Improving Mental Health through Creating Wellness and Living Life to the Fullest

FRIDAY FEATURE:
​​Vicki Steine
Founder, Your Healthy Structure
    Licensed Clinical Social Worker      with focus on Holistic Nutrition

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Happy Friday! I am excited to introduce you to Vicki Steine with Your Healthy Structure! I also want to explain a change in our "Friday Feature" segment schedule. We have been busy at Boortz Law with juvenile court and school board hearings, so will now feature incredible youth-focused professionals on the fourth Friday of the month. We are always accepting nominations!

Today, meet Vicki Steine--a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a Doctorate in Holistic Nutrition. Vicki is passionate about working with our youth, and specializes in working with children who have ADHD, bi-polar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety and depression. She is in private practice with offices all around the Atlanta area and has also worked in addiction for many years. Vicki explains that she combines “talking” therapy skills with lifestyle changes around good food, sleep, exercise, spirituality and community. She also uses “mind-body” techniques like mindfulness and visualization to help people find peace. I know you will enjoy her insight as well as her perspective in serving our youth and their families.

"Your job is to love your children so fiercely that you are willing to let them cry to keep them safe. That means setting boundaries, setting limits and not backing down. "
-Vicki Steine

Q: How did you get involved in Holistic Nutrition and how does your background as a social worker play a role in your work?
I have a Tai Chi teacher who convinced me to go on a raw foods diet many years ago.  I thought I was a healthy eater but the changes I felt in my body were remarkable when all I ate were raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds.  I became very interested in nutrition. After beginning my degree in nutrition, I realized that many of the mental health issues that I work with could be positively impacted by incorporating good nutrition and supplements along with the other therapies.  

Q: Could you give a real life success story of one of the families you have worked with that was able to incorporate these strategies in their child’s life?
When I did my dissertation, I had ten families that had kids with ADHD. Many also had other disorders like Tourette’s syndrome or anxiety.  We gave the kids 5 different supplements to support their brains and their digestive health.  We had significant improvements in anxiety and sleep patterns.  Because they were sleeping better, they started doing better in school and their relationships with siblings and parents improved.  I had one kid who got to take less medicine and one kid whose tics got better!

Q: What advice do you have for parents of teenagers?
Your job is to love your children so fiercely that you are willing to let them cry to keep them safe. That means setting boundaries, setting limits and not backing down.  As my great-grandmother used to say, “Better they should cry than you.”  Let that thought help keep you strong in holding your kids accountable for their behavior and not letting them do things that are unsafe.
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Q: You teach a series of classes to parents about ways they can incorporate nutrition and natural wellness in their child’s life. What are some of the topics you cover and how can parents sign up for your course?
I do have a four part series that I am beginning to introduce.  The first class is on Detox: what toxins we are exposed to (thousands), how they impact our health and how to remove them.  The second class is called Eat, Take, Do and is basic information about what to eat, what supplements to take and what other things one can do to improve their health or their child’s health. The third class is about nutrition and supplements and brain health, and the final class is on how to manage all the obstacles we might encounter in staying healthy: learning how to manage cravings and difficult situations like parties and restaurants. The best way to sign up would be to email me at vicki@yourhealthystructure.com so I might direct you to the next series. They are offered all around town.  I also often do classes on various topics like nutrition and ADHD, Brain Health, Gluten, Sugar, etc.  

Q: Do you have any recommended reading—books or websites that might help parents who would like to dig deeper into this topic?
There are so many books out there!  One of my favorites is Healing the New Childhood Epidemics (ADHD, Autism, Asthma, and Allergies) by Dr. Kenneth Bock.
 
Q:What was the last experience that made you a stronger person?
A near fatal boating accident.  It was life altering in all ways.

Q: Where is your favorite place to dine in Atlanta? 
Café Erewon, an organic Thai Restaurant in Sandy Springs.

For more information, please check out Vicki's website--click here, or feel free to email her at: vicki@yourhealthystructure.com, or by phone: 404-275-6200.