Doctors & Medical Staff

Heather Barrett, ND, FAAO
Owner & Medical Director

Knowledge, understanding & commitment become your bridge to greater health.

Throughout my years as a naturopathic doctor I‘ve been intrigued by the potential our bodies have to heal themselves if properly supported. When I was young I had many physical ailments and diagnoses that traditional medicine could not completely heal. I knew there had to be a solution. It was out of necessity to heal my own body that I began to research naturopathic medicine. What I discovered—and the transformation that I experienced, is what led me to become a licensed naturopathic doctor.

I’m Dr. Heather Barrett and I’m honored to help you navigate your own path towards greater health and wellness. Because I know first hand what’s possible!

The science-backed discoveries and data are indisputable. Naturopathic medicine has so much to offer. An integrative approach to your health can bring results like nothing else does. Seeing a patient’s lab results improve while they also start to feel better is something I celebrate. It’s the reason I do this work.

I enjoy educating my patients on preventative care. It’s central to everything I do because the best way to heal your body is to empower you with the knowledge and tools you need to best support you. While I continue to treat patients with a wide range of issues, I now find myself drawn more and more toward helping people undergoing cancer treatment.

Why? Because there is a better way.

Traditional cancer treatments alone do not support your body’s innate capacity to heal itself. My goal is to give patients undergoing cancer treatment the tools and guidance they need. To empower them to optimize their body’s capacity to heal and support itself.

How Naturopathic Medicine Can Optimize Cancer Treatment Outcomes

I work alongside you and your conventional oncology team to maximize the efficacy of your treatment. Whether you are a person who:

• has had cancer,

• is a at high-risk for cancer,

• has already undergone treatment or

• are currently undergoing treatment,

I can help you. 

When I become an integral part of your medical team I look at aspects of what I call your terrain. Simply put your terrain is the various aspects of your physiology and emotionality that can set up an environment for a cancer to develop. Aspects such as hormones, gut microbiome, epigenetics, lifestyle, and more. 

It’s my job to modify these elements to help reduce the risk of illness.

• If you’ve had cancer, my goal is to help you reduce the risk of recurrence.

• If you are at a high risk for cancer, my goal is to help you reduce the risk of occurrence.

• If you presently have cancer, my goal is to help you slow the process.

I equip you with the knowledge and understanding you need for greater wellness. Together we accomplish this through a comprehensive medical evaluation and testing. You can expect my full attention as we discuss your health in detail during your first visit and every visit there after. During your care we will retest as necessary along the way and assess your progress until all those elements of your terrain are optimized as much as possible.

“The terrain ten are the physiological and emotional human elements that require balance and optimization in order to halt and prevent the cancer process"- Dr. Nasha Winters

When you work with me you will be empowered to play an active role in your health care! 

• Imagine decreasing side effects

• Maximizing outcomes

• Improving your quality of life

As I work collaboratively with your medical, surgical and radiation oncologists, you will have the best of both worlds for the best possible outcome.

I genuinely care about you and I want to support you on your journey. You won’t have to walk this road alone. My desire is to offer you the highest level of expert holistic medical care with the personal touch you deserve.

If you’ve ever thought, “there’s got to be a better way” contact me today. I'm here to give you the support you need, the knowledge you want so you can make empowered decisions, and the peace of mind you deserve.

I’m committed to your well-being and walking the path with you.

Specialties

• Integrative Oncology (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29140493/)

  • Graduate of MTIH, Metabolic Approach To Cancer Practitioner Program, powered by Dr. Nasha Winters- 2022

  • Focused on Terrain Factor Testing since 2013

  • Extensive training in naturopathic oncology since 2010

• Chronic Complex Disease

• Genomic Medicine (Multiple Certifications in Methylation and Other SNP Support)

• Musculoskeletal Pain (Arthritis, Joint and Muscle Injuries, etc)

• IV and Injection Therapy IV & Injection Therapies including prolozone, neural and chelation therapies.

Memberships and Affiliations:

• The Metabolic Terrain Institute of Health (MTIH)

• The Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians (OncANP). More information about the role of naturopathic medicine in cancer care is available at the American Board of Naturopathic Oncology, www.fabno.org/about.html.

• The California Naturopathic Doctors Association

• Fellow of the American Academy of Ozonotherapy

Specialized Training and Education

• Metabolic Approach to Cancer Masters Training Course

• Annual Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians (OncANP) conference

• Theoretical and Practical Training in Prolozone and PRP through the American Academy of Ozonotherapy. Also certified in prolotherapy.

• International IV Nutritional Therapy for Professionals-IIVNTP

• Advanced Topics in Intravenous Nutrient Therapies and Chelation Therapy

• Advance Neural Therapy with Dr. Jeff Harris, ND

• Mistletoe Therapy and has attended The International Mistletoe Meeting in Germany

• The American Association for Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) Bio-identical Hormone Symposium

  
  

Dr. Barrett attended CCNM and received her doctoral degree from The Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine in 2011. She was awarded during her studies for having completed the most extracurricular education during her time at BINM.

When not in the office treating patients, I love to spend time with my husband and two daughters. There’s just no substitute for quality time with family and friends! I have multiple fur babies, 3 in fact! Two Newfoundlands named Sasha and Nova, and our cat, Zayna. Whenever possible I like to travel and explore new places. And my favorite ways to exercise and care for my body are to dance, swim, cycle, hike and practice yoga.

Jamie Berner, ND

(Formerly Dr. Jamie Coughlan)

Dr. Berner’s passion lies in women’s health and hormones. Following graduation from Bastyr University, Dr. Berner joined a pain medicine practice where she spent the next seven years treating patients suffering from chronic pain and helping them decrease their use of opiate medications and regain a functional lifestyle. During her time at the pain practice, she became especially interested in how many chronic pain patients had hormone abnormalities that were not being addressed appropriately including thyroid dysfunction, low testosterone, estrogen dominance, and adrenal insufficiency. As she worked on correcting these hormone abnormalities many of the patients saw significant improvements in their pain levels and overall health.  Concomitantly to working at the pain practice, she ran her own practice where she specialized in bioidentical hormones, women’s health, thyroid disease, gastrointestinal disease, and autoimmune disease using a functional medicine approach. In more recent years Dr. Berner has chosen to focus her practice on women’s health and hormone support as she’s found it incredibly rewarding to help so many women regain their health after suffering and being dismissed by their other healthcare providers without appropriate care. “After working for over 14 years in practice, I’ve found women’s health and hormones (especially those in the perimenopause and menopause phase of life) are unfortunately for the most part not well addressed by the conventional medical community. It is my passion to help women at all stages of life with hormone dysfunction so that they can heal from the inside out and live a life full of vivacity and harmony.” 

No matter the health concern, Dr. Berner employs diagnostics and functional medicine to look upstream from a patient’s symptoms to discover their root cause of disease. Often, she uses clinical tests not normally available through a conventional doctor’s office to help assess a patient’s health including comprehensive urine hormone tests, micronutrient testing, and comprehensive digestive stool analysis etc.

She has lectured at John Muir Women’s Health Center on topics of chronic pain and enjoys educating the community about health and naturopathic medicine. In her spare time Dr. Berner loves to snowboard, travel, and spend time with her three children and husband. 

Specialties

• Women’s Health

• Perimenopause and Menopause

• Preconception Support and Infertility

• Painful periods

• Irregular Periods

• Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

• Endometriosis

• Fibroids

• Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT)

• Thyroid Disease

• Adrenal Insufficiency

• Gastrointestinal disease

• Autoimmune disease

• Functional medicine

Education

Dr. Berner studied biology at the University of Nevada, Reno, and obtained her doctorate of Naturopathic medicine from Bastyr University, a leading accredited institution internationally recognized as a pioneer in natural medicine.

Brian Myers, ND

Dr. Brian Myers is a licensed Naturopathic Doctor who specializes in treating chronic disease. Dr. Myers graduated from the National University of Natural Medicine in 2013, where he also served as class
president and received an award for leadership. Following naturopathic medical school, he ventured to Fairbanks, AK for residency prior to moving to California where he has worked since 2014. He will be
available for telehealth through Walnut Creek Naturopathic.

Dr. Myers comes from a family of healers – both his dad and sister are health care practitioners! He has been published in both the Journal of Pediatrics and the Annals of Neurology while part of a neonatal neurology research group in St. Louis, MO. When he isn’t in the clinic, he can be found cooking, backpacking, skiing, rock climbing, and enjoying live music and comedy.

Specialties

• • Diabetes
  • Weight Management
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Autoimmune Conditions
  • Gastrointestinal disorders
  • Hormone Imbalances (including Thyroid, Adrenal, and Reproductive Hormones)
  • Allergies
  • Asthma
  • Sleep

Education

Dr. Myers graduated in 2013 from the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon, where he also served as class president and received an award for leadership. 

He earned his undergraduate Bachelor of Arts in Business Management, with minors in Philosophy, and in Peace Studies & Conflict Resolution, at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Melissa Gastellum, ND, FAAO

Since 2012 I have helped patients with a cancer diagnosis integrate their conventional therapy with alternative therapies.

 I have a lifelong interest in exercise and a desire to keep people physically fit throughout their lifespan. Chronic injuries and aging joints can prevent people from maintaining their activity levels. I have found that Prolozone injections are a natural way to help reduce pain and keep people active.

I am a member of the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians and the California Naturopathic Doctors Association. My hobbies include CrossFit, cooking, listening to health-related podcasts and attending continuing education seminars.

Specialties

·      Integrative Oncology

·      Prolozone Injections for joint and muscle pain

·      IV therapy

·      Ozone therapy

Specialized training:


·      Post-graduate internship at True North Health Center in Santa Rosa, CA, focusing on medically supervised water-only fasting.


·      Annual Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians (OncANP) conference

·      Theoretical and Practical Training in Prolozone through the American Academy of Ozonotherapy


·      Advanced Topics in Intravenous Nutrient Therapies


·      International Mistletoe Meeting in Germany

·      CrossFit Level-1 trainer


Education

I received my doctoral degree from Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, AZ and completed a 1-year residency at Paracelsus Natural Family Health Center in Pasadena, CA. I received my BA from Smith College in Northampton, MA.

Richard Haliburton, ND

Dr. Haliburton is available for all general medicine complaints, and has a particular interest in various chronic fatigue conditions, including infections, GI health, POTS, and mystery cases. The Covid pandemic in particular increased the number of patients coming in with chronic fatigue, due to the condition known as Long Covid.

For many years Dr. Haliburton had focused on Diabetes, Hypertension, and Osteoarthritis. These conditions are prevalent, chronic, and naturopathic medicine has a lot to offer these patients. Over time Dr. Haliburton began running into more and more cases of undiagnosed fatigue, or cases of diagnosed POTS or chronic EBV that were not receiving quality care. So often they were accused by other doctors of it being “all in their head.” He spent a good deal of time researching ways to help these patients while working at a clinic in Seattle.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the number of patients with chronic fatigue skyrocketed. Dr. Haliburton moved to Oakland, CA and began specializing more specifically on long haul covid, chronic EBV, and other origins of chronic fatigue. He knew this was a patient population that desperately needed more compassionate providers. Providers who were willing to listen to patients. Providers who would run the tests that could get to the bottom of what is happening. And once again, naturopathic medicine had a lot of effective treatments to offer.

“Many patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome are partially or totally disabled by its manifestations. Some of these patients appear outwardly healthy, which may cause relatives and colleagues to accuse them of faking it. This can cause a vicious cycle of frustration, anger, and depression, compounded by the fact that their disabling symptoms are not visible to others.” - UpToDate

“POTS is often misdiagnosed. The average time to diagnosis is 5 years and 11 months. 85% of POTS patients are told it’s “all in their head” or given similar psychiatric labels prior to receiving a POTS diagnosis, but research shows that POTS patients are no more likely to have psychiatric disorders than healthy controls.” - Dysautonomia International

Specialties

●      Long Haul Covid

●      Chronic Fatigue

●      Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS)

●      Chronic Epstein-Barr Virus Syndromes

●      IV Therapy

Dr. Haliburton is also available for general naturopathic care.

Education

Dr. Haliburton received his Doctorate of Naturopathic Medicine from Bastyr University in 2017.  Before that he received a Bachelor of Nutrition Sciences from Bastyr University. 

Alex E. Pereira, ND

Naturopathic Solutions for Optimal Well-Being

You’ve searched long enough. It’s time for you to experience the personalized health care you’ve been looking for. It’s time for you to work with a doctor who incorporates the best of naturopathic and modern medicine to support your well-being. 

Hello, I’m Dr. Alex Pereira, and I'm passionate about finding naturopathic solutions to promote your healing and enhance your well-being. No matter where you are on your health journey – from optimizing your current health to treating undiagnosed symptoms, or searching for help with chronic issues  – I'm here to offer you the compassionate care and support you need.

Like Dr. Barrett, my path to becoming a naturopathic medical doctor was deeply personal. When I was in medical school I embarked on a journey to find a cure for my own health issues because, after eight surgeries for various tumors, I had had enough! While this experience could have discouraged me, it didn’t. I knew a cure or more effective treatment had to exist. So instead, I strengthened my resolve to continue my search until I found the answers and a way to heal my body. 

Now, I want to do the same for you. 

As your naturopathic doctor, I want to help you overcome the health challenges you’re facing with the same determination.

I believe there are answers to your health questions and that solutions to restore your wellness and vitality exist. It’s simply a matter of uncovering them–and that is what I do best!

Innovative Problem Solver

I genuinely want to help my patients achieve the best possible outcomes. And among the skills I offer as your doctor, I believe it’s my innate ability to think outside the box is probably my greatest. It’s what drives me to tenaciously pursue answers until they are found. 

The combination of my educational background, years of experience, and persistence in research enhance my capacity to design effective personalized treatment plans. When you become a patient I assess more than your symptoms. I search for the connection of your symptoms to the root causes of your health concerns—this is what allows for the best solutions with the greatest healing potential. It’s what brings the transformation you’ve been searching for.

The potential for true healing and transformation is closer than you think. 

If you’re searching for a knowledgeable and dedicated naturopathic physician, please schedule an appointment today. Whatever health problems you’re facing, I’m here to be your trusted partner in achieving optimal health and well-being. I’ll take the time to develop a personalized treatment plan to address the root causes of your specific health concerns, so you can feel better and live better. 

Specialties: 

• Complex Chronic Diseases - Such as mold and mycotoxin exposure, Lyme disease + co-infections, mast cell activation syndrome, toxin exposure, long covid

• Autoimmune Diseases  

• Allergies & Immunology  

• Men’s Health

• Ozone Therapy

• Advanced IV Therapy 

• Cannabinoid Therapy 

Memberships and Affiliations:

• Board Member, American Association of Naturopathic Physicians

Education and Specialized Training: 

• Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine, Bastyr University

• B.A. in Business Economics, California State University

• Fellowship with Dr. Frank Shallenberger, MD: Anti-aging & Ozone Therapy

• Dr. Chil Khakham, NMD & Dr. Stephanie Hendershot, NMD: Prolo Therapy & PRP Training

During my career, I had the privilege of playing a pivotal role in the launch of Natura Life + Science in Sacramento. Heading the research and development department, I formulated innovative herbal supplements and medications, demonstrating my commitment to exploring alternative and effective treatment options. I’ve also helped numerous geriatric patients suffering from neurodegeneration-related diseases. 

Personal

Having grown up in a Bangladeshi community, my journey has been shaped by a unique blend of experiences that have taught me the true significance of meaningful connections with others. I believe in providing unwavering support to those I hold dear, ensuring their well-being in all facets of life. 

When I’m not working with patients, I enjoy time with my family. My family means everything to me. I’m fortunate to be married to a beautiful and devoted wife who has supported me throughout my endeavors. I’m also a very proud father to two wonderful sons. 

Before settling in California, I lived on the east coast. I dedicated my time there to studying medicine and practicing medicine in states like Vermont, Connecticut, and New Jersey which further enriched my experiences.

Endnotes

1.  "Supportive Oligonucleotide Therapy (SOT) as an Alternative ... - NCBI." https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8931883/. Accessed 3 Aug. 2023.

2.  "Quality of Life and a Surveillant Endocannabinoid System - PMC." 28 Oct. 2021, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8581450/. Accessed 3 Aug. 2023.

3.  "Antioxidative and Anti-Inflammatory Properties of Cannabidiol - NCBI." 25 Dec. 2019, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7023045/. Accessed 3 Aug. 2023.

 Support Staff

Veronica Ortiz - Office Manager

Veronica has been working in the medical field for a decade and has worked in various specialities including pharmaceutical compounding, catastrophic injuries, and neuromuscular diseases. Outside of work she enjoys spending time with her son, indulging in culinary delights, giving back to her local community as well as traveling.

Ryan Clark - Patient Care Coordinator

Ryan graduated from the University of California, Davis with a bachelors in Psychology and has worked in the mental health field for several years. In his free time he enjoys hiking, reading, and learning how to optimize physical and mental health.

Kristina Johnson - Patient Care Coordinator

Kristina has been working in the medical field for a few years. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family, cycling, and traveling to the mountains.