Provider Spotlight: Lori Esarey, MS, ARNP
by Clinical Consulting Team
Lori Esarey has been a certified Family Nurse Practitioner since 1995. After working many years in acute care settings and doctor offices, she grew weary of treating disease and was ready to take another approach. Lori recognized the conventional model of health care failed to address the root causes of disease, which could be changed through proper nutrition. In 2007 she established Total Nutrition and Therapeutics (TNT) with the core goal to help clients reach their health goals by taking a food-first approach. Lori’s passion led her back to school, where she graduated in 2012 from USF with a Masters in Nutritional Medicine and in 2013 completed her ABAAHP (American Board of Anti-Aging Health Practitioners) Board Certification and Fellowship Training in Anti-Aging and Restorative Medicine (FAARM) from A4M.
Lori’s passion, combined with her education and amazing team at TNT, are the secret to her patients’ success and reaching their wellness goals. TNT’s mission is to empower individuals of all ages to achieve their optimum level of health, not reversing age, but optimizing it;. TNT helps their clients look, and most importantly, feel their best.
DUTCH: What inspired you to become a healthcare practitioner?
Lori Esarey: I wanted to be a nurse from a young age. I grew up working with my parents at a retirement community ranging from independent living to memory care. My passion has always been to make others’ lives better.
DUTCH: What is your training?
Lori Esarey: I have a bachelors and master’s degree from USF in Nursing. I returned to school and graduated from USF with a Master’s Degree in Metabolic and Nutritional Medicine. I also completed a fellowship and became certified in Anti-Aging and Restorative Medicine through A4M.
DUTCH: Describe your medical background/practice.
Lori Esarey: I started in medicine working at H Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in the ICU, the James A Haley VA hospital in CV ICU and Medical ICU, and in the Emergency Room as an RN. After completing my Masters in Nursing, I worked in Internal Medicine for ten years. In 2006, I began my current practice while still working part-time in Family Practice and Internal Medicine. Slowly, my Total Nutrition and Therapeutics practice became my full-time job. My clinic started out helping those seeking weight loss a completely food-first approach to accomplishing just that. Although there was great success, something was missing. I began my Masters Education and fellowship modules in 2010 trying to gain greater insight on the metabolic disturbances interfering with weight loss, and more importantly, disease. In 2011 I converted my practice towards a completely integrative, functional medicine cash-pay practice focusing on looking, feeling, and functioning well.
DUTCH: How have you incorporated DUTCH Testing into your practice?
Lori Esarey: Hormonal imbalance is a major disruption to a person achieving “wellness.” I find the use of the DUTCH testing an essential tool to give greater insight to this imbalance, the degree of the imbalance, and in helping guide the choices and aggressiveness of the care/treatment plan recommended. Both the sex hormone and cortisol testing has been considerably valuable information and has certainly increased outcomes and a feeling of safety associated with recommendations made. Whether it be initially, upon first visit, or for long-term maintenance, this DUTCH testing is a must for many of my clients, both men and women.
DUTCH: Where do you see functional/integrative medicine twenty years from now?
Lori Esarey: I believe functional medicine should be the standard of care. It is commonsense medicine. Looking for the root cause and empowering people to take action to change is critical. Unfortunately, with BIG PHARMA and insurance companies at the core of decision-making in the standard of care, functional medicine will likely not become the standard, but it will be highly sought after. It is very important for practitioners to become educated and part of a functional medicine group. Together, we can work hard to increase awareness and availability of great care and a more proactive approach to health in our communities.
DUTCH: What do you like to do outside of work?
Lori Esarey: I love to be outdoors; the beach, boating, and anything related to the water.
