Your mental health is inseparable from your metabolic health. I am Dr. Fiona Mao — psychiatric nurse practitioner and family nurse practitioner — and I am here to show you why.
The metabolic bloodwork that should be part of every psychiatric evaluation — and almost never is. Download the free guide and bring it to your next appointment.
Metabolic psychiatry is not fringe science. It is the emerging frontier of mental health care — and it changes everything for people who have not responded to standard treatment.
It consumes 20% of your body's total energy. Blood sugar instability, insulin resistance, and mitochondrial dysfunction all directly affect how your brain produces the chemicals that regulate your mood.
Research shows that elevated CRP — a simple blood marker — predicts poor antidepressant response. If nobody has checked your inflammation, your treatment picture is incomplete.
90% of your body's serotonin is produced in your gut — not your brain. The bacteria in your gut directly influence your mood, and gut dysbiosis is one of the most commonly missed drivers of psychiatric symptoms.
"The people who need this information the most are often the ones sitting in fifteen-minute appointments that leave them with more questions than answers. That changes here."
— Dr. Fiona Mao, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC · FNP-C
Every week I answer real questions from real people about mental health, medication, metabolic health, and the connection between your body and your mind. Anonymously. Clinically. In plain language.
I am a Doctor of Nursing Practice with dual board certifications — Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner and Family Nurse Practitioner. I own Clarity Mind and Integrative Wellness in Texas, where I practice metabolic psychiatry.
My clinical background spans private practice, long-term care, telehealth, psychiatric consultation for oncology patients, surgical nursing, COVID-19 frontline work at Jacobi Hospital in New York City, a locked psychiatric unit, and correctional facility nursing. I have also served as academic faculty. I am the co-author of the bestseller The Gap.
I built this platform because of a gap I kept seeing in clinical practice. Patients who had been trying to get better for years — trying medication after medication, going to appointment after appointment — and still not feeling well.
Not because there was nothing left to try. But because nobody had ever looked at the metabolic piece. The blood sugar. The inflammation. The gut health. The mitochondrial function. The full picture of how the body and the brain work together.
I am a Black woman who has also watched my community suffer in silence around mental health for too long. The distrust of the medical system in Black communities is historically grounded and completely understandable. What I am building is a bridge — between the clinical evidence and the communities that have been most failed by the gaps in standard care.
This show, this platform, and this practice are for the people who have been told their depression is treatment-resistant without anyone investigating why. For the women whose mood changed at forty and were told it was just stress. For the families who handle their problems inside their four walls because that is what survival required.
I am here because you deserve a full clinical picture. And you deserve someone who will explain it clearly.
Owner and clinical provider · Metabolic psychiatry private practice · Texas
Psychiatric mental health NP services for long-term care facilities
Charge nurse · Inpatient psychiatric care · High-acuity clinical environment
New York City · Critical care frontline during the COVID-19 pandemic
Mental health and primary care in a correctional healthcare environment
Psychiatric mental health support for patients in oncology settings
Nursing care in surgical settings prior to NP practice
Nursing education
"My family — Miles, Faraja, Faiza, and Fae — is the dedication of everything I build. This work is for them first."
— Dr. Fiona Mao
Free guides, clinical protocols, and educational resources built around the metabolic psychiatry approach. Start with the free lab guide — then go deeper.
The metabolic bloodwork that should be part of every psychiatric evaluation. Fasting insulin, high-sensitivity CRP, full thyroid panel, vitamin D, and more. Download it. Print it. Bring it to your next appointment.
Ten questions to ask your psychiatric provider about metabolic drivers of anxiety. Covers pharmacogenomics, CRP, thyroid, blood sugar stability, and hormone evaluation. Plain language. Ready to use.
Metabolic evaluation framework for depression — labs to request, anti-inflammatory dietary interventions, supplement protocols with dosing, and how to advocate for a complete evaluation when standard treatment has not worked.
Blood sugar stabilization, cortisol rhythm support, CRP evaluation, gut-brain axis interventions, and targeted supplementation for anxiety that standard treatment has not fully resolved.
Dopamine support through metabolic interventions, blood sugar stabilization for focus, pharmacogenomics discussion framework, and hormonal evaluation for women whose ADHD medication has stopped working.
Mitochondrial support, anti-inflammatory interventions, circadian rhythm stabilization, and the metabolic approach to bipolar disorder — alongside existing mood stabilizer treatment, not instead of it.
All four condition protocols — Depression, Anxiety, ADHD, and Bipolar — the full metabolic psychiatry evaluation framework. Save $78 versus buying individually.
These are the labs I recommend for anyone whose psychiatric treatment has not fully worked. Print this and bring it to your next appointment.
| Lab Test | What It Measures | Why It Matters for Mental Health | Optimal Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fasting Insulin | Insulin resistance (early marker) | Brain insulin resistance drives depression and cognitive decline | < 10 μIU/mL |
| HbA1c | 3-month average blood sugar | Chronic blood sugar elevation impairs neurotransmitter synthesis | < 5.4% |
| High-Sensitivity CRP | Systemic inflammation | Elevated CRP predicts poor SSRI response | < 1.0 mg/L |
| Full Thyroid Panel | TSH, Free T3, Free T4 | Subclinical hypothyroidism is a common missed driver of depression | Provider guidance |
| Vitamin D 25-OH | Vitamin D status | Deficiency associated with depression, anxiety, cognitive decline | 50–80 ng/mL |
| B12 + Homocysteine | Neurological nutrient status | B12 deficiency causes mood changes; elevated homocysteine = dementia risk | B12 > 400 pg/mL |
| Fasting Lipids | Triglycerides + HDL ratio | High triglyceride:HDL ratio signals metabolic dysfunction | Ratio < 3 |
| Magnesium (RBC) | Cellular magnesium | Deficiency impairs GABA function and stress response regulation | > 5.5 mg/dL |
Note: This lab guide is for educational purposes only. Lab interpretation requires clinical context. Work with your own licensed provider to order, interpret, and act on these results. Optimal ranges listed here are for educational reference and may differ from standard lab reference ranges.
Every week I answer real questions from real people — anonymously — about mental health, metabolic psychiatry, medication, and the connection between your body and your mind. No judgment. No rushed appointment. Just honest clinical answers in plain language.
Fill out the short form in my bio — completely anonymous. No name required. Your identity is completely protected.
Every Wednesday a new episode answers two questions with full clinical depth plus a Clinical Pearl takeaway.
Use what you learn to ask better questions and advocate for a more complete evaluation. This show is educational — not a substitute for your care.
Completely anonymous. No name or identifying information required. Include as much or as little detail as you are comfortable sharing.
Fill out the short anonymous form — no name or identifying information required. Include as much or as little detail as you are comfortable sharing. The more context you provide the more useful my answer will be on the show.
Your email address is optional. I will never share it or use it for marketing.
Open Question Form →Important: Ask Dr. Fiona is an educational show. Nothing answered constitutes medical advice or creates a patient-provider relationship. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 immediately.
Ask Dr. Fiona is an educational show — not a clinical service. For direct clinical care, press, and speaking, use the contacts below.
Dr. Fiona Mao sees patients at Clarity Mind and Integrative Wellness in Texas. New patient inquiries and telehealth available for Texas residents.
Media appearances, expert commentary, podcast interviews, conference speaking, and entertainment industry consulting inquiries.
Clinical education partnerships, CE course licensing, CME collaboration, and clinician referral network inquiries.