Welcome to December, a time for reflection, gratitude and connection. I am so grateful for all the lessons, successes, failures, challenges, connections and experiences over the past year! Building Integrated Spectrum of Health Functional Medicine Practice has been a dream for a long time and is coming to fruition! Seeds are blossoming and I am having a blast creating an innovative medical practice to meet people where they are in their healing journey. I love bringing color, fun, joy, community and vitality to the healing space. I am passionate about whole person health, truth in medicine and personalized care. Join me in creating a whole new way to heal!

I am happy to be back in the newsletter space with you all! A place to share some nuggets of inspiration that may accompany you on your journey. A place to share the musings of my thoughts and to foster connection. As we navigate the landscape of our daily moments, life can feel overwhelming or full of ease and JOY. For me, the truth is, it is a bit of both! Not Either Or but BOTH AND. How I intentionally choose into each moment makes a BIG difference.

This month I invite you into a conversation about sexuality. We will take a look sexual health through the lens of the triangle paradigm; Sexual Health, Sexual Rights and Sexual Pleasure. These three areas are critical to the health and wellbeing of humans. In my experience as a healthcare practitioner, sexuality educator, woman, wife, mom, and human there is a huge gap when it comes to integrating healthy, inclusive health care and conversation around sexuality topics. In this Newsletter and recent ISH Blog post, I intend to bring awareness and curiosity to this topic to support you on your path to optimal wellness.

As I contemplate all the topics I could write about, the ideas swirl around, endless possibilities. I continue to ask what will support right now? The wellbeing of each contributes to the wellbeing of the whole. The micro to the macro, the interconnectedness with each other and the environment is fundamental to our wellbeing individually and collectively. I invite you to start with yourself and check in. This month's newsletter is full of questions for reflection of your personal self-nourishment and tips to support more! It is often the small shifts we make that have the most profound impacts, start small, choose one tip to practice and relish in the results.

I am thrilled to share that seeds planted many seasons ago are beginning to sprout. Integrated Spectrum of Health is in the early stages of becoming. This winter and spring ISH Integrative Medicine Micro practice will be opening. I will be offering a fusion of functional medicine, food and spirit™ and conventional healing modalities. Details will be forthcoming and wanted to share my excitement, as many of you have been right by my side along this journey. For now, you will continue to receive my newsletter, which is transforming along with me, please share with your communities. This fall, I will be creating content to share through newsletters, educational online courses and community connection.

I welcome you back with a renewed excitement and inspiration to explore an integral part of health and wellbeing. Our topic for this issue is sleep and restoration. Quality sleep is an undeniably an important foundational lifestyle practice that will elevate your health, vitality and joy. Unfortunately, we do not always revere the benefits of sleep and it is often where corners are cut in our health choices. Much of how we live in our fast paced and technology based society inhibits or hinders quality sleep.

This week I am focusing on the JOY of MOVEMENT. Intentionally connecting joy and movement throughout your day is fundamental in elevating your life. Moving your body, joints, muscles, pumping of blood through your vascular system, activating your lymph system and stimulating respiratory system through deep breathing are critical to vitality and optimal health.

This week we dive into ALL THINGS NOURISHMENT to support you, your immune system and your overall health and vitality.

There are many ways to nourish our bodies and souls. All of the modifiable lifestyle factors I am sharing through this series of newsletters will add nourishment to your life. This week the focus is nourishment through food, supplements and mindful eating.

Food is woven through all parts of our lives, connecting families, friends and communities. Through food we share traditions, beliefs and nourishment with one another. There is a lot of information out there on diet dogma and what you "should" or "should not" eat. Ultimately, I believe your body knows what you need to thrive and it is different for each of us, I do not believe there is a one size fits all when it comes to nutrition. In the section on mindful eating, I share some tips to begin to get curious about your personal nutrition.

Welcome to the Spectrum of Integration, my offering to you.

Spectrum -- when light is directed through a prism a rainbow of color is produced by different degrees of refraction according to wavelength.

Integration -- to make whole, alignment, center, to unite, harmony.

Throughout all the different approaches to healing, the body is always trying to find homeostasis, its way back to wholeness, balance and alignment this happens within the micro biochemical cellular processes, the unseen energetic fields and the macro physical organs.

The spectrum of integration is directed energy creating a rainbow of possibilities to create health, wholeness and vibrancy.