Karole Romeril, BA, MA, FMCHC

I grew up in Southern California, the middle daughter of three girls. I loved being outdoors and playing any sport available. Call me a tomboy, I was! My first job was as a swim teacher and a lifeguard. As an adult I coached a large swim team, and in my teaching career I coached high school basketball. During my teaching career I served as a full-time high school activities director, taught various subjects from Economics and Government to Personal Development. I enjoyed working with teenagers for many years. My most important and most valuable work however was the blessing of being a mother and raising 11 children… the most important work I ever did was raising my children. They continue to be the central part of my life.  

My trip down Prescription Medicine Lane began around the age of 45, when I began to deal with pain in my knees that would eventually lead to over 20 knee surgeries. These issues would lead to other health issues and surgeries. I was prescribed a number of psychoactive medications but the one that stuck was a Benzo sleeping pill, Dalmane, with a side of Tramadol for pain. Some years later I decided I did not need a sleeping pill and stopped taking it only to discover, some months later, that it was impossible to just stop! Then along came Point of Return with a safe way to taper off… and the rest is history.  

During my tapers off Dalmane and then Tramadol I spent time on the Point of Return forum being supported and encouraged by mentors and fellow forum members. I learned a lot more than I knew before about how to live a healthy lifestyle in all kinds of ways. I have always loved learning so this sparked a desire in me to learn all I could about health. After my tapers I knew I needed a doctor that was not a part of the conventional medicine mindset. I asked the Point of Return office what kind of a doctor I needed to find. That conversation was the beginning of learning all about functional medicine and how it gets to the root cause of health issues and does it as much as possible with supplements and food and other lifestyle changes. The more I learned the more I loved this new way of looking at health. I actually thought to myself that if I were younger this would be what I would study and do… be a functional medicine doctor!! However, since that was not possible I did the next best thing: Functional Medicine Coaching Academy here I come! I may not be a doctor at this stage of my life but I can be a coach and work with the functional medicine platform to help others in their quest for health without medications. Dreams do come true! What a blessing Point of Return has been in my life in leading me out of the darkness of prescription medications and into the light of living and giving to myself and others a life of good health. Being on the forum helped me to learn and grow and being a mentor to others on the forum has allowed me to give back a small portion of what was given to me. I love being a mentor on the forum and an FMCHC… Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach. There is always more to learn with new research in the health field coming out all the time. I plan to keep learning so I can help those I coach and my forum family with up-to-date information.

You can visit Coach Karole at her website.