By Dr. Marie Starling | The Healing Center Denver Functional Medicine Doctor | Root Cause. Root Healing. Reading time: 7 minutes Category: Brain Health | Hormones & Metabolism | Gut-Brain What if "normal" forgetfulness isn't normal at all? There is this common discussion that once you reach a certain age it is "normal" to forget things. It's "normal" to lose your keys. It's "normal" to walk into a room and completely forget why you walked in there. And while these scenarios are common, it is most certainly not normal. I know we have all experienced watching loved ones lose their memory. They aren't who they were before. While they may not have suffered from Alzheimer's or dementia, they can't seem to recall the right words. Often people accept that they are going to experience the same symptoms and it has become such a normal piece of life. But what if it wasn't? Imagine being in your 70s and your brain is sharper than a two-edged sword. You remember your children, your grandchildren, and what you went to the grocery store for. You even remember how to get to the grocery store…and back home. It's achievable. I promise. One step is being able to recognize the signs. I am going to walk you through the most common signs of cognitive decline, why they actually happen, and what you can do about it — so that you can beat memory loss instead of just accepting it. The Signs We're Taught to Brush Off Here's the problem: most of the signs of early cognitive decline get filed under "getting older" instead of "something...
By Dr. Marie Starling | The Healing Center Denver Functional Medicine Doctor | Root Cause. Root Healing. Reading time: 7 minutes Category: Brain Health | Hormones & Metabolism | Gut-Brain The Symptom Everyone Dismisses — Until It Doesn't Go Away You walk into a room and forget why. You're mid-sentence, and the word you need just… disappears. You reread the same paragraph three times and still don't know what it said. You've blamed stress. You've blamed being busy. You've blamed getting older. Here's what most doctors won't tell you: brain fog is not a personality trait, and it is not the toll of aging. It's a symptom. And symptoms exist for one reason — to tell you something needs your attention. Brain Fog Isn't a Diagnosis. It's a Signal. Brain fog will never show up on a chart, because it isn't one condition — it's a collection of them: Trouble concentrating Forgetfulness Slower thinking Losing words mid-sentence Mental fatigue, even after a full night's sleep Feeling "checked out" in your own life For some people it comes and goes. For others, it quietly becomes the norm. Either way, the question isn't "do I have brain fog?" The question is: why is my brain functioning differently than it used to — and what is it trying to tell me? "But I'm Just Getting Older." Here's Why That's Not the Full Story. Yes, some cognitive change is a normal part of aging. A name takes an extra second to surface. That's expected. What's not normal is feeling mentally exhausted every single day. Losing the thread of conversations. Needing a list for things...
By Dr. Marie Starling | The Healing Center Denver Functional Medicine Doctor | Root Cause. Real Healing. You're Not Broken. Reading time: 8 minutes Category: Brain Health | Hormones & Metabolism | Gut-Brain The Diagnosis Nobody Talks About Until It's Too Late You're standing in the kitchen. You came in here for something. What was it? You're mid-sentence and the word you need just... disappears. You know it. It's right there. But you can't reach it. You've blamed stress. You've blamed aging. You've blamed being too busy. But here's what most doctors won't tell you: these aren't just annoyances. They can be early warning signals from a brain that is losing its ability to use fuel — years, sometimes decades, before anyone would call it dementia. There is a name for this process. Researchers call it Type 3 Diabetes. And understanding it might be the most important thing you do for your long-term health. So What Exactly Is Type 3 Diabetes? You already know about Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes — both involve the body's inability to properly manage insulin and blood sugar. Type 3 diabetes is different. It describes a condition where insulin resistance develops specifically inside the brain, impairing your neurons' ability to take in and use glucose for energy. Here's the piece that changes everything: your brain produces its own insulin. It has its own insulin receptors. It runs its own metabolic system — somewhat independently of your pancreas and bloodstream. When that system breaks down, your neurons start starving. Not because there isn't enough sugar in your blood — your fasting glucose could look perfectly...
Headaches are often brushed off as a normal part of life. Something we tolerate with caffeine, over-the-counter painkillers, or a few minutes in a dark room. But here’s the truth: headaches aren’t normal. While common, they are a signal from your body that something is out of balance. If you experience regular headaches - whether tension, cluster, sinus-related, or migraines - it’s time to explore lasting solutions. Let’s take a deeper look at what might be causing your headaches and eight natural, effective ways to eliminate them. What Causes Headaches? Headaches are complex and can be triggered by a variety of factors, including: Poor posture and spinal misalignment Chronic stress and muscle tension Nutritional deficiencies or dehydration Hormonal imbalances Environmental toxins Food sensitivities Sleep disturbances TMJ disorders Eye strain or digital overload Traditional medicine often focuses on treating headaches with medication. While this can offer temporary relief, functional medicine looks deeper to uncover the root causes of inflammation, nervous system dysfunction, or metabolic imbalances that may be driving your pain. 1. Correct Spinal Misalignments with Chiropractic Care One of the most overlooked causes of headaches is spinal misalignment, particularly in the neck and upper back. When vertebrae are out of alignment, they can compress nerves, restrict blood flow, and cause tension that radiates to the head. At The Healing Center, we offer chiropractic care in Denver tailored to your unique structure. Our experienced practitioners assess your posture, spine, and movement patterns to restore alignment, improve circulation, and reduce tension. Many of our patients report a significant reduction in headache frequency and intensity after chiropractic adjustments. Pro tip: Combine chiropractic care...
Hello, Hannah here I loved going to school. Mostly for the environment. I loved being with my friends, back into the routine and structure. It was amazing. The thing I disliked the most was the actual learning part. Don’t get me wrong, learning is amazing and I love watching my own kids' eyes light up when they understand a new concept. The problem for me was I could never understand the lesson. I don’t remember much of my childhood/teenage years, other than I just needed to get good grades and pass the class. So I did what any person in my situation would do, I guessed a lot, cheated sometimes, and most of the time, I think I just got really really lucky. Brain inflammation. You know the feeling, right? Brain Fog Difficulty remembering things Difficulty understanding or processing information The feeling of having a pillow over your face Chronic fatigue The brain is amazing. The brain weighs 3 lbs Uses 20% of the energy produced but is only 8% of the mass The average size brain is the same measurement of two fists The brain is most active when we sleep It constantly changes and adapts to new situations It generates enough electricity to power a lightbulb Our brains are also responsible for processing and controlling our emotions. Even though the brain cannot feel pain itself, it can most certainly be inflamed. When it is inflamed, it has a hard time generating and providing all the things for your body to function properly. When Your Brain is Off So is the Gut The gut and the brain have a...
I was told once that my depression was a choice. That I could simply choose to wake up happy with my life and motivated to do the simple things. Imagine sunshine and rainbows and then I would be okay. I was told my depression was because I was choosing to focus on everything wrong and choosing to wake up feeling like the world was crashing around me. It was the same with my anxiety. I was choosing to worry. I was choosing to lose the ability to breathe in the middle of a grocery store. I was actively choosing mental illness. Anyone else?? Well, I’m here to tell you that was a lie. I did not choose to suffer from depression or anxiety. However, my body was talking to me and telling me that something was off within my system. Something wasn’t working right. My progesterone was very, very low the 2 weeks prior to my period which would spike my anxiety, my chronic stress had knocked my vagus nerve offline and as a result I also had belly issues(which led to brain fog) and paradoxically my stress hormones would spike. My blood sugar was a mess and so I couldn't make neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine properly which led to depression and low motivation. AAAGH! I didn't start healing until I started my functional medicine journey with Dr. Starling and I am here to tell you that you too can heal. My mental health wasn’t a choice, but the way I chose to manage it and pay attention to it was. Ignoring mental illness doesn’t make it better, it makes...
Do you ever find yourself frustrated with how you are feeling day to day? You wake up and when your feet hit the floor, everything that can go wrong, does go wrong. You are living by force of will or feeling anxious all the time? You just feel icky or tired? Your brain is fuzzy or your moods are all over the place? You are not alone. In fact, I can bet that there are millions of stuck-in-a-rut people just like you. And here’s a little secret…everyone has been stuck at one point in their life. Health. Career. Finances. Relationships. At one point or another, we find ourselves stuck. It’s time to get unstuck. Do you want to take control? Do you want things to change? This is a mental game. It’s a choice. We all were given choices in this life. We get to choose how this life goes. Of course, there’s circumstances outside of our control, but did you know that we have a choice even in the midst of those circumstances? True healing begins when you start to look at the root causes of your symptoms and take charge of your personal well-being. Are you ready? Listen to Your Body A lot of the time we think that our symptoms are the enemy and the primary thing that needs to be fixed. That’s not true! Our symptoms are our body’s way of communicating with us and telling us where to look. Symptoms like fatigue, bloating, brain fog, chronic pain, and hormonal imbalances aren’t just inconveniences—they are signs that something deeper is going on. Focus on the...
Your microbiome is an interactive, what's-going-on-in-the-outside-world interface, where your immune system sits guard and the bacteria that live there pay rent in vitamins, fuel for intestinal cells and crowd control (think bad bacteria, fungus, virus, and parasites). You have a two way communication network between the brain and the gut and it affects everything from your mood to your immune system. It's a big deal. A Top Functional Medicine Doctor Denver understands that the microbiome is made up of a hundred trillion bacteria that live in your gut—and there is more genetic material in the bacteria of the microbiome than we have in our DNA! It’s the largest component of your digestive system, clears at least 50% of our waste products, and when out of balance, is the root cause of estrogen dominance, mental decline and brain fog, weight gain, mood disorders like depression and anxiety, fatigue, and more. Managing your microbiome is THE key to your health. You have a microbiome issue if: You have taken antibiotics…EVER! Antibiotics are designed to kill bacteria in the body. However, it does not distinguish between the good bacteria and the bad bacteria, so it just kills it all. If you have taken antibiotics at any point in your lifetime, you need to recolonize the good bacteria and nourish your gut. This includes low levels of antibiotics in conventional meat as well as glyphosate (roundup) on nonorganic grains which acts like an antibiotic. You bloat, have loose stool, constipation or have gas after every meal: If you are bloating or having gas after every meal, it is likely that you have an imbalance...
Hi, I’m Dr. Marie Starling As your Functional Medicine specialist in Denver, we help people like you reach their full potential. I specialize in adjunctive care for internal disorders, autoimmune conditions, IBS, thyroid symptoms, diabetes, and other complex health issues. The nervous system is in charge of sending messages to and from the brain and spinal cord to all parts of the body. The nervous system integrates everything going on in the body. Your nervous system functioning optimally is a big deal! The primary area of your central nervous system is in the cervical ppine (neck). The top two vertebrae in the neck, the atlas and the axis protect the base of your brain (brain stem). Misalignment, also called subluxations in these areas affect the function of every organ in your entire body. Subluxations are mechanical dysfunctions of a bone that block the normal function of the nervous system. Subluxations can cause inflammation of the joint and nerve root as well as lack of motion which can cause joint degeneration. Steps To Obtain An Optimal Nervous System Here are some steps you can take to obtain an optimal Nervous System: Get Adjusted! Chiropractic adjustments are important for everyone! Correcting any misalignments, or subluxations in the body restore function and proper communication between the brain and the rest of your body! Stretch That Body Stretching increases flexibility and increases your range of motion. It also increases blood flow to your muscles, helps deliver nutrients to your muscles, as well as helps your posture. Find Time to Exercise Exercise boosts brain health! It boosts levels of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which can help buffer some effects...
By: Jessica Yoches, MNT Serotonin is a brain neurotransmitter commonly connected to happiness and mood, but it also has numerous functions and roles in multiple body systems, such as in the gastrointestinal, immune, urinary, reproductive, cardiovascular, and hormonal systems. Functional medicine recognizes the other roles of serotonin and the importance of a healthy gut. Since 90-95% of serotonin is made in the intestinal mucosa, a healthy gut is necessary for optimal serotonin production. Having leaky gut associated with autoimmune conditions such as Celiac, Lupus, MS, and Hashimoto’s etc. leads to low serotonin production and other health issues. Dysfunction of serotonin production in the gut is linked with IBS, IBD, and other gut issues such as constipation and infections.Supporting serotonin production is also important for those with methylation issues and SNPs, or single nucleotide polymorphisms, such as MTHFR. Looking at your individual genetics is another piece we can investigate at The Healing Center Denver to integrate into your protocol as your Functional Medicine specialist. Functions of Serotonin Gut – regulates digestive enzyme secretion, stimulates peristalsis to push intestinal contents forward, and transmits signals between the nerve cells of the gut and the central nervous system. Hormonal and Metabolic – Regulates energy balance, blood sugar control, and metabolic rate. Serotonin also influences the HPA axis, or hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal, which affects stress response and even thyroid hormone levels. Urinary – part of bladder control regulation Cardiovascular – helps control blood clotting; monitors contraction and relaxation of blood vessels for vascular tone; helps detect abnormalities of blood flow in the brain; and regulates heart rate, force of contractions, and how much blood the heart is pumping. Brain and Nervous System – the...
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