"And did you get what
you wanted from this life, even so?
I did.
And what did you want?
To call myself beloved, to feel myself
beloved on the earth."
- Raymond Carver, Late Fragment
My journey
Both scientific rigor and reverence for the ineffable have been guiding principles for me throughout my adult life. This means I value evidence and I understand that the dynamic complexity of who we are as human beings may not be quantifiable, but it cannot be denied. In fact, it must be deeply acknowledged and supported for transformative health and healing to occur.
I studied Classics at Cambridge University (I'm originally from the UK) and then I worked for a while with a theater company in London doing play therapy for kids and adults. It was during this time that I became captivated by the mystery of the human spirit and decided I had to become an expert on its resilience and capacity.
This journey led me to get a Bachelor of Science in biopsychology from Tufts University, followed by a doctorate degree in Naturopathic Medicine from National College of Natural Medicine (now National University). I also pursued additional training in energy medicine and homeopathy.
My passion to understand the resilience and capacity of the human spirit was ignited even more when I served as a researcher and treating physician on several NIH-funded studies of TMD. Most study participants had struggled with TMD and other difficult health conditions for years. It was a privilege to be part of their journey and to witness the freedom and ease a whole-person approach to healing could bring. These experiences inspired me to do all that I can to support people struggling with TMD and other persistent challenges to health and wellbeing in my own clinical practice.
In addition to researching TMD, I studied the doctor-patient relationship and its contribution to patient wellbeing through two NIH-funded post-doctoral research fellowships at the Kaiser Permanente Northwest (KPNW) Center for Health Research and the University of Arizona, College of Medicine. I was also the first (and as far as I know, the only) Naturopathic doctor hired by KPNW to interview clinicians about their experiences of the therapeutic relationship.
I have been in practice since 1997, and was actively involved in research for over a decade. I continue to keep myself current with the latest findings from neuroscience and pain science that may have an impact on my patients' health and wellbeing. For several years I taught doctor-patient relationship and communication skills courses to naturopathic medical students and I currently co-facilitate workshops on self care for healthcare professionals.
A particularly frightening episode in my own health a few years ago taught me how important our relationship with ourselves is to the healing process. When we are sick and in pain it is all too easy to feel alone, fearful and betrayed by our bodies. This sense of separation from ourselves is an impediment to healing. I have seen how becoming an ally to ourselves can change our biology, bring relief from pain, increase resilience, and make healthy behavioral and lifestyle changes achievable and sustainable.
“I received a healing from Dr Sutherland several months back. I’m still feeling the effects of a deep shift in my psyche. My negative self talk has essentially disappeared. I’m deeply grateful for this sense of freedom. ”
Publications
If you'd like to get a better sense of my practice philosophy and experience, here are a few articles I wrote or contributed to, including a selection of my published research papers.
Research papers
podcast
If you’d like to know more about my approach to healing, check out this podcast of an interview I gave at wholebeinginc.com.