Speaker 1: 0:30

certified family physician and I am the owner and medical director of a clinic a wellness clinic called my Wellness Physicians. We're located in the village at Leesburg, in the Legman's area.

Speaker 2: 0:44

Okay, not too far from here. Can you tell me what kind of services you provide in your wellness clinic?

Speaker 1: 0:50

So I am like I said earlier, I'm a family physician specializing obesity medicine, so it is a wellness clinic. I do a lot of weight management wellness. We do also skin wellness. I love skincare, so that's part of us, the services that we offer currently. In the future, it's in the works. Right now we're also looking into add-on hormone replacement therapy as well.

Speaker 2: 1:16

Okay, wow, you've got like a one-stop shop here for all the good stuff I do. I do, yes. What made you wanna start all of this? Did you know? Going in when you were young like I wanna be a doctor and I wanna do wellness, that's like decades ago. No, tell us the story for our listeners.

Speaker 1: 1:31

Well, I don't know where I really wanted to become a doctor. Just say, I guess growing up everybody's like you wanna be a doctor and stuff like that. I did at one point thought that I was not going to be a doctor.

Speaker 2: 1:44

What did you wanna be and what?

Speaker 1: 1:46

So I majored in zoology for an undergrad, so I'm actually, I guess, technically a zoologist and I really loved it. Amazing friends, learned a lot of stuff. And after I graduated I was thinking maybe I'll go into master's and explore that kind of world. But my parents are like, well, I thought you wanted to be a doctor. But I said, okay, fine, like let me just give this one year and then let me see how it goes. But honestly, I think I'm such a people person and I like to help people. So, yeah, I just fell in love with medicine that first year. And here I am like, years and years later, decades later, Decades later, but we're here Stronger than ever.

Speaker 2: 2:31

That's amazing. So I'm guessing like your first inkling of like wanting to help cause it seems like you're the person who wants to help others is with animals. What?

Speaker 1: 2:40

No, I really honestly I used the undergrad as a pre-medicine, okay. Okay, so you know cause. You got your anatomy, physiology and stuff like that. You've got microbiology, so it has a lot of stuff. But along the way, you know, it's so much fun with it and, like I have actually colleagues from undergrad or friends, I could say that in the environmental space, you know they've gone on to do more, bigger, better things in terms of that arena and, like their scientists, now they're discovering things. I have a friend who discovered a species of a frog, you know something like that. So it is very exciting and so it really more was for an undergrad thing, for pre-medicine. It really was my track. It's just a beard off a little bit. And then you know my parents like, are you sure? But really that first year was a, I was a goner. I was like, oh, like I really love this and I love learning. So it was really a perfect opportunity. I'm still learning, constantly learning, you know, even now.

Speaker 2: 3:42

Yeah, I feel like with doctors you're always like finding out the newest, latest thing.

Speaker 1: 3:46

You're like always learning forever right Always, and I do love it.

Speaker 2: 3:50

Yeah, of course I can be a forever student actually. That's cute. And now I know when you walked in you were like make sure you get some behind the scenes. You're like, oh good guy Getting into social media, tell me about that. How has it helped you?

Speaker 1: 4:01

Well, so you know, I started this business Really didn't think it's going to be like this. It I guess I'll tell you a story. Please do so. I've been practicing as a family physician for more than probably 18 years and I started off in primary care and I do love the relationship that I build with my patients. It's just obviously primary care, you know, you kind of see patient, boom, boom, boom. You know you don't really get to sit down and educate them and stuff like that.

Speaker 1: 4:37

My family grew, I have three wonderful girls, my husband's also a physician and I grew up in the North, in the North, in Connecticut. I moved around in New England for a lot of years and I just couldn't take the snow anymore. So I said you know, virginia is beautiful, it's central, it's still four seasons, yeah. So we moved down here and I you know we, my husband and I worked at an urgent care for many years. I still work a little bit part-time there. Is that where you guys met? No, my husband and I have been together for married for 21 years. Oh yeah, 21 years, congratulations.

Speaker 2: 5:17

No, that's a great little, while film there 21 years yeah, and then.

Speaker 1: 5:21

So when we moved down here, I was happy with the career path. There's two of us. I don't need anything more. I was heading towards academia when I graduated from residency. But with family life, obviously it's kind of hard to have both and I made the choice that I really want to be with my family, but I've always liked to teach, so when we got down here, it was happy. Yeah, it was good, I liked it. We travel a lot. We love traveling. My kids grew up in a different household. They don't have the traditional, you know, seven o'clock or six o'clock dinner every night. We're not home on weekends. Why's that? What's the Well? Because of our hours, oh yeah. So we work weekends, we work holidays. That's the norm for them. Like, sometimes we work holidays, sometimes we work weekends, sometimes we work nights, but we always make it a point Once a month we would have a mini vacation, so that's kind of like whether it's local or not.

Speaker 1: 6:19

Right. So then this big thing happened in a world several years ago that through everybody kind of For a loop. Yes, we were kind of in the front lines in that regard because we were urgent care. So it was really unprecedented with the amount of people that we were seeing at the clinic. And you know, it was really just burnout, you know pure burnout, and I really never thought I would get to that space or public point in time because I loved working.

Speaker 1: 6:50

And one day my husband and I were like I said I can't do this anymore. I like I close my eyes and I ask him what do we see ourselves five years from now, or even just one year from now? And he's like I can't see myself doing this really. So I like I got to do something. So I said, well, you know what I really I don't want to go back to primary care, primary care and be tied to someone else's hours, like dictating my hours or whatnot. So I said, well, I can maybe do something on my own.

Speaker 1: 7:18

I always liked weight loss and weight management and it's the root or stems from everything else. So I said, well, I can like open a small doctor's clinic. But I was presented this with this space. That was just kind of looking how you buy a house and you know that's the house. That's like how it felt with my clinic. That's the one. Yeah, I stepped in there I was like this is it. It's like I totally fell in love with it. I had the vision already and all that stuff so and that's how it kind of came about, sparked it all again.

Speaker 1: 7:50

So you know, my clinic is really my COVID baby. Yeah, so it's. You know, at least in my family, that's the good thing that came out of it, you know. And yeah, so that's how we started. In terms of your question regarding earlier about the social media, oh gosh, that was tough, you know as a doctor, it's really hard to put yourself out there.

Speaker 1: 8:13

I mean, I do follow a lot of doctors on social media and I love and really envious of how they do it, you know, and because I want to be like that too. But there's this like barrier that I've been brought up with, I guess, where in like no, it's like you know I grew up I mean, it's like old school, like you know, you have to set that boundary between doctor-patient relationship.

Speaker 1: 8:37

I see you know, and like how much can you really say or show exactly without like being too unprofessional or something like that, and it really is very challenging to put it out there. But, yeah, definitely. So last year, like I said earlier, my mom realized I was like, oh hate, social media. You know my marketing social media. Folks are like Dr Cruz, we need more like videos, photos, content, you know something, something. And I'm like, okay, okay, I'm gonna get on it. And it's like one week I'm like where is it Like, yeah, this one, and it's like one blip, you know. So I remember this is a funny story. I remember creating my own reel.

Speaker 2: 9:22

Oh, congratulations For the first time it literally took me two hours. That sounds believable.

Speaker 1: 9:29

Here's the best part. I had to YouTube how to navigate the buttons. Say, everybody starts somewhere, that's okay. So that was like. And then when I made it, I was like, oh my God, it's like it was actually pretty cool, but then it's like crap. It's already like late at night, it's already, it's been two hours, you know. But, yeah, save it for tomorrow. Well, I've gone better. Yay, yeah, I've discovered templates. Look at that. I love that for you, I know. So I actually made one over the weekend. We had a thing at the clinic and I sent it to a friend and he's like, wow, this is great, you know. I'm like, yeah, that's a template, I did that, I did that. The template did that. That's amazing, but I did.

Speaker 1: 10:10

You know, it's nice, you know, coming out of my shell regarding that and have a YouTube account now. Ooh, I'm a great assistant. He's like does all my schedule and he's really pushing it out there and he's giving assignments Good, good, we need to do this, we need to do that and he's been setting up all this stuff behind the scenes for me. It literally that YouTube took almost two months. That's okay, because he needed some stuff from me and obviously I Babies. That's right.

Speaker 1: 10:39

It's been busy so, but yeah, so that's how it came about. And so last year, you know, it's not really about growing followers, but just kind of like slowly putting myself out there Educating. Yeah, I'm getting there. It's just honestly, it's been really busy, which is great. It's really really awesome.

Speaker 1: 11:02

You know, as a business owner, you wear so many hats. I'm very proud of what I do as a doctor. I, you know, got that down to a T and whatnot. I'm still learning stuff, but at least I know that's my expertise. But the business part and all the other stuff that comes with it marketing and whatnot it is a new field and it's always constant plugging in podcasts, audible, you know, and all that stuff right, and I've got an amazing team that helps me out. So, but I took a vacation. I'll small one, I'll bid small vacation over the Christmas holiday and it's just being home in pajamas all day. That's like my ultimate vacation, amazing, same, right, yeah, and not doing anything or anything. And I was actually like literally in my couch, my kids were around me and I'm swiping and I'm like you know what? I look through my old photos and I'm sure, sure sure, look at you Right.

Speaker 1: 11:56

And then I put it out in stories and literally I think that week that was like four days that I was just like at home and just chatting with the kids and just had time. Doing social media? Yeah, a little bit, you know, and I kid you not, it's like a lot of people reached out in DMs and it's like, so you saw that immediate impact?

Speaker 2: 12:16

huh, oh yeah, I did, definitely the power of using social media is very it is very so I was like whoa, I was kind of blown away by that.

Speaker 1: 12:23

So it's like, okay, you know what you know everybody has. I don't know if it's because it's new year to me, but still, you know, when January hit, I was like you know, I think my ultimate New Year's resolution is really like putting myself out there this year.

Speaker 2: 12:40

I'm proud of you for that. That's not an easy thing. I'm still struggling.

Speaker 1: 12:44

I'm still struggling but it's like maybe steps every day. But yeah, it's actually been fun, like some ways. If I do when I do have time, you know I do post some stuff. My assistant's like it looks like you're having fun, doc. You know like he teases me about it and you know, but there's some that are kind of cool. And now I'm pulling my phone out in the grocery and looking at stuff there.

Speaker 2: 13:09

Oh no, that's good. I love how you're becoming just tech savvy.

Speaker 1: 13:12

A little bit, yes, and so I did see the like kind of growth in just that short period of time, an interaction with people, oh really, yeah, yeah. And feedback from friends and family and some of, like you know, some of my actual patients do follow me and then you know, they see them, they comment like, yeah, I saw that you were doing that. And it's funny because the first time that ever had happened where I shared something very personal, a live personal, just you know, whatever. Yeah, and a patient had commented yeah, I saw you went on vacation.

Speaker 1: 13:39

I'm like, how's she doing on vacation? Oh yeah, I posted about it and I was like, oh, yeah, yeah, I forget, I've posted. And it was like a little kind of I was a little squeamish about it, but then, at the same token, they were so encouraging and I tell them about my insecurities, about that, and he's like you know what People like to know their doctor's real toe Exactly. So, you know, I thought that was really pretty cool that she said that and she actually really like that resonated with me a lot that I would Let them know that. So, yeah, it's been better.

Speaker 2: 14:10

No, good for you, it's not again. It's not easy putting yourself out there, let alone as a doctor. You have to find your like comfort zone and like what all you can post. But good for you for like doing that. What advice would you give to people our listeners or business owners who want to get out there but they're nervous or they don't know where to start?

Speaker 1: 14:27

Oh, gosh, I'm not really even an expert to even answer that question, but I guess, like for me, like I started out with like little photos, I think, of myself and what I do, and I think that's where my comfort level started. I think find your comfort level of what you can share first, you know. And then my next one was like, created a little reel, no voice over yet. Okay, that is taking me forever, but you know, I've created a couple of reels with some little text in it, so, but I'm slowly getting there. So it's, I guess it's just like you said earlier baby steps, you know, and then it gets easier. You know, I was just posting photos, the more you do it.

Speaker 1: 15:09

Yeah, now I'm posting reels, so with not my voice over, but like you know little things there, so I think maybe I'll get there at some point, I believe in you. You got this? Yeah, I mean it's been. Some of them are fun, though, so I believe it.

Speaker 2: 15:20

I'm going to check you out. After this I'll post like stories and I'll tag you so you can re share it on with your people. And then, how many employees do you have at your business?

Speaker 1: 15:29

So right now I have a two and I have with me, and then I have a virtual assistant, so and we kind of have a marketing specialist as well. So in-house yeah.

Speaker 2: 15:43

All right, and then can you tell me about, like, the people that you work with when you're looking to hire? Has that been an easy thing, like what's? Has it been difficult? Cause that's the number one issue that a lot of business owners find is like finding good help and reliable.

Speaker 1: 15:57

Yeah, that's true. So let's see, I really started off. I think word of mouth is really important. So like when I look to hire more I ask for referrals before posting it out there. I mean, you know I have friends. I hate, you know anybody.

Speaker 1: 16:15

I literally like would text everybody, like do you know, anyone interested, blah, blah, blah and all that stuff, because it's hard. They look great on paper but then when you interact with them or whatnot, it's not as great. So, as with any business word of mouth and referral really right. So I started off with that. I've been we've been here in Northern Virginia at least for about seven years now and we've worked at our job for many years. So the kind of people honestly, when I opened my clinic up I've had a lot of folks came to me to ask if I'm looking to hire. So it was actually the other way around. Wow, and I wish I could obviously take all of them in because I loved working with them, but I can't. So it's, I don't know, maybe I'm different. It wasn't really too much of a struggle.

Speaker 2: 17:08

I was going to say that's different from what I hear, Like I need to do a lot of word of mouth where everyone's just like we go through all the applications without the word of mouth I did grow through that.

Speaker 1: 17:17

But you know, like this wonderful medical assistant, she's a friend of her friend and very lucky to have her. So she's very seasoned, she knows what she's doing and stuff. And she was from a referral. Same with my clinic manager as well. I think you know you, I take my job very seriously. Obviously everybody does. But it's really important to build relationships, not just with patients but with your staff. I always tell my staff that my staff is an extension of me, so how they should be treated shouldn't be anything different how patients or anybody else should treat their doctor. So maybe that's you know. I just work well with a lot of the staff and it's very flattering. I guess you could say that they have when I open my clinics, like are you hiring, are you doing this, are you looking for this?

Speaker 2: 18:13

That is quite flattering. People are like, hey, I want to work with her. Let me put in my application.

Speaker 1: 18:16

Honestly, coming to work right now. It's like it's not even going to work work because it's aside from all other stuff. It's really fun. You know, it's like kind of hanging out. Even my patients, they come in. It's like I've created a space where it's very comfortable, so casual. You know you can bring your dogs, because you love dogs.

Speaker 2: 18:34

I'm happy for you for that, because you know from working at urgent clinics to now hearing you say this from your store.

Speaker 1: 18:41

that's great yeah the space that I, the vision that I had for my clinic, is really you know how you go to doctor's office and it's like very stuffy and you know you sit down and so sterile, like-.

Speaker 1: 18:52

Yeah, or you're in that waiting room and stuff and it's a weight loss clinic, you know, and it's very hard for people to walk and accept first that they're going to go to a weight loss clinic and then even walk through the door. So I wanted to create a space where it's non-judgmental, you're welcoming. We celebrate every inch and every ounce, even like everything, because it's very daunting to like start a journey, you know, wellness journey really. So from like the colors and the sense, like I want a signature scent that they come although that's Dr Cruz's place, you know, so Where'd you get your signature scent? Oh, I just like looked around and I really love like a light. I have this white tea fragrance that I like. So, you know, you come in. It's like that's like invoking some of your and the colors, the colors purple is my favorite color, noted, yeah, purple is my favorite color, so definitely purple is in there.

Speaker 2: 19:45

You've got a little purple eyeshadow too. Yeah, I love it.

Speaker 1: 19:48

But so purple is my favorite color, like tone it down with some grays and whatnot and just white, really nice and calm. Yeah, it sounds beautiful and calm. Yes. So a lot of my patients sometimes they like, if I don't have anybody after, we would hang on in the lobby. You know, in this chat there it's like sometimes they just they're becoming. It's not about we lost, sometimes it's also about what's going on in their life and I think it trickles down to that too. If you have a very stressful month, you're not going to lose weight. You know it's the least of your priority. So it's really trying to navigate through all that stuff.

Speaker 2: 20:27

Yeah, okay. And then where do you see yourself and your business in five years?

Speaker 1: 20:33

Ooh, yeah, I would love, obviously I'd love to grow more. I've got a lot of plans in my head In my head, but definitely have more staff where in they have the same kind of this is the word I'm looking for vision that I have, you know, and just really the education. I think that's a big thing. I've always loved academia and educating people, so I think, like that's where I want to be at, where in there's also education in the space. So I'm going to be surprised with a lot of patients that I see where in I asked them what medications they're taking and they don't know what for what it is. So I kind of take a deep breath and I was like, okay, so this is what this is for, this is what this is for, wow, because you know. So, if I think, in a way, about the people that aren't getting round eye expressions, you, it's not just taking medication, it's all about the other stuff. So I really would like that part, the big part, gotcha.

Speaker 2: 21:40

And then, what are some common misconceptions that you guys get? You can give me like one to three oh, like for a clinic. Yes, for weight loss, oh, weight loss.

Speaker 1: 21:51

Oh okay. So when people come to me, when I tell them this, they come to lose weight, right. But because I am a family physician, I do, I really sit down. So that's the big thing that I love about the clinic is I can literally dictate how much time I will be spending with you, with the patient, as opposed to when I was in primary care. I was dictated by my schedule. You know your hypertensive, your diabetes, your medication, see my experience, this or that, and here's your blood work you're doing three months, come back, see, you know, lose weight, et cetera. That's about 15 minutes worth, right. You got a chart and all that stuff.

Speaker 1: 22:32

When I opened my clinic, I really wanted to take time with my patients, get to know them well, so my visits usually an hour. We do EKG blood work. I sit down. I toyed with the idea of the questions that I asked my patients to put them in a questionnaire form. However, I did that a couple of times and I didn't like it. So I still I felt like there's some stuff missing, you know.

Speaker 1: 22:58

So I really nitpick their habits, their lifestyle, what to do, and you know their dietary habits, and it may be weird, I guess, in some regard to do that, like the lifestyle you think. You know you talk about nutrition and stuff, but it really trickles down to your habits and lifestyle, you know. So when people come going back to your question, people come on here to lose weight it's really I tell them yes, you're here to lose weight, but look at what I see here. You have a family history of diabetes, hypertension. You're not young anymore, you're nearing your 50s and you already have one blood pressure medication. You're at risk for so and so, et cetera, things like that. So you know, we create, I create a customized goal for each of my patient. Everybody's different, not cookie cutter, especially with the lifestyles, the hours of work, et cetera, things like that.

Speaker 1: 23:47

So basically, it's like, not only is our goal the weight loss, but the goal is ooh, I see a blood pressure medicine. Maybe if you lose weight, we can later on take that. I won't manage it. I don't want to step in your primary care physician's toes. However, you know I can, because I know I know it, so I can certainly encourage him to go back. Yeah, exactly. Hey, maybe you want to go back to primary care and say, hey, a lot's like 30 pounds, maybe I don't need this blood pressure medicine, anymore things like that, or sometimes it's just about, like I said, you know really nitpicking everything. You're tired. Have you ever sleep study before? So I think that's. I'm always trying to think.

Speaker 1: 24:27

What would set me apart from other weight loss clinics or other wellness clinics is really trying to be trying to get to know the patient more. So, and sometimes even if, like you know, the first visit's an hour, I do a medication and a weight check, just a checkup in two weeks and then monthly I see the patient thereafter. Once the patient signs up with me, it's more like concierge weight loss. They've accessed me the whole time. If they have any questions, concerns, et cetera, and if I feel like the patient is falling off the wagon, then I would say, okay, I need to see you a little bit more, you know. So, because it is my own time, I can dictate that, you know, thank you. Original question the misconception of the clinic as a weight loss. I think it's really not just weight loss.

Speaker 1: 25:21

It's really like wellness just encompassing everything and lifestyle. Everything goes to like exactly what you're doing. Yes, exactly. I teach a lot of stuff. We talk about your sleep, we talk about your habits, we talk about and if I feel like, okay, you know what, let's just do a schedule for this month. This is your eating schedule this month, and not a lot of people like that. But I think it's just to establish consistency, so we let's just try it out for two weeks to see if it works. You know things like that. So, yeah, it's really listening to them as well. Your patients so that's a big misconception is like I'm here to lose weight and it's like they come out and it's like, oh, she talked a lot, it's just like wait.

Speaker 2: 26:01

I have to change my sleeping pattern too.

Speaker 1: 26:04

That's part of losing weight.

Speaker 1: 26:05

Surprise, it is, it is you know sleep has a big impact with weight loss. So that's one. People walk through the door. People think it's like a chiropractic office because wellness or primary care office, you know. But I really just want to be known for like holistic approach, you know I do. We also have just ruled out kind of our skin wellness. Now that patients are eating better, you know you want to exude that in your skin too. So whatever you eat comes out right. So like I have my allergy this morning which I can't tell by the way I couldn't believe.

Speaker 2: 26:39

I was like that ice was a nice call, because I can't tell those allergies. And then, if you could describe your business in three words, what would those three words?

Speaker 1: 26:48

be, oh gosh, like what it is. I think I've kind of touched about, touch on that earlier.

Speaker 2: 26:55

You know just three words, though like to summarize. Hmm that's three words.

Speaker 1: 27:00

Okay, so health wellness definitely, and just self care, I guess. Self care is good yeah. I like that. Yep, it is self care. Yeah, a lot of the things too. That with my patients I tell them is that we invest so much in so much things money, time, effort but we never really invest in the most number one possession we have ourselves and on our body you know, we abuse our body a lot, in many, many ways.

Speaker 1: 27:36

Guilty of that. Anyways, I mean it's not just eating, it's just like sleep, right, you know. So like we're not exercising, I mean go give me a arm, that a gym run, or anything, but you know, it's like you know you're learning kind of thing, right.

Speaker 2: 27:50

And then just to wrap this up, if you could give one message to the world, what would that message be? It can be about your business, it can be, in the world, anything.

Speaker 1: 28:00

Yeah. So exactly that. I think it's you really invest in your health. There you go. You know that's the first thing, I the first, in the first conversation I have with my patient, the first meeting. It's like this is what you want to do for the rest of your life. What are we going to? Let's figure out together. We take the time, money, you spend money, we put a lot of effort into beautifying our home. You know, parties, we have parties, our clothes, our makeup and all that stuff, but we don't spend all of that on ourselves. In that regard, the health part, you know we wait for us to break down, yes, and then we like, oh, I'm having this ache and that ache and this, whatnot, and then all of a sudden it's like you're going to the doctors and it's already broken. So I think that would be a big thing that I would love to see. Shift is people being more proactive in their health. You take your car, throw it back to you. You know, do you take your car for an oil change?

Speaker 2: 29:07

I sure do how often? Whenever my car tells me it's like ding, ding ding, I'm like, oh crap, yeah, I gotta go do oil change and stuff.

Speaker 1: 29:14

So why do you bring your car to the shop for?

Speaker 2: 29:16

oil change so it doesn't break down on me and get worse. I want it to get fixed and oiled up so it stops ding at me, because it breaks down what will happen. It's not going to work anymore and I'm going to have to pay more. And then one thing leads to another and it's just all kinds.

Speaker 1: 29:32

Take time off from work because you gotta bring it to the shops. So it's not anything different when you go to a doctor for a regular You're still right.

Speaker 1: 29:39

That was a good one. Yes, I stay out all the time when I get patients that have not seen their doctor forever. Remember my background's primary care. So it's my bread and butter, and I think it still applies to weight loss and everything. So if you make the time, effort, spend money to take your car to the shop, why can't you do the same for yourself? And then you realize later on oh my, I have this now and I have this now and all that worry, anxiety and everything else that would come with it. And honestly, it's like usually when you go to the doctor and you really want to hear you're good, your blood work looks good, your cholesterol looks amazing, your health, everything's good. See you, sign up, see you next year. That's what you want. You don't want other stuff and yeah, so I think that's what it is. It's like really invest in your health really.

Speaker 2: 30:35

That's a good note to end on Invest in yourself.