Toxic Skincare Warning: How to Ditch Lotion for Dry Skin and Glow Naturally

Ever wonder if your lotion is actually making your dry skin worse? In this episode, I’m sharing why I made the bold move to ditch lotion for good—and how switching to pure, organic oils healed my dry skin and supported my hormones. I’ll walk you through what’s really hiding in most lotions (hello, fragrance and endocrine disruptors), why your skin was never designed to depend on products, and how your body is already equipped with everything it needs to stay hydrated—if we stop stripping it down. You’ll learn my go-to oils for skin healing, like rosehip, CBD, apricot, and squalane—and the science behind why they work better than the long list of ingredients in your favorite “clean” lotion. I’ll also share how simplifying my skincare helped calm my body, my skin, and my soul. If you’re ready to glow naturally, this episode is your fresh start. 🌿 Listen now and find freedom in a skincare routine that finally makes sense.

PRODUCTS:

Rosehip Oil

Apricot Kernel Oil

Squalane Oil

CBD Body Oil

CBG Face Oil

RESOURCES:

40 | Sunlight Healing: How Morning Light Resets Your Mood, Hormones & Faith

39 | The Important Hidden Dangers of Looming Antibacterial Overload

34 | Valuable Sunscreen Safety to Protect & Support Your Health for Life

Emulsifiers and Skin Barrier Function Lodén, M. (2012). Contact Dermatitis.

Rosehip Oil and Skin Aging Szychta, P. et al. (2015). eCAM Journal.

CBD and Inflammatory Skin Conditions Palmieri, B. et al. (2019). Clinical Therapeutics.

Topical GLA for Eczema and Redness Gehring, W. (2014). Journal of Dermatological Treatment.

Apricot Kernel Oil in Dermatology Chatterjee, S. et al. (2018). Int’l Journal of Molecular Sciences.

Benefits of Squalane Oil Popa, O. et al. (2020). Molecules

Fragrance & Endocrine Disruptors Gore, A.C. et al. (2020). Environmental Health Perspectives.

FIND ME:

🌿 Website & Podcast Hub

📩 Email Sign-Up

📧Contact Penny

⭐️ Listen Notes Interview

keywords: ditch lotion, toxic skincare, healing oils for skin, rosehip oil benefits, squalane oil, cbd oil eczema, apricot kernel oil, natural body moisturizer, hormone safe skincare, fragrance free routine, endocrine disruptor skincare, clean beauty tips, skin barrier repair, dry skin solution, natural skincare podcast

SUMMARY:

Have you ever looked back at something seemingly small — a prescription, a choice, a doctor’s advice — and realized it changed the entire course of your health? 💭 That’s the story I’m sharing today.

This episode is a raw, honest look at how one antibiotic — Tetracycline — taken as a teen for mild skin breakouts, turned into a decades-long health journey filled with gut battles, bleeding gums, misdiagnoses, and ultimately, a deeper understanding of how connected our bodies really are. 🧠💥

From cracked molars to emergency stomach surgery, I’m laying it all out. We’ll talk about:

🔑 The link between antibiotics like Tetracycline and Crohn’s, Candida, and gum disease 🔑 Why some Crohn’s medications never worked for me — and what finally did 🔑 The connection between oral and gut health that even your dentist may miss 🔑 What I’ve learned as an Integrative Health Practitioner-in-training 🔑 How to protect your kids from the mistakes we didn’t know we were making

This one’s a doozy, friends — but it’s also a hopeful, empowering call to know better, so we can do better. 🙏🏽💖

TOPICS COVERED:

• Tetracycline and long-term health damage

• Candida overgrowth and gut imbalance

• Link between antibiotic use and autoimmune diseases

• Why oral health is a window into your gut

• Gut-brain connection explained simply

• Empowering moms to advocate for their family’s health

FIND ME LINKS 🌿 Website & Podcast Hub → BecomingNaturalPodcast.com 📩 Email Sign-Up → BecomingNaturalPodcast.com/newsletter 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts → Apple Podcasts 🎧 Listen on Spotify → Spotify 📧 Contact Penny → Contact Page ⭐️ Listen Notes Interview → ListenNotes.com

Do you ever wish your day wasn't ruled by your health? Penny gets raw and real in this powerful origin episode of Becoming Natural. She shares her 25-year battle with debilitating Crohn's disease, how traditional medicine saved her but didn’t heal her, and the radical shift that finally brought relief—faith, natural living, and a mom-sized dose of stubborn hope.

In this repeat of her foundational episode, learn:

• Why Penny shifted to more holistic health

• How essential oils and plant-based remedies changed her life

• What it means to live clean in a dirty world

• Why healing is physical, emotional, and deeply spiritual

If you're a tired mama looking for answers, this one's for you.

✨ Hit follow, leave a review, and tag a friend who needs to hear this.

Keywords and Tags

Crohn's healing, natural remedies, holistic health, essential oils, occupational therapist, mom podcast, faith and healing, autoimmune relief, clean living, chronic illness support, Becoming Natural, holistic lifestyle, Christian wellness, toxin-free living

In this episode, Penny walks us through the gentle power and rich history of witch hazel for skin:

• 🌿 Roots in creation: Why Native American wisdom and colonial pharmacy both called on this shrub

• 🔬 Botanical brilliance: How tannins, flavonoids, and adaptable extracts soothe, protect, and tone

• 🧴 Which type for what: Choosing between alcohol‑based, glycerin‑based, or potent pure extracts

• 📝 DIY healing: Easy recipes—toners, wipes, sun‑burn compresses, and bug‑bite relief

• 🙏 Real guidance: Safety considerations, FAQs, and a faith-filled reflection grounded in Psalm 104:14

Grab your tea and stick around for practical healing and soul-filling grace.

🛒 Dickinson's Witch Hazel-Alcohol Free

🛒 Dickinson's Witch Hazel-Alcohol Free with Rose Water

🛒 Organic Witch Hazel Extract

• Avula, B. et al. (2019). Witch Hazel Overview

• Dickinson’s Witch Hazel Company (est. 1866).

🎯 Keywords:

witch hazel benefits, DIY witch hazel recipes, witch hazel for skin, witch hazel uses, natural remedy podcast, postpartum witch hazel, alcohol-free witch hazel, homemade toner recipe, faith-based natural healing

Vinegar Health Benefits: Ancient Remedy for Your Health & Home

Did you know vinegar health benefits go far beyond salad dressings? 🥗 In this episode, I share how plain vinegar and apple cider vinegar (ACV) have been used for centuries for healing, cleaning, and everyday wellness. You’ll learn its fascinating history, science-backed uses, and practical ways to replace harsh chemicals in your home. 💡 From Hippocrates to your laundry room, vinegar is a simple, God-given tool for health and home.

👉 Listen in as we uncover:

• How vinegar was used by ancient cultures (and even in Scripture!)
• The science behind vinegar’s power to heal and clean
• My favorite ways to use ACV for digestion, detox, and beauty ✨

Resources:

📗Antibacterial action of vinegar against food-borne pathogenic bacteria including Escherichia coli O157:H7

📗Can You Use Vinegar as a Disinfectant?

📗Effect and mechanisms of action of vinegar on glucose metabolism, lipid profile, and body weight

📗The improvement effect of apple cider vinegar as a functional food on anthropometric indices, blood glucose and lipid profile in diabetic patients: a randomized controlled clinical trial

📗Vinegar intake reduces body weight, body fat mass, and serum triglyceride levels in obese Japanese subjects

📗Beneficial effect of vinegar consumption associated with regulating gut microbiome and metabolome

WHERE TO FIND ME:

🌿 Website & Podcast Hub 📩 Email Sign-Up 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts 🎧 Listen on Spotify 📧 Contact Penny ⭐️ Listen Notes Interview

📌 Note: I’m just a girl with a wild story and a passion for sharing what has helped me feel my best during difficult times. I share personal experience, documented research, and a whole lot of heart. Always talk to a professional when making changes to your health routine.

vinegar health benefits, apple cider vinegar uses, natural cleaning with vinegar, faith-based wellness, natural remedies, home detox tips, ACV for health, chemical-free cleaning

If you've been wrestling with bloating, brain fog, weird cravings, or gut pain that no one seems to explain, this episode might blow your socks off 🧦. This is the most popular episode thus far and a great replay if you are having guy issues. Don't forget there is a PART 2:

04 (Part 2): Symptoms of Candida Yeast Overgrowth are WHOLE Body & a Step by Step Diet Plan to Relieve Candida, SEEBO, & Leaky Gut

In this episode, Is Candida Yeast Causing Your Gut Symptoms? Natural Healing Insights Inside, I walk you through how a candida yeast overgrowth was quietly wreaking havoc on my body—and how a simple 30-day detox helped restore my energy, clear my brain fog, and even change how I saw God’s hand in my healing.

🔑 Key Takeaways:

• What triggers candida yeast overgrowth (spoiler: antibiotics and stress are biggies)
• Why your gut symptoms may be misdiagnosed
• How the "die-off" process works—and why it's worth the struggle
• A faith-forward look at how our bodies are designed to heal

👉 Ready to start your own healing journey? Don’t miss this deep dive into gut healing and God's grace.

NOTES:

🎙️04 (Part 2): Symptoms of Candida Yeast Overgrowth are WHOLE Body & a Step by Step Diet Plan to Relieve Candida, SEEBO, & Leaky Gut

FREE YEAST QUIZ

📚 "Good Energy" by Casey Means Hardcover/Audible/Kindle Book

📚 The Ultimate Candida Diet Program

🛒To purchase FREE Candida Yeast Quiz

SOURCES:

🖥️ https://www.mitchellmedicalgroup.com/services/candida/about-candida/

🖥️https://www.webmd.com/ibd-crohns-disease/crohns-disease/crohns-disease-antibiotics

🖥️https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20700115/

WHERE TO FIND ME:

🌿 Website & Podcast Hub 📩 Email Sign-Up 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts 🎧 Listen on Spotify 📧 Contact Penny ⭐️ Listen Notes Interview

📌 Note: I’m just a girl with a wild story and a passion for sharing what has helped me feel my best during difficult times. I share personal experience, documented research, and a whole lot of heart. Always talk to a professional when making changes to your health routine.

Sunlight Healing: How Morning Light Resets Your Mood, Hormones & Faith

Have you ever wondered if the sun could actually heal you? ☀️ In this episode of Becoming Natural, Penny returns from a summer break to dive deep into something ancient, biblical, and biologically essential: sunlight. Once honored across every culture and faith, the sun has now become something we’re taught to fear. But what if we’ve got it backwards?

In this soul-stirring conversation, you'll discover:

🔍 The history of sun reverence across ancient civilizations

🧬 How UV rays affect hormones, immunity, sleep & mental health

📚 The science behind vitamin D, nitric oxide, and light therapy

🕯 Faith reflections on how light heals spiritually & physically

📝 Practical sun habits that restore balance and boost healing

From heliotherapy to circadian rhythms to Psalm 84:11, this episode reminds us that God gave us sunlight on purpose. It’s not woo—it’s wisdom.

🌅 So grab your morning tea and take this one outside. Let’s soak up the Son. 🙌

RESOURCES:

🧬 Vitamin D & Sunlight Studies

Holick, M. F. (2007). Vitamin D deficiency. New England Journal of Medicine, 357(3), 266–281.

Bikle, D. D. (2011). Vitamin D metabolism and function in the skin. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 347(1–2), 80–89.

☀️ Circadian Rhythm and Light Exposure

Harvard Medical School. (2020). Blue light has a dark side. Harvard Health Publishing

😌 Mental Health and Light Exposure

Lyall, L. M., Wyse, C. A., Celis-Morales, C. A., Lyall, D. M., Cullen, B., Mackay, D. F., ... & Smith, D. J. (2018). Associations between objectively measured physical activity and circadian rhythm and mental health in the UK Biobank cohort. The Lancet Psychiatry, 5(6), 507–514.

🦠 Immune Function and Vitamin D

Aranow, C. (2011). Vitamin D and the immune system. Journal of Investigative Medicine, 59(6), 881–886.

💓 Nitric Oxide and UVA Study

Liu, D., Fernandez, B. O., Hamilton, A., Lang, N. N., Gallagher, J. M., Newby, D. E., ... & Weller, R. B. (2014). UVA irradiation of human skin vasodilates arterial vasculature and lowers blood pressure independently of nitric oxide synthase. Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 134(7), 1839–1846.

🧼 Sunlight as a Sanitizer

Raeiszadeh, M., & Adeli, B. (2019). A critical review on ultraviolet disinfection systems against COVID-19 outbreak: Applicability, validation, and safety considerations. Scientific Reports, 9, 15280.

WHERE TO FIND ME:

🌿 Website & Podcast Hub 📩 Email Sign-Up 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts 🎧 Listen on Spotify 📧 Contact Penny ⭐️ Listen Notes Interview

📌 Note: I’m just a girl with a wild story and a passion for sharing what has helped me feel my best during difficult times. I share personal experience, documented research, and a whole lot of heart. Always talk to a professional when making changes to your health routine.

sunlight healing, vitamin D, circadian rhythm, faith and healing, sunlight therapy, natural immunity, spiritual wellness, heliotherapy, sun benefits, light therapy

The Important Hidden Dangers of Looming Antibacterial Overload

Are we over-sanitizing ourselves sick? In today’s Becoming Natural episode, I’m sharing the real risks behind our culture’s obsession with “antibacterial everything”—and how it might be doing more harm than good. We’ll unpack the history of triclosan, hormone disruption, antibiotic resistance, and why dirt might just be your best medicine. I’ll walk you through smart swaps, safe solutions, and faith-filled reminders that your body was designed to thrive in the real world—not a sterile lab. 💛

🔍 Real Talk on Germophobia 🧬 Microbiome Truths You’ve Never Heard 🌿 God’s Design for Your Immune System

RESOURCES

FDA bans triclosan and triclocarban in consumer soaps

The hygiene hypothesis: current perspectives and future therapies

Triclosan Technical Fact Sheet

Antimicrobial resistance

Why dirt may be nature’s original stress-buster

COMING SOON

Triclosan Beware

Homemade Cleaning Spray

WHERE TO FIND ME:

• 🌿 Website & Podcast Hub
• 📩 Email Sign-Up
• 🎧 Listen on Apple
• 🎧 Listen on Spotify
• 📚 Amazon Author Page
• 🗣️ Listen Notes Interview

📌 Note: I’m just a girl with a wild story and a passion for sharing what has helped me feel my best during difficult times. I share personal experience, documented research, and a whole lot of heart. Always talk to a professional when making changes to your health routine.

antibacterial overload, triclosan dangers, natural antibacterial swaps, immune system support, microbiome health, faith-based wellness, hygiene hypothesis, antibiotic resistance, gut health, hormone disruption