In the hopes of learning more about your wellness journey, I’ll share with you mine. I believe that our individual history and lived experience shape our attitude toward wellness and provide the soil in which new growth sprouts.

Having earned an RN and BSN from the University of Rochester, I spent over 20 years of my professional life empowering medical professionals through education and training. For most of my career, I was tasked with helping practitioners and clients understand intricate issues of anatomy, physiology, and disease states, breaking them down into simple concepts. I routinely created educational materials to aid in the understanding of complex disease states and various treatment modalities.

Exercise has always been a pillar of my personal wellness, and concurrent to my work in the medical field, I worked as a professional fitness instructor in weight training, spin, and core classes. This combination of medical training with hands-on fitness instruction allowed me to bridge the gap between understanding disease and actively promoting health and well-being through exercise.

With the birth of my son in 2006, I suffered debilitating postpartum depression accompanied by insomnia. In my search for relief, I was frustrated by the persistence of doctors in wanting to prescribe antidepressants, antipsychotics, and sleep medications—even though I repeatedly pointed out that the insomnia only flared during specific times of the month. I also understood from my experience in the industry that these medications would only target symptoms and not the root cause.

My persistence and self-advocacy paid off, however, when, after a yearslong search, I connected with a physician who validated my concerns and prescribed hormone therapy, which helped me regain confidence and finally achieve restful sleep.

My life and career took another turn in 2009, when my husband’s military orders sent us to Ukraine. There I found a fit as the Health and Wellness Coordinator for the American Embassy in Kyiv. It was here, within the close-knit community of displaced military spouses, that I began to fully appreciate the connection between lifestyle and wellness. With an aim to help myself and others, I facilitated gatherings to empower us through education and activity: fitness classes, cooking sessions, support groups. Both professionally and personally, I understood that knowledge empowers us and sparks change. 

Now as a Certified Functional Health Coach, my journey has come full circle: I’m able to take my experience in education, training, and coaching, and apply it to what I’m passionate about: healthy eating, movement, and attitude to shape one’s whole healthy being.

The power of Functional Medicine is that it complements a conventional approach by digging beneath symptoms to examine the root causes of illness. When these roots are supplanted by the five modalities—nutrition, movement, sleep, stress relief, and support networks—optimal wellness is within reach.

As your Certified Functional Health Coach, I’ll help you identify and implement those small steps from which change sprouts and wellness blossoms.

Yours in Wellness,