Hi, I’m Gina Lockwood-Sheehan
My introduction to Functional Medicine remains etched in my memory. I was dealing with two autoimmune diseases (Graves’ Disease and Sjogren’s Disease) along with complications of the liver, and their resulting symptoms concurrently. As a result, I was desperately in search of a natural way to cure these diseases. A low quality of life and a dependence on prescription medications would never be a path for me.
It was disillusioning and disappointing to have conventional medicine physicians telling me, “There is nothing you can do. You have to accept this. Food will not make a difference. Stop researching. You are being irresponsible and reckless. It’s all in your head. You are making yourself worse, etc.” I recall leaving a specialist’s office and writing in my journal, “There is SOMETHING I can do!” I read that affirmation every morning and during days when my symptoms were most debilitating. Two years prior to this, I had tried working with a Chinese Medical doctor using Chinese herbs and acupuncture; and while some symptoms were alleviated and I was able to stop taking antibiotics and over the counter pain medication, it did not get to the root of my illnesses. I persevered, determined to not let my fears, or adhering to the status quo, define me.
Intensive research led me to an interview with the Functional Medicine practitioner, Amy Myers. The interview entitled, “Why Western Medicine Gets Autoimmune Diseases All Wrong,” explored how Dr. Myers’ personal journey led her to practice Functional Medicine. Her story struck a personal chord on many levels and the empathetic connection I felt inspired me to learn as a much as possible about this profound approach to health and wellbeing. I immersed myself in her website and thoroughly researched the Institute of Functional Medicine, as well as other resources. At the time, I was not able to utilize Dr. Myers’ services in Texas and I could not find an FM practitioner in my community.
Not letting any obstacles stand in my way, I began Dr. Myers’ Elimination Diet and Guide to The Gut eCourses. Acting as my own Functional Medicine Health Coach, I followed the course guidelines, all without assistance. In fact, no one in my social circle had even heard of Functional Medicine. Although some people were skeptical and concerned, I remained fully committed to my goal. Changing one’s diet, personal care, household products and more on one’s own is no easy task. About eight months later, almost all of my labs were in normal ranges, and I was essentially symptom free. Upon reflection, my health struggles opened the door to a new life, both personally and professionally.
I am now a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach, a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach and have the Reversing Cognitive Decline For Coaches: Bredesen Protocol Certification. My mission is to support as many people as possible in taking their life back.
Gina Lockwood-Sheehan: M.A., NBC-HWC, FMCHC,
Master of Arts in Organizational Psychology, Columbia University, Teachers College
National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach
Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach
Reversing Cognitive Decline For Coaches: Bredesen Protocol Certification,
ApoE4 - Aware Health Coach: ApoE4.Info: The Alzheimer's Gene Resource
Certifications
Click on the FMCA logo to link to my profile
Click on the NBC-HWC logo to link to my profile
Click on the FMCA logo to link to my profile
Click on the MOCA logo for more information
Click on the ReCODE 2.0 Certification Logo to link to my Apollo ReCODE 2.0 Certified Cognition Coach profile
Why the Sunflower?
“Turn your face to the sun, and shadows follow behind you.”
– Maori Proverb
The sunflower (Genus - Helianthus) with its bold, warm and bright colors remains a powerful symbol of positivism and radiance. The name is a portmanteau of the Greek words “Helios” (Sun) and “Anthos” (Flower).
Sunflowers are traditionally harvested for their oil and flowers and have also provided generations of artists and poets with inspiration.
Less well known perhaps is the fact the visible “flower” head is in fact an inflorescence - a composite made of tiny reproductive flowers of which there are two types: ray florets - the yellow and orange petals, and the disc florets, arranged as a whorl disc in the center of the “flower”. The disc and ray florets reproduce differentially (unisex and bisexual) and are cross pollinated primarily by bees.
Sunflowers track the sun, leaning westward as the day progresses but reorientate to the east each night. The term for this amazing physical attribute is Heliotropism. On a side note, sunflowers will not face each other on a cloudy day.
As you can probably tell from my website, I LOVE sunflowers which are emblematic of the need for positive self-expression and self-care. It has been scientifically proven through Barbara Fredrickson’s research that we are wired to dwell on negativity. For every negative emotion experienced, we require 3 positive emotions to offset the physical and emotional impacts of negativity. It requires a conscious effort to overcome this negativity bias.
Sunflowers exhibit a beautiful hidden complexity, in that the arrangement of ray and disc florets conform with the mathematical expression known as the Golden Ratio. Essentially, the spirals you see in the flower center are generated from the Fibonacci sequence (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144...), where each number in the sequence is the sum of the previous two numbers. Within the sunflower, there are two series of curves winding in opposite directions, starting at the center and stretching out to the petals, with each seed sitting at a certain angle from the neighboring seeds to create the spiral.
Through my work and goals, I have come to understand and appreciate a number of poetic parallels between the majestic sunflower and our own amazing biology. Functional healing has a simple premise - to achieve optimal health, however the process is multifaceted involving a deep understanding of your body, mental health, diet, environment, and other factors.
Analogically, the role of the health coach is both “visible” as a critical support in your journey, and at the same time, “invisible” in the sense that my work supports your goals and commitment.