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    Born Black Sheep. Built for Black Sheep.

    We Had Everything.
    So We Left It All Behind.

    Thyroid · Hormones · Testosterone · Gut · Fatigue · Brain Fog · Anxiety · Root Cause Healing · Integrative Medicine

    We've been the black sheep our entire lives — questioning everything, trusting nothing that didn't make sense. We moved our family to Italy because our values demanded something bolder.

    18Years Together
    14Years as Doctors
    10Years Married
    4Years as Parents

    As Seen In

    Amazon Prime VideoDr. John DemartiniIntegrative You PodcastYouTube
    Our Journey

    18 Years of Becoming

    2008

    Two Broke Students Meet

    Couldn't afford gas money. Shared a dream of changing healthcare. Started dating over anatomy textbooks.

    2012

    Doctors — But Disillusioned

    Graduated, opened a practice, and immediately realized the system was designed to keep people sick, not make them well.

    2015

    The Rebellion Begins

    Left insurance-based medicine. Built a cash practice on root-cause principles. Lost friends. Gained clarity.

    2016

    Married in the Middle of Chaos

    Got married while building the business. The vows were easy — the balance sheet was not.

    2020

    2,500+ Families & a Pandemic

    COVID proved everything we'd been saying. Families with strong foundations thrived. The rest scrambled.

    2022

    Became Parents × 2

    Two kids changed everything. We stopped building for patients and started building for our children's future.

    2023

    Packed Up. Moved to Italy.

    Sold the house, closed the office, and we homeschooled in Italy. Everyone thought we were crazy. We'd never been more aligned.

    2024

    Integrative You Goes Global

    Documentary on Amazon. 300+ podcast episodes. AI-powered health platform. The black sheep built a flock.

    The Original Black Sheep

    We're Nick & Nicole—
    and we've never fit in.

    Doctors for 14 years. Married for 10. Together for 18. Parents for 4. Black sheep since birth.

    We were the ones asking "why?" when everyone else was nodding along. The ones who looked at the healthcare system — the one we spent years training in — and said: "This doesn't make sense. Too many people are sick, and the system that's supposed to help them is making it worse."

    We had "made it"... and we couldn't trust a single system that got us there.

    So we did what black sheep do. We burned the playbook, packed up our kids, our dogs, our dreams — and moved to Italy. Not for vacation. For alignment.

    Nick and Nicole - Real life in Italy
    Now Living in Italy

    Why We Made the Bold Move

    Nothing about the world made sense to us. The food system is broken. The healthcare system treats symptoms, not people. The education system teaches compliance, not thinking. We looked at our kids and thought: "We refuse to raise our family inside a system we don't trust."

    We've always been the ones who question everything — and that's exactly what made us great doctors. But we realized we couldn't just treat patients one at a time. We needed to build something bigger.

    So we built Integrative You — not just a health platform, but a movement for every family who's ever felt like the odd one out for wanting something better. A home for the black sheep.

    NickNicole

    Dr. Nick & Dr. Nicole
    Co-Founders, Integrative You

    The Stuff We Don't Post

    Before the Breakthrough,
    There Was the Breaking.

    "We almost went bankrupt — twice. There were months we couldn't make payroll. Nicole cried in the car after work more times than either of us want to admit. We didn't have a safety net. We had student loans, a startup, and two people too stubborn to quit."

    That season taught us that grit without alignment is just suffering with extra steps.

    "Our marriage almost didn't survive the business. We were so focused on saving other families that we forgot to save our own. We fought about money, about priorities, about whether any of this was even worth it. There was a night Nicole said: "I don't know if I can do this anymore.""

    That conversation — the hardest one we've ever had — is the reason we now teach couples how to have the conversations that matter before it's too late.

    "We've had patients we couldn't help. People who trusted us and we still didn't have the answers. That haunts you. It's supposed to. Every framework we've built exists because someone once sat across from us and we weren't enough — and we refused to let that happen again."

    Failure isn't the opposite of expertise. It's the price of it.

    We share this because you deserve to know who you're trusting with your family's health. Not a highlight reel. The real thing.

    Why Black Sheep?

    Because the World Is Broken
    And We Stopped Pretending Otherwise.

    We Questioned Everything

    While everyone was following the standard playbook, we were asking why 60% of adults have a chronic disease in the richest country on earth.

    We Walked Away

    From a thriving practice, a comfortable life, and a system that rewarded compliance over curiosity. Because comfort isn't the same as alignment.

    We Built for the Flock

    Every family who's ever Googled their symptoms at 2am, who's been dismissed by their doctor, who knows something is off — this is for you.

    Real Families, Real Words

    They Trusted the Black Sheep.

    "I spent 7 years and $40,000+ bouncing between specialists. Nicole found the root cause in my first assessment. I sobbed — not from sadness, but because someone finally listened."

    Jennifer L.

    FoundationRoot cause identified in 30 days

    "Our whole family did the program together. My daughter's anxiety dropped, my husband stopped snoring, and I finally have energy past 2pm. We're not the same family we were 6 months ago."

    Amanda K.

    DNA + Family Plan4 family members transformed

    "I'm a physician myself. I was skeptical. But the depth of their analysis put my own training to shame. I've since referred 12 of my own patients."

    Dr. Robert T.

    Clinical TierNow an affiliate partner
    Credentials & Recognition

    Doctorate of Chiropractic

    Life University

    Integrative Medicine

    Certified

    Klinghardt Academy

    Certified

    Scaling Up Coach

    Certified Business Coach

    Metronomics Framework

    Business Trained

    Amazon Documentary

    Lead Producers — "Breakthrough"

    300+ Podcast Episodes

    Integrative You Podcast

    2,500+ Families

    Transformed Worldwide

    As Seen In

    Featured in "Breakthrough"

    An Amazon documentary exploring human potential and transformation

    Available on Amazon

    Breakthrough

    Dr. Nick and Dr. Nicole are the Lead Producers of this powerful documentary, alongside Dr. John Demartini, world-renowned human behavior specialist.

    Dr. Nick serves as the film's narrator, while Dr. Nicole conducted the interviews—together weaving integrative medicine with breakthrough principles of human behavior and personal development.

    Watch on Amazon

    Lead Producers

    Dr. Nick & Dr. Nicole brought this vision to life

    Dr. Nick as Narrator

    Guiding audiences through the entire documentary journey

    Dr. Nicole as Interviewer

    Drawing out powerful transformation stories

    Meet Your Guides

    Two Original Black Sheep,
    Building for the Flock

    Dr. Nicole Rivera

    Dr. Nicole

    The Truth-Seeker. The Data Junkie. The Mom Who Won't Settle.

    I'm the friend who "gives too much advice"—because I genuinely can't help it. I've always been the black sheep in every room — the one who won't accept "that's just how it is" as an answer, the one digging deeper when everyone else has moved on.

    I've spent years asking the questions most doctors never think to ask. Not because I'm smarter — but because I refuse to participate in a system that keeps people sick.

    "Everyone's potential is always bigger than they think. Everyone needs people in their corner who see that in them."

    Dr. Nick Carruthers

    Dr. Nick

    The Inventor. The Pattern-Breaker. The Dad Who Questions Everything.

    I'm part inventor, part disruptor — the kid who took apart every device in the house just to understand how it worked. That never stopped. I've spent my life questioning systems that don't make sense and building tools that actually help families break free.

    The healthcare system told me to follow the protocol. The business world told me to follow the money. I followed neither. Becoming a dad made it crystal clear: I'm not building for metrics — I'm building for the black sheep families who deserve better.

    "I'm not interested in cookie-cutter advice. I'm passionate about showing families what's possible when they combine science, soul, and a willingness to question everything."

    Own a Business? We Built Something for You Too.

    Black Sheep Business is our program for entrepreneurs and practice owners who refuse to run their business like everyone else. Same rebel DNA, applied to strategy, team, and cash flow.

    300+ Episodes

    The Integrative You Podcast

    Every week we go deep on root-cause health, family alignment, and the unfiltered reality of building something that matters. No scripts. No sponsors. Just truth.

    Root-Cause Deep Dives

    The science behind why you feel the way you feel

    Family & Couples

    Real conversations about alignment, conflict, and values

    Behind the Business

    What it actually takes to build against the grain

    Built for Black Sheep

    What You'll Find Here

    Proven frameworks for family health

    Step-by-step systems that fit real, busy lives

    Practical rituals & daily habits

    Make lasting change—without adding to your overwhelm

    Honest, science-backed guidance

    Cut through the noise and get to what really works

    Tools for connection & legacy

    Build deep bonds and a future your kids will thank you for

    Real stories, real support

    Learn from people who've walked the same path

    A community of fellow black sheep

    Connect with families who refuse to follow the flock

    The Black Sheep Collective

    This isn't a newsletter. It's a movement.

    Every week, our founders share the raw, unfiltered story of building a health practice that challenges everything conventional medicine got wrong — from broke students to transforming 2,500+ families worldwide.

    You'll get the soap opera, the science, and the strategies we use to help families reclaim their health. Plus early access to new programs, behind-the-scenes stories, and a community of Black Sheep who refuse to follow the flock.

    🎙️

    The Founders' Story

    Raw soap opera — how two broke students built this

    🔬

    Weekly Health Intel

    Root-cause insights your doctor won't tell you

    🐑

    Black Sheep Access

    Early drops, community events & exclusive offers

    Join 5,000+ Black Sheep. Weekly stories. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

    The practice, in plain language

    Doctor-led, root-cause integrative medicine — and what that actually buys you

    What integrative medicine actually means at Integrative You

    Integrative medicine, practiced properly, is not conventional care with a supplement bolted on. It is a root-cause investigation: we map the biochemistry, the genetics, the toxic burden, and the nervous-system and emotional patterns that keep a body stuck — then build one protocol that addresses all of them in a deliberate order.

    In practice that means 200+ biomarkers rather than a six-marker screen, DNA and epigenetic analysis rather than population averages, environmental assessment for mold and heavy metals, and a 90-day implementation plan with named products, doses, and a way to measure whether it worked. Dr. Nicole Rivera and Dr. Nick Carruthers have run this model for 15+ years across thousands of complex cases.

    Who we take care of

    Our patients are usually the people conventional medicine ran out of answers for: normal bloodwork with abnormal life, chronic fatigue and brain fog, autoimmune disease that keeps escalating, hormone problems that do not respond to hormones, mold and biotoxin illness, chronic Lyme and co-infections, heavy metal burden, gut dysfunction, and unexplained infertility.

    We also work with whole families. Environmental exposure, genetics, and household patterns do not respect individual charts, so parents, spouses, and children are assessed as a system when it is relevant — one of the reasons our family plans exist.

    The clinical lineages behind our protocols

    We do not invent frameworks. Dr. Nick trained in Autonomic Response Testing and the Klinghardt model, which governs how we sequence drainage before detox and why we assess the nervous system before adding load. Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker's CIRS biomarker work provides the objective scoreboard we use in biotoxin cases — C4a, TGF-β1, MMP-9, MSH, VEGF, VIP — because it is the only reproducible way to tell whether a mold protocol is working.

    Layered on top is functional endocrinology, epigenetic and nutrigenomic interpretation, and the psychosomatic work that decides whether a person can actually implement a protocol. Naming the lineages matters: it tells you exactly what we are accountable to, and where our clinical opinions diverge from the source.

    How we are different from a functional medicine clinic

    Most functional medicine visits end with a lab order and a supplement list. Ours end with a written, personalized report: the root-cause story from childhood to now, the mechanisms in plain language, a 90-day protocol with exact brands and doses, at-home therapies, and the tracking that shows movement. Members get the implementation support, not just the diagnosis.

    We are remote-first by design — families in the US, Italy, and beyond work with the same two doctors — with optional in-person work for Private Concierge members. There is no insurance billing, no ten-minute appointment, and no protocol you have to reverse-engineer alone.

    Questions people ask before they book

    Are Dr. Nicole Rivera and Dr. Nick Carruthers real doctors?
    Yes. Both are licensed clinicians with 15+ years of practice in integrative and functional medicine. Dr. Nicole Rivera focuses on functional endocrinology, chronic illness, and epigenetics; Dr. Nick Carruthers focuses on Autonomic Response Testing, the Klinghardt model, biotoxin illness, and nervous-system work. Every report we deliver is reviewed by a clinician before it is released.
    Do you work with patients outside New Jersey?
    Yes. Integrative You is remote-first and works with individuals and families across the United States, Europe, and beyond. Testing kits ship to you, consultations run by video, and protocols are built for wherever you actually live. Private Concierge members can add in-person work in the US or Tuscany.
    What conditions do you specialize in?
    Mold illness and CIRS, chronic Lyme and co-infections, heavy metal toxicity, autoimmune disease including Hashimoto's, hormone dysregulation and estrogen dominance, gut dysfunction, chronic fatigue and brain fog, HPA-axis dysfunction, and unexplained infertility — with a particular focus on cases where standard bloodwork reads normal.
    How much does working with Integrative You cost?
    Entry is a $47 Health Decode — a personalized root-cause report with no membership required. Foundation membership adds full biomarker testing and a 90-day implementation protocol. DNA Precision adds genetic and epigenetic analysis. Private Concierge is our 1:1 flagship for complex, multi-system cases. Current pricing for each tier is listed on its own page.
    Do you take insurance?
    No. We are a direct-pay practice. Insurance reimbursement models are built around coded visits and drugs, not around the time, testing depth, and implementation support root-cause work requires. Many members use HSA or FSA funds, and we provide itemized documentation on request.
    Do I have to stop seeing my current doctor?
    No, and we would rather you did not. We complement conventional care by investigating what a short appointment cannot: environmental exposure, detox genetics, hormone-immune interaction, and the psychosomatic patterns underneath a stalled recovery. Prescription decisions stay with your prescribing physician.

    Questions We Get Asked a Lot

    Do you see patients in person?
    We work with families worldwide through our virtual platform. Our programs are designed to deliver the same depth and personalization as in-person care — often more, because we analyze 75+ dimensions of your health that most practitioners never touch.
    Where are you based?
    We currently live in Italy with our two kids. Our practice and team operate globally. We moved because we believe in practicing what we preach — designing a life around alignment, not convenience.
    Is this covered by insurance?
    Our programs are not insurance-based by design. The insurance model limits what practitioners can test, recommend, and spend time on. We removed that ceiling so we can deliver what your family actually needs — not what a billing code allows.
    What if I'm skeptical about functional / integrative medicine?
    Good — you should be. We were too. That skepticism is exactly what drove us to build evidence-based frameworks instead of following trends. Start with our free resources or the $47 Health Decode to see the depth for yourself before committing further.
    Do you work with kids and teenagers?
    Absolutely. We have dedicated DNA Teen assessments and family plans specifically designed for younger members. Many of our most powerful transformations come from families who started with their children.

    You've Always Been the Black Sheep.

    Now there's a place for you. A system built by outsiders, for outsiders — rooted in science, driven by rebellion, and designed for the families who refuse to settle. Welcome to the flock.

    Not ready for the deep dive? Start here:

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