Flourish Clinic Cochrane, Alberta
At Flourish Clinic our focus is to help you regain your health so that you have the energy to share your gifts and passions with the world.
When we’re healthy, we have the energy to pursue our passions.
When we’re sick, we’re tired. All we can think about is getting better.
The practitioners of Flourish Clinic: Eve Paraschuk, Jane Prescot, Mark Volmer, Sheena Huculak and Steph Perryman use a wide variety of modalities.
These include:
Eve Paraschuk, MSW, RSW
- Counselling for adults, adolescents, children
- Currently enrolled in the Shoemaker Proficiency Partners course for CIRS
Jane Prescot, FMCHC
- Shoemaker Certified Proficiency Partner Diplomate (CIRS)
- Functional Medicine Health Coach
Mark Volmer, R.Ac, FMP
- Certified Shoemaker Protocol practitioner (CIRS)
Sheena Huculak, BN, CHNC
- Holistic Nutrition
- Nutritionist and Health Coach
- Coaching
Steph Perryman, RMT
- Massage
Erin Munro Clark, BCmm
- Patient Manager
Zen & Charlie, clinic dogs
Our Practitioners at Flourish Clinic
Eve Paraschuk, MSW, RSW
A Cochrane therapist, Eve has years of experience working in the mental health field. She began her career as a Registered Nurse working in hospice, inpatient psychiatry, rehab (trauma and addictions) and primary care. During this time she provided counselling as well as private client support.
Eve’s Cochrane counselling practice uses a holistic approach to care. She knows what it’s like to feel unsafe in your own body and is able to use her experiences to help her patients. Eve is able to work with patients of all ages.
She brings kindness, empathy, presence and humour to her work.
To better support her CIRS patients, Eve has enrolled in the Shoemaker Proficiency Partner Diplomate course to become a Certified Shoemaker Protocol practitioner.
Jane Prescot, FMCHC
Since her diagnosis with CIRS, Jane feels that she has been preparing to work with the team at Flourish.
While working as a Registered Nurse, Jane started experiencing a series of bizarre symptoms – symptoms that are all too familiar to those suffering from CIRS.
Eventually she realized she always felt better after leaving her office. Jane finally connected her symptoms to her environment and finally realized it was mold exposure that was making her sick.
Fortunately, when Jane ran a google search she came upon the Surviving Mold website, where she was able to learn about the Shoemaker Protocol, the only scientifically proven, peer-reviewed method of treating CIRS. She passed this information on to her family doctor, who believed her and started her on cholestyramene, a binder which stabilized her symptoms. Her doctor also recognized that he was not able to help her further and referred her to a local Functional Medicine practitioner.
CIRS Testing
Unfortunately, Jane did not realize that there is testing specific for the Shoemaker Protocol, and ended up paying for a number of unnecessary tests. This quickly depleted Jane’s funds.
When she was able to return to work, she asked her long time employer to run the CIRS specific ERMI and HERTSMi testing to ensure her office environment would be unlikely to cause a relapse of her CIRS symptoms. Instead, they fired her. Jane took her fight to the Workers’ Compensation Board and the Alberta Human Rights Commission. You can read about it here:
Prescot v Alberta Health Services, 2023 AHRC 30 (CanLII)
She shared her experience at the 2022 annual CIRSX Conference. You can watch her presentation (#17) here:
Fighting Back – A Canadian Story with Jane Prescot
As a result, Jane was forced back into the workplace, and it wasn’t long until she was experiencing a recurrence of her CIRS symptoms. She also had to limit all outings, never knowing if the environment she was entering would be contaminated.
It wasn’t until two years later, when she found a building to work in that did not trigger her symptoms, that she was finally able to fully recover her health.
Joining the Flourish Clinic CIRS Team
Motivated by the desire to become the support she wished that she had had when she went through her health journey with CIRS, Jane became certified as a Functional Medicine Health Coach, and then Shoemaker certified as a Proficiency Partner Diplomate. Now Jane works with individuals with Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome and other environmentally-related illnesses.
She strictly follows the Shoemaker Protocol, as she has had first hand experience of how successful it is at treating this complex and confusing illness.
Recovering from environmentally-related illness doesn’t just mean getting your health back; it means getting your life back. No one knows this better than Jane. She is thrilled to join the Flourish team so she can help guide others as they too regain their lives.
Jane lives in Calgary, Alberta with her husband. She loves growing her own food and taking long walks.
Mark Volmer, R.Ac., FMP
Meet Mark: the mitochondria mechanic
While I had always had a keen interest in chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, my path to specializing in CIRS started on a very personal note. Two family members were dealing with complex, multi-system illnesses for years. One had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease; the other was having severe neurological complications following a stroke. Neither were having any benefit from conventional treatment and their symptoms continued to worsen.
I had just started my CIRS training with Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker and Dr. Andrew Heyman. That same month, CIRS laboratory testing became available in Canada for the first time. I recommended both family members run the new CIRS blood test… Four weeks later, I had my first CIRS patients.
I knew in that moment that my life trajectory would move in an entirely new direction. Treating CIRS was how I was going to spend the next chapter of my life. I shifted my practice to focus solely treating CIRS and assembled a team that could support the most complex CIRS cases.
Years later, my father was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. As you can probably guess, he too had CIRS. With a deep personal drive, I have dedicated my career to learning everything I can about this illness. I’ve seen firsthand how CIRS can derail lives, mimicking conditions like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue syndrome.
At Flourish Clinic, we use a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to diagnose and treat CIRS, helping patients pinpoint the exact factors behind their fatigue. CIRS is not well-known, even in the medical community, and it often goes undiagnosed. But the impact it has on your energy, mental clarity, and overall health is profound.
My focus is to get to the root of your fatigue. I’m passionate about helping people who feel like they’ve tried everything yet still feel exhausted, frustrated, and unheard. At Flourish Clinic we use a personalized approach designed to help you restore your vitality and get back to doing what you love—without being held back by fatigue.
Chronic fatigue is complex, but your path to recovery doesn’t have to be overwhelming. If you’ve been struggling with unexplained exhaustion, there’s a good chance we can uncover the hidden cause, just like I did for my family.
Sheena Huculak, BN, CHNC
Hi! I’m Sheena Huculak
As a Holistic Nutritionist and a Bulletproof Coach™ at Flourish Clinic, I am committed to helping our patients:
- Learn to nourish their body in a healthy and sustainable way;
- Make powerful lifestyle shifts ;
- Achieve their personal health goals.
I graduated from the U of C Nursing program in 2004 and worked as a Registered Nurse for more than 10 years.
However, it wasn’t long after I began nursing that I started to realize there was a huge missing component in conventional medicine. This led me to question what role diet and lifestyle play in the disease process. To find out I began studying with the Canadian Society of Natural Nutrition and graduated as a Certified Holistic Nutritionist in 2006.
My passion for health and wellness has grown and evolved immensely over the past decade and I have continued to learn and grow in the thick of my own health journey as I navigate autoimmune diseases.
I am a mother of two, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend and a health coach! I love natural health and strongly believe that that body can self heal. You can find me eating chocolate, watching movies with my family, walking my dogs or diving deeper into health books and podcasts!
In short I am a big health nerd. I love learning and I can’t imagine doing anything other than helping people learn about food and nourishment, and health and wellness to feel their best in their body!
My Health Journey
Shortly after my daughter was born in 2012 I was diagnosed with a number of hormone-related issues as well as Celiac disease. All were closely linked to stress. I was trying to do so much and be so much it was exhausting and prompted disease. I had to make some obvious changes, including eliminating gluten and starting on prescription medication for my thyroid. This was around the time I was introduced to Bulletproof Coffee.
I was still working as a nurse and for any nurses out there, you know how much we love and rely on our coffee! Bulletproof Coffee was an absolute game changer for me. I increased my fat intake significantly (growing up in the 80’s instilled a fat phobia in me for sure), I cut out grains, dairy, sugar and literally came to life again with abundant energy and an excitement about the future.
In 2015 I had a calling, (well actually it was an email) to go to California to train as a Bulletproof Coach. That weekend completely changed the trajectory of my life. I learned to connect with others through the heart instead of the head. Learning to listen from that space shifted my whole world.
Instead of being a problem solver (or know it all) I learned how to be truly present with another. It changed my relationship with my family and with myself, it manifested new friendships and partnerships in business and life.
Then mold struck.
We had been living on our acreage for a few years already when we experienced a massive summer storm in 2019. Heavy rain breached our front door, drenching the whole front entrance into our kitchen as well as down into the basement and (though we didn’t know it at the time) into our cold room below. As you do, we dried it all up best we could, aired it out for a while then thought nothing more of it.
However, I started to feel increasingly awful and didn’t know why. My symptoms included:
- Constant fatigue and irritability;
- Brain fog,
- Trouble concentrating,
- Weight gain for no reason,
- Forgetting simple day to day things, like words for common objects or even the names of my kids!
I felt constantly inflamed and felt so uncomfortable in my own body. My marriage was suffering and I pulled away from friendships and opportunities unsure where I would get the energy from. I was not showing up anywhere as my best self and – needless to say – I was depressed, miserable and needed help!
Assuming I must be starting perimenopause, I blamed the obvious culprits, my hormones! I went to see Mark in May 2021 to test my hormones and help me figure out what was going on
Much to my surprise my hormones were in great shape!
Nowhere close to perimenopause yet. However, he realized I was experiencing all the weird myriad of symptoms of CIRS which traced back to the flooding of our home in 2019. After testing came back it was confirmed: I am one of about 25% of people who have a genetic susceptibility to mold illness and was suffering from CIRS.
It has been more than a year since my diagnosis and I am feeling much better! I have seen and felt shifts in my mental health, cognitive functioning and I am not so sensitive to, well everything anymore. Some days I even forget that I’m sick, which is pretty awesome! I know I still have some work to do but most days I feel pretty amazing.
I am incredibly excited about my role at Flourish Clinic helping other CIRS patients and look forward to supporting you through this often confusing and lonely journey.
Check out my Instagram page where I offer inspiration and ideas for your healing journey.
Stephanie Perryman, RMT
Hi, I’m Steph.
I’m a registered massage therapist at Flourish Clinic. Before massage therapy, I spent years working in the hospitality industry. I started as a teenage take-out employee at Swiss Chalet. Over the years I worked my way up in the industry moving from take-out, to server, to bartender, to shift leader and eventually restaurant manager at Chili’s in the Calgary International Airport. Then, in 2017, I met my husband, Tyler.
We had a whirlwind romance and got married the next year in 2018. We welcomed our first child, Brixton, in 2021. Tyler is a framer, carpenter, and construction worker; he basically builds houses. However, with his high risk job comes TONS of injuries, chronic pain, and fatigue. This includes frequent headaches, hip and low back pain from his toolbelt, frozen shoulder from firing a nail gun all day, and overall body stress from working.
Then, one day in July of 2017 Tyler fell from the roof of a house to the basement, about 27 feet. He was left with chronic back pain including compressed discs.
Wanting to help alleviate his pain, I started giving him massages him 2-3 times a week. However, as I didn’t have any training, I felt insecure and incapable.
So I decided to become a massage therapist!
I was welcomed in Vicars School of Massage Therapy in 2020.
Due to his chronic back pain Tyler was an ideal case study for both years I was in school. The first year was focused on relaxation. Even though I was only doing basic, simple massage techniques with Tyler I noticed an increase in his energy, he slept better, his appetite grew, he was getting more done at work and so much more!
Then I entered year two. I started doing more complex techniques with Tyler such as joint play, active inhibition techniques, performing active and passive strengthening and stretches on the table, and giving more specific home care.
Not only did Tyler improve, but he greatly improved! His posture was better, the numbness and tingling down his arms went away, his sleep was more restful, and his overall muscle tone improved – in fact all the muscle imbalances he previously had in his body were getting better.
He was also able to get a house built in a few days rather than a week, he was more attentive with our little one, and he was so much happier.
How my journey will help you
After seeing all these changes in Tyler during my two years at Vicars, I knew from the bottom of my heart I could help others with their chronic pain, headaches, injuries (from work or from sports), and stress management. I see how acute and chronic pain can affect every area of your life and know that massage can make a difference!
During a treatment with me, I will ask you about:
-
your day-to-day life,
-
any pain you may be feeling presently or chronically,
-
limitations in how your body moves,
-
your last massage,
-
your expectations for this treatment
I will listen, not only with my ears but with my heart. I will provide a safe space for you to share what you need to say and truly listen to you. This interview is a crucial part of the treatment as it gives me a snapshot of your life and pain. It gives me an understanding of how this pain came to be and enables me to create the best treatment plan for you!
After the treatment, you can expect specific home care recommendations based on your chief complaint during the interview. This may look like stretches, strengthening exercises or recommendations to see other modalities such as a chiropractor or acupuncturist. I will then customize a treatment plan that best fits with your path to feeling better!
I empower you to take charge of your pain and will always be available to help you along the way.
Much love,
Steph
P.S. Check out my website, mindfultherapeutics.ca. Or follow me on Instagram for all sorts of health-related advice and information!
Erin Munro Clark, B.Cmm
Hey! I’m Erin. I’m the one answering your call and your emails.
When I started with Flourish in 2016, I looked at it as a very part time job I could do while my kids were young. Over the years my role has organically grown along with the clinic.
I’ve helped Flourish change from a strictly massage and acupuncture clinic to the only exclusively CIRS clinic in Canada.
While I don’t have CIRS, I do have a background of chronic illness, so I can relate to all of our patients who are so frustrated and lost. My communications background and organizational skills keep the clinic running smoothly so that our talented practitioners can focus on getting you better.
Zen & Charlie, Flourish Therapy Dogs
Flourish Clinic is proud to have two therapy dogs on staff.
Zen is a large but calm presence at Flourish. He lives and works with Mark Volmer, Clinic Director.
Charlie lives and works with Steph, our Registered Massage Therapist.