Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Campo.
Hi, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Thank you, Stephanie, I’m happy to be here. I am an Integrative Psychiatrist- a physician who uses holistic and alternative treatment approaches in addition to medicines and other conventional practices to create individualized treatment plans. I started Mindful Medicine, PC here in Nashville in 2011 to bring safe, effective treatment to people in our community suffering with depression, anxiety, addictions and the stress of hectic lifestyles.
I use a collaborative approach in this work. Bringing years- decades now- of study and experience with numerous holistic modalities. And my patients bring the expertise of their experiences: knowledge of their situations, their strengths and intentions for their lives.
I am so grateful to be able to spend my days in these collaborations. It is an honor to witness patients thrive in their lives, to serve others in finding meaning and purpose on their own paths. I am often humbled by their brilliance and accomplishments, by their immense strength in their willingness to be open and vulnerable, by their commitments to and love for their families and partners.
In addition to working with individuals, I lead group immersions into natural settings for inward experiences, again with the goal of connection with themselves. I teach at Vanderbilt and occasionally for schools and other organizations seeking a deeper understanding of the human experience and how to bring ease to the mind. Increasingly, I find colleagues more interested in integrative approaches, and so I also mentor providers who are interested in bringing more meaning and purpose into their own work with patients and clients.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’ve learned to pause, to take time to find not only stillness, but internal light. That is, by allowing for connection with myself, and a loving awareness, I can more easily know how to proceed in each moment. My truest heart’s desires are more easily known to me when I prioritize my own spiritual and mental health. Perhaps finding the time to meditate doesn’t always seem easy, but it is essential. If I am looking for something in the dark, taking the time to turn on the light is easier (and faster and more compassionate) than stumbling around in the darkness.
Pausing in a world of constant messages and competing responsibilities allows me to focus my attention. If I don’t spend time sharpening my own mind- my tool of service to others- I will not have my best work to offer.
So, I wake up and pray, a meditation of gratitude, of humility and desire to be of service. I love to have a glimpse of the first morning light. I practice yoga every day, most often in community at a studio. Eating real, whole foods is essential to keep my attention strong. My phone is set to do-not-disturb mode so that I can be fully present while I’m meditating or collaborating with patients or sharing a cup of tea with a friend.
When we allow ourselves to do one thing at a time, we create the conditions in which we can achieve a flow state. Perhaps you’ve heard of professional athletes getting into a flow state and crushing their game? A flow state is one of complete presence and absorption, becoming one with the ball [laughs] or one with whatever is present here for you, right now. That’s a really helpful state to be in, because we are always here, now, and if we put our attention where we are, on doing what we are actually doing, everything’s more easeful, more joyful. It’s interesting to notice how when we are present in the moment, when we are NOT thinking about the future, or worried about the past, we cannot be anxious. Try it. Anxiety does not exist in the mind in the present. Anxiety exists only when our minds are absorbed in thoughts of the future or the past. When the movie of the mind is not matching the moment of what is actually present. When our mind is not present, we are not in a flow state, we are not connected to ourselves. When we are present we are able to be of service to one another.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’ve had the honor of learning from such incredible people, and I owe much of the success I’ve had with my work to their work. Just after my first year of medical school in 2001, I received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to travel to the Amazon jungle, outside of Iquitos Peru and study a viral infectious encephalitis (inflammation of the brain). The experiences from that summer were mystical, magical; and I came back to my clinical years of med school with a more expansive perspective. I started learning from the work of Andrew Weil, the grandfather of integrative medicine. My fascination grew for modalities of healing outside of what I was learning in medical school: nutrition, herbal medicine, yoga and acupuncture, among others. Near the end of medical school, I spent time traveling in India- where I was introduced to Ayurveda- a science of life, of self-healing. At Yale, I turned my focus toward studying resilience and was introduced to mindfulness meditation and to the work of Thich Nhat Hahn. Later I had the opportunity to teach Integrative Psychiatry on faculty at Yale. After moving to Tennessee in 2010, my interests in ancient philosophies and exploration of the mind continued, including formal trainings in psychedelic assisted therapies which have been a part of my work now for about five years.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
I recognize I am fortunate to truly enjoy my professional work. I find the time I spend with patients and colleagues very meaningful. I recently heard a lecture by a swami who said, “try to make your day dream your day job…and then you will be satisfied in the present.”
Outside of work, I spend my time doing the things I’m teaching about during my working hours: getting good sleep, eating real food and gathering in the presence of kind souls. I also enjoy gardening and dancing. I strive to cultivate deep connections with my loved ones by creating space for, and maintaining, simplicity in my daily life. By minimizing distractions, I can connect deeply with myself and those dear to me.
Through my yoga and meditation practices, my intention is to stay in mindful, loving awareness throughout my day, to be present in each moment, to serve and to find gratitude. Even and especially, when things get hard. I meet regularly with close friends who support my growth spiritually and emotionally. We all need community.
We have a vibrant yoga community in Nashville. Yoga makes me happy. I find myself in a near perpetual state of practice. What I mean by that is yoga is more than movement. Yoga is connection, a state of being connected to oneself. When we are connected to ourselves, we can be of service to others. I am practicing yoga while I am sitting with my patients; a state of meditation on, and for, them. I am practicing yoga while I am meditating. Also while I am doing my physical practice at the yoga studio. Although more challenging for me, it is possible, even in mundane tasks like washing dishes, to stay in a state of yoga to allow each moment to be an opportunity to connect with self. This state of connection and service brings me joy.
Pricing (Optional) – At this point, I rarely personally see new individual patients, although at times, spaces do become available for someone deeply committed to this type of collaboration. I also work with authentic, highly trained colleagues for specific healing modalities. And I serve as a consultant for therapists and other physicians seeking to practice in a more holistic way with their own clients/patients. You are welcome to call the office to consider the possibility of a consultation and discuss fees as they relate to the desired services. If you are interested in referring a loved one, please have that person call for themselves.
Image Credits
Gray Bear Retreat Center
