About Jennifer Giustra – Kozek:
I assist individuals, couples, and families through life journeys and transitions. I help during episodes of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse-related issues by teaching how people can better manage emotions and designing effective coping strategies.
With over 17 years of experience, my approach to therapy embraces an integration of compassion, intuition, and empathy, focusing on clarity and change. I help people to come out of the groove of old thinking and behavior.
I employ several therapeutic modalities throughout treatment, including cognitive, behavioral, and psychodynamic therapies. In addition, I use Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing (EMDR) and Hypnotherapy to access your subconscious and the deeper part of you where fear, phobias, trauma, and maladaptive coping strategies such as alcohol dependency, and other addictive behaviors reside.
No good teacher uses one approach for every student. Therefore, I listen attentively and let you formulate your curriculum.
My Specialties include trauma & PTSD, addiction, co-dependency, personality disorders, bipolar depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorders & phobias.
Medication should not be our first go-to solution. More natural treatments for autism and ADHD are available for us and our children that have the same significant effects, if not better, than medication.
Fortunately, we're here to discuss with Ms. Jennifer Giustra-Kozek, a fellow trailblazer and author of Healing Without Hurting: Treating ADHD, Apraxia, and Autism Spectrum Disorders Naturally, about the natural solutions for autism and ADHD to restore health and create lifelong wellness.
What's your background in mental health?
For 20 years, Jen has been working as a licensed therapist and with psychiatrists for more than ten years. She has seen children as young as five years old suffering from depression or anxiety and already on antipsychotic medication.
She has also witnessed how they would have terrible bowel issues. It triggered her to think of a better alternative. She recalled introducing to clients some natural remedies because she has a family history of eating and cooking food naturally.
Her ancestors also impacted Jen's lifestyle as they all had gardens. She was raised in a household where she wasn't allowed to eat junky cereals. Instead, her mom always cooked real food. Transitioning to such a lifestyle may be more challenging for those who grew up having only processed food, but it's possible.
What do dark circles mean?
Most of the time, people disregard dark circles, thinking it's entirely normal. But dark circles could mean many things, usually indicating poor health management or lifestyle.
That's why we need to have minerals because if you don't have minerals, you can't detox, and you can't transport nutrients between cells. It also affects every neurotransmitter in your brain. So, you can imagine how important it is.
We downplay the importance of these minerals. A lot of these minerals come from our food. But sometimes, it's epigenetic or a breakdown in our gut microbiome, causing our body not to function correctly due to the lack of nutrients.
Most people don't know that pharmaceutical companies bring plants to a lab to recreate them synthetically with a whole bunch of chemicals and, later on, call it their discovery to address a symptom of a problem.
People usually buy those medications instead of directly taking or using the plant, which would heal our bodies deeper without any side effects.
What's the biggest game changer for Jen?
When asked about the biggest game changer among the many things she's done, Jennifer considers natural and healthy dietary transition the best option. She has seen its effects on not just one's physical health but also the immune system.
We calm the immune system when we cut down on these toxic foods. Based on Jen's experience, pulling out the gluten and dairy products from the diet does wonders for one's overall wellness. By having a natural diet, you ward off future autoimmune problems and other systemic inflammation, which will cause worse things to your health.
However, we must believe in the process. It won't happen if we can't think it's possible to create positive changes for ourselves. For parents, be your child's cheerleaders and set an example for them. Start them young.
How homeopathy is a discipline and not a cure
Homeopathy, according to Jennifer, is an excellent alternative to medicine, and it's incredibly safe. There's homeopathy for babies. However, remember that if you take a homeopathic remedy and experience any symptoms or side effects in particular, that's a good sign.
Homeopathy reaches a deeper level. It helps address physical issues that are going on in your body, but it can also address emotional things, which are often the block in resolving our physical health problems.
Jen experienced being there for Elena when she had terrible insomnia during COVID while dealing with her PANS. She gave her a homeopathic remedy, and Elena slept horribly. Although Jen was worried, she reassured her that it was normal and meant the treatment was working. Some people do homeopathy, and we must remember that this is an established discipline.
We have all these toxins in our bodies, but we must balance them out because it's all about the reactivity of our system. ADHD, autism, anxiety, and other mental health issues can result from an imbalanced system.
What do you wish every parent knew about mental health?
Jen emphasized that genetics is not the end of our story. We all have cancer cells, but that doesn't mean we'll all have cancer. It depends on your immune system and how well your body can handle it. Epigenetics is how our DNA responds to something.
Our genetics don't define us. Many people take medication because there is a genetically inherited ability. Many things can awaken genetic potential. Just start where you can and move forward.
We can change how we respond to stress. For example, we can shift to a different diet or lifestyle. Also, we can lower inflammation. These are three of the biggest things that can make a huge difference in any child with autism, ADHD, and ODD.
When you see the positive impact on your child's overall wellness, you'll want to stick with your natural diet because you get nutrients when you eat healthy food.
What would you say to people considering using Neurofeedback or PMF for autism, PANS, or other clinical issues?
Neurofeedback puts the brain back on track. However, it works best when you do other things first, like being on a proper diet and gradually decreasing the inflammation.
Neurofeedback will also help regulate the brain and reduce inflammation, but if you do it together, you will notice a more significant shift quicker. As a result, you might have to do fewer sessions with neurofeedback than you would have and still get substantial changes.
As for PMF, it's like energetic healing, which had helped Jen's daughter when she had a PANS flare. Jen was surprised at how relaxed her daughter was after the PMF treatment, and that's when she knew it was effective. She recalls all the PMF, sauna, and homeopathy sessions and how they turned her daughter around quickly and beautifully.
Anything is possible when the platform is there, together with the diet and lifestyle.
No matter where you are in your journey, we have resources to help you:
Links and Resources:
➡️ Check out Jennifer's website. Click here.
➡️ Join our FREE Natural Parenting Community to receive science-backed resources for your child and family. Join here.
➡️ Get help from Dr. Roseann and her team. Apply here.
➡️ “Is it ADHD or something else?” Take the quiz.
