Hi and welcome back to the PCOS Repair Podcast, where today we’re going to be looking at PCOS and the workplace, with a primary focus on how to protect your energy and your focus. Whether your workplace is at home because you’re staying home with kids, whether you’re a student, or any combination of responsibilities—whatever it is that fills your day, think of that as your workplace. How do we protect our energy and focus so that we also have the time and capacity to take care of ourselves, especially when it comes to our PCOS health? With that, let’s dive in.

As we move through summer mode here, I like to think about some of the really practical things we can do when life gets busy. We tend to take more vacations and have less of a solid routine. That might be true for you, or maybe not, but regardless of whether this particular season has been difficult for you in terms of protecting your energy and focus, I think you’re going to find this episode helpful. It’s a chance to think about where the challenges are and how you can carve out time to get the daily habits in that you want to prioritize.

Let’s start with some of the common challenges we face. When we’re in the groove of our routine, it can be easy to feel fatigued or just a little blah—like we’re going through the motions. Our energy can feel low. Physically, we might be dragging, even hunched over a bit. We can experience brain fog when we’re not being challenged or stimulated. Cravings can creep in—not necessarily because we’re hungry, but just out of routine boredom. That alone can increase cravings.

We may also experience mood swings—not necessarily from hormonal imbalances or relationship issues, but just from the emotional strain of that daily grind. And while we may be holding it all together on the outside, inside we might be needing some kind of release. These are the hidden symptoms that come with a steady routine or being stuck in the same work environment day in and day out.

So what do we do with all that?

First, if we’re feeling fatigued, it’s usually for one of two reasons. Either we’re not getting enough sleep, rest, and recovery—or we’re stuck in a rut and need something to spark our creativity and motivation. Are we getting time in nature? Are we connecting with friends and doing the things that fill us up? Those can help with the mental fatigue.

When it comes to brain fog, we have to ask: Are we nourishing our body properly with sleep, food, and movement? Are we giving our brain something new and stimulating? Or are we just staring at a screen all day?

Cravings can come from boredom or habit. Maybe we always have a snack while driving or working at our desk. Sometimes it’s a simple matter of routine. But it can also be from missing meals—maybe you’re skipping lunch and find yourself craving everything by midafternoon. You may not feel physically hungry, but your blood sugar is crashing and your body is begging for a boost.

Now for the mood swings, stress, and emotional strain—how well are we processing our emotions? Or are we just holding everything in and trying to stay functional? One way to help settle your emotions is to go for a walk after a stressful day. Let your mind drift and settle. You don’t need to rehash every detail or dwell on the unfairness. Instead, try to let your thoughts simply process in the background as you walk and get some fresh air.

This helps take the edge off those fired-up emotions. After you’ve had some time, those thoughts might come back, but more calmly. You may be able to see what you could do differently next time or how to handle the situation better tomorrow. That clarity comes when we give ourselves that space.

Let’s talk about managing your energy.

Energy management starts with staying hydrated and nourished. But it’s also about avoiding things that sabotage us—like poor sleep or food choices that spike and crash our blood sugar. Stress can also zap your energy. Something that makes you anxious or nervous can drain you fast. So take breaks. Take a walk. Step away from your environment, even if it’s just to go to the bathroom and breathe. Step outside, drink some water, or deal with a different task. It can reset your brain and give you a second wind.

It’s also okay—and really important—to communicate your needs. Talk to your family, friends, coworkers, or your boss. No one else can guess what you need, and they aren’t responsible for solving your problems. So when you bring something up, try to include a specific ask or solution.

Maybe expectations at work have started to shift. Are you staying late more often than you should? Are work emails or texts creeping into your home life? Sometimes that needs to be addressed with a conversation. Other times, it’s a personal boundary—like deciding not to check your email after 5 PM. Maybe you need to let your boss know you’d prefer emails instead of texts after hours so you can fully relax and return refreshed the next day.

The same goes for home life. If you need a little space before diving into dinner, kids, or chores when you get home, that’s okay. My husband has a very intense job, and when he comes home, he’s in a much better mood if he goes for a quick run or gym session first. That 20 to 40-minute buffer helps him unwind so he can be present and enjoy the evening.

Even if you don’t have young kids or a busy household, demands still exist—like laundry, dishes, and tasks waiting for you. Taking a moment for yourself—whether it’s a shower, a hot bath, or a walk—can create a healthy buffer between your day and your evening routine.

Now let’s talk about creating a workplace that supports your health. If you sit at a desk all day, look at your posture and chair. Do you need better support for your back or neck? Blue light glasses may help with screen fatigue. Keep healthy snacks in your drawer to avoid grabbing sugary treats during the afternoon slump. Plan ahead so you have better choices available when cravings hit.

As we wrap up today, I want you to reflect on how you spend your day. Whether it’s in a traditional office, at home, in a hospital setting, or a long shift job—transitions between home and work can be difficult. One client I worked with was a 23-year-old student and part-time dog walker. She said she felt understimulated—she was either sitting or walking, and her days started to feel monotonous.

She found that turning on thought-provoking podcasts or audiobooks during walks completely changed her mindset. It wasn’t just background noise—it was something that inspired her and connected with her long-term goals. That little change brightened her whole day and reminded her why she was doing what she was doing.

That’s the kind of shift that can make all the difference. Whether you work a corporate job or walk dogs all day, how you fill your mind matters. The routine may stay the same, but when you feel inspired, you start to exude joy and purpose again.

So I hope you found this episode helpful. It’s a little different from our usual topics, but it gets into the real-life details of how to take care of yourself—your physical, mental, and emotional health—within the life you’re actually living. Not the ideal version of your life, but the one you’re in right now.

Ask yourself: What can I do today to make my environment more supportive, functional, and fulfilling? How can I make it feel good—not overwhelming—so I’m better equipped to care for my PCOS?

If you found this episode helpful, make sure to hit the subscribe button so you get notified each and every week when a new episode becomes available. And if you have any questions or thoughts about this episode, I’d love to hear from you over on Instagram. You can find me @nourishtohealthy. And until next time, bye for now.

day. Whether it’s in a salad, sautéed, or in a smoothie, get those greens in.

If the time is right, you can explore supplements. If you want help selecting a brand, head to supplementsforpcos.com. You’ll get a guide with my recommended brands and a link to my Fullscript dispensary where you can find high-quality supplements at a discount. Fullscript carries only trusted brands, and their site includes helpful info that sometimes even the brand websites don’t offer.

Also, remember magnesium works well with other nutrients—especially calcium, vitamin D, and potassium. Most people get enough calcium from food, but vitamin D is one we’ve talked about in detail before. I’ll link to that episode in the show notes. If you have kidney disease, low blood pressure, or are on medications that affect electrolyte balance, be sure to talk to your doctor before supplementing.

So there you have it, my friend! I hope this episode gives you a great starting point to consider magnesium and how it can support your PCOS holistically.

As we wrap up, remember that supplements like magnesium are not magic bullets. You can’t out-supplement an imbalanced lifestyle. A holistic approach combines lifestyle habits, medical insight, and targeted supplementation. Lifestyle remains the foundation—what you eat, how you move, sleep, and think. Medical tools like labs and medications provide important context, and supplements can support and enhance your progress when chosen wisely.

Magnesium isn’t a cure-all for PCOS, but it can help reduce cravings, support mood, boost energy, and create an internal environment where your body can thrive.

If you found this episode helpful, be sure to hit the subscribe button so you get notified of new episodes each week. And don’t forget to visit supplementsforpcos.com to grab your free PCOS Supplement Guide. It comes with the Fullscript link and discount. If you have questions or topics you’d like me to cover, come connect with me on Instagram @nourishtohealthy.

Until next time, bye for now.

Hi, and welcome back to the PCOS Repair Podcast, where today we’re diving into a research article about neuroscience, growth mindset, and intrinsic motivation. I found this article extremely interesting—not just from a scientific standpoint, but from a personal one as well—because it directly connects to how we take action in our health and, really, in any area of our lives.

Now, while it’s not specifically about PCOS, I think you’ll quickly see how deeply related it is to everything we talk about here on the podcast. We’re constantly discussing lifestyle modifications, creating healthy habits, and building a lifestyle that supports our PCOS health. But so much of that comes down to actually following through on the steps. That’s where we often get stuck. We might have all the knowledge—awareness, understanding, even clarity on our root cause—but if it all feels overwhelming or too hard, or if we feel unmotivated or not disciplined enough, everything can begin to crumble. We get frustrated and feel down on ourselves.

So in today’s episode, we’re going to talk about the science of our brain—how our mindset and motivation work, and how we can create an environment where we feel more motivated. We’ll explore how the brain’s reward system actually gives us chemical responses—little boosts—that help us stay on track with what we want to create in our lives. Let’s dive in.

We often talk about mindset in terms of reframing our thoughts, staying motivated, or being persistent. But today I want to define two important terms: growth mindset and intrinsic motivation. The article we’re exploring today reviews several studies in neuroscience and education. It looks at how our brains respond to failure, and how people develop the ability to approach setbacks with curiosity rather than becoming discouraged.

Let’s start with growth mindset. A growth mindset is the belief that your abilities—including intelligence and skills—can be developed through effort, learning, and persistence. It’s the opposite of seeing talent as fixed. With a growth mindset, you don’t believe you’re “just good” or “just bad” at something. Instead, you believe you can evolve and improve over time.

What I love about this is how empowering it is. You don’t have to be perfect—there’s no pressure to get everything right. It’s about exploring, learning, and getting better. You just have to be willing to try and be okay with not getting it right the first time. The word “fail” can feel harsh, but in this context, failure is just feedback. It’s an opportunity to adjust and try something different next time.

Research shows that individuals with a strong growth mindset are more motivated, more resilient, and more willing to tackle difficult challenges. They don’t get discouraged easily because they see failures as opportunities for growth.

And here’s where it gets fascinating: this isn’t just about personality. These mindsets show up in real, observable brain activity. Neuroscience studies have shown that people with a growth mindset activate different areas of their brain when dealing with setbacks. Specifically, the areas related to learning, feedback, and behavioral adaptation light up when they face challenges—because their brains are in learning mode rather than shutdown mode.

So how does that connect with motivation, especially intrinsic motivation?

Intrinsic motivation is our internal drive to do something simply because we find it meaningful or enjoyable—not because of an external reward like money, praise, or approval. It’s the thing that gets us out of bed to go for a run when no one’s watching. It’s what motivates us to prep our lunches or tidy up our schedule the night before—not because someone will give us a gold star, but because it feels good and aligns with what we want for ourselves.

Now, of course, external motivation plays a role. Let’s be real—most of us will try harder in a workout if our trainer or a friend is right there beside us. But the magic lies in building the internal drive. Intrinsic motivation is what keeps you going when no one’s watching and no one is cheering you on. It’s what helps you stay consistent when you’re working toward something that’s going to take time—like creating a healthy lifestyle or supporting your PCOS.

At a brain level, intrinsic motivation is linked to the dopamine system—the part of the brain that helps us experience pleasure and rewards. Dopamine gives us that sense of satisfaction, pride, or joy when we do something that aligns with our values or goals. And yes, social media and other distractions can hijack this system. But when we align our dopamine response with things that are actually good for us, like building a habit or problem-solving a challenge, it creates a powerful feedback loop. That’s when motivation becomes sustainable.

One study in particular found that people who got to choose their tasks—and were given the right amount of challenge (not too easy, not too hard)—showed more brain activity in the reward areas. That tells us something huge: choice and appropriate challenge are key ingredients for motivation.

If I tell you, “This week you’re going to drink more water,” you might feel a little resistant—even if you want to be healthier. Why? Because I took away your choice. But if I say, “Here are 10 healthy habits—pick one that excites you and feels like a doable challenge this week,” you’re way more likely to stay engaged and motivated. That bit of choice and stretch sparks something in your brain, and then you start to build momentum.

And here’s where growth mindset and intrinsic motivation really come together. These two are not just psychologically linked—they’re neurologically linked. They engage overlapping brain areas responsible for learning from mistakes, managing effort, and experiencing rewards. That sequence—facing a challenge, learning from it, feeling proud—actually strengthens your motivation to keep going.

So imagine this: You’re working on your PCOS. Maybe you haven’t figured out how to consistently get your steps in or prep your meals. But then you problem-solve one piece of the puzzle—like remembering to pack your gym bag. That one small success becomes a reward. Your brain goes, “Yes, I’m doing it!” And that keeps you moving forward.

This doesn’t just apply to health. Whether you’re parenting, working, or building a new skill, life throws challenges our way. And when we have a growth mindset and intrinsic motivation, those hopes and dreams we have—like building a sustainable PCOS-friendly lifestyle—are no longer just ideas. They become habits. They become reality.

We’re not just losing a few pounds only to gain them back. We’re reshaping how we live. And that’s where the real power of this article hit me—not just from a scientific point of view, but from a personal one. This is where the joy of the journey lies. When you stop feeling deprived or forced, and instead start choosing challenges that feel meaningful, that internal glow of pride becomes the fuel to keep going.

Another insight from the article is about how external rewards can kick-start us, but they rarely sustain us. Weight loss, promotions, validation—those can be great motivators in the beginning. But if you’re not also connecting to why those things matter to you and building the internal satisfaction of daily wins, you won’t stick with it. You’ll burn out. So the goal is to start celebrating the process. Be proud of what you’re building—even before the number on the scale moves.

Eventually, when the external rewards come—like losing a few pounds—you’re already excited because you’ve been building something real and sustainable. You’ve created an environment that supports your goals, and you’re proud of that. It’s no longer a wish—it’s happening.

As we wrap up, remember this: this applies to all areas of personal growth. If you’re building a habit, learning a skill, or working through something hard, these are the key takeaways. Your brain is capable of change—this is called neuroplasticity. That means your mindset matters, and you can train it. The more you shift your perspective, the easier it becomes to break through when things feel hard. Instead of thinking, “I failed,” you start asking, “Where’s the snag? What can I tweak?” And that one mindset shift changes everything.

Motivation isn’t something you have or don’t have—it’s something you can spark. And the way to spark it is by giving yourself the right kind of challenge, autonomy, purpose, and daily rewards. When we do that, we actually train our brain to become more motivated over time.

I hope this gave you a fresh perspective on mindset and motivation, and how they can support your journey with PCOS—especially as you create a lifestyle that promotes hormone balance and long-term health. You’ll find the full article linked in the show notes and on the website.

If you found this helpful, hit that subscribe button so you don’t miss future episodes of the PCOS Repair Podcast. And remember, no matter where you’re starting—whether you’re far along or just getting curious—you can enjoy the journey when you begin to cultivate motivation from within. Until next time, bye for now.