Lucy O'Shaughnessy

I came to Functional Medicine and health coaching on two different pathways: One, my family history of Alzheimer’s and two, being a burned-out corporate litigator.  At one point, I realized I couldn't continue under the stress I was under and felt certain I would get Alzheimer’s if things didn’t change. I have a special place in my heart for women who have demanding and stressful careers and for anyone who wants to prevent Alzheimer’s.After my mother passed away from Alzheimer’s, I took the opportunity to re-evaluate my own goals and priorities and determined that many of the choices I made in my career were not leading me to my vision of being a healthy and energetic 80 year old, both cognitively and physically.I find Functional Medicine fascinating. The idea that finding and fixing the root cause of chronic diseases makes so much sense to me. I began seeing a Functional Medicine practitioner about two years ago who discovered that, because of my stress-filled job, raising daughters and watching my mother pass slowly, my cortisol levels were low and flat. My hormones were out of balance and I was low on several vitamins and minerals. After doing an elimination diet and carefully adding common trigger foods back in, I figured out what diet was ideal for me.I also discovered Dr. Dale Bredesen’s book,The End of Alzheimer’s. I had been afraid to check my APOE4 (the “Alzheimer’s gene”) status, certain I had at least one gene. I had already decided I was NOT getting Alzheimer’s disease but Dr. Bredesen’s book gave me HOPE and COURAGE to check my APOE4 status. I was very surprised (and happy) to find out I don’t have the gene but it really didn’t change my goal to prevent this horrible disease, which can happen to anyone.My signature strengths are Honesty, Love of Learning, Judgment, Perspective and Self-regulation. What are yours? Find out at:https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/account/registerI graduated from the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy and plan to sit for the National Board of Health and Wellness Coaching certification exam in May 2022.  Enough about me – let’s talk about you!