As someone who got sober in the fast-paced, fashion-forward nineties—yes, the era when “The Matrix” introduced us to the red and blue pills—my journey into biohacking was both intuitive and revolutionary. Back then, Google was a mere twinkle in the digital sky, and resources on health and longevity were scarce. Being newly sober, I faced a barrage of bewildering symptoms; my hair thinned, my skin yellowed, and I ballooned by 30 pounds in just four weeks. I lost my menstrual cycle, and all the white lab coat-wearing doctors told me they had no idea what was wrong with me. I was sent home to “rest” without a real solution. The irony? I was supposed to feel rejuvenated, having quit drinking, yet my body was in complete revolt. I was falling apart, and fast!
My Beginning: Libraries Over Search Engines
In those early days, my answers were not in search engines but in the pages of books from the Bodhi Tree in West Hollywood, an iconic bookstore for the woo-woo crowd. This is where meditation and mindfulness entered my life; albeit my full embrace of these practices didn’t occur until further down the road in Bangkok with Buddhist monks, my transformation and awareness of the need for homeostasis started there. Meditation is a form of biohacking that I didn’t realize was even a “thing” until years later when I became a mindfulness teacher. Meditation was my first biohack. I was onto something but couldn’t quite wrap my head around it yet. No one was seeking what I was looking for; there weren’t groups of people celebrating their uniqueness and bold choices of going without a healthcare plan or a doctor!
Simple Yet Revolutionary Health Approach
Thanks to friends in Hollywood’s elite, I connected with a holistic health practitioner—a rarity at the time. This maverick prescribed olive oil (yes, three shots a day), a cocktail of vitamins, fresh squeezed green juice, colonics, and started to reseed my gut flora with prebiotics, not probiotics! Shifts began. I started to sleep, and some of my inflammation began to go down. My life transformed not with synthetic pills but with food and supplements. I couldn’t believe it. Why weren’t more people talking about this? Why weren’t people sharing about these simple holistic practices? How did we become a society of people so dependent on doctors who have so little training in nutrition? (Most doctors have less than 24 hours of training in nutrition.) This makes absolutely no sense when everything we put into our bodies has a chemical reaction and causes certain reactions within each system of the body. Food became my second biohack: full nutrient stacking, feeding the cells of my body!
Challenging the Norm: The Women’s Hormone Study
My era of personal transformation coincided with widespread skepticism about hormone replacement therapy (HRT) due to a flawed women’s health study. This study, tainted by methodological errors and a reliance on horse estrogen, unfairly stigmatized HRT. Taking a leap of faith, I sought help from Dr. Uzzi Reiss, went on bioidentical hormones, and my world shifted even more. My hair returned, my energy surged, and life came back into focus. I was all of twenty-seven years old, and on HRT, everyone thought I was a full-on lunatic; all I knew was that I felt better and I LOOKED better! (Remember, this is LA I’m living in, and at that time, I was being paid for my looks and the size of my body!). Hormone optimization: biohack number three (with more to come).
Biohacking: An Evolution to Mainstream
Let’s fast-forward to the age of Bulletproof coffee circa 2009 with Dave Asprey and everyone suddenly becoming a biohacker! Dave might have coined the term, but my journey predated the buzz by 14 years. My lifestyle, rooted in transparency, bold decisions based on labwork, and metric tracking—a ritual of mine for 28 years—wasn’t just a fad but a necessity. I’ve logged everything from sleep patterns, travel, jobs, people, and foods to moods, proving that what we as humans ingest profoundly affects our DNA expression and overall health. Tracking became biohack number four.
The Pandemic and Discovery of Peptides
During the pandemic, I fell apart—did you? All bets were off—and my typical healthy living protocols took a huge hit. I lost my 20 years of abstinence from junk food and started chowing on bags of salt and vinegar chips and drinking Philz coffee like it was water. A new daily ritual of almond croissants became my way of life! I strayed from my disciplined path and gained 30 pounds; my body ached, all my health markers changed, my hormones tanked, my immune system flared, I kept breaking out in hives, and my face felt like it was swollen even after I had been up all day! During the pandemic, I did a lot of walking to deal with my anxiety; I also listened to a lot of podcasts.
On one of those days, I was listening to a podcast of a fellow Bulletproof Coach, a colleague of mine, talking about … peptides. Enter “Tirz” … and other delicious peptides—I willingly entered new, uncharted territory that I completely embraced despite my initial fears. I had no idea what I was doing. I read, studied, joined underground Signal groups, asked questions, and started injecting myself. Yep, you read that right, injecting tiny needles into my body. We call it “SubQ”; I was mixing and dosing my own therapies, and my inner biohacker came alive once again. These therapeutic compounds became pivotal for me, realigned my health, and my spirit became supercharged! 2020 was a miserable failing for many, but for me, it was an opening of biohack number five.
Meditation: My Unwavering Pillar
Throughout all these transformations, meditation has remained steadfast as a daily biohack. My practice ensures my body is primed for healing, resting in states of homeostasis. That state is a cornerstone of my biohacking life because, without balance, physical health is elusive. During these deep states of meditation, I can connect with a resource that guides me and restores my body. This, I believe, is the easiest biohack that anyone can try right now! You may think that it’s just a way to calm down or something you do when you end up on a retreat, but the reality is that this one biohack, an ancient practice, changes the entire body every single time you practice. Start tracking and watch what happens with your body, mind, and spirit.
Last night was the closing night of an eight-week series that I teach on Stress Management with Biohacking. During this class, I always ask what my students’ takeaways are and how this series has supported their entire being.
“I had no idea that sleep was such a critical component of my stress, and now I’ve hacked it with all of these biohacks you’ve shared, and I wake up feeling like a different person.”
“My favorite tool has been about micro-dosing tirzepatide. It’s been a game-changer for me. My relationship with food has completely shifted—cravings are gone, and I feel satisfied with smaller portions. Energy levels are up, and I’ve noticed stable blood sugar without afternoon crashes. Surprisingly, my focus and mental clarity have improved too. The best part? Minimal side effects compared to higher doses. It’s not just about weight loss; I feel more in control of my health and aging. This biohack has truly transformed my well-being.”
And one more for the win: “Joining this class and community has completely transformed how I manage stress. These weekly sessions for sharing tips, group meditation, and support have given me a sense of belonging that’s reduced my stress levels significantly. My heart rate variability has improved by 15%, and my sleep quality is up 30%, according to my tracker. Beyond the numbers, I feel more present with my family, collaborative at work, and resilient during challenges. This biohack showed me that managing stress isn’t just about solo techniques—it’s about building meaningful connections. It’s been life-changing.”
I share these comments because eight weeks ago, none of these students were aware of how biohacking could contribute positively to their stressful lives, and it can in yours, too.
Advice to New Biohackers
To those curious about this path, remember: don’t fear the unknown. You’re in recovery; you can do anything as long as you stay mindful of your sobriety. No drinking allowed, and no mind-altering chemicals that will increase your chances of picking up a drink and kicking off crazings. Align yourself with knowledgeable practitioners, dive into resources like my peptide cheat sheet or DNA webinars, and most importantly, start. Biohacking is not just about the body; it’s about the empowerment that comes from understanding and optimizing one’s unique biology. My excitement is boundless as the biohacking world advances, with technology like ingestible microbiome cameras. I’ve set my sights on living to 105, fueled by innovations and the belief that the blue pill of tomorrow holds infinite possibilities!
Biohacking is not exclusive. It’s a wide-open invitation for all of us to explore, adapt, and thrive. Welcome to the journey.
SPIRITUAL SUBSTANCE: Sober Biohacking 101: Embracing and Navigating Sobriety with the N of One Society
Grab Your Copy of Sobriety for Dummies now! Be sure to tune in to the Your Sober Now What? Podcast to hear an expansion on the themes discussed in SFD!
Resources Are Available
If you or someone you know is experiencing difficulties surrounding alcoholism, addiction, or mental illness, please reach out and ask for help. People everywhere can and want to help; you have to know where to look. And continue to look until you find what works for you. Click here for a list of regional and national resources.
