For years, Sharlene Watson, APRN and her daughter, fellow practitioner Anne Bowden, FNP, walked the well-trodden path of Western medicine. They saw patients, diagnosed symptoms, and prescribed treatments, following a system trusted for generations. Yet, a growing sense of frustration began to take root. This shared experience sparked a quiet revolution, leading them away from the conventional and toward a more holistic approach: functional medicine.
At Rising Health, the mission is not just to treat disease but to cultivate genuine wellness from the inside out. Sharlene, her daughters Anne and Alisa Watson, didn’t wait for permission to change the rules. After years inside conventional healthcare—watching patients, especially women, feel unheard and untreated—they decided to build something radically different.
"Our patients come in after a minimum of twenty visits from somewhere else, and they have lost their quality of life," Sharlene explained. "That's why we started this, out of the frustration of not having western medicine really follow through with these illnesses."
Sharlene specializes in women's health and adult chronic illness, and Anne, who also specializes in pediatrics, is committed to understanding the intricate web of factors that contribute to a person’s health, including genetics, lifestyle, environment, and emotional well-being. Rising Health is a departure from the one-size-fits-all model and provides the promise of HOPE.
A System Under Strain
The modern healthcare system is a marvel of scientific advancement, capable of performing life-saving surgeries and eradicating diseases. However, its focus is often on acute care—addressing immediate, life-threatening problems. For the millions struggling with chronic conditions like autoimmune disorders, digestive issues, hormonal imbalances, and persistent fatigue, the answers are not always so clear-cut.
Patients are frequently passed from one specialist to another, collecting diagnoses and prescriptions along the way, yet never feeling truly well. They treated individuals whose symptoms were dismissed or attributed to something else without further investigation.
"Functional Medicine that we practice is really root cause analysis," Anne explained. "We are looking at the 'why'. We treat two sides of the spectrum. The people that no one can seem to find what is wrong with them, and also people who want to be well."
The Functional Medicine Philosophy
Functional medicine offered the paradigm shift they were seeking.
For Sharlene, her passion is women's health. She worked as a nurse in the labor and delivery department for years. She says we don't talk about women's health enough, but we are starting to.
"We are finally coming to a place where people are daring to ask the big questions," Sharlene said. "Why aren't women part of the data sets? Why are we not taking care of our women?"
Functional Medicine is driven by scientific data. At its core, functional medicine is personalized medicine. It acknowledges that each person has a unique genetic makeup, medical history, and lifestyle. This patient-centered approach was exactly what the providers at Rising Health felt was missing.
Nutrition is considered a cornerstone of health and is referred to as "foundational support." They emphasize the critical role that diet plays in overall well-being, including mental health, and tailor nutritional guidance to each patient's unique needs. By focusing on the types of food patients consume, they aim to reduce inflammation, support gut health, and provide the body with essential nutrients for healing and vitality.
"We still use western medicine and some medications, but we start foundationally," Sharlene said. "Everything we do is based on science; we are not naturopaths."
The Rising Health Difference: A Journey Together
Stepping into Rising Health feels different from a typical clinic visit. The focus is on partnership and empowerment. The first step in any patient’s journey is an in-depth consultation, where the provider takes the time to listen to their complete health story. This is not a quick, 15-minute appointment; it is a deep dive into the patient’s life, exploring everything from diet and sleep patterns to stress levels and personal history.
"We tell our patients, it is one step at a time, because it can be overwhelming for them," Anne said. "We had a patient come to us in a wheelchair, and when we saw her recently, she was walking unassisted and told us how much she has changed."
This comprehensive understanding forms the basis for a highly personalized treatment plan. These may include targeted nutritional supplements, customized dietary plans, stress management techniques, and Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy for both men and women. The goal is to provide the body with what it needs to repair and rebalance itself.
For the providers, this work is more than a profession—it is a calling. They combine their extensive medical experience from years in conventional practice with a compassionate, holistic perspective. They are dedicated to being partners in their patients' healing journeys, offering guidance, support, and hope along the way. They use continuing education and belong to several organizations that enable them to find the data they need.
"Our first job when people come to us is to give them hope," Sharlene said.
Redefining Hope and Healing
The stories of transformation at Rising Health are a testament to their approach. Patients who had all but given up hope of feeling well again are now experiencing renewed energy, relief from chronic pain, and a restored sense of well-being.
Alisa Watson, the clinic's operations director, started Rising Health with her mom in 2015. Alisa has experienced many pivotal moments at the clinic that reaffirm her commitment to the practice.
"The first year I was here, we had our first ketamine patient. It was just us and Uni [University of Utah] that were administering ketamine at the time, and he came to us as a last stop. He had been suffering so badly from depression," Alisa said. "After the third treatment, he came in with a clean-shaven face and a light in his eyes. He was sobbing, and we all just hugged. He said he wanted to live.”
Three women. One family. A shared mission to heal what the system overlooked.
At the heart of Rising Health is a story not just about medicine—but about motherhood, sisterhood, and a bold decision to reimagine what healthcare could be.