Suzanne Pearlman,
M.S. Nutrition

Mission of Nutritional Balance for Life

Support, educate and guide individuals to achieve optimal health and wellness, and successfully move away from a life of chronic disease.

Experience

Suzanne’s personal experiences with food taught her from a young age that she can feel better, by making meaningful changes given the quality of foods consumed. She applied this knowledge while raising her family, reinforcing first hand how foods can help or hinder an individual’s overall health.

As an all around athlete and gymnastics coach for more than 30 years, Suzanne coached students of all levels, including individuals w/ physical and mental challenges. During her coaching years, her approach has always been clear, to assist students in developing a sense of self, and self-confidence in a supportive atmosphere knowing the rest would build upon itself. Suzanne’s approach even back then, was to develop from the inside out and encouraged the consumption of nutrient dense foods to promote optimal health as well as performance.

She also worked for 10 years in a Naturopathic clinic where she trained as a Health Coach and worked integrally with the doctors to personally provide nutrition education and support to patients. During her time there, she gained extensive knowledge in the use of specific supplements and their application to health and disease. She experienced first hand how to assist the body to heal and was inspired by the number of individuals who achieved resolution from multiple heath issues.

These experiences motivated Suzanne to pursue a formal education, to acquire a more thorough understanding of the science behind food and its impact on health and disease. She earned an Associate’s Degree and upon completion, realized she was just scratching the surface, so she enrolled in the Nutrition program at the University of NH (UNH). While at UNH she earned, a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition, followed by her Master of Science Degree in Nutrition. While at UNH, Suzanne student-taught multiple courses.

Suzanne’s experiences also placed her in the classroom where she lectured as an adjunct professor and associate professor at NHTI – Concord’s Community College for 10 years. There she taught Human Biology, Personal Nutrition as well as multiple other science courses. During this time Suzanne began her Nutrition practice.

For the past 2 years Suzanne worked in a busy family medical practice in Dover, NH where she worked with patients in various health capacities, some of which included, incorporating dietary and life style strategies, educating, coaching and supporting patients on their path to wellness, addressing various diseases. Some of her focus included weight management, Intuitive eating, ordering and interpreting laboratory tests, IBS and related disorders including SIBO, allergies, auto-immune disorders, diabetes, high BP and high cholesterol, inflammatory as well as other chronic diseases. Suzanne’s approach was gentle, listening, teasing out and supporting patients on their journey to improve and optimize their health. Many saw significant improvement in their health journey.

Suzanne is certified and well trained in reading and interpreting labs, and making recommendations for testing. She is adept at teasing out hidden issues that have often gone un-addressed in the past thus bringing them to the forefront. She has been referred to by many of her patients as a “Nutrition Detective”. Suzanne is comfortable and versed, working with people who experience eating disorders and disordered eating. Creating a trusting comfortable atmosphere, she does not shy away from open dialogue, offering patients a comfortable environment to process. Together Suzanne helps patients to develop a tool kit that includes nutrition based knowledge, self-talk, behavior and life-style modifications, questions and discussions that promote deeper internal reflection that creates an environment of self-acceptance, and unconditional support for oneself. Over time patients build a tool kit of skills that they learn to draw from to assist them into eventually developing a new lifestyle of intuitive eating with greater ease and self-acceptance when making choices.

Suzanne works with patients by appointment, at her office in Portsmouth, NH. She also teaches nutrition classes to the public. Suzanne is certified in treating SIBO and many other IBS and digestive disorders. Her ongoing training and professional experiences have further enhanced her understanding that achieving and maintaining health is a journey not a destination. By supporting individuals where they are at, and digging deeper, she understands all too well that achieving health is much like peeling back the layers of an onion, one layer at a time. Providing support, gentle guidance and education (a key ingredient to providing value) reinforces the reasoning and motivation of why patients continue forward on their health journey. Establishing and especially revisiting goals, is another key ingredient to achieving optimal wellness, on a mental, emotional and physical plane. Recognizing that life is constantly in flux, reminds us of the need to be flexible and gentle with ourselves.

Philosophy

Suzanne thoroughly enjoys supporting individuals and families on their path to healthier living. Suzanne believes it is essential to meet individuals where they are at in time. Actively listening and asking questions in a gentle, supportive atmosphere, promotes discovery and raises awareness of obstacles and promotes healing. This three dimensional approach includes identifying challenges a client may be experiencing. Addressing these challenges often requires some sort of change in one’s environment. Presenting these options to patients reminds them that they do have a choice and that it can be on their own terms, thus empowering them to make choices that promote optimal health. Dietary and or lifestyle changes are often easier to achieve than we often think, and key to long-term success.

We are all three-dimensional beings in need of a functional approach that includes all parts of our being to heal and optimize our health. Collectively we address these needs and establish goals, and then integrate them into one’s life in such a way that fundamentally provides support for long term personal growth and overall health and wellness.