Jill GIlchrist, FDN-P
My Story
I've had psoriasis since childhood, so my earliest memories of healthcare were of strong medications, a million brief doctor's visits, and the frustrating cycle of managing a body that seemed to be constantly working against me. By the time I was 13 I started getting cystic acne— and with it came years of antibiotics, spironolactone (eventually pushed to doses my kidneys couldn't safely handle), and two rounds of Accutane. None of it offered lasting relief. Meanwhile, my periods were heavy, irregular, and painful. Instead of looking at any labs, the answer was simply to cycle through one birth control prescription after another for the next decade. And underneath all of it, my gut was in constant turmoil. I was eventually labeled "IBS," a diagnosis that felt less like an answer and more like a shrug.
For most of my adolescence and young adulthood, I was exhausted. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. I'd spent years being handed prescriptions instead of answers. I kept showing up, kept trying the next thing, and kept ending up right back where I started.
In 2022 I had an extreme mold problem in my home, which unexpectedly, changed everything. I could no longer white-knuckle my way through my health issues. I had fatigue that forced me to sleep in until 7am and go back to be at 8pm, I couldn't work out, every single food set off my stomach, my skin was a mess, and my mental health was hitting rock bottom. My body was screaming at my to approach my health in a completely different way.
The treatment I received in the aftermath of that mold exposure was my first real introduction to holistic and integrative medicine. It opened a door I hadn't known existed. Not a single prescription was given. Instead, my doctor focused on my body's innate ability to heal through detoxification, lifestyle, and nutrition. But even after my integrative practitioners helped me address the mold's immediate effects, I was still struggling: weight gain that wouldn't budge, continued fatigue, and persistent perioral dermatitis.
It wasn't until I found Functional Diagnostic Nutrition that something finally shifted, not just at the surface, but at the root. For the first time, I wasn't chasing symptoms. I was getting real answers. The chronic issues that had followed me since childhood, resisting every medication, every diagnosis, and every well-meaning intervention, began to resolve. Today, my life looks different in ways I once genuinely couldn't imagine. I have food freedom. I have consistent, healthy digestion every single day. I wake up with energy. My skin is manageable. And my menstrual cycle, once a source of monthly dread, is now easy, predictable, and even something I understand how to work with rather than against.
I want to be clear: I still believe traditional medicine has its time and place. I still get flare-ups. I'm not claiming to be beyond that; every body still encounters infection, sickness, stress. But now when something comes up, I know how to listen to what it's telling me (and order lab testing when necessary). My approach to my own health is integrative. I use labs to get a deep understanding of what's actually going on, I prioritize nutrition and lifestyle first, and I tap into my conventional medicine team for what it was designed for: supporting acute health issues.
That journey is exactly why I became a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition practitioner. Because I know what it feels like to be dismissed, to be medicated without being heard, and to eventually find a path that actually works. And I want to help others find theirs.
