The Clinical Entrepreneur

Ronda Nelson
  • 4.9 (74)
  • BUSINESS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Welcome to Season 2 of The Clinical Entrepreneur podcast - where we ditch the boring business talk and serve up the real, raw, and ridiculously helpful strategies you need to grow your wellness practice. This season is all about big moves, bold goals, and finally building the business that matches your vision. From creating programs your patients will rave about to streamlining your systems so you can actually breathe (imagine that!), we're covering it all - minus the fluff. If you're ready to attract your dream patients, grow your income without burnout, and finally feel like the confident CEO of your practice, you're in the right place. Think of me as your sassy, no-BS business bestie, here to cheer you on every step of the way. Let's build the practice - and the life - you've been dreaming about. Grab your coffee (or wine), and let's do this!

  1. 293: From Expensive Hobby to a Profitable Practice: 5 Leaks You Need to Fix Now

    5D AGO

    293: From Expensive Hobby to a Profitable Practice: 5 Leaks You Need to Fix Now

    Great clinician, anemic bank account? Let's identify the real reason you're stuck: you are pricing like a hobbyist. In this episode, I'll show you how offers, boundaries, overhead math, and a clear niche help you finally pay yourself without burning out or working 60-hour weeks. Inside this episode, I walk you through the five "financial anemia" culprits I see over and over in clinical practices, and the mindset shift that changes everything: people don't pay for functional medicine… they pay for outcomes. We'll talk about building a real offer (not just fee-for-service), reverse-engineering the monthly "nut" you have to crack, plugging time leaks with clean boundaries, and why becoming a specialist makes you a necessity (not a commodity). If you've ever thought, "I just can't charge that," this one's for you. Ready to address your biggest leak first?  Download the free Practice Vitals Checkup now. And if you want my eyes on your numbers and your offer, book a Practice Strategy Call!

    31 min
  2. E292: What These 5 Cases Taught Me About Being a Better Clinician

    FEB 10

    E292: What These 5 Cases Taught Me About Being a Better Clinician

    Five very different cases, one big lesson: the "obvious" answer is often the wrong one. In this final episode of my 6-part clinical thinking series, I'm giving you real-life updates on five challenging cases - and the six principles these cases reinforced in my own practice. You'll hear what changed (and what didn't) with everything from a cracked tooth infection and H. pylori progress, to panic attacks with sky-high anxiety, to a stubborn restless leg case that's testing everyone's patience. And then we zoom out, because this is where the real clinical growth happens: how to get the story, how to listen without letting the patient drive the theory, and why treating the system (not just the symptom) is the hill I will die on. If you want more "boots-on-the-ground" clinical how-to-protocols, strategy, implementation, and what to do when the case gets messy - come join Clinical Academy. And if your practice feels a little… rickety (been there), Clinical Business Academy can help. Grab the free "Six Principles of Clinical Thinking" resource.

    22 min
  3. E291: When the Gut Isn't the Real Problem

    FEB 3

    E291: When the Gut Isn't the Real Problem

    A former competitive athlete came to me barely able to function. He had severe nausea, almost constant stomach pain, a known ulcer, crushing anxiety, and unrelenting fatigue.  After looking at his intake forms, it seemed obvious that his digestive system was screaming for help so I did what any practitioner would do - I started by supporting optimal upper digestion. And everything made him worse.  Bitters? Made him worse. Gallbladder support? Worse. Aloe? Also worse. The PPI worked, then didn't. The DGL helped a little, then stopped. I kept adjusting the protocol, thinking I just needed the right combination. But every change triggered more panic. Every new supplement amplified his symptoms. Then I had a huge realization: his digestive system t wasn't the problem. It was just the microphone, amplifying the symptoms. His nervous system was so completely dysregulated that it couldn't regulate around anything - not food, not supplements, not even safety. And I didn't see it until he was gone. This is the hardest case I've shared in this series - not because the symptoms were complex, but because I had tunnel vision. I was so focused on fixing his upper digestion and gut that I missed the real driver: a nervous system that had completely gone off the rails and could no longer regulate. What You'll Learn: The signs of complete nervous system dysregulation (and why they can be hard to spot) Why the loudest symptom isn't always what needs addressing first How asking patients to track symptoms can backfire badly The difference between stabilizing a patient and trying to fix them (spoiler: some people need 'boring' before they need a protocol) Why post-viral neuroimmune injury is a whole different beast What "creating safety" actually means clinically - and why it's medicine Resources Mentioned: Free download: 6 Principles of Clinical Thinking Learn the "how" of functional medicine inside Clinical Academy Connect with Ronda: Clinical Academy: rondanelson.com/clinicalacademy Free Resource: rondanelson.com/6principles

    32 min
  4. E290: The H. Pylori Case That Stumped Everyone (Until We Fixed the One Thing They All Missed)

    JAN 27

    E290: The H. Pylori Case That Stumped Everyone (Until We Fixed the One Thing They All Missed)

    What causes relentless belching that can clear a room - even after four rounds of H. pylori treatment? A 55-year-old retired dental hygienist had been treated for H. pylori four times. Two rounds of medical intervention and two different functional medicine practitioners tried to help - without success. The infection kept coming back, along with the belching so severe she could clear a room. The problem? Everyone missed the most important thing: the biofilm. In this episode, Ronda walks you through the exact three-phase protocol that finally worked: Prep & Prime (biofilm disruption + gentle antimicrobials), Target & Eliminate (targeted killing agents), and Gut Remodeling (barrier repair). You'll learn why starting aggressively often backfires, how to track progress using frequency/duration/intensity, and the unexpected supplement reaction that triggered severe anxiety. This case is a masterclass in clinical thinking; knowing when to slow down, when to reassess, and why treating the same infection the same way will always give you the same result. What You'll Learn: Why biofilms protect pathogens from antibiotics and antimicrobials - and how to disrupt them The 4-supplement Prep & Prime protocol Ronda used for 2 weeks before using antimicrobials How to balance aggressive treatment with patient tolerance (and when to pull back) Why one supplement caused dark, ruminating thoughts - and how we figured it out The difference between managing presenting symptoms and addressing root cause Resources Mentioned: Free download: 6 Principles of Clinical Thinking at rondanelson.com/6principles Learn the "how" of functional medicine inside Clinical Academy at rondanelson.com/clinicalacademy Connect with Ronda: Clinical Academy: rondanelson.com/clinicalacademy Free Resource: rondanelson.com/6principles

    36 min
  5. The Restless Leg Case I Missed Twice - Clinical Thinking Episode 3

    JAN 20

    The Restless Leg Case I Missed Twice - Clinical Thinking Episode 3

    Twenty years of restless legs. Two failed attempts. One patient who kept coming back anyway. In this episode, I finally figured out what was missing - and it had nothing to do with magnesium, valerian, or sleep hygiene before bed. This case humbled me. I'd treated her twice before with all the "right" things - minerals, adaptogens, calming herbs, etc., and nothing worked. When she came back a third time, desperate and hardly sleeping, I knew I had to dig deeper. What I found changed how I think about restless leg syndrome entirely. RLS isn't a muscle problem. It's not a simple mineral deficiency. It's a nervous system excitability disorder driven by overlapping dysfunctions: dopamine signaling, brain iron metabolism, inflammation, and liver function. I discovered the smoking gun was a protein called hepcidin which controls iron trafficking in the body. When inflammation is high and the liver is congested, iron gets trapped. The brain starves. Dopamine drops. And the legs can't stop moving. In this episode, I walk you through the research that opened my eyes, the labs that finally made sense, and the Phase One protocol I built from scratch. After just two weeks, she's already seeing improvement - not because I treated her legs, but because I treated the right things in the right order. If you've ever had a case that forced you to start over, this one's for you. Download the 6 Principles of Clinical Thinking Join Clinical Academy

    47 min
  6. Why Her Panic Attacks Had Nothing to Do With Her Brain – Clinical Thinking #2

    JAN 13

    Why Her Panic Attacks Had Nothing to Do With Her Brain – Clinical Thinking #2

    She was convinced it was her thyroid. After years of panic attacks, chronic anxiety, and a body that felt like it was "fighting something," she came to Ronda certain the answer was in her thyroid labs. It wasn't. In this Clinical Thinking case study, Ronda traces the real root cause back to compromised digestion and a nervous system running on stress hormones. This 28-year-old executive assistant had all the classic signs practitioners often miss: fasting glucose of 71 (a red flag for metabolic instability), light-colored stools, fatty food intolerance, and that telltale mid-back pain at the bra line. She'd been on Armour thyroid since age 13. She'd survived food poisoning in Costa Rica. And every single panic attack? Happened on a day she'd eaten chocolate. Ronda walks through how she connected the dots, why she started with upper digestion instead of adaptogens, how low glucose and low A1C reveal a system propped up by cortisol and adrenaline, and why the "obvious" first answer is almost never the right one. You'll also hear a practical tip for managing anxious patients: using AI to create organized visit recaps that satisfy their need for structure and reduce the between-appointment panic spirals. If you want to develop this kind of clinical thinking in your own practice, download Ronda's free guide: The 6 Principles of Clinical Thinking

    38 min
  7. Critical Thinking Episode 1: The Cracked Tooth That Explained Everything

    JAN 6

    Critical Thinking Episode 1: The Cracked Tooth That Explained Everything

    She looked perfect on paper. Impeccable diet. Physically fit. Emotionally stable. Then she walked into my office and said, "I can't stop crying. I can't think. Something is wrong, and I don't know what it is." Her labs told part of the story: CRP at 87, neutrophils through the roof, lymphocytes bottomed out. But there was no fever. No illness. No obvious source. Until she dropped one sentence that changed everything. This is the first episode of my new Clinical Thinking series where I walk you through real patient cases, step by step, so you can see how I actually think through complex presentations. In this episode, you'll learn why the obvious answer is rarely the right one, how the 30/30/30 rule can keep you from tunnel vision, and what a cracked tooth taught me about dental history and emotional symptoms. I also share the exact protocol I used, and why I intentionally kept it simple instead of ordering more tests. If you want the framework behind how I approach every case, download The 6 Principles of Clinical Thinking. And if you're ready to develop this kind of thinking, not just follow protocols, join me inside Clinical Academy.

    21 min
  8. I'm a Dopamine Addict (And It Almost Wrecked My Business): 5 Lessons from My Hardest Year

    12/30/2025

    I'm a Dopamine Addict (And It Almost Wrecked My Business): 5 Lessons from My Hardest Year

    I'm going to be honest with you: 2025 humbled me. It wasn't my year. I didn't hit the goals I set. I didn't finish the projects I planned. I spent more time putting out fires than building anything meaningful. I went from a team of five down to two plus a virtual assistant and I ended up picking up way more work than a business owner should be doing. I was so scattered, so mentally fatigued, that some days I couldn't focus on anything for more than 10 minutes. There's a joke in my world: 'How many rabbit holes can Ronda go down in one day?' And this year, the answer was... too many. So this episode isn't a victory lap. It's not 'here's how I crushed it in 2025. It's the truth. Here are the five lessons this year taught me the hard way. And if you're ending the year feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, or like you just barely survived... I see you. You're not alone. Let's close out 2025 together. Resources Mentioned: •       Clinical Academy — Join our community of practitioners mastering clinical skills and building thriving practices •       Clinical Business Academy — Ready to build systems that work? Apply here. •       Coming in January: The Clinical Thinking Series — Don't miss it! Subscribe now.

    26 min
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4.9
out of 5
74 Ratings

About

Welcome to Season 2 of The Clinical Entrepreneur podcast - where we ditch the boring business talk and serve up the real, raw, and ridiculously helpful strategies you need to grow your wellness practice. This season is all about big moves, bold goals, and finally building the business that matches your vision. From creating programs your patients will rave about to streamlining your systems so you can actually breathe (imagine that!), we're covering it all - minus the fluff. If you're ready to attract your dream patients, grow your income without burnout, and finally feel like the confident CEO of your practice, you're in the right place. Think of me as your sassy, no-BS business bestie, here to cheer you on every step of the way. Let's build the practice - and the life - you've been dreaming about. Grab your coffee (or wine), and let's do this!

Information

  • Creator
    Ronda Nelson
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    100
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    Copyright © 2020 - Dr. Ronda Nelson
  • Show Website
    The Clinical Entrepreneur

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