Functional Nurse Academy Success Stories: Lillian Mueller and Building MÜV+Her

Sep 23 / Melissa Schreibfeder, BSN, RN, BC-FMP

🎧 Listen to my podcast with Lillian below!

When nurses think about what they can do with functional medicine education, opening a private wellness practice may be one of the first paths that comes to mind.

But Functional Nurse Academy graduate Lillian Mueller, RN, BSN took her education in a completely different direction.

Lillian combined her nursing background, interest in functional wellness, and entrepreneurial vision to co-found MÜV+Her, a protein bar company created specifically with women’s nutritional needs in mind.

Her journey is a great example of just how many different directions functional nursing can take you!

Lillian's Story: From Bedside Nursing to Functional Wellness

Lillian began her nursing career at the bedside, with much of her clinical experience focused on hospice care.

Working with hospitalized patients left her feeling like she was fighting a losing battle. Hospice was different. She valued having the opportunity to educate patients and their families, provide comfort, and feel like she was making a meaningful difference during an incredibly vulnerable time.
That experience also made her curious about what healthcare could look like if there were a greater emphasis on nutrition, lifestyle, wellness, and prevention earlier in the process.
Lillian eventually discovered functional medicine and then found Functional Nurse Academy.
I remember actually thinking...there’s no way as a nurse that I can go through this program that’s self-paced and come out on the other side and be able to do exactly what I wanted to do...
She enrolled in FNA while continuing to pursue her long-term educational goals. Today, she is also a Doctor of Nursing Practice, Family Nurse Practitioner student at Vanderbilt University.

But then another opportunity emerged along the way...

Turning Functional Medicine Education Into a Food Business

Lillian and her sister-in-law saw a problem in the food industry that will probably sound familiar to a lot of us. Busy women need convenient food.


Nurses are working long shifts. Moms are running from one responsibility to another. Students and professionals need something they can quickly grab when preparing a complete meal simply isn’t realistic.


But Lillian found that many convenient products required compromising on ingredients or nutritional content.

That eventually led to the creation of MÜV+Her.


Rather than opening the type of functional wellness practice she initially imagined, Lillian found herself applying what she had learned to the development of a food product.


As she explained during our conversation, they wanted to create something they would personally want to eat while also raising the standard for women’s nutrition.

Why the Front of a Food Package Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story

One of the biggest topics Lillian and I discussed was how confusing food marketing can be.

Words like “clean,” “natural,” “better for you,” and “high-protein” can make a product sound healthy, but Lillian encourages consumers to turn the package over and actually examine the nutrition facts and ingredients. 

She recommends starting by asking what purpose the food is serving. Is it a quick snack? Something before or after a workout? A convenient breakfast?


From there, she looks at factors including:

  • Serving size
  • Amount and source of protein
  • Fiber
  • Total and added sugars
  • Fat sources
  • The ingredient list


She also reminds consumers that ingredients are listed by weight, meaning the first ingredients make up the greatest proportion of the product.


It’s a relatively simple habit, but it can help people look beyond front-of-package marketing and make more informed food choices.

Prefer to watch? Watch my interview with Lillian below!

Protein Quality Matters, Too

Protein has become a major focus in the wellness world, but Lillian emphasizes that looking at the number of grams on a package isn’t enough. The source and quality of that protein matter, too.

During our conversation, Lillian discussed differences between animal and plant protein sources, complete proteins, essential amino acids, and protein digestibility.

Plant proteins can absolutely be part of someone’s diet, including for those who choose them for religious, dietary, or personal reasons. Lillian’s emphasis is on understanding the nutritional differences between protein sources so people can make choices that work for their individual needs.

For MÜV+Her, Lillian and her co-founder ultimately chose a combination that includes organic egg-white protein and grass-fed collagen.

Adding Functional Ingredients With Intention

MÜV+Her isn’t intended to replace individualized supplementation or medical care.

In fact, Lillian made an important distinction during our conversation: functional does not mean medicinal.

Instead, she and her co-founder incorporated food-level amounts of functional ingredients into the bars as part of the overall formulation.

Those ingredients include magnesium glycinate, L-theanine, choline, vitamin B6, and L-glutamine.
We discussed why they selected these particular ingredients and the research they reviewed during the formulation process.

That commitment to evidence is something Lillian carried directly from her FNA education into her business.

How Functional Nurse Academy Helped Lillian Build Her Business

Toward the end of our conversation, I asked Lillian how Functional Nurse Academy contributed to her professional development.

One thing she particularly valued was the flexibility of the program.

During her time in FNA, Lillian had a newborn, moved, got married, started her doctorate program, and launched a company. (whew!) Being able to work through FNA at her own pace gave her the flexibility to spend more time on topics that interested her without feeling pressured by constant deadlines.

She also valued having research and supporting articles incorporated throughout the program. But one of her favorite parts was something different: the business education.


Lillian shared that FNA’s education around business, legal considerations, websites, social media, and using your education professionally helped her not only think about her future clinical practice, but also build MÜV+Her.


As she explained:

You get the education, you get the science behind the education, and then you get the business tips so that way you can go and use the education…
I love seeing our graduates take what they learn and apply it in ways I never could have predicted when I first created Functional Nurse Academy!

There Isn’t Just One Path for a Functional Nurse

Lillian’s story demonstrates something I want more nurses to understand: your functional medicine education doesn’t have to lead you down one predetermined career path.

Some FNA graduates open private functional wellness practices. Others find positions within functional medicine clinics. Some combine functional nursing with another nursing specialty.

And graduates like Lillian are finding entirely different ways to bring their healthcare knowledge into entrepreneurship. Today, she is continuing her education while building MÜV+Her and working toward her longer-term goal of clinical practice.

Her path has already included several pivots, and that’s part of what makes her story so interesting.

Functional nursing gave her another set of tools to combine with the nursing education and experience she already had, and she found a way to use those tools in an industry that might not immediately come to mind when you think about nursing: the food system.

About Lillian Mueller, RN, BSN

Lillian Mueller is a registered nurse specializing in functional medicine, a Functional Nurse Academy graduate, and co-founder of MÜV+Her, a women’s nutrition company focused on raising the standard for convenient, functional nutrition.

Through her clinical experience, Lillian saw how often busy women were undernourished, overextended, and relying on convenient foods that didn’t support their nutritional needs. That experience, along with motherhood, inspired her to co-found MÜV+Her and create better options designed to keep up with busy women.


MÜV+Her Website: https://www.muvbars.com/

Frequently Asked Questions About Becoming a Functional Nurse

What is a functional nurse?

A functional nurse is a licensed nurse who applies the principles of functional medicine to educate and empower clients by helping them identify and address potential root causes of health concerns. Functional nurses focus on nutrition, lifestyle, sleep, stress management, environmental influences, and other evidence-informed approaches while practicing within their nursing scope of practice.

What is the difference between a functional practice owned by a NP and RN or LPN?

Nurse practitioners may operate a medical practice where permitted by state law. Depending on their state's regulations, NPs may diagnose medical conditions, order and interpret laboratory testing, prescribe medications, and provide medical treatment.

RNs and LPNs can own and operate independent wellness-focused functional nursing practices. Rather than diagnosing or treating medical conditions, they educate and empower clients through personalized wellness plans, nutrition and lifestyle education, health coaching, specialty laboratory education and on going support.

How Do Non-Advanced Practice Functional Nurses Utilize Laboratory Testing?

RNs and LPNs can access both conventional and specialty laboratory testing through partnerships with functional medicine laboratories. These partnerships allow nurses to order testing through a physician network at affordable wholesale pricing, while practicing within their professional scope.

While nurse practitioners (NPs) may have the authority to diagnose medical conditions and independently order laboratory testing depending on their state laws, non-advanced practice nurses use laboratory data to educate clients about potential patterns of dysfunction. Laboratory findings can also help guide personalized wellness recommendations and support collaboration with the client's healthcare team to optimize health outcomes.

Please note: Certain states, including New Jersey (NJ) and Rhode Island (RI), have restrictions on laboratory ordering through some functional medicine laboratory networks.

Does Functional Nurse Academy provide continuing education for nurses?

Functional Nurse Academy is an approved provider of continuing nursing education. Graduates receive 90 nursing contact hours, approved for LPNs, RNs, and NPs.

The program combines comprehensive functional medicine education with practical application, case studies, and business mentorship, giving nurses the knowledge, tools, and confidence to launch and grow their own functional wellness businesses.

Can I become board certified after completing Functional Nurse Academy?

Yes! Functional Nurse Academy graduates are eligible for the following practitioner level board certifications through American Association of Natural Wellness Practitioners (AANWP)

  • Functional Medicine Nurse Specialist | BC-FMNS
  • Functional Medicine Practitioner | BC-FMP
  • Functional Wellness Professional | BC-FWP
  • Christian Wellness Practitioner | BC-CWP (for students completing our optional Christian content)

Below are the coaching credentials that our graduates qualify for through the American Association of Natural Wellness Coaches (AANWC)

  • Functional Nurse Health Coach | BC-FNHC
  • Functional Health Coach | BC-FHC

This program has been peer-reviewed and is endorsed by The American Holistic Nurses Association

CEs earned from the Functional Nurse Academy meet CE eligibility requirements for the following American Holistic Nurses Association board certification titles:

  • HN-BC® (Holistic Nurse Board Certified)
  • HNB-BC® (Holistic Nurse Baccalaureate Board Certified)
  • AHN-BC® (Advanced Holistic Nurse Board Certified)
  • APHN-BC® (Advanced Practice Holistic Nurse Board Certified)
  • NC-BC® (Nurse Coach Board Certified)

What is included in enrollment?

Functional Nurse Academy is the leading and most comprehensive functional nursing program on the market for LPN, RN and NP. Enrollment includes the following:

  1. 90 Nursing Contact Hours of functional nursing education
  2. Multiple Board Certification Pathways in functional medicine and holistic nursing
  3. Functional Nurse Toolkit with business resources and practice-building tools
  4. Social Media & Marketing Kit with 9 months of content, brochures, and business card templates
  5. 40+ Advanced Trainings covering functional medicine and business strategy (available in FNA monthly mentorship library)
  6. Six Months of FNA’s Monthly Mentorship Program FREE, including live educational trainings and 60 minutes of live Q&A each month, all hosted by FNA Founder Melissa Schreibfeder, BSN, RN, BC-FMP, plus case studies and full access to the mentorship library.
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Ready to take the next step?

I’m so happy you’re interested in functional nursing! I’d love to connect with you at my next live informational + Q&A webinar, where you’ll learn all about functional nursing, how nurses across the country are launching their own functional wellness businesses, and how you can get started.

You’ll also have the opportunity to meet me live and get all of your questions answered!

Just click below to save your seat! I hope to see you there!

-Melissa Schreibfeder, BSN, RN, BC-FMP Founder & CEO, Functional Nurse Academy