Early Beginnings:
Growing up in Northern Alberta, Canada, surrounded by wilderness, Juanita was able to experience a deep closeness to the land. Her family had farming backgrounds, were master gardeners, owned a health food store and her Ukrainian side very connected to sustainability, growing their own food, and a more seasonal flow to life.
Juanita’s cousins (Nees family) were founders of Optimum Health Institute in San Diego, CA. She attended her first 2 week cleanse program at the age of 19yrs. It formed her foundational understanding around holistic practices, detoxification and internal cleansing. There she had a profound colonic experience that changed the trajectory of her life in a moment. The initial seeds were planted that would eventually become her passionate life calling. Over the years, she attended many OHI retreats in San Diego, CA, and Austin, TX, immersing herself in the program and mission.
She received her TX massage license in 1996, and relocated to Mill Spring, NC in 1998 accepting a position as Lead Massage Therapist at The Pavilion (an addictions treatment facility founded by Canadian’s Lillian and Gilles DeJardins, highly regarded at pivotal figures in early AA movement, developing a holistic model of recovery). It was during that time that Juanita immersed herself in the 12-Step model for personal growth and development.
A Pioneer in Colonics & Internal Cleansing:
Juanita attended formal colon hydrotherapy training in 1999 and served clients out of her home office in Tryon, NC for a year before opening up one of the first colonic businesses in Asheville, NC. There she was able to build a thriving practice, even when this work was far less understood. She called the Blue Ridge mountains her home for several years before relocating to Southern Arizona to study botanical medicine with renowned herbalist, Michael Moore (considered “the godfather of modern herbalism”).
Calling Austin Her Home:
Juanita moved to Austin, TX to be closer to family, and opened Radiance Health Center in historic West Lake Hills in 2010. She’s been serving the greater Austin area for 16 years at this location, with clients coming as far as Dallas and Houston to work with her, often staying days for intensives or cleanses.
Evolution into Functional Wellness:
Juanita does not believe that any particular diet, cleanse or protocol is one-size-fits-all. Every person has unique biology and blueprint for what their body needs to restore itself and thrive. Juanita went on to study holistic nutrition, ozone therapy, functional medicine assessments and labs, the microbiome, and continues to study through functional medicine avenues and the latest evidence-based research. She is deeply passionate about mold and Lyme recovery due to her own battle with both, stemming from her time in NC when the gravity of these health issues were not yet fully understood in the industry.
She also understands the limitations of confusing wellness hype that’s a result of a six trillion dollar industry that continuously tries to reinvent itself as it strives for perfection and monetization. By providing a simple, grounded, back-to-basics approach to root cause healing, Juanita prioritizes empowering her clients to restore a relationship with their body that is grounded, resilient, and empowered from within.
