Karyn Shanks, MD, is a physician, teacher, and author of Heal—A Nine-Stage Roadmap to Recover Energy, Reverse Chronic Illness, and Claim the Potential of a Vibrant New You.

Karyn believes that health and vitality are essential for the highest expression of our human potential and that the bones of healing are in what we do for ourselves. During over twenty-eight-years of medical practice she has helped thousands of clients with chronic illness to heal, and to regain their hope, their energy, and their life’s potential. Listening passionately to their stories while fully engaged with her own life-school of learning, Dr. Shanks has developed The Nine Domains of Healing roadmap that synthesizes what she has learned to be true: that healing is always possible, that it is within everyone’s grasp, and that it ultimately comes from within.

Whether working with clients suffering from debilitating disease, or those who feel there is more and want to feel like themselves again, she shares her extensive knowledge and experiences in a way that is approachable and leads clients into change that is doable. Guiding, teaching, and cheering on her clients (also kicking them in the butt when necessary!), Karyn is a mentor who connects with people and reminds them of what is possible.

Dr. Shanks received her medical degree from the University of Chicago and completed her training in Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa. Board certified in Internal Medicine and Functional Medicine, she is also a founding diplomat of the American Board of Integrative and Holistic Medicine. She will say, though, that her greatest teacher has been Life School, the profound lessons she has learned as a person, a physician, and a patient herself. She has integrated those lessons with the science, cultural wisdom, and experiential knowledge gleaned from her extensive work.

She is the founder and director of The Center for Medicine and Healing Arts in Iowa City. She is sought out nationally as a healer by her clients and as a mentor by Functional Medicine practitioners.

Check out the Guided Meditations for Ground & Healing