I was blessed to have a very good education. I received a Doctorate Degree in Pharmacy from the University of Southern California, School of Pharmacy and graduated with honors and a member of Rho Chi. I have practiced as a Registered pharmacist for a number of years in the state of California. Practice settings include, managed care, long term care and retail pharmacy. My level of service included several years in management. This was my gateway to understanding science and medicine and the nuts and bolts of how the health care system functions. I was fortunate to discover functional medicine, on that fateful day, when I ran across an article in Drug Topics, a pharmacy magazine, in which a fellow pharmacist and leader, Ross Pelton, was recruiting pharmacists to complete Post Graduate Studies in Clinical Nutrition. I completed the courses and passed the boards to become recognized as a Certified Clinical Nutritionist (CCN). I say fortunate, because, I consider functional medicine to be a premier clinical form of health care that gets to the root cause of chronic illness and therefore offers great hope and true wellness to people every single day. My quest for knowledge continues to grow every single day as I try to listen to and attend as many courses, webinars and trainings as possible.

​Midway through my career, as a pharmacist, and prior to getting my CCN, I had a deep realization and concern that people were just not getting better when it came to chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and arthritis. Not only were the prescriptions never ending, there disease state seemed to continue to progress and their medication dosages increased or more drugs were prescribed. I had to grapple with learning that two very dear clients, died from some mix up or other with regard to their medications. Drugs, most definitely, have their place, but they are not the cure or answer in a lot of situations, especially if the cause has not been addressed first. This approach to health care, is very discouraging. My customers needed an advocate, though. The best you can do in those situations, is to provide consultations that help patients avoid the negative aspects of drug therapy and be aware of important precautions and supportive steps they can take to handle things like side effects, nutrient depletions, and things to be aware of when navigating the health care system.

​I have a deep concern and special interest in helping people who struggle with weight gain and blood sugar dysregulation. I have had my own struggles in both of these areas and want very much to help those who struggle in these areas to know that there is hope and help for them.

 For several years, the very, very high stressful work environment pushed me to have high blood pressure as well.  So I have first hand knowledge of how difficult these chronic illnesses can be.  Anyone dealing with a whole lot of stress, just know it’s a killer.  Get it under control.  I have ascertained  a lot of great information along the way to help me deal with these situations   The most effective, by far, has been to take a root cause approach to healing. However, having knowledge, alone, does not translate into wellness.  Application of the knowledge and tools you learn are paramount, and it can be done.  It is important to know your root causes and be about discovering ways to manage them.  There is usually more than one approach, but, regardless, addressing the root cause is key–at least you have a better chance for success. 

This declaration applies to chronic metabolic issues and does not apply to acute illness or emergency situations.

​I want, to encourage all who are reading this, to take care of yourself and don’t just give your life over to the system to look out for you.  Do your homework, ask questions and open your eyes to what is going on around you.  Everything that is handed to you systematically is not necessarily in your best interest  Get knowledge and understanding about everything important that concerns you.  As my mentor would say “the physician of the future is the patient”. 

​So, be blessed.

Don’t talk about it, be about it!

​Love Elaine

​P.S. stay  tuned for the rest of the story