WHAT is Bruxism? Bruxism is the medical term for- - Teeth grinding - Jaw clenching - Tension in the jaw muscles It can happen during the day (awake bruxism) or while asleep (sleep bruxism) Sleep bruxism is considered a movement disorder, often linked to stress, nervous system imbalance, or airway issues. WHO Gets Bruxism? Almost anyone but some groups are more at risk. - People with high stress or anxiety - People with poor sleep quality - Those with misaligned bite or dental issues - People with sleep apnea or airway problems - Individuals with acid reflux - Those who drink caffeine late in the day - People who use nicotine, alcohol, or certain medications - Kids going through growth spurts - Adults with chronic tension patterns (neck, shoulders, jaw) It is very common in women 40+, especially with hormonal changes that affect stress response and sleep quality. WHEN Does Bruxism Happen? At night - Most common - People often don’t know they’re doing it - Often linked to sleep disturbances, airway obstruction, and stress hormones During the day - Usually due to stress, concentration, or habit - Happens while driving, working, or scrolling on a phone WHERE Does Bruxism Show Up in the Body? It’s not just the teeth as bruxism has full-body effects. - Jaw pain - Headaches (especially temple tension) - Neck and shoulder tightness - Cracked or worn teeth - Receding gums - Ear pain or ringing - Facial asymmetry - Clicking or popping in the jaw - Poor sleep quality - TMJ disorders Night grinding can even lead to morning exhaustion from micro-awakenings during sleep. WHY Does Bruxism Happen? Bruxism is almost never about the teeth alone. It's a nervous system and airway issue disguised as a dental one. The MOST Common Root Causes Stress & Overactive Fight or Flight response When the brain feels threatened (that Tiger chasing You), the jaw muscles tense automatically. Key - This becomes chronic if the nervous system stays stuck in stress mode.

The Heart Brain (Your “Emotional Regulator”) Your heart communicates with your brain through the vagus nerve. It also reacts instantly to stress, fear, and overwhelm. Low heart-brain coherence = irritability, emotional reactivity, low resilience. High coherence = calm, focused, emotionally stable. When the heart brain is stressed You may feel- - Quick to snap - Easily exhausted emotionally - Unable to calm down - More cortisol surges - Poor sleep - Higher blood pressure - Brain fog FitnHealthy tips to support it- - 10 minutes of brisk walking daily, after meal as a bonus to mop up fat storing insulin. - Slow exhale breathing (4 seconds in, hold for 4 seconds, 8 seconds out or similar combo) - Cut stimulants (coffee, energy drinks) in the afternoon - Daily sunlight exposure (ideally morning) on the eyes/skin - more on this later - Magnesium glycinate at night Who wants Part 4 tomorrow? Hey, that rhymes🤣 How many of these are you prepared to try this week?

Hi I’m Voula from Ontario. Looking to improve my physique in this group and learn some great information along the way. Looking forward to seeing everyone in this community.

Over the last 15+ years, I’ve watched something heartbreaking happen. Story after story. Woman after Woman. Family after family. Especially the kids. All sharing the same quiet suffering. - I don’t feel like myself anymore. - My anxiety is worse than ever. - My meds stopped working. - I feel flat, numb, or exhausted. - No one can tell me why this is happening. Every time I heard these stories, I felt a wave of emotion wash over me. Sometimes it was sadness, because the pain was so real for them. Sometimes worry, because no one seemed to have real answers. Sometimes frustration, because the system kept giving the same old explanations that didn’t make sense. Sometimes anger, because especially women & kids were being dismissed, ignored, or told it was “all in their head.” But most of all, I felt something deeper. A sense of responsibility. A feeling that someone needed to pull back the curtain. A belief that people truly deserve truth, not another pill or band-aid. Something major has changed in our society, in our bodies, in our food, in our stress, and in our brain chemistry.And almost no one is talking about it. So I started digging.And studying.And questioning everything we were taught about serotonin, dopamine, anxiety, depression, and the growth of the mental health industry. Along the way, I realized something that shocked me. The old serotonin story, you know the one, the one we were told for decades, might just be wrong. And Society as a whole has been paying the price ever since. If there's enough interest - We're going to share in a long, easy to understand series - - Why anxiety has exploded - Why depression feels different now - Why SSRIs aren’t working like they used to - Why people feel flat, numb, or disconnected - Why dopamine and motivation have collapsed - Why the gut plays a bigger role than anyone imagined - Why women are exhausted, overwhelmed, and burned out My hope is that this series gives you what so many women, kids Families have been searching for and that's Clarity.Validation & Answers.

The Gut Brain (Your “Mood Thermostat”) What it does - Humans have about 30 trillion human cells - The gut contains about 38 trillion bacteria So it’s roughly a 1:1 ratio with slightly more bacterial cells than human cells. We are more "foreign" bacteria than human cells. Your gut contains 100 million neurons and that huge community of bacteria produce- Serotonin - Your mood stabilizer.Helps you feel calm, steady, emotionally balanced. Dopamine - Your motivation spark.Drives focus, rewards, follow-through. GABA - Your “calm-me-down” brake pedal.Reduces anxiety, quiets the nervous system. Short-Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs) - Your brain’s anti-inflammatory fuel that supports memory, mood, and protects against brain aging. When the gut is inflamed, You may feel- - More anxious - More depressed - More reactive - Hungrier with more cravings - Bloated, constipated, or unable to lose weight - “Tired but wired” at night How to support it the FitnHealthy way - - Eat whole, unprocessed foods 80-90% of the time - Add fermented foods (sauerkraut, kefir, "real" yogurt, therapeutic "human sourced" probiotics) - Eat 25-30g + of fiber daily - Eliminate seed oils, processed snacks, and alcohol - Hydrate well before caffeine Want more? Put "Curious" down below.