Linda Verjus Nutritional Therapist

09/12/2025

Conventional medicine is powerful for managing autoimmune flare-ups, but when treatment stops at symptom control, the deeper “why” is often missed.

Medications can calm inflammation and quiet the immune system, but they don’t rebuild what’s beneath the surface… the gut, hormones, stress response, and cellular repair that keep your system in balance.

That’s where functional medicine steps in. We look beyond symptom relief to uncover *why* your immune system became overactive in the first place and how to restore long-term balance.

👉 Read our latest blog to learn how functional medicine helps rebuild the foundation for lasting autoimmune healing.

02/12/2025

“But why did this happen to me?” 🤔

It’s the first question many people ask when faced with an autoimmune diagnosis, and the truth is, there’s no single answer.

Autoimmunity is a *perfect storm* of factors: genetics, environment, gut health, hormones, stress, and more.

Your genes may load the gun, but your lifestyle and environment pull the trigger, and you have the power to influence how those genes express.

Here are some of the biggest contributors:
🧬 Genetics – your body’s blueprint may have weak spots, but genes aren’t destiny
🌍 Environmental triggers – infections, toxins, or pollutants can spark immune confusion
🦠 Gut health – a leaky or imbalanced gut can overactivate the immune system
💫 Hormones – estrogen, progesterone, and others directly shape immune behavior
🧠 Chronic stress – emotional and physical stress disrupt immune communication

In our latest blog, we take a closer look at how these factors interact—and why a functional medicine approach can help you identify what’s really driving your symptoms.

👉 Read “When Your Body Turns on Itself: Understanding Autoimmune Disease and How Healing Begins” to learn how understanding these connections can guide a more personalized path to healing.

25/11/2025

Your 4-Week Hormone Detox Plan (Made Simple)

Balancing your hormones doesn’t have to be overwhelming… small, steady changes can make a big difference.

Here’s your starter plan 👇
Week 1: Swap plastic for glass + filter your water
Week 2: Upgrade your personal care (ditch fragrance + parabens)
Week 3: Clean smarter- go non-toxic with vinegar, baking soda, or castile soap (see below for cleaning recipe perfect in time for the holidays)
Week 4: Keep the momentum- replace what’s left & notice how you *feel*

You might be surprised how quickly your energy, sleep, and mood start to shift.

Follow for more low-tox swaps and hormone support tips, and if you’re ready for a personalized hormone plan, schedule your visit today. Your hormones will thank you!

Holiday Spice + Citrus Cleaning Spray:

(Warm, festive, and actually cleans!)

You’ll need:

1 cup distilled white vinegar
1 cup filtered water
1 tablespoon rubbing alcohol (optional – helps oils disperse + dry faster)
10 drops sweet orange essential oil (uplifting + deodorizing)
5 drops clove essential oil (antibacterial + warm scent)
5 drops cinnamon bark or cassia essential oil (holiday spice aroma)
1 16 oz glass spray bottle

Instructions:

1. Combine vinegar, water, and rubbing alcohol in your glass bottle.
2. Add essential oils.
3. Shake gently before each use.
4. Spray on countertops, sinks, and most hard surfaces — then wipe clean.

Bonus tip:
Infuse your vinegar ahead of time with orange peels, cinnamon sticks, and cloves for 1–2 weeks before making your cleaner. It softens the vinegar smell and makes your home smell like mulled cider!

Avoid using on: marble, granite, or other natural stone (acidic vinegar can etch the surface).

18/11/2025

Your hormones do so much for you! They help with regulating energy, mood, fertility, metabolism, and sleep. But many of us don’t realize that everyday exposures from plastics, fragrances, and cleaning products can quietly throw that balance off.

The good news? You don’t need to overhaul your life overnight.
Start with simple, practical swaps:

🥤 Glass or stainless steel instead of plastic
🌿 Mineral sunscreen instead of chemical filters
🫧 Vinegar + castile soap instead of harsh cleaners
🕯️ Essential oils or fresh herbs instead of synthetic scents

Even small changes can lower your toxic load and support your body’s natural hormone harmony.

Want to learn which swaps make the biggest difference, and how to make them step-by-step?

Read the full guide on my BLOG!!

11/11/2025

They’re called hormone disruptors (or endocrine disruptors), chemicals found in everyday items like plastics, non-stick pans, fragrances, and lotions. They can mimic or block your body’s natural hormones, confusing the signals that control mood, metabolism, fertility, and more.

Even tiny daily exposures add up over time and have been linked to thyroid issues, PCOS, infertility, early puberty, and hormone-sensitive cancers.

💡 The good news? Small swaps make a big difference.
Think: glass instead of plastic, fragrance-free instead of scented, stainless instead of non-stick.

Balance starts with awareness.

If you are wondering about swapping out other products you use daily, you can search on the EWG website www.ewg.org/cleaners

Follow to learn more or check out my latest blog!

16/10/2025

Always learning, always growing 🌿

I recently completed my Advanced Functional Medicine Health Consultant certification through the Kharrazian Institute—one of the most advanced programs in functional medicine education.

Ongoing education means I can keep showing up with the best tools, insights, and care possible for my clients.

Schedule with me today!

16/09/2025

That's why we don't just address one hormonal system in isolation. We honor the hierarchy and support the WHOLE system. If the upstream hormones are in chaos, we can expect the downstream to follow suit.

Here’s how I might structure care as a functional medicine practitioner so we’re fixing the foundation before fiddling with the fixtures.

1) Rebuild the clock (2–4 weeks).

Aim for a consistent sleep window (e.g., 10:30 pm–6:30 am), anchored by morning outdoor light and dimmer evenings.
Keep caffeine to the first half of the day; front-load calories earlier. These steps improve insulin sensitivity and stabilize cortisol rhythms.

2) Tame the HPA axis- stress system (ongoing).
Daily 6–10 minutes of slow breathing or prayer + breath (physiologically lowers sympathetic tone).
Resistance training 2–4x weekly; walking after meals.
If using glucocorticoids, coordinate with your prescriber to monitor glucose; we have evidence-based strategies to mitigate steroid-induced dysglycemia.

3) Stabilize glucose and insulin.

Build meals around protein + fiber + healthy fats + colorful plants; keep refined starches as accents.
Try a daylight-aligned eating window on most days (not perfection, but pattern). These rhythms normalize peripheral clocks and improve metabolic markers.

4) Support thyroid signaling by context, not just TSH.
Ensure selenium, iodine, iron, and B-vitamins are sufficient from food or supplements if deficient.
Address inflammation, sleep debt, and caloric insufficiency that can skew deiodinase activity.

5) Then optimize s*x hormones.
Once the clock, stress, thyroid, and insulin are steady, fine-tune estrogen, progesterone, testosterone with lifestyle or medications if indicated. In PCOS, treat insulin resistance first; in hypothalamic amenorrhea, restore energy availability; in perimenopause, layer upstream work alongside any hormone therapy for better outcomes.

If you suspect that your hormones are out of balance, schedule your free consultation to get on the path back toward health and optimal rhythm.

02/09/2025

There's an order in which we need to address the disorder!

As a functional medicine practitioner, I’m often asked to “balance hormones.” What most people mean is estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone.

But here’s the truth we must work from: those s*x hormones live downstream of other master hormone regulators. If we don’t stabilize stress physiology, circadian rhythm, thyroid signaling, and insulin dynamics first, chasing s*x hormones is like remodeling the kitchen while the foundation is cracking.

The graphic shows what hormones in tier 1 we'd evaluate and address before tackling tier 3.

Stick around. I'll post more about hormonal hierarchy this month.

19/05/2025

08/10/2024

I’ve added another certification to my toolkit—I’m now a Certified Functional Medicine Health Consultant! 🎉

This certification is the result of a rigorous program designed to equip healthcare professionals with advanced knowledge in the field of functional medicine. With this training, I’ve gained practical skills and integrative approaches to tackle complex health issues using innovative, evidence-based, and personalized care strategies.

I can’t wait to use what I’ve learned to support you on your journey to optimal health and wellness through functional medicine!

If you want to know anything more about my holistic approach or how I can help you, click the link in my bio to head over to my website!