10 Things I Cannot Live Without

Photography by Matt Marcinkowski

What was once a long-time restaurant known as Busch’s Grove, and briefly a market, the space still houses a place of sustenance: PALM Health. It’s a state-of-the-art wellness center that holds a serene, inviting environment, offering a comprehensive range of highly personalized health and wellness services. It’s a center that in less than a year, surpassed expectations by hosting more than 1,300 members.

PALM, which stands for Personalized Advanced Lifestyle Medicine, is also the brainchild of Dr. Lauren Munsch Dal Farra, a St. Louis native and cardiologist. Through her work with patients and studies of different healing approaches all over the world, Dr. Dal Farra recognized the need for a haven like PALM. It also includes a small café filled with healthier dietary choices, crafted by her husband, Brice, the head chef.

With a daily focus on the physical, emotional and mental health of each and every client that enters PALM, and tackling the outside world through her charitable work as founder and Chairman of the Anthropedia Foundation, we asked Dr. Dal Farra what matters most in her own world.

1. Faith and a sense of purpose. 

2. Opportunities to create__”to build, take risks, problem solve, and grow.”

3. “My community. I am grateful to be surrounded by an incredible foundation of inspirational friends and family, and to collaborate with the dedicated and courageous PALM team.”

4. Morning meditations.

5. A sense of humor and a good belly laugh.

6. Recharge days that include meditation, mineral baths, exercise, steam, infrared sauna, salt room sessions, and massages.

7. Travel and cultural explorations. “My favorite is trips to my husband's family home in Southern France where there is spectacular coastal light on the Mediterranean.”

8. Nature: Sunshine, clean air, and fresh cold water, “especially for polar plunges!”

9. Brice, husband, partner, and best friend.

10. Her sons, William and Bastien.

Caption: Dr. Lauren Munsch Dal Farra, Founder & CEO of PALM Health, inside the Salt Therapy Room, created from several tons of pure Himalayan Salt from mines in Pakistan.