Has it been a smooth road?

It definitely has not been smooth sailing! I am grateful for all I’ve learned and experienced, but not all of those things we’re good at the time! Some lessons learned are hard lessons. There have been many times of having to search for what I truly wanted, and many of those lessons were valuable “what I DON’T want” lessons. A severe shoulder injury after slipping on ice (in Colorado) forced me out of my practice as a chiropractor. Although it was a blessing in disguise eventually, that was extremely difficult to recover from both on a personal and professional level. Taking several positions that ended up being not what they were promised to be felt like setbacks at the time. Of course, in hindsight, they weren’t setbacks. And being away from my family during some holidays, the births of my beloved niece and nephew, birthdays, during tough family times, that took its toll constantly. And more so as I got older. I often felt like I was trying so hard to feel “rooted” and could never find it. On paper, things looked good. In my heart, I was very unsettled. So yes, there have been many challenges, to say the least. However, I would not be here today if it weren’t for every single one of them. So I’m grateful. And I wouldn’t change anything that has happened. It prepared me and helped me grow immensely.

We’d love to hear more about Novis Health.

I am currently a co-owner and eventual full owner of a Novis Health franchise, with plans for more locations in the Denver metro area. I am so honored to be a part of this journey of innovation, growth and quality health care, even more so than I was of my own successful practice in Connecticut and New York. Our mission is to get functional medicine to the masses. In my opinion, up until now, FM has been a very privatized specialty. Not a lot of people know about it or could afford it. But we feel very strongly that everyone should know about it and have access to it. The company specializes in Thyroid health, Diabetes and Autoimmune disorders. I personally also do women’s health and gut health.

I have done podcasts and presentations on these topics because I deeply believe that women (and men) need to be heard in regards to their health. I love empowering women to speak up on how they are feeling and not to accept “you’re fine” as an answer if they know something isn’t fine. This is what drives me to help others in what I do. We believe that every patient is a unique individual with unique needs and that healthcare shouldn’t be a “one size fits all” approach. We believe that getting to the “why” of a problem is much more important than just masking it. What I am most proud of with Novis Health, and what sets us apart, is that there isn’t another company doing what we’re doing. There are FM physicians and clinics, but not on this scale or in this model. I can confidently put my heart into this company because I can stand behind their mission and their “why.”

Is our city a good place to do what you do?

I used to live in NYC. People think that it is the place for innovative healthcare and the latest cutting edge therapies. I can say from experience that it is not. Perhaps for some things. When I came here in January to start opening some doors for my business, I was so happily surprised at how much people were already in a mindset of utilizing functional medicine. I didn’t take this as a competition but as support. I felt that I finally found a community who understood the importance of FM and were very much seeking it out. The Denver community has a lot of transplants, and that, to me, makes networking and support so much easier. The economy is thriving here, despite COVID, and who wouldn’t want to start a business in that type of atmosphere? This was not only the perfect fit for me personally, but I wouldn’t want to start a new business anywhere else. For what I do, it’s the best location.

My recommendation to others who want to get started here is to meet people. Go to an event, look up others who are doing what you do and contact them. I have found Denver to be a very welcoming place regarding business.

If I could make any improvements, maybe something with the traffic… (My dad said that I am exempt from the scorn of too many people moving here.) But I can’t blame people for wanting to move here!