Episode 82
Table of Contents:
In this episode:
William Branum is a retired Navy SEAL with 26 years of service. He has served on both traditional SEAL Teams, taught as a SEAL Sniper Instructor and served on Teams that specialized in undersea operations, whose missions must be approved by the President of the United States. He led major combat operations ranging from protecting the interim Iraqi elected officials to Direct Action missions in Baghdad and across Ambar province.
After retiring from the military in 2018 he realized that he was suffering from physical and psychological symptoms that negatively impacted his well-being and quality of life. Migraines, severe anxiety, chronic pains, difficulty focusing, difficulty sleeping/falling asleep, and depression are some of the symptoms I struggled with on a daily basis.
Like so many others, he used alcohol & prescription drugs to mask the symptoms he had. Then he discovered CBD and it changed his life. It had such an impact on him he started Naked Warrior Recovery to bring the highest quality products to the market and to teach the GET NAKED! Mindset.
His Story:
William grew up in Mississippi and describes his upbringing as "free school lunch my whole life, poor." He describes his younger self as having a mediocre mindset.
He was a Boy Scout, and attended the National Jamboree on scholarship between 11th and 12th grade. There he met a fellow scout who shared his plans to attend the Naval Academy, become a fighter pilot (think Top Gun), and a Navy SEAL.
William had never even heard of the SEALs before, even though his family had a history of service in the Navy.
Shortly after the Jamboree, he got a call from a Navy recruiter and his path was set.
After 26 years of service, William retired from the SEALs (where he had vision, purpose, mission, and team) in 2018.
He felt like he lost everything except his baggage.
The noise in his head was relentless. And like so many veterans, he drank himself to sleep to quiet the noise.
William tried CBD and noticed that the noise got a bit quieter, and the chronic pain from decades of serving lessened a bit.
When he ran out of CBD, the noise and pain returned to the previous level.
He tried a different brand of CBD, and once again, things got better.
CBD CEO
Because CBD so greatly improved William's quality of life, he decided to go into the CBD business in order to help others.
Naked Warrior Recovery launched on March 1, 2020.
William participated in coaching programs, and hired coaches to collapse time and get where he wants to go.
He now coaches and consults, bringing his SEAL Team experience to the workplace.
Even though CBD is legal, you really can't promote it on social media, as it gets your accounts shut down. So William needed to get creative.
He has done over 200 podcast interviews to get the word out.
The CBD industry is a dirty industry.
It has come a long way, policing itself, but not all products are created equal.
NW Recovery process:
Harvest the plant
Extract the oil
THIRD PARTY TESTING
Manufacture
TEST AGAIN
Every product has a code to scan where you can enter the lot number and see the testing results.
CBD reduces inflammation and balances our Endocannabinoid system which allow the body to heal.
It is one modality that can support healing in many ways.
The Get Naked Mindset
Is about taking your shield down to find the healing you actually need.
Becoming vulnerable allows for true growth and healing.
Never quit
Accept failure
Kill mediocrity
Expose your fears
Do the work
One Step to take today:
Make BOLD adjustments to move the needle instead of micro-adjustments. Try something different to get you moving.
Other Resources:
Connect with William Branum
Episode Transcript
Julie Michelson: [Page//00:00:00] Welcome back to The Inspired Living with Autoimmunity podcast. I'm your host, Julie Michaelson, and today I'm joined by William Branham, retired Navy Seal and Seal Sniper instructor. William is the founder of Naked Warrior Recovery, a C B D company that's focusing on ending veteran suicide.
He's an awesome public speaker and coach, and shares his five seal secrets [Page//00:01:00] drawing from his 26 years of experience in the SEAL teams to train high performers and CEOs. But don't worry. That also directly translates to our conversation about wellness today. In today's conversation, we discuss how William's experience and knowledge can directly translate to facilitate healing.
We explore the ins and outs of C B D, including how it can set the stage for healing and how to know if you're using the best products. William also shares how his get naked mindset is essential to develop for true wellness.
William, welcome to the podcast.
William Branum: Thanks
for having me stoked to be here.
Julie Michelson: I am excited for our conversation. I, I just know already, it's gonna be amazing. I wanna start a little bit with story I'd, I'd love for you to share. You have an incredible journey and you didn't just wake up one morning and [Page//00:02:00] decide you were gonna, you know, be this incredible coach and speaker and start a C b D company.
So share your journey with us
William Branum: I'm not even sure where to start. Let's see. If I go back in time, rewind a little bit. We'll, we'll go back to the summer of my 11th to 12th grade high school. I grew up in a little town outside of Meridian, Mississippi, was very poor, had sort of a mediocre mindset, however, Like very poor, like free lunches all through, you know, first through 12th grade poor.
But I was heavily involved in the Boy Scouts, the Boy Scout organization I was a part of, paid for me to go to the, this National Jamboree. It happens every four years. I went to the event, I met a kid there. He had this vision of, you know, when he graduated from high school, he wanted to go to the Naval Academy.
He wanted to fly F 14 Tomcat, like Top Gun. And he wanted to be a Navy Seal. And I was like, dude, what? What's a Navy Seal? I have no idea what that is. You know, cuz [Page//00:03:00] back then there was, I, I didn't have cable. There was like four channels on my television. There was certainly no internet. I am very young, but you know, it was Internet's not that old.
Julie Michelson: Young as he looks, ladies and gentlemen, cuz I have asked and I almost fell off my stool
William Branum: And
Julie Michelson: weren't, nobody was talking about Navy Seals either
William Branum: No, there were no, there were no books. There was nothing. Maybe a couple of books from like Vietnam era, but not a, not a lot out there. And you know, there were, you know, people I knew about Green Berets cuz John Wayne was a Green Beret in Vietnam, at least in the movie Green Berets. John Rambo was a he was an army ranger, so I knew about that.
I had heard about, you know Marine Corps Scout snipers, maybe marine recon. I'd heard of those things. I'm like, so, so, and I always knew I wanted to be part of some sort of small, elite military organization. I just didn't know what that was. And so this kid was like, yeah, it'll be a Navy Seal. And I'm like, what's that?
And he explained it's the hardest military training in the world. They jump outta airplanes, they blow stuff up, they do all sorts of cool [Page//00:04:00] stuff. And and I was like, yeah, where do I, where do I sign? How do I sign up for that? And so I came back from that trip and the Navy recruiter calls my house cuz that's what they do.
They're like cold calling, like trying to get their, their quota. And I. You know, and every other, almost every other man in my family has been in the Navy and I swore I would never join the Navy. Like there's no reason for me to join the Navy. I don't wanna be part of one of those big great things that float out there in the ocean.
So the Navy recruiter calls and my initial thought was like, no way, but wait, I want to be a Navy seal. So I shared that with him. I'm like, I want to go to the Naval Academy. I wanna fly our 14 Tom cast. I wanna be a Navy Seal. He is like, okay, why don't you come on down here to the recruiting station and and let's have a conversation.
So he showed me this really cheesy movie about Navy Seals, and I was like, where do I sign? How do I, let's, let's go. Like, do I have to graduate high school? Can I start right now? I don't like, and so I, I joined the. You know, with the full intent of going to the Naval Academy of flying at 14 Tom Kaz and becoming a Navy [Page//00:05:00] Seal, I guess one outta three is not bad.
So I eventually became a
Julie Michelson: Well, the hardest
That's just
William Branum: right. Whatever, this's, just, you know, I'm a low, low performer over here, one outta three.
Julie Michelson: mediocre
William Branum: I, right, exactly. So if I had a better mindset, maybe I, I would've, you know, made it to the Naval Academy and flown F 14 Tom. But they did tell me when I joined the Navy that my hearing was so bad that I wouldn't be able to fly jets, cuz apparently you have to have good hearing.
I don't know. But it, it hasn't gotten any better since then. So what's it, I'm sorry.
Julie Michelson: excuse me.
William Branum: So I, I, I eventually became a seal. I spent 26 years in the Navy serving in the SEAL teams and retired at 2018 when I retired. You know, when I went into the military, I had, you know, a vision of where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do.
Then I became, you know, got in the SEAL teams and I had a purpose. I had a mission, and I had a team. And the day, the day that I retired from the Navy, I felt like I had lost [Page//00:06:00] everything. I acquitted to that Avengers movie where Thanos snapped his fingers in the world, like the universe's population vanishes.
And and that's the way I felt I was lost. I was like, you know, I have a bunch of baggage from my time, you know, both in the, in the, in the military and also some not so awesome relationships that I've been a part of. I call it baggage. And and so the way I would like turn down this noise in my head is I would pretty much just drink myself to sleep at night.
I had heard of this molecule called C B D, but. I was afraid to try it because I am a child of Nancy Reagan's war on drugs. Just say no. Even though I am, I am very young over here. Just, just keep
Julie Michelson: Young is an attitude. William, you are young and and I have told you off. I have thanked you off air, but on air. I would like to thank you for your service
William Branum: Thank you very much. But so, so I, I tried C B D finally, and I had you know, it, it, I didn't notice anything. I didn't feel anything. It wasn't like, you know, drinking alcohol or anything [Page//00:07:00] like that. , I just felt, you know, I had less noise in my head, so I was able to drink less. And some of the pains in my body were just less bad.
And and so I was like, well, maybe the CBD D thing has, you know, it's a good thing. And it was still very barely legal federally. So I think I tried it for the first time, April of 2019, and it became legal of like December 20th, 2018 when hemp became legal, you know, federally, nationally, whatever. And so I, I was, so I, I ran outta that bottle that a buddy of mine actually gave me, and I started, you know, this noise started percolating, like more noise in my head, more pains in my body that I didn't even notice had left, or they just became less sharp, the more dull started coming back.
And I was like, well, maybe it was C b, D, so I'll try a different brand. I had similar results and now I'm like, oh, maybe I should, maybe I should. Maybe c b D is my, my new mission, my new purpose, my new whatever. And so I, I I went to this business conference. I met a girl actually from Colorado who was in the CBD [Page//00:08:00] industry.
And I was like, so she asked like, how do you, how do you market cbd? Like, because I can't run ads, I can't do any of the traditional stuff. Excuse me. And they were like, I, you know, get athletes to say how great it is and things like that. And so all I could think of is like, you're the CBD girl. Maybe you're my next, like, who I need to partner with in some way.
And so I chased her down. That sounds a little weird, but I followed her. That also
Julie Michelson: cause you're a big guy,
William Branum: And I was like, and I cornered her. I, that also sounds weird. Maybe
Julie Michelson: this poor girl.
William Branum: how it happened, , but I was like, Hey, you're the CBD girl, right? She was like, yeah. And I said, I want, I think I wanna do cbd.
And really what I wanted is for her to hide. Hire me, like, hire me. Maybe you're, this is my new me purpose, my new mission, money, whatever. And she was like, well, do you wanna do A to B, B2B or b2c? And I was like, I don't know what those letters mean. I want to do C, b D. Did you not hear me in the first place?
So she laughed and said well, why don't you just start your own CBD B company? [Page//00:09:00] And I said, I don't know how to do that. And she leaned in and she said, you are a Navy seal. You can figure it out. So I asked her politely for my man card back. She politely gave it back to me. And I went home and I googled how to start a C B D company.
And I found out very quickly that it's a really corrupt, very dirty industry. There's a lot of bad actors out there, a lot of like, let's get rich quick gas station, c b d probably not something you want to consume. It's kind of like gas station sushi. You probably don't want to eat that either unless you live in Hawaii.
Like we, we have, yeah, we have good, we have good sushi in, in 7-Eleven here, but I wouldn't do it anywhere else in the world just because we have the ocean right there. So, so anyway, so I started a C B D company called Naked Warrior Recovery. And then I was like, how, like, I started it March 1st, 2020.
Some other thing happened right around that same time. I can't remember what it was. But it, there was some weird stuff happening and people were like, oh my God, how do I, so one of
Julie Michelson: happy [Page//00:10:00] anniversary by
William Branum: Right, exactly. Thank you. I didn't even realize that,
Julie Michelson: Yeah. Last week. Yep.
William Branum: I should have had a sale. Maybe I'll have a sale just because of that.
The, so I, so I forgot, so I forgot, I forgot where I was going with the story. So, you know, being in the SEAL team, being in the, being in the military my entire life, I have no idea how to like run a company. I mean, I kind of do. It's, there's not really that much difference between You know, leading men and, and doing things in the military.
Like you, you get a budget, you get all these things. Well, I didn't know how to like market my, my product and I was also still in the, the mindset of don't tell anyone what you do, who you are or anything like that, because that's just what they beat into us. Do not advertise the nature of your work, all this other stuff.
And so eventually I, I got kind of got over that and
Julie Michelson: In a big way.
William Branum: right it, but it, it took a lot to do that. And, and it's funny, like people that are outside, they don't understand that, you [Page//00:11:00] know, they're, it, it is beaten into us. Do not advertise the nature of your work. Don't tell anyone what you do.
Terrorists will come and kill you and your family and la la la whatever.
Julie Michelson: And I was actually
William Branum: bring it baby
Julie Michelson: just thinking about this yesterday, knowing our conversation was gonna happen today. That is exactly what was going through my head is like, huh, you know, he is just puts it all out there. Is that safe? Is that okay?
William Branum: I do live on a rock in the middle of Pacific Ocean. It's like a lot of work to get here. And I travel all the time, so
Julie Michelson: if they can find you.
William Branum: Right. Let's see, what else? So I, I, I didn't, and I recognized that I didn't know how to market. And then a, a friend of mine who was doing business coaching wa you know, he had a like, hey, seven days to whatever, seven Day Master Ignition Mastermind, something like that.
I don't remember exactly what it was called, but I was like, yes, I'm gonna, here's my, here's my money. I wanna get on the calls. And so he, you know, taught me how to do some marketing and how to do some [Page//00:12:00] sales and things like that, cuz I had zero clue. And then I, that just perpetuated me into more other coaching programs and other coaches and through that process of learning.
You know, I have a, I have a PhD, a public high school diploma, so I'm very smart .
so
Julie Michelson: We're in the same boat.
William Branum: right? So, so, and you know, that's, you know, when I was, my last three years in the, in the, in the Navy, I was, I was running research and development for, for, you know, our command. And I would be in rooms with actual scientists and PhDs and super nerds, and they would go around the room telling, you know, everyone would introduce theirself and tell their background and whatever, and it would come to me.
And I was like, yeah, I'm, I have a PhD also a public high school diploma, so if I asked dumb questions, it, hopefully you guys are okay with that. And so that always gave me a little more street cred when it, you know, they, I'm in the room because of the operational side in my experience there. But so I, I started coaching and, and, or I've started with coaches and one of my coaches was like, bro, why are you, why don't you coach?
I'm like, [Page//00:13:00] well, I don't have anything to say. Like, what do I, who am I gonna coach? I'm like, who? What do I
Julie Michelson: to yourself?
William Branum: Right, exactly. And I'm like, and he is like, bro, you got a lot to sell. You got a lot to say. You got a lot of whatever. And I'm like, okay. Whatever you say. And and, and also, you know, one of my other coaches said, you need to get on podcasts.
You need to get on every, like, the biggest podcast you can get on. Like, that's how you're gonna grow your brand since you can't run ads or anything like that. So over in the last 24 months, I've been on over 400 podcasts. I have also,
Julie Michelson: Way to make me feel not at all special. William. Thank you,
William Branum: I'm honored to be here. Honored honored. I will not forget this podcast. I mean, you know, I've, I started going back through it and I'm like, oh, I was on that pod. I don't even know who that person
Julie Michelson: right? Yeah, I've had, I've had that as well. You know somebody asked me actually about a doctor yesterday and I'm like, I'm like, oh, I really like her. And then I did, luckily didn't say it out loud, but I was like, did she do my podcast? I don't remember.
William Branum: Right. [Page//00:14:00] So but I will not forget this one for
Julie Michelson: Well, you will stand out in the crowd,
William Branum: right. And and. And also one of my coaches and I, I got where I am because I hired coaches. I hired people to help collapse time to get me where I want to be and to help accelerate where I want to go. And so one of my coaches was like the same one who was like, you should be coaching.
He also said, everyone in this group should be, should have a, what they call a signature, what he called a signature presentation. It's basically something, it's your TED Talk, it's something you can do for, you can, you're an expert in, you can share for 10 minutes or you can share it for an hour and a half.
And so I created, you know, the, the get naked mindset or five secrets to think like a Navy seal. And so now I, I give that. Presentation from stage internationally. And I also do coaching. So all the things that I do right now are all the things that I said, you know, several years ago that I would never, ever, ever, ever, never, ever do I now I I coach people or ad [Page//00:15:00] advise, consult, whatever the word of the day is.
So coaching is sounds, it's starting to get, become a dirty word. And as I'm like entering into the, into the space, I'm like, oh my God.
Julie Michelson: it's just cuz anybody can say they're a coach without
William Branum: And they have no experience or any, yeah. What what have you done? I even asked myself like, what have I done? I, you
Julie Michelson: a lot.
William Branum: So, so, so now I, I do consulting, coaching, advising, whatever you wanna call it.
I, I do sales. I was like, I will never do sales. I am not a salesman. I, yeah, I, I love selling I love helping people. and I love getting, and I would say I would, I'm never one of gonna be one of those people standing on stage, like doing motivational speaking, like, and now I do that. So everything I said I would never do once upon a time is everything that I do now.
Grow like, and, and, and being a, and, and writing a book. I'm also writing a book. I'm like, how, what? I don't have anything. So I'm actually writing two to two to three books. I have one that I'm almost done right now. I'm co-authoring one. I have another one that's in the [Page//00:16:00] hopper once I finish the, the first one, the, the co-author book.
And then I'm, I, you know, I'll probably do some sort of like planner of sorts. So there's, there's three right there. All things that I said I would never do. So I guess the, the moral of the story is never say never, because you never know how you're if you're ambitious in, in any way, for sure leave the, like, leave opportunity open and, and don't close your mind to to, to anything.
Julie Michelson: I love that. And obviously we couldn't have different journeys or different histories, different lives. But I think one of the things that, that I so appreciate about you that I can relate to is, you know, here's something that helped change your life for the better. And now your life is about getting that out to people.
And that's exactly why I do what I do. You know, I, I took years to figure out how to reverse my autoimmune symptoms and, and you know, I love helping people [Page//00:17:00] expedite that process and, and you know, to be a resource for them. And so I wanna circle back to a co a couple points cuz listeners might still be like, okay, this guy sounds really cool.
Why is he on Julie's podcast?
right. Other
William Branum: Because, it's Julie, of course.
Julie Michelson: Well, and also, you know, a full disclose. I, I met William a few weeks ago and, and I made the brilliant comment at one point a a couple days in of like, you are a brave man. And then had to laugh and was like, oh, I guess you were trained for this. Because seven of us shared a house, six of us were women.
Most of us didn't know each other, . And we had a blast. And, and so anybody who can roll with that such good spirit is okay in my book. So I wanna to touch on kind of highlight a little bit of your pain points. Most of us can't relate to. [Page//00:18:00] maybe we can relate to noise in the brain. And anybody listening would probably rightly assume whatever noise is going on for them, it's, you know, not like all of a sudden you were an Navy SEAL and now you're retired and your whole world, like you said, just kind of evaporated.
But what you kind of really glossed over, you had a lot of chronic physical pain and you, you said you were drinking yourself to sleep, but you also had sleep challenges. And, and it, it's kind of one of those doesn't really matter how you, you know, your chronic pain came from the abuse your body took.
You know, because you
William Branum: And apparently I still abuse it just in a different.
Julie Michelson: So I wanna touch on one, one of the things that you said is so brilliant because I think it's just human nature. You know, you noticed C B D was helping a little bit. With the noise and a little, you know, maybe a little bit with the pain but you didn't really notice just how much until you stopped and it returned.
Like, we, we just assimilate. [Page//00:19:00] We do, and we, we tolerate. And, and so I wanna just highlight that, you know, these are things that everybody with autoimmunity can relate to. I know, you know, you had anxiety, depression. I mean, anybody with chronic illness has, you know, I, I'm not saying, you know, diagnosable depression, but w we've all experienced kind of that realm of, you know, mental health concerns, anxiety, if you don't wanna say depression, you know, some kind of a mood impact.
And then, you know, that physical, the, the pain and the not sleeping I think are things. That we can all relate to. And, and so for everybody listening, that was one of the main reasons because I, I adore William and will happily talk to him, but I can call him on the phone. , we don't have to, we don't have to share this with you.
And, and [Page//00:20:00] I think I shared with you when we were together C B D was a really big part of my healing journey. I was still on many prescriptions, including painkillers, muscle relaxers and high quality. And we're gonna talk about this high quality C b D. Really, really, not only did it reduce my, my pain and help with that I'm a biohacker, I'm a nerd.
I, I'm showing my aura ring. I was already tracking my sleep when I started with the C and what I noticed was at the right dose. All of a sudden I was getting my deep sleep doubled. It really impacted for me the quality of my sleep. I wasn't somebody who had problems falling asleep. I could and I could sleep 13 hours and wake up exhausted.
I woke up a lot cuz of pain. But, so c, b, D people just, they need to know about it. And, and that's one of the reasons I love your [Page//00:21:00] message because, and, and we're gonna talk a little bit too about, I, you know, not everybody may understand why you can't really market in the classic ways because it's legal, right?
So what do you mean?
William Branum: According to the US government, it's legal, but according to like every other social media platform, it's not so.
Julie Michelson: Facebook, and so, yeah. And, and that's we share that similarity as well. I got, I got videos pulled down because I made the statement, the body can heal. Which is apparently just as offensive as C B D . So you know, the, they're so, we need to get creative and have conversations like this.
And so for listeners that were scratching their heads other than like, wow, this is cool. This is why I wanted William to, to come on today.
William Branum: I even had TikTok. TikTok I, I showed what, it's a, it's a transdermal pin product that I carry. And I didn't even show applying it. I just show showed like, [Page//00:22:00] you know, this is one of the fastest ways to get CBD into your body and talked about it, and they'd like, blocked that video. I was like, it's not, I I didn't do anything.
I didn't even like
Julie Michelson: he's a
William Branum: you how to use
Julie Michelson: it's a weapon,
Right,
William Branum: It's like elicit something like it when TikTok does that. Are you kidding me? All the crazy stuff that's
Julie Michelson: Oh my gosh. And, and misinformation and Yeah.
William Branum: Yes. Yeah, it was, it was crazy. You probably had a, a, a question or something, but
Julie Michelson: Well, I, I, so, I, I just, I wanted to kind of underscore for listeners that, that, although C B D is effective and legal, that, you know, at, at least in avenues like social media, it really, you get shut down if you try to market, and,
William Branum: and it's, and it's, it's interesting because it is a, it's a very saturated market. Like there's a, I saw it, I saw a, a stat a week or two ago, I'm gonna mess up the number, but I'm gonna say there's like over 340,000 C B D companies in the United States. [Page//00:23:00] What?
Julie Michelson: I, I, when I was first discussing CBD with clients, they would say, oh, I tried it. And I, you know, well, what'd you try? Oh, My friend gave me a, and I'm like, oh, . I don't know what it, you know, and maybe sometimes it was a good product, I don't know. But, but let's talk about quality because it is so important.
And full disclosure, I have tried your products and I love that. And you know, because I know you see me placing orders, I, I'm like, I hand them out like candy. I'm like, try this, try that. And I live in Colorado, so I have access to high qualities and, and through functional medicine I have access to high quality.
But the attention to detail that you've put into your products, I believe makes them a step above and, and just more effective. Like, they're just really effective. So far, I haven't found anybody I've given , given your [Page//00:24:00] products to, that hasn't really been like, wow, this is different than any other C B D I've tried before.
So let's talk a little bit about sourcing and quality other than I, I can, and I'm, I'm not an affiliate. I, I'm not a, but I'm telling y'all if you're, if this, if you're listening and you're still listening and you're interested in this conversation the Naked Warrior products are, are really top notch, so
William Branum: Thank you very much. So I b before we talk about quality, I just wanna talk about how you feel, or, or like, just like you said, like someone says, I tried CBD and it didn't really work for me.
Julie Michelson: Right,
William Branum: P you know, we, we take vitamin C all the time. Do, do you know if that's working for you? Not really. Like there's so many things that we consumed.
Is it really working for you? I don't know, maybe. And so, A lot of times, just like with me, like I took that first bottle of C B D, I didn't notice anything happening. And it was over time that [Page//00:25:00] like my sleep got better, the noise in my head went down, the pains in my body got less, but I didn't notice it until I stopped taking it.
And I started, like the noise started creeping back in the pains that I was like, oh, I, I didn't, haven't felt that pain for like weeks. Oh, maybe it was a C B D. And then, you know, I let it kind of grow and I'm like, okay, let's try another brand of C, B D. And then I had similar results. So I can tell you without a doubt that it positively impacted my quality of life, but it wasn't something that I noticed.
Like, take the product and you notice something right away. It's not like, you know, you have a, a headache and you take ibuprofen. It, it doesn't work like that. It works some different pathways. It worked. Works on chronic inflammation, it works on the endocannabinoid system that's in your body, which is a giant neuroreceptor system that is connected to every other system in your body.
So the reason that people have come out and said like, well, this cured my, whatever, it cured my cancer. CBD doesn't cure anything. It [Page//00:26:00] helps reduce chronic inflammation. It helps bring your endocannabinoid system back into homeostasis, back into balance which helps bring all the other systems back into balance so that your, your body can heal itself like it's supposed to.
Which is the really the goal at the end of the day. Like, get away from big pharma and things like that. There are natural things out there and hemp or marijuana or whatever you want to call it, was legal until about a hundred years ago. And and that we could, we don't need to go down that rabbit hole, but it has been used for thousands of years as medicine.
And then, you know, there was anyway so
Julie Michelson: We could get into the whole
William Branum: We can talk about it or
Julie Michelson: I never knew you to be so politically correct, William . But that would take us another hour. If we get
William Branum: it would take us a long time. Right,
Julie Michelson: we have the same conversation. It comes up all the time with, when we're talking about, you know, the food industry, the, just the whole pharmaceutical power house.
But I, I. [Page//00:27:00] I love so many things that you said, especially because you are so educated about this and, and I am not, and you just described exactly the only way I've been able to describe to people, you know, the, the anti-inflammatory properties combined with this balancing. Cuz I've had people say to me, well, you know, how can it do all those things?
Or, you know, what if I need something different than somebody else? And it's, well, it's the balance in the endo cannabinoid system that works like ma, you know, feels like magic. If somebody's saying, well how can it do this and that and that and this a and i I like that you highlighted, you know, it's not like, oh, you know, take an ibuprofen, headache's gone necessarily.
But I will say, and, and maybe it's, we're not talking apples to apples. I think because I live in Colorado and. because it was even, you know, it was legal here before it was legal [Page//00:28:00] federally. There was all kinds of C b, D stuff popping up. And when I would ask people, well, you know how much actual C b D was in your product?
They'd say, I don't know. I have no idea. And that's where I get into that quality of, and what else is in the product because are you driving inflammation with crappy ingredients and you're, you know so that's where I'm like, to you, it's obvious that there's a certain quality standard and, and we just need to kind of give it a chance to notice what it's doing.
William Branum: Right. And, and, and, and so just to kind of address the quality, you know, when I, when I, when I first started investigating C B D I found out, you know, that the, that the industry's very dirty. You know, the F D A would go out and do spot checks, and they would find that, you know, most of the products on the market, this, it's been a while.
So the, the industry has cleaned up quite a bit, but it, it's still out there. The f FDA would go out and they would do spot checks, and they would [Page//00:29:00] find that most of the, more than 70% of the products either didn't have CBD B in 'em. They didn't have the cbd, they said they had at 'em. They had high levels of THC that was outside the legal limit of 0.3%.
They had heavy, like high levels of heavy metal mercury, arsenic, pesticides, herbicides, things like that. It was like, if you're, if you're putting something in your body to be a medicine, and I'm using air quotes here, medicine I'm not making medical claims. But if you're putting something into your body to be a medicine,
Julie Michelson: feel better.
William Branum: right, you, you you don't wanna be putting a bunch of poison in your body at the same time.
Julie Michelson: Right.
William Branum: So I, when I, when I went out and found my suppliers, I was very, I found not great suppliers, and I found the highest quality suppliers, and I still use these same suppliers today because these are the suppliers that really drove the industry in the direction that it has gone to help clean itself up. And so, you know, one of the distinctions, even the, the biggest names of CBD that you see out there [Page//00:30:00] today, they were not doing what we were doing.
And that was, you know, you, you harvest the plant. We just, we, we lost power yesterday and we
Julie Michelson: Oh,
William Branum: power today. I'm just we, we got big winds. I don't know what's going on here in Hawaii, but a lot of rain and big winds, so no hurricanes,
Julie Michelson: like an island.
William Branum: Right. See, it's tropical, tropical paradise. So, so what we found is, is, so what we would do is we would the har harvest the plant and then extract the oil and send that oil off to for independent third party lab to be tested to make sure, you know,
Julie Michelson: And that's
William Branum: know, doesn't have any mold or heavy metals or anything like that, you don't want to be putting in your body.
Then we would run it through the manufacturing process, turn it into a tincture, turn it into a soft gel, turn it into a energy drink powder turn it into a topical, and then we would test it again. Everyone was testing in the first, in on the front end. No one was testing on the back end. So they never knew what was actually in the product that they were
Julie Michelson: final product. Yeah,
William Branum: you know, [Page//00:31:00] when I first started, I would go around it, I would, you know, I, I'm sharing, talking about C B D and it was kind of popular and people were buying from, from different places. And they were like, well, what do you think about this brand or that brand? I'm like, okay, well send me their website.
And so I would look and, you know, we put, I, I, I get a little lazy sometimes, but we put a QR code on every one of our products so you can go and scan that QR code, look at the the lot number. We, we test every single lot that comes out.
Julie Michelson: It's
William Branum: so I would look at websites, I would look at websites, and they would have like a certificate of, of, of testing
Julie Michelson: Five years old
William Branum: and it was like not even a product that they carried, it was like something they did. We test every single batch that comes out, every single lot that comes out and we post that on the website and we, we have that, I don't always post it on my, on my website, but it is posted on, on the big website that has like what all, all of the testing.
So you just scan the QR code and put the lot number [Page//00:32:00] of the product that you're using and you can see exactly what's in it, how much CBD D in is, is in it. We, we, we usually put about 10% more than what we say on the label, just because more is, more is not always better, but more is not gonna hurt you for sure.
You don't wanna have less. And you know, also looking for all those, those toxins any, to make sure there was no contamination in the manufacturing process because that has happened. And we only caught it because it happened. Like we, we, we tested and we're like, Hey, we gotta fix this. This is not
Julie Michelson: that lot. Yeah.
William Branum: Right. So, and nobody else was doing that. And so the industry has started to shift to do that, that that second test of the final product, just to say specifically like, Hey, this has what it, what we say it hasn't, and to show you the quality that we're trying to deliver.
Julie Michelson: and, and so I would say if listeners, you know, for whatever strange reason, don't wanna check out the Naked Warrior products, if at some point you're interested in, in, you know, testing [Page//00:33:00] out c b D in your body, you, that's, to me, the gold standard. You've got to look for that, that testing, and you've got to look for the final product testing.
And that's why three, five years ago, even though it was available here, it, it was, I mean, it was a crapshoot. People didn't know what they were getting, you know, and, and so that's, that's I think one of the reasons why also, your products are, if I have this right, it's, and I, we've discussed it, I think and it seems to be my experience, your products are consistent.
In other words, it's not c b D per container. And you each gummy say if somebody gets the, the gummies, each gummy, you know, one gummy may have none, and one gummy has all of it, which is a very common thing here. You know, even going to a dispensary, even a dispensary that sells medical marijuana the products that are in there, it's, it's per container.
So [Page//00:34:00] you're not there. There's no consistent dosing,
serving size, no consistent serving size.
William Branum: right. And so, and, and that's the way that they're tested. They're tested, you know, it's just a random, random containers are pulled out. They're sent off to the lab and they're randomly tested.
Julie Michelson: Yeah.
William Branum: And that's, you know, that's how we, how we show the consistency. That's how we, you know, we measure what we have in the product.
Julie Michelson: Which is amazing. I, well, I think I know the answer, . I think the main answer is yes, but different. So you sell, you have a variety of products, different applications, different delivery systems. Are there some that are better for certain things, like you mentioned, the pen is the fastest acting like.
William Branum: You, so the, the, the transdermal pen, the, the M 60. Is a it's the quickest way to get [Page//00:35:00] CBD d into your body outside of an enema. An enema is number one. It's the quickest way to get it into your blood. A vape is number two. We were looking at doing vapes, but it was too, there's too much weird stuff going on with that.
So we, we, we, we stepped away from it. Yeah, it's, so we, so we stepped away from that. The transdermal pin is number three, and a tincture under the tongue is number four now. So the, the soft gels that we produce, they have a, a nano emal. We use a nano emulsion technology. It's a, it's a pharmaceutical grade emulsifier.
So basically, let's just say like a drop of C B D is like the size of a basketball. It's very hard to get. That oil into this body of water that we, that we carry around with us. So what we do is we agitate the oil and then we add this emulsifier. So it basically takes that basketball size drop of oil and turns it into like 10,000 golf
Julie Michelson: Little drops.
William Branum: So it's [Page//00:36:00] easier for the body to absorb the, the, the, the, the nano emulsion soft gels into the system, into, you know, to help it cross the blood brain barrier. We use mc two oil to, to help it cross the blood brain blood brainin barrier for on the delivery system. So the other thing with the, with the trans is it passes that first pass metabolism.
So it's, it's really microdosing C b D, not like in the, the mushroom kind or psilocybin kind of, of microdosing. Not that they, like, I, it's interesting, I've had, in the last week, I've had three very different conversations about that, all positive. I'm like, maybe, maybe
Julie Michelson: that's
not what we're talking about,
William Branum: Not what we're talking about today. So it's, it's, so the, the pin delivers a, a, an exactly measurement of four milligrams of C B D, which is, and it goes, you know, straight into the bloodstream, which is really about what you get when you take 25 milligrams of C B D. So I, interesting. So because, so it passes, it bypasses that first pass metabolism, so it goes straight [Page//00:37:00] into the blood bloodstream and it doesn't get lost in, in other places of the body or just kind of get passed through.
Julie Michelson: Gotcha. Thank you for
William Branum: But it's all, they're, they're all kind of, and, and some of the best feedback I've gotten with the transdermal pain isn't like, oh my, my recovery's better, or anything like that. It's like more like my carpal tunnel says, or my arthritis in my hand or things like that. Has it, like completely wipes it out when I, when I use that product and I'm like, awesome.
That's fantastic.
Julie Michelson: it is awesome. It's, it's incredible. It, it really is. And I, I, you know, seeing you move around, you don't look like a guy who, and I would, people would say probably, I hope you can say they'd say the same about me. You don't look like somebody who lived with chronic pain for a long time. And, and so, you know, the whole purpose of this podcast is because the body can heal.
We can. There are tools, there are, you know, programs, structures but we have to support the body [Page//00:38:00] and, and the C B D is such a good, can you, I I, in my opinion, I think it's possible to heal without C B D most times, I think, I think there are some, some things but again, we're all about like, who want I, I don't know.
It took me like six years to go from full of pain to pain free. It why, why would you wanna spend all that time? Why not shortcut with
William Branum: And you,
Julie Michelson: your body has and needs
William Branum: you don't always know what, what's working and, and what's not. I, I just say that CBD is a modality. It's a, it's a tool in
Julie Michelson: It's a really effective modality. Right, right. Yeah. I love it. I love it. I wanna talk about, you know, I wanted to get into a little bit of the quality conversation and, you know, make sure listeners really understand.
We, we are talking about something that reduces inflammation and balances systems to allow for healing. [Page//00:39:00] But now I wanna flip the conversation a little bit because I really, I wanna know, I don't want people to be intimidated. You're this Navy seal, you do this like incredible training you have, this is the, you know, you're calm cuz we can't move around a lot.
But what is the get the get naked mindset and you know, how, how can we benefit from understanding that?
William Branum: So , I was gonna throw some jokes out there and I, I stopped myself.
Julie Michelson: And I, I should have wore my hat
William Branum: yeah, right. So get naked is it's, you know, it's, it's about taking that armor off, that ego that you carry around, that mask that you're hiding behind, whatever it is. Take, take that off. And so that you can find, and this was for me, how it worked for me, so you can find the healing that you actually need.
You know, if you're, if you're contin, so in, in the steel teams, we go into combat, we go into harm's way, we put this, you know, we put our body armor on, we put [Page//00:40:00] our helmet on, and we, we go out there and, and we take the fight to the enemy. And sometimes that armor saves our life and we're grateful that we have it.
And we come back, we take that armor off, we hit the showers, we rest, we recover, we get ready for the next mission in life, we never do that. We, we, we, you know, pain is cumulative. So if I were to like tap you in the. For like an hour, you're gonna be like, that's really bugging me. If I kept keep doing it for a week, you're like, it's gonna leave a bruise.
And over time, you know, I stopped tapping you in the arm and all of a sudden, you know, you have this bruise in a, in a gentle spring breeze blows your clothes and it hits your arm and you're gonna be like, oh my God, that's so much pain. And that's just sort of the way that, like, it wasn't like big trauma, it was like over and over repetitive trauma.
And so we end up like, putting up this shield and that trauma can come from, I like any, it can come from like, you know, a, a, a disgruntled coworker or a family member or whatever it is. And you just like, always feel like you're [Page//00:41:00] like under attack. And so, so you, you put up this shield. And so naked is about taking that, taking that wall down, exposing yourself, becoming vulnerable so you can find the healing that you need.
So that's, that was where it started. But you know, when I went back and. I talked earlier about, you know, one of my coaches saying, everyone here needs a, a signature presentation. I was like, okay, well what if I take naked and turn it into an acronym? And so I turn naked into an acronym. And the acronym stands for the N is for never quit.
The A is accept failure, the K is to kill mediocrity. The E is exposure, fears, and the DS do the work. And so, and I, you know, and, and this is a, a presentation I give from stage and and, and I, you know, I, I talk about this as five secrets to help you think like a Navy seal and I, you know, explain each, each letter of the acronym and what it means and how you can apply this to your life.
Using lessons that I learned from the steel teams, from steel training and, and, and things [Page//00:42:00] like,
Julie Michelson: and I love, so we haven't talked about this before. And, and so I'm really excited that I was right, , and in that this applies to all a, all of us and b especially our listeners because we, we have to put that armor down, that shield down the wall, whatever you wanna call it, to heal and everybody has one.
And, and I love that you brought up, you know, you mentioned the coworker that we may not know, it could be trauma from childhood. It doesn't have to be capital T you know, I a combat vet trauma. It, it can be all those little. Things that become our belief systems that stack, stack that wall, raise that shield up.
And it is sometimes the hardest part of a healing journey. And
William Branum: and you, and you said it earlier, you said it, you, you, you [Page//00:43:00] said it earlier, like we're, we're, we are resilient. I forgot the language you used, but it was like, we just, we adapt, we get used to pain. We get used to, you know, putting that shield up or, you know, creating more of a barrier between us and things that we assume are going to maybe hurt us.
And so that's what it's, that's what really get Naked is about. It's like, recognize it first and then take it down. But you sometimes you have to be brave, brave enough to do that. I was not brave enough pretty much my entire adult life, actually, even before that, as a child, I was not brave enough to do anything like that.
I was like, I never show weakness, ever the end. And it wasn't until I, it was, I had a, a leader in the SEAL teams where he let every I, he let everyone know, like I looked up to him. Tremendously. And one day he said, yeah, I, I am having some trouble over here. I need some help, so I'm gonna go [Page//00:44:00] find some help.
And, and I was like, Ooh, he's gonna get eaten alive. And no one, no one like really went after him for weakness or anything else. And I was like, so he actually gained more respect because he said, Hey, I need help.
Julie Michelson: right.
William Branum: And then I retired and I was still like, I don't need help. I'm, I'm a man. I'm tough. Whatever, whatever nonsense
Julie Michelson: of
my man card.
William Branum: yeah, you get my man card back.
So and, and so I was on, I remember I was on clubhouse if that platform is still around
Julie Michelson: not
sure I was
William Branum: right in the beginning and, and, and I, I was in a room and I somehow, I was talking to someone, she was a psychiatrist. Psychologist person. I don't know the difference. Shrink, she was a shrink person.
Not to be politically incorrect, but she was a shrink. And she asked me a question, she said, she said so how do you feel when other people ask [Page//00:45:00] you for help? How do you feel like when you help other people? I was like, I feel awesome. It's great. I like, it's the best thing ever, but whatever. She was like, well, well, why are you robbing other people of that opportunity to
Julie Michelson: I love it. Love
William Branum: like, I don't, I don't like you. We're not talking anymore.
Julie Michelson: feels
William Branum: not invited. So, yeah, I'm like so then I had to, then, then I had to be brave enough to ask other people for help.
Julie Michelson: Well, and I
love that you said it, it d doesn't necessarily, you know, may stay uncomfortable. But I will say this, the yes, it takes bravery to step into that. How are the rewards?
William Branum: Awesome.
Julie Michelson: Yeah, it, it's huge reward, right? And, and that is where the healing is. That is where true connection is, where good relationship, I mean, it, that's, it is so contrary, you know, all of that stuff we do to protect ourselves. And I I love that, that you were just directly asked that question because [Page//00:46:00] that is something, and it's funny, like I thought I, and I've done a lot of work, a lot of personal development, a lot of healing, all kinds of healing.
And about five and a half years ago, I broke my right shoulder. I'm right hand dominant. I had just built the place I'm living in now. I had just brought my horses home, , and I was take, you know, had to take care of them. You know, again, been single 20 years post divorce, pretty independent. You know, to me I, there was a stake in the ground, you know, like you were brave.
I was independent and that experience somehow, all the work I had done, just things lined up where I finally understood it wasn't a, about that story of like being a burden to somebody or you know, guilting them, it, whatever, whatever. All the, I probably had a million stories around it, but the gift of allowing others [Page//00:47:00] to support.
As we enjoy doing for other people, it, it's, so, but we all have some form of that story. And so I love that you brought that up because again, like our lives couldn't have been more different. But at the same, you know, there're these threads that, that
William Branum: You've never been to combat, you've never gone over,
Julie Michelson: well
William Branum: you've never had
Julie Michelson: have you met my ex-husband?
I'm not sure.
William Branum: We could trade stories, I'm sure
Julie Michelson: yeah. I, well, I, I, yeah, we, we have chatted. We don't need to chat about that on air. But no, I have not experienced combat and funny enough, I didn't make it through bud. S I don't know why. . Yeah. Really weird. You know, I've been to Coronado. Does that count?
William Branum: Totally. A hundred percent.
Julie Michelson: It's the same thing, right?
William Branum: So, so, yeah. I mean, that's where it happened. So
Julie Michelson: but, but this is, see, the, the juiciest part of the conversation, I, I think is the, the part that people need to hear. And it's probably the part where people are like, I'm done [Page//00:48:00] listening now. This feels uncomfortable. Lean into that discomfort. You know, be, be brave, be bold. But the, the, whatever the fears are around dropping that shield, the rewards are exponential.
William Branum: Yeah, a hundred percent
Julie Michelson: Yeah. I mean, I literally could not imagine the things I, that I have an experience in my life now, and I know none of them would be here without having dropped my shield. And not to. And then maybe that's part of the dance, you know, I probably like, you know, you lower it a little bit, you put it back up
William Branum: right. Yeah.
Julie Michelson: decades
William Branum: Oh, it's scary. Oh my God. It's
Julie Michelson: safe, you know?
William Branum: right?
Julie Michelson: But that is where the true healing. Is, is hiding. So I love that. What is, how can people find you? So, you know, naked Warrior, the C B D products are again amazing. Yes. Personal endorsement. They're, they are, they're ma and I've been [Page//00:49:00] using C b D for a long time. High quality c b d what you're doing, and, and I have to add this part too.
I'm somebody who's always shied away from something like a gummy or a chewable, or a, because ingredients are always nasty and dirty. And, and, and people who know me are like, shee. It's nothing. I, I eat those. They're . You're you, you just, your quality is, is. . But then, you know, how can people learn more about you?
Like where is, and we'll have all your links and things. But I know I listen to podcasts when I'm on the go, so I want you to verbally tell us the best place to find you if people wanna learn more.
William Branum: I think for, for, for cbd, for Naked Warrior Recovery, you can go to naked warrior recovery.com. But if you don't wanna write naked into your, into your search engine, you can
Julie Michelson: Is that why you did that? I wondered.
William Branum: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So I, I was like, oh, maybe people don't wanna write naked into their
Julie Michelson: Or if they misspell something, who [Page//00:50:00] knows what they're
William Branum: Who knows what's go.
Yeah, exactly. So, so it's NW dash recovery, cuz if you go to NW Recovery, it's like Northwestern Rehab or something like that. I don't, I don't remember. I was like, okay. So it's NW Dash Recovery or Naked Warrior Recovery for C B D. If you wanna learn more about five Seal Secrets, go to five seal secrets.com, the number five, five seal secrets.com.
Put your name and email on there. I'll send you a, it's a pdf, it's about seven. , seven or eight pages of, you know, really kind of breaking down what Naked really stands for, how you can implement it into your life. And you know, I think I'm most active social media-wise on Instagram. I am getting ready to launch my own podcast.
Julie Michelson: Boom.
William Branum: it's funny, I'm, I'm, I'm struggling on whether to call it that the Naked Warrior Podcast or the Five Seal Secrets podcast. So I like, it's like weird little things like that. Like which, which, which way do I go? I don't know. So I, or I'm working on that. It doesn't matter really what I call it is long as I, you know, just produce
Julie Michelson: as you know that , [Page//00:51:00] don't let that be the excuse for
William Branum: It's, it's not, it's, it's, yeah, it's, it's, yeah. Some of it's like, oh my God, what if I say something dumb? Like, stop being, stop being a baby. It's time to get
Julie Michelson: you've done how many Yeah.
William Branum: roll. Yeah, exactly.
Julie Michelson: So, and, and I love that. Again, at this point in the conversation for listeners to many probably would've been like, why would I go to Five Seal Secrets? You know, like, why? Like, that's so, but now you guys understand, you know, why Williams here and, I get that pdf, get that resource because this is work we all have to do and it's ongoing work because the shields do creep back up if we're not
William Branum: Yes, they do. Yeah. It's, it's al
Julie Michelson: never done
William Branum: on it. Yeah, right. Always moving forward. Always. Yeah. And, and, and doing, you know, being scared. That's okay. Fear's. Okay. It's, it's, what do you do with it? Do you let it control you or do you control it?
Julie Michelson: I like that sound like a navy. [Page//00:52:00] What is we always wrap with one step listeners can take today to, to start to move the needle in their health and health. Could be that you know anything, so.
William Branum: I would say I like, I like this analogy, so I like making bold adjustments.
Julie Michelson: Hmm.
William Branum: So, and, and what I mean by that is when I was teaching sniper school and I went back to the, to the platoons and, and I, since I was the, the, the senior sniper on the team, or in the platoon or at the task unit, whichever group I was a part of at the time, every time we, we started, you know, we would go deploy, we'd come back, we.
Maybe go to some schools and then we'd start our workup again. Maybe get new rifles, new guns. We'd have to cite them in or you know, we'd have leadership that would, you know, they would have like a, a tour of, of, of desk time. And then they'd show back up in the, in the platoon and not really know the best way to cite in their weapon.
You would not think that Navy [Page//00:53:00] seals would have a hard time with that? Some, some do. And so we would be out there in the range and guys were, you know, and I could recognize them very quickly even guys showing up to sniper school, you know, or we, they would get new guns and we would teach 'em how to cite their guns in and, and things like that.
Their rifles in. And what would generally happen is they would be shooting at the target, they have the bullseye and their impacts are hitting over here, and they would make these minor adjustments, small adjustments, and it didn't seem like their impacts were ever really moving. And so I would, I would see this happening and they would think that their gun was broken or their scope was broken, or something was not working
Julie Michelson: Sounds like me. This site is off. Yeah.
William Branum: is not, it is, it's not, I swear it's not me. I'm like, okay. So I would, I would say, can I see your, your gun? And I would make these just unreasonable adjustments to their optic. And they were like, dude, you, I think you broke my, like, I'm like, just do me a favor and like, take a few shots. Just gimme, you know, gimme three rounds [Page//00:54:00] on, on paper.
See where, see where your impacts are. And so what would happen is their impacts would move across the paper, past the bullseye, but it would actually be very close to the bullseye. Like much closer than what they were making these small adjustments. So then they could make the small adjustments into the bullseye, but they had to make these almost like the wrong thing, almost like doing the wrong thing, making the wrong adjustment to, to actually move like al almost do the opposite of what's correct.
So when you're stuck or you're struggling or whatever, sometimes like the right thing to do is just to do, make bold adjustments in the direction where you maybe think that you shouldn't be going. Go in that direction and see what happens. And then make minor adjustments to get back where you, to get yourself on target, where you need to be.
Julie Michelson: I love that. And that is, you know, definitely not one that we've heard before. And it makes so much sense. It, it really does. You know, I, I see we talk a lot about you know, small steps leading to big change. But [Page//00:55:00] I, I love this as well, because sometimes people hear that and they're, you know, they're doing what they think they should do.
You know, I've heard I should do this and I've been doing it, and I don't notice any, you know, and so I, I love the, and it may not, you know, I'm, it doesn't necessarily have to do with food or, you know, any of the things. Um, But it also
William Branum: well, it, it, it totally
Julie Michelson: can be. oh, it can be, no, that's what I'm saying. You
William Branum: you look at the, you look at the like old school food pyramid. and, you know, carbs and fats and proteins and whatever, and what lots of people, and not true for everyone, but lots of people, you know, switch over to like a, a, a ketogenic diet.
Lots of fats,
Julie Michelson: at least Paleo . So we're getting rid of that big
William Branum: right? It, it is something,
Julie Michelson: know,
William Branum: right? And, and, and, and, and like moving in that direction, which is like, what
you're, like, what? That's like, that's not what [Page//00:56:00] I like. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Is it?
Julie Michelson: Or , right?
William Branum: right? So, and, and so for lots of people, that's like a, that's a, that's a bold adjustment.
That's a big, like big step in the opp in the wrong direction. So just kind of like thinking about it like, like that, like if you've already, if you've already like moved in that direction, you're like, oh, of course it is.
But
people who haven't, that's a big step
Julie Michelson: It.
William Branum: go in, in, in that sort of, that direction.
Just using that as, as an example.
Julie Michelson: you picked, that's the example they hear from me all the time, because in addition to the things I was eating that were causing inflammation, I grew up low fat. . And so when I went and I, keto was a huge part of my healing journey. It's not, it's not the answer for everybody, but for me, my body was so fat deprived and I, you know, I learned and I read and I, I would gag the fat down like it felt so wrong, , and it was a big, bold step [Page//00:57:00] and it like a light switch, it, it just flipped my brain back on and helped my pain.
And so I love that. But you know, it doesn't mean like go out and eat 10 big Macs, cuz you know, William said be bold
William Branum: right? Yeah. Like in, in the right direction.
Julie Michelson: Yeah, yeah.
William Branum: Or go try it and like see how you
Julie Michelson: and see how crappy you feel. Exactly.
William Branum: Uh, Maybe I shouldn't do that. Ever. Yeah. Right.
Julie Michelson: Exactly. Well, William, you know that I could talk to you for hours. But we're gonna, we're gonna get you on your way so you can attend to your other commitments. I'm so grateful that you joined us today. I really, you gave so much value. And, and for listeners, like seriously find him whether it's on social website, get the P d F, try the products.
It you, you will be surprised. So we who knew, you know, a Navy SEAL could really help us [Page//00:58:00] all heal. I love it.
William Branum: Who, who knew?
Julie Michelson: Who knew?
William Branum: Bold adjustments, big steps.
Julie Michelson: For everyone listening. Remember, you can get the show notes and transcripts by visiting Inspired Living Show. I hope you had a great time and enjoyed this episode at least almost as much as I did. And if you're not already, hop on over to Instagram. Follow me @julie.michelson and you can find William there too.
He's an awesome public speaker and coach, and shares his five seal secrets [Page//00:01:00] drawing from his 26 years of experience in the SEAL teams to train high performers and CEOs. But don't worry. That also directly translates to our conversation about wellness today. In today's conversation, we discuss how William's experience and knowledge can directly translate to facilitate healing.
We explore the ins and outs of C B D, including how it can set the stage for healing and how to know if you're using the best products. William also shares how his get naked mindset is essential to develop for true wellness.
William, welcome to the podcast.
William Branum: Thanks
for having me stoked to be here.
Julie Michelson: I am excited for our conversation. I, I just know already, it's gonna be amazing. I wanna start a little bit with story I'd, I'd love for you to share. You have an incredible journey and you didn't just wake up one morning and [Page//00:02:00] decide you were gonna, you know, be this incredible coach and speaker and start a C b D company.
So share your journey with us
William Branum: I'm not even sure where to start. Let's see. If I go back in time, rewind a little bit. We'll, we'll go back to the summer of my 11th to 12th grade high school. I grew up in a little town outside of Meridian, Mississippi, was very poor, had sort of a mediocre mindset, however, Like very poor, like free lunches all through, you know, first through 12th grade poor.
But I was heavily involved in the Boy Scouts, the Boy Scout organization I was a part of, paid for me to go to the, this National Jamboree. It happens every four years. I went to the event, I met a kid there. He had this vision of, you know, when he graduated from high school, he wanted to go to the Naval Academy.
He wanted to fly F 14 Tomcat, like Top Gun. And he wanted to be a Navy Seal. And I was like, dude, what? What's a Navy Seal? I have no idea what that is. You know, cuz [Page//00:03:00] back then there was, I, I didn't have cable. There was like four channels on my television. There was certainly no internet. I am very young, but you know, it was Internet's not that old.
Julie Michelson: Young as he looks, ladies and gentlemen, cuz I have asked and I almost fell off my stool
William Branum: And
Julie Michelson: weren't, nobody was talking about Navy Seals either
William Branum: No, there were no, there were no books. There was nothing. Maybe a couple of books from like Vietnam era, but not a, not a lot out there. And you know, there were, you know, people I knew about Green Berets cuz John Wayne was a Green Beret in Vietnam, at least in the movie Green Berets. John Rambo was a he was an army ranger, so I knew about that.
I had heard about, you know Marine Corps Scout snipers, maybe marine recon. I'd heard of those things. I'm like, so, so, and I always knew I wanted to be part of some sort of small, elite military organization. I just didn't know what that was. And so this kid was like, yeah, it'll be a Navy Seal. And I'm like, what's that?
And he explained it's the hardest military training in the world. They jump outta airplanes, they blow stuff up, they do all sorts of cool [Page//00:04:00] stuff. And and I was like, yeah, where do I, where do I sign? How do I sign up for that? And so I came back from that trip and the Navy recruiter calls my house cuz that's what they do.
They're like cold calling, like trying to get their, their quota. And I. You know, and every other, almost every other man in my family has been in the Navy and I swore I would never join the Navy. Like there's no reason for me to join the Navy. I don't wanna be part of one of those big great things that float out there in the ocean.
So the Navy recruiter calls and my initial thought was like, no way, but wait, I want to be a Navy seal. So I shared that with him. I'm like, I want to go to the Naval Academy. I wanna fly our 14 Tom cast. I wanna be a Navy Seal. He is like, okay, why don't you come on down here to the recruiting station and and let's have a conversation.
So he showed me this really cheesy movie about Navy Seals, and I was like, where do I sign? How do I, let's, let's go. Like, do I have to graduate high school? Can I start right now? I don't like, and so I, I joined the. You know, with the full intent of going to the Naval Academy of flying at 14 Tom Kaz and becoming a Navy [Page//00:05:00] Seal, I guess one outta three is not bad.
So I eventually became a
Julie Michelson: Well, the hardest
That's just
William Branum: right. Whatever, this's, just, you know, I'm a low, low performer over here, one outta three.
Julie Michelson: mediocre
William Branum: I, right, exactly. So if I had a better mindset, maybe I, I would've, you know, made it to the Naval Academy and flown F 14 Tom. But they did tell me when I joined the Navy that my hearing was so bad that I wouldn't be able to fly jets, cuz apparently you have to have good hearing.
I don't know. But it, it hasn't gotten any better since then. So what's it, I'm sorry.
Julie Michelson: excuse me.
William Branum: So I, I, I eventually became a seal. I spent 26 years in the Navy serving in the SEAL teams and retired at 2018 when I retired. You know, when I went into the military, I had, you know, a vision of where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do.
Then I became, you know, got in the SEAL teams and I had a purpose. I had a mission, and I had a team. And the day, the day that I retired from the Navy, I felt like I had lost [Page//00:06:00] everything. I acquitted to that Avengers movie where Thanos snapped his fingers in the world, like the universe's population vanishes.
And and that's the way I felt I was lost. I was like, you know, I have a bunch of baggage from my time, you know, both in the, in the, in the military and also some not so awesome relationships that I've been a part of. I call it baggage. And and so the way I would like turn down this noise in my head is I would pretty much just drink myself to sleep at night.
I had heard of this molecule called C B D, but. I was afraid to try it because I am a child of Nancy Reagan's war on drugs. Just say no. Even though I am, I am very young over here. Just, just keep
Julie Michelson: Young is an attitude. William, you are young and and I have told you off. I have thanked you off air, but on air. I would like to thank you for your service
William Branum: Thank you very much. But so, so I, I tried C B D finally, and I had you know, it, it, I didn't notice anything. I didn't feel anything. It wasn't like, you know, drinking alcohol or anything [Page//00:07:00] like that. , I just felt, you know, I had less noise in my head, so I was able to drink less. And some of the pains in my body were just less bad.
And and so I was like, well, maybe the CBD D thing has, you know, it's a good thing. And it was still very barely legal federally. So I think I tried it for the first time, April of 2019, and it became legal of like December 20th, 2018 when hemp became legal, you know, federally, nationally, whatever. And so I, I was, so I, I ran outta that bottle that a buddy of mine actually gave me, and I started, you know, this noise started percolating, like more noise in my head, more pains in my body that I didn't even notice had left, or they just became less sharp, the more dull started coming back.
And I was like, well, maybe it was C b, D, so I'll try a different brand. I had similar results and now I'm like, oh, maybe I should, maybe I should. Maybe c b D is my, my new mission, my new purpose, my new whatever. And so I, I I went to this business conference. I met a girl actually from Colorado who was in the CBD [Page//00:08:00] industry.
And I was like, so she asked like, how do you, how do you market cbd? Like, because I can't run ads, I can't do any of the traditional stuff. Excuse me. And they were like, I, you know, get athletes to say how great it is and things like that. And so all I could think of is like, you're the CBD girl. Maybe you're my next, like, who I need to partner with in some way.
And so I chased her down. That sounds a little weird, but I followed her. That also
Julie Michelson: cause you're a big guy,
William Branum: And I was like, and I cornered her. I, that also sounds weird. Maybe
Julie Michelson: this poor girl.
William Branum: how it happened, , but I was like, Hey, you're the CBD girl, right? She was like, yeah. And I said, I want, I think I wanna do cbd.
And really what I wanted is for her to hide. Hire me, like, hire me. Maybe you're, this is my new me purpose, my new mission, money, whatever. And she was like, well, do you wanna do A to B, B2B or b2c? And I was like, I don't know what those letters mean. I want to do C, b D. Did you not hear me in the first place?
So she laughed and said well, why don't you just start your own CBD B company? [Page//00:09:00] And I said, I don't know how to do that. And she leaned in and she said, you are a Navy seal. You can figure it out. So I asked her politely for my man card back. She politely gave it back to me. And I went home and I googled how to start a C B D company.
And I found out very quickly that it's a really corrupt, very dirty industry. There's a lot of bad actors out there, a lot of like, let's get rich quick gas station, c b d probably not something you want to consume. It's kind of like gas station sushi. You probably don't want to eat that either unless you live in Hawaii.
Like we, we have, yeah, we have good, we have good sushi in, in 7-Eleven here, but I wouldn't do it anywhere else in the world just because we have the ocean right there. So, so anyway, so I started a C B D company called Naked Warrior Recovery. And then I was like, how, like, I started it March 1st, 2020.
Some other thing happened right around that same time. I can't remember what it was. But it, there was some weird stuff happening and people were like, oh my God, how do I, so one of
Julie Michelson: happy [Page//00:10:00] anniversary by
William Branum: Right, exactly. Thank you. I didn't even realize that,
Julie Michelson: Yeah. Last week. Yep.
William Branum: I should have had a sale. Maybe I'll have a sale just because of that.
The, so I, so I forgot, so I forgot, I forgot where I was going with the story. So, you know, being in the SEAL team, being in the, being in the military my entire life, I have no idea how to like run a company. I mean, I kind of do. It's, there's not really that much difference between You know, leading men and, and doing things in the military.
Like you, you get a budget, you get all these things. Well, I didn't know how to like market my, my product and I was also still in the, the mindset of don't tell anyone what you do, who you are or anything like that, because that's just what they beat into us. Do not advertise the nature of your work, all this other stuff.
And so eventually I, I got kind of got over that and
Julie Michelson: In a big way.
William Branum: right it, but it, it took a lot to do that. And, and it's funny, like people that are outside, they don't understand that, you [Page//00:11:00] know, they're, it, it is beaten into us. Do not advertise the nature of your work. Don't tell anyone what you do.
Terrorists will come and kill you and your family and la la la whatever.
Julie Michelson: And I was actually
William Branum: bring it baby
Julie Michelson: just thinking about this yesterday, knowing our conversation was gonna happen today. That is exactly what was going through my head is like, huh, you know, he is just puts it all out there. Is that safe? Is that okay?
William Branum: I do live on a rock in the middle of Pacific Ocean. It's like a lot of work to get here. And I travel all the time, so
Julie Michelson: if they can find you.
William Branum: Right. Let's see, what else? So I, I, I didn't, and I recognized that I didn't know how to market. And then a, a friend of mine who was doing business coaching wa you know, he had a like, hey, seven days to whatever, seven Day Master Ignition Mastermind, something like that.
I don't remember exactly what it was called, but I was like, yes, I'm gonna, here's my, here's my money. I wanna get on the calls. And so he, you know, taught me how to do some marketing and how to do some [Page//00:12:00] sales and things like that, cuz I had zero clue. And then I, that just perpetuated me into more other coaching programs and other coaches and through that process of learning.
You know, I have a, I have a PhD, a public high school diploma, so I'm very smart .
so
Julie Michelson: We're in the same boat.
William Branum: right? So, so, and you know, that's, you know, when I was, my last three years in the, in the, in the Navy, I was, I was running research and development for, for, you know, our command. And I would be in rooms with actual scientists and PhDs and super nerds, and they would go around the room telling, you know, everyone would introduce theirself and tell their background and whatever, and it would come to me.
And I was like, yeah, I'm, I have a PhD also a public high school diploma, so if I asked dumb questions, it, hopefully you guys are okay with that. And so that always gave me a little more street cred when it, you know, they, I'm in the room because of the operational side in my experience there. But so I, I started coaching and, and, or I've started with coaches and one of my coaches was like, bro, why are you, why don't you coach?
I'm like, [Page//00:13:00] well, I don't have anything to say. Like, what do I, who am I gonna coach? I'm like, who? What do I
Julie Michelson: to yourself?
William Branum: Right, exactly. And I'm like, and he is like, bro, you got a lot to sell. You got a lot to say. You got a lot of whatever. And I'm like, okay. Whatever you say. And and, and also, you know, one of my other coaches said, you need to get on podcasts.
You need to get on every, like, the biggest podcast you can get on. Like, that's how you're gonna grow your brand since you can't run ads or anything like that. So over in the last 24 months, I've been on over 400 podcasts. I have also,
Julie Michelson: Way to make me feel not at all special. William. Thank you,
William Branum: I'm honored to be here. Honored honored. I will not forget this podcast. I mean, you know, I've, I started going back through it and I'm like, oh, I was on that pod. I don't even know who that person
Julie Michelson: right? Yeah, I've had, I've had that as well. You know somebody asked me actually about a doctor yesterday and I'm like, I'm like, oh, I really like her. And then I did, luckily didn't say it out loud, but I was like, did she do my podcast? I don't remember.
William Branum: Right. [Page//00:14:00] So but I will not forget this one for
Julie Michelson: Well, you will stand out in the crowd,
William Branum: right. And and. And also one of my coaches and I, I got where I am because I hired coaches. I hired people to help collapse time to get me where I want to be and to help accelerate where I want to go. And so one of my coaches was like the same one who was like, you should be coaching.
He also said, everyone in this group should be, should have a, what they call a signature, what he called a signature presentation. It's basically something, it's your TED Talk, it's something you can do for, you can, you're an expert in, you can share for 10 minutes or you can share it for an hour and a half.
And so I created, you know, the, the get naked mindset or five secrets to think like a Navy seal. And so now I, I give that. Presentation from stage internationally. And I also do coaching. So all the things that I do right now are all the things that I said, you know, several years ago that I would never, ever, ever, ever, never, ever do I now I I coach people or ad [Page//00:15:00] advise, consult, whatever the word of the day is.
So coaching is sounds, it's starting to get, become a dirty word. And as I'm like entering into the, into the space, I'm like, oh my God.
Julie Michelson: it's just cuz anybody can say they're a coach without
William Branum: And they have no experience or any, yeah. What what have you done? I even asked myself like, what have I done? I, you
Julie Michelson: a lot.
William Branum: So, so, so now I, I do consulting, coaching, advising, whatever you wanna call it.
I, I do sales. I was like, I will never do sales. I am not a salesman. I, yeah, I, I love selling I love helping people. and I love getting, and I would say I would, I'm never one of gonna be one of those people standing on stage, like doing motivational speaking, like, and now I do that. So everything I said I would never do once upon a time is everything that I do now.
Grow like, and, and, and being a, and, and writing a book. I'm also writing a book. I'm like, how, what? I don't have anything. So I'm actually writing two to two to three books. I have one that I'm almost done right now. I'm co-authoring one. I have another one that's in the [Page//00:16:00] hopper once I finish the, the first one, the, the co-author book.
And then I'm, I, you know, I'll probably do some sort of like planner of sorts. So there's, there's three right there. All things that I said I would never do. So I guess the, the moral of the story is never say never, because you never know how you're if you're ambitious in, in any way, for sure leave the, like, leave opportunity open and, and don't close your mind to to, to anything.
Julie Michelson: I love that. And obviously we couldn't have different journeys or different histories, different lives. But I think one of the things that, that I so appreciate about you that I can relate to is, you know, here's something that helped change your life for the better. And now your life is about getting that out to people.
And that's exactly why I do what I do. You know, I, I took years to figure out how to reverse my autoimmune symptoms and, and you know, I love helping people [Page//00:17:00] expedite that process and, and you know, to be a resource for them. And so I wanna circle back to a co a couple points cuz listeners might still be like, okay, this guy sounds really cool.
Why is he on Julie's podcast?
right. Other
William Branum: Because, it's Julie, of course.
Julie Michelson: Well, and also, you know, a full disclose. I, I met William a few weeks ago and, and I made the brilliant comment at one point a a couple days in of like, you are a brave man. And then had to laugh and was like, oh, I guess you were trained for this. Because seven of us shared a house, six of us were women.
Most of us didn't know each other, . And we had a blast. And, and so anybody who can roll with that such good spirit is okay in my book. So I wanna to touch on kind of highlight a little bit of your pain points. Most of us can't relate to. [Page//00:18:00] maybe we can relate to noise in the brain. And anybody listening would probably rightly assume whatever noise is going on for them, it's, you know, not like all of a sudden you were an Navy SEAL and now you're retired and your whole world, like you said, just kind of evaporated.
But what you kind of really glossed over, you had a lot of chronic physical pain and you, you said you were drinking yourself to sleep, but you also had sleep challenges. And, and it, it's kind of one of those doesn't really matter how you, you know, your chronic pain came from the abuse your body took.
You know, because you
William Branum: And apparently I still abuse it just in a different.
Julie Michelson: So I wanna touch on one, one of the things that you said is so brilliant because I think it's just human nature. You know, you noticed C B D was helping a little bit. With the noise and a little, you know, maybe a little bit with the pain but you didn't really notice just how much until you stopped and it returned.
Like, we, we just assimilate. [Page//00:19:00] We do, and we, we tolerate. And, and so I wanna just highlight that, you know, these are things that everybody with autoimmunity can relate to. I know, you know, you had anxiety, depression. I mean, anybody with chronic illness has, you know, I, I'm not saying, you know, diagnosable depression, but w we've all experienced kind of that realm of, you know, mental health concerns, anxiety, if you don't wanna say depression, you know, some kind of a mood impact.
And then, you know, that physical, the, the pain and the not sleeping I think are things. That we can all relate to. And, and so for everybody listening, that was one of the main reasons because I, I adore William and will happily talk to him, but I can call him on the phone. , we don't have to, we don't have to share this with you.
And, and [Page//00:20:00] I think I shared with you when we were together C B D was a really big part of my healing journey. I was still on many prescriptions, including painkillers, muscle relaxers and high quality. And we're gonna talk about this high quality C b D. Really, really, not only did it reduce my, my pain and help with that I'm a biohacker, I'm a nerd.
I, I'm showing my aura ring. I was already tracking my sleep when I started with the C and what I noticed was at the right dose. All of a sudden I was getting my deep sleep doubled. It really impacted for me the quality of my sleep. I wasn't somebody who had problems falling asleep. I could and I could sleep 13 hours and wake up exhausted.
I woke up a lot cuz of pain. But, so c, b, D people just, they need to know about it. And, and that's one of the reasons I love your [Page//00:21:00] message because, and, and we're gonna talk a little bit too about, I, you know, not everybody may understand why you can't really market in the classic ways because it's legal, right?
So what do you mean?
William Branum: According to the US government, it's legal, but according to like every other social media platform, it's not so.
Julie Michelson: Facebook, and so, yeah. And, and that's we share that similarity as well. I got, I got videos pulled down because I made the statement, the body can heal. Which is apparently just as offensive as C B D . So you know, the, they're so, we need to get creative and have conversations like this.
And so for listeners that were scratching their heads other than like, wow, this is cool. This is why I wanted William to, to come on today.
William Branum: I even had TikTok. TikTok I, I showed what, it's a, it's a transdermal pin product that I carry. And I didn't even show applying it. I just show showed like, [Page//00:22:00] you know, this is one of the fastest ways to get CBD into your body and talked about it, and they'd like, blocked that video. I was like, it's not, I I didn't do anything.
I didn't even like
Julie Michelson: he's a
William Branum: you how to use
Julie Michelson: it's a weapon,
Right,
William Branum: It's like elicit something like it when TikTok does that. Are you kidding me? All the crazy stuff that's
Julie Michelson: Oh my gosh. And, and misinformation and Yeah.
William Branum: Yes. Yeah, it was, it was crazy. You probably had a, a, a question or something, but
Julie Michelson: Well, I, I, so, I, I just, I wanted to kind of underscore for listeners that, that, although C B D is effective and legal, that, you know, at, at least in avenues like social media, it really, you get shut down if you try to market, and,
William Branum: and it's, and it's, it's interesting because it is a, it's a very saturated market. Like there's a, I saw it, I saw a, a stat a week or two ago, I'm gonna mess up the number, but I'm gonna say there's like over 340,000 C B D companies in the United States. [Page//00:23:00] What?
Julie Michelson: I, I, when I was first discussing CBD with clients, they would say, oh, I tried it. And I, you know, well, what'd you try? Oh, My friend gave me a, and I'm like, oh, . I don't know what it, you know, and maybe sometimes it was a good product, I don't know. But, but let's talk about quality because it is so important.
And full disclosure, I have tried your products and I love that. And you know, because I know you see me placing orders, I, I'm like, I hand them out like candy. I'm like, try this, try that. And I live in Colorado, so I have access to high qualities and, and through functional medicine I have access to high quality.
But the attention to detail that you've put into your products, I believe makes them a step above and, and just more effective. Like, they're just really effective. So far, I haven't found anybody I've given , given your [Page//00:24:00] products to, that hasn't really been like, wow, this is different than any other C B D I've tried before.
So let's talk a little bit about sourcing and quality other than I, I can, and I'm, I'm not an affiliate. I, I'm not a, but I'm telling y'all if you're, if this, if you're listening and you're still listening and you're interested in this conversation the Naked Warrior products are, are really top notch, so
William Branum: Thank you very much. So I b before we talk about quality, I just wanna talk about how you feel, or, or like, just like you said, like someone says, I tried CBD and it didn't really work for me.
Julie Michelson: Right,
William Branum: P you know, we, we take vitamin C all the time. Do, do you know if that's working for you? Not really. Like there's so many things that we consumed.
Is it really working for you? I don't know, maybe. And so, A lot of times, just like with me, like I took that first bottle of C B D, I didn't notice anything happening. And it was over time that [Page//00:25:00] like my sleep got better, the noise in my head went down, the pains in my body got less, but I didn't notice it until I stopped taking it.
And I started, like the noise started creeping back in the pains that I was like, oh, I, I didn't, haven't felt that pain for like weeks. Oh, maybe it was a C B D. And then, you know, I let it kind of grow and I'm like, okay, let's try another brand of C, B D. And then I had similar results. So I can tell you without a doubt that it positively impacted my quality of life, but it wasn't something that I noticed.
Like, take the product and you notice something right away. It's not like, you know, you have a, a headache and you take ibuprofen. It, it doesn't work like that. It works some different pathways. It worked. Works on chronic inflammation, it works on the endocannabinoid system that's in your body, which is a giant neuroreceptor system that is connected to every other system in your body.
So the reason that people have come out and said like, well, this cured my, whatever, it cured my cancer. CBD doesn't cure anything. It [Page//00:26:00] helps reduce chronic inflammation. It helps bring your endocannabinoid system back into homeostasis, back into balance which helps bring all the other systems back into balance so that your, your body can heal itself like it's supposed to.
Which is the really the goal at the end of the day. Like, get away from big pharma and things like that. There are natural things out there and hemp or marijuana or whatever you want to call it, was legal until about a hundred years ago. And and that we could, we don't need to go down that rabbit hole, but it has been used for thousands of years as medicine.
And then, you know, there was anyway so
Julie Michelson: We could get into the whole
William Branum: We can talk about it or
Julie Michelson: I never knew you to be so politically correct, William . But that would take us another hour. If we get
William Branum: it would take us a long time. Right,
Julie Michelson: we have the same conversation. It comes up all the time with, when we're talking about, you know, the food industry, the, just the whole pharmaceutical power house.
But I, I. [Page//00:27:00] I love so many things that you said, especially because you are so educated about this and, and I am not, and you just described exactly the only way I've been able to describe to people, you know, the, the anti-inflammatory properties combined with this balancing. Cuz I've had people say to me, well, you know, how can it do all those things?
Or, you know, what if I need something different than somebody else? And it's, well, it's the balance in the endo cannabinoid system that works like ma, you know, feels like magic. If somebody's saying, well how can it do this and that and that and this a and i I like that you highlighted, you know, it's not like, oh, you know, take an ibuprofen, headache's gone necessarily.
But I will say, and, and maybe it's, we're not talking apples to apples. I think because I live in Colorado and. because it was even, you know, it was legal here before it was legal [Page//00:28:00] federally. There was all kinds of C b, D stuff popping up. And when I would ask people, well, you know how much actual C b D was in your product?
They'd say, I don't know. I have no idea. And that's where I get into that quality of, and what else is in the product because are you driving inflammation with crappy ingredients and you're, you know so that's where I'm like, to you, it's obvious that there's a certain quality standard and, and we just need to kind of give it a chance to notice what it's doing.
William Branum: Right. And, and, and, and so just to kind of address the quality, you know, when I, when I, when I first started investigating C B D I found out, you know, that the, that the industry's very dirty. You know, the F D A would go out and do spot checks, and they would find that, you know, most of the products on the market, this, it's been a while.
So the, the industry has cleaned up quite a bit, but it, it's still out there. The f FDA would go out and they would do spot checks, and they would [Page//00:29:00] find that most of the, more than 70% of the products either didn't have CBD B in 'em. They didn't have the cbd, they said they had at 'em. They had high levels of THC that was outside the legal limit of 0.3%.
They had heavy, like high levels of heavy metal mercury, arsenic, pesticides, herbicides, things like that. It was like, if you're, if you're putting something in your body to be a medicine, and I'm using air quotes here, medicine I'm not making medical claims. But if you're putting something into your body to be a medicine,
Julie Michelson: feel better.
William Branum: right, you, you you don't wanna be putting a bunch of poison in your body at the same time.
Julie Michelson: Right.
William Branum: So I, when I, when I went out and found my suppliers, I was very, I found not great suppliers, and I found the highest quality suppliers, and I still use these same suppliers today because these are the suppliers that really drove the industry in the direction that it has gone to help clean itself up. And so, you know, one of the distinctions, even the, the biggest names of CBD that you see out there [Page//00:30:00] today, they were not doing what we were doing.
And that was, you know, you, you harvest the plant. We just, we, we lost power yesterday and we
Julie Michelson: Oh,
William Branum: power today. I'm just we, we got big winds. I don't know what's going on here in Hawaii, but a lot of rain and big winds, so no hurricanes,
Julie Michelson: like an island.
William Branum: Right. See, it's tropical, tropical paradise. So, so what we found is, is, so what we would do is we would the har harvest the plant and then extract the oil and send that oil off to for independent third party lab to be tested to make sure, you know,
Julie Michelson: And that's
William Branum: know, doesn't have any mold or heavy metals or anything like that, you don't want to be putting in your body.
Then we would run it through the manufacturing process, turn it into a tincture, turn it into a soft gel, turn it into a energy drink powder turn it into a topical, and then we would test it again. Everyone was testing in the first, in on the front end. No one was testing on the back end. So they never knew what was actually in the product that they were
Julie Michelson: final product. Yeah,
William Branum: you know, [Page//00:31:00] when I first started, I would go around it, I would, you know, I, I'm sharing, talking about C B D and it was kind of popular and people were buying from, from different places. And they were like, well, what do you think about this brand or that brand? I'm like, okay, well send me their website.
And so I would look and, you know, we put, I, I, I get a little lazy sometimes, but we put a QR code on every one of our products so you can go and scan that QR code, look at the the lot number. We, we test every single lot that comes out.
Julie Michelson: It's
William Branum: so I would look at websites, I would look at websites, and they would have like a certificate of, of, of testing
Julie Michelson: Five years old
William Branum: and it was like not even a product that they carried, it was like something they did. We test every single batch that comes out, every single lot that comes out and we post that on the website and we, we have that, I don't always post it on my, on my website, but it is posted on, on the big website that has like what all, all of the testing.
So you just scan the QR code and put the lot number [Page//00:32:00] of the product that you're using and you can see exactly what's in it, how much CBD D in is, is in it. We, we, we usually put about 10% more than what we say on the label, just because more is, more is not always better, but more is not gonna hurt you for sure.
You don't wanna have less. And you know, also looking for all those, those toxins any, to make sure there was no contamination in the manufacturing process because that has happened. And we only caught it because it happened. Like we, we, we tested and we're like, Hey, we gotta fix this. This is not
Julie Michelson: that lot. Yeah.
William Branum: Right. So, and nobody else was doing that. And so the industry has started to shift to do that, that that second test of the final product, just to say specifically like, Hey, this has what it, what we say it hasn't, and to show you the quality that we're trying to deliver.
Julie Michelson: and, and so I would say if listeners, you know, for whatever strange reason, don't wanna check out the Naked Warrior products, if at some point you're interested in, in, you know, testing [Page//00:33:00] out c b D in your body, you, that's, to me, the gold standard. You've got to look for that, that testing, and you've got to look for the final product testing.
And that's why three, five years ago, even though it was available here, it, it was, I mean, it was a crapshoot. People didn't know what they were getting, you know, and, and so that's, that's I think one of the reasons why also, your products are, if I have this right, it's, and I, we've discussed it, I think and it seems to be my experience, your products are consistent.
In other words, it's not c b D per container. And you each gummy say if somebody gets the, the gummies, each gummy, you know, one gummy may have none, and one gummy has all of it, which is a very common thing here. You know, even going to a dispensary, even a dispensary that sells medical marijuana the products that are in there, it's, it's per container.
So [Page//00:34:00] you're not there. There's no consistent dosing,
serving size, no consistent serving size.
William Branum: right. And so, and, and that's the way that they're tested. They're tested, you know, it's just a random, random containers are pulled out. They're sent off to the lab and they're randomly tested.
Julie Michelson: Yeah.
William Branum: And that's, you know, that's how we, how we show the consistency. That's how we, you know, we measure what we have in the product.
Julie Michelson: Which is amazing. I, well, I think I know the answer, . I think the main answer is yes, but different. So you sell, you have a variety of products, different applications, different delivery systems. Are there some that are better for certain things, like you mentioned, the pen is the fastest acting like.
William Branum: You, so the, the, the transdermal pen, the, the M 60. Is a it's the quickest way to get [Page//00:35:00] CBD d into your body outside of an enema. An enema is number one. It's the quickest way to get it into your blood. A vape is number two. We were looking at doing vapes, but it was too, there's too much weird stuff going on with that.
So we, we, we, we stepped away from it. Yeah, it's, so we, so we stepped away from that. The transdermal pin is number three, and a tincture under the tongue is number four now. So the, the soft gels that we produce, they have a, a nano emal. We use a nano emulsion technology. It's a, it's a pharmaceutical grade emulsifier.
So basically, let's just say like a drop of C B D is like the size of a basketball. It's very hard to get. That oil into this body of water that we, that we carry around with us. So what we do is we agitate the oil and then we add this emulsifier. So it basically takes that basketball size drop of oil and turns it into like 10,000 golf
Julie Michelson: Little drops.
William Branum: So it's [Page//00:36:00] easier for the body to absorb the, the, the, the, the nano emulsion soft gels into the system, into, you know, to help it cross the blood brain barrier. We use mc two oil to, to help it cross the blood brain blood brainin barrier for on the delivery system. So the other thing with the, with the trans is it passes that first pass metabolism.
So it's, it's really microdosing C b D, not like in the, the mushroom kind or psilocybin kind of, of microdosing. Not that they, like, I, it's interesting, I've had, in the last week, I've had three very different conversations about that, all positive. I'm like, maybe, maybe
Julie Michelson: that's
not what we're talking about,
William Branum: Not what we're talking about today. So it's, it's, so the, the pin delivers a, a, an exactly measurement of four milligrams of C B D, which is, and it goes, you know, straight into the bloodstream, which is really about what you get when you take 25 milligrams of C B D. So I, interesting. So because, so it passes, it bypasses that first pass metabolism, so it goes straight [Page//00:37:00] into the blood bloodstream and it doesn't get lost in, in other places of the body or just kind of get passed through.
Julie Michelson: Gotcha. Thank you for
William Branum: But it's all, they're, they're all kind of, and, and some of the best feedback I've gotten with the transdermal pain isn't like, oh my, my recovery's better, or anything like that. It's like more like my carpal tunnel says, or my arthritis in my hand or things like that. Has it, like completely wipes it out when I, when I use that product and I'm like, awesome.
That's fantastic.
Julie Michelson: it is awesome. It's, it's incredible. It, it really is. And I, I, you know, seeing you move around, you don't look like a guy who, and I would, people would say probably, I hope you can say they'd say the same about me. You don't look like somebody who lived with chronic pain for a long time. And, and so, you know, the whole purpose of this podcast is because the body can heal.
We can. There are tools, there are, you know, programs, structures but we have to support the body [Page//00:38:00] and, and the C B D is such a good, can you, I I, in my opinion, I think it's possible to heal without C B D most times, I think, I think there are some, some things but again, we're all about like, who want I, I don't know.
It took me like six years to go from full of pain to pain free. It why, why would you wanna spend all that time? Why not shortcut with
William Branum: And you,
Julie Michelson: your body has and needs
William Branum: you don't always know what, what's working and, and what's not. I, I just say that CBD is a modality. It's a, it's a tool in
Julie Michelson: It's a really effective modality. Right, right. Yeah. I love it. I love it. I wanna talk about, you know, I wanted to get into a little bit of the quality conversation and, you know, make sure listeners really understand.
We, we are talking about something that reduces inflammation and balances systems to allow for healing. [Page//00:39:00] But now I wanna flip the conversation a little bit because I really, I wanna know, I don't want people to be intimidated. You're this Navy seal, you do this like incredible training you have, this is the, you know, you're calm cuz we can't move around a lot.
But what is the get the get naked mindset and you know, how, how can we benefit from understanding that?
William Branum: So , I was gonna throw some jokes out there and I, I stopped myself.
Julie Michelson: And I, I should have wore my hat
William Branum: yeah, right. So get naked is it's, you know, it's, it's about taking that armor off, that ego that you carry around, that mask that you're hiding behind, whatever it is. Take, take that off. And so that you can find, and this was for me, how it worked for me, so you can find the healing that you actually need.
You know, if you're, if you're contin, so in, in the steel teams, we go into combat, we go into harm's way, we put this, you know, we put our body armor on, we put [Page//00:40:00] our helmet on, and we, we go out there and, and we take the fight to the enemy. And sometimes that armor saves our life and we're grateful that we have it.
And we come back, we take that armor off, we hit the showers, we rest, we recover, we get ready for the next mission in life, we never do that. We, we, we, you know, pain is cumulative. So if I were to like tap you in the. For like an hour, you're gonna be like, that's really bugging me. If I kept keep doing it for a week, you're like, it's gonna leave a bruise.
And over time, you know, I stopped tapping you in the arm and all of a sudden, you know, you have this bruise in a, in a gentle spring breeze blows your clothes and it hits your arm and you're gonna be like, oh my God, that's so much pain. And that's just sort of the way that, like, it wasn't like big trauma, it was like over and over repetitive trauma.
And so we end up like, putting up this shield and that trauma can come from, I like any, it can come from like, you know, a, a, a disgruntled coworker or a family member or whatever it is. And you just like, always feel like you're [Page//00:41:00] like under attack. And so, so you, you put up this shield. And so naked is about taking that, taking that wall down, exposing yourself, becoming vulnerable so you can find the healing that you need.
So that's, that was where it started. But you know, when I went back and. I talked earlier about, you know, one of my coaches saying, everyone here needs a, a signature presentation. I was like, okay, well what if I take naked and turn it into an acronym? And so I turn naked into an acronym. And the acronym stands for the N is for never quit.
The A is accept failure, the K is to kill mediocrity. The E is exposure, fears, and the DS do the work. And so, and I, you know, and, and this is a, a presentation I give from stage and and, and I, you know, I, I talk about this as five secrets to help you think like a Navy seal and I, you know, explain each, each letter of the acronym and what it means and how you can apply this to your life.
Using lessons that I learned from the steel teams, from steel training and, and, and things [Page//00:42:00] like,
Julie Michelson: and I love, so we haven't talked about this before. And, and so I'm really excited that I was right, , and in that this applies to all a, all of us and b especially our listeners because we, we have to put that armor down, that shield down the wall, whatever you wanna call it, to heal and everybody has one.
And, and I love that you brought up, you know, you mentioned the coworker that we may not know, it could be trauma from childhood. It doesn't have to be capital T you know, I a combat vet trauma. It, it can be all those little. Things that become our belief systems that stack, stack that wall, raise that shield up.
And it is sometimes the hardest part of a healing journey. And
William Branum: and you, and you said it earlier, you said it, you, you, you [Page//00:43:00] said it earlier, like we're, we're, we are resilient. I forgot the language you used, but it was like, we just, we adapt, we get used to pain. We get used to, you know, putting that shield up or, you know, creating more of a barrier between us and things that we assume are going to maybe hurt us.
And so that's what it's, that's what really get Naked is about. It's like, recognize it first and then take it down. But you sometimes you have to be brave, brave enough to do that. I was not brave enough pretty much my entire adult life, actually, even before that, as a child, I was not brave enough to do anything like that.
I was like, I never show weakness, ever the end. And it wasn't until I, it was, I had a, a leader in the SEAL teams where he let every I, he let everyone know, like I looked up to him. Tremendously. And one day he said, yeah, I, I am having some trouble over here. I need some help, so I'm gonna go [Page//00:44:00] find some help.
And, and I was like, Ooh, he's gonna get eaten alive. And no one, no one like really went after him for weakness or anything else. And I was like, so he actually gained more respect because he said, Hey, I need help.
Julie Michelson: right.
William Branum: And then I retired and I was still like, I don't need help. I'm, I'm a man. I'm tough. Whatever, whatever nonsense
Julie Michelson: of
my man card.
William Branum: yeah, you get my man card back.
So and, and so I was on, I remember I was on clubhouse if that platform is still around
Julie Michelson: not
sure I was
William Branum: right in the beginning and, and, and I, I was in a room and I somehow, I was talking to someone, she was a psychiatrist. Psychologist person. I don't know the difference. Shrink, she was a shrink person.
Not to be politically incorrect, but she was a shrink. And she asked me a question, she said, she said so how do you feel when other people ask [Page//00:45:00] you for help? How do you feel like when you help other people? I was like, I feel awesome. It's great. I like, it's the best thing ever, but whatever. She was like, well, well, why are you robbing other people of that opportunity to
Julie Michelson: I love it. Love
William Branum: like, I don't, I don't like you. We're not talking anymore.
Julie Michelson: feels
William Branum: not invited. So, yeah, I'm like so then I had to, then, then I had to be brave enough to ask other people for help.
Julie Michelson: Well, and I
love that you said it, it d doesn't necessarily, you know, may stay uncomfortable. But I will say this, the yes, it takes bravery to step into that. How are the rewards?
William Branum: Awesome.
Julie Michelson: Yeah, it, it's huge reward, right? And, and that is where the healing is. That is where true connection is, where good relationship, I mean, it, that's, it is so contrary, you know, all of that stuff we do to protect ourselves. And I I love that, that you were just directly asked that question because [Page//00:46:00] that is something, and it's funny, like I thought I, and I've done a lot of work, a lot of personal development, a lot of healing, all kinds of healing.
And about five and a half years ago, I broke my right shoulder. I'm right hand dominant. I had just built the place I'm living in now. I had just brought my horses home, , and I was take, you know, had to take care of them. You know, again, been single 20 years post divorce, pretty independent. You know, to me I, there was a stake in the ground, you know, like you were brave.
I was independent and that experience somehow, all the work I had done, just things lined up where I finally understood it wasn't a, about that story of like being a burden to somebody or you know, guilting them, it, whatever, whatever. All the, I probably had a million stories around it, but the gift of allowing others [Page//00:47:00] to support.
As we enjoy doing for other people, it, it's, so, but we all have some form of that story. And so I love that you brought that up because again, like our lives couldn't have been more different. But at the same, you know, there're these threads that, that
William Branum: You've never been to combat, you've never gone over,
Julie Michelson: well
William Branum: you've never had
Julie Michelson: have you met my ex-husband?
I'm not sure.
William Branum: We could trade stories, I'm sure
Julie Michelson: yeah. I, well, I, I, yeah, we, we have chatted. We don't need to chat about that on air. But no, I have not experienced combat and funny enough, I didn't make it through bud. S I don't know why. . Yeah. Really weird. You know, I've been to Coronado. Does that count?
William Branum: Totally. A hundred percent.
Julie Michelson: It's the same thing, right?
William Branum: So, so, yeah. I mean, that's where it happened. So
Julie Michelson: but, but this is, see, the, the juiciest part of the conversation, I, I think is the, the part that people need to hear. And it's probably the part where people are like, I'm done [Page//00:48:00] listening now. This feels uncomfortable. Lean into that discomfort. You know, be, be brave, be bold. But the, the, whatever the fears are around dropping that shield, the rewards are exponential.
William Branum: Yeah, a hundred percent
Julie Michelson: Yeah. I mean, I literally could not imagine the things I, that I have an experience in my life now, and I know none of them would be here without having dropped my shield. And not to. And then maybe that's part of the dance, you know, I probably like, you know, you lower it a little bit, you put it back up
William Branum: right. Yeah.
Julie Michelson: decades
William Branum: Oh, it's scary. Oh my God. It's
Julie Michelson: safe, you know?
William Branum: right?
Julie Michelson: But that is where the true healing. Is, is hiding. So I love that. What is, how can people find you? So, you know, naked Warrior, the C B D products are again amazing. Yes. Personal endorsement. They're, they are, they're ma and I've been [Page//00:49:00] using C b D for a long time. High quality c b d what you're doing, and, and I have to add this part too.
I'm somebody who's always shied away from something like a gummy or a chewable, or a, because ingredients are always nasty and dirty. And, and, and people who know me are like, shee. It's nothing. I, I eat those. They're . You're you, you just, your quality is, is. . But then, you know, how can people learn more about you?
Like where is, and we'll have all your links and things. But I know I listen to podcasts when I'm on the go, so I want you to verbally tell us the best place to find you if people wanna learn more.
William Branum: I think for, for, for cbd, for Naked Warrior Recovery, you can go to naked warrior recovery.com. But if you don't wanna write naked into your, into your search engine, you can
Julie Michelson: Is that why you did that? I wondered.
William Branum: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So I, I was like, oh, maybe people don't wanna write naked into their
Julie Michelson: Or if they misspell something, who [Page//00:50:00] knows what they're
William Branum: Who knows what's go.
Yeah, exactly. So, so it's NW dash recovery, cuz if you go to NW Recovery, it's like Northwestern Rehab or something like that. I don't, I don't remember. I was like, okay. So it's NW Dash Recovery or Naked Warrior Recovery for C B D. If you wanna learn more about five Seal Secrets, go to five seal secrets.com, the number five, five seal secrets.com.
Put your name and email on there. I'll send you a, it's a pdf, it's about seven. , seven or eight pages of, you know, really kind of breaking down what Naked really stands for, how you can implement it into your life. And you know, I think I'm most active social media-wise on Instagram. I am getting ready to launch my own podcast.
Julie Michelson: Boom.
William Branum: it's funny, I'm, I'm, I'm struggling on whether to call it that the Naked Warrior Podcast or the Five Seal Secrets podcast. So I like, it's like weird little things like that. Like which, which, which way do I go? I don't know. So I, or I'm working on that. It doesn't matter really what I call it is long as I, you know, just produce
Julie Michelson: as you know that , [Page//00:51:00] don't let that be the excuse for
William Branum: It's, it's not, it's, it's, yeah, it's, it's, yeah. Some of it's like, oh my God, what if I say something dumb? Like, stop being, stop being a baby. It's time to get
Julie Michelson: you've done how many Yeah.
William Branum: roll. Yeah, exactly.
Julie Michelson: So, and, and I love that. Again, at this point in the conversation for listeners to many probably would've been like, why would I go to Five Seal Secrets? You know, like, why? Like, that's so, but now you guys understand, you know, why Williams here and, I get that pdf, get that resource because this is work we all have to do and it's ongoing work because the shields do creep back up if we're not
William Branum: Yes, they do. Yeah. It's, it's al
Julie Michelson: never done
William Branum: on it. Yeah, right. Always moving forward. Always. Yeah. And, and, and doing, you know, being scared. That's okay. Fear's. Okay. It's, it's, what do you do with it? Do you let it control you or do you control it?
Julie Michelson: I like that sound like a navy. [Page//00:52:00] What is we always wrap with one step listeners can take today to, to start to move the needle in their health and health. Could be that you know anything, so.
William Branum: I would say I like, I like this analogy, so I like making bold adjustments.
Julie Michelson: Hmm.
William Branum: So, and, and what I mean by that is when I was teaching sniper school and I went back to the, to the platoons and, and I, since I was the, the, the senior sniper on the team, or in the platoon or at the task unit, whichever group I was a part of at the time, every time we, we started, you know, we would go deploy, we'd come back, we.
Maybe go to some schools and then we'd start our workup again. Maybe get new rifles, new guns. We'd have to cite them in or you know, we'd have leadership that would, you know, they would have like a, a tour of, of, of desk time. And then they'd show back up in the, in the platoon and not really know the best way to cite in their weapon.
You would not think that Navy [Page//00:53:00] seals would have a hard time with that? Some, some do. And so we would be out there in the range and guys were, you know, and I could recognize them very quickly even guys showing up to sniper school, you know, or we, they would get new guns and we would teach 'em how to cite their guns in and, and things like that.
Their rifles in. And what would generally happen is they would be shooting at the target, they have the bullseye and their impacts are hitting over here, and they would make these minor adjustments, small adjustments, and it didn't seem like their impacts were ever really moving. And so I would, I would see this happening and they would think that their gun was broken or their scope was broken, or something was not working
Julie Michelson: Sounds like me. This site is off. Yeah.
William Branum: is not, it is, it's not, I swear it's not me. I'm like, okay. So I would, I would say, can I see your, your gun? And I would make these just unreasonable adjustments to their optic. And they were like, dude, you, I think you broke my, like, I'm like, just do me a favor and like, take a few shots. Just gimme, you know, gimme three rounds [Page//00:54:00] on, on paper.
See where, see where your impacts are. And so what would happen is their impacts would move across the paper, past the bullseye, but it would actually be very close to the bullseye. Like much closer than what they were making these small adjustments. So then they could make the small adjustments into the bullseye, but they had to make these almost like the wrong thing, almost like doing the wrong thing, making the wrong adjustment to, to actually move like al almost do the opposite of what's correct.
So when you're stuck or you're struggling or whatever, sometimes like the right thing to do is just to do, make bold adjustments in the direction where you maybe think that you shouldn't be going. Go in that direction and see what happens. And then make minor adjustments to get back where you, to get yourself on target, where you need to be.
Julie Michelson: I love that. And that is, you know, definitely not one that we've heard before. And it makes so much sense. It, it really does. You know, I, I see we talk a lot about you know, small steps leading to big change. But [Page//00:55:00] I, I love this as well, because sometimes people hear that and they're, you know, they're doing what they think they should do.
You know, I've heard I should do this and I've been doing it, and I don't notice any, you know, and so I, I love the, and it may not, you know, I'm, it doesn't necessarily have to do with food or, you know, any of the things. Um, But it also
William Branum: well, it, it, it totally
Julie Michelson: can be. oh, it can be, no, that's what I'm saying. You
William Branum: you look at the, you look at the like old school food pyramid. and, you know, carbs and fats and proteins and whatever, and what lots of people, and not true for everyone, but lots of people, you know, switch over to like a, a, a ketogenic diet.
Lots of fats,
Julie Michelson: at least Paleo . So we're getting rid of that big
William Branum: right? It, it is something,
Julie Michelson: know,
William Branum: right? And, and, and, and, and like moving in that direction, which is like, what
you're, like, what? That's like, that's not what [Page//00:56:00] I like. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Is it?
Julie Michelson: Or , right?
William Branum: right? So, and, and so for lots of people, that's like a, that's a, that's a bold adjustment.
That's a big, like big step in the opp in the wrong direction. So just kind of like thinking about it like, like that, like if you've already, if you've already like moved in that direction, you're like, oh, of course it is.
But
people who haven't, that's a big step
Julie Michelson: It.
William Branum: go in, in, in that sort of, that direction.
Just using that as, as an example.
Julie Michelson: you picked, that's the example they hear from me all the time, because in addition to the things I was eating that were causing inflammation, I grew up low fat. . And so when I went and I, keto was a huge part of my healing journey. It's not, it's not the answer for everybody, but for me, my body was so fat deprived and I, you know, I learned and I read and I, I would gag the fat down like it felt so wrong, , and it was a big, bold step [Page//00:57:00] and it like a light switch, it, it just flipped my brain back on and helped my pain.
And so I love that. But you know, it doesn't mean like go out and eat 10 big Macs, cuz you know, William said be bold
William Branum: right? Yeah. Like in, in the right direction.
Julie Michelson: Yeah, yeah.
William Branum: Or go try it and like see how you
Julie Michelson: and see how crappy you feel. Exactly.
William Branum: Uh, Maybe I shouldn't do that. Ever. Yeah. Right.
Julie Michelson: Exactly. Well, William, you know that I could talk to you for hours. But we're gonna, we're gonna get you on your way so you can attend to your other commitments. I'm so grateful that you joined us today. I really, you gave so much value. And, and for listeners, like seriously find him whether it's on social website, get the P d F, try the products.
It you, you will be surprised. So we who knew, you know, a Navy SEAL could really help us [Page//00:58:00] all heal. I love it.
William Branum: Who, who knew?
Julie Michelson: Who knew?
William Branum: Bold adjustments, big steps.
Julie Michelson: For everyone listening. Remember, you can get the show notes and transcripts by visiting Inspired Living Show. I hope you had a great time and enjoyed this episode at least almost as much as I did. And if you're not already, hop on over to Instagram. Follow me @julie.michelson and you can find William there too.
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My Guest For This Episode
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William Branum
William is a retired Navy SEAL and SEAL Sniper Instructor. He is the founder of Naked Warrior Recovery, a CBD company focusing on ending veteran suicide. He is a public speaker and coach where he shares his 5 SEAL Secrets and draws from his 26 years of experience in the SEAL Teams to train CEOs and other high performers. From the battlefield to the board room, he teaches leaders how to lead like they are leading a SEAL Team. He focuses on the culture of the organization to help turn employees into Team members. If you are a leader and want to lead your team like a SEAL Team, just reach out to him at william@nw-recovery.com to see if you are a good fit.
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