We bring you interviews from people who have conquered the trickiest of health challenges using the Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Philosophy and similar healing modalities. You’ll hear from experts who have been through the wringer with their health issues, and yet managed to come out on the other side. If you are interested in natural healing and/or functional medicine, this is the podcast for you! Visit www.functionaldiagnosticnutrition.com to learn more about the Functional Diagnostic Nutrition program.
Episodes
Thursday Oct 12, 2023
Thursday Oct 12, 2023
Did you know that hives, although fairly common, are NOT normal to deal with chronically?
Sure, rubbing up against the wrong type of plant while hiking could trigger an otherwise harmless reaction, but dealing with this particular symptom on a daily basis (especially if you're just working indoors) is a WARNING sign of something deeper. Our guest today on The Health Detective Podcast, Erica Duffy, knows this all too well.
Not only did Erica discover how to eliminate her hives for good, but she also discovered a VERY unexpected connection between her health challenges and a medical procedure that many women consider totally harmless! (You'll have to listen to find out what it is ;)
Now, as a fully certified Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner, Erica's business is centered on the belief that EVERYONE can achieve a state of vibrant health and comfort in their own skin. She takes pride in helping individuals not only feel better, but also gain the knowledge and tools to maintain lifelong health and happiness.
About Erica:
Erica is a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner, certified health coach, wife, and mom with a deep passion for empowering individuals to take charge of their well-being.
Her own health struggles with Breast Implant Illness, TMJ, and Chronic Hives along with her husband’s Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis has led her to where she is today as an FDN.
Her mission revolves around helping people discover the path to optimal health and enabling them to embrace their true selves. Through her expertise with the use of functional labs & an extensive medical/lifestyle history, she guides individuals to understand their bodies, identify underlying health issues, and make informed choices that lead to improved vitality and self-confidence.
Her business is centered on the belief that everyone can achieve a state of vibrant health and comfort in their own skin. She takes pride in helping individuals not only feel better, but also gain the knowledge and tools to maintain lifelong health and happiness.
Where to find Erica:
Facebook: @ericaduffywellness
Instagram: @ericaduffywellness
TikTok: @ericaduffywellness
Website, if you have one: www.ericaduffywellness.com
Where to find FDN!
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Monday Oct 09, 2023
Monday Oct 09, 2023
Kim Heintz is an FDN who primarily helps her clients reverse debilitating gut issues.
She has been an FDN for 4.5 years, but her own health journey began long before that. She began getting migraines early in life and they intensified in her twenties - to the point where she was getting them 3-5 times a week. When she was 28, she had a migraine that lasted an entire year straight. On top of this, she dealt with a myriad of other symptoms including insomnia, brain fog, chronic fatigue, anxiety, and depression.
She was told by a doctor that she would have to deal with chronic migraines for the rest of her life. Determined to not accept that fate, she ultimately found the functional health space, and it changed her life. Through functional lab testing, she uncovered a lot of gut issues, food sensitivities, and nutrient imbalances. Through addressing those, she no longer gets migraines and all the other symptoms disappeared as well. Not only did her symptoms disappear, but she has taken things to a completely different level. In addition to running her business, she is also a top competitor in long distance mountain biking in the Midwest of the United States, often taking a podium spot. She feels better at 42 than she ever did at 32 and even 22.
Her own life-changing experience is what led her to become an FDN so that she could help others experience the same freedom she has.
Where to find Kim:
Personal Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kim.heintz2013/
Business Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/daretolivedreams/
IG: @kim.heintz
Website: www.kimheintz.com
Where to find FDN!
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Depending on how long you've been around FDN, you might remember when today's guest and Detective Ev were going live every week! Her name is Bryanna Austin (formerly Bryanna Lindly), and she has the EXACT same energy as Ev!
Although these two extroverts always have fun together, today's topic is a bit more serious (but much needed) conversation around the mental health of first responders. Bry has experience as a first responder herself, and knows all too well that this community of people has not had their mental health supported in any meaningful way for a long, long time.
This type of episode (depending on who is listening) could make you chuckle, cry, or feel anything in between, too. Most importantly, we hope it leaves you inspired and "fired up" to go out and help make a change for these brave men and women.
About Bryanna ("Bry"):
Bry Austin is a mama to two boys and two fur babies. Her husband and her reside in the Bay area, CA with their little family, and they love anything that brings them outdoors. She firmly believes that being in nature every single day will heal all things and that the body is meant to heal naturally. Bry is extremely passionate about holistic health, thinking outside the box, always challenging the “norm” and helping people break down their own barriers through the functional and holistic lifestyle to unlock the magic that lies within them.
Bry has been an FDNP since 2020 and has had the honor of working in a variety of different “niches” with some really amazing clients. She's gotten to work with people who have been exposed to toxic mold, high-level corporate folks, and all kinds of athletes, to name a few.
Bry's hope is to meet everyone that her story and message resonates with and to inspire folks to dive deep into how the holistic and functional lifestyle can potentially help change their lives in the best of ways.
Where to find Bry:
www.rootshealthandwellness.com
Where to find FDN!
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FDNtraining/featured
Instagram: www.instagram.com/fdntraining
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FunctionalDiagnosticNutrition
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/san-diego-natural-health-&-fitness-ctr
Monday Oct 02, 2023
Monday Oct 02, 2023
Link to Vennessa's first episode can be found on Apple by clicking here, or Spotify by clicking here.
Vennessa is a passionate, energetic, tenacious woman, wife and mom of three young boys. She has always believed in helping people whether it be in the community, schools or corporate world. Her career started early, since both her parents and grandparents were business owners. "Hard work" was highly valued in her family. She attended a science and engineering academy through most of high school, attended Southern Illinois University for Industrial Engineering Technology - graduating in 3 years. She worked her way up the corporate ladder very quickly and found herself running organizations at a young age.
During the course of all this corporate success, she was diagnosed with a rare disease - leaving her relying on many different medical professionals. She finally ended her corporate career and her husband and her became pregnant with their first son. Life seemed good. She started a resume writing and executive career coaching business where the skills she learned in corporate, once again created great success. But two things happened: (1) her health took a nose-dive, and (2) she noticed 85% of her clients struggled with health issues that were affecting how they performed at work. No longer could she morally help people find jobs if their health was affecting more than just them.
In taking a sabbatical, she uncovered some hefty relational issues with her husband and her parents, leading to her discovery of functional nutrition and FDN, that ultimately uncovered how trauma creates disease. Now as a board-certified holistic autoimmune and trauma recovery practitioner, FDN-P, certified functional nutrition coach, speaker and author, Vennessa educates and empowers people to take control of their fatigue and pain during the in-between moments, while confidently owning their journey so they can live a vibrant life.
Where to find Vennessa:
https://www.facebook.com/vennessa.morgan
Instagram handle: https://instagram.com/vennessamcconkey
Where to find FDN!
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Is there anything functional medicine CAN'T do? Apparently not, as our guest today, Carrie Hicks, is teaching us how we can even prevent/delay HAIR LOSS through a functional approach.
A long-time stylist and salon owner, Carrie isn't a stranger to working with people who are starting to lose their hair. What WAS new for her, however, was the dramatic increase in hair loss that occurred shortly after the pandemic began. Seeing this firsthand, she was fascinated by what was happening and wanted to give her clients a solution.
Not only did she find the solution for her clients, but the research process transformed her into a health detective, too!
Now, Carrie is on a mission to spread the word that hair loss, contrary to popular belief, can become a thing of the PAST for many people.
We hope you enjoy this episode. Please feel free to ask us any questions by shooting us a direct message @fdntraining. Or talk to Carrie directly @nurish.d
More About Carrie:
Carrie Hicks is a hairstylist and salon owner that had to start looking for real answers to her clients' hair loss after the pandemic in 2020 when an alarming number of female clients lost more than half their hair. Already certified as a Holistic Nutritionist, not one to believe in quick fixes or band-aids, and on her own self-healing journey, she set out on a journey to find the actual causes of hair loss, and how to successfully treat it.
She took advanced hair loss education courses, attended the World Congress of Trichology, and studied everything she could get her hands on. She found that most people experiencing hair loss are given prescription medications that can affect one’s hormone health negatively and that 9 times out of 10 no labs were run to assess or manage the effects of these meds. Other treatments can be invasive, painful, and very expensive, and while they can be effective, if the actual hidden stressors and underlying causes of the hair loss are not addressed, the results obtained with these treatments won’t last long.
Carrie founded Nurish.d Hair loss + Wellness two years ago where she has been helping women with hair loss but knew something was missing in being able to really get to the root cause. She then chose the only logical choice, to become a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner. Now she does functional lab testing to help her clients see the big picture of their health and identify the actual contributing factors to their hair loss.
Carrie specializes in working with women experiencing hair loss from a wide range of health issues, including PCOS, hypothyroid, insulin resistance, menopause, digestive issues, and chronic stress. She is currently training her stylists how to help their own clients with a functional perspective on hair loss and is creating a program for other stylists to follow as well because she knows the important role stylists play in their clients' lives and that they have a front row seat to any changes in their health status.
She is the founder of Crimson & Clover Hair Studio in Flagstaff, AZ and Nurish.d Hair Loss + Wellness and is a licensed Cosmetologist, a Certified Holistic Nutritionist, and a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner.
Where to find Carrie:
Instagram: @nurish.d
Linked-In: Carrie Hicks, Functional Hair Loss Specialist
Website: www.nurishd.org
Where to find FDN!
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Monday Sep 25, 2023
Monday Sep 25, 2023
On today's episode of The Health Detective Podcast, we have a SUPER special guest, Brendan Vermeire!
Brendan is not only an FDNP, but he is a pioneer in the functional medicine space, particularly around the topic of mental health. After struggling greatly with his own mental health (and watching the mental health challenges of a loved one), Brendan dedicated his life to figuring out the many reasons WHY there is such a widescale mental health crisis around the world.
Not only did he come to some amazing realizations, but he has put things together from the research that are truly unique. This is NOT your average mental health podcast episode, that's for sure.
We hope you enjoy this one, and if you have any follow-up questions, you may always reach out to us anytime at @fdntraining on Instagram.
Interested in talking to a Course Enrollment Advisor instead? Visit fdntraining.com/call.
About Brendan:
Brendan is a Mental and Metabolic Health Scientist & Researcher, Functional Medicine Educator, Writer, and Speaker. He is a Board-Certified Holistic Health Practitioner, Master Nutrition Coach, Master Personal Trainer, USAW Sports Performance Coach, and CrossFit Trainer.
He began his career as a personal trainer and nutrition coach at the age of 18 after disappointingly being medically discharged from the United States Navy Seal training pipeline due to an injury. After being exposed to the power of functional lab testing in the start of his career, he began intensely pursuing that as a career path which has led him to be widely regarded as one of the top leading experts in Metabolic Health and Functional Education.
He is the proud owner and founder of the Metabolic Solutions Institute for Functional Health and Fitness Practitioners and the creator of the Functional Mental Health Practitioner Certificate Course (FMHP™). He is also the founder of the Metabolic Solutions Research & Education Foundation, a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to ‘changing the way the world views mental health’ through advancing the science of Mental Health Dysfunction. He is also the creator of The Mental M.A.P.™, a cutting-edge Lab Panel for Mental Health, and the NeuroCeuticals™ Supplement Line.
When he’s not educating doctors/practitioners/professionals, helping clients overcome their most severe health struggles, or producing cutting edge scientific education, Brendan enjoys all things fitness and is probably working out. He also enjoys anything in nature and any activities that expand his heart, mind, and soul.
The many places to find/connect with Brendan:
Facebook handle:
Personal Profile: https://www.facebook.com/brendan.vermeire
Business Public Profile: https://www.facebook.com/metabolicsolutionsllc
Private Group for Practitioners: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MetabolicSolutionsInstitute
Instagram handle: @the_holistic_savage
Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendan-vermeire-23754693/
Website: https://www.metabolicsolutionsllc.com/
Where to find FDN:
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Thursday Sep 21, 2023
Thursday Sep 21, 2023
While we do not like to stereotype, on paper, Scott Shortmeyer is one of those people that we'd least expect to get into the world of functional medicine and natural healing. After some significant warning signs from his body, though, Scott knew it was time for a change. Thanks to the help of his wife, he was able to get on the right track fairly quickly!
Like so many of our guests, Scott has now effectively turned his pain into his passion, and proudly hosts The Rest and Recovery Podcast. In addition, he is a recent FDN graduate who is now working with (primarily) men to help them stay healthy long after their youthful years have passed.
If you have any questions about what was discussed today, visit us on Instagram @fdntraining.
Want to talk to Ev or one of the other Course Enrollment Advisors? Visit www.fdntraining.com/call to book now.
About Scott:
Scott is a husband of 20 years, father of three girls, 20+ year sales leader, podcast host of The Rest & Recovery Podcast, long-time endurance athlete, coach, and turned FDNP with the goal to enable clients to thrive and live this one life well.
Where to find Scott:
Facebook Profiles: @causewayhealth / @therestandrecoverypodcast
Instagram Profiles: @causewayhealth / @therestandrecoverypodcast
Where to find FDN:
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Monday Sep 18, 2023
Monday Sep 18, 2023
14 years ago, FDN was being taught as an in-person course that you could complete in one long weekend. Since then, we've evolved into a course that has over 4,000 graduates in 50+ countries around the world!
One of the countries we are seeing increasing demand in is Australia. With different, ever-changing laws and opposite time zones, many people ask us whether or not they will be fully supported as an Australian FDN trainee. The answer is (thankfully) absolutely, 100% YES!
To explain how FDN works across in Australia, we are interviewing Antoinette Barnardo, an FDN Course Mentor who works and lives there!
Best yet? Like all of our FDN mentors, she has a REAL health story and actually graduated from the program herself.
Let us know if you have any questions about what was discussed today! Reach out on Instagram @fdntraining, or book a call with one of our Course Enrollment Advisors by going to www.fdntraining.com/call.
Want to catch live episodes of The Health Detective Podcast?
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Thursday Sep 14, 2023
Thursday Sep 14, 2023
On today's episode of The Health Detective Podcast, we are talking once again with a woman on a mission to help pets around the world, Dr. Ruth Roberts!
Dr. Roberts was a huge hit the last time she recorded with us! She gave us all the latest insights into keeping our furry friends healthy (you can listen to that episode by clicking here), as well as how we can actually pursue a legitimate career working with people's pets through her Pet Wellness Program.
Now that we have had multiple FDNs successfully go through Dr. Roberts' program with nothing but amazing things to say, we felt it was only right to have her back on to talk about he program itself. (WARNING: You'll also get Detective Ev asking a bunch of random pet related questions!)
Would you like to see more of Dr. Roberts in the future? Let us know by shooting us a direct message on Instagram: @fdntraining.
About Dr. Roberts:
During her 30-year career as a DVM, Dr. Ruth Roberts has become one of the nation’s foremost experts in holistic and integrative veterinary medicine. After graduating from North Carolina State University in 1990, Dr. Roberts began her career practicing traditional, Western medicine. The onset of simultaneous health challenges for both her and her dog Arnold, however, prompted Dr. Roberts to seek solutions outside of the traditional realm of veterinary care she had learned in her textbooks.
Dr. Roberts furthered her education by absorbing the principles of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine at the Chi Institute in Florida. Her studies there would eventually form the foundation for her philosophy that “good health begins in the bowl.” She is certified in Acupuncture, Chinese Herbology and Food Therapy.
In 2006, Dr. Roberts founded The Original Crockpot Diet and continues to see the dramatic results it makes in the health of her patients. She is a leading consultant in integrative veterinary medicine and advises clients in the United States and internationally through her website DrRuthRoberts.com.
Dr. Ruth is on a mission to empower pet parents and foster a vibrant community, to ignite a global movement for natural pet health, led by Dr. Ruth and Holistic Pet Health Coaches. Our aim is to equip you with the tools and knowledge to champion your pet's wellbeing, making every tail wag and content purr a testament to our commitment.
Where to find Dr. Ruth:
Dr. Roberts' website: www.drruthroberts.com
Where to find FDN:
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.
Monday Sep 11, 2023
Monday Sep 11, 2023
On today's episode of The Health Detective Podcast, we are interviewing the Executive Director of the Association of Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioners, Lucy McKellar!
Lucy's life took an unexpected twist when she suddenly started experiencing panic attacks, seemingly out of nowhere. Growing up she had a typical upbringing, and now had a steady job and good friends. The concept of "mental health" wasn't even on her radar. Then, one night, she was jolted awake by a panic attack, convinced she was about to die. From that moment, her life became an unending cycle of fear, dominating her every waking moment.
Desperate for answers, Lucy embarked on a ten-year journey through the labyrinth of mental health struggles, consulting numerous doctors, but finding no relief. Ten years into her battle, Lucy uncovered a profound truth: the interconnectedness of mind and body. This revelation became the catalyst for her path to mental well-being. Through determination and self-discovery, she managed to regain control over her mental health, ultimately becoming an advocate for mental health awareness.
Today, Lucy is doing FANTASTIC. And while she is not actively taking clients, she still wanted to come on and share her story so that people who are actively dealing with mental health symptoms such as hers can have hope for a better future!
If you enjoyed this episode, please feel free to reach out to us anytime at @fdntraining on Instagram, or book a call with our team by going to fdntraining.com/call. If you'd like to reach out to Lucy, you can do so on Instagram @lucy_laurenn
Where to find FDN:
Find all our free resources, workshops, and other channels at fdntraining.com/resources.