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The Naturopathic Approach

My naturopathic approach brings all the pieces together — your hormones, digestion, sleep, stress, energy, and daily habits — to show you what’s really shaping how you feel.

Instead of treating things in isolation, we look at the patterns that link everything together, so your plan actually makes sense for your real life.

You’ll receive clear, evidence-informed guidance on food, routines, movement, and general herbal or nutritional options — all designed to support you in a sustainable, everyday way.

No overwhelm. No guesswork. Just practical steps that help you create better rhythm and steadier energy.

With two decades of clinical experience across naturopathy, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and functional-style frameworks, I offer support that’s personalised, grounded, and designed to work with your life, not against it.
It’s about helping you feel more capable, more supported, and more connected to what your body needs.

Understanding Your Testing Options

Functional Testing: A Deeper Look at How Your Body is Functioning

Standard blood tests are designed to detect disease — that is, results that fall clearly outside the normal medical range, such as thyroid disorders, anaemia, or diabetes. These tests are essential for diagnosis and medical safety, but they don’t always explain why someone may feel unwell despite results being “normal.”

Functional testing offers a different perspective.

Rather than looking only for overt disease, these assessments explore how your body’s systems are working day to day. They can highlight patterns, trends, and early shifts that may help explain issues like low energy, digestive discomfort, cycle changes, or fluctuations in mood.

Depending on the type of functional test chosen, it may explore areas such as:

Nutrient absorption
Gut microbiome composition
Stress hormones and daily rhythm
Digestive and detoxification capacity
Inflammation patterns
Cycle-related hormone fluctuations

Functional testing is optional, and not everyone needs it. But for some people, it provides additional insight that can help shape a more personalised and targeted naturopathic plan. If you're curious about whether this might be useful for you, you’re welcome to book a free focus call to discuss your goals and options.

GP-Ordered Blood Tests: An Essential Starting Point

Your GP is a key partner in establishing a comprehensive baseline for your health. They can order the full range of standard blood tests — such as thyroid markers, iron studies, blood glucose, cholesterol, kidney and liver function, and basic hormone checks — many of which may be covered under Medicare in Australia.

This approach has several benefits:

It keeps essential testing more affordable
Results become part of your medical file
You can easily request a copy to share with your naturopath or keep for your records

It’s important to note that GPs typically order tests they feel are clinically necessary, which means certain in-depth nutrient, hormone, microbiome, or functional markers may not be included. Medicare also does not cover specialised functional tests, which are privately funded.

Because of this, many people choose a combined approach:
using GP testing to establish the essentials and adding functional assessments only if deeper insight is needed. This balanced strategy provides a clearer overall picture while keeping costs and accessibility in mind.

Using Your Results to Guide Care

Whether your results come from your GP, functional testing, or both, they play an important role in shaping your personalised naturopathic plan. Together, we use these findings to:

Understand how your body is responding to daily stresses
Identify areas that may benefit from additional support
Track progress over time
Tailor your nutrition, herbal medicine, and lifestyle strategies in a way that feels realistic and achievable

If you’d like help deciding which type of testing is most appropriate for your situation, you’re welcome to get in touch — I’m here to guide you through the options clearly and thoughtfully.

Tests you may not get with your GP

These are just some of the tests I often recommend — there are others we can explore if needed.

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Functional Testing Options

In some cases, additional functional or integrative testing may be considered to explore patterns related to digestion, hormones, stress, and nutrient status. These tests are used to support understanding and are always interpreted alongside symptoms, history, and standard medical care where appropriate.

Examples include:

Comprehensive Stool Analysis

A comprehensive stool analysis may offer insight into digestive function by assessing markers related to gut bacteria balance, digestion, absorption, and inflammation. It can provide information about how well food is being broken down, patterns within the microbiome, and whether there are signs that the gut lining or immune system may be under strain. This type of testing can help build a broader picture of digestive patterns rather than focusing on a single symptom.

DUTCH Hormone Test

The DUTCH (Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones) may provide information about hormone patterns over time, including oestrogen and progesterone metabolites, as well as cortisol rhythm. It can offer insight into how hormones are produced, metabolised, and cleared, alongside markers related to stress response. This test is often used to explore hormonal rhythms rather than single-point hormone levels.

Organic Acids Testing

Organic acids testing can give a snapshot of certain metabolic pathways in the body. It may provide information related to nutrient status, mitochondrial energy production, detoxification pathways, and gut-derived metabolites. Results can help identify patterns that suggest where the body may be under increased demand or not operating as efficiently as expected.

Food Sensitivity Panels

Food sensitivity panels may offer information about potential immune reactions to specific foods. These reactions are different from immediate food allergies and are often delayed or less obvious. The results can sometimes help guide short-term dietary exploration, particularly when digestive or systemic symptoms are difficult to pin down, though findings are best interpreted alongside symptoms and clinical history.

Nutrient Panels

Nutrient panels can assess levels of key vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids that are not always included in standard blood tests. These results may provide insight into nutritional status, absorption patterns, or increased nutrient demands. They are often used to support a more personalised approach to nourishment rather than as standalone diagnostic tools.

Adrenal Hormone Panels

Adrenal hormone panels may offer insight into cortisol patterns across the day, rather than a single measurement. This can provide information about stress response rhythms, energy patterns, and how the body adapts to ongoing demands. Understanding daily cortisol variation can be helpful when exploring fatigue, sleep disruption, or feelings of being “wired but tired.”

These tests are not diagnostic and are not a replacement for medical assessment or care. Testing is optional and discussed on an individual basis depending on history, symptoms, and clinical relevance.

Your Naturopathic ToolBox

Nourishment as Medicine

Food is one of the most reliable tools for supporting everyday health. The way you eat provides the raw materials your body uses for energy, metabolic balance, cognitive clarity, and hormonal rhythm. By making evidence-informed choices, we can focus on meals that support steadier blood sugar, healthy digestion, and the systems that influence how you feel.

Together, we’ll shape a way of eating that is restorative and clinically considered — centred on nutrient density, macronutrient balance, and timing. The goal is a sustainable pattern that supports clearer thinking, steadier energy, and a more resilient daily rhythm.

When nourishment is consistent, everything feels more possible.

Herbal Medicine

Herbal medicine blends traditional knowledge with modern clinical insight. Herbs contain diverse phytochemicals — such as polyphenols, alkaloids, terpenes, and glycosides — that interact with the body’s signalling pathways, metabolic processes, and regulatory systems. These compounds can influence stress responses, digestive function, circulation, and overall physiological adaptation in meaningful ways.

In clinical practice, prescribing involves selecting herbs whose known actions and traditional uses align with your individual presentation. Rather than focusing on isolated symptoms, we look at broader patterns across sleep, energy, digestion, mood, and cycle history to determine which plants may best support your body’s natural regulatory processes.

It’s a precise, evidence-informed approach — one of the most versatile tools in naturopathic care.

The Right Supplements

Supplements can play an important role in supporting wellbeing — but only when they’re selected and used appropriately. Many people invest in products that aren’t suited to their needs, or take formulas that offer little benefit without the right guidance.

In your plan, supplementation is considered carefully, using both testing and clinical reasoning to determine what is actually appropriate. This includes choosing the right nutrient form, assessing dosage, and understanding how each supplement fits into your broader health picture. Nutrients such as magnesium, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids, or B-vitamins may be used when indicated, with each choice made intentionally rather than by trial and error.

By combining professional insight with relevant data, your supplement plan becomes purposeful and aligned with your individual needs. The result is a streamlined approach — fewer unnecessary products, clearer direction, and a plan that supports your overall health goals in a practical, sustainable way.

Emotional Healing

Nutrition and supplements are only part of the picture. Your emotional state, stress load, and daily rhythm also shape how you feel and function day to day.

Your plan may include gentle mind–body practices that help create a calmer internal environment and reconnect you with your body:

Meditation and breathwork to promote relaxation and emotional regulation
Journalling and reflective prompts to explore thoughts and patterns
Acupressure and TCM-inspired techniques to encourage ease and body awareness
Tai Chi and Qigong for mindful movement and smoother energy flow
Simple rituals and routines to help you feel supported throughout your day

These practices aren’t add-ons — they help create a sustainable foundation for wellbeing and support the way you move through daily life.