FAQs
Hi, I’m Joanna
As a Natural Therapist with 11+ years clinical experience (as of 2021), I know that better health and wellness are within your reach – if you know how to get there.
The path to best physical, mental and emotional health looks different for everyone, and I can definitely tell you that it’s not about just treating your symptoms or diagnosed diseases.
It’s about figuring out which factors you can effectively manage, so you can live your life with the vitality and good health optimal for you.
Most of my clients work with me because they’re looking for an experienced guide who takes a wholistic view of health. Yes, your health plan needs to include your symptoms and diagnosis, but it also needs to reflect your personal goals and values.
I trust the Frequently Asked Questions below will help you better understand the services I offer, how I work with clients as a team, and will provide a short explanation of my therapeutic approach and methods.
Many of your questions will be answered in the below video, where I talk about my therapeutic approach, clinical experience to date, key steps in clients’ healing journeys, conditions I specialise in and much more,
Naturopathic medicine focuses on the health of the entire body and not the specific disease. It supports and promotes the body’s natural healing processes and vitality leading to, in time, you regaining good health and wellbeing that are optimal for you.
By addressing the root causes of disease, providing customised support and applying safe and effective natural medicines, you can successfully improve the quality of life and achieve optimal health for you.
While the vast majority of emergency situations should be handled by conventional medicine, Naturopathic Medicine is often a very effective therapeutic method to remedy or prevent many chronic illnesses.
The main focus is on correcting nutrition and lifestyle factors that can lead to and/or perpetuate these conditions.
For the most part, I’m able to address most of the chronic concerns you may have. As a Naturopath, Nutritionist and Herbalist, I’m trained to wholistically assess all body systems.
In particular, I have special interest, training and have helped my clients successfully address health imbalances in the following areas:
- All gut and digestive disorders – in particular, I have knowledge and experience in remedying:
- Parasitic infections of the gut
- Food intolerances and reactions
- Liver health – especially fatty liver disease (NAFLD)
- Leaky gut and microbiome imbalances
- Fatigue and adrenal dysfunction – adrenal and chronic fatigue
- Hormone imbalances and disorders – PMS, PCOS, endometriosis
- Autoimmune disorders – particularly thyroid disorders (hypothyroid, Hashimoto)
- Weight loss therapy based on using nutrition as medicine and gut microbiome balancing
- Advanced lab tests interpretation reports using optimal naturopathic ranges
Additionally, natural medicines are also beneficial for those who are feeling well but want to prevent disease in the future or be at their peak health and wellbeing.
I assess the risk factors and provide you with advice and the tools to achieve optimal health.
Naturopathic medicine often involves the use of several healing therapies to achieve optimal health and wellbeing. I apply the following therapeutic modalities and natural medicines:
- Naturopathy
- Nutrition
- Herbal medicines
- Flower essences
- Iridology
- Functional lab testing
During our first consultation, we start with a comprehensive review of your health that covers your current complaints, medical history, family history, medications and supplements, current diet, digestive capacity, stress levels, hormonal balance, and lifestyle factors such as sleep, exercise, environmental exposures etc.
We also talk about your health goals and agree on the priorities and steps.
The purpose of this detailed discussion is to investigate your health up to this point in time, and to identify aspects of your diet and lifestyle that may be linked to your symptoms.
Further testing may be needed to find and better understand the root causes of your symptoms and complaints.
Follow-up consultations
While there is no one-size-fits-all path to better health, I find that most clients require at least one follow-up appointment to customise their therapeutic plan.
Of course, the length of any therapy will be affected by a number of factors including how long you’ve been unwell, medications you take, your ability to make the recommended changes, lifestyle choices and habits, and your genetic makeup.
All therapeutic plans are developed in agreement with you and are tailored to your needs and lifestyle.
If your health condition has a simpler root cause, you may require 3-4 consultations and then implement the recommendations on your own or with regular coaching.
For more complex health problems, monthly appointments are needed to remove any roadblocks to healing and to refine your therapy as you go.
Follow up consultations usually take 30 to 60 minutes, depending on your needs and progress.
Learn more about the services I offer and book a consultation here.
This varies significantly from person to person, depending on your specific needs, and is usually discussed at the first consultation. Some clients want general advice, others look for having ongoing care to get to the root of their issues.
After initial investigations, I create a therapeutic plan for you to get to the bottom of your concerns rather than just putting a band-aid on your symptoms.
After our first consultation I usually make a few recommendations that you can implement immediately to feel better.
Needless to say, each person needs a different amount of support to get to where they want to be health wise.
Please keep in mind that the longer you have been experiencing a condition or symptoms, the longer it’ll take to improve it and your overall health.
It helps to think of health and wellbeing as a journey. I’m afraid there are no quick fixes or magic pills available here:)
Overall cost is determined by your current health status. The more complex your health concerns the greater number of tests and appointments may be required, and the more involved your therapy may be. Approximate cost is usually discussed at the first consultation.
Unfortunately, as of 1st April 2019, Herbal Medicine and Naturopathy are no longer covered by private health funds in Australia. A few funds still cover nutritional consultations. Check with your fund if your cover includes nutrition (not dietetics).
Yes, they do! They are increasingly used at present during these challenging times to provide people with healthcare they often wouldn’t be able to get otherwise.
Of course, if you have a broken ankle or you need to stop bleeding, no one can do that online. However, almost all of what I can help with doesn’t require you sitting across a desk from me.
Most of my services cover existing chronic health conditions and I address your concerns from a whole-person centred approach. If you need further medical care or testing, I’ll refer you to a doctor or specialist to conduct further enquiries.
In addition, before recommending any natural therapy or prescribing supplements in online consultations, I ask my clients to either provide their past and current blood and other relevant test results, or I refer them for testing. This is an important step to take for any online advice to make sure there are no major pathologies present.
When I prescribe supplements or herbs, you can order them online via a virtual dispensary I use. The remedies will be delivered to either your home or business address Australia-wide.
Importantly, when conducting online / virtual consultations, I’m able to work with you no matter where you’re located, in the comfort of your own home.
Here at Naturimedica, I focus on digging deep to uncover the underlying cause(s) of your health concerns. I leave no stone unturned until we get there.
Along the way, I provide support, coaching and education to help you to understand your unique health challenges, and what steps to take to maintain good health after you completed working with me.
Nutrition as medicine is a foundation of all my treatments. I also use high quality supplements, herbs and lifestyle modifications to complement the nutritional therapy.
I love researching and finding new effective therapeutic tools, both evidence-based and traditional remedies, to keep my skills and knowledge up to date, in order to offer ‘out of the box’ options that may not be known to or utilised by other practitioners.
Besides, how many practitioners do you know that are ready and willing to tackle those pesky gut parasites that often can cause problems anywhere in the body? Or are urging you to ‘love your liver’ as if your health depends on it, because it does!
My overall therapeutic approach is based on the proprietary therapeutic system I developed over the years called NATURE HEALS™ described here.
The NATURE HEALS™ method comprehensively covers the most important aspects of good health and wellbeing, and can be easily and beautifully tailored to your needs and life circumstances.
I’m confident that with my guidance and support, better health and a healthy lifestyle are well within your reach.
What are my clients saying about working with me? Read their comments here.
Also check out Naturimedica’s reviews on Facebook and Google.
Most definitely! I firmly believe that your interest is best served when there is a cooperation and exchange of ideas and knowledge between all your health care providers. Each profession brings specific insights and co-treatment that can no doubt, in my view, be more effective for you.
Both work similarly as they view the body as a whole rather than separate systems. Both investigate the root cause(s) of your health problems through detailed investigations and lab testing, where required. They then use natural medicines, nutrition and lifestyle changes to correct the problems.
The main difference between a Naturopath and a Nutritionist is that Naturopaths are trained to use a wider range of natural medicines to achieve optimal outcomes for clients.
Where Nutritionists works with food/diet, lifestyle and supplements only, Naturopaths employ those modalities plus utilise the powerful properties of herbs, as well as homeopathy, flower essences and iridology to help clients physically, emotionally and spiritually.
I have a practical and down to earth approach combined with personal insight and intuition – after all everyone needs to take care of their body, mind and spirit to be resilient, healthy and well.
I will work with you to make sure that your needs are met, whatever they may be. I always aim to help you to regain good health in ways that are in alignment with your values.
My clients come from different backgrounds and locations and they seek naturopathic/ nutrition care for a variety of reasons.
Some have reached the end of what conventional medicine can offer them, some prefer a wholistic (i.e. looking at a whole person) therapeutic approach, others want health assessment or advice on disease prevention.
Many of them continue to take medications whilst also incorporating natural medicines in their treatment plans.
I believe it’s my life calling and a privilege to share my natural medicine knowledge, experience and insights along with an understanding of your health concerns and values, to offer an approach that is truly unique for you.
And yes, if you’re a bit woo-woo, I’ll meet you there too:)
Please send any questions you have to joanna@naturimedica.com
or
Book a free 15-minutes discussion to find out how I can help.