Flow might not be something you measure on a lab panel, but when it’s blocked, your patients feel it.

Tracy Harrison unpacks seven places where flow gets disrupted in the body, often in ways that go unnoticed in clinical care. What happens when oxygen doesn’t circulate well because of poor posture or undiagnosed sleep apnea? Could chronic symptoms trace back to something as basic as hydration, or a lymphatic system that isn’t moving waste effectively? Tracy walks through the quiet impact of circadian misalignment, synthetic hormone use, and even tight clothing that impairs detox and digestion. And she makes the case for taking joy seriously, not as a bonus, but as a core element of physiological health. Could mindset, laughter, and forgiveness be just as important as nutrition and supplements?

This episode is a reminder to look beyond protocols and ask what might be getting in the way of the body’s natural flow and its capacity to heal.

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 Flow in Health

01:14 The Importance of Oxygenation

03:42 Subclinical Anemia and Oxygen Flow

04:47 Hydration: The Overlooked Blockage

06:46 The Role of Lymph in Circulation

08:55 Circadian Rhythms and Health

10:35 Hormonal Flow in Women’s Health

18:08 Physical Blockages and Detoxification

21:34 The Flow of Joy and Emotional Health

25:35 Embracing Flow for Vitality

Links

Take SAFM's 10 CME course - the Essential Gut Deep Dive: https://schoolafm.com/gut-course

Get weekly Clinical Tips in your inbox: https://schoolafm.com/clinical-tips

Learn more about SAFM’s practitioner training: https://schoolafm.com/our-program

Subscribe to our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@safmchannel

Access daily quick tips on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AppliedFunctionalMedicine/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Most detox advice does more harm than good unless you understand how toxicity really works in the body.

Tracy Harrison takes on one of the most misunderstood topics in functional medicine: why detox protocols often backfire, especially in patients with chronic illness. Should detox ever be the first step in care? What happens when you mobilize years of stored toxins without first making sure the body can handle it?

This episode challenges the common urge to “cleanse” as a quick fix and instead offers a deeper look at how biotransformation actually works. Tracy walks through the difference between acute exposure and chronic overload, the risks of aggressive detox, and the science behind supporting phase two detox pathways from a place of strength. She also highlights the toxins hiding in plain sight, from dryer sheets to personal care products, and the role of nutrient depletion in keeping patients stuck.

For practitioners who want to move past protocol-driven care and into true partnership with their patients, this episode is a reminder: real change happens when people understand what’s happening in their body and feel confident enough to do something about it.

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 Missteps in Detox Protocols

01:05 Chronic Toxic Overload vs. Acute Exposure

04:10 Safe and Targeted Detoxification

06:08 Why the Body Stores Toxins

09:02 Detoxing from a Place of Strength

12:04 Weight Loss and Mobilized Toxins

18:11 Dose-Response Myths and Toxic Synergy

21:05 Everyday Sources of Toxic Exposure

25:06 Transdermal Absorption and Beauty Products

30:06 Individual Toxin Overload and Nutrient Needs

34:08 Hormonal and Cellular Damage from Toxins

36:06 Helping Patients Understand and Commit

43:02 Glutathione, COVID, and Detox Capacity

46:04 Personalized Support for Long COVID

54:01 Early Life Exposure and Toxic Burden

Links

Take SAFM's 10 CME course - the Essential Gut Deep Dive: https://schoolafm.com/gut-course

Get weekly Clinical Tips in your inbox: https://schoolafm.com/clinical-tips

Learn more about SAFM's practitioner training: https://schoolafm.com/our-program

Subscribe to our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@safmchannel

Access daily quick tips on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AppliedFunctionalMedicine/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Most patients think losing their gallbladder solved the problem. Functional medicine practitioners know it was only the first clue.

Tracy Harrison takes a closer look at what’s actually driving gallbladder dysfunction, and why removing the organ doesn’t remove the risk. Too often, upstream issues go unaddressed, allowing the same hidden dynamics to continue affecting the body. She walks through six of the most common contributors to hepatic biliary congestion: estrogenic overload, metabolic dysfunction, subclinical hypothyroidism, dehydration, toxic burden, and GLP-1 agonist medications. These factors can thicken bile, impair flow, and quietly disrupt other systems long after the gallbladder is gone.

You’ll hear strategies for identifying these patterns early, plus a case study that shows how easy it is to miss them, especially when the patient doesn’t fit the usual mold. For clinicians, this episode is a reminder that gallbladder disease is rarely an isolated issue and that upstream thinking is what leads to real progress.

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 The Gallbladder Crisis

01:18 What Causes Hepatic Biliary Congestion

03:04 Why the Gallbladder Isn’t Optional

03:46 Estrogenic Overload and Hormone Imbalance

08:36 Metabolic Dysfunction and Fatty Liver

12:34 Dehydration as an Overlooked Factor

14:42 Subclinical Hypothyroidism and Bile Flow

18:19 Toxic Burden and Everyday Chemical Exposure

20:32 GLP-1 Agonists and Gallbladder Risk

24:02 Case Study: Gallbladder Risk in a Young Male Patient

27:04 Why We Still Need Bile (and Gallbladders)

Links

Take SAFM's 10 CME course - the Essential Gut Deep Dive: https://schoolafm.com/gut-course

Get weekly Clinical Tips in your inbox: https://schoolafm.com/clinical-tips

Learn more about SAFM's practitioner training: https://schoolafm.com/our-program

Subscribe to our Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@safmchannel

Access daily quick tips on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AppliedFunctionalMedicine/

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm