Bio

Dr. Laura, the founder of dare2detox, is highly valued for her advanced skills in holistic and nature-based therapies that support optimum health, wellness, and healing. She strongly believes that there are many pathways to activating wellness and is sought-after for her extensive knowledge and first-hand experience with numerous healing modalities.
 
Her understanding of what constitutes a balanced lifestyle began early in life because of a very unconventional upbringing and non-conventional medical training. Dr. Laura grew up with Buddhist parents and her grandmother, who took ordination to become a venerable Buddhist monk, impacted her upbringing tremendously. She was introduced to the practice of meditation and mindfulness as a young child and found immense value in those practices. She would later master meditation and mindfulness with the venerable monk and best-selling author, Thich Nhat Hanh, at the Plum Village Mindfulness Practice Centre in northern France.
 
Life took a turn before entering medical school and Dr. Laura found herself severely ill. The journey toward healing proved challenging, but she discovered Holistic Health Care, which would reshape the way she would live and approach patient care.

While in medical school, she was elected the National Director for the Humanistic, Complimentary & Alternative Medicine Task Force Standing Committee for the American Medical Student Association (AMSA)–one of AMSA’s most prized and popular Task Force. For three years, she collaborated with Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) experts during the AMSA’s Annual National North America Convention to educate, advocate and expose medical and nursing students and postgraduates to these healing modalities.

During her terms, Dr. Laura actively played a vital role in educating the medical and nursing students of North America about CAM through her accomplishments as the editor-in-chief for the monthly national wellness newsletters and the final edition of the AMSA’s Wellness Guide, as well as writer and editor of numerous of national wellness publications, including the “AMSA Complementary (Medicine) Primer.”
 
Dr. Laura successfully worked alongside numerous CAM authorities during her terms with AMSA. Among them, Dr. Hunter Adams, whose life story was made into the motion picture, “Patch Adams”. Dr. Laura’s Task Force would also introduce prominent best-selling authors and experts in CAM to medical students in North America such as Dr. Deepak Chopra and Dr. Dean Ornish.
 
A pioneer and a forward thinker, Dr. Laura founded the 1st and 2nd Medical Student Wellbeing Retreat at the Fetzer Institute, a non-profit private operating foundation that supports research, education, and service programs that aim to foster the integration of the inner life of mind and spirit and the outer life of action in the world.
 

Alongside the renowned Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen, author and founder of the Institute for the Study of Health & Illness (ISHI), and Dr. David Eisenberg, the director of culinary nutrition and adjunct associate professor of nutrition at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Dr. Laura served as the student coordinator and program director during these retreats.
 
During her last year in medical school, she was hand-selected to be the national student representative and the first sub-intern to clinically rotate at the University of Arizona, Center for Integrative Medicine, with Dr. Andrew Weil, the world-renowned leader and pioneer in the field of Integrative Medicine, best-selling author of 15 books, and twice on the cover of TIME magazine.

Dr. Laura spent an extensive amount of time shadowing Dr. Weil and his team of CAM experts from over ten different schools of thought. Because Integrative Medicine takes into account the whole person (body, mind, and spirit) and makes use of all appropriate therapies both conventional and alternative, this “integrative approach” would ultimately become Dr. Laura’s approach to patient care.
 
For over fifteen years, Dr. Laura has volunteered her medical skills, donated her time and talents to organize successful charity events, and is often found on the hosting and fundraising committees for numerous foundations that she supports, such as the Virgin Unite, The Red Cross, Make-A-Wish Foundation, The Heart Fund, TinyStars, and The Little Light House Foundation, amongst many others.
 
In Dr. Laura’s ongoing efforts to advocate for holistic health care and her passion for community services, the dare2detox’s Zen Ambassador Program was created in order to make a positive impact in the community.
 
An expert in Integrative Nutrition and an active advocator of healing through food, Dr. Laura served on the advisory board for the first and second Seed Food & Wine Festival in Miami Florida in 2014 and 2015. In January 2016, she and a team of conscious chefs successfully developed and launched the dare2detox’s gourmet conscious catering program to the community of South Florida.
 
As a clinical researcher with advanced training in Integrative Medicine, Functional Medicine, Energy Medicine, Anti-aging Medicine, Meditation, Mindfulness, Guided Imagery, NSEV Healing, Facial Rejuvenation Acupuncture, and Integrative Nutrition and with more than a decade of clinical experience in private practice as a board-certified Family Practitioner, Dr. Laura currently provides concierge integrative medical services and consultation to clients in Miami Beach and California (including to the residents at the prestigious Faena House as well as to the Miami Heat Franchise), leads a dedicated team of exceptional wellness experts at dare2detox, is the wellness editor and contributing writer for Innovation & Tech Today and a contributing health and wellness writer for Think Magazine, a prominent luxury lifestyle magazine in South Florida.

Specialty & Expertise

Energy Medicine

NSEV HEALING

Functional Medicine & Diagnostic

Volunteer & Non-profit Contributions