How This Member Got Better Sleep (And Beat Bloating) While Optimizing Her Health

At Parsley Health, we’ve helped thousands of members feel better with root-cause resolution medicine . With our Member Stories series, we zoom in on a member’s health journey, what brought them to Parsley, and their road to recovery.

Read on to find out how Victoria, age 32, optimized her health and improved her sleep with her Parsley medical team.

I learned about functional medicine during COVID because I started listening to Dr. Mark Hyman’s podcast . When I was talking about functional medicine with a coworker, she told me about Parsley Health. I was interested in trying Parsley out because I’d been looking for a functional medicine doctor, but they’re hard to find, I think because a lot of people are still learning about it.

I’m interested in functional medicine because it has a more holistic view of health and wellness. Not to crap on the medical system, but a conventional doctor is probably not going to do a lot of additional testing or anything like that. I want to optimize my health and find out everything I can about my body while I’m still younger so I can make lifestyle changes now rather than later. When I learned about Parsley, I saw it as a good opportunity for me to take that plunge.

Starting to dig deeper with in-depth questionnaires

Before my first Parsley Health medical visit, I took all the questionnaires . They were so thorough, I even had to go and ask my parents about some of the questions, like what I was eating when I was a baby. It was very in-depth, with a lot that I hadn’t thought about before.

Even just the process of answering the questions helped me learn more about my family’s medical history, including a lot of stuff I think we should all know but don’t think to ask.

The beginning of a personalized care plan

Parsley Health was my first time doing virtual medicine . It was different, but I liked it. My doctor had a lot of knowledge. She was very inviting and easy to talk to. Overall, I thought it was a really good experience.

After reviewing my questionnaires with my doctor, we talked about my genetic health. I had a lot of questions for her about my genetic background and what that would mean for my health in the future. She was really informative. She sent me some articles and literature so I could do deeper reading after our visit.

She also asked about my diet and my sleep patterns, both of which we talked about improving. I hadn’t been feeling terrible, but I had been having symptoms like fatigue and bloating . Sometimes we think everything is normal, but when we start making changes, we realize that our “normal” isn’t really that normal. My doctor started making recommendations for what I could do to eat and sleep better to address my symptoms, especially sleep. One of the hardest things for me is getting enough sleep! She prescribed me some supplements to add to my daily routine, including magnesium glycinate for better sleep.

“That’s something you don’t get with a traditional doctor.”

As a Parsley Health member, I love having a health coach. That’s something you don’t get with a traditional doctor.

I always used to think that I exercised enough, and that was all I had to do—but you can’t train over a bad diet. As my health coach went over my care plan together, we covered all of the things I could do to improve my health while making the most of the exercise regimen I already had, like getting enough rest. That meant talking about all the things I can do in the morning and throughout the day to get better sleep at night.

We also talked about my nutrition. My health coach had so many recipes to choose from. It was like having my own nutritionist. I don’t want to put a lot of effort into cooking, so the recipes she gives me are all simple. She also has recommendations for substitutions at restaurants that have been really helpful, especially because I travel a lot for work.

Making her health goals happen

I started to feel different within the first few months of starting at Parsley. First to change were my sleep habits. I’m a morning person and night owl at the same time, so while I might get tired during the day, I often feel wired when I should be sleeping.

After I started working on my sleep hygiene with my health coach by doing things like going outside for 5-10 minutes every morning to reset my circadian rhythm , my body has started to naturally get sleepy at 9 or 10 pm. It’s been a gamechanger for me to actually feel sleepy.

Another thing that’s changed is that I’m not as bloated as I used to be. I attribute that to talking about digestive health with my medical team and chewing more thoroughly when I eat. After my gut health test results came back, my doctor told me that I’m not digesting my food as I should, so we’re starting a digestive protocol to address that soon.

One surprise I’ve had since starting Parsley is learning about hormones and hormonal health. I’m addicted to sugar—realizing how much sugar can affect my hormonal health has changed how I eat and how I live. I don’t know that I would have ever learned this if I hadn’t joined Parsley. I talked about trying continuous glucose monitoring with my doctor, so we’re going to try that soon.

Want to become a Parsley Health member? Schedule a free call  to learn more about Parsley’s virtual primary care , how to use insurance  to pay for your Parsley medical fees, and more.