Rachel's Blogs
The Low Fat Fix?
"After our group session I suggested the low fat trial but she was 'no, no, no....I can't take anything more out of my diet'. It was at the beginning of lockdown & she had other stressors as well. So I asked her to be mindful of her fat intake & if one meal...
When Is IBS BAD?
No, this is not a trick question & it's certainly not a silly one. IBS, as many of us know, has a very loose diagnostic criteria: visceral hypersensitivity coupled with altered motility in the absence of organic disease. Hence it tends to 'loosely' fit a vast...
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Boundary Breaches
Well that got tongues talking! We've cried, and we've laughed, hearing from practitioners about their 'over-delivering donkey experiences' for 2020. We've heard many memorable & relatable tales of either failures to set the best boundaries or even, in instances...
Countdown is on for 2021 Group Mentoring
We are getting ready to launch our new look Group Mentoring for 2021! We are now counting down the weeks days (gULp!!) until we open up applications for Group Mentoring next year. We're keeping everything our practitioners have told us they love, over the past 8...
Over-Delivering Donkey
Shhhhhhhh(eesh)! I am confessing my sins. As part of our mentoring discussions we try to keep one another honest & in-check with, what seems to be, integrative health professionals' innate flair for over-delivering. Name someone right now from another health...
Where To Now?
As a health practitioner, you are always actively building: your reputation, your practice and your knowledge. There's theoretical ...and then there's applied. Some of the biggest leaps we take forward as practitioners come with being shown how (rather than told)...
The Clinical Knack of the NAC Break
I feel a bit Trumpy...because whenever someone says 'N-acetyl cysteine', I want to reply, "Big fan, I'm a big fan". And yes that's an uncomfortable awareness. But unlike he who shall not be mentioned, I can qualify my statement and provide supportive evidence, both...
Can You Hear Creatine Coming?!!
If you're like me, Creatine as a therapeutic option for psychiatric & neurological disorders, has been stalking you for years. Lurking in the shadows, only showing its face occasionally to say, 'Hey, I'm not all about body building and sports you know, you should...
The last last LAST! Word On Worms
I've been trying to wriggle my way out of perpetually presenting on this topic. I guess, like the poor patients afflicted by them, theses stories and my preoccupation with how to help, has kept me awake many a night and once apparently 'resolved',...
The Underrated Art of Ancient Mastication
No, mastication. I've touched on this before but I believe we need regular reminders. Or maybe that's just me? I am a fan of chewing. I don't profess to be good at it (I am a wolfer of food tbh) but I see the enormous therapeutic benefits it has to offer. ...
In Need Of Some Fuel Reduction?
We've been talking all about the dangers of excess fuel in our blood recently. You know, just like nature...too much fuel underfoot creates a fire hazard. So too in the bloods of our patients. The key fuels I am referring to, of course, are lipids (triglycerides...
A Simple…
My how the time just flies when you're chasing answers from private pathology companies! As Brisbane based naturopath, Sandi Cooper, can attest to having recently been down the seemingly eternal email trail with a pathology company trying to ascertain if their...
White Australia Pathology?
Here's a newsflash for absolutely no one, we're all practising healthcare in racially diverse communities, right? Take Australia for example. At last count, at least 1 in 4 were not born here and of those who were, 3% are indigenous and many many more come from...
Creatine Supplements: Brain Over Brawn
I think I'm finally able to put my 'late-90s-Creatine-frontline-trauma' behind me. Back then, like many good nats in training, I was working the trenches of the health food stores and was faced on a daily basis with two types of men with two types of Creatine...
To All The Believers…You Might Want to Read This
I didn't catch that Zonulin wave that hit Australian integrative health practitioners a few years back. I think it might have been after Dr. Frassano himself, made an appearance at one of our big conferences. Like the true bloody sceptic I am, I stayed dry on...
TSI* – Not the Car Kind!
No doubt you've heard me refer to the thyroid Abs by their nicknames, TRAb is one I mention often, or Thyroid Receptor Antibody, as its mum calls it, when it's in trouble. And it's always in trouble! But TRAb is actually the collective name for several flavours of...
Why Iron? Why Us???
Did I mention my mentees ask the meanest (!) & most meaningful questions? Especially those early career practitioners engaged in our New Grads program! And it's been almost a whole month minute since I've talked about iron, so I wanted to share this gem from...
Hanging Out For The Histamine Handshake?!
Recently a mentee reported that when attending an in-person training event (remember those, everyone?!) she approached a sponsor’s stand, promoting practitioner training in the nutritional management of mental health, based on the pioneering work of American...
Have You Met Your Hype-Guy?
About 15 years ago I was introduced to histamine, the neurotransmitter. Before that, I only knew him (come on...it has to be, right? Histamine) as an immune molecule, an allergy mediator, a chemotactic agent of chaos! Given my interest & previous work in mental...
It’s True
I've a confession to make, I took the batteries out of our smoke detector in our kitchen. Why? You know why. Because it went off all the time, with what I like to call, friendly fires...you know, heating oil for poppadoms, a rush of steam upwards from a hot pot on...
Where Could Should Would All the Iron Go?
I love a good iron question. It makes me emit a sound like Jack Sparrow might, when faced with something pleasingly piratey 🏴☠️ Lucky because I am asked SO MANY GOOD ONES, SO OFTEN!! Being one of the earliest minerals discovered to be...
SSRIs – A Weight On Some Patient’s Minds
Given 1 in 8 Australians right now are taking an antidepressant, chances are you're seeing a lot of clients on these, especially the SSRIs. Erica McIntyre (fellow naturopath) and colleagues, found that in fact, mental health diagnoses affect about 43% of individuals...
Walk Towards The Light!
Now find a comfy spot everyone & I'll tell you a story...'Once upon a time, a long long time ago, we lived our days out in the dark, regarding potential calcium dysregulation!' But ever since serum Calcium has become a standard lab included in most routine...