HEALTH
words by CONNIE WIRTA
photography by SCOTT THUEN of Thuen Studios
ESSEN TI A D OC TOR
guides patients
towards optimal wellness →
DR. KATE KESSLER and her son, JACK, prepare colorful fruits and vegetables for snacks. The Essentia Health physician sees good nutrition as the foundation of good health.
Dr.
Kate Kessler has a passion for helping people achieve optimal wellness. That’s why she’s begun an integrative medicine practice at the Essentia Health– Osgood Clinic in Fargo. Integrative medicine, Kessler explains, is an approach that embraces the whole person — body, mind and spirit. Based in science, it uses conventional medicine and other healing therapies to reach the goal of optimal health and wellness.
Kessler works with each patient to create a customized plan. Many options are available, such as diet modification, exercise, nutritional supplements, acupuncture, aromatherapy, biofeedback, yoga and meditation. The plan can draw on the expertise of other practitioners, such as acupuncturists, massage therapists, mental health therapists and chiropractic physicians. “My role is to be your partner in health and guide you to a choice,” Kessler explains. “The patient’s role is to be accountable and dedicated to making lifestyle and behavior changes. If you’re looking for a quick fix, this isn’t it. I like to dive in and spend time to help you change unhealthy behaviors one by one.” The foundation of Kessler’s care is diet and nutrition. “With proper nutrition, we can prevent up to 80 percent of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity and high blood pres-
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sure,” she says. “You cannot out-train a bad diet, or just take a pill. Every time you eat or drink, you are either feeding disease or fighting it.” At a patient’s first appointment, Kessler asks questions about diet, exercise, stress, sleep, mental health, support networks and the environment in which a patient lives and works. “I spend the time to get to know patients better and tease out what I can do to help them,” she says. “I use motivational interviewing to meet patients where they are at and help them come to their own conclusions about things like diet, lifestyle, sleep and stresses. I want my patients to know that they have the ability to help and heal themselves.” Kessler says she came to integrative health after training as both an internal medicine and pediatric physician. “I was always interested in natural health and our bodies’ own healing properties,” she says. “I want to get to the root