Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Kasey Thompson, owner of Your Remedy Wellness Centre Inc., located in Victoria, BC, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Remedy Wellness Centre is a multidisciplinary clinic that brings a team approach to health and wellness management. Together we can care for everything from your spine, muscles, and fascia to your mental health and diet. We embrace the biopsychosocial model of care, which considers how all aspects of your life impact your health, both positively and negatively. Our goal is to restore balance to all of these systems to allow our patients to thrive.
Tell us about yourself
I've been an RMT for nearly 15 years. Every day, what keeps me inspired is my own experience as a patient with chronic pain who has struggled with the mainstream medical system. I have a condition called Central Sensitization, which means I'm hypersensitive to almost everything, including chemicals and perfumes, topical products, noise, many food groups, grass, and some trees. Essentially, my nervous system is on high alert all the time, even when I think I'm calm, which means it interprets normal stimuli as a threat and responds with inflammation, histamine, fatigue, anxiety, and pain.
Most doctors look at me like a deer in headlights because the medical system is just so far behind in understanding and treating these kinds of things. I've maintained a good quality of life and general wellness by using exactly the services Remedy Wellness Centre offers.
A biopsychosocial approach was essential to tackle this beast of a condition and all of its layers. For me, that approach was partly diet changes based on genetic testing and lab work, a neurokinetic therapy approach to musculoskeletal care and physical fitness, and counselling with an emphasis on chronic pain education and the power of neuroplasticity. Mindfulness, meditation, and cognitive-behavioral awareness are now regular habits for me.
Most of my practice is chronic pain patients because I personally and professionally understand what they're going through. You can't teach that kind of experience. In most cases, with the help of my team at Remedy, we can help these patients gain some quality of life. I believe it's very important work, and these patients are being left behind by the mainstream medical system. It sincerely brings me joy when they turn the corner and start to feel better.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My biggest accomplishment as a business owner has been learning to let go of the things I can't control and trust in my own abilities. Keeping a business alive during a pandemic is not something I would have willingly signed up for. But I'm still here! There have been some dark days filled with exhaustion, frustration, and anxiety about what's coming next and how to navigate uncharted territory. Everyone is looking to you to guide the ship. You're putting on a confident face while you kind of fly by the seat of your pants, making the most logical decisions as challenges come up and hoping your math and reasoning are sound. There's been lots of deep breathing, lol.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The hardest thing about being a business owner is people management. On a given day, I juggle the personalities and expectations of all of my practitioners, my admin team, my office manager, and our patients.
Here's an example situation from years ago. We had a new chiropractor starting at the clinic soon, but he hadn't actually started yet, so nobody had met him except me. A new RMT had said to another RMT that she had worked with a chiropractor before, and he was always loud and it disrupted her treatments. So the other RMT came to me with a noise complaint about the chiropractor and wanted me to change my mind about hiring him, just in case he's loud. And she was serious!
So, in my mind, I'm thinking, "the poor guy hasn't even started yet, and you're complaining about how loud he's going to be!" I don't remember exactly what I said, but I was able to get her to see how silly she was being. He started a few weeks later, he's been here for six years, and we've never had a noise complaint.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Set realistic expectations, goals, and timelines, with systems in place to achieve them. It's a marathon, not a sprint.
- There will be more failures and mistakes than you think. Be prepared to pick yourself back up again and again.
- When something isn't working, don't try to force it, especially when it comes to people.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
I also have a family, a husband, a seven-year-old, and two Australian shepherds. Don't let your personal life take a back seat to run your business. It's not sustainable, and you'll burn out. I have scheduled time dedicated to my business, and I work very hard in those windows. I also have time for my family when they have my full attention. I rarely let those boundaries cross over.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.remedywellness.ca/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/remedywellnesscentre/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RemedyWellness1
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.
