Send me a text! I'd LOVE to hear your feedback on this episode!

In this episode, host Brenda Farrugia interviews Sandy K (me!) about my hero’s journey through health crises, integrity, and transformation. From the rare tumor my daughter had, to my having thyroid cancer and my husband’s near‑fatal pneumonia, I share how these experiences reshaped my philosophy of wellness, longevity, and health sovereignty.

Together, we explore how turning inward became a practical tool for better decisions around hormones, menopause without a thyroid, and everyday choices that drive longevity. I explain why I believe each of us can become an alchemist in our own lives—transforming crisis into wisdom, blending science with soul, and reclaiming trust in a noisy wellness economy.

This conversation challenges influencer culture and discount‑code marketing, reframes aging as leadership, and offers grounded practices for rebuilding trust with yourself. From energy work and meditation to nutrition, functional labs, and boundaries with technology, I share integrated tools that help midlife women navigate wellness with integrity.

Key Takeaways

• Blending science and soul for midlife wellness
• Critiquing wellness marketing and restoring trust in health advice
• Turning victimhood into purpose after family health crises
• Community building around rare tumors and lived empathy
• Energy work, meditation, and practical spiritual tools
• Returning to college for diploma in holistic nutrition
• Why solo episodes resonate more than celebrity guests
• Redefining aging with integrity and intergenerational value
• Personal agency, boundaries, and tech overload
• How to assess advice through resonance and self‑testing

✨ Follow So Brilliant, rate and review the show, and share this episode with someone who needs a calmer, more honest blueprint for wellness and longevity. https://www.sobrilliant.ca/

Support the show

Please rate & review my podcast with a few kind words on Apple or Spotify. Subscribe wherever you listen, share this episode with a friend, and follow me below. This truly gives back & helps me keep bringing amazing guests & topics every week.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandyknutrition/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/sandyknutrition
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sandyknutrition
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIh48ov-SgbSUXsVeLL2qAg
Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-5461001
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandyknutrition/
Substack: https://sandykruse.substack.com/
Podcast Website: https://sandykruse.ca

Send me a text! I'd LOVE to hear your feedback on this episode!

What if the missing link in your wellness routine isn’t another supplement or protocol, but the way you listen to your inner world? In this episode, I unpack doing the inner work with practical, honest tools that help midlife feel grounded, creative, and genuinely healthy - far beyond hacks, quick fixes, and trends.

I share the turning points that moved me from chasing answers outside to building strength inside, and why presence beats perfection every time. Learn simple, transformative anchors:

• 30 minutes walking in nature without headphones
• “I feel / I choose” prompts to rewire negative beliefs
• Gratitude walks that calm a reactive nervous system

From there, I explore:

• Stream-of-consciousness journaling to hear your higher self
• Forgiveness work to release shame
• Trauma-informed approaches like EMDR for when thoughts alone won’t release emotional charge
• Energy practices—sound, breath, subtle clearing—without outsourcing your power
• Creative rituals like memory jars, seasonal practices, dance, storytelling, and writing that awaken the soul

Relationships get a deep, nuanced look, too. I discuss boundaries, renegotiating sacred contracts, and how dynamics shift when you change your side of the pattern.

Finally, I share daily micro-practices, ways to read symbols in nature, and a careful approach to retreats and plant medicine and why your higher self should set the pace.

Whether you’re interested in inner work, holistic wellness, emotional healing, mindset transformation, or longevity practices, this episode gives practical, actionable tools to help you feel alive, present, and deeply aligned.

Follow, subscribe, and share with a friend, and leave a rating to help more people discover the show. What’s the first small practice you’ll commit to this week?

Email me your questions, topics, or comments to be featured on my show - whether anonymous or not - your choice. sandy@sandyknutrition.ca.

Follow me on all of my socials - @sandyknutrition everywhere. Get in touch with Brenda Farrugia for deep, transformative energy work https://www.sobrilliant.ca/

Who am I? I went back to college, became a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, earned numerous certifications, and started this podcast just before the pandemic. I come to you not only as a practitioner and a podcaster, but as a woman who’s lived it, someone driven by passion over profit, and a genuine desire to help others heal, grow,

Support the show

Please rate & review my podcast with a few kind words on Apple or Spotify. Subscribe wherever you listen, share this episode with a friend, and follow me below. This truly gives back & helps me keep bringing amazing guests & topics every week.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandyknutrition/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/sandyknutrition
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sandyknutrition
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIh48ov-SgbSUXsVeLL2qAg
Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-5461001
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandyknutrition/
Substack: https://sandykruse.substack.com/
Podcast Website: https://sandykruse.ca

Send me a text! I'd LOVE to hear your feedback on this episode!

Menopause can feel like your body changed the rulebook without warning. One day you’re handling pressure just fine; the next, a slammed door spikes your heart rate and your mind won’t quit. I pull back the curtain on why stress tolerance can collapse at midlife and how to rebuild it with smarter hormone care, steadier blood sugar, and nervous system-aware tools that actually fit real life.

I grow tired of experts telling us to control our stress. Or limit our stress. This is nonsensical to me because we can only mitigate the effects stress has on our bodies and we can't make it disappear. Ignoring it, numbing it, also doesn't work at menopause.

I have MANY different tools to help mitigate the effects of stress. NuCalm is a tool I've been using for many years now. I was one of their early supporters and affiliates, and I remain a big believer. Use this link for a free trial!! And if you love it, use SANDYK for a discount.

https://nucalm.com/free-trial?ref=sandy54

Email me your questions, topics, or comments to be featured on my show - whether anonymous or not - your choice. sandy@sandyknutrition.ca.

Follow me on all of my socials - @sandyknutrition everywhere.

Who am I? I don’t define myself by my past, but it’s a big part of my story. In 2010, my five-year-old daughter was diagnosed with cancer, and just a year later, I was too, but with thyroid cancer at 41. Fast forward to now, at 55, I’m navigating menopause and constantly learning what it truly means to thrive - body, mind, spirit and soul - to this next chapter of my life.

Along the way, I went back to college, became a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, earned numerous certifications, and started this podcast just before the pandemic. I come to you not only as a practitioner and a podcaster, but as a woman who’s lived it, someone driven by passion over profit, and a genuine desire to help others heal, grow, and live with more vitality, purpose, and joy.

Beyond the basics, I spotlight underused supports. Adaptogens can help some, but they won’t fix trauma or misaligned hormones. I also lean into the deeper layer: how menopause can surface old beliefs and hypervigilance, and about BEAM Therapy. See Brenda Farrugia for more on this at https://www.sobrilliant.ca/.

Support the show

Please rate & review my podcast with a few kind words on Apple or Spotify. Subscribe wherever you listen, share this episode with a friend, and follow me below. This truly gives back & helps me keep bringing amazing guests & topics every week.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandyknutrition/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/sandyknutrition
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sandyknutrition
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIh48ov-SgbSUXsVeLL2qAg
Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/c-5461001
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandyknutrition/
Substack: https://sandykruse.substack.com/
Podcast Website: https://sandykruse.ca