Many people are seeking natural remedies these days for many health concerns. It is an exciting time as people around the country reclaim their health by eating healthier, moving their bodies more, and finding more zen through meditation as well as yoga. But what happens when with all of your best intention you still are not able feel your best? Or if you have developed a health condition and Googling your problem with a natural remedy hashtag just doesn’t seem to bring up helpful responses. It might be time for you to seek out some help. Perhaps even the help of a doctor, however when you think of going to your allopath you may cringe because either you have seen them before for this issue with no luck or you know that you can find some answers that are not necessarily part of the mainstream methods of care. Alas, you value and respect your doctor but are looking for an alternative that may not involve a pill or a surgery. Alas, you hear about a different kind of doctor from a friend, one that may think outside of the box and since your friend has had some good results from seeing her you decide it may be time to schedule an appointment.
People come into my office for a variety of reasons, and since my practice is based around treating families I tend to get a mix of everything. From elderly looking to enhance their anti aging program to mommies wanting a healthier less toxic upbringing for their kids to the men wanting to learn ways better ways of self care, I tend to see a variety of ages and health concerns in my practice. Just in case you were unsure as to why anyone would see a naturopath or why it may be appropriate for you to see one, I have devised a top ten list of reasons patients come into Holistic Family Practice in Virginia Beach to see me. This is not an exhaustive list but rather a synopsis of the top most important health concerns that people seek me out to gain health insight on. Please feel free to comment below if I have not included something that you are struggling with, it may not mean I don’t address it, but rather I have fewer of those cases than the others.
1. Weight Loss Weight Loss is a common challenge experienced by people all over the country. Partially because of our diets and partially because of our toxic load and exposure, maintaining a healthy weight can prove to be challenging to the average consumer. Many people come into my office with a goal of losing weight. Some of the common themes I see amongst the patients that come into my office are various yo-yo diets, self sabotaging habits, and overwhelming stress, as well as frustrations, that keep them stuck in unhealthy patterns. As we work to develop healthier habits, we free the body, the mind and the spirit up to freely heal in order to remove excess weight from the body. Feelings of safety and health wash over the person as they maintain their focus on foods they can eat rather than what they can’t eat. This positive approach removes the shame and self criticism away from staying healthy by replacing it with feelings of relief and support. Losing weight is not just a matter of removing the unhealthy behaviors but rather a matter of removing the unhealthy mindset surrounding weight gain.
2. Thyroid Imbalances This is a common condition that we deal with especially in this area. As a result of the various toxins found around our region, many people experience difficulties with the thyroid. Whether it is a hypo or hyper thyroidism, we often support the thyroid with a similar approach by removing toxic substances known as endotoxins from the body while supporting deficient minerals from the system. Thyroid imbalances can create a myriad of symptoms that are not pleasant such as hot sweats, stubborn weight gain/loss, difficulty with conception, low libido, mood swings, menstrual cycle shifts, and more. Many people, as a result of our various endotoxins, struggle with a variety of symptoms that can be traced back to difficulty within the thyroid. We often must first address this substance within the body in order to find the body’s ability to heal itself. It may also be necessary to look to genetic variants to uncover why the body may be taking on these toxins and not clearing them. SOD, is a variant that can prevent the body’s ability to clear endotoxins in the system. (Please look up my blog post on SOD, yeah you know me)
3. Hormone Imbalances & Fatigue In extension of the second reason of thyroid imbalances, adrenal fatigue can also be a contributing factor and must be addressed first before supporting thyroid function. In fact, if you support and work on healing the thyroid but you do not do anything to work on the adrenal glands more often than not the adrenal glands will continue to create imbalances for the thyroid as well as additional hormones. As the adrenal glands run on the rat wheel depleting key minerals from the body, the body becomes increasingly fatigued, thus contributing to patients dragging into my office exhausted of not feeling well. We often greet these patients with open arms, providing them with the necessary key minerals and taming those pesky hormones through safe, gentle, yet effective homeopathic care.
4. Cardiovascular Risk & Fatigue Some of us have the unfortunate genetic history of cardiovascular episodes, such as heart attack, stroke, venous blockages etc. Many people do not want to be the victim of their genetics so they seek proactive care options such as naturopathic care to ensure that they can beat the odds. After all genetics account for at most 30% of disease manifestation whiles the remaining 70% is lifestyle driven. As a result, many of my cardiovascular risk factor patients look to reduce mental and emotional stress while eating clean and exercising. They want an additional edge over many of the cardiovascular variants they may possess such as NOS in order to support predisposition to hypertension, cardiomyopathy, and other cardiac driven conditions. It is through a preventive approach that they find support to help their bodies age gracefully without the need for pharmacological intervention. Although some may still need pharmacological support, genetic testing can uncover which meds are best suited for the patient based off of their genes as well as understanding how their lipids affect their health.
5. Autism/ADD/ADHD This is by far one of my favorite patients to work with as they are so sensitive and aware of the world around them. These are my old souls of my clinic, who are dialed in well beyond their years and sensitive to the touch. Just as sensitive people are they tend to have effects of the environment even more than their non-diagnosed counterpart. Since our world is increasingly sensitive to the various toxins, the neurological takens on the brunt of the toxic load with these folks. We tend to work with very low abilities to clear toxins out of the system, which robs the bodies of minerals such as zinc, magnesium, selenium making sleep difficult, behavior unbearable, and digestive systems a wreck. Since eating can be challenging with this group, supplementation is extremely important to support function of the body. I love witnessing the changes in this group of patients and am honored to be able to help them and their families learn the power of mindfullness, healthy communication, relaxation, and detox. It truly becomes a family journey as everyone rallies around each other supporting one another in their health goals.
6. Eczema, Psoriasis, or Various Skin Disorders Skin disorders (acne, eczema, psoriasis, dry skin, etc.) are progressing at an alarming rate in pediatrics, adolescents, as well as adults. Many people are challenged with these skin conditions that prove to be difficult to overcome. The skin is an expressive organ system, so it shows what is going on internally with patient’s health. If the bacteria in the gut are off unbalance with too high of unhealthy bacteria, too low of healthy bacteria, fungus, candidas and viruses it can be challenging to overcome embarrassing skin conditions. As we tackle the various foods that can create imbalances to discover the underlying causes that are immunological in nature, we are able to uncover the causes of many skin imbalances. With these folks, I tend to also look at liver function; fat soluble vitamins, which can strip oils out the skin; and large bowel health in order to be on the way to cleaner and brighter looking skin.
7. Mental & Emotional Well Being I have many patients that experience stressful situations in their lives, whether it is with a break up, a divorce, finding their voice, or finding their place in the world, but knowing that they have at least one person in their support system that can provide them with sound objective advice and listening ear proves to be monumental. Life can be challenging and stress can be detrimental to one’s health; so it is imperative that one gets a handle on the various things coming at them all at once, diminishing their sense of overwhelm to gentle, calming relaxation. As the mind is calm and relaxed (free from fear, disappointment and limited beliefs) the person is able to freely express themselves and make decisions. When a person’s mind is clouded with judgments, criticisms, fears, and frustrations it can prove to be very difficult for patients to make decisions that are supportive of one’s health and life. Think of me as the Jiminy Cricket to these patients and they will tell you call Erica.
8. Prevention I love my preventative patients. They understand Google has neither their health records nor their physicals and they also recognize that Dr Oz has a television show, not their health records. They are open-minded and want to stay on the right track. They tend to not want the traditional antibiotic route; however, they do not know enough about self care to be able to prevent it solely on their own. They like the convenience of having a personal doctor they know and trust. They like the option to call, text or email any time if they have a question. These patients understand the importance of eating healthy and exercising; these patients are willing to take care of themselves by coming in regularly for their detox services because they know and understand that this is a means in which they can prevent the development of disease. Occasionally they may feel under the weather and need a supportive sick care appointment, at which point I do a simple muscle test with them to find the underlying immunological stressor and to provide them a remedy that day. I do see them occasionally when they need support in their health as well; overall, they are on a preventative path only reaching out to me when they get stuck and need a little GPS.
9. Diabetes This condition plagues so many people these days as a result of overwhelmed livers from toxins exposed in our food, water, and air. Not to mention, the various key insulin supportive minerals that are depleted from our food. Minerals, such as chromium, which act just the same as metformin in the system biochemically, naturally assist in processing glucose in the body. Not all of these patients struggle with their diet, but when they do I am able to help support them using a proactive not reactive approach to food. They are able to find comfort in supporting the foods they can eat while the unhealthy foods in their diet fall off. We work to support and to heal the lining of these patients gut, as well as to repair any leaky guts which can put more pressure on the cardiovascular system as a whole. We consciously decrease heavy metal burdens on the system such as glyphosate which can cause long lasting effects, especially if there are genetic burdens in the system. I teach these patients about the importance of juicing while we rebuild the body’s ability to detoxify and digest itself one step at a time.
10. Cancer & Various Other Autoimmune Conditions The big C. I don’t mean Cancer I mean caring. In my experience, Cancer is not just a physical manifestation. One has to work on all levels of self in order to heal the body. One cannot neglect any aspect of self when addressing a chronic condition such as cancer. When working with this, as well as any condition that the body has manifested, we work through spiritual, emotional, mental, as well as physical aspects that contribute to dis-ease in the body. Otherwise, sabotage can set in, complacency can set in, fear can set in, all of which are emotional toxic burdens on the system. As we support the overall healing of the body, mind, and spirit we must look at all areas and appendages allowing healing to take place on all levels. As we work with people genetically, immunologically, through food, detox, mind and body we bring the whole body back into balance. As we bring the body into balance, we heal the body on all levels of self. Now I am not implying that it is a quick fix, one size fit all, or that I can heal cancer. For one the FDA, would not allow that mention, nor would it be true. The only healer is our creator, doctor in latin simply means teacher and that is all that I do. Teach people to have greater long lasting health. If the health has become compromised, for those willing to take the journey and trust the process, releasing expectations of how the journey should look, healing is possible. For this type of case, caring is the number one method in which I use to help the process of healing to occur. All this patients needs is a little trust, an open mind, and a willingness to change for healing to take place. I also want to touch on the fact that any autoimmune condition is a compounded issue. Years of toxic loads and nutrient deficiencies contribute to imbalances in the immune system.
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Although this is not an exhaustive list of cases that I take on in my clinic, this is a general 10 point list of the types of cases that I see quite often in my practice. As a doctor of natural medicine and a naturopathic doctor, I work with people from all different walks of life guiding them through the healing process. It is through my training in naturopathic studies, functional medicine, and genetic variants and methylation that I am able to help people in Virginia Beach, VA. When looking for a naturopath near me in Virginia Beach, VA please note that many people have different perspectives of healing. What it is, what it isn’t, what it should be or shouldn’t be. I am a third generation medicine woman. I am Native American. I grew up running around labs and learning from Native American healers. I use intuition, wisdom, and experience combined with modern medical sciences to assist me in my work. Some of my methods may seem unorthodox and I defiantly dance to the beat of my own drummer, however those people that have faith in my work receive the greatest benefit and result. Those who listen, trust, and follow direction have the greatest gifts in the process. I am not infallible as I am human; however, my promise to you is this, if I don’t know something I will tell you. If I have to research it, I will. If I need to sit on the answer, I do. Not everything is black or white, good or bad, right or wrong some things just are…. I walk this journey, this truth, and this peace from a practical perspective. This comes partially from my own healing journey and partially from learning from many healers before me. I am honored to have been able to learn from so many of the amazing teachers, mentors, and schools that I have attended. It truly has been a blessing to experience so many profound lessons in my journey. I am grateful to all of my patients and if you are not a patient I am grateful for you to read my blog. It truly means a lot to me. If you have any questions regarding your health, please feel free to ask in the comment section below or if you have a friend or family member that can benefit from this post, please forward this post on. I would grateful appreciate the support.