I was born and raised in southern Saskatchewan and while my very first career ambition was to be an actress (extrovert!), soon after I began my babysitting empire, I decided I wanted to be a pediatrician instead. In 1999, I moved to Ontario to attend to the University of Toronto and fell in love with Canadian literature and poetry (and my eventual husband as well)…So there was the first of many fun detours in life!
After graduating with a degree in English and Sociology – and realizing maybe I wasn’t cut out to be a poet like Atwood or Cohen (yes, seriously!) – I took a desk job that was fun but not fulfilling. It was during this time post graduation, while working to pay the bills and dreaming of what could be next for me, that I started becoming really aware of my own health. I had been experiencing chronic urinary tract infections and nothing was helping them stay away. It was actually a urologist who suggested I see a naturopath because there was “nothing left to do” to help me.
What a life changing suggestion that was! From the initial meeting with my first ND, I knew it was what I was meant to be. The experience of being heard, of feeling empowered to change my health and support my body in doing what it naturally wants to do – THRIVE – was incredible. After 6 months I felt better, and was more inspired than I ever had been before. And so, the process of Becoming a ND began.
Someday I’ll post the full story of Becoming because it was a pretty intense process for me, but for now I’ll give you the relevant highlights:
– I became a birth doula in 2010 for a friend and knew then that pregnancy and babes would be a big part of my practise
– I attended the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine and completed their very rigorous 4 year clinical program
– I wrote and passed my licensing exams while 32 weeks pregnant with my first little human and have since had another little human who you’ll also see featured in many of my photos on Instagram or Facebook
– I continue to be one of very few mobile naturopathic doctors in Toronto. I credit this to my Saskatchewan upbringing where driving around is normalized to a strange degree 🙂
So those are the highlights. Between the lines is an incredible amount of hard work, failing, struggling, triumphing and learning. The ND I am now is a direct result of the curve balls and incredible gifts life has sent my way. My hope is that my presence reflects the compassion, curiosity and commitment to authenticity that drives my own growth in life. I am living my legacy, and I want to help you live yours – in all its messy glory.
We are all in this together. A friend recently asked me, “But what is ‘this’?” It’s THIS: Every. Single. Part. Of our lives, of our families, our experiences, our dreams, our deepest loneliness and our happiest times. We are inextricably connected to every other living being on this planet. It is my goal to tear down the barriers of fear, rejection, sadness, and strife that hold us apart. I feel a strong desire to show myself as real and flawed, struggling but also thriving … “to liberate others as I liberate myself”, if you’ve ever heard that quote.
That’s my story as far as it’s unfolded. I look forward to hearing yours…
ox
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Dr. Niki Nephin 