Natalie Groenewoud
Dr. Nat Groenewoud Naturopath Vancouver

CLINIC CO-OWNER

Dr. Natalie
Groenewoud, ND

As one of five children, Nat learned pretty early on how to keep up. Always excited and determined to be on pace with her brothers, she had high motivation to learn fast, play hard, and work even harder!

Without surprise, her efforts paid off.

After proving herself more than capable in sport, Nat was awarded a full ride soccer scholarship to the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She spent 4.5 years studying pre med and winning athletic awards for being named the fastest, hardest, and strongest… She desired being celebrated this way, which fed into her nature of always “pushing harder.” However, in time this drive took a toll on her body, and although she wasn’t interested in listening to the many STOP signs her body was telling her.. (Ignore them and they will go away… right??).

Her body was keeping the score and eventually this type A personality had her first experience with burn out…and unfortunately not her last.

After a hospital visit and a couple of months recovering from fatigue, Natalie jumped right back into life when the fatigue lifted. The same problematic drive remained. “I’m NOT slowing down if I don’t HAVE to.” She continued to pursue two of her passions at full tilt: studying Naturopathic Medicine and playing in the Vancouver Whitecaps pool. Can you guess what happened next?

It took a torn ACL and a second bout of burn out resulting in six months of sheer exhaustion, brain fog, cognitive confusion, and hardly enough energy to take care of herself to realize that she really needed help.

Dr. Groenewoud Naturopath Vancouver

THIS IS WHEN NAT FOUND THE DOCTOR WHO UNCOVERED THE ROOT OF HER HEALTH ISSUE.

He showed her how sustained elevated stressors can deplete the adrenal glands and lead to exhaustion. Her mind was blown and she was aghast that everyone didn’t know this. This experience inspired her to master the art of restoring the adrenal glands in women everywhere. Learning the hard way taught her everything she needed to know about teaching women how to listen to the subtle cues of their bodies to understand when they are being nudged to slow down, rest, and nourish themselves.

Most Modern Women are very well versed in the art of hustling, saying yes (when they mean no), and putting themselves last on the priority list.

After discovering what drove her so deeply to do it all she could finally learn to say NO!! Building a resume of accolades to prove how strong, smart and driven she was took a back seat to leaning into listening to her body and true desires. Re-defining what it meant to be successful and stripping away the weighted “Shoulds”, truly re-defined her health to a more complete and authentic wellness.

A decade later she now co-own’s Aumakua Integrated Wellness Clinic, where she thrives meeting women where they are at and supporting them through similar life situations and health concerns.

As the Mama to two young boys, life is constantly moving! Between hikes and supporting patients, Nat can be found restoring her body in epsom salt baths (lesson finally learned!), running in the woods, and returning to the islands of Hawaii as often as life allows.

NAT IS A SYMBOL OF WHAT IT MEANS TO HEAL FROM THE INSIDE OUT.

And after a lifetime of making sure she never fell behind, she’s finally very comfortable exactly where she is…

Tucked away in the mountains with her family and an oat milk latte.

Squamish Naturopath Natalie Groenewoud
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