At Restorative Wellness Solutions, we love data. So much so that we regularly survey our incoming students on what challenges they’re facing and where they need specific support. In fact, in 2023 we even conducted an industry-wide survey of over 1,190 nutrition practitioners to better understand the current state of the industry landscape.
What caught our attention is that a clear theme is emerging:
Loneliness. Isolation. Burn out.
All things we’ve experienced as practitioners ourselves and a key reason why we started Restorative Wellness Solutions in the first place – to equip you with the clinical skills, confidence, and community you need to thrive. Because, the truth is, without the right support system, being a practitioner can be challenging, scary, and exhausting.
We believe a strong sense of community and collaboration has the power to elevate practitioners to new heights. Which is why we’d like to share this story with you – an RWS success story featuring Liz Morgan and Juliet Dalton. These two Restorative Wellness Practitioners have developed a true partnership that has not only supported their businesses but has become a testament to the transformative impact of community, particularly within RWS.
In The Beginning
Liz and Juliet met as students in RWS’ Mastering the Art & Science of Optimizing Hormones course back in 2021. They had both been drawn to nutrition as a way to optimize their own health, having each suffered from mysterious health challenges throughout their lives. And, they both realized that – although their FNTP certification gave them a solid start – they needed a deeper clinical skill set in order to help their clients achieve better outcomes. “I had a lot of clients coming to me with questions and issues I didn’t understand, which is what drove me to RWS,” says Liz.
Upon completing our foundational course, Mastering the Art & Science of Gastrointestinal Healing, both Liz and Juliet saw immediate impacts on their practice and on their health. Liz shared “I was my hardest client, for sure. My body reacted really strongly to RWS gut protocols, but it was so worth it. Now, I’m 50 and I feel like everything works so much better than before.”
Juliet added “RWS is what really changed my approach clinically. But, my own health changed a lot, too – specifically doing my own gut protocol. I thought that I was doing very well, but this was different and got me results.”
Meeting Up
Having achieved such great results – personally and professionally – they each decided to take the next step in developing their clinical skills through RWS’ Optimizing Hormones course, which is where their partnership began. “Liz reached out first about reviewing case studies, so we met on Zoom a few times to discuss course concepts, review class notes, and prep case studies. It was nice to have someone else to talk to and figure it out with,” says Juliet, adding “Eventually, we started to talk about our own client cases. We’d ask each other questions and get each others’ perspectives, which was so valuable.”
A natural community builder, Liz had founded one of NTA’s largest alumni groups and she had put together many masterminds throughout the years, but most of them eventually fizzled out. As she grew her clinical skills through RWS and her scope of work became more advanced, she knew she needed peers and colleagues to support her (and her clients) along the journey. “This is serious work – we have people’s lives in our hands. It’s stressful going it alone. Having collaborators was important for me,” says Liz.
From Study Buddies to Trusted Partners
Over the course of the next two years, Liz and Juliet continued to stay in touch and support one another in their RWS studies and with challenging client cases. “At this point, we had built a lot of trust. But, we hadn’t yet worked together from a business-sense,” said Juliet, adding “Eventually, I got really busy in my practice. Instead of turning away clients, I had this idea to bring Liz in to support my business and these clients,” says Juliet. Liz thought it was a great opportunity, too – “I thought having the opportunity to see how someone else operates in their business would be really interesting.”
…The results were hugely successful. “At first, it was about energetically saving myself. I had more clients than I could handle and would have had to make a huge sacrifice to myself. This act of self-preservation ended up working out really well,” says Juliet.
In fact, it worked out so well that Liz then invited Juliet to help her lead her group program, “Nourish + Flow”. Liz had spent 5 years creating and running this program and had been using it with all of her clients. When she teamed up with Juliet – it felt different. It felt bigger. And, the participants experienced it, too. “First of all, we worked together to figure out the marketing plan and it was the best marketing plan I’d ever had for a course,” said Liz, adding “I love running group programs – but, it’s a lot to hold that space. Having Juliet there helped lessen that load and I think the clients benefited greatly, too, as they felt they were part of something “bigger”.
Interestingly, Juliet didn’t actually think she liked running group programs, noting “I thought it was exhausting and lots of effort”. But, Liz’s “Nourish + Flow” changed her mind on that – “Now I think group programs are so fun. They’re great! I have a totally different outlook on the process,” says Juliet.
It’s important to note that one of the reasons their partnership has been so successful, and that both Liz and Juliet emphasized to us, is that both practitioners were equipped with the clinical skills they needed (thanks to RWS) and were fully committed to each and every clients’ success. Plus, they were open to learning from one another. “It’s fun to learn from each other. Even though we’ve had a lot of the same education, we both get interested in different paths,” shared Liz.
Looking Ahead To The Future
Today, both Liz and Juliet maintain their own successful private practices, but regularly help one another out – whether it’s serving as a second opinion on a client case, taking overflow clients to help with capacity, or teaching in one of their group programs. And, they’d love for more members of the RWS community to join them as they both have big goals for the future!
In addition to seeing her 1:1 clients and group programs, Liz has become very involved advocating on behalf of the state of our food culture – especially as it relates to teen health. She’s taught at a number of local high schools, helping students learn how to identify symptoms, collecting data on symptoms, and educating students on steps they can take to start to feel better. “The teachers and I were actually so surprised at how poorly the students felt. I want to change that,” says Liz, noting that she’s expanding her food culture consulting to Boys & Girls Clubs in the coming year.
Moving forward, Juliet is working to make functional nutrition more financially accessible for those who need it through the introduction of a new program called Essentials for Blood Sugar. “There are some people that really need that level of hand holding and targeted support. But, that is not most people who don’t feel good. This self-paced program will help individuals get the foundational support they need before determining if more intense 1:1 support is needed,” says Juliet. Her goal is that for every 10 individuals who complete her program, only 1 or 2 will need 1:1 support after.
Did Liz and Juliet’s story inspire you?
If so, take the first step in growing your clinical skills and community by applying for our foundational class, Mastering the Art & Science of Gastrointestinal Healing. This is the same class that transformed both Liz and Juliet’s health and their work as practitioners.
If you’re already a graduate of Mastering the Art & Science of Gastrointestinal Healing, don’t worry – we have some exciting community opportunities coming soon for you, too! Keep your eyes and ears peeled for an announcement in early 2024 about our Restorative Wellness Solutions Membership opportunity.
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Liz Morgan is a Restorative Wellness Practitioner (RWP), Functional Nutrition Therapy Practitioner (FNTP), Food Culture Consultant, and the founder and owner of People + Planet Nutrition. You can find Liz on Instagram @peopleplanetnutrition.
Juliet Dalton is a Restorative Wellness Practitioner (RWP), Functional Nutrition Therapy Practitioner (FNTP) and the founder and owner of Nutrition Riot. You can find Juliet on Instagram @nutritionriot.
