Episode #54: Erica Matluck
Erica Matluck is a Naturopathic Doctor, Nurse Practitioner and holistic coach. She was trained as a Reiki master at 20 years old and began studying yoga as a teenager. Eastern philosophy threads through all of her work. Combining over a decade of experience working in conventional and alternative medicine, Erica brings a truly holistic lens to health, addressing the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual obstacles wellbeing. Prior to opening a private practice in New York City, Erica spent 8 years at One Medical Group, where she built lifestyle based group programs and has delivered onsite wellness workshops for countless prominent companies. She is also the founder of Seven Senses, where she leads transformational wellness experiences throughout the world.
Erica Matluck doesn’t write you a prescription and send you on your way. Instead, she wants patients to see a roadmap of their treatment. As she says, part of her job as a naturopathic doctor is to be a teacher. By providing education to her patients, she seeks to make them feel empowered about their health--something not everyone is used to feeling, especially if they’ve been through test after test without arriving at any answers. On today’s episode, Erica and I talk about what drove her to explore naturopathic medicine (along with other healing modalities, and a nurse practitioner degree), and why she looks at the big picture of physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional health. We also chat about the philosophies of naturopathic medicine, how it differs from conventional medicine (and how it doesn’t), and why she would always, always welcome a conversation with a patient if they decided they didn’t feel good about a treatment approach. As she reminds listeners, doctors are experts, but patients are also experts--in their ownhealth.
“I don’t want people to give away their power in their health. I want people to feel empowered.”
Here are some of the things Erica and I chatted about:
The experiences, when she was younger, that first sparked her interest in holistic healing
Her undergrad anthropology work at Oberlin that led her to study reiki with a reiki master
Doing reiki sessions with fellow students, once word got about about what she was doing
Her uncertainty whether all the varied approaches she had explored would ever come together
How her experience with body work clients helped push her down the naturopathic route
What was particularly compelling, in her mind, about the philosophy of naturopathic medicine
How naturopathic medicine gave her scientific diagnostic tools, plus additional treatment tools
The power of group work for patients, and how community can be used as a therapeutic tool
Transitiong from a clinical setting to private practice, and why there was no other choice for her
Leading retreats, and how retreats can provide clarity for people who are at a juncture in life
The typical patient she sees, and what she does first when she starts working with them
Providing patients with education, including giving them a roadmap of their treatment plan
The incredibly valuable conversation that can happen when a patient questions a treatment
Being an expert in the field, and also acknowledging that the patient is an expert in themself
Her hope that people can reclaim the power of the patient (and why it needs reclaiming)
The pressure on healthcare providers, and her respect for everyone who goes into medicine
Why it’s good to be referred into a practice, and to approach new practice like an interview
“Quite frankly, if someone told me to make changes in my diet and they didn’t tell me why, I would never do it. I wouldn’t blindly trust someone like that.”
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