Ethics and values are probably considered a bit old-fashioned in these days of vision and mission statements. But mine inform everything I do, and I won’t compromise them for any reason.
Those that most influence my work as a health care practitioner include:
CARE AND COMPASSION:
I care about everything and that includes you! I will really listen to you and do my best to understand your needs, your motivations and your goals. Health challenges can be confronting, and making the changes required to achieve your health goals can be hard! I promise to hold space for you and to support you through your “failures” as well as your successes - there’s no judgement here.
COLLABORATION:
We will work TOGETHER and co-create a sensible and realistic plan to help you achieve your health and wellbeing goals. I don’t begin my day by bouncing out of bed before dawn, meditating, practicing Yoga, running for miles, and making an organic, raw green smoothie with thirty different ingredients, and I don’t expect you to either. We will modify your health and wellbeing plan together, based on your feedback, as you make progress toward your goals.
COMPREHENSIVENESS:
I’ll take the time to truly understand your current health concerns, priorities and goals, your personal and family health history, and the dietary, lifestyle, environmental and other factors that may be influencing your health. Following your initial naturopathic consultation, you’ll receive a comprehensive personal health and wellbeing plan based on our work together, aimed at addressing the deeper causes of your health concerns, not only alleviating your symptoms.
EDUCATION AND EMPOWERMENT:
Knowledge is power! For me, this means that I continue to learn and always will - from formal and informal educational opportunities, from elders and mentors and fellow practitioners, and most of all from you, from every client that I see in clinic. For you, this means that I will take the time to help you understand the language of your body (what are your symptoms telling you? how is your body trying to restore equilibrium and how can we help?) and the different factors influencing your health. And as much as possible, I’ll share simple and inexpensive healing remedies and strategies that you can make and use from home yourself.
HOLISM AND RESPECT FOR YOU AS AN INDIVIDUAL:
You are more than your diagnosis, you are beautifully and uniquely you! We will work together to understand you as a whole person, and all the different factors that may be influencing your physical, mental/emotional, and spiritual health. I don’t have set treatment protocols that I trot out for different diagnoses. I am here to support you, not just your condition.
SUSTAINABILITY:
I prescribe as minimally as I can, and as much as possible rely on organic whole foods, simple herbal remedies, and positive lifestyle changes as medicine. Sometimes, if you have a complex or chronic health condition, more comprehensive supplementation may be required, but less is usually more! This approach is not only more environmentally sustainable (some medicinal herbs are now endangered due to overharvesting), but is also more financially sustainable for you. You shouldn’t have to spend a small fortune on supplements to feel better, and in any case, who wants to be swallowing handfuls of pills every day?
EQUITY AND ACCESS:
I’m passionate about equal access to natural health care for all. Herbal medicine, food as medicine, healing movement, breath and mindfulness, a healthy environment…these are the original people’s medicine, our birthright and ours to claim. I’m very conscious that naturopathic care is unaffordable for many, and I do my best to remedy this. I offer free “Community Clinic” consultations to low income members of my local Blue Mountains community, as well as substantial discounts to Commonwealth concession card holders, but if this doesn’t describe you and my services are still beyond your reach, please call me for a chat. I will do my best to accommodate you, while still respecting my need to make a modest living.
Above all, I feel that it is an enormous privilege to work with each and every one of the individuals in my care and to support them on their unique journeys to better health.
