Rooted In The Wild

09/10/2026

I get multiple messages daily asking if I treat a specific condition or diagnosis. Trust me, at this point in my medical career, I think I’ve seen it all (including an interesting case of elephantiasis in Africa).

This was my case load last week:
*ALS
*MS
*severe eczema
*chronic constipation
*vertigo
*antibiotic resistant Staph infections
*migraines/headaches
*cystic acne
*ADHD/ADD
*fatigue and brain fog
*weight loss resistance
*erectile dysfunction
*menopause
*thyroid autoimmune issues
*hormone dysregulation
*anxiety and depression
*Lyme
*mold toxicity
*nail fungus
*post-chemo treatment

Nothing is off limits in supporting the body holistically. As a Registered Nurse and Naturopathic Doctor, I believe the two worlds of medicine can complement one another now more than ever.

You are not a diagnosis. You are a soul inside a body experiencing a set of symptoms unique to you.

I would love to work with you. ~Dr. Mel

08/31/2026

Join me for a conversation around Naturopathic Medicine at Sacred Springs Kombucha in Grand Rapids on Sunday, September 6 from 11-12.

What topics would you like to have addressed?

If you haven’t been, Sacred Springs is a thoughtfully designed and cozy space serving up the yummiest kombucha to increase your gut microbiome health.

My favorite is the lime jalapeño, and my kids are all in on the Chaga root beer.

See you Sunday!

08/29/2026

I’m spending the weekend at the American Naturopathic Medical Association conference in Vegas.

So while the tourists are dressed in all-white for the Back Street Boys concert at the Sphere and drinking mile-high margaritas out of a fish bowl, I’m learning the latest on stem cells, bioenergetic resonance, and staph infections.

I know…nerd alert.

And here’s the best part - our conference center is located in the same hotel as the Miss America pageant, which means I have assisted with more zippers and “sticky boobs” in the bathrooms than I ever did in high school 😉 But I think I must give off trustworthy mom vibes, so I’m asked for a LOT of assistance.

I don’t like Vegas. The overwhelming sensory overload feels like too much for this ambivert farm girl from the Midwest.

And yet, I’m reminded of a line from a David Wagoner poem:
“Wherever you are is called Here. And you must treat it as a powerful stranger”.

Vegas is a powerful stranger to me (although I’ve been several times). The feeling of existing in a foreign, manufactured city in the midst of a mountainous desert while simultaneously engaging with surgeons, doctors, and nurses about quantum entanglement, cold lasers, and peptides…this is a strange, wild, and precious world.

I’m here for it. And as always, I am excited to bring back this information to my little pocket of West Michigan.

- Dr. Mel DeBoer

08/24/2026

My new favorite farmer’s market product: B-Fuel from Big Bear Honey (www.bigbearhoney.com).

I am obsessed with B-Fuel, a local honey combined with propolis. I take a spoonful before hitting the gym or anytime I need a little burst of energy.

Propolis is the resinous material that bees use to seal gaps and cracks in the hive. For human use, it’s an incredible natural antibiotic, healer of burns, support for the immune system, antioxidant, and blood sugar stabilizer.

Honey is full of flavonoids and vitamins to protect our bodies from oxidative stress.

Bonus: the family who owns the bee farm is completely delightful 🥰

08/18/2026

I love that natural remedies often grow exactly where the medicine is most needed.

Meet JEWELWEED - the best medicine in salve form for poison ivy irritations. Rubbing the leaves and flowers of jewelweed directly on the skin prior to entering known poison ivy patches will prevent the oil from irritating the skin.

Jewelweed grows alongside poison ivy. If you see this beautiful blossom, it’s safe to assume ivy is nearby.

I’m noting a tremendous amount of invasive Japanese knotweed this year as well. Full of resveratrol, knotweed is a chief remedy for the treatment of Lyme.

I bet you can guess the invasive creature perpetuating Lyme.

Poison growing alongside remedy. Invasive plant giving medicine for invasive arthropod.

The Earth is an incredibly wonderous place to live.

- Dr. Mel
www.rootedinthewild.org

08/18/2026

Hey friends! Jase and some incredible men have been working with young men in the West Michigan area to teach wilderness skills and build empowering community for several years now. FIRE TENDERS offers 6-week sessions for 10-13 year old boys that take place on Sunday afternoons - one in the Spring, and one in the Fall. These boys have a blast learning about fire skills, knot tying and shelter building while also having team challenges and playing games like capture the flag!

Registration for the Fall session is still open! Check out the post and follow them below. Fall session starts September 20, so sign up today!

Registrstion for our 2026 Fall FIRE TENDERS session is still open! An incredible experience for 10-13 year old boys in Belmont, MI.

We meet Sunday afternoons from 2-6pm at the Izaak Walton League in Belmont, MI. Lead by experienced thoughtful guides, boys get:

☑️ Empowering community
☑️ Wilderness skills and time in nature
☑️ Games, challenges, and a ton of FUN!

The session is 6 weeks with our first class on Sunday, September 20. Spots are limited and filling fast.

Learn more and register today:
www.rootedinthewild.org/firetenders

08/16/2026

I injured my left big toe in a CrossFit class about 7 months ago. After months of foregoing lunges, I finally gave in and had it x-rayed. It’s not broken, but it was recommended that I have a MRI to assess ligament damage. Also offered: cortisone injections.

Not a chance.

I know too many physicians who regret years of injecting cortisone into patients and would NEVER do it again.

So, I am taking matters into my own hands. Starting with increasing collagen intake, taking MSM and silica supplements, using arnica and Rhus Tox homeopathics, and injecting peptides directly into my toe.

I’m using peptide blend BPC-157 and TB-500, also known as the Wolverine stack, in very low doses.

Here’s the interesting part - as patients, sometimes we have to take healing into our own hands.

The same sports med doc that offered me cortisone injections also told me that cortisone destroys the joint overtime and he wouldn’t recommend it. When I asked about peptides, he said he couldn’t offer the injections himself, but smiled and said “it’s absolutely worth exploring”.

The FDA has “loosened” restrictions on peptides recently, but purchasing peptides is a tricky game. Some are expensive and ingredients questionable to be sure. Most are labeled “for research purposes only” and you cannot call the manufacturer for any assistance on how to use them.

For now, I’m trying the approach. While I don’t particularly like lunges anyway, I would like full functional use of my toe again.

07/23/2026

It’s been a minute since I’ve posted anything online. To be real, life’s been full.

Summer has delivered:

*precious ceremony of boy’s rites of passage for my son

*grief of loss after several mature trees fell on our beloved land

*fullness of schedules with horse shows, dirt bike tracks, theater, and football lifting

*sweetness of fresh berries and blooms

*blessings in newfound edible, wild-foraged mushroom sightings

*awe and curiosity surrounding sweet children turning full-blown teens seemingly overnight

Summer is here. Glorious, precious summer.

And yet, the smoke of wildfires hit the beautiful shores of Michigan last week. For days we closed the doors and windows, staying indoors until it became unbearable. On the other side of 2 days of beach time in a smoky haze, I am experiencing brain fog, sore throat, tightness in the chest, and ongoing headaches.

Here’s how I am supporting my body:

*CellCore Biotoxin Binder twice daily to draw toxins out through the gut
*NAC taken twice daily to support detoxification through the liver
*Biocidin liquid mixed in distilled water and instilled into the sinuses with a Navage (similar to a Neti pot, but provides suction and pressure)
*Mullein tea and bone broth sipped throughout the day
*Increasing my vitamin C to 500mg 4 times daily

I keep these products on hand at all times. We can’t predict what happens in the environment, but we can have the tools on hand to support the body.

Because bodies know how to heal. Tools are supportive to the process.

And because Michigan summers are too precious to waste even one second.

Picture: Rogue River CrossFit gym at the beach, in the smoke.

06/11/2026

“Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final”
-Rainer Maria Rilke