About Our Team
We’re a small team of holistic health warriors on a mission to help people feel their best again.
That’s because we’ve all been there. Each of us have suffered our own health challenges. Our heath journeys were all unique, but we share the same outcome… and now that we’ve regained our health, we’ve made it our life’s work to help others do the same.
Helping people get healthy is our passion.
Each of us has over 10 years of extensive training and experience in functional nutrition and wellness.
Here’s your chance to get to know us all.
Justine Altman, FDN-P, PCWC, AAWC, AFDNP
Justine began her own wellness journey out of necessity. All her life, Justine experienced regular health issues like back pain, obesity, IBS, and fatigue. By her early 20s, she was also suffering from infertility, PCOS, panic attacks, chronic headaches, and so much more. She spent years of her life meeting with various MD specialists and trying medication after medication, only to see and feel her health continue to decline to the point where daily existence was merely survival… it wasn’t living.
Then she met a wellness expert who helped her change the way she was eating and living. She lost weight and her symptoms started to lessen. But then she plateaued after hitting only about 50% of her health goals.
That’s when she decided to train with the best wellness leaders to become an expert at using cutting-edge functional lab tests to find out exactly which hidden stressors were still wreaking havoc inside her body. Once she was able to find those missing puzzle pieces, she was able to give her body exactly what it needs.
And once she realized the change she could make in her own life, she was determined to help others take control of their health.
Today, Justine is a much sought-after wellness leader herself, appearing in numerous podcasts and giving talks on a variety of holistic topics, including fertility, thyroid dysfunction, and gut health, and is the co-author of upcoming book Doing the Impossible with Functional Medicine.
Patricia Delaere, FDN-P
Patricia discovered holistic medicine when she was dealing with severe menopause symptoms, a flare up of asthma, and a lifetime of deepening depression.
She had lost her joy for living and knew she had to make a change.
Luckily, Patricia discovered found strong mentors and began learning more about Functional Nutrition. By making positive changes to her lifestyle she was able to eliminate all of her health issues, including her menopause symptoms and her asthma, in just 30 days.
This physical healing opened the door to a new life for Patricia, one which brought her back to school where she learned about physical and spiritual well-being. Today, she still feels as strong and healthy in her 70s as she did then.
Patricia is a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner, Hormone Balancing Expert, Enzymes Consultant, and Reiki Practitioner.
She holds a Doctorate Degree in Naturopathy, is a Certified Nutritionist, and holds certifications as a Food Psychology Coach and Life Coach.
Patricia has spent the last 20+ years helping clients optimize their health and happiness and she wants the same for you.
Colleen Dove, FDN-P
Colleen serves her clients with over 12 years of Functional Nutrition experience. Her insatiable curiosity drives her to constantly learn more and more about integrative health – especially the connections between mind, emotions, and body.
Colleen received her B.S. from the University of Texas at Austin in Communications with an emphasis in communication sciences and disorders. Her studies included speech pathology and brain function.
Adrenal and hormone challenges led her to deepen her own health exploration. After finding support through an integrative practitioner and building back her health, Colleen has served integrative health clients for more than 12 years and extensively trained under a PA-C.
Having been diagnosed with hypoglycemia in the past, Colleen has first-hand experience with the importance of balancing foods with supplementation and exercise. And she’s not only an expert at body biochemistry, but also body mechanics – chiropractic care, physical therapy/muscle training, and nutritional support.
Colleen draws on her history of using integrative approaches for her own health issues as well as her comprehensive exploration of conventional and “non-conventional” methods to help guide her clients to health and vitality.
Shauna Gourley, FDN-P
Shauna’s passion for wellness was born from experience. In her 40s, after recovering from having “the hormone profile of a 90-yr-old woman,” Shauna was inspired to help others on their path to optimal health.
The first step she took was to pursue training in Holistic Nutrition, with a professional designation of Certified Holistic Nutrition Consultant. This science-based, foundational training in whole foods nutrition ignited a passion for a deeper understanding of the body and its functions. For Shauna, completing her training in Functional Diagnostic Nutrition provided the expertise she was looking for.
Shauna’s recent and ongoing training in Methylation & Clinical Nutrigenomics from Seeking Health Courses by Dr. Ben Lynch takes this functional approach to health a giant step further. Nutrigenomics is the study of how different foods, environment, and lifestyle may interact with specific genes, potentially influencing whether predisposed genetic variants are expressed or not.
In addition to practicing Functional Nutrition, Shauna is a mentor and clinical advisor for functional medicine practitioners-in-training.
Shauna was also certified as one of the first ever Bulletproof Human Potential Coaches. Human Potential Coaching utilizes the power of positive psychology and presence-based coaching, along with the latest in biohacking techniques. This powerhouse combo is allowing Shauna’s clients to achieve their health-related goals, optimize their biology, and live their best lives!
Jeremy Warden DC, MedDipA,
IFMCP(candidate)
When Jeremy was a child, he spent of many of his formative years in and out of children’s hospitals. His parents were at a loss because it seemed impossible to nail down what was causing his symptoms. His doctors were at a loss too. His case was proving to be a serious enigma… to traditional medicine, that is.
Then his mother found a holistic practitioner and his life was completely transformed. In 8 months, using 100% natural means, they had rediscovered the potential within him and completely restored his health. He had a new lease on life and decided then and there that he would learn how to take control of his health so he would never relapse into his previous condition.
Jeremy has studied at Sherman College of Chiropractic, the International Academy of Medical Acupuncture, and the Institute of Functional Medicine. With specialties in upper cervical chiropractic care, medical acupuncture, and functional medicine, he has spent the last 20 years applying diverse principles and modalities to deliver personalized care to thousands of clients.
Jeremy attributes his passion for discovering each person’s unique health potential to the fact that his mom and dad did that for him; his parents never gave up and their perseverance led him to the happy, healthy life he leads to this day.
Shelly Whittaker, BSN, MSACN
Shelly’s interest in health and nutrition began in 6th grade, when she learned that nitrates and nitrites in hotdogs and other processed meats had been linked to an increased risk of cancer. She couldn’t believe it. Most medical institutions advise you to reduce your consumption of foods containing nitrates and nitrites to reduce your risk of certain cancers – and the Food and Drug Administration approved it as a food additive?
“What else do I need to learn about the foods my family and I are eating?,” she thought. The more she researched, the more obvious it became that what we eat affects our health. Later, when her mother developed fibromyalgia and both of her parents had to deal with skin cancer, she resolved to live a life of optimal health… and to help others do the same.
Shelly started out as a dental assistant and later became a nurse. After years in these fields, it became clear to her that natural and alternative treatments made the most sense. They were proactive – nourishing the body with nutrients to prevent health problems – rather than waiting to treat symptoms once a health issue got too bad.
Shelly decided to pursue a Master of Science in Applied Clinical Nutrition (MSACN) and used it to round out her educational background to become a nutritionist. Shelly’s love for healthy food drives her mission to teach others what she’s learned and help them achieve the best health possible.
Pamela Moore, FDN-P
By the time Pamela was out of college and working as an engineer, she had been struggling with chronic illness for twenty years. She spent more than a decade searching for answers with western medicine. Even though Pamela went to dozens of doctors of all kinds, she said each doctor’s visit was the same routine: “15 minutes with the doctor who took next to zero time listening to me and then prescribed antibiotics + steroids”. This happened over and over with no real help or answers. After being diagnosed with Hashimoto’s and Lupus, she quit her engineering career and embarked on a life-changing 15-year journey of studying the body and how to heal.
Her path to healing led her to train extensively in Genetic Testing & Interpretation and Epigenetics Coaching & Therapies. Epigenetics is the study of how your environment and behaviors, such as diet and exercise, can change how your body reads a DNA sequence and therefore affect the way your genes work.
Pamela is also an expert in Environmental Mold Testing (ERMI), having studied mold illness extensively under Brendan Vermeire. She is a Certified Gluten-Free Practitioner, internationally Certified Reflexologist, and trained Aromatherapist.
Pamela has helped over 500 clients understand their unique genetic makeup and work with them to create an individualized path to optimize their health and change their future. “I don’t want anyone to have to go through what I went through, so now I help others learn about their own root causes and roadblocks to health so they can heal, or better yet, prevent disease all together.”
Chandler McMurray-Ives, FDN-P
A strong advocate for the importance of supporting the health of the body, mind, and spirit together, Chandler coaches her clients on diet, lifestyle, and mindful modifications, as well as the use of integrative herbology protocols to reverse and remove any interference that is contributing to imbalance and preventing optimal overall health.
Chandler has trained in Practice Breathwork and Qigong, Foundational Tuina Training, and Traditional Chinese Medicine through the Montreal Gongfu Research Center. She is a SIBO Yoga instructor through Shanti Yoga and a Body Work Practitioner. And her deep interest in the use of herbs and medicinal plants has led her to pursue extensive training in Herbalism.
She also has advanced training in Thyroid function as well as expert HTMA. And to make herself even more valuable to the referral clients she gets from psychologists, Chandler is training in counseling as well. In fact, Chandler has worked as a clinical counsellor for a group of people who were transitioning with hormones, as well as a group of teens who had eating disorders.
Chandler’s hope is that by incorporating alternative therapies with functional medicine, she is able to provide others with the tools they need to optimize their health and happiness.
Gary Merel, M.S., L.Ac
Gary Merel has dedicated his professional career to Holistic Healing and Functional Medicine, spending the last 20 years in Ann Arbor. The care he offers at Ann Arbor Holistic Health revolves around a comprehensive holistic approach that helps people facilitate the natural and instinctive healing process of the human body.
As a holistic health specialist, Gary supports individuals on their unique path to wellness through the application of nutrition, acupuncture, enzyme therapy, herbal medicine, supplements, and natural hormone balancing. He is especially attuned to treating clients for pain management, infertility, chronic conditions, women’s health, and metabolic disorders.
Gary has served as a guest lecturer at the University of Michigan Medical School and as a participant in an ongoing research project with the university’s integrative health department. He is an adjunct faculty member at Washtenaw Community College where he has taught classes on Oriental medicine.
A graduate of the New York College of Health Professions, Gary also has an M.S. in Oriental medicine, with a concentration in acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. He is a member of the Michigan Society of Acupuncturists (formerly the Michigan Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine – MAAOM) and a founding member of the Edo-Kai Traditional Acupuncture Society.
Ready to get started?
Our practitioners all started right where you are today.
With knowledge, training, and support, they discovered just how much of a difference they could make in their own daily lives.
Now they want to shout it from the rooftops & share that with as many people as possible.
Everyone deserves to know they can improve their own health and wellbeing.
734-222-8210
support@annarborholistichealth.com
In addition to our convenient online sessions, we also offer in-person visits at our Southeast Michigan office located on the west side of Ann Arbor:
Ann Arbor Holistic Health
220 Collingwood Dr., Suite 240
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Monday – Friday 9 am – 4 pm
Saturday & Sunday by appointment
