OUR APPROACH
The biology underneath the symptoms.
I look for the biology underneath your child's symptoms — in the gut, sleep, nutrients, immune system, and genomics, using testing chosen for your child. Then we rebuild in phases over about six months, one change at a time, in an order your child's body can handle. That is the whole approach. The rest of this page is how it works.
One change at a time, in the order your child's body can handle.
1. THE STARTING POINT
You have done everything right.
If you are reading this page, you have probably already done everything right. You showed up to the appointments. You tried the sticker charts, the earlier bedtimes, the diet changes. And something is still off.
You are not failing your child, and you are not overreacting. Something is being missed. Finding it is my job.
2. BEHAVIOR IS A CLUE
Behavior is not the problem. It is the clue.
Meltdowns, picky eating, sleepless nights, and big feelings are not character flaws. They are information.
When a child's body is struggling, behavior is often the first place it shows. So instead of asking how to stop a behavior, I ask what the behavior is telling us.
Meltdowns
A nervous system asking for regulation, not a child asking for punishment.
Sleepless nights
A signal of cortisol rhythm, mineral status, or airway — not a parenting failure.
Picky eating
Often sensory, often gut-driven, rarely a discipline issue.
Big feelings
Where the body is struggling, behavior is the first place it shows.
3. THE PROCESS
The Missing Piece Method: Reveal, Rebuild, Rewire.
Reveal
We start with your child's story, in detail, and then choose testing that fits it. History first, labs second.
Rebuild
Gut first, calm before clearing, one new thing at a time. The order is the strategy: a body absorbs and tolerates the next step better when the foundation is set. See the six month plan.
Rewire
Sleep, regulation, and rhythm at home, so the gains hold. This is where the plan becomes a calmer daily life your family can keep.
4. WHAT I TRACK
The Foundational Five
Every visit, we check the five signals that matter most for your child. Not a hundred data points. Five that tell us whether we are on the right track — chosen for what your child actually has going on.
Stool & bowels
Sleep
Breathing
Food & appetite
Movement, mood & regulation
Communication & engagement
5. WHERE WE SERVE
In person in Omaha, and by telehealth in six states.
In Person
Omaha, Nebraska
Telehealth
Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, Virginia
Not on that list? Reach out anyway. I would rather tell you honestly what I can and can't do than leave you guessing, and if I can't see you I'll point you toward someone who can.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Amy Patton, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC
Pediatric nurse practitioner and founder of Happy Kid Functional Medicine
I'm a pediatric nurse practitioner with more than a decade of clinical experience, and the founder of Happy Kid Functional Medicine in Omaha, Nebraska. I started my career in underserved communities and spent years in primary care watching the same children come back with the same unresolved symptoms, handed from specialist to specialist while nobody actually got to the bottom of it. I built this practice so those families would have somewhere else to go.
More about Amy Patton, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC
If this is an emergency, do not wait on me. If your child is in crisis right now, call or text 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or go to your nearest emergency department. For a sudden severe medical change, heavy bleeding, trouble breathing, or a seizure, call 911 or your child’s pediatrician.
I am the person you call about the plan we built together, about a reaction to something we started, and about symptoms getting worse on my watch.
LAST WORDS
Bring your story. I will tell you honestly whether I can help.
The first step is a free 15 minute call. No pressure, no scripts, just a real conversation about your child, and an honest read on whether functional medicine is the right next step. Book your free call →
With you in this, Amy
Amy Patton, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC · Happy Kid Functional Medicine