Brittany Heyden’s Stories, Lessons & Insights

We recently had the chance to connect with Brittany Heyden and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Brittany, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
A recent moment that made me both laugh and feel incredibly proud was the release of EmpowerHER, the book I contributed to. When it first launched, I was honestly giddy like a little girl – I didn’t realize just how much I wanted to become a published author until that moment. And then to see it become an international best seller has been surreal. It’s one of those milestones that reminded me dreams don’t have an expiration date, and the joy of achieving them can be even sweeter than you imagined.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Brittany Heyden, a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner and Functional Medicine Strategist, known to many as The Vitality Queen. I help high-performing women who are exhausted from being dismissed or told “everything looks normal” finally get answers and reclaim the vibrant health they know is possible.
What sets my work apart is that I don’t just optimize labs, I help women feel deeply seen, heard, and validated. My unique blend of clinical precision and soul-rooted healing is at the core of my Vital Clarity Experience and Be Exquisitely You philosophy. It’s not about chasing perfection, it’s about coming home to the truth of who you are and aligning your health from the inside out.
Right now, I’m expanding this mission through speaking, writing, and thought leadership, including my recent role as a contributor to the international best-seller EmpowerHER. At the heart of everything I do is this belief: women are not broken, they’re becoming. And when they embrace that truth, they unlock a deeper level of power, presence, and vitality than they ever thought possible.

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
As a child, I didn’t have the words for it, but I felt like I wasn’t enough. I was shy, quiet, and even though I knew I was loved, I didn’t feel truly safe, seen, or chosen. When my father left, and later when other significant relationships ended, I internalized those experiences as proof that something in me needed fixing. I tried to become who I thought others wanted me to be. I chased perfection. I believed that if I could just do everything right, maybe I’d finally feel accepted.
It took years and a lot of inner work to realize that I was never broken. What I understand now is that those beliefs were never the truth. They were protection. That feeling of not being enough was a way to shield myself from more pain and loss. But it also kept me disconnected from my true self.
Today, I know this: I have always been worthy. The love and validation I spent so long seeking from others was something I needed to give to myself. And the people who hurt me? They were acting from their own wounds, their own patterns. That doesn’t excuse the pain, but it helps me release the weight of it.
Now, I show up for that younger version of me with deep compassion. She did her best to protect me. And I honor her by living as the woman I am now, whole, grounded, loving, and fully aligned with my worth.
I share more of this journey in my chapter of the international best-seller EmpowerHER, because I believe that when we speak the truths we once buried, we give other women permission to reclaim their own.

If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
Brittany Amber, you are perfect just as you are. You are sweet, caring, brilliant, kind, and so beautifully radiant, inside and out.
You’ve fought so hard to keep me safe, to protect me from pain, to make sure I always felt loved. And I see that now. I honor the way you showed up, even when it was hard.
But you don’t have to carry that anymore. You don’t have to protect me.
I’ve got this. I’ve got us.
You are safe with me now. I will never leave you. I love you deeply, and I will protect you, always. We are safe now..

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
I’m committed to transforming the way we care for people, especially women, in healthcare, no matter how long it takes.
After spending over 20 years in the traditional medical system, I realized something painful: we weren’t helping people thrive. We were trained to treat symptoms, not root causes. To prescribe quick fixes, not true healing. And when I got sick myself, I saw the gaps firsthand. I had to navigate my own health journey alone. That experience led me to functional medicine and I immediately knew I had found the path I was meant to walk.
Starting my own business in rural Nebraska hasn’t been easy, but I believe that making alternative and functional care accessible, especially in communities where options are limited, is one of the greatest contributions I can make.
This work goes beyond medicine. I’m here to offer real hope, deep encouragement, and meaningful support to those who feel unseen or misunderstood. That’s the mission I’m committed to, for as long as it takes.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you understand deeply that most people don’t?
What I understand deeply and what many people miss, is that healing doesn’t start with a diagnosis. It starts with awareness.
Yes, I understand the physical body: how inflammation, hormone imbalances, gut issues, and chronic stress lead to illness. But true healing goes deeper. The root causes often live beneath the surface in our beliefs, our patterns, our suppressed emotions, and our subconscious thoughts. These internal stories run in the background, quietly shaping how we feel, think, and live. And most people have no idea they’re there.
When illness sets in, it’s easy to cling to the diagnosis, to make it part of your identity. But that can actually block the healing process. To truly get well, we have to address the full picture: not just what’s happening in the body, but also what’s happening in the mind, heart, and spirit.
That’s the work I do. It’s not just about removing symptoms, it’s about guiding people back to who they really are beneath all the noise.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brittanyheyden.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brittany.heyden/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittany-heyden/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/1brittanyheyden

Image Credits
cb Yates Photo