How Functional Medicine, Root Cause Testing, Childhood Trauma, Gut Health, Supplements, and Lifestyle Changes Can Heal Chronic Fatigue, Anxiety, Brain Fog, IBS, and Pain—with Dr. David Brady

This is StRest! Kerstin Lindquist welcomes integrative and functional medicine expert Dr. David Brady to discuss the root-cause approach to complex, chronic health conditions. With over 30 years of experience, Dr. Brady explains why the conventional medical system often fails people with chronic illness, offering only symptom management instead of real solutions. Together, they discuss why so many women are struggling with fatigue, gut issues, joint pain, brain fog, and anxiety—and what functional medicine can do differently. They discuss childhood trauma, functional practitioners, tests worth your money, "stress" as a buzzword, and lifestyle changes that make supplements work better. Dr. Brady also shares his top supplements, daily practices that keep him grounded, and more. Major Themes & Concepts  ✅ Why functional medicine is different—and how it works ✅ The problem with hyper-specialization and symptom-chasing ✅ How early-life trauma shapes adult health and stress response ✅ Root cause vs. symptom masking: what your body is trying to say ✅ The most common chronic conditions (fatigue, IBS, brain fog, pain) ✅ Why most lab work is misleading—and what to test instead ✅ How AI, metabolomics, and functional labs are changing diagnostics ✅ Supplements that matter: B12, vitamin D, magnesium, GG, tocotrienols ✅ What real healing takes: rest, presence, and a daily practice ✅ Gratitude, aging, and how to stay healthy in a toxic world Chapter Breakdown 00:00 – Symptom management vs. root cause medicine 01:06 – When your whole body hurts (and your doctor can’t help) 02:30 – Who is Dr. David Brady? 30 years in functional medicine 04:33 – How functional & integrative medicine differ from conventional care 06:39 – Systems biology: treating people, not parts 09:19 – Upstream, not downstream: root cause frameworks 12:28 – The fragmentation of care in the U.S. system 15:28 – The specialist trap and polypharmacy nightmare 20:28 – Chronic pain, anxiety, IBS, and brain fog: what’s causing it all? 22:38 – Food, toxins, plastics, stress: the real reasons we’re sick 26:17 – Childhood trauma, the nervous system, and lifelong disease 30:51 – The critical role of sleep and stress regulation 36:30 – Daily practices that retrain the brain 40:43 – Which functional lab tests are worth the money? 44:15 – Why standard bloodwork misses the big picture 48:04 – Functional testing 101: methylation, B12, and metabolomics 54:05 – Dr. Brady’s daily supplement stack 59:15 – His non-negotiables for energy, health, and aging 1:03:30 – The power of nature, movement, and gratitude Work with Kerstin 📅 Workshops & Events – Join upcoming events & retreats. 💡 Health Coaching with Kerstin – 1:1 coaching for stress reduction & wellness. Resources & Recommendations 🧬 Designs for Health – Clinical-grade supplements & practitioner-supported testing 💩 GI Spotlight Test (DSF) – Gut testing Dr. Brady recommends 📘 The Fibro Fix – Dr. Brady’s book on fibromyalgia and chronic illness 🧠 Diagnostics Solutions Lab – Functional lab testing site 🌐 Dr. David Brady’s Website – More info, articles, and patient resources 🧘 Apollo Neuro – A wearable designed to improve resilience and manage stress. 🌿 Fast to Faith by Dr. Tabatha Barber – A fasting + faith program for women More About Dr. David Brady 🔗 Website: drdavidbrady.com 📘 Book: The Fibro Fix 🧪 Lab: Diagnostic Solutions Lab 🏥 Supplement Partner: Designs for Health More about Kerstin Website: kerstin-lindquist.com Instagram: @kerstin.lindquist Facebook: Kerstin Lindquist YouTube: @Kerstin.lindquist TikTok: @kerstin.lindquist Production, Distribution, and Marketing By Massif Studio & Production & The Tallawah Group Website: www.massifsp.com LinkedIn: Massif Studio & Production Website: www.TallawahWorldwide.com LinkedIn: The Tallawah Group For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email [e-mail]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices