Meet Dr. Serena Goldstein, ND | Naturopathic Doctor, Speaker, Author

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dr. Serena Goldstein, ND and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Serena, what’s the most important lesson your business/career has taught you?
“Work harder on yourself than your business”

They say ‘you are your business’, but what I find is many of us- myself included- have had periods throughout our lives that we can lose our sense of self chasing after money, dopamine- boosting habits, approval from others, the next best way to lose weight/ get healthy/ look hot (any of those), or telling ourselves we’ll figure it out later or someone else will take care of it.

However, all this can affect our time management, potentially cloud our judgment, or even impact our business relationships, family, friendships, and even our partners, leaving us in some sort of ‘fight or flight’ or ‘freeze’ response as we’ve navigated away from values and perhaps even following (multi-) passionate ideas; or at the very least trust in being able to delegate responsibility.

To me, ‘working harder on myself’, means returning to my heart’s values, make sure my business (and clients, participants) reflect that, setting proper boundaries (i.e. responding to emails), and if I do begin experiencing any angst or defense mechanisms, for example, I step away, step outside, drink some water, and do my best to figure out what I’m not ‘seeing.’ If not, I need to know where to go/ who to ask for help. In turn, this teaches me too about my strengths, limits, and as Gay Hendricks says, our ‘zone of genius.’

As I grow, my business will grow/expand, but having that safe place within yourself to come back to is so incredibly important, as no one is going to save you except yourself.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I work significantly with weight concerns, hormone, stress, gut, and mood related concerns, especially when nothing seems to be working or those who feel like they’ve ‘tried everything.’ I believe in the body’s innate wisdom to heal as I strive to understand both the big picture approach to help others navigate a plan with natural therapies and lifestyle-related care, so people can feel confident in their choices and listening to their body’s own intuition. I find this especially true when it comes to factors outside of health such as relationships, work, and where we may not feel as though we’re experiencing as much joy and/or freedom in our lives (it’s all connected!).

I believe what sets me apart from others is my diverse background includes my original interest in psychology when I was a teenager, and that shifted from pre-med to Naturopathic medicine when I realized there was a profession in which I could ‘know more’ and also truly tailor therapies and advice per each person who walked in. I’ve had the opportunity to network with thousands of professionals, and speak to many more, given I was at ease speaking to adults, and now understand my deeply empathic nature. I am sensitive, but it means I have chosen to learn boundaries, explore modalities and therapies beyond just what we learn in the classroom, and share with patients step by step what it means to be open and honest with ourselves while truly finding their own supportive team as they regularly desire change and growth as well.

I keep it fun, pretty light, as best I can, though no, it has not been easy- some parts, however, do come easier to me than others, so I utilize that as a balance as tasks that keep my confidence up, versus ones where I go into less attached to the outcome. One of the ways I overcome challenges is either reflect or list ways I’ve done so in the past, think of good qualities people have said about me (or literally call them and ask!), or whittle down my own to-do list from a place of radical honesty. Then I reflect, let it go, and consider how I can do better the next day.

I will say though, that I’ve also learned a few lessons on when to ‘turn off’ the few different business roles to take care of me, the human, so I can continue to make/ create the energy I need for my brand that I’ve been told is so enlightening. Hence, I’m either at the gym, listening to music, or proverbially ‘hiding under a rock.’

Per my brand and it’s story, it’s the Phoenix rising. I know what it’s like to come out of very unknown and unnerving times for a very long time now (there’s a reason I began studying psychology at age 15), and it’s been incredible to watch my patients do it too, not only with their health, but with their life. They, like myself, have returned stronger, more self-aware, more committed, and overall more at peace with ourselves/ their life. Purple has been my long-time favorite color, and when I chose the red and blue as complimentary colors, did I only realize later it was a great representation of our chakra system! So perhaps you may want to contact me too on that one to learn more how I integrate our energetic & spiritual self as well. 🙂

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
The beach- hands down (can stay there all afternoon, as the ocean). However, in the morning, some of my favorite coffeeshops/ bakery include Amar Bakery in Delray Beach, and Deke’s, both of which serve great coffee, and I know Amar has great breakfast foods there. For lunch, I’m a fan of the Farmhouse, Office, or El Camino on Atlantic Ave, and again, beach in the afternoon (though I would not be opposed to a late morning start/ bring breakfast there either). In the evening, Throw social has some great bands/ DJ, and so does Tin Roof. They have good vibes, where in some areas you can even hear yourself speak.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My women’s networking group, FemCity. I moved down to FL less than a year ago, knew some people, but also know finding the right community is so important to grow personally, as well as professionally (as the two are so closely linked!). In joining both the local & global community, I had access to their library of online courses, weekly calls, PR opportunities, and chances to meet/ connect with the founder, Violette de Ayala, who has been an inspiration in how she leads and grows the organization. It’s helped inspire me on what I need to envision, tools I need to have in place, gain so much additional clarity, and really hold myself accountable not only for what I want to achieve/ what I need business-wise, but where I can also [continue to] grow personally and spiritually.

Website: www.drserenagoldstein.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/drserenag

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/drserenand

Facebook: facebook.com/drserenand

Image Credits
Carrie Roseman Studios