If you’ve ever struggled with fatigue, cravings, belly weight, or brain fog — you’re not alone. And if diabetes runs in your family like it does in mine, you may already be wondering: Could sugar really be driving all of this?

The short answer is: yes. But it’s more complex than simply “sugar is bad.” That’s why I want to break it all down for you—so you can finally understand how sugar, insulin, and your body work together, and what you can do to avoid (or reverse) the hidden roller coaster that leads so many women toward burnout, chronic disease, and hormone chaos.

The 3 S’s — Where Sugar Fits In

Inside my Gutsy Chick framework, I teach high-performing women how to balance their three foundational hormones:

• Stress (Cortisol)

• Sugar (Insulin)

• Sex (Oxytocin)

While most women focus on their sex hormones — estrogen, progesterone, testosterone — these don’t stabilize unless your stress and sugar systems are balanced first. Today, we’re diving deep into the second “S”: sugar and insulin.

Understanding Sugar: It’s Not All the Same

Let’s start with the basics. Sugar comes in different forms, and not all sugars impact your body the same way:

• Glucose: Your body’s main energy source. It spikes blood sugar, triggers insulin, and is used quickly by your muscles and brain or stored as fat.

• Fructose: Found in fruits, honey, and high-fructose corn syrup. Unlike glucose, fructose bypasses your bloodstream and heads straight to your liver. Too much fructose can quietly damage your liver and contribute to insulin resistance.

• Sucrose: Table sugar — a combo of glucose and fructose. Found in baked goods, sugary cereals, sauces, syrups, and processed foods.

• Lactose & Galactose: Sugars found in dairy that your liver converts into glucose.

Here’s where it gets tricky: even “low glycemic” or “sugar-free” options can still stress your liver and metabolic health if consumed in excess.

How Insulin Steps In

Insulin is like your body’s spacecraft — transporting glucose from your bloodstream into your cells where it can be used for energy. But here’s the problem: there’s only so much glucose your cells can store.

Once your muscle and liver “storage tanks” are full, your body converts the extra into fat:

• Visceral fat (around your organs)

• Subcutaneous fat (under your skin)

• Liver fat (leading to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease)

When this happens repeatedly, your body can become insulin resistant — meaning your cells stop responding to insulin. This is how pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes begin.

The Hidden Roller Coaster: Sugar Spikes & Crashes

Many women live on a daily blood sugar roller coaster without even realizing it. Here’s what that looks like:

1. You eat high-sugar or refined-carb foods (cereals, baked goods, energy drinks).

2. Blood sugar spikes.

3. Insulin surges to manage the sugar.

4. Blood sugar crashes — leading to fatigue, mood swings, cravings, and brain fog.

5. You reach for more sugar or caffeine to compensate.

Sound familiar? This pattern wreaks havoc on your hormones, energy, mental clarity, and long-term metabolic health.

The Emotional & Cultural Side of Sugar

Sugar addiction isn’t just physical — it’s also deeply emotional. Many of us were raised with sugar tied to reward, comfort, and celebration. “You got good grades? Let’s go get ice cream.” Over time, this creates powerful neurological loops that reinforce cravings.

In fact, brain scans show sugar activates the same dopamine reward centers as cocaine. And because sugar doesn’t trigger the fullness hormone, it’s incredibly easy to overconsume.

Why Diabetes Is So Prevalent — And Why You Should Care

The statistics are staggering:

• 38 million Americans have diabetes.

• 96 million have pre-diabetes — and 80% don’t even know it.

And while type 1 diabetes is autoimmune (about 5-10% of cases), type 2 diabetes — caused by insulin resistance and lifestyle — makes up 90-95% of cases. It’s preventable, reversible in early stages, and far more common than most people realize.

Even without a formal diagnosis, many women are already living with insulin resistance, experiencing:

• Belly weight gain

• Fatigue

• Mood swings

• Hormonal imbalances

• Accelerated aging

3 Actionable Challenges to Start Today

If any of this sounds familiar, here’s where you can begin:

1️⃣ Track your sugar and fiber intake for 3 days.
You’ll be surprised how much added sugar sneaks in — and how little fiber you’re getting.

2️⃣ Double your fiber intake.
Veggies, flaxseed, chia, beans — these slow sugar absorption and support insulin regulation.

3️⃣ Swap one sweetened drink for water with lemon or electrolytes.
Small changes add up quickly.

You’re Not Broken — You’re Built for Balance

Awareness is the first step toward healing. You don’t need to live on the blood sugar roller coaster forever. With the right support, education, and small shifts, you can stabilize your hormones, reclaim your energy, and protect your long-term health.

👉 Ready to go deeper? I guide my clients through my Heal to Grow System to address these issues at the root. If this resonated with you, you can explore how we work together here.