Functional Medicine · St. Augustine & Ponte Vedra
If you have been told your labs are normal while you still feel exhausted, inflamed, anxious or unwell, you are not imagining it. Our physicians look for the mechanism underneath the symptom — and build a plan around what we find.
20 minutes, by phone No cost, no obligation Speak with our patient care team ★ 4.7 from 83 Google reviews
Why people call us
They have seen several providers. They have a folder of labs. What they do not have is an explanation.
How care works here
We are specific about this because the sequence matters — and because knowing it up front tells you whether we are the right fit before you spend anything.
Step one
A member of our patient care team calls you. You describe what is going on, we explain how we practice, and together you decide whether a full examination makes sense. No medical advice is given on this call.
20 minutes · free
Step two
A full hour with the doctor. History, current concerns, prior records, diet, lifestyle and environment. Intake questionnaires are sent to you once this visit is booked, and any past labs you upload beforehand are reviewed in advance.
60 minutes · with the physician
Step three
Testing is recommended after the examination, never before it — because which panel is worth running depends entirely on what the history turns up. The doctor decides what is appropriate for you.
Ordered only when it will change the plan
Step four
We walk you through what the testing showed and what it means, then build a personalized plan around it — nutrition, targeted supplementation, and the lifestyle changes the findings actually call for.
Reviewed together, then revisited
Areas of care
A partial list. If what you are dealing with is not here, the discovery call is the fastest way to find out whether we can help.
Diagnostics
These are the panels we reach for most often. Which one, if any, is a decision the doctor makes after your examination.
Maps the bacteria, yeast, parasites and inflammatory markers in the gut, including H. pylori and markers of intestinal permeability.
Used for: IBS · SIBO · bloating · chronic digestive symptoms
Dried urine testing for sex hormones, cortisol rhythm and the metabolites that show how your body is processing them — not just a single-point blood draw.
Used for: PCOS · perimenopause · adrenal dysfunction · mood
Mycotoxin and heavy metal panels for patients whose history points toward a water-damaged building or an environmental exposure.
Used for: mold illness · CIRS · unexplained fatigue
Also available when indicated: organic acids (OAT), micronutrient testing, full thyroid panel, MTHFR and other genetic markers, food sensitivity testing, adrenal stress index, neurotransmitter and inflammatory markers, Lyme and co-infection panels.
In their words
Filmed in our office. Unscripted, and worth more than anything we could write here.
A patient's account, in her own words
A patient's account, in her own words
The visit, walked through by our team
From Google
★★★★★ 4.7 out of 5, across 83 Google reviews. Read all of them on Google.
Everyone is so helpful, especially Sean, Michelle and Heather. Dr. Lexi has so much knowledge about the root of issues and how to fix them. I'm excited for my journey.
I have been working with Dr. Thomas Romero for six weeks and have been very impressed by his program and clinical knowledge. After a series of small changes to my diet and supplements, I have been feeling much better and have seen improvement in a number of areas.
Your physicians
Dr. Tommy Romero and Dr. Lexie Romero built Optimal You around the kind of appointment they wanted to be able to offer: an hour of actual attention, a real history, and enough time to think. Patients see the same doctors each visit.
We see adults and children, in person at our St. Augustine office and by video for patients elsewhere in Florida.
Before you call
If you are looking for a provider who takes insurance, or for a same-day prescription, we are not the right practice for you — and we would rather say so now than after you have booked. What we do is slower, more thorough, and aimed at causes rather than symptom control.
Common questions
No. We are a cash-based practice and do not bill insurance. Many of our patients use HSA or FSA funds toward their care. We would rather be direct about this up front than have you find out after booking.
Insurance reimburses short visits and symptom management. The work we do — an hour of history, advanced testing, and a plan built around what the testing shows — doesn't fit inside those rules. Staying outside the system is what lets the doctor spend the time your case actually needs.
Your doctor does, and walks you through them personally. You won't be handed a printout or a portal link and left to make sense of it.
No. Which testing is appropriate is decided after your examination, and the plan is built from what your history and results show. Two people with the same symptom often need very different things.
Yes. We see patients in person at our St. Augustine office and by video for patients elsewhere in Florida.
Usually not. Most of the functional panels we run — stool, urine and saliva collections — are done at home and mailed to the lab. Some conventional bloodwork requires a draw, which can be done at a lab near you.
Twenty minutes on the phone with a member of our patient care team. You describe what's going on, we explain how we practice, and together you decide whether a full examination makes sense. No medical advice is given on this call, and nothing is owed either way.
Next step
Twenty minutes on the phone with our patient care team. You will learn how we practice, we will learn what you are dealing with, and you will leave the call knowing whether a full examination is worth booking. Nothing is owed either way.