Who is Kayla?

Once upon a time… I was a little girl who was asked if she wanted to be a doctor to be my dad’s boss (he is a nurse) and I answered with an emphatic YES! While my father and I have both grown and matured since then, our journeys have both impacted my passion for health, science, and helping people live in their best health! Seeing him struggle with an unknown illness that the medical system didn’t acknowledge or treat pointed us both to ask questions to naturopathic doctors, learn from them, and ultimately see him return to health. This experience shaped my early adulthood and I started on the road to becoming a naturopathic doctor.

While on this journey, I currently serve as a wellness & life coach with my expertise in biology, plant based nutrition, and moving past childhood trauma or abuse. I continue to learn, but also have studied and experienced each of these areas for years and have used these skills to help support my clients to step into wellness and take ownership of their life.

My passion for public service and inspiring wellness has allowed me to serve in many roles at the Gerson Institute including educating patients, the public, and medical professionals in the role of nutrition in healing for 11 years. This has given me the opportunity to speak to thousands of patients, teach hundreds of people, and learn how lives can be deeply impacted by health education.

I also have served in junior high and high school ministries where I have mentored young people for 10 years, for 5 of those years I served as the junior high co-pastor at Harvest Christian Fellowship and Foothills Church in the San Diego suburbs.

I enjoy teaching, creating unique ways to inspire thought and health, and deepening access and knowledge of the scientific evidence supporting natural therapies. In my free time, I love spending time at the beach with my dogs, trying new coffee shops with my husband, dancing, and cultivating my garden.

…also making corny jokes and seeing real life with a unique lens that might happen to be humorous.

Academically, I hold a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology from Arizona State University and Associates of Science in Biology as well as University Studies: Math, Natural, & Computer Sciences from Grossmont College. Lastly, I am enrolled in the Naturopathic Medical Program at Bastyr University with anticipated graduation in 2025.