Katie Lott’s health journey began in her teenage years when she faced challenges with weight gain, anxiety, and low energy levels, leading to a diagnosis of PCOS. Despite conventional treatments, including birth control pills, Katie’s health continued to deteriorate. Determined to find a different path, she embarked on a journey of natural health, obtaining certifications in personal training, integrative health coaching, Kundalini Yoga teaching, and Reiki. Through her own experience, Katie discovered the healing power of herbalism and now focuses on helping women with PCOS, menstrual issues, and other health challenges reconnect with nature and align with their highest selves. MysticMag finds out more.
Katie, can you share more about your personal journey with PCOS and how it influenced your path towards becoming an integrative nutrition health coach, herbalist, and BQH
practitioner?
I was first diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic ovary syndrome) at age15. I had been overweight for several years and when my periods started they were irregular. So the doctor told me it was PCOS. Their answers to my problem were hormonal birth control and to “eat less and exercise more.” This was very frustrating to me because I swam competitively year-round and was in the pool 2 hours a day, 6 days a week so I was burning calories like crazy. I continued to be very active but my weight gain/loss seemed to be random. I didn’t lose the weight for good until I took a more natural approach. I started being more conscious about what I ate. I cut out sugar and most processed foods, managed my stress, and focused on nurturing my body and lost 30lbs.
This was the first time in my life since elementary school I was a normal weight for my height. I continued to learn more about natural strategies for PCOS and food which is ultimately what led me to integrative nutrition health coaching and herbalism. I came off of hormonal birth control, treated food as (tasty) medicine, and went to work on studying all sorts of herbs that benefit women’s health.
I wanted to help these women who were being lied to about eating less and exercising more. I tried that strategy and it did nothing for me because calories are very rarely the issue with PCOS. Even other fad diets like keto aren’t the answer to PCOS as a whole or long term. I learned how powerful herbs can be when it comes to healing and bringing balance to the body. And how they don’t come with potentially damaging side effects like birth control, which does not in any way cure PCOS. I was eventually cleared of PCOS a couple years ago. I went to the doctor and she ran the tests and told me I didn’t have PCOS anymore. Most doctors will tell you there is no “cure” for PCOS, but I did it and I believe other women can do it too.
BQH (Beyond Quantum Healing) is kind of a different story. In my mid-20s I had an existential crisis which led to me diving into all things related to spirituality. One book that really stuck with me was “Journey of Souls” by Michael Newton. I was fascinated with the idea that people could not only recall past lives in trance, but they could also recall the time between incarnations. I actually looked into how to facilitate past life regression hypnosis right then and there but the timing wasn’t right. Over the next several years I continued to learn more about spirituality and past life regressions.
I’m a healer so seeing these different modalities like energy healing and QHHT and BQH could do so much in so little time was really cool. The thing that finally made me sit down and become a BQH practitioner was a medium I saw. She was the one that brought up Dolores Cannon and told me she saw me doing that kind of work. I hadn’t mentioned to her that I was already super interested in that kind of stuff so I took it as the Universe nudging me in that direction.
How do you approach holistic healing for PCOS, and what are some key strategies you use to help women manage symptoms like weight gain, fatigue, irregular cycles, and
hormonal imbalances?
I approach healing for PCOS from a holistic perspective that focuses on the underlying issues. Things like weight gain, low energy, facial hair, fertility issues, and irregular cycles are what women tend to focus on because these are the problems they’re dealing with on a daily basis. And that’s totally fair because these are annoying and sometimes even life-altering symptoms. But where the breakdown happens in a lot of situations is that there’s a focus on suppressing the symptoms only. This is what things like hormonal birth control do. They suppress the symptoms without addressing the root causes of things like hormonal imbalances, blood sugar issues, inflammation, and sluggish liver. When you address these root causes, not only are you making the symptoms go away, but they go away for good because you’re dealing with the source of the issue instead of slapping a bandaid on it. And it’s not like these women are knowingly foregoing treating the root issue in favor of the “bandaid” treatment. Doctors unfortunately don’t have the time to sit down and explain exactly what’s going on in everyone’s body and how possible treatment options work and address these issues (or don’t address them). So they’re left with whatever options are presented to them. And unfortunately these options are rarely the ones that address the root issues.
I also think it’s important to look at the individual and use the correct herbal, dietary, and lifestyle strategies for their specific situation. PCOS is more like an umbrella term than anything else, that’s to say one woman’s PCOS can be very different from the next and the next. So there isn’t this magic pill or perfect formula for PCOS because it can vary so much. Some women can be dealing with excess androgens where others can be dealing with blood sugar issues. So it wouldn’t be very helpful to give them the exact same protocol because those are different issues, but they can have overlapping symptoms which is why it’s all lumped together under this PCOS umbrella. And when it comes to food, lifestyle, and herbs this information is important. Certainly there are changes that would be beneficial for most, but you’re more likely to see faster and better results when your approach is individualized and targeted.
What role do herbs play in your approach to holistic healing, and how do you determine the specific herbal protocols that are right for each individual?
Herbs are a big part of my approach but definitely not the only approach. I talk to clients about things like food, exercise, stress, and environmental toxins in addition to herbs because just taking herbs or just changing your diet might not be as helpful. There’s no magic pill for anything. However, herbs are very important because they’re something that can help support the body with something it’s struggling with. For instance, if a client came to me and said she was struggling with insulin resistance, we would definitely look at her diet to make sure she’s eating to balance blood sugar and exercising to help increase insulin sensitivity, but I would also recommend herbs like gymnema which is thought to help increase insulin production, and cinnamon which is thought to increase insulin sensitivity. So I think of herbs as like a boost to help your body do things it’s struggling with right now.
In terms of how I determine specific protocols, I ask a lot of questions. Herbs are great because they work on a broad level in terms of bringing the body back into balance, but it’s also important to take the right herbs for you as an individual. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen someone in a Facebook group saying something like how great spearmint tea is and how it worked for them and all the comments under the post are saying how spearmint does nothing. It’s not that spearmint does nothing, it’s thought to lower androgens. It’s more likely that the commenters’ symptoms were due to something else like inflammation or sub-optimal liver function. So I ask a lot of questions to see which herbs are best suited for you. I’m not a doctor, so I don’t diagnose or treat anything. But if you have a diagnosis, that’s obviously helpful.
Then when we dive deeper into your specific symptoms, what you’re eating, what products you’re using on your body and in your home, I get a more clear picture of what’s going on and how we can use herbs and other strategies to help that. Let’s say for instance, a woman comes to me with PCOS and she’s dealing with painful periods, weight gain, frequent infections, and high stress. She tries to eat healthy but is eating a lot of processed foods. She doesn’t get enough sleep, doesn’t have much time for herself, and isn’t aware that all her favorite makeup products are unfortunately full of harmful chemicals. She’s been diagnosed with PCOS and has had blood work done that shows high inflammatory markers. This woman is dealing with inflammation and based on what she told me, we know that a lot of that is due to her lifestyle, so I would advise her to change her diet, manage stress, get more sleep, and look for alternative cleaner makeup. But what’s great about the herbs is while she’s making these changes to reduce the sources of the inflammation which will eventually mean fewer symptoms, she can also take anti-inflammatory herbs and herbs to support her liver to help expedite this process.
Could you explain the concept of Beyond Quantum Healing (BQH) and how it complements traditional healing modalities in your practice?
Beyond Quantum Healing (BQH) is a healing modality that combines elements of energy work and hypnosis. It started as an off-shoot of Dolores Cannon’s Quantum Healing Hypnosis Technique, but it allows for other healing modalities to be integrated and relies a bit more on intuition. BQH allows people to explore past lives and the subconscious as well as seek answers from their guides. People use this to remove blocks, heal physical ailments, get answers to mysteries in their lives, and receive guidance from their cosmic families and guides.
What I really love about BQH is how fast and powerful it is. People are able to move through blocks and issues incredibly quickly. For instance, I just had a session with a client where they wanted answers about a relationship from years ago. They thought this relationship and/or person could possibly have some sort of significance, like a past life connection or soul contract with them. It was obviously something that really stuck with this person because they were still wondering about it several years later and had even gone on to have successful and fulfilling relationships since, yet this person/relationship still stuck with them. While in trance and asking their guides about this, their guides said there was no need to explore the relationship because it was insignificant. There was an immediate emotional and energetic release that both of us could feel. There were no lingering questions, no feelings of it not being fair that there weren’t answers. This person was able to process a relationship and release that emotional baggage that had stayed with them for years in a matter of moments, and I think that’s really amazing.
I see myself as a healer, and that means mind, body, and spirit. So BQH comes into my practice to address the soul aspect of that. For women with PCOS it can be helpful for removing blocks and old programming from doctors (like “eat less and exercise more”) as well as asking for physical healing from their guides/source/higher self. It’s a way to help speed up the process and also help them heal on a mental/emotional/energetic level. I also really love working with people who are looking to align with the highest versions of themselves and remove blocks. So when it comes to BQH, my niche expands beyond just women with PCOS. And I think the ultimate expression of health is being the best version of yourself so BQH is a great modality to help you get there.
What advice would you give to women who are struggling with PCOS and are looking for natural ways to manage their symptoms and improve their overall well-being?
First, I would recommend learning as much as you can both about PCOS and about what’s going on in your body. This means getting bloodwork done, learning about the different root issues with PCOS, and also learning about women’s bodies in general. It’s wild to me that we aren’t taught about our cycle, and I don’t just mean our periods. Women aren’t taught about the different phases of our cycles unless they seek it out, at least here in the US, which is crazy because it’s literally what our bodies go through every month. An easy way to learn more about your body and how to support it is working with someone like myself who has the time to sit down and talk to you about your individual situation and your goals. I’m always happy to share the ins and outs of how different processes in our bodies work and how things like PCOS can affect those processes, and how the different herbs and dietary or lifestyle changes are helping to support their body. I also recommend doing research about the popular medications prescribed to women with PCOS. A lot of times, women are prescribed birth control or metformin and are not informed about how these drugs work or the potential side effects. I’m not saying these drugs aren’t right for certain people, but people should have informed consent about what they’re taking, and these things certainly shouldn’t be prescribed as a bandaid or a one-size-fits-all. I recommend this because this information can be helpful when a client is coming off something like hormonal birth control. There are strategies we can implement to ease that transition. Because for some women coming off hormonal birth control can be difficult and have some bad side effects. But there are ways we can use herbs and foods to aid your body as it recalibrates.
Also, remember, natural, holistic approaches not only work at remedying the root issues with PCOS, but they come with a lot less side effects (or none at all) and are better for long-term results. But that also means that these methods could take a little longer to see results from. So give an herb or a dietary/lifestyle change 1-3 months before you decide it isn’t working for you. I think this is really important to keep in mind because we’re so used to using pharmaceuticals which work a lot faster, but only to mask your symptoms, not to fix the problem long term.
Another thing I recommend is a holistic approach, rather than making just one change and expecting massive results. That means using food, movement, lifestyle changes, herbs, and other methods and modalities that resonate with you. There’s no such thing as a magic pill for anything so just doing one thing (like only taking an herb or only cutting out sugar) and expecting big change isn’t realistic. It’s best to do as much as you can while also realizing there’s no such thing as “being perfect” with your health. I always tell my clients progress, not perfection, so it could take some time to both implement changes and see results but if you stick with it it will be worth it. And doing as much as you can doesn’t mean doing everything all at once from the get-go. I recommend making changes in phases rather than trying to do it all at once. Doing 100 new things at once can be very overwhelming which means it’s less likely you’ll stick with these changes over time. With my clients, I break things down into phases so each week or month, you’re adding in something new. That way you have time to incorporate a new habit and it starts to feel like a natural part of your routine before you move onto the next change.
And lastly, I recommend building your own team of practitioners that can help you. Your doctor, a health coach, an herbalist, and even things like a therapist, BQH practitioner/energy worker, chiropractor, or acupuncturist would all be people to consider. The most important thing is to choose practitioners and modalities that resonate with YOU, and not necessarily what everyone else is doing. When it comes to your health, stand up for yourself and put yourself first.
If you would like to find out more about Katie Lott, please visit https://www.katielottwellness.com/
