Before I get into the introduction for today’s show, I simply want to thank you all for your patience and support over the past month as we have taken a brief break from the podcast. The entire team has been hard at work over the past two weeks and have just released the newest version of the Ultimate Integrative and Functional Medicine Education Resource. The 2018 edition has a whopping 57 pages and is filled with 170 total resources from blogs, books and e-books to podcasts, practitioner trainings and conferences, all with embedded links to get you right where you need to be!   The book is also full of amazing pictures from none other than my partner in crime, my twin brother James, and I think you will really enjoy the combination of artistry and content. And I have to give some major thanks to my dear friend and the woman behind the scenes of nearly everything you see on the webpage and social media, Rhett Deverich. She was instrumental in getting this E-book designed and I am lucky to have it .   AND, if that wasn’t enough, I just announced my partnership with Mickey Trescott and Angie Alt of Autoimmune Wellness. If you have not already, you must check out the work of Mickey and Angie, pioneers in the field of nutrition when it comes to the nutrient dense elimination diet The Paleo Autoimmune Protocol. I am so fortunate to have partnered with them and have already published our first collaborative blog post: Is Baking Soda An Effective Treatment for Autoimmune Disease?  Be sure to explore the article with the link on our podcast page or your podcast player.   So, are you ready for today’s show?   In Episode 045 of A Medicinal Mind: Wisdom and Well Being, I welcome my close friend and fellow Virginian, Ashley Mannell. Ashley is the only dual-credentialed psychiatric nurse practitioner and registered dietitian in Virginia, who is ALSO a certified practitioner of Functional Medicine through the Institute of Functional Medicine.   And in today’s show we get into the story that lead Ashley to such a unique place of healing. Starting by sharing her early experiences as a child and in the healthcare field as a whole, Ashley offers some background behind her pursuit of medicine. Growing from here Ashley leads us into her journey into more holistic practice, why she ultimately decided to pursue functional and integrative medicine over more traditional clinical practice.   Ashley then leads us into a discussion of her clinical practice, first seeking to define integrative psychiatry and psychology, outlining the methodical and foundational approach of her visionary clinic Richmond Integrative Psychiatry and Nutrition Services. She shares a little about their design, describing the team based approach of the clinic and the way they focus on key lifestyle habits while supporting and healing the gut on top of integrating in support for mental wellness.   We then explore some of the current hot topics in psychiatry, discussing the role of psychotherapy and genetic testing alongside nutrition and targeted supplementation. We even begin to speculate upon the future of psychiatry and the road ahead for mental health care.   This was an absolute joy to record and I am so lucky to have a partner in Virginia with such knowledge and passion for healing using root cause approaches. Functional and integrative medicine in Virginia is only going to grow with clinicians like Ashley.   And with that, let’s get into the show!   Stay up to date with Ashley and her work using this link: https://richmondfoodandmood.com   You can see all of our content including blogs, poetry, meditations, and our weekly newsletter at our webpage: A Medicinal Mind   You can also follow A Medicinal Mind on Facebook and Instagram If you enjoyed the show, please subscribe with Apple Podcasts and leave us a review. Your fe