Andrea's Story

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From moving to Italy after college to live la vita bella, to my adventures selling Italian wine in bustling New York City, to my move to the gorgeous mountains of the Sierra Nevada and my decision to become a Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, food, cooking and health have played a central role in my decided path.  I think life should taste good, do no harm to the body or planet, and be full of companionship and community.

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While living abroad in Italy, eating every culinary delight in sight, I began to itch. My scalp, inflamed and flaky, began to shed, and I realized that I had a problem. I dealt with it, scratching when I could, and lived with the itch and discomfort for years. Fast-forward to living in New York, where I had a solid job and health insurance, I went to a dermatologist to figure out what it was. Psoriasis. I went home with a hefty prescription for topical corticosteroids. The drugs worked their magic, and I didn't know enough to look for the WHY of the problem. I also had no idea that this condition could be managed without the band-aid of pharmaceutical drugs. And, as time went on, the drugs were not always enough.

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It was only after experiencing later hormonal issues, weight gain, sleep disturbances, thyroid insufficiency, uncontrollable stress, the darkness of depression, that I looked for the root cause of my health problems and better solutions. It turns out that what you consume (both as food, in your relationships and in your environment) has a profound impact on how you feel and if symptoms manifest.

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By shifting my diet, supplementing where needed, changing hormonal inputs, decreasing my stress load, and ultimately taking control of my life, I was able to turn the situation around. In the process, I became a Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, so that I could help others figure out the root cause to WHY they are experiencing symptoms.

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My Nutrition and Wellness Education:

I became a Certified Holistic Health Coach in 2011 through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and began working with clients to help them adjust their diets and lifestyles to encourage wellness. In 2018, I became a Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner through the Nutritional Therapy Association, which taught me hands-on ways to test my clients for dysfunction and nutritional deficiencies, as well as the nutritional solutions that will help them feel and function better. Further, I am a Restorative Wellness Practitioner, and have completed specialized coursework in cancer nutrition. I have also studied advanced courses in ART (Autonomic Response Testing) and Applied Psycho-Neurobiology with Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt. I am continually updating my education through new courses, research and study.