My story…

Hi, I’m Mary-Leigh, a qualified and licensed nutritional medicine practitioner and lifestyle consultant. Thanks for checking in and taking a look around my website.

I became a nutritionist because like many of my clients, I had a bit of a health crisis. I was at a stage of my life where things were ticking along really well. I had a great corporate career, a beautiful family, supportive partner and fantastic social life. I ate what I thought was a healthy diet and I exercised regularly (although, sometimes that meant walking to the bottle shop)! I wasn’t afraid of the odd indulgence, and probably like you, I believed in “moderation”.

Then it happened, slowly, without warning or explanation, it crept up like a ghost in the night; I burnt out. In hindsight, and now with a comprehensive health science education, I can see that all the signs were there, I just didn’t know they were signs. I thought that how I felt was normal for a successful, busy, “gen-x” woman. Even though what I was feeling maybe “common” I can tell you  it certainly isn't “normal”.  Little did I know that my increasingly high blood pressure, low energy, sleep problems, brain fog, irritability, constant bloating, low motivation and poor immunity was my body screaming at me that things had to change! I know - Daa! Right?

I was a busy professional under constant pressure and despite thinking I was indestructible, a concept I still struggle with I might add, I just couldn’t maintain my high level of performance, manage stress, and support my family and organisation without it taking its toll on my physical and mental health.

Long story short, my body eventually shut down on me and I was so sick that I couldn't work for a year.  I thought I was going mad because every test the doctors gave me came up "normal" or in a “healthy range”, so along with not being able to diagnose me with something, they also couldn't help me to feel any better.  I thought I knew what being tired was from having two children under two; this was a whole new level of fatigue and exhaustion that went beyond description.  I learnt the hard way - I hope you don’t have to.

But there is good news. My  burnout has proved to be one of life's greatest gifts.  As I searched for the answers to my health issues with doctors, specialists, and natural health practitioners, my interest and love of integrated medicine grew and eventually led me to study nutritional medicine.  I not only got well and went back to work, I went back to university and retrained so I could go on to help others experiencing the same issues. So here I am, an ex-burnout-corporate-career-junkie-turned-nutritional-medicine-practitioner.

It's a perfect fit really; for the past 20 years my professional career has been dedicated to the welfare and wellbeing of others.  After years of working in hospitality I studied and became a social worker before moving into corporate where I held senior and executive roles in human resources, executive and career coaching, and change management.  While the delivery vehicle and type of care has changed over the years, the underlying care of others remains a driving force for me.

My approach…

My approach is holistic, pragmatic and solidly based in scientific evidence.  I'm all about making being healthy easier. The focus is on quality of life and optimal health, not just the absence of disease.  I believe that nutrition provides the fundamental building blocks of physical and mental health and that overall wellbeing is a combination of our diet, lifestyle, age, genetics, environment, relationships and sense of connection with others.

Everyone experiences life in a unique way, including how their body responds to its environment.  My role as practitioner (and personal cheer squad) is to educate, encourage, and empower you to own your self-healing process, to aid you to achieve greater well being on your terms. 

Regardless of where you are on your personal health journey, I am here to support you.  It doesn't matter if you're at the beginning of your health journey looking for a kick start or you've seen a laundry list of practitioners and want support for a chronic health condition.  Working with a practitioner that knows what it’s like to walk in your shoes can make all the difference.

If you're like me, you probably spend all of your time looking after others and putting yourself second.  Now is the time to put yourself first for better health, greater energy and improved vitality.  Remember, you can't pour from an empty cup.

If you are thinking of taking the first steps to make positive change to your physical health and mental wellbeing then I invite you to book a discovery call for an obligation free chat.

Learn how working with me can be the difference between getting on track, staying on track and achieving your goals.

Working with me…

Making changes to your diet and lifestyle takes time and commitment. Both science and my personal experience shows that to achieve optimal health and for change to be sustainable, it requires ongoing effort and support over time.

In order to help you to succeed I use a program based model that allows me to create the best possible recommendations for your individual situation and then coach, support, mentor and make adjustments over time. Programs run from 8 weeks to 6 months with either weekly or fortnightly check ins and include a bagful of bonuses that you won’t get when you have one-off appointments. I also offer great deals on appointment packages and annual memberships if you wish to continue with your coaching after the program has finished.

Why do I do this? Well, chances are you didn’t get sick, tired or overweight over night and so it is with the healing process. Healing won’t happen with 1 or 2 appointments, a bag full of supplements and a meal plan. If that was the case you could probably have healed yourself by using Doctor Google and iHerb!

What I have found is that I may be able to help you feel better for a short time using supplements and meal plans but that by itself is a band aid solution that doesn’t address the underlying cause of your fatigue, dis-ease or weight issues and it doesn’t help you to change your behaviours long term. You can take the supplements and follow the meal plan for a couple of weeks then go back to the poor diet and lifestyle mindset and habits that brought you to me in the first place. I’m sure that you want more than a quick fix; sustainable, effortless change is our goal when working together.

This is why I invite you meet with me through a discovery call to discuss your goals, concerns, answer your questions and see if you are ready to make the commitment to making positive change. Think of it as a application process of sorts; you are applying to work with me as much as I am applying to work with you.

Once you have made the commitment to go forward working with me is simple. I use an online tele-health system (like skype, zoom or face-time) that’s connected to my booking system so appointments can be held at anytime from anywhere. No having to leave work early, no traffic to navigate, and no parking to pay for. So long as you have a reliable internet connection, a smartphone or desktop computer, and somewhere private to talk, then you are ready to go.

Bookings are made and controlled by you using the patient management system, Practice Better, where you can even download the app to your phone for ease of use and convenience. Plus I have payment plans available making the programs much more affordable over time.

So what are you waiting for? It cost nothing to make an enquiry and it could be the best thing you do for yourself this year.