We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Heather Sunderland a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Heather, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Finding My Purpose Through Healing
By Heather Sunderland
I never planned to be doing what I am doing now. My purpose found me through my own journey with debilitating symptoms of fatigue, neuropathy, difficulty walking and standing, ligament laxity, and more. By the time I turned 30, I was already experiencing daily aches and pains along with constant fatigue. The pain was always moving, unpredictable. I was eventually diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, but the labels kept coming as my symptoms worsened over the years.
At 35, I had to stop working as a dietitian because the pain and fatigue became too intense. I developed severe daily neuropathy and interstitial cystitis, and spent the next 10 years homebound.
Despite all the diagnoses, no one could explain why my body felt like it was falling apart. The list of symptoms and diagnoses grew over time, and I struggled to participate in life the way I had hoped.
What I didn’t know at the time was that I was battling something far deeper: mold toxicity, chronic Lyme disease, and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), a complex, multi-system illness triggered by biotoxin exposure. Like so many, I was told my labs were “normal.” Medications were offered for symptoms, but never addressed the root cause. I felt unseen, unheard, and utterly depleted.
Then, I was blessed to meet two health coaches who were restoring their health from the same illness. I began incorporating the principles they taught me, and I started to see shifts right away. I learned that healing wasn’t just about eradicating pathogens or detoxing mold; it was about restoring balance, opening detox pathways, supporting the nervous system, rebuilding trust with my body, and shifting the internal terrain that allowed illness to take hold in the first place.
As my health began to return, so did my clarity, and with it, a realization that changed everything: this journey wasn’t just about me. Everything I had learned, all the suffering I had endured, was preparing me to guide others through the same maze I had once wandered.
That realization became my purpose: to help individuals reclaim their health and educate others about mold toxicity, Lyme disease, and CIRS.
I saw how many people were living in survival mode, reacting to every supplement, overwhelmed by protocols that were too aggressive for their fragile systems. I knew there had to be a better way, one that honored the body’s timing and capacity for healing. That’s when my approach began to take shape: a gentle, powerful, and sustainable path that supports the whole person, body, mind, and spirit.
Today, through my work with Health Coaching by Heather, I walk alongside clients as they navigate the complexities of mold toxicity, Lyme disease, and other chronic illnesses. I also educate practitioners through my course, Navigating Mold & CIRS: Expert Insights for Practitioners, helping them recognize these often-overlooked conditions in their own clients.
Each time I witness someone move from despair to hope, or a practitioner finally connect the dots for a client they’ve struggled to help, I’m reminded why I do this work. My purpose is to transform the challenges I once faced into a pathway of healing, education, and empowerment for others.
Finding my purpose didn’t happen in a single moment; it unfolded slowly, as I learned to listen to my body, to God, and to the quiet call on my heart. I’ve come to see that purpose often grows out of pain. What once broke me became the foundation for something meaningful and beautiful, something that helps others find their way back to health and wholeness.
If my story teaches anything, it’s that healing is possible and sometimes, the very thing that tests us most deeply is what leads us to our life’s calling.
Heather Sunderland is a functional health coach who helps individuals reclaim their health after complex chronic illness. Having walked her own healing journey through mold toxicity, Lyme disease, and CIRS, she now empowers others to find hope, restoration, and balance in their own lives.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Heather Sunderland is a board-certified functional health coach and owner of Health Coaching by Heather, LLC, and co-owner of Navigating Mold and CIRS, LLC. She had a personal journey of recovering from 28 years of illness due to undiagnosed Lyme disease and mold toxicity. She specializes in regenerative nutrition, detoxification, Lyme Disease, Mold Toxicity, and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. Her mission is to give people hope that they can restore their health and to help motivated individuals reclaim their health from complex chronic conditions by addressing the underlying root issues and removing interferences to healing.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
When I look back, there are three qualities and areas of growth that had the greatest impact on both my healing and the purpose that followed.
1. Curiosity and a willingness to learn
When you’re chronically ill, it’s easy to hand your power over to others because you’re desperate for answers. But becoming curious, asking why, reading, researching, and connecting dots changed everything for me. I learned that no one knows my body better than I do.
For those early in the journey: cultivate curiosity instead of fear. Learn about your body, question assumptions, and explore new perspectives with an open but discerning mind. Knowledge truly is empowering when it’s rooted in self-awareness and not anxiety.
2. Patience and trust in the process
Healing isn’t linear. I wanted quick fixes, but I had to learn that deep restoration takes time, both physically and emotionally, as well as spiritually. The body heals in layers, and sometimes what feels like a setback is actually a sign that deeper work is happening.
For others: slow down. Celebrate small wins and remember that your body isn’t your enemy, it’s doing its best to protect and heal you. Trust that consistency and gentleness go further than intensity and impatience.
3. Faith and inner resilience
My faith reminded me that God can bring beauty from brokenness, that there’s purpose even in pain. Over time, that trust became my anchor, shaping how I now walk with others through their healing.
My advice: nurture your spiritual life as intentionally as your physical one. Whether through prayer, journaling, time in nature, or community, stay connected to something greater than yourself. Healing the body without healing the spirit leaves the journey incomplete.
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
It’s impossible to look back on my journey without deep gratitude for the people who poured into my life when I needed it most.
First and foremost, God was and continues to be my greatest source of strength and wisdom. When I had no answers and no energy left to keep searching, I felt His quiet guidance leading me to the right people and the next step. Learning to listen to that still, small voice changed everything.
I’m also profoundly grateful for the two health coaches who walked this path ahead of me and shared The Regenerative Approach to nutrition and detoxification with me. Their willingness to teach, encourage, and remind me that healing was possible reignited my hope. They gave me practical tools and helped me understand that the body has an incredible ability to heal when given the right support.
Finally, I’ve been deeply influenced by my clients and fellow practitioners. Every person I’ve worked with has taught me something about courage, persistence, and grace. Their stories have refined my understanding, expanded my compassion, and reminded me why this work matters so deeply.
Healing and purpose aren’t things we achieve alone. They’re shaped through connection, faith, and community through the people who show up, believe in us, and remind us of what’s possible when we don’t give up.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://healthcoachingbyheather.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathersunderland842/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heather.s.sunderland
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-sunderland-3a35212b1/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathersunderland690
Image Credits
Danielle Flowers
Heather Sunderland
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
