Did I Ever Want to Be a Naturopathic Doctor?

Most people know I love natural remedies. Why didn't I become a naturopath, a DO, an osteopath or herbalist you might ask? Well here's why...

Over the last few years, I’ve grown more and more in the world of natural healing, medicinal herbs, naturopathic and traditional medicine solutions to support the body’s innate healing abilities as compared to the single-minded pursuit of BigPharma.

I love all forms of authentic healing. I love naturopathic medicine, but no I cannot say I ever wanted to be a Naturopathic doctor and I’ll tell you why. It might sound fitting if you look at my interests and personality today, but I can assure you, I wasn’t always like this.

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Growing up, I was raised by a single mom.

To say I had a role model deficit would be only dipping our toes into the dead sea.

I found nutrition and health sciences by way of a path of obsessively striving to find something to help my mom overcome her Crohn’s disease. Some would call it an accident. Some would call it destiny. All I know is I was angry. I was indignant.

I was sick and tired of seeing my mom sick and tired.

I discovered a food as medicine approach that proved helpful and healing in her situation and was hooked ever since. I was grounded in functional medicine (root cause approach essentially) with a focus on food, nutrition, and healing the gut.

I never identified with the title of “doctor” - like EVER… despite how my friends call me “Dr. Jon” jokingly. Believe or not, I didn’t even know what dietitians really did until I was halfway through my second semester in college, freshman year.

Yes, I had a general idea that I would combine my interests of 1) Food, 2) Health, 3) People as a dietitian but I had no idea what I was getting into compared to what was really OUT THERE in the world.

I can count on one hand the significant influential people in my life who catalyzed my trajectory and ensured I went to college. They likely know who they are, and some even read this here newsletter…. and so I say this to you dearest long time fans and champions of mine, THANK YOU. 👏👏👏

Honestly, I had no idea what I was doing

But I ran blindly into the forest with unrealistic optimism for the road ahead. It wasn’t until my junior year when this wonderfully inspiring dietetics friend of mine spoke to me about her original interest in going to Bastyr University - aka one of the few meccas of natural medicine, alternative medicine, herbalism, and holistic health physicians today in America. It took me another 3 years before I would ever fully appreciate what she was trying to tell me in that brief conversation.

“Jonathan, why are you here? You seem like you would have been a greater fit for a place like Bastyr University, at least that’s where I wanted to go; it sounds like you have a lot of those same interests and passions for natural health.”

I was (am) so naive and ignorant to this day. I fully acknowledge that now.

Like I said, I had no idea what I was getting into.

Also during my Junior year (or possibly sophomore or senior..? at this point it’s all a blur)… I had a professor who would end up becoming a great friend speak to me with the same tone of voice, asking why I was there at Ball State University, of all places?

“Seriously man, like why are you here? Why HERE of all places? Indiana is flat. Indiana is not open to your ideas. Indiana is not friendly to your passion and interests. Why did you choose here instead of going to places like Johns Hopkins, Bastyr, Arizona, or Harvard?” (he chuckled at the last one because it was an obvious hyperbole to lighten the mood)”

And I’ll tell you what I told him…

I had 3 choices.

Indiana University,

Purdue University,

or

Ball State University.

I visited each one (and more).

Ball State was the only one that looked me in the eye and asked me what I wanted, what I was expecting, and developed a relationship with me beyond feeling like just a number in the visitor’s book at the other campus visits. And I’m 10000% happy with my experience at Ball State. There are many factors which led me to go there and it will remain a beautiful experience (for the most part) in my memory. The same goes with the relational Muncie / Delaware County community.

But the real reason I had 3 choices for college is because I knew I wanted to at least attach myself to a major program walking in and those 3 were the primary 3 schools I had any sort of experience with that held dietetics programs.

The other reason I had only 3 choices is because I knew I NEEDED to stay in state for my tuition. You see, I had my tuition paid for by the state and had received a handful of other scholarships to help prepare me for my higher ed life. So yes, I’m grateful for taxpayers, but I’m also aware colleges and universities do not always cater to people like me and there are many other issues we see within that environment today. We’ll save that for another time.

But the point is - I knew I had ZERO chance at going to other schools outside of the state and had previously lived a pretty poorly explored life up until college. I needed to go to college. I needed to rely on other people to pay my way into getting into college. I needed a dietetics program to attach myself to as at least a place to start. Thus, I had 3 options and I chose Ball State.

Did they have a naturopathic pathway in the college of health? Nope.

Did I get an unexpected call up as a late freshman to begin thinking about completing research (paid $$$)? Yup. Was my professor’s interests aligned with mine - “Natural Health Benefits of Herbs and Spices” 🌱 🌶️

Yup, that was spot on too. Research posted here & here.

Like I said, There were a lot of great things that came out of my experience and it felt like the stars were always aligning in my direction (for the most part). But again, I had no idea what I was really getting myself into. I didn’t know much about Naturopathic Medicine, the fundamentals of German New Medicine, Homeopathy, Energy Healing dynamics, Body Electric, Structured Water, Resonance and Frequency, the Biology of Belief, Chakras, Osteopathic Medicine or other formidable modalities and insights into the world we live in.

I was always learning what I could through functional and integrative medicine physician summits, podcasts, books and audiobooks on the side but I was still only scratching the surface for what’s really out there - which is a lot if you didn’t already know. There’s a lot of healing to be had, let’s just say. But I was far from an expert in anything.

Would I ever go back to school to become a physician of certain medicine practice?

TLDR: Probably…. No.

I’d rather apprentice part time for a year for free than go back to a standard 4-yr university alone just to pay thousands of dollars for a certification of training and education to prop myself up on a higher horse that would separate me from the people.

Nowadays, when people ask me if I would ever go back to school to become a naturopathic doctor, an osteopathic doctor, an herbalist, a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, a functional medicine physician, or if I ever wanted to become one of these titles… I always must start off by saying this.

Being a dietitian is great, but it’s not all there is and it can feel very isolating, biased, overly critical, judgmental, prissy, territorial, disingenuous, inauthentic, preppy, and extremely LIMITING… as well as a long list of other adjectives I have left off this page.

Real health for real people in real life has a lot to do with more than just food alone. The opportunities for health and healing are endless and ever expanding, but for a governing body to essentially dictate who I can see, how they can see me, what I can and cannot say to them, as well as make sure I follow all of their general guidelines according to professional standards developed by poorly structured organizations, paid sponsorships, and swindling research just to name a few concerns…. it has felt at times like being part of a big family (that I have to pay to get into), where nobody gets along, everyone is bickering and the heads of the family get to dictate what everyone else sits, where they stand, what they will eat (no pun intended), and what they will say.

I can’t tell you how shocking it was to receive negative comments from mid-life career dietetic professionals when I was just a young innocent student in college who was sharing his profound fascinations and learning about functional medicine, integrative medicine, and environmental medicine in places online. Talk about feeling judged and criticized by your family; I don’t speak about this experience often because it was so frustrating, shaming, and nonsensical in so many ways.

As someone who fundamentally aligns with the words of freedom, education, and empowerment, that family dynamic described above feels very magnetically opposed to my core values. Simply put, I physiologically cannot separate my core values from my work, life, career, family, school, … or anything I get involved in.

Some people are just wired that way and I know that I am. Everything I do has to be fundamentally aligned to my core values, mission, and vision for my life.

It’s like having tunnel vision at times with a host of pros and cons but at least I can recognize this is how I’m wired, and I can’t fight against the blood that runs inside my veins.

And as someone who also does not want to fight for territory, who does not want to be incentivized to barter with the same bad actors who are pushing products that promote disease on the population or always feel like I can tell other people what to eat… I don’t really fit in.

That’s not to even mention the fact that my entrepreneurial spirit always wants to build, scale, grow, and never stop. There’s too much healing to be had and far too many people needlessly suffering to stop and idle by.

For these reasons and many more I’ve always mixed myself within the world of business, entrepreneurship, philanthropy, marketing, etc. I knew I wanted to be a dietitian but I also knew that wasn’t always going to be my home base, but it would instead act as my launching pad as a placeholder to bolster my position as a “qualified, credentialed, educated health professional.” But it was never where I wanted to stop. In fact, now that I say that I don’t know if I know how to stop… but I’ll go knocking on that introspective door another day as well.

As much as I geek out about food and nutrition, it does not define me and it likely does not define you. It certainly doesn’t align with how I want to serve the world or how I want to be remembered. The letters after my pseudo last name will not be what people remember after I leave this place and get buried six feet into the ground.

In my opinion, we ought not get too caught up in our career identities but rather follow righteous paths of vocation enlightened within us from experience - which often include hardship, heartbreak, and tragedy, but doesn’t always have to.

From a dietitian speaking about dietetics (and I’m not alone here) …

I don’t like credentialing red tapes and difficulties within our governing bodies that define “scope of practice” or outline our specific educational knowledge base that hinders our ability to be able to equip and heal people. Sure, there are certainly advantages to the credentialing process, but this is a much larger problem than I care to get into today. Instead, I’ll just tell you what I really want…

… which I’ve wanted for over 5 years now: freedom, opportunity, education, empowerment with informed decision making across all levels of the various value chains that span the long arms of healthcare in America, age demographics and refereed healing modalities. I don’t believe that the healing arts ought to be controlled under a centralized power of authority no matter what Mr. Rockefeller thinks. 😎 (If you know, you know)

A vision for collective wisdom to serve communities with holistic health and healing in many ways, shapes and forms.

1 Clinic. 2-5 physicians + 2-3 staff + add on 3-5 services in person sauna, biocharger, hyperbaric, vagus nerve therapy, salt therapy, etc.

A hub of health and healing.

Those physicians would be collaborative and collectively aligned between different modalities; including any or all of the following: Naturopath / Herbalist + Chiro + Functional Med / Integrative Med + Lifestyle Med Coaching + Massage + qualified nutrition professional. Essentially a few different perspectives on 1) internal medicine 2) environmental biological regulation 3) kinesiology / muscle skeletal and likely a few others.

I actually visited one such facility on a trip and interviewed the owner / director about launching satellite locations once. I would personally then love to systematize that practice model with high-quality lean programs that still allow for those aligned healers to make a living (which I’m sure you know if not common amongst sacrificial healers) so I can then package that model into a SCALABLE healthcare model via franchising or otherwise to reach more people at more affordable and approachable price points while leveraging education at the community level.

At the end of the day, I know what I want but don’t know how we will get there. But just like sprinting into college without a crumb of a clue and an overly ambitious heart to chase the glimmer of light in the distance, I’m going to keep running forward with that "unrealistic optimism” as I call it. Who knows where we’ll end up going together but what I do know is that we’ll go farther and have more fun along the way if we go together. 😏 💙

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If you missed last week’s story about the family:

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