In this Best Of conversation, Dr. Sharon Spano revisits her powerful discussion with Linn Rivers, a holistic healthcare practitioner who has dedicated her life to helping people reclaim their health—especially those with “last resort” cases.
After growing up with chronic illness, overmedication, and losing loved ones far too early, Linn discovered a different path to healing—one that integrates functional medicine, the microbiome, and holistic practices. She also incorporates tools like NLP and human design to address not just physical health, but emotional and spiritual well-being.
In our conversation, we discuss the pivotal role the microbiome plays in our overall health and why traditional, mainstream healthcare can sometimes do more harm than good. Linn breaks down how she tests and treats her patients’ microbiomes, the incredible results she has seen, and why our guts are so quick to react to the food we eat. She also explains why the microbiome is all about balance, the trillions of bacteria that populate our gut, and why prioritizing your health is of the utmost importance.
If you’re curious about the mind-gut connection, how food can impact our overall health, or the microbiome in general, you’ll definitely want to tune in for today’s fascinating conversation!
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- Linn’s personal journey through chronic illness and healing
- Why gut health and the microbiome are foundational to long-term wellness
- The limitations of conventional medicine and where holistic care can fill the gap
- The role of functional medicine, NLP, and human design in integrative healing
- Why health is more than physical—it’s also emotional and spiritual
- How to take ownership of your health journey in a way that empowers lasting change
- A rundown of leaky gut and the impact it has on your system.
- The importance of taking a probiotic when you need to take antibiotics.
- Why Linn believes everyone should be taking probiotics.
- How our diets can affect the microbiome.
- Learning how to nourish your microbiome with a wide variety of healthy foods.
- How the microbiome impacts our hormones and why that is especially true for women.
- A breakdown of how the microbiome breaks down food and supports other organs.
- Some of the diseases that can be caused by a microbiome that is out of balance.
- The relationships between food, the microbiome, and our emotions.
- How treating the microbiome can help you uncover the root cause of your symptoms.
- The importance of prioritizing your health and why it’s worth financially investing in.
Transcript: Here
Additional Resources:
Linn Rivers:
Photography and Video Website: https://linnrivers.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/linnrivers/
Links Mentioned:
Pacific College of Health and Science: https://www.pacificcollege.edu/
Sharon Spano:
Website: sharonspano.com
Facebook: facebook.com/SharonSpanoPHD
Instagram: instagram.com/drsharonspano/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sharonspano/
Book: thetimemoneybook.com
Contact: sharon@sharonspano.com
Substack: substack.com/@drsharon
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