A Holistic Approach For Women’s Wellness – Exclusive Interview With Pala Senabulya
- Sep 6, 2024
- 5 min read
Pala Senabulya is a Registered Nutritionist and passionate advocate of a holistic approach to health and wellness. Having successfully resolved her own gut and menstrual health issues with whole foods, yoga, and meditation, she now runs an online nutrition clinic to support women in transforming their lives so that they can have more energy and freedom. Pala often takes a left-field approach by encouraging her clients to try different healing modalities, like drinking cacao and practicing yoga nidra or EFT, as part of their healing journey. Pala offers a three-month 1:1 personalised nutrition programme based on her signature Blissful Bowel framework for healing constipation.
Pala Senabulya, Naturopathic Nutritionist
This is not your first career, why did you become a nutritionist?
After working in investment banking for 20 years, despite loving my job, I was very stressed and generally under the weather, with a vague sense of being unwell. I was tired all the time, even on holiday, but I just pushed through it and kept working until I had “burn-out”! After a promotion I was feeling flat and demotivated rather than excited and thought “there has to be another way to live”. I have always been interested in food and wellness and had become very passionate about nutrition when I was trying to conceive, so it seemed like an obvious new career to explore.
How long have you been in clinical practice?
I started my practice three years ago after completing my three-year diploma at the College of Naturopathic Medicine. For the first two years I helped women with menstrual health issues, however in early 2024 I decided to specialise in gut health and in particular bowel movements.
Why did you decide to switch to gut health and bowel movements?
Struggling with constipation can sometimes feel soul-destroying because doing a poop is so basic, right? Many women feel incredibly alone and frustrated, and I know how anxious they might be feeling with their whole day revolving around whether they have pooped or not. This is something I have experienced and successfully resolved for myself and my clients, and since I have always been very vocal with friends and family about the need to poop, it feels like a natural space for me.
Who are your main clients?
My clients are women aged 35-55 who struggle to have a good bowel movement or suffer daily with a bloated belly, pain and discomfort. They experience daily anxiety or a feeling of being stuck and are unable to live full, energetic lives.
How do you help them?
We work together to identify the underlying drivers of their symptoms and then I provide them with personalised nutrition, supplement and lifestyle protocols for them to follow and support them on their healing journey.
Is there a common challenge that your clients face?
There are two common challenges faced by most of my clients and the women I know.
Stress plays a major role driving a lot of symptoms. My clients are busy with their kids, pets, careers, relationships, and looking after older parents (or all of the above) and are often in a state of chronic low-grade stress that has a huge effect on their digestion.
Not being listened to or taken seriously on digestive or menstrual health symptoms is also a major challenge. Many women are left feeling incredibly alone and frustrated and not sure where to find answers.
What makes your nutrition practice different to other nutritionists?
I believe in self-determinism: every little action we take helps us to make the change we want to see in our lives. All of my clients protocols and my “Blissful Bowel” framework are designed around taking small steps to upgrade their health.
I have always had a passion for learning. My desk and bedside table are stacked high with the latest clinical trials and expert books on digestion and menstrual health, and I am always looking for new ways to help my clients (gong bath, anyone?).
My belief that data is king plays a major role in my practice. Functional labs take out the guesswork and provide a shortcut cut, allowing a personalised healing journey. Food, mood and symptom journalling can also be an incredibly powerful tool.
Compassion is a core value. Self-compassion and compassion for others fuels my actions at home and in clinic. Far too many women enter a cycle of self-blame followed by self-sabotage and self-hate if they “fall-off the wagon”. I remind clients to be kind to themselves and my approach is massively inspired by the work of Tara Brach on radical compassion.
Recently I have developed a framework that provides women with a step-by-step "pathway to pooping,” which I call my “Blissful Bowel Framework”.
Can you tell us a bit more about your framework?
My framework covers six areas; Relief, Reset, Restore, Re-motilise, Re-balance, and Re-innoculate. I guide women to find initial relief before we work to reset their digestive function, restore key nutrients, improve colonic motility, balance their nervous system, and give their gut microbiome a boost. Phew, It’s a lot! This is why we work through it slowly, and I support them the whole way.
What has been your biggest learning since being in practice?
I think developing an understanding of the human condition has been vital – understanding the necessary mindset and behaviours required to successfully make changes in our eating patterns. Nutrition is not a magic pill (sorry!). I am therefore very hands-on and spend a lot of time getting to know my clients so that I can support them in making life-long changes to their diets that fit into their situation and lifestyle. I want it to be as easy as possible and fun.
Tell us about your greatest achievement.
So far my biggest achievement has been having those clients who have left my care and started taking their own inspired actions. That is when I know that I have made an impact on someone’s life.
What are the criteria for a client to work with you?
I only work with women. My favourite clients are those women who are open to trying anything. I often include Yoga Nidra and pranayama breathing in a protocol and it is important that my clients feel at ease with this approach.
For readers inspired by this conversation and eager to start their journey, what first steps would you recommend?
If you need immediate relief then you can download my free guide “Constipation SOS – Get your poop out now!”
If you are struggling with bloating or you are frustrated that you can’t do a poop, please book a free online consultation with me.
I will shortly be launching a new 6-week gut health programme to help women start reducing bloating and pooping more. If you are interested you can join my waitlist. This will be a live programme and participants will have direct access to me.
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