From Panic Attacks to Peace: How Nutrition Changed My Life!

Twenty years ago, I suffered from chronic anxiety and panic attacks to the point where I couldn’t see a way out. Eventually, I felt like I had no choice but to go on anti-anxiety medication. I stayed on them for six years because, at the time, that was the only thing that seemed to help me function.

What I didn’t know back then was that my mental health was deeply connected to my gut health and nervous system.

Once I started learning about nutrition and how food affects mood, energy, and brain chemistry, I became obsessed with understanding how to actually heal the root cause of my anxiety instead of just managing the symptoms.

That curiosity led me to:

  • become a Certified Health Coach, and

  • train as a Gut Thrive Practitioner, specializing in gut health and the gut-brain connection.

Once I understood how to use therapeutic foods and nervous system support to help my body feel safe again, I finally started to experience something I never thought was possible:

A deep sense of peace within!

How Gut Healing Shifted My Whole State of Wellbeing

When I took myself through my own Gut Health Training Program, I noticed a powerful shift in my entire body:

  • My anxiety softened.

  • My eczema cleared up.

  • The constant bloating was gone.

That’s why I’m now on a mission to walk beside the next person who feels stuck in the same place I once was. If that’s you, I want you to know, you are not broken. Your body is simply asking for support.

And that’s exactly what my 12-Week Gut Health Training Program and my 8-Week Wellness Program are designed to offer.

The 12-Week Gut Health Training Program

A 5-Step Strategy to Rebuild Your Gut & Support the Gut–Brain Connection

This 12-week program is a structured, root-cause approach to gut healing. It’s based on a proven 5-step strategy that helps:

  • calm inflammation

  • support digestion and detoxification

  • and rebuild a healthier gut–brain connection for better mood, energy, and clarity.

Here’s an overview of the five steps:

Step 1: Slash Inflammation & Prepare the Body

First, we focus on reducing inflammation in the gut and throughout the body. This is where most of my clients start to feel 30% - 50% better!
We support digestion, calm irritation, and create the right conditions so your body is ready for deeper healing in the next steps.

Step 2: The Pathogen Purge

Next, we move into a targeted 4-week pathogen purge.

Here, we work on gently helping your body clear:

  • excess toxins

  • overgrowth of harmful bacteria, yeast, or other pathogens

Which often contribute to symptoms like:

  • bloating/gas/constipation/diarrhea

  • brain fog

  • skin issues (Eczema, Psoriasis, Acne)

  • fatigue/Insomnia

  • mood swings/anxiety/depression

Step 3: Rebuild & Reseed the Microbiome

Once we’ve cleared out the pathogens, it’s time to rebuild.

In this phase we:

  • replenish the gut with beneficial bacteria

  • support the repair of the gut lining

  • help keep everything inside the gut where it belongs

This is key for reducing the risk of autoimmune reactions and calming systemic inflammation.

Step 4: Optimize Stomach Acid (Your First Line of Defence)

Your stomach acid (hydrochloric acid) is your body’s first line of defence against food-borne pathogens. It also helps break down proteins and absorb key nutrients.

In this step, we focus on:

  • supporting healthy stomach acid production

  • helping your digestion work more efficiently

  • protecting you from “future invaders”

This becomes especially important:

  • during periods of high stress, and after age 40, when stomach acid naturally tends to decline.

Step 5: The 80/20 Lifestyle – Staying Healthy & Flexible

The final step is all about the 80/20 rule for sustainability.

  • 80% of the time, you’re eating in a way that supports your gut, hormones, and nervous system.

  • 20% of the time, you have room for enjoyment, and flexibility

This is where we talk about:

  • how to maintain your results

  • how to enjoy food without guilt

The goal is not perfection, it's a way of living that feels supportive, empowering, and sustainable.

The 8-Week Wellness Program

Calm Your Nervous System & Rebuild Emotional Resilience

While the Gut Health Program focuses deeply on the gut, my 8-Week Wellness Program brings together everything I’ve learned over the last 15 years about nervous system repair, adrenal support, and emotional resilience.

It’s a step-by-step journey back to feeling:

  • calmer

  • clearer

  • more energized

  • and emotionally grounded

This program supports your:

  • adrenals

  • brain chemistry

  • nervous system

using:

  • therapeutic foods

  • targeted supplements

  • strategic habits

  • and mind–body practices

Over eight weeks, you’ll learn simple tools that shift your body out of constant stress mode and into a place of safety and healing.

1. Nourish Your Mood, Energy & Sleep

  • Using targeted foods that support neurotransmitters for better mood and focus

  • Balance blood sugar to reduce anxiety, overwhelm, and irritability

  • Reset your circadian rhythm so you can experience deeper, more restorative sleep

2. Support Your Adrenals & Nervous System

  • Using key nutrients to calm and strengthen your stress response

  • Incorporating practices like breathwork, EFT tapping, and gentle movement

  • Creating daily rituals that signal safety to your body

These practices help build emotional resilience so you don’t get knocked over by every stressor.

3. Eat in a Way That Supports Your Physiology

You’ll learn how to:

  • Understand macronutrients (carbs > protein > fat) for stable, steady energy and how to use them to create physiological safety

  • Use proper food frequency to keep blood sugar stable and energy steady

  • Lean on fruit and root-based carbohydrates to lower stress hormones

  • Utilize saturated fats intentionally to help repair and insulate the nervous system (myelin sheath)
    50% of fats from saturated fats
    45% from monounsaturated fats
    5% from polyunsaturated fats

My program is designed to help interrupt the stress cycle by supporting you to:

  • rebuild energy reserves

  • calm the adrenals

  • reduce inflammatory stress response

  • restore healthier metabolic function

  • support and strengthen the nervous system

  • rebuild emotional resilience

My goal is to help you:

  • Feel calmer and more grounded

  • Think more clearly

  • Wake up with more energy

  • Sleep more deeply

  • Reduce anxiety and irritability

  • Build emotional resilience

  • Strengthen your metabolism

  • Restore balance to your nervous system

Honestly, I feel incredibly grateful to have had access to these teachings over the years. They changed my life.

Now, it’s my turn to pay it forward.

If you’re struggling with chronic anxiety, gut issues, eczema, or that constant “something’s off” feeling and you’re ready to explore root-cause healing instead of just symptom management, I’d be honoured to walk beside you.

If you’re reading this and thinking, “That sounds like me”, please know you don’t have to do this alone.

Send me a message with the word GUT or WELLNESS, and I’ll share more details about my two programs. I also offer a free 15-minute consultation call to discuss which program might be the best fit for you.

And if you know someone who’s silently struggling, feel free to pass this along. Sometimes a single shared story is the first step toward healing.


I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sincerely,

Nancy 

Nancy Pitre