The Amazing WHC Team
You’ll find a warm welcome from all our team. From friendly front desk staff to helpful health coaches and the passionate practitioners, our goal is to help you feel like part of the team on your journey to better health with holistic services. Get to know the people you’ll be partnering with before you even step through our door.
Vicky
Patient Advocate/Support Staff
What do you love most about working at WHC? I love helping people discover healthy, nutritious ways to improve the way the feel.
How do you spend your time away from WHC? I enjoy going for walks, reading and spending time with my husband and kids.
What’s your favorite “healthy” recipe to make/eat? Healthy and delicious does not need to be difficult or time-consuming. A staple at our house is chicken breasts and salsa in the crock pot. Put chicken and your favorite salsa in the crockpot, cook on low for 6-7 hours or high 3-4 hours. About an hour before you are going to eat, shred the chicken and continue to cook in the salsa for about an hour. We eat this plain, in tacos or on lettuce as a salad. Quick and easy for busy moms and teachers like me!
Fun Fact about you: My husband Carl and I are the parents of 5 “kids” age 25, 24, 22, 21 and 16 - we have a standing lunch date, every Sunday at 1:00. During the week, someone sends a lunch request in our family group chat. Family and good food.
Johanna
Patient Advocate/Health Coach
What do you love most about working at WHC? Helping people with their health journey.
How do you spend your time away from WHC? Biking, camping, walking my 3 dogs, Jeepin’ with my husband and helping out with my beautiful grandkids.
What’s your favorite “healthy” recipe to make/eat? Caprese balsamic chicken salad, salmon & broccoli and anything low carb.
Fun Fact about you: I’m a licensed real estate agent.
Suzanne
Front Desk Administrative Assistant
What do you love most about working at WHC? Working with like-minded people
How do you spend your time away from WHC? Cooking, cleaning, catering, hanging out with family and friends
What’s your favorite “healthy” recipe to make/eat? Mock rootbeer floats (I use frozen bananas and Zevia root beer blended up)
Fun Fact about you: I rarely make the same recipe twice!
Melissa
Office Support Staff
Des Moines People’s Choice Winners 2023
Azra Kolz, NRT-P, BS Nutrition
Associate NRT Practitioner and Nutrition Coach
Azra joined the WHC team in October 2023 and has a Bachelors in Nutrition Science from Iowa State University with 9 years of experience working in the holistic health field. She shares the same passion for helping people achieve optimal health through diet & lifestyle changes and other holistic modalities.
Azra is extremely passionate about functional nutrition and getting to root cause issues. Her favorite quote sums it up perfectly : “Food is either the safest and most powerful form of medicine, or the slowest form of poison.” - Ann Winger
When Azra is not helping people look and feel their best, she enjoys hanging out with her husband, dog, friends and family. Azra is always looking to do something active. Some activities she loves include hiking, traveling, rollerblading, trying new restaurants, extreme sports or challenges, and much more!
Nikki Barkhaus, RN, FDN-P, NRT-P
Owner, Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner
My healthcare career began in 1997 as a Certified Medical Assistant (CMA). In 2002, I earned my nursing degree, and I am grateful for the experiences and incredible people I encountered while working in various fields, including pediatrics, cardiology, mother/baby/gynecology, family practice, and home health care.
However, as I faced my own health challenges, I became determined to avoid the chronic illnesses that had impacted my family. I knew there had to be a better way, and my interest in natural health was sparked during my time under chiropractic care. This led me to explore holistic nursing and alternative health options.
In 2019, after experiencing significant health improvements through muscle testing, I decided to further my education at Ulan Nutritional Systems, becoming a Nutrition Response Testing® practitioner. This journey culminated in the opening of Wholistic Health Center in January 2020.
Since then, I have continued to expand my knowledge and am now a certified Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner, enabling me to delve deeper into lab correlations and the root causes of health issues. I strongly believe that nutrition, when applied correctly, is a powerful form of medicine.
My mission is to build healthier communities and shift the healthcare paradigm towards the prevention of chronic illness and disease. I am honored to serve the community where I was raised!
Why choose Wholistic Health Center?
Nikki Barkhaus is the proud owner and lead practitioner of this center with a mission to find the root cause of symptoms through nutritional solutions. Together with her team, they are educating others on how impactful a healthy lifestyle and proactive approach to healthcare can make a difference.
Her values in healthcare began to change as she became more aware of the failing healthcare system. She saw increasing numbers of adults and children who suffered from cancer, autoimmune disease, neurological disease, vaccine injuries, cardiac conditions, digestion problems, and endocrine disorders all with no real cause explained. Knowing what these illnesses cost families, not only financially but emotionally, Nikki felt a strong need to be part of a solution to the healthcare crisis and also take a stance to protect her own health. She literally prayed for the right opportunity to present itself so that she could make a difference in this world and to the people she loves. In the fall of 2018, Nikki was feeling very fatigued, had no energy, was not sleeping well, and had gut issues that she’d battled for years. A friend at work told her about a natural health nutritionist new to Des Moines that she might be interested in seeing. Nikki started following her social media pages for a few weeks, loved what she saw, and made an appointment. Since December of 2018, Nikki have been amazed by nutrition response testing and the results experienced by thousands, including herself.
“During this time on my own designed clinical nutrition program, my husband and I also went in a weight loss program with his chiropractic office that was instrumental in teaching us about food and what is needed for optimal function and weight control. We successfully reset our bodies and made valuable lifestyle choices to feel our best. It is a change I have embraced and become passionate about sharing and now coaching in my own office!
When asked if I was interested in becoming a nutrition response test practitioner, it did not take me long to realize this is what I was meant to do and it was at the right time in my life to make a change. Joining this community of like-mined health professionals brings me great joy knowing that I can give hope to others, find the root cause of their conditions, and naturally restore their health. I am looking forward to being a part of your journey! Together, we can change the healthcare paradigm.”