Nicole Fox
Before she became a dietitian, Nicole Fox was a neuromuscular therapist. In treating patients challenged by fibromyalgia, chronic migraines, and various other pain syndromes, she often served as a member of a larger care team that included a patient’s physical therapist, neurologist, and pain management physician. Although most of her appointments with patients were only 15-20 minutes long, it was not uncommon for them to ask her questions related to health and wellness.
She shares, “I’d be working with someone on my table, and sometimes they'd be in too much pain to talk. But they would almost always ask me about the latest supplement their friend told them about or a diet fad. And although I wasn't a dietitian, I was always curious about everything they asked me about. So I would research and come back to them with some educated information. And the more I did this, the more I realized I was interested in how food and nutrition affect the body.” After ten years as a neuromuscular therapist, she decided to become a dietitian.
Time and time again, Nicole has observed that when people achieve their optimum health, their entire mindset changes. She says she’s always wanted to help create a better planet and had a true “aha moment” when she realized that being a dietitian could help her do that. After completing her Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition & Food Science at California Polytechnic University, Pomona, she earned her Master of Science degree in Public Health from the University of California Los Angeles. She says, “I studied public health because I wanted to change health at a community scale. And today I’m doing that by helping people one-on-one and in group settings at Your Life Nutrition (YLN)."
Nicole has been a dietitian for 20 years and loves getting to know new patients. Each one has a unique set of challenges, needs, and goals, and she hears their stories and uses that information to help them build healthy new realities. Nicole has also trained in reiki, meditation, yoga, mindfulness, and qi gong, and these practices have shaped her understanding of the mind-body connection in overall health.
Nicole is also a GAPS (Gut & Psychology Systems) Practitioner and recalls the circumstance that led her to that specialty. “I was in private practice at the beginning of my nutrition career. I befriended another mom at my child’s preschool whose daughter was diagnosed with a processing disorder, and who was also being evaluated for autism. One day my friend came over to my house, thrust this big book in my hand, and said ‘Have you heard of this? It's the gut and psychology diet.’" Soon, Nicole researched the GAPS diet and helped her friend implement it for her daughter. Though it required a concerted effort, the diet profoundly affected the child’s well-being. Nicole would eventually travel to Chicago to meet and study under GAPS diet developer Natasha Campbell-McBride, M.D., M.S. – a world-renowned neurologist and neurosurgeon who developed her theories on the relationship between neurological disorders and nutrition after her own son was diagnosed with autism.
Before coming to YLN, Nancy ran a private nutrition practice at the Southern California Neurology Center at Huntington Hospital. While there, she collaborated with a team of physicians to open a multi-disciplinary migraine and headache treatment clinic that offered patients educational classes, nutrition counseling, and osteopathy. Nicole is also a Certified Holistic Cannabis Practitioner with expertise in utilizing cannabis to supplement her patients’ wellness practices.
Nicole enjoys going to work in the beautiful craftsman-style house where YLN’s offices are located, as well as working with colleagues who, she says, are incredibly nice.