Today we’d like to introduce you to Stevi Pennypacker, MS, CNS, LDN
Stevi, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I was 19, my perspective on health and healthcare radically changed. A 5-day hospital stay and an “almost” diagnosis forced me to reconsider what I thought I knew about nutrition and caring for my body.
An eating disorder in my earlier teenage years, governed by calorie counting and eating as little as humanly possible, defined my view on what it meant to be “healthy.” As the chronic dieting gave way to some serious chronic gut and hormone symptoms, I realized that how a body looks vs. how it is functioning don’t always line up.
Hearing the doctor utter the words “autoimmunity” and “life-long immuno-suppressant drugs” was the wake up call I needed. It ended up changing my life, but not in the way I would have thought.
After running all the tests under the sun and being given a potential Crohn’s disease diagnosis, I remember asking my doctor a question – “if the inflammation is in my gut, is there something I need to do with my diet to help resolve it? Should I give up, say, gluten?”
I can still hear the words that followed ringing in my ears: “No, don’t worry about your diet. Take this steroid pill daily, and we will follow up every few months.”
Despite my youth, and by the grace of God, something about that prognosis didn’t sit right with me. I refused to accept that as the only answer. It was then that I realized that while our healthcare system is well-equipped to provide acute care and disease management, it lacks the infrastructure needed to provide true wellness – which requires meaningful clinician time, the right testing, and patient education to discover the root of the body’s dysfunction and help patients truly heal.
So there I was with a decision to make: accept medication as my only option or seek a different answer. Over the next year, I decided on a holistic approach to treatment which involved nutrition and lifestyle changes geared toward deep nourishment and removing sources of inflammation. As a result, my symptoms were gone, my quality of life had returned, and I was no longer considered a chronic disease patient. This was too good to keep to myself.
And that’s how I found functional medicine.
If you’re not familiar with the concept, a simple way to explain it would be this: if you have an upset stomach every time you eat, conventional medicine may call it “IBS” which essentially means an irritated gut. While logical, it’s not exactly helpful. The patient may be prescribed medication to manage the symptoms, and that’s about as far as it goes. Functional medicine may see the same patient and ask “why is the gut irritated?” and proceed to look for reasons in the patients microbiome, behaviors, diet, or environment that could be causing the irritation. Functional medicine then goes one step further to guide the patient through the healing process so that symptoms are resolved for the long-term and the patient is better equipped to prevent future issues.
To be clear: I’m so grateful for all the amazing ways our healthcare system saves lives. AND I believe that we can do better to provide better quality of life for those with suffering with unresolved gut issues, hormone imbalance, chronic fatigue, and metabolic dysfunction, to name a few. Because “diet culture” certainly isn’t helping, either!
After completing my undergrad at Dallas Baptist University, I pursued a Master’s in Integrative Clinical Nutrition, completed 1,000 clinical supervision hours and passed a board exam to receive my Certified Nutrition Specialist (“CNS”) credential, which I typically explain as the functional medicine equivalent of the Registered Dietitian (“RD”) credential, focused on personalized and preventative health. After school, I opened a private personalized nutrition practice called Salt + Light Functional Nutrition to see clients on a one-on-one basis, getting my start by collaborating on patients with local doctors and practitioners in other disciplines.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Certainly not smooth, especially in choosing a path that is unconventional like the Certified Nutrition Specialist credential.
Although the traditional Registered Dietitian route makes it easier to secure a job and gain credibility, I knew I didn’t align with many of the philosophies that were being taught through that path.
When I started my Master’s, the CNS was even less well known than it is today, which was certainly a gamble. However, I’ve found that as people realize the tools we have to address health issues and understand that our level of education is comparable to a Dietitian’s (and in some ways more rigorous due to the Master’s degree requirement), they are thrilled. And I would say that nationwide, CNS’s are growing in recognition both from a media perspective and a legislation perspective, which is exciting.
But don’t get me wrong – I have many RD colleagues who are also out there doing incredible work in the functional medicine space, which I think is amazing and truly believe there’s room for all of us at the table!
We’ve been impressed with Salt + Light Functional Nutrition, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Getting to open a private practice has been one of the biggest gifts. I get to sit with people, often for an hour at a time, and hear their stories, empathize, and provide hope that they can heal and feel like themselves again. I hear story after story of “your labs look fine” and “I don’t know what to tell you” as patients fail to find answers to their chronic symptoms and feel hopeless.
I feel like a detective, getting to piece together their health stories with clinical data via comprehensive blood panels, stool tests, hormone panels, etc. to understand the full picture of what could be going wrong. Then, we work together to create a roadmap to healing, which can be be highly complex – involving physical and emotional factors, behavior change and psychology, culture and food preferences, and lifestyle differences.
Each and every person is so different, and it’s a joy to get to walk beside them through an incredibly vulnerable journey. I’m big into educating clients so they understand the WHY behind what I’m telling them to do, how it makes sense on a physiology level, rather than just having them take my word for it. I also love food and believe that life is too short to eat boring and tasteless food, so I’m always trying to help people actually enjoy what they’re eating – otherwise, it won’t stick.
What sets me apart most is my personal faith in Jesus Christ – even if clients don’t share the same view, it gives me the perspective that people are created to thrive and to achieve their God-given purpose, and restoring health enables them to do that. I care so deeply about each one of my clients and believe their lives matter – and sometimes they need someone who will listen, validate them, and encourage them in all areas of life. There are often tears involved in our sessions, and for good reason!
Having a practitioner who is invested in your life and interpreting what is best for your specific body is, in my opinion, the best way to pursue optimal health. With so much conflicting health and wellness information out there, THIS is the beauty of personalized medicine. And I want everyone who interacts with my brand to experience the fruit of that.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Fun question! I grew up in a small town outside of Dallas with a wonderful family. My dad would take us on epic 6-week long RV trips every summer, where I really grew an appreciation for the outdoors, meeting new people, and enjoy the simple joys of life.
I was a good mix of right and left brained. Perfectionist, straight-A student, loving math a little too much. I also had a creative side – I loved pondering literature and abstract ideas, and was actually best known for my singing abilities (picture this… my first job was a singing waitress!). I originally went to college to pursue music until my journey with health took over and led me down a different path.
I also began to learn how to cook during high school – I immersed myself in Food Network, Bon Appetit magazine, and was constantly trying out new recipes with my mom. This love has certainly served me well as I help people grow their confidence in the kitchen to help them develop healthier rhythms (and my husband is now a beneficiary, too!).
Pricing:
- Phase 1: $599 (Includes two 1 hour sessions for intake and lab review)
- Phase 2: $229/month membership (One 50 minute session per month + messaging support)
- Phase 3: $249/quarter (One 50 minute session per quarter + messaging support)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://slfunctionalnutrition.com/
- Instagram: @slfunctionalnutrition
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/salt-light-functional-nutrition
Image Credits
Lyndi Ruth Photography.
