Your immune system isn’t broken — it’s responding to something. We work to find and remove the triggers driving the attack, calm the immune response, and rebuild the terrain your body needs to regulate itself again.
Autoimmune disease develops when the immune system loses tolerance and begins attacking the body’s own tissue. Functional medicine looks past the diagnosis label to why tolerance was lost in the first place.
Three things tend to line up before an autoimmune condition appears: a genetic predisposition, one or more environmental triggers (infections, toxins, chronic stress, food antigens), and a breakdown in the gut barrier known as intestinal permeability. Genes load the gun — the triggers and the terrain pull it.
We can’t change your genes. But triggers can be removed and the terrain can be rebuilt — and that is where meaningful change happens.
Alicia Hickson, PA-C, uses a functional, root-cause model informed by the work of clinicians like Dr. Datis Kharrazian and the Institute for Functional Medicine: identify triggers, heal the gut, lower inflammation, and support the systems that keep the immune response in balance.
Reduce any one of these and the immune system quiets. We investigate all three in every patient rather than treating the flare alone.
Chronic infections (EBV, Lyme, gut pathogens), mold and heavy-metal exposure, food antigens like gluten, and unrelenting stress. We identify what is provoking your immune system so it can be removed or resolved.
A leaky gut barrier lets undigested proteins and toxins into the bloodstream, keeping the immune system on high alert. Sealing and healing the gut is foundational to lowering the response.
Once tolerance is lost, the immune system needs help re-balancing. We support the pathways — nutrients, vitamin D, blood-sugar control, stress physiology — that teach it to stand down.
Autoimmune disease doesn’t happen in isolation — it happens in a body. These are the systems we assess and support to bring the immune response back into balance.
Barrier integrity, dysbiosis, and pathogens — the front line of immune tolerance.
Calming the chronic inflammatory signaling that drives symptoms and tissue damage.
Supporting liver, lymph, and elimination so the body can clear the toxins that fuel immune load.
Glucose swings drive inflammation. Metabolic stability is quiet, powerful immune support.
Vitamin D, omega-3s, zinc, and magnesium — the raw materials of a regulated immune system.
Down-regulating the stress physiology that keeps the immune system inflamed and reactive.
Whether you have a clear diagnosis or years of unexplained symptoms and normal labs, root-cause work applies. Conditions and situations we support include:
Beyond a standard antibody panel, we look at the drivers conventional workups skip — gut and stool analysis, micronutrient status, inflammatory markers, thyroid antibodies, food sensitivities, and hidden infections. Lab work informs every recommendation. Nothing is generic.
An anti-inflammatory, personalized nutrition strategy paired with targeted gut repair — removing triggers, restoring the barrier, and rebuilding a healthy microbiome. We partner with qualified nutrition support so it’s sustainable, not fear-based.
High-dose nutrients, glutathione, and customized formulations to lower inflammation, replenish depleted stores, and support detoxification — dosed to your labs and goals, never one-size-fits-all.
Explore related services: IV Healing · Thermofield · Functional Medicine — often woven into your plan.
A 60–90 minute deep-dive into your history, timeline, labs, and goals. We listen first, then build a plan around your body.
A written plan covering nutrition, targeted supplementation, IV support, and lifestyle, built around your body and your goals.
Regular check-ins, lab follow-ups, and protocol adjustments as your labs and symptoms improve. You are never doing this alone.
The body is connected — these conditions often share roots with autoimmune disease.
Whether you’re newly diagnosed, managing flares, or searching for answers behind unexplained symptoms, we’ll meet you where you are. Book a consultation to talk through your history and what a root-cause approach could look like for you.
The services described on this page are complementary and supportive in nature and are designed to work alongside your medical team — not a substitute for conventional medical care, diagnosis, or treatment. Individual results vary, and no outcome is guaranteed.
A clear, research-grounded education in how metabolism shapes cancer — so you can understand your own biology, ask sharper questions, and feel genuinely informed alongside your care team.
5 video lessons · A downloadable PDF for every chapter · Yours to revisit anytime
What’s Included
Short, watchable lessons and take-home resources you can actually use — built for real life, not a lecture hall.
Clear, concise modules you can finish at your own pace — no fluff, no filler.
Download, print, and bring your notes to appointments so nothing gets lost.
Revisit any lesson whenever you need a refresher — it’s yours to keep.
The Curriculum
Five chapters that build on each other, from the core science to putting it into practice.
Is This Right For You?
Honest about what this is — and what it isn’t.
“I built this course for the patients and families who want to understand what’s actually happening in the body — not just be handed a plan. When you understand the metabolic approach, you show up to every appointment more confident and ask better questions. That changes everything.”
— Alicia Hickson, PA-C · Founder, Rayma Health
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Get instant, lifetime access to all five lessons and every chapter download — and start learning at your own pace today.
This course is educational and is designed to support your understanding — not to replace medical care. It is meant to be used alongside guidance from a qualified healthcare provider.
