We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jacquelyn Miller a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jacquelyn, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

Leaving the corporate world and starting your own business is something that can be easily romanticized in our culture. When I left my role as a Functional Medicine Consultant in the Functional Medicine space to start my own practice, I think there was a subconscious belief that things would “come easy” so long as I was in alignment and doing work that was meaningful. That certainly wasn’t the case! Diligence, patience and trust in the process is absolutely required when creating your own practice or business. There is no magic button that will automatically create a thriving business. Regardless of your level of passion, integrity or skill, it will still take time to create a sustainable business, and for you to fine tune the services that you provide.

Being a year into practice, I have slowly but steadily watched my client base grow into something I am proud of. I work with INCREDIBLE women- the kind of women that I truly dreamed about working with when I was creating Rad Wellbeing. But just like any meaningful change, it did not happen overnight and was a step-by-step journey.

Looking back, I would have invested in help earlier, especially around administrative support, so that I could more deeply focus on the client experience. My advice to anyone starting a practice or business is to get crystal clear on your vision and mission, build a support network, and understand that growth does not happen overnight!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My Women’s Functional Wellness Practice (Rad Wellbeing) is ultimately the result of creating meaning out of struggle. Many practitioners in the health and wellness space go through a “pain to purpose” journey, and I am no exception. In my early 20’s (which feels like a lifetime ago!), I suffered greatly from poor mental health. I dealt with anxiety, depression and panic attacks- and all the physical symptoms that come with those states such as hormonal imbalances, digestive problems, chronic fatigue, insomnia and more.

When it all started, I took the Conventional Western Medicine approach, because I had no idea there were alternatives. That was essentially, “here’s your diagnosis, this is probably genetic, you’ll deal with it for your whole life, never stop taking your medication”. A few years later, that mindset started to feel extremely limiting, and it felt like there was a curtain I needed to pull back to really understand WHY I was struggling.

Over a decade ago, I started to work with a Functional Medicine Practitioner and once I started that process and saw the vast amount of opportunities for healing that are available, it opened up my entire world.

You name it and I have likely tried it- functional/integrative medicine, nutritional therapy, esoteric and spiritual modalities, eastern medicine, energetic medicine, many different types of therapy in all realms. I’m grateful for all of those experiences and practitioners because every one of them has helped shape how I approach well-being. These experiences have given me a really broad lens through which to view health, which is looking at the WHOLE and understanding that everything in the ecosystem of our life can contribute to or deplete our wellbeing. This approach could be distilled down into what I call a blend of “Science and Soul”.

What I’ve come to find is that everything on our life’s path can serve as our medicine.

I have come to see that our struggles, whether physical, mental or emotional, can be used as “assignments” for us to fuel growth and evolution in our life time. That doesn’t mean we won’t struggle, but it means that on the other side of struggle, a rich and full life can be discovered for those willing to make the journey.

I made a lot of big changes over the years to build a life that was in alignment- physically, mentally, relationally, and vocationally. Ultimately this led to the choice to dedicate my vocation to helping other women navigate their own well-being journeys.

I started working in the Functional Medicine space as a physician’s consultant in 2016. Over seven years I worked with 400+ clinicians in Austin and California, and during that time worked on six different certifications and trainings that help inform the approach I take in practice today. I am a deep believer in the power of personal transformation by blending simple lifestyle practices with individualized protocols that restore optimal function in the body. I always knew that I eventually wanted to start my own practice, which came to fruition in late 2023.

My practice, Rad Wellbeing, is a Women’s Holistic Health and Functional Wellness Practice. The process at Rad takes a holistic approach, and has the simple aim of helping women live radically well. Physical optimization is a big part of that- we work on things like microbiome/gut health, natural hormone balancing, personalized nutrition, understanding functional lab testing, nervous system regulation and much more. It is also a process of helping women understand and embody what their highest potential is, and live with that potential as their set point.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I highly recommend The Creative Act by Rick Rubin. Rick Rubin is a renowned music producer so at first glance, one might not think it would be the most relevant read for a business owner, but that is not the case. I believe every business owner to be a “creative” in their own right. We may not all be making art, but we are bringing something to life, and that is our vision, mission and offerings to the world at large. I have very often felt like bringing my practice, Rad Wellbeing, to life is a creative endeavor. This book has helped me alleviate a lot of concerns about “what will people think”, and allowed me to focus solely on what I have to individually and uniquely offer the world.

If you could go back, would you choose the same profession, specialty, etc.?

Absolutely! The field of Functional Medicine and Holistic Health deals with something that every human on this planet at some point has to think about- their own health! And by taking a holistic approach, it allows for a broad view on all of the things in our life that contribute to or deplete our own health and well-being. There is never a dull moment or lack of learning to be done!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://radwellbeingatx.com
• Instagram: @radwellbeing
• Youtube: @RadWellbeing

Image Credits

Tessa Siebel, Melissa Bordeau