About Us

We are certified health counselors and co-founders of Just Habits™for life, a company dedicated to improvement of the mind, heart and body through the application of healthy changes in lifestyle and nutrition. We received our education and certification in holistic health counseling from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, which is afflicted with Columbia University. We also received a national certification from The American Association of Drugless Practitioners.


Testimonials

I was so lucky to have met Rose! I have had Lyme Disease for 2 years. I knew that nutrition was important to my recovery, but didn’t know what foods were the best for me. Rose met with me and slowly we began to change my diet. I think that it was important and wise that Rose introduced the changes gradually. I had a nutritional goal to meet after each visit and I looked forward to the challenge of attaining it. I found Rose to be very caring, knowledgeable, and realistic about the way people eat. She became a real cheerleader for my success and return to good health. She introduced me to foods that I never would have tried and that are now a staple in my diet. Thank you Rose for sharing you expertise, you made a big difference in my life.
Mary Chamberlain
September, 2008

"Although I realize that true behavioral change always takes personal effort,
having Mary as a coach to inspire and support me has made a tremendous
difference in the amount and depth of positive change I have made in a
short six months. We explored many negative patterns from decades of living
and with her encouragement and insights I have replaced them with new,
healthier ones. I believe that the circle of people we surround ourselves with
is very important in life. If you can find someone who "sincerely" listens to
who we are and cares about helping you find what is possible in your life
it can make the journey of change easier. Mary has helped me by holding up
the mirror to "my" reality and asking me if this is what I want in life. Her
support has helped me to make change a "fun" process and to realize that
a life well lived is a precious gift....
Carol T.
Shelton, CT


I spent twenty years eating frozen food because it seemed like cooking healthy meals
was too much trouble. After working with Mary I learned how simple it was to create
nutritious and delicious meals at home. She gave me recipes and sent me all kinds of
wonderful things to try, from seaweed to quinoa. She taught me about a few foods that
I had never heard of or tried before.

Mary never made me feel bad because of my lack of culinary skills. She always
encouraged me to take baby steps and try new things. She laid out plan that made
sense to me, adding new things to my diet each session. Mary’s creativity and gentle
encouragement made it easy to see that I could incorporate healthy eating habits into
my life without a lot of trouble.

Today, I rarely eat frozen food and I have learned to shop better. I prepare food ahead
of time, so when I come home and I’m starving I don’t have to rely on frozen food for
a quick meal. Thanks Mary, for teaching me healthier ways to take care of myself.
It’s truly been a pleasure working with you.

Chris P.
Certified Business Life Coach
Hartford, CT


Over the years, I’ve tried every diet, exercise machine and video tape you could buy. I
was all over the place. I wanted big results and I wanted them now. Rose brought me
back to earth and got me to focus on the big picture with a slow and steady approach.
She was able to get me to think about myself and my life in a whole new way.She
opened my eyes to realizing I didn’t need a diet,I needed a life change and that it would
involve being consistent with my good choices and adding exercise and activity to my
schedule. I find our talks to be very helpful and allow me to realize when I am not
helping myself and to hear Rose’s views help me to refocus. Her tips are always great.
For example, her recommendation to keep a journal was big win. It lets me see when and
where I stumble and is helping us to discover the root cause of my problem. Rose sets
goals that are realistic which is paving the way to my success. Thank you!

Chris V.
East Brunswick, NJ

Rose and the Just Habits program has been a tremendous positive experience for me. I
not only learned how to eat healthy, but appreciate good food. I have found something
that I love to do (dance) and used it as my exercise, so not only am I conditioning my
body, but I am enjoying it as well. It doesn't feel like work. I have found my center,
emotionally, spiritually, and physically and I am working everyday to keep it. Speaking
with Rose on a bi-weekly basis helped me immensely. It kept me focused, and when I
fell off track, my body talked to me and let me know it and my health practitioner
brought me back to my center.

Everyday I learn more and more and continue to change my poor eating habits into
positive and healthy eating habits. I have encouraged my children and fiancé’ to join me
on this journey and they are slowly developing these new "habits" as I have.

Thank you Rose. I will always be grateful for your help and faith in me.

Esther P.
Staten Island, NY


I began working with Mary in January of 2007, right after 4 and a half months of travel that left me with a low immune system, a mess of an eating pattern, an injured knee and a few pounds that weren’t natural to my body.
Then a junior in college who had just decided after international medical experiences, that integrative medicine would be my career choice. I realized that if this was going
to be what I preached, it’d have to be what I practiced. As an already “healthy” person, a vegan and a dancer, I didn’t know what to do to get myself back in order, I’d hit a brick wall. However, in February, just a short time after beginning my journey with Mary, I already felt like a new person. I was conscious of my food decisions, knowledgeable on how to cook and what went into my mouth and more and more ready to begin to tackle a whole new lifestyle. By then end of my six months not only had I become a new healthy person who had fulfilled all of my goals throughout the program, but I felt that I was ready to help make others feel the way I had, the way Mary had helped me. A few months of a busy summer soon consumed my life and time until I was able to sit back and reflect on what I was going to do with my time after graduation before delving into the application process to medical school. At this time along with stress relief, I literally began to feel the pounds melt away. It was as if months of changing my lifestyle had built up to a single moment when my body said, “I’m ready”. It was when I changed my MIND and my HEART, that my BODY decided it would do the same and it knew I was sincere. Now, lighter than I’ve been in five years, constantly dancing on a strong knee and healthier than I ever imagined, I have made a decision on what I’ll be doing after my May graduation. I will be entering the Integrative Nutrition program myself. So I can do what Mary did for me, I can only hope I am half the counselor, coach, mentor and friend that she was! Thank you Mary for helping me to realize what were “just habits” in order to turn them into a way of life!

Robin O.,
Boston, MA


I’d like to thank you Rose for going out of your way to show me around the Whole Foods market and encourage me that alternative measures were available to help me with my health issues. The detox teas and other blood cleansing foods you introduced me to helped tremendously. When I started the program, I was sleepy halfway through the day and would stop to take naps frequently. The changes in my diet and reduction in sugar have helped me to feel better overall and I have not stopped for my nap in a long time.

Additionally, after learning from you how to maintain a balanced diet, including the detox teas, green vegetables, more water, and less sugar, I was able to stop using the antidepressant Paxil that I relied on for the past eight years. I am feeling much better without it, and have more energy.

Another point I would like to make is that we started our sessions approximately a year and a half ago, and never in my life have I gone this long without a common cold or flu of some kind.

You also pointed out something none of my family doctors and liver specialists have ever mentioned: the fact that I was working with chemicals in my landscaping business that could easily be entering my bloodstream and causing more damage to my liver. I handle these things more carefully now and have even turned work away.

Rose, I could go on and on, but I just wanted you to know how much you have helped me, and I’m sure the changes made have added quality time onto my life. Thank you very much for going out of your way and making it fun.

Respectfully yours,
Paul T.,
Cape May Courthouse, NJ


2 years ago I was slightly lost and unconvinced I would ever lose any of the weight I needed to lose. I kept watching the numbers on the scale creep higher and I felt overwhelmed with the task at hand. Not only was my self-esteem low, I was also scared for my health. Mary, who happens to be my aunt, swooped in to rescue me and introduced me to her program, Just Habits. From the very first session, I had opened up more than I ever had about my eating habits and some of my underlying motivations behind the food I was putting in my mouth. Over the course of the program I began to learn and understand more about nutrition and began little by little to break old habits. Substituting food I normally would eat for healthier options took a little getting used to, but I then found myself craving egg white omelets and hummus with whole grain chips. I love to cook so I began to explore new recipes and began to try all kinds of new, healthy foods; Glorious Greens is probably my favorite cookbook. Suddenly the overwhelming task didn't seem so hopeless and sure enough I started to lose weight. I added yoga and walking to my daily activities and for the first time in my life I was watching the numbers on the scale go down. 43 pounds later I feel more fantastic than I ever have in my entire life. I still have a ways to go, but it doesn't seem as daunting as it once was. It's amazing how a lot of little changes in your life can lead to one amazing change. As to where I am right now, I am going broke buying clothes!

Jen T.
Brooklyn, New York