We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Monica Schwingel. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Monica below.

Monica , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

Two years ago, I had my second child at 36 years old. I was an elementary school teacher and took the year off to stay home with my baby. I started working with an NTP (nutritional therapy practitioner) during this time and fell in love with the idea of healing my body through whole foods. I decided to quit my career as a teacher, go back to school to become an NTP and start my own business. There were many times I was afraid I would fail or that people wouldn’t think I had enough credentials. There were times when I contemplated going back to teaching to have something “safe” to fall back on. But when I started to dive in and began working with clients, I realize that this risk was the best thing I had done in a long while. I realized that I was very capable and that this was the path I was always supposed to take. Risks aren’t supposed to be easy. They are meant to be scary because they get us out of our comfort zones. They challenge us. Sometimes we fall, but we always manage to get back up even if it’s difficult, even if it hurts, even if it feels like it will never amount to anything. What keeps us from taking risks is being stuck in our own heads. I am so glad I took this huge risk.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Hi, I’m Monica Schwingel. I am a nutritional therapy practitioner and a level 1 restorative wellness practitioner and the owner of Nutritionally Empowered LLC. I got into this field after working with an NTP myself right after I had my second child almost 2 years ago. It opened my eyes to what “real” food can do for our bodies and how I had such a terrible relationship with food. I help clients overcome “diet culture” by helping them to rebuild confidence within themselves and the food they are eating. We unfortunately live in a world where we are consumed by weight loss, diet products, fad diets, restrictions, etc. These things are doing more harm than they are doing good and setting up unrealistic expectations. I suffered from disordered eating for many years so this hits close to home. On top of helping people overcome these issues, I also help them to restore balance to their lives through a holistic approach by finding root causes to issues they may be experiencing and addressing them through nutrition. Some issues may include gut issues, hormonal imbalances, blood sugar dysregulation, pain and inflammation. I can order comprehensive stool analysis’ and food sensitivity panels to truly find what is off in a person’s body. I also analyze intake forms like a comprehensive questionnaire and food and mood journals to dig deeper into what a client is putting into their body and how it may be impacting their overall health. I meet with clients prior to hear their story and learn more about them as a person before diving into client work. I offer one on one client services where we come up with goals and I craft recommendations based on the client’s individual needs. I meet monthly via zoom with clients to discuss progress and barriers. Sometimes we set up mini goals or tasks to work on until our next meeting. I also provide tons of recipes and resources to ensure they will be successful through this journey. The most rewarding part of this work is when clients begin to see and feel a difference in their bodies. My ultimate goal when working with a client is for them to start to feel better inside and out. I love helping and teaching people proper nutrition and how to take back their lives through being “nutritionally empowered”. Some of my biggest accomplishments while working with clients is helping them to get off of the “diet rollercoaster”, improving their energy levels, reducing digestive issues, and helping them reduce their overall pain and inflammation. I work 100% remotely, so can take on clients from all across the United States.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

I think it is important to view clients as people first and not their “conditions”. It’s easy to try to want to “fix” someone, but when we let clients share their stories it makes the work that much more impactful and meaningful. It’s also important to meet someone where they are. As I mentioned, this work is HARD and it’s very much on the client to see the results. Sometimes clients experience barriers so guiding them through these and helping them where they are at for that moment means greater results for them, even if they don’t feel like BIG results.

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

Absolutely, 100%. I wished I would have found it sooner! However, I do believe that we are set on paths that don’t always take us to our final destinations immediately. I think we end up at forks in the road and go slightly off course to help build sets of skills that we will need eventually. Everything is a new learning adventure and its fun to dip into the bank of resources accumulated over the years.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nutritionallyempoweredllc.com
• Instagram: nutritionally_empowered
• Facebook: Nutritionally Empowered LLC
• Linkedin: Monica Schwingel

Image Credits
Two One Photography- Casey VanHorn