to try using paptides, are you able to assist them in that? Like how would that work?

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, so I'm partnered as an affiliate with Telewellness MD. Um, and if any listeners are interested in partnering with them, I can connect um anyone with the the business management department um for the affiliate program. But um I refer them, I refer my clients through my website, my link that's uh direct to me. And they would create an account, schedule an appointment, there's a complimentary um 15-minute consultation, actually unlimited consultations, and the doctor or the nurse practitioner would um talk to them and if if appropriate, write the prescription to a compounding pharmacy, depending on what state they're in and what peptide it is, because it is complicated out there in peptide land. Some states don't allow certain um peptides to be shipped, and they don't allow certain dosages of certain peptides to be shipped there. So it's it's kind of complicated. There's a long list of what can go where and how much of what. And um so they would determine that, and then the prescription would just arrive at their door. If it's an injectable, they would be drawing up the um the amount of peptide that the prescription calls for and injecting themselves, and we have educational information on um on how they can do that. So it's typically, you know, just a very small amount with an insulin needle, a few units of whatever peptide if it's if it's an injectable, but I love having this partnership because the doctor who owns it is extremely knowledgeable and very passionate. Um, a lot of people ask me about hormones, about bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. Um, and a lot of people want that. And I have really not been able as an RN to help them with that. So they're going to be starting to do um BHRT very soon. So I'm really excited that for people who want that, they'll be able to have access to that. Yeah, testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone.

SPEAKER_00

And I um that really piqued my interest when you were talking about how difficult it is to get certain peptides. Because when I think about other pharmaceuticals that are out on the market, you know, things that you can go and and and get over the counter. I mean, you can go and get Tylenol over the counter. Um, yeah, Tylenol, there are so many deaths from Tylenol per year. There are so many overdoses. If you overdose on Tylenol, you can end up with liver failure. And I am like, why is this available over the counter? But then it's interesting that certain peptides, um, specifically the ones with really very mild side effects. When I was dealing with my Lyme situation, um, pretty much one of the most famous peptides for Lyme and immune modulation is thymusin alpha one, but the FDA restricted it, making it more difficult to get. But then, you know, the side effects of thymusin alpha one are usually like redness at the injection site. Are you aware of any other serious side effects?

SPEAKER_01

You know, I mean the only ones that I am aware of that have side effects are the GLP1, GL GIPs. If the dosage is a bit too high, typically that's what happens. Um as far as the other ones, it's like redness at the injection site or itching. So it just blows my mind that restricted.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, yeah. I I thought that was that was so that that I thought that was so interesting. But we have seen that the FDA has a little pattern of doing things like this. So I always get like a little suspect if I feel like the FDA is trying to get their claws into something. Cause then I start thinking, I'm like, okay, maybe this actually works to fix something. So I am hoping that we will see less of that with our new, you know, it administration. But um, but yeah, no, I think that is interesting that there are so many hurdles. And something else that we had talked about that I am also very interested in and learned a little bit about when I was sick with Lyme was methylene blue. So can you describe to our listeners like what that is and what it is being used for?

SPEAKER_01

Well, it helps with mitochondrial function and cellular energy. So um there's a lot of functional medicine offices that are actually starting to do methylene blue IVs. I've had one. Um, and then I went into the red light. So the red light really helps to activate your cells after methylene blue. So if anyone has a red light at home, even if you're doing like the oral drops um or tablets, a red light is really great for that. But it it helps with um cognitive function and energy. I actually took it before I went on a trip to Peru. I went for my birthday back in February, and I was hoping that it would help me with any potential altitude sickness and help my energy while I was traveling. Um, I did have a bit of altitude. I had uh elevated heart rate when I would lay down at night and I had a headache, which I never have, um, just for the first couple of days, but um, but it gave me so much energy. Typically, after I do IVs, like if I'm doing blood ozone or something that's gonna be detoxifying, I get really tired. But I came home after a full day of working at the functional medicine office and staying after to do my IV and doing the red light, and I came home and cleaned my entire house. Um, so I that and a another favorite of mine is NAD plus. I I took some before our show here. Um, it's great. I it reduces brain fog. It helps me personally feel very sharp and um very productive. So I I do an injection of NAD about once a week and it helps um metabolism also.

SPEAKER_00

Yes, interesting. And methylene blue, I'm hearing a lot more talk about it. Now, methylene blue is a it is a synthetic dye, but it has been found to widely have really amazing benefits when it comes to supporting mitochondrial function. And again, when our bodies are sick, and again, people usually get sick because of things like crap food, stress, and toxins. But again, your body is designed by God to heal, but you need energy to heal. So even though it's not something that's technically like naturally derived, it could be another tool that can really help with your mitochondrial health. And one of the reasons um how it does that is it helps to reduce things like oxidative stress. It also supports like the ATP production. Um, there's a lot of really, there's a lot of really interesting uses for it. And um, are you um well what do you think about the side effect profile for methylene blue?

SPEAKER_01

I didn't have any side effects personally. Um, if people are taking an SSRI, they should not take it. Um, I've heard of people having headaches with it. Um, but other than that, I haven't personally witnessed any side effects.

SPEAKER_00

Okay. Yeah. And again, you know, when you're considering adding another tool into your regimen, it's always going to be that risk versus benefit. So one thing that I'm always looking at is I'm like, okay, how long has this thing been out for? What are the known side effects? What are the known benefits? And then make your decision that way. So also, you know, I'm hearing of functional providers that are using things like methylene blue for infections like Lyme disease. Have you heard about IV methylene blue?

SPEAKER_01

I did an IV of methylene blue. Um how'd that go? There are it was great. I had a ton of energy. Um I I I was thinking the other day about um the dye that's used during surgery. And um specifically, I remember the working in the hospital in the med surge unit and and having women who had uh bladder surgery or GYN surgery coming back to the floor with blue urine. Um, and I was thinking, and I and I haven't even researched this yet about um perhaps women who have chronic UTIs, it would be good for. Um like I said, this is just like right off the top of my head, but um definitely it's great for energy. I had a ton of energy.

SPEAKER_00

Yes. And I remember when I was so sick. Oh my goodness, like the fatigue was awful. And I had like a young child, I had zero energy. And and again, you know, it's always like there's certain tools we we can use, you know, but it's always good to um really work to help to identify why you are having these issues in the first place. Cause again, there are tools that we can use, but you know, you you want to really investigate those root causes because you don't want to end up using a whole lot of tools, getting well, and then having a relapse because the root causes were not addressed. Now, NAD, you mentioned as well. So I am seeing that there are uh in in the area that I live in, there are so many new IV hydration clinics popping up left and right. We have mobile IV clinics. This is something else that I'm seeing nurses also at the registered nurse level starting their own IV clinic, um IV hydration clinics through the partnership of an MD. But I'm seeing a lot of IV NAD, which um now, NAD, can you describe a little bit like like what exactly is that? Is that something that is naturally occurring?

SPEAKER_01

Well, it it helps with energy. Um, it is naturally occurring. It decreases as we age. And um it helps with DNA repair, um, cellular energy, metabolism, and glycolysis. So um I have never done personally an IV of NAD, but it's it's a process. Like when I administer that um at the functional medicine office where I work per diem, we're placing people on oxygen, we're giving them caffeine. If it goes too quickly, they can have chest pain. Um I'm not interested in that personally for me.

unknown

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I just I'll do the sub Q shots myself. And, you know, you can walk into one of these IV clinics and do a sub Q shot, but you can also order it and have it at home and and give it yourself. So I just do it once a week.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. And what's interesting about NAD is it's actually found in like every living cell, you know, and and so it also, like, you know, how we talked about methylene blue helps us support the mitochondria. Um, NAD also has uh a role in things like DNA repair and cellular energy production. And again, when your mitochondria is shocked because your body has been so overburdened with things like toxins and infections. Again, these can be um things that can really give people relief. Now, um, I did want to also ask you about, so um, you had mentioned uh before we started the show, exosomes. So I'm seeing a lot of talk about exosomes as well in the field of regenerative medicine. Um I'm I'm really interested in regenerative medicine, by the way, because it's like we're using, you know, more up-to-date medical technology. And there's just uh there's so much potential of so many things that we can help people with. So, what are exosomes and and what do they do?

SPEAKER_01

Well, they're little signals to cells to do what they what they're made to do. And um what I do with them is I microneedle them. As an RN, I took a course for microneedling, and that's something that we can do. We don't have in the state of Florida, anyway, um, I don't have to have an esthetician license to do that. It's considered medical. And um so I use the the exosomes and I microneedle for facials. It creates collagen um or helps your body to create collagen, which reduces fine lines and wrinkles. And then also I do it more for um hair restoration for people who have had hair loss. Um, really, no matter the reason, I have probably more women that I've worked on than men. And I feel like a lot of women have lost their hair from too much testosterone. Um Um, when they start taking testosterone. Specifically, I've noticed like people who are taking the pellets, which I don't really personally align with, like, because you have like a certain amount of estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone or whatever's in the pellet that's inserted into the body surgically, and then it you can't remove it if it's too much, or if you have side effects, it just has to dissolve and go away over a period of months. But a lot of women who have have had hair loss from that, um, also COVID and men um who have had hair loss, it's I I am so happy when people come back for their second and third treatment because I can tell that it's working because I can see the little hair follicles on their head, and they're like, oh, I don't, I don't know. I don't think it's, you know, and it and actually I have you can see here, we're we're we're video recording here for those of you who are listening um audio, but I have all of this new little hair that looks like broken hair, but it's not. It's I had had some hormone hormonal hair loss as well, and I've I've loved the results, but I'm super happy for, especially the men who have, you know, are really self-conscious about it. And I'm actually getting ready to do a treatment on one of my best friends who has had hair loss for unknown reasons for a few years now, and she's so self-conscious about it. Um, so I can't wait to do it for her and and see her results.

SPEAKER_00

And guys, our hair is a big deal, you know. And it's, you know, for men, yes, of course, but especially as women. And, you know, I had um I had some hair loss from um Hashimoto's and I got that under control, and my hair came back and it was fantastic. And then do you know what happened? Um, I got COVID and my hair started to fall out again, and it and and I I finally like have the good hair back, you know. But I'm like, it was so frustrating. You do all of the hard work for like the hair regrowth, and then something happens, like a god-awful virus or whatever. And but that's interesting. I also like that. And I'm so interested about the, you know, upcoming movement of nurse entrepreneurs. Cause oh my goodness, like we are probably one of the most fed up professions. The system has been abusing us for years. And it is really nice that like we can use that RN licensure to do to implement all of these different services that we can add into our practices. So I think that's fantastic. And I did want to touch uh real quick on um, you know, your uh because, you know, we're gonna be we're featuring you for the functional nurse academy. And I wanted to ask about your experience going through the program.

SPEAKER_01

Oh, I loved it. It was exactly what I was looking for, and I'm so glad we met. Like I something just told me you'd go to Orlando. It was like a last minute decision. It had kind of been on my radar. Um, but there was a couple of people who I really wanted to meet and hear speak at that conference, and I'm like, I'm just gonna go. So I drove up and um, and then I saw that you had your program available, and it was exactly what I was looking for because I have I had some functional medicine background at the time, and I had been diving into functional medicine like on my own before I even like transitioned from the ER into functional medicine. But um you provide so much knowledge in the program as well as the um the mentorship, the monthly mentorship. And what I really, really, really loved and what really drew me in was the toolkit because it's like a plug-and-play business. And that technology aspect of having my own business and creating forms, oh my gosh, that was so intimidating to me. And you have everything right there laid out just to be able to jump in and start before you even finish the program. Really, you can start working on setting up accounts and getting your website up and running and thinking of what you want to do and what you want your niche to be. And um, it was just it's so fantastic that you're and I love that you have the goal to help other nurses because you were so fed up with the system and you know so many are, and and and they feel trapped and they don't even know that we can do this.

SPEAKER_00

Yes, and it really was. I'm so glad that thank you for all of your kind words. And I'm so glad you had a good experience. But no, it really was from my frustration of what the system has been doing to nurses. It was kind of like the anger I felt from Matt. I just kind of poured that in to developing Functional Nurse Academy. And I remember when I first started out as a functional nurse, I also had a two-year-old. And, you know, and again, like we're all crazy busy, but I was like, I had to go and create all of these things from scratch. And so I'm always envisioning like, okay, the person I'm helping is a crazy busy nurse that desperately wants to get out of the system. So I'm always thinking about like, how can I make this just easier for you guys to have like done for you options and the proper guidance? So, okay, but yeah, I really do think, I mean, this what has happened in our country with healthcare, there is a big mess. And I think that the nurses are gonna have this like massive role in cleaning it up. So uh I also want to hear about your practice. So I love the name Elevate Wellness. And tell me, so um, I know that you are located in Florida, but what kind of services are you offering through Elevate Wellness? And are you seeing clients nationwide or just in Florida?

SPEAKER_01

I can see clients nationwide. Um, I focus on helping people to remove toxins in their life and gut health and just really get on track with a healthy lifestyle. Um I offer lab work, um, Dutch testing, GI map, mold test. Um I offer uh supplementation protocols that, you know, if their provider um gives their blessing that that they can order through me, through my full script account. Um, I refer obviously for peptide therapy, um, also the microneedling. Um everything is virtual except obviously the microneedling. I also I just started taking a sound healing course. I believe that that um vibrational healing is going to be a huge medicine of the future. And it it really fascinates me. And it's actually another nurse um here in Florida who I just went to her home for a sound healing and found out that she has a program. It's an online program. So um it's I I'm looking forward to to seeing what I want to do with that. Um but I I do really appreciate all of your help and being able to create this business because it's just definitely um it's been life-changing for me.

SPEAKER_00

You know, and it's so amazing because when we are in the sick care system, it's not uncommon if you're like working in the hospital, you have a patient you're taking care of, and then they get readmitted a few months later. And then every time you see them, they're a little bit worse. And then you're like, oh, okay, let me go get you your, you know, chocolate cake and your pizza and your coke. Because, you know, the hospital, it's it's so insane. Like the hospital is not fostering healthy eating habits. I mean, it is just, it's just ridiculous, you know? So um or in your jello and you're I know. Oh, yeah. And it's just it, yeah. I'm I mean, I'm like, okay, are you guys just trying to like guarantee repeat business over here? But when I started seeing clients, and again, you know, with with nurse practitioners, they have access to the prescription pad. They can diagnose, they can treat, things like that. But RN levels, there's a lot of people that will like come to me because they're like, uh, yeah, I don't want to go on those meds and I don't want to get that surgery, and they want to work on natural things, which there's so much that an RN can coach them through. And then with the testing, you know, um, there are tasks that typically are not available at a regular PCP's office that nurses do have access to. So I think that's amazing, all of the work that you're doing. And so you and you also mentioned that you are virtual and um gonna blame my pregnancy brain again because I completely forgot what you said about um how you see people. Are you seeing um just in Florida? Are you able to do multi-state as well?

SPEAKER_01

I could do multi-state. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

Awesome.

SPEAKER_01

I wanted to tell you, I had a client last year, and she went through a a few months of a program with me. Then she started, uh went to a GI doctor, long-term chronic GI issues, and then she went to a functional medicine doctor, and she came back and she's like, I can't believe this. I've been to these doctors, all of these people. And the person who has helped me most is you, a nurse. Like I never would have believed it. Oh, I love it. I I really did help her a lot, and it really made me feel so good to be able to have all of access to all of these tools and modalities and tests and supplements to be able to to recommend and and show her the the data on how they're they're helping people and and what they mean, because that's really what we do, you know, not diagnosing anything. But um I did ask her, I gave her a list of labs to ask her primary care physician to order. And they're the full thyroid panel was on there, and he refused to order it and said, Well, if she wants to order labs, she should go get a higher degree. Actually said that. Uh-huh. And guess which labs were abnormal? The ones he refused to order. They were abnormal. He refused to order them. Somebody else ordered them, another uh doctor that she went to, and those thyroid, the the the few thyroid tests other than the TH TSH that he refused to order were abnormal. And so now she's on thyroid supplementation. And that would not have happened if she just, you know, listened to him. And and that makes me sad that there's so many providers out there like that.

SPEAKER_00

So those providers are part of the problem. And though those are the run-in-the-mill docs that I complain about incessantly. And you know, as nurses, when we're in the hospital, um, we know those providers that, um, just to be honest, they kind of suck and they don't care about their patients and they're not nice. And then there are the providers that want to have a partnership and they love their patients and they're wonderful to work with. And, you know, I think that so many patients, and again, who you're if you're a patient, um, who your medical provider is, that is your choice. They technically work for you. You can fire that provider. I've had to fire a lot of them. And it doesn't need to be this like whole dramatic, like, you know, you're fired and you leap. You just don't, you just don't come back, you don't go back to see them. But I have seen some things. I've had clients that have come to me and I review their medical records and I see them. And I am just, I'm saddened by the negligence that has gone on in their care. But I, you know, I also understand the system is very broken. It's difficult for those that work in the system. But again, I mean, there are some things that happen that are just super unethical. So, but that's amazing that you're already getting like such good feedback. And I I went to your website today and it looks lovely. And I, and and you've got like people have written you like really wonderful testimonials. So, um, now your website, I'm gonna post it in the show notes for if there's anyone that wants to work with you. Now, I'm sorry, is it LizSantwellness.com or is it elevate wellness?

SPEAKER_01

Lissantwellness.com.

SPEAKER_00

Okay, Liz Sant, okay, so it's LizSantWellness is your website, but then ElevateWellness is your practice. Is that right? Okay, cool. I wish I could have my last name and like my website, but it's stribe fatter. I can't do that. Liz Sant has a good ring to it, but it was so great to be here with you today. And yes, be sure that you check out our links in the show notes if you want to learn more about Liz and what she is doing. And thank you to all of our listeners for tuning in. That is all the time that we have today. Thank you so much for tuning in. And again, if you want to learn more about the Functional Nurse Academy, please feel free to register for our next live webinar. And you will see that link in the show notes. You can also check out Functional Nurse Academy on our social media platforms or on our website at functional nurseacademy.com. Until next time, be safe, be well, and God bless.