Dr. Sharon Walt, also known as “The Hashimoto Health Coach”, is a Certified International Functional Medicine Health Coach with a background in Applied Health Science and Kinesiology. After years of teaching and conducting research at the University of Waterloo, Dr. Walt shifted her focus to health coaching following her own battle with stress-related health issues. Specializing in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, she works with women to address the root causes of their condition through personalized strategies that promote sustainable health and wellness. With her expertise, Dr. Walt helps clients navigate lifestyle changes to achieve their unique health goals. MysticMag finds out more.
Your practice emphasizes a holistic approach to health and wellness. How do you integrate your expertise in functional nutrition, lifestyle medicine, and naturopathy to create personalized treatment plans for your clients?
Great question! It all starts with the client. Before our first session, I ask them to complete a thorough health history, which, honestly, can be quite extensive and even a bit overwhelming. I want to know everything—from their childhood, any health issues they’ve faced, their diet, and anything else they can recall. This history gives me a timeline of their health journey up until the present.
Additionally, I request at least a year’s worth of blood test analyses or any functional tests they’ve had. This helps me gather more concrete information about their current health. I also have them complete a fairly detailed symptoms checklist. With all of these pieces—health history, test results, and symptoms—I start to form a clearer picture of what’s going on with them.
By the time we have our first session, I’ve already started connecting the dots. I look at the timeline, the symptoms, and the test results, and I try to understand how they all interconnect. I also consider any diagnoses the client has already received, as that often provides important context. Our first session is typically a deeper dive into this information, which often uncovers even more details.
Much of this process is about gathering and analyzing information—identifying patterns between symptoms and potential root causes. My experience and expertise in certain areas definitely help me make these connections. However, I make sure my clients understand that this is not a quick fix. Chronic or autoimmune diseases don’t develop overnight, and it will take time to uncover how they got to this point and begin to address it.
That said, I also focus on what bothers them most—the symptoms or issues that are of greatest concern. If we can provide some relief quickly, it often helps build confidence in the process and motivates them to stay engaged. The healing process involves significant lifestyle and dietary changes, which can be challenging. So, quick wins can be important for both emotional and practical reasons.
In summary, my approach is deeply client-focused and personalized. I need to understand as much as I can about their life, their history, and what has led them to where they are now. From there, we work together to identify what caused the issues and begin the process of healing.
You focus on helping people achieve sustainable wellness rather than temporary fixes. Could you share an example of a client transformation that highlights the importance of addressing the root cause of health issues?
I can think of a couple of clients, but one stands out in particular. She was very sick and had a lot of health issues. Most of my clients have Hashimoto’s, which is a hypothyroid autoimmune condition, and her case was no different. Her diet wasn’t terrible, but we needed to clean it up, as that’s usually the first step. Creating a healing environment for the body is foundational, and that includes ensuring the right nutrients are being consumed. But it’s not just about getting the nutrients in; they also need to be absorbed properly for the body to use them effectively.
For this client, we made some dietary changes, which did help, but she was still facing significant challenges, particularly with massive histamine responses. It became clear that her stress levels were through the roof, and her nervous system was really compromised. The stress was mainly coming from her work environment, but she was able to alleviate some of that by working from home more often. That change made a huge difference in her overall well-being.
We then started looking at potential toxins she might be exposed to, and this is where we made the biggest breakthrough. Some functional tests revealed that she was exposed to a lot of mold in her home, to the point where she had to carry a personal air purifier with her from room to room. This issue took time to address because the house needed remediation, but once that was handled, it made an enormous difference in her health.
In her case, the root causes of her autoimmune condition seemed to be her exposure to toxins—specifically mold and stress. Now, stress is not always thought of as a toxin, but it has a toxic effect on the body, and this was one of the most significant factors in her condition. The improvement in her health was so remarkable that, just a few months ago, she was able to conceive and had a successful pregnancy and delivery. I was surprised and overjoyed for her when I heard the news, as I hadn’t expected such a positive outcome.
She’s since been in touch with me because she feels that a few things may be slipping, and she wants some follow-up support. We’ll continue working on that, but looking back, this client’s progress has been one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had. It’s a testament to the power of providing the body with the nutrients it needs, removing toxins, and supporting overall healing. Sometimes, the gut also needs to be addressed, but it’s crucial to ensure the body is absorbing the right nutrients first to support the healing process. Once that’s in place, inflammation starts to subside, and the body can begin to heal on a deeper level, resolving systemic symptoms along the way.
If I had to choose one client whose progress I’m most proud of, it would definitely be her. The work she put in and the progress she made is truly inspiring.
With the prevalence of chronic conditions and lifestyle-related illnesses, how do you educate and empower your clients to adopt long-term healthy habits that align with their unique needs and challenges?
I realized early on that simply telling people what they need to do wasn’t enough—and that was a bit of a rude awakening for me. Coming from an academic background, where I spent a lot of time lecturing, I assumed that just giving information would be sufficient. But I quickly learned that lecturing alone doesn’t work. It’s one thing to tell people what to eat, what to eliminate, and what lifestyle changes to make, but it’s another to give them the tools they need to actually achieve those changes. Empowering them to take action is key, and that requires more than just information—it requires support.
About a year ago, I also realized that it’s not just about offering one-on-one support. While that’s important, I wanted to build a community where people could support each other. By creating a membership community, I’m able to reach far more people than I could through individual sessions alone. It’s been an incredible way to expand my reach and offer more comprehensive support.
One of the things I’ve found is that people need to have confidence in themselves to make the changes they need. This is where mindset comes in—it’s a tool that motivates and drives action. Making lasting change often involves breaking old habits and creating new ones, and there are specific steps that can help with that. Having a community is invaluable in this process because it removes the feeling of isolation. It allows people to connect with others who are going through similar struggles, which can be incredibly motivating.
In my membership, I offer a program that’s primarily educational. It covers mindset, understanding the causes of the condition, and the necessary lifestyle changes, along with suggested homework and practical exercises. But the real strength of the program lies in the community. It’s the group support that keeps people engaged and motivated to make the changes they need.
Education is important, of course, but it’s not just about telling people what they should already know, like what they should or shouldn’t eat. Making those changes is difficult, especially when you have a family and lack the energy to prepare separate meals. That’s where the community becomes vital—sharing ideas, offering solutions, and brainstorming ways to make changes more manageable. I think that’s where the real strength comes from—supporting each other and finding what works for each person.
As a wellness coach, you offer a variety of programs and tools to support your clients’ journeys. What role do your digital resources and courses play in helping individuals maintain their progress outside of one-on-one consultations?
That’s essentially what I’ve been developing through my membership. I started with a standalone program and a Facebook group, but quickly realized that having everything in separate places wasn’t efficient. So, I decided to streamline everything by putting all of my materials on a membership site. I use a platform called skool, though there are plenty of other options for group memberships.
This setup makes things much easier for everyone. Members have access to a central hub where they can join discussions, access the support group, and dive into the classroom materials. Everything they need is right there, and I continue to add new resources based on the feedback and engagement from the community. By paying attention to what people are asking for and where they need the most focus, I’m able to adapt and create content that truly addresses their needs.
You advocate for functional nutrition as a key element of overall health. How do you see the role of functional nutrition evolving in the healthcare landscape, and what would you like to see more of in its application?
I wish I could be more optimistic about our healthcare system, particularly when it comes to autoimmune conditions. From the stories my clients have shared, it’s clear there is a lot of misinformation out there. For example, many people have been told that once they have Hashimoto’s, they will always have it. This simply isn’t true, but the reason doctors make such statements is that they often fail to address the root cause of the condition. Without addressing the root, healing is not possible.
What I would really like to see is better, more accurate information. Health professionals like myself—functional medicine practitioners, health coaches, and nutritionists—should be integral parts of the healthcare system. When someone is diagnosed with a condition like Hashimoto’s, the doctor could run blood tests and make the diagnosis, then pass the patient on to a health coach or functional nutritionist to implement necessary changes. We would know right away how long the patient has had the condition, what nutritional deficiencies may exist due to thyroid dysfunction, and how to guide them in making the necessary dietary and lifestyle changes. But for this to work, an integrated approach is essential.
Prevention is another area that requires much more focus. There’s no reason we should wait until health issues become so severe that medications are the only solution. Early intervention and prevention should be prioritized long before things escalate. I see this often when discussing health tests with my clients. I’ll look at their bloodwork and point out that certain values are out of range, yet when they consult their doctor, they’re told everything is fine. This discrepancy happens because doctors often use different reference ranges, and they typically wait until something is significantly abnormal before taking action. Why not address issues before they worsen? This kind of proactive approach could make all the difference.
I’m not criticizing doctors or GPs, as I understand that the healthcare system itself is overwhelmed. In many cases, doctors only have 15-20 minutes per patient, which is far from sufficient to thoroughly assess and address underlying issues. In such cases, they often resort to treating symptoms rather than causes. This is where functional practitioners like myself can step in, taking the time to explore root causes and offer long-term solutions. My first sessions with clients typically last 90 minutes to two hours, just to gather enough information to create an individualized plan.
While I don’t foresee any radical changes to the healthcare system in the near future, I do see a growing trend of people moving away from traditional medicine. This shift may force the issue, but it’s likely that we’ll soon see two distinct groups: those who are so sick that they have no choice but to rely on traditional medicine, and those who have taken a more proactive approach to their health. Ideally, the focus should be on addressing issues before they spiral out of control.
I’m also deeply concerned about the current state of healthcare in New Zealand, particularly with funding cuts and long waiting times for surgeries and tests. It’s a situation that is only likely to get worse. For example, gallbladder removal surgery is becoming increasingly common, but I was shocked to learn from a friend who had this surgery that she was never informed about the necessary supplements to take afterward, such as bile salts. Without proper guidance on how to support the body post-surgery, the liver, which is often the underlying issue, can suffer long-term consequences. If left unaddressed, this could lead to significant problems years down the line.
I mention this because it illustrates a broader issue in the healthcare system: solving one symptom without addressing the underlying causes. This is why I include specific questions about gallbladder removal on my intake forms—people often overlook the long-term importance of such procedures, not realizing that it’s not just a routine surgery but one that can have lasting effects on overall health.
If you would like to find out more about Dr Sharon Walt, please visit https://www.healthylivingwithdrsharon.com/
