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 renowned holistic wellness center, Optimum Health Institute in San Diego, CA. She attended her first 2 week cleanse program at the age of 19, which formed her foundational understanding around body-mind-spirit 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 countless OHI retreats immersing herself in the program and mission.
She received her massage license in 1996, and relocated to Mill Spring, NC in 1998 accepting a position as lead massage therapist at The Pavillion, a holistic addictions treatment facility founded by family friends, Canadian’s Gilles & Liliane DesJardins, early innovators and pivotal figures in AA and family system 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 colonics were far less understood or accessible. 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 back 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. She is highly regarded in Austin, with many local concierge doctors referring their patients to her. Her practice is word-of-mouth and referral.
Evolution into Functional Medicine Research & Longevity Optimization:
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 thrive. Juanita went on to study clinical nutrition, ozone therapy, functional medicine methodology 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 significant battles from exposure in North Carolina when the gravity of these health issues were not yet fully recognized.
Discovering the Power of Somatics and Nervous System Regulation
Over the past decade as her practice evolved and her own journey into trauma healing deepened, Juanita recognized that sustained healing and wellness requires a deep respect for the nervous system and our innate survival responses. She pursued additional training in somatic therapies, allowing her to work directly with critical layers of stress and trauma based adaptive strategies and the body’s stored emotional patterns, which research is now linking to many chronic health issues and a failure to reach our fullest potentials. This work has been life-changing for Juanita personally. She continues to study groundbreaking research with notables like Dr. Peter Levine and Dr. Steven Porges with particular interest in CPTSD, addictions, and neurodiversity.
