Connect to Nature: The Simple 'Medicine' Doctors Forget
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
Release Date: 10/08/2025
Your Child Isn’t a “Picky Eater.” Here’s What’s Really Going On at the Dinner Table with Lena Livinski
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this Field Notes conversation, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with speech-language pathologist and holistic feeding specialist, Lena Livinsky to reframe “picky eating” as a whole-body, whole-family issue—less about willpower or “bad behavior,” and more about safety, biology, skills, and environment. Lena shares how conventional feeding therapy often over-focuses on behavior, and how working through her own child’s selective eating helped her connect the dots: when a child’s nervous system is dysregulated or their gut and sensory systems are off, eating can feel threatening, not...
info_outline
What If You’ve Been Looking at Mental Health All Wrong? The 4 Pillars Approach to Lasting Happiness
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with integrative psychiatric provider Dr. Josh Waddell to unpack mental health through a functional medicine lens—moving beyond symptom labels and “chemical imbalance” shortcuts to ask what’s actually driving anxiety, depression, and emotional instability in the first place. Dr. Waddell lays out a clear roadmap for understanding mental illness as a progression—from real-world triggers to cellular/mitochondrial disruption to downstream neurotransmitter changes—then introduces his practical “Four Pillars” framework (Body,...
info_outline
Your Body Knows the Way: The Healing Conversation Most Doctors Never Have
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Dr. Jen Mann to talk about one of the most frustrating (and common) experiences in modern health care: the “mystery illness” — the symptoms that don’t fit neatly into a diagnosis, and the exhaustion that comes from chasing answers. Instead of defaulting to more tests, more protocols, or another “perfect stack,” Dr. Jen invites a different starting point: your body already has information — and learning to listen is part of the medicine. Together, they explore how healing can be both science and art… and how true...
info_outline
Medicine at the Edge: What Extreme Wilderness Care Teaches Us About Burnout, Purpose, and Real Healing
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this powerful episode of Field Notes—hosted by Nurse Practitioner Heather Moon—we’re joined by Mary Ellen Doty, NP, a pioneer in wilderness medicine and founder of Wilderness Medical Staffing. Mary Ellen shares gripping stories from serving as the sole medical provider in some of the most remote and unforgiving environments on earth, including Bush Alaska, where medicine is practiced not by protocol alone—but with presence, creativity, and deep respect for the human story. Learn more about Mary Ellen here: https://maryellendoty.com/ Her journey reveals a stark contrast between...
info_outline
From Desperation to Breakthrough: A Mother’s Journey That Redefined Whole-Body Healing with Dr. Chloe Weber
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this powerful episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Dr. Chloe Weber for a deeply human conversation at the intersection of functional medicine, Chinese medicine, and lived experience. Dr. Weber shares how her son’s rare neurological condition became the catalyst for her life’s work—pushing her beyond the limits of conventional care and into the ecosystem-based wisdom of Chinese herbal medicine, CBD, and spagyric extraction. Together, they explore why modern chronic illness demands a proactive, pattern-based approach to health, how ancient formulas can be intelligently...
info_outline
Doing Everything ‘Right’ but Still Feel Off? This Gut Insight Changes Everything with Jacqui Meehan
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
What if the missing link behind stubborn hormone issues, mood swings, fatigue, and digestive chaos isn’t your hormones at all—but your gut? In this powerful Field Notes conversation, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with nutritionist and gut-health expert Jacqui Meehan to unpack the deeply personal story that led her from chronic illness to healing, and why the microbiome is the true cornerstone of vibrant health. Learn more about Jacqui here: Together, they explore the gut-brain-hormone connection, why so many people “do everything right” and still feel awful, and how simple, overlooked...
info_outline
The Hidden Reason Your Healing Stalls—Even When You’re Doing Everything Right with Veronique Ory
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this deeply moving episode of Field Notes, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Veronique Ory to explore the powerful intersection of embodiment, trauma, and healing. Veronique shares how lived experiences—especially those shaped by early life, intergenerational trauma, and unexpressed emotion—are stored in the body, influencing our health, behavior, and sense of safety long after the original events have passed. Together, they unpack why healing isn’t about “fixing” ourselves, but about creating enough safety to let go, soften old narratives, and reconnect with the body through...
info_outline
The Surprising Longevity Blueprint: Why You May Be Missing This Key Piece of The Formula with Dr. Avinish Reddy
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
In this Field Notes conversation, Dr. Rob Downey sits down with Dr. Avinish Reddy to explore a powerful but often overlooked truth about longevity: social connection isn’t a “nice to have” — it’s a biological necessity. While modern health culture fixates on metrics like VO₂ max, glucose, sleep scores, and diet precision, Dr. Reddy explains how meaningful relationships directly shape stress physiology, immune function, metabolic health, and long-term vitality. Drawing from clinical data, neuroscience, and real-world patient outcomes, the episode reframes...
info_outline
Mushrooms Beyond the Hype: Energy, Healing, and What Most People Get Wrong
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
Dr. Rob Downey welcomes Benjamin Bressington for a wide-ranging conversation that goes far beyond the mushroom hype cycle and into lived experience, integrity, and true therapeutic potential. Benjamin traces his path into mushrooms through years spent navigating infertility and IVF, where he witnessed firsthand the physical and emotional toll of narrow, protocol-driven medicine. That disillusionment, combined with his own struggle with depression as a high-performing entrepreneur, led him to explore mushrooms as a tool for accessing buried trauma and restoring a sense of vitality that talk...
info_outline
Surprising Facts About Your Skin and How to Care for it with Marcia Mankin
Field Notes: An Exploration of Functional Medicine
Heather Moon, our wonderful nurse practitioner here at Seaworthy, is taking over as host for this episode of The Field Notes Podcast! She welcomes fellow NP, Marcia Mankin, whose lifelong passion for skin health began on a Wyoming ranch and deepened through profound personal experiences with melanoma in her family. Together, they explore something I wish more people understood: your skin isn’t just a surface. It’s a living, intelligent messenger—constantly reflecting your internal health, your environment, your stress levels, your sleep quality, and even your emotional state. Marcia...
info_outlineIn this episode of the Fieldnotes podcast, Dr. Rob Downey is joined by Dr. Michael Blahut, a family practice physician with integrative training, to discuss his philosophy that the life you live is your medicine. Dr. Blahut emphasizes that lifestyle and our connection to the natural world are the most potent forms of medicine, going beyond supplements and testing. The conversation centers on restoring the body's original biological blueprint by tapping into nature's wisdom through simple practices. They explore the critical roles of natural light and the circadian rhythm in health, discussing the benefits of sun exposure and the use of tools like blue blockers. Finally, they delve into the power of sound and frequency for nervous system regulation and the profound importance of belief, purpose, and community as fundamental, root causes of health and well-being.
Timestamps:
(01:05) Lifestyle is the wellspring of health.
(03:04) Life you live is medicine.
(04:51) Get outside; get natural sunlight.
(26:54) Sound shifts nervous system state.
(33:20) Purpose, community matter most.
_______________________________________________________________________
Key Takeaways:
Your life, not pills, is the medicine.
Restore your body's natural health blueprint.
Daily sun exposure regulates your health.
Sound and rhythm heal the nervous system.
Purpose and community are the best medicine.