Kristi Niclas sits in her Sequim home, which doubles as her business. Niclas recently graduated from a 10-month course in nutritional therapy and opened Living Well Nutritional Therapy last month. Gazette photo by Amanda Winters

Kristi Niclas found her passion at the age of 11 when she picked up one of her mother’s nutrition books and started reading. “It just never ever stopped,” Niclas said of her interest in nutrition.

A home-schooler before attending Running Start and ultimately walking with the Sequim High School class of 2004, Niclas began researching on her own. “I liked that you could live healthy and you didn’t have to suffer from a disease or be on medication if you just know what your body needs,” she said.

Her interest continued to grow as she began working at Sunny Farms Country Store in the deli. During her breaks she would wander to the nutrition section to look at products and ask questions, she said.

It continued for two years until 2007 when she started working at the Sunny Farms Supplements store at 609 W. Washington St. in Sequim.

Niclas said the supplement store, where she still works, has taught her how to really listen to people and has prepared her for nutritional therapy.

“What I like about it is people come in and say, ‘I’m just so tired,’” she said. “We’ll talk to them for half an hour and people are hungry to know how they can feel good and what they can do in their life.”

With the support of her parents, Theresa and Steve Roe, and her husband, Chris Niclas, she started a 10-month course in Olympia on nutritional therapy.

The course involved one weekend a month of intensive classes, phone conferences, an online component, reading textbooks on nutrition and DVD lectures to watch at home, she said.
“You can learn so much,” she said. “When I sat there (in class) I was thinking, ‘I’ve found my people.’” The course answered a lot of questions she had about nutritional therapy, she said.
In June she graduated from the course and opened her own nutritional therapy business, Living Well Nutritional Therapy.

She operates out of her home while a studio apartment in her backyard is converted to an office, she said. The purpose of her business is to help clients learn what they can do to be healthy, she said. “It’s important to educate clients so they know what I’m doing and what they can do,” she said.

During the initial consultation, Niclas listens as the client shares about his or her health complaints, lifestyles, background and medications. The discussion is important to help determine what solution will work because each person is unique and there isn’t one solution for everyone, she said.

Next there is a noninvasive physical evaluation with pressure points. Niclas said her nutritional therapy focuses on digestion, blood sugar, stress, hormonal issues at any age and immunity.
By looking past symptoms to what could be causing the issue and treating it nutritionally, people can start to heal themselves and not have to rely on prescription medicine, she said.

Niclas is offering specials on evaluations to celebrate the start of her business, she said.
In the future she hopes to form partnerships with other businesses promoting health, such as yoga instructors or massage therapists, she said. She also hopes to teach healthy cooking classes.
For more information, call Niclas at 460-7655 or go to www.lwnt.net.

Amanda Winters can be reached at awinters@sequimgazette.com.