Bespoke holistic support for sensitive people with complex, chronic conditions.
What is Vitalist Health Care?
Vitalism — the Spark of Life
Vitalist healing traditions are found all over the world. They stem from a deep observation of nature and an understanding of our body as part of it, following natural principles.
This way of working honors the body's inherent capacity for healing itself, when given the proper conditions to do so. I see symptoms as messengers and am trained in how to interpret the language of symptoms. (Ever feel frustrated when people tell you to “listen to your body” — but you have no idea why it’s saying what it does, or what to do about it? You’re in the right place.)
Your body can, and does, heal itself under the right conditions. A Vitalist Health Care approach employs strategic, yet minimal interventions, stimulating the innate healing capabilities, and removing obstacles to health.
Ecological restoration
This way of working with the body is predicated on a deep reverence for the natural world, and that includes the wild garden within you. We don’t see illnesses as things to be destroyed, but rather as a symptom of a larger imbalance. (And, believe it or not, sometimes symptoms can indicate a state of robust health!)
Our life-affirming practices honor the balance of life in our deeply interconnected world, and honors the vital force inherent in all living things.
Addressing the terrain of the body is foundational to this approach. Rather than suppressing symptoms, or using interventions that push the body in one direction or another, we stimulate your vital force and restore your inner ecology so that illness falls away.
Practice Principles & Methods
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First do no harm
We use therapies that work with the body, not against it, beginning with the least invasive and least toxic therapies. If we feel that your case is outside of the scope of what we can handle, we will refer you to another practice that can better serve you.
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The healing power of Nature
We are inseparable from the natural world. There is an intelligence to nature and to our bodies. We use natural substances to guide the body into a state of higher order. We have immense respect for our bodies’ capacity to heal itself, when provided with the right conditions to do so.
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Identify and Treat the Causes
Distinguishing what is causing, and also maintaining, an illness pattern is the necessary first step in effective symptom resolution. We go through an extensive process to make a determination of what root causes might be at play.
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Treat the Whole Person
Our way of working is inherently integrative, honoring all parts of you and helping you to connect the dots between all your seemingly disconnected symptoms. We hold space for all aspects of your being. All of you is welcome here!
A Collaborative Care Model
A collaborative care model holds that you are ultimately responsible for your own health.
This model places the power where it belongs -- with you!
Our Western medical model has placed the power with the practitioner -- to the ultimate detriment of the patient.
Collaborative care empowers you to show up and do the work. Collaborative care means that you and I work together, in close communication, in support of your health. Collaborative care means that you have someone in your corner, with lots of expertise and experience, who's providing context, guidance, and information — never forcing you to do anything that you’re uncomfortable with.
As part of my working model, I strive to provide you with options, rather than prescriptions.
I honor your experience, as the person living in your body. When you tell me about your symptoms, I believe you. I will never dismiss what you tell me or chalk it up to something else that’s totally unrelated, just to fit within my own mental models.
I practice from an anti-capitalist lens, which means I strive to be collaborative rather than coercive. While I have immense pride in my countless hours of education, training, and clinical experience, that does not give me license to put myself in a power-over position. Rather, my work is about helping you to reclaim your personal power and vitality!
Rachel Koppelman
Certified Classical Homeopath
Licensed Homeopathic Practitioner
Rachel Koppelman is a Certified Classical Homeopath in Northampton, Massachusetts. Since completing her foundational homeopathy studies in 2020, Rachel has gone on to study and apprentice with numerous naturopathic doctors, including Dr. Tim Shannon, Dr. Mike Knapp, Dr. Paul Herscu, Dr. Amy Rothenberg, Dr. Robert Abell, and Dr. Holly Castle. Rachel is currently under mentorship with Dr. Holly Castle.
Rachel Koppelman is a Licensed Homeopathic Practitioner in the State of Arizona. She is a Certified Homeoprophylaxis practitioner and is trained in the use of Polarity Analysis. She is also a Certified GAPS Practitioner, having trained in the GAPS Nutritional Protocol with Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. Rachel is also a Certified Human Intestinal Microbiome in Health and Disease Specialist.
Rachel's practice is deeply influenced by classical homeopathy, miasmatic analysis, Polarity Analysis, biotherapeutic drainage, homotoxicology, ecological medicine, and ancestral nutrition.
Rachel works with classical homeopathy, gemmotherapy, phytoembryotherapy, complex homeopathy/biotherapeutic drainage, cell salts, flower essences, GAPS Nutritional Protocol, and other therapies to support the terrain of both straightforward and complex cases.
Rachel has volunteered as both an admin and a practitioner on the Homeopathy Help Network, as well as for the Council of Homeopathic Certification as an item writer.
When not in the clinic, Rachel enjoys spending time with her partner and teenaged son, exploring the woodland wilds of Western Massachusetts, and playing the accordion.
Fun facts:
Virgo Sun, Capricorn Moon, Scorpio Rising
INFP/Highly Sensitive Person
3/5 Manifesting Generator
Photo credit: Mitzie Gibson
Education & Training
Licensed Homeopathic Practitioner - State of Arizona: 2025
National board certification as a Certified Classical Homeopath - Council for Homeopathic Certification: 2021
Academy of Homeopathy Education - Full-Time Program: 2020 Graduate
Bachelor’s degree in Psychology - Tufts University: 2001
“The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.
—Carl Gustav Jung
“If you’re not feeling yourself or have been struggling with illness or lack of vitality of any kind, and think you “have tried everything,” and are wondering if you should give one final try to classical homeopathy working with Rachel, I’m one happy camper shouting out “YES,” just do it!”
— M.S.