Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Ewals, CNS, LN.
Hi Stephanie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve always loved food and had a curiosity about how the body worked and the relationship between the foods we eat and how we felt. I grew up eating dessert after dinner every night and found myself using sugar to make myself feel better. I found food to be my love language as I grew up and started a family. I cooked from scratch, and made desserts for my kids which I would end up finishing if they didn’t. After my second child was born in 2002, I found myself struggling with energy and really debilitating fatigue. I happened to be at the doctor being seen for nerve pain and the doctor asked me if there was anything else and I told him I was really tired but figured it was because I had a toddler and a baby to take care of. He suggested we test my thyroid. The doctors office called me after testing to tell me my TSH was at 150 when normal TSH by conventional medicine standards is between 1-4.5. He called in a prescription for thyroid medication and that was that. I thought I’d just take this medicine and I’d be fine. I wasn’t. It was the beginning of my health decline and a long time before I started to feel well again. Once my thyroid medication showed my labs were fine, that was it from my doctor. There was nothing else to do. I got pregnant again in 2003 and the pregnancy was rough from the beginning. I was sicker than ever. Stressed out due to issues with my husbands business causing financial strains and it looking like our baby was not going to be well. I was seeing a perinatologist and worrying whether my baby was going to be healthy. This is when my thyroid started to act up and present with what I now know is a thyroid storm. I had undiagnosed Hashimoto’s thyroiditis which is an autoimmune disease. My immune system was attacking my thyroid gland, killing off my thyroid tissue and sending hormone into my blood making me feel as if I were hyperthyroid (too much hormone) rather than hypothyroid (not enough hormone). My blood tests presented this way too so my OBGYN took me off my thyroid medication. 6 weeks later I was delivering a stillborn baby boy. The doctors had no answers as to why this happened but deep down I knew that it had something to do with my thyroid. As devastating as this time in my life was, I was determined to move forward and not let this define who I was. I had a successful pregnancy about 18 months later and life went on. I was tired, forgetful, couldn’t lose weight, riding the blood sugar rollercoaster, not sleeping, having erratic emotional behavior and trying to pretend that I was okay. I was not. In 2009 a little voice inside my head told me I should go gluten free just to see what happens. I did and within 6 weeks I had lost almost 15 pounds (mostly inflammation), was sleeping better and had more energy. I knew I was on to something. Early 2010 I found a naturopathic doctor who ran some tests and officially diagnosed me with Hashimoto’s, the autoimmune disease that causes around 90% of hypothyroidism in the US. She had me change my diet, helped me understand how food is medicine, and put me on some supplements that started to help my body work better. I couldn’t believe how some minor changes made such a huge difference in my health and my whole life. I was so amazed at this that in 2014 I sought out a certification in nutrition so I could help other people feel better. I worked with clients with that certification from Nutritional Therapy Association for 5 years until I began to realize I didn’t know what I didn’t know. At this point I went back to school to get my masters degree in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine from University of Western States and I graduated in 2021 and started working on my licensure by working with a mentor to get 1000 clinical hours , took my licensing exam and got my license to practice as a nutritionist in 2022. I have been seeing clients via telehealth and now am working at an office in Isanti, MN as well. In the office we use acupuncture meridian points to test for root causes of health and find stressed points in the body that may be the cause of chronic health issues through applied kinesiology or what is commonly known as muscle testing. I love having this modality as part of my toolbox because it helps people identify what foods might be an issue for them or whether or not a virus, fungus, bacteria, parasite, heavy metals or chemicals might be causing a problem for them. Then we choose supplements that can improve that stress on their body and bring them back to feeling well again. I take a conservative approach to supplementation, suggesting only 2-3 products at most because the goal is not to have someone take supplements forever. They are meant to help the body get to operating well on its own again so you don’t need anything except a good multi-vitamin or maybe a fish oil if you don’t eat fish. I have such a passion for helping people feel well, getting rid of their chronic health conditions, putting autoimmune disease into remission and most importantly, not identifying as sick but seeing a path to wellness and managing disease rather than letting disease have a hold on you.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Lots of obstacles. Learning how to go gluten free when I decided to do that was really challenging. I loved bread my whole life so having to give that up was a big deal. I was willing to try anything to feel better though so the first thing to go was bread and I grieved for it. That sounds silly but food was comfort for me and giving something up that was such a part of my being was difficult. Back in 2009, there wasn’t a lot on the internet about gluten free diets so I had no idea what I was going to eat. Turns out it didn’t have to be difficult if I had thought about it one meal at a time, one day at a time.
Of course the infant loss was a huge thing in my life too and sort of the catalyst for change. It was slow change but change none the less and once I learned how my body betrayed my and the mistake my doctor made by taking me off my thyroid medication, I swore to help women learn to advocate for themselves in their healthcare and in their own wellness.
We’ve been impressed with Out of The Woods Nutrition, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am a licensed nutritionist working with women with chronic illness and autoimmune disease who are tired of not feeling seen or heard by their doctors and want to have more energy, live more vibrantly and enjoy life again. I host a podcast called Help For Hashimoto’s that offers information about taking one’s health back and understanding all that goes into living well with autoimmune disease. What sets me apart from others is my clients are not just another number. I deeply care about their wellness and am constantly thinking of them. I wake up in the morning with some information or idea for a client and message them to let them know I found this or that that may help them. When I am learning something knew I relate it to how it may help a clients situation. I am affordable, offering one on one sessions as needed. It shouldn’t have to cost thousands of dollars to get well outside of an insurance model of healthcare so I work with clients to help them reach wellness without breaking the bank. I’ve also been where they are. I know what it is like to be dismissed by your doctor and told everything is fine when deep down you know something is wrong. I know what it takes to get better and I help people do that without dogma and by meeting them where they are at. Little by little, a little becomes a lot. Learning how to make changes to our diet and lifestyle in small bits that create big wins is the first step to conquering chronic health problems.
Another thing that sets me apart is using muscle testing (sometimes called applied kinesiology), when clients want, to help people determine what areas of the body are stressed through pressing on acupuncture meridians. Once we determine what areas of the body are stressed I test them to find root causes and then we find foods, herbs and/or a supplement to help improve the stressed area. The idea is that the client will need a product for a short time to support the body so it can clear the stress on its own and begin heal so they start to feel better. It’s another option for dealing with chronic illness.
The internet is full of ‘health gurus’ offering a lot of bad advice. My practice bridges holistic, root cause nutrition practices with the backing of the scientific research that conventional medicine uses. The difference being I’m not 17 years behind the scientific research like the medical community is. I help people get Out of The Woods and Get Clear about their health.
One on one consultations are more cost effective than working within a pricey package that many offer. You don’t need to see someone weekly to get better. If you need more hand holding, I can do that, but, in general, a visit every 6-8 weeks until you start to feel well (usually 3-6 months) is often all you need.
How do you think about luck?
In business, for me, it has been about hard work. I have worked hard to be in business for myself by networking and building relationships in my community that result in trust and eventually referrals.
More so than luck, I think everything happens for a reason. If I had not lost my baby, I would probably not be a nutritionist. I’d be living my suburban life, working a job I probably didn’t like. I took a chance on entrepreneurship to help my husband start his business in 1998 and never looked back. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Pricing:
- Initial Consultation (up to 90 minutes) $210
- One hour follow up $140
- 30 minute follow up $70
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.outofthewoodsnutrition.com
- Other: podcast Help For Hashimoto’s
