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Registered Naturopathic Doctor · Woodstock & virtual across Ontario

How I approach common health concerns

This page is here so you know how I think before you book. For each concern below: who tends to book for it, what a first visit covers, which lab markers I would run and which ones I would not, what a plan may include, and how progress gets measured. Where a test is expensive and unlikely to change the plan, I say so.

None of this is a promise about your results. It is a description of the process you would be walking into.

  • Registered with the College of Naturopaths of Ontario
  • Trained at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine
  • First visits are 60-75 minutes
  • Many extended health plans cover naturopathic care

How I approach Fertility & pregnancy

A lot of women booking for fertility support have been tracking for months and still do not know whether they are ovulating. They have been told to keep trying for a year before anyone looks closer, and nobody has walked them through what their cycle is actually doing or which of their numbers are worth checking.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We go through your full cycle history: length, bleeding, pain, what your tracking has shown so far, and what birth control you have been on and when you came off it. Then the foundations, because at this stage they matter more than anything fancy: what your meals look like, protein and fiber intake, sleep, stress, movement, alcohol and caffeine, and any known deficiencies.

  2. What testing may look like

    Testing starts with blood work, not expensive functional panels, and the timing of the draw matters. Depending on your history that may include a day-3 hormone panel, mid-luteal progesterone to look at ovulation, a thyroid panel with TSH and free T4, prolactin, ferritin, B12, and vitamin D. Test, do not guess. If cost is a barrier, most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP. I would not start with a Dutch test here; it is expensive and it rarely changes what we do first.

  3. What a plan may include

    A plan usually starts with the foundations: nutrition targets, sleep, movement, and stress. From there it may layer in targeted supplementation where your labs support it, for example iron if your ferritin is low or vitamin D if you are deficient. Acupuncture fits for some people. If you are already working with a fertility clinic or on medicated cycles, natural care runs alongside that, never against it.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. We track your cycles and retest the same markers at defined intervals, so both of us can see what is changing on paper instead of going on how a month felt.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    If your history points toward a workup that sits outside my scope, or toward care that belongs with a fertility clinic, I refer out or collaborate with your MD.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

Book an appointment Explore the Fertility Foundations Program →

How I approach Hormones & periods

A lot of women booking for their periods have already been told their labs are normal and that this is just what periods are like. Heavy bleeding, cramps that take a day out of the month, cycles that arrive whenever they feel like it, PMS that starts two weeks early. Normal on a lab report and normal for you are not the same thing.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We go through your cycle in detail: length, flow, clotting, pain and where it sits, PMS and when it starts, and your history with hormonal birth control including when you came off it. Then the foundations: what your meals look like, protein and fiber, sleep, stress, and how much you are training.

  2. What testing may look like

    Blood work comes first, and when in your cycle we draw it matters. Depending on your history that may include a day-3 panel for FSH, LH, and estradiol, mid-luteal progesterone, a thyroid panel, prolactin, ferritin, B12, and vitamin D. Where androgens are part of the picture, free and total testosterone and DHEAS. Most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP. I would not run a Dutch test first. Blood work answers most hormone questions for a fraction of the cost.

  3. What a plan may include

    Foundations first: nutrition targets, sleep, and a training load your body can actually recover from. From there a plan may layer in targeted supplementation where your labs support it, for example iron when ferritin is low. If hormonal birth control is the right tool for you, natural care works alongside it, never against it.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. We retest the same markers at defined intervals and track your cycles, so both of us can see what is changing on paper rather than relying on memory of a bad month.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    Structural causes like fibroids or endometriosis need imaging and often a gynecologist. If your history points there, or anywhere else outside my scope, I refer out or collaborate with your MD.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

Book an appointment Read the guide to hormonal imbalance →

How I approach PMOS (formerly PCOS)

A lot of women booking for PMOS (polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, formerly PCOS) have already had the diagnosis for years. They were told to come back when they want to get pregnant, or handed birth control as the only option, and nobody walked them through what is actually going on with their insulin, androgens, and cycles. The name changed in 2026; the diagnosis and the criteria did not.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. Before anything else, we go through the foundations: what your meals look like, protein and fiber intake, sleep, stress, movement, and your full cycle history.

  2. What testing may look like

    Testing starts with blood work, not expensive functional panels. Depending on your history, that may include fasting insulin and glucose, free and total testosterone, DHEAS, a thyroid panel, iron, B12, and vitamin D. Test, do not guess. If cost is a barrier, most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP.

  3. What a plan may include

    A plan usually starts with foundations: nutrition targets, strength training, and sleep. From there it may layer in targeted supplements where your labs support them. If pharmaceuticals like metformin or hormonal birth control are the right tool for you, natural care works alongside them, never against them.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. We retest the same markers at defined intervals and track your cycles, so both of us can see what is changing on paper.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    If something sits outside my scope, I refer out or collaborate with your MD.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

Book an appointment Read the guide to naturopathic care for PMOS →

How I approach Men's health

A lot of men book because something has been off for a while and no one has looked closely. Energy is flat, training is not producing what it used to, sleep is broken, and the last time anyone ran full blood work was years ago. In-person appointments for men are at the InsideU Woodstock clinic, and virtual visits are available anywhere in Ontario.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We start with the foundations rather than a protocol: what your meals look like, protein intake, alcohol, sleep quality and duration, stress, and what your training actually is right now.

  2. What testing may look like

    Testing starts with blood work. Depending on your history, that may include total and free testosterone, a thyroid panel with TSH and free T4, fasting insulin and glucose or A1C, a lipid panel, ferritin, B12, vitamin D, and a CBC. Test, do not guess. If cost is a barrier, most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP.

  3. What a plan may include

    A plan usually starts with the foundations: protein targets, strength training, sleep, and alcohol. From there it may layer in targeted supplementation where your labs support it. If a pharmaceutical is the right tool, that is a conversation with your MD, and natural care works alongside it.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. We retest the same markers at defined intervals, so both of us can see what is changing on paper.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    Blood pressure or blood sugar that needs urgent management, prostate concerns, and anything else outside my scope go to your MD. I refer out or collaborate rather than stretching scope.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

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How I approach Thyroid health

A lot of women booking for thyroid concerns have had a TSH run once, been told it was in range, and left it there. Fatigue, cold hands, hair thinning, constipation, a flat mood, body composition that will not shift. A single number from two years ago is not a thyroid workup.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We go through your symptom history and timeline, any family history of thyroid disease, and any previous results you can bring. Then the foundations: meals, protein and fiber, sleep, stress, and movement.

  2. What testing may look like

    Testing starts with blood work, and a full thyroid panel means more than a TSH. Depending on your history that may include TSH, free T4, free T3, and TPO antibodies, plus ferritin, B12, vitamin D, and a CBC, because low iron and low B12 produce a lot of the same symptoms. Test, do not guess. If cost is a barrier, most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP.

  3. What a plan may include

    In an underactive thyroid or Hashimoto's, levothyroxine is often necessary, and it is the right starting point rather than something to work around. Once that is stable, a plan may layer in selenium, zinc, iron, and vitamin D where your labs support them, alongside the foundations.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. Thyroid markers get rechecked on a defined schedule, generally some weeks after any change rather than immediately, so we are reading something real instead of noise.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    A nodule, a goitre, or anything that needs imaging goes to your MD, and sometimes to an endocrinologist. Thyroid medication dosing sits with your MD, and I collaborate rather than work around it.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

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How I approach Perimenopause & menopause

A lot of women in their forties are told they are too young for this. Cycles get shorter, or longer, or unpredictable. Sleep breaks in the middle of the night, mood shifts, and body composition changes even though nothing about the routine did. Perimenopause can start years before the last period, and the majority of women are not told that.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We map your cycle history and how it has changed, your symptoms and when they started, and your family history. Then the foundations: protein, fiber, sleep, alcohol, stress, and strength training, which matters more in this window than at any point before it.

  2. What testing may look like

    This is the one place where I usually recommend less testing rather than more. Perimenopause is a clinical diagnosis, made on your history and your cycles. Hormones swing week to week here, so a one-time estradiol or FSH rarely changes the plan. What is worth running: a thyroid panel, ferritin, B12, vitamin D, fasting glucose and A1C, and a lipid panel, because cardiovascular and bone health become the real story in this decade. Most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP.

  3. What a plan may include

    Foundations first, with protein and resistance training doing the heavy lifting for muscle and bone. From there a plan may layer in targeted supplementation where your labs support it. If hormone therapy is the right tool for you, that is a conversation with your MD, and natural care works alongside it rather than in place of it.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. We track symptoms and cycles over time and recheck the metabolic and nutrient markers at defined intervals.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    Bleeding after menopause, or any bleeding pattern that concerns me, goes to your MD promptly. Hormone therapy prescribing and bone density imaging sit with your MD, and I collaborate rather than stretch scope.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

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How I approach Digestion & gut health

A lot of women booking for digestion have already cut out gluten, dairy, and half of what they used to eat, and they are still bloated. Somewhere along the way the food list got shorter and the answers did not get better.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We go through the full history: what the symptoms actually are, when they show up relative to meals, bowel habits, what has already been removed from your diet and what happened when it was. Then the foundations: fiber, protein, hydration, meal timing, sleep, and stress, which affects digestion more directly than most people expect.

  2. What testing may look like

    Blood work comes first: ferritin, B12, a CBC, a thyroid panel, and celiac screening. Celiac screening has to happen before you remove gluten, because gluten needs to be in your diet for the test to mean anything. For suspected SIBO, I would start with a two-week empirical protocol while we assess diet and lifestyle, rather than sending you for a $400 breath test up front. If you feel improvements, that is a strong signal to continue with the full protocol, and it saves about $400 in testing that was not going to change the plan. I do not use stool tests or food sensitivity testing as first-line; they are expensive substitutes for clinical thinking.

  3. What a plan may include

    Foundations first: fiber, protein, meal structure, and sleep. From there a plan may layer in targeted supplementation where it is indicated, and where food has already been restricted, a structured plan for adding things back rather than leaving the list short indefinitely.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. Symptoms get tracked in a structured way rather than by memory, and any markers that came back low get rechecked at defined intervals.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    Blood in your stool, unexplained weight loss, anemia, a family history of inflammatory bowel disease or colon cancer, or new symptoms after 50 go to your MD, and often to a gastroenterologist. Those are not naturopathic-first situations, and I refer out.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

Book an appointment Read the guide to digestion and gut health →

How I approach Energy & fatigue

A lot of women booking for fatigue arrive with a supplement shelf built around adrenal fatigue. Adrenal fatigue is a trendy topic, however from a clinical and diagnostic standpoint it is not a real condition. Real cortisol conditions do exist. They are called Cushing's and Addison's, and these are more rare to be diagnosed with. What most people are calling a cortisol problem is usually something else, and it is usually something we can see on standard blood work.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We go through what the fatigue actually looks like: when it hit, whether sleep restores anything, and what else came with it. Brain fog, shortness of breath, heavy periods, hair loss, dark circles. Then the foundations: meals and their timing, protein, fiber, healthy fats and carbs, light exposure, screens before bed.

  2. What testing may look like

    Blood work first, because most fatigue has a visible cause. Depending on your history that may include B12, a full iron panel including ferritin, vitamin D, a thyroid panel, fasting glucose and A1C, a lipid panel, and a CBC. If someone came to me on only ashwagandha and a salt cocktail, I would let them know we are missing a lot of information about what could actually be driving the fatigue. Test, do not guess. If cost is a barrier, most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP.

  3. What a plan may include

    Foundations first: meals with enough protein, sleep, light exposure in the morning, screens at night, and a movement load that fits what you have available. From there a plan may layer in targeted supplementation where your labs support it. I do not blanket-recommend iron, B12, or vitamin D without testing your levels first.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. Any marker that came back low gets rechecked at defined intervals, so we can see on paper whether what we changed is doing anything.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    If your history or your labs point toward something that needs medical workup, including a genuine suspicion of Cushing's or Addison's, that goes to your MD. I refer out rather than stretch scope.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

Book an appointment Read the guide to fatigue and low energy →

How I approach Stress

A lot of women booking for stress are functioning fine on paper and running on very little underneath it. Sleep is short, meals happen when there is time, and the fuse is shorter than it used to be. The advice they have already been given is to relax more, which is not a plan.

  1. What the first visit covers

    A first visit runs 60 to 75 minutes. We go through what the load actually is right now, what sleep looks like, what a normal day of eating looks like, what movement is realistic, and what has already been tried. Foundations first, because they are usually the part that quietly slipped.

  2. What testing may look like

    There is no blood test for stress. What blood work does here is rule things in or out, because low iron, low B12, low vitamin D, and an underactive thyroid all look a lot like stress from the outside. Depending on your history that may include ferritin, B12, vitamin D, a thyroid panel, and a CBC. I would not run a cortisol panel to confirm a feeling; it is expensive and it does not change what we do first. If cost is a barrier, most of these can be ordered through your MD or NP and covered by OHIP.

  3. What a plan may include

    Foundations first: sleep, regular meals with enough protein, light exposure, movement, and where possible, less on the plate. From there a plan may layer in targeted supplementation or botanical medicine where it is indicated, and acupuncture fits for some people. One step at a time; you do not need to overhaul everything at once.

  4. How progress is monitored

    Progress gets measured, not guessed at. Sleep and symptoms get tracked in a structured way, and any marker that came back low gets rechecked at defined intervals.

  5. When I refer or collaborate

    A lot of what gets called stress is better served by a psychotherapist, and I say so. Disordered eating, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia are outside my scope and I refer out. Mental health care is a collaboration with your MD, not something to work around.

Every plan is individualized, and no particular outcome can be promised.

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Not sure which one is you?

That is a normal place to start, and it is what a first visit is for. Appointments are in person in Woodstock or virtual anywhere in Ontario, and first visits run 60 to 75 minutes.

Book an appointment Not sure where to start?