Naturopathic medicine is a beautiful profession and I feel so honoured to be a part of it. We help people by guiding and empowering them in their own health. We use all-natural therapies to gently push them in the direction of cure. We take into account the entire person- not just the physical, but the mental, emotional and spiritual aspects. We treat people as the individuals that they are. We emphasize prevention so as to avoid the route to disease. We teach healthy living. And we are always searching for the root cause of disease, which is incredibly important to me. I made my decision to be a naturopathic doctor at age 15. I read about it for a class assignment and everything about this practice immediately resonated with me- it was love at first sight! Addressing root cause was the most important part for me, as I have never seen the point in making manifestations (i.e. symptoms) better if you're not addressing, and you're actually suppressing, the real cause. To reach my goal of being an ND, I attained an honours degree in a 4-year Life Sciences program at McMaster University. I then knew I needed to get the travel out of my system before spending another 4 years in school, so I spent a year travelling Latin America alone, and then another half-year in Asia (followed by more medical trips during school, and topped off with 3 months in Africa while awaiting my licensing results!). I learned so much and truly gained a worldly perspective and appreciation. In 2009, I commenced the program at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM). This was the most intense program I have ever been a part of, but the rewards outweigh the costs by far. Treating people with our medicine is the most beautiful, satisfying thing I can possibly imagine doing with my life. To unite my love for naturopathic medicine with my love for the globe and the people in it, I travelled to Haiti to work with Naturopaths Without Borders (naturopathswithoutborders.org). Inspired by my experience, I founded a Naturopaths Without Borders chapter at CCNM. We have since sent dozens of people to Haiti and Guatemala, and there is more to come!