Community Highlights: Meet Amanda Merrell of Redefined Health + Wellness

Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Merrell.

Hi Amanda, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hi, so nice to meet! My name is Amanda Merrell. I’m a Functional Medicine-educated Nurse Practitioner and Founder of Redefined Health + Wellness, here in Atlanta, Georgia. Every day we’re helping women lose weight naturally as we finally find answers and natural solutions to their unexplained hormonal symptoms. As a nurse practitioner for 17 years, turned functional med practitioner, and a mom of five who has experienced my fair share of hormonal issues: watching women in my family yo-yo diet for years, my own cystic acne, migraines, unexplained weight gain, post-partum depression, and ovarian issues – I have truly seen it all. I have seen how traditional medicine is focused on band-aid fixes and based on really dated, limited research.

I saw how hard it was for me, after my last baby, to find actual answers, support, and treatment, even with nearly 2 decades in healthcare. And I know how incredible I feel after finally figuring out what’s going on and have been able to implement changes that have led to healing. It’s amazing how incredible you can feel when you have precise data on your own body!

I wouldn’t trade ANY of it because now it allows me to support women from a VERY deep level of experience. With a science-backed yet holistic approach, we test (never guess) and create a precise path forward to empower women to take back control of their bodies and find energy, emotional stability, predictable periods, restorative sleep, and mental clarity.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been an interesting path to opening Redefined Health + Wellness. I did not see myself being a business owner. Putting myself out there and being the “face” of something has been way outside my comfort zone! I definitely did not learn any of the marketing or business skills necessary to create a business in my previous education path. There have been a few delays, a few steep curves, and many, many little side trips but nothing has been insurmountable. I’ve enjoyed meeting with and learning from other great business-minded people who are generous enough to mentor and share their wisdom. 

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Redefined Health + Wellness is Atlanta’s only functional medicine or alternative–approach clinic focused on women’s health + hormones. We help women lose weight naturally and in the process, lose the brain fog, fix their period problems, stop the rollercoaster moods, reverse the lack of energy and improve sleep! We get to the root cause of their concerns. With precise, personalized treatment plans, they are able to feel in control of their body + health, love what they see in the mirror and they’re able to show up fully for the best years of their life. We really value our time with our clients and it’s a pretty cool to see women finally understanding their own bodies.  

Hormones (and we’re talking much more than just estrogen and progesterone) impact every system in our bodies so when they’re “off”, the symptoms can vary widely from woman to woman and for a wide variety of reasons. Often we find they’re dealing with underlying inflammatory issues. We see things like thyroid, perimenopause/menopause, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), gut health or metabolic syndrome quite often, too. Whether a woman typically goes the conventional medical route and is now seeking an alternative approach to finally get answers, or natural solutions are her standard go-to, we help them get a clear picture of what’s going on and create personalized plans to achieve their goals.

Connecting with and hearing our clients’ stories are integral to what we do. The all-female team (dietician, nutrition coach, and health coaches) is passionate about helping other women. Our client visits are rarely less than 45 min and can be as long as 1.5 hours. This allows time to to really listen to women’s stories without rushing, which helps us not overlook important pieces.

We work with our clients over a period of time to address those root causes using lifestyle changes, supplements, and prescriptions where appropriate and supportive alternative therapies as needed–really a holistic approach. Our goal is to work at a pace our clients can handle, aligning treatment with their goals and really creating those sustainable changes so that they can enjoy how they fit in their clothes, look in the mirror  and have restorative sleep, revitalized energy and stable moods for years to come. In each and every step of the treatment plan, we offer support and guidance so there’s no guesswork. We recognize women are BUSY, and making time and mental bandwidth for changes can be really draining, so we work hard to eliminate that factor.

Brand-wise, I’m proud that Redefined Health + Wellness is creating a higher standard and clinical excellence for women in the hormonal health space. Empowering women to understand their unique biology and taking control of their health with clear answers and direction is truly exciting and rewarding.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I keep a running list of health/wellness-oriented books; some of my most recent favorites are See You Later, Ovulator and The Blue Zones of Happiness and The First 40 Days.

Podcasts–I jump around quite a bit. Some of my favorites are The Root Cause; Dr Carrie Jones’ podcast; Feel Better, Live More by Ranjan Chatterjee; anything on the Institute for Functional Medicine’s podcast; The Doctor’s Farmacy; The Period Party and right now, I’m working through some business-oriented ones like Marketing Made Simple.

I use social media and blogs primarily for personal interests now like travelling, cooking, fashion, parenting and interior design. I enjoy Chris Loves Julia, Jean Stoffer, Julie Bogart and several international travel accounts.

Contact Info:

• Website: redefinedhw.com
• Instagram: @redefinedhw
• Facebook: @redefinedhw

Image Credits
Leea Isabella Photography Elizabeth Hill Photography