3,500+ Patients HelpedMetabolic healthcare in Washington, D.C.
Metabolic Health Care that Starts Before the Diagnosis
Your A1c is creeping up, you crash after meals, and the advice so far has been to watch it.
Insulin resistance builds for years before a diabetes diagnosis, and that window is where it can be reversed. One clinician reads it all together (blood sugar, hormones, inflammation, gut health and sleep), tests before treating, and builds a plan to bring your numbers down and keep them there.
Care led by Dr. Isabel Sharkar, NMD, and Snejana Sharkar, FNP, ACNP, RND
“I was quickly diagnosed and treated with targeted supplements and lifestyle changes, and my labs steadily improved to normal.”
Cayce E., Indigo Patient- 4.8/5
- patient rating on Google
- 30+
- years of combined clinical expertise
- 30 min
- free discovery call to start
As featured in
The Warning Signs Before the Diagnosis
Metabolic trouble is quiet for a long time.
By the time fasting glucose crosses the line, insulin has been high for years and the damage has started.
Insulin resistance means your cells have stopped answering insulin, so your pancreas makes more. The excess drives fat storage, inflammation, blood pressure and hormone disruption long before blood sugar itself looks abnormal, which is why fasting glucose alone misses it.
Common signs of insulin resistance
- Weight gain around the middle
- Energy crash after meals
- Sugar and carbohydrate cravings
- Rising A1c or fasting glucose
- High triglycerides, low HDL
- Rising blood pressure
- Skin tags or darkened skin folds
- Fatigue and brain fog
- Difficulty losing weight
- Frequent thirst or urination
- PCOS or irregular cycles
- Fatty liver on a scan
The Complete Picture
A Complete Picture of Your Metabolism
Fasting glucose and A1c are the last markers to move. We test the ones that move first, and the systems around them that decide whether a plan works.
We Evaluate
- 01Fasting insulin and HOMA-IR, alongside glucose and A1c
- 02Advanced lipid panel, including particle size where useful
- 03Inflammatory markers
- 04Complete thyroid panel
- 05Sex hormones and cortisol rhythm
- 06Liver function and fatty liver markers
- 07Nutrient status: vitamin D, magnesium, chromium, B vitamins
- 08Gut microbiome balance
- 09Continuous glucose monitoring where it will inform your plan
How It Works
Your Path to Metabolic Health
01
Advanced Diagnostics & Root-Cause Discovery
Functional and specialty testing maps where your metabolism has gone wrong and why:
- Insulin, glucose and A1c together
- Lipids and inflammatory markers
- Thyroid, adrenal and sex hormone patterns
- Liver and nutrient markers
- Gut testing where indicated
- A continuous glucose monitor to see how your body answers real meals
Every protocol begins with your results.
02
Personalized Metabolic Protocol
Your plan is built around your results, your history and your life:
- Therapeutic nutrition built to lower insulin, not just calories
- Meal timing and movement strategies that fit your day
- Targeted supplements with evidence for insulin sensitivity
- Thyroid and hormone support where they are part of the picture
- Sleep and stress work, because both raise blood sugar
- Medication, including GLP-1 therapies, used thoughtfully where appropriate
No two metabolisms are the same, so no two protocols are.
03
Ongoing Monitoring & Adjustment
Metabolic change is measurable. Your care adapts as your numbers move:
- Glucose data reviewed between visits
- Re-testing of insulin, A1c and lipids at sensible intervals
- Protocol adjustments as your body responds
- Support for the habits that make the change stick
We measure progress on your labs, your waist and your energy.
04
Long-Term Prevention
Staying well means holding the numbers you worked for:
- A maintenance plan for nutrition and movement
- Hormone and thyroid support through life changes
- Periodic reassessment to catch drift early
- Protection for your heart, liver and brain
The aim is a diagnosis you never receive.
Built for Patients Like You
Indigo Health Clinic was founded with one purpose: to give patients the kind of care we wish we had when we were searching for answers.
Our practice is built on compassion, curiosity, and the belief that healing happens when you’re truly seen, heard, and supported. Our integrative team looks beyond symptoms to understand the full picture, your history, lifestyle, environment, labs, and unique physiology.
A multidisciplinary care team
Trained in naturopathic, integrative, functional, and conventional medicine.
Advanced diagnostics and specialty testing
To locate root causes often missed by standard care.
Medical-grade IV therapy & targeted protocols
Tailored to your needs (immune support, detox, nutrient restoration, energy, gut health, etc.).
Long-term, relationship-based care
We don’t just prescribe; we guide, monitor, and adjust as your healing unfolds.
Patient Stories
In Their Own Words
Chronic fatigue, autoimmune flares, Hashimoto's, gut health. These patients came to Indigo for different reasons. Press play and hear what changed.
Beating chronic fatigue without caffeine
Kyra D. · Indigo Patient
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The Indigo Promise
Why Choose Indigo for Metabolic Health?
The Standard Approach
- Fasting glucose once a year and “watch your diet”
- Insulin left out of the panel
- Metformin when the line is crossed
- Thyroid, hormones and sleep treated as unrelated
- Weight treated as willpower, not physiology
- No plan between appointments
- Seven-minute appointments
The Indigo Approach
- Insulin resistance caught years before diabetes
- Testing across hormones, inflammation, liver and gut
- Nutrition built to lower insulin, with support to follow it
- Medication used thoughtfully, with a plan to need less
- Glucose data and labs reviewed as you go
- Heart, liver and brain protected from the start
- Time to be heard at every visit
Starts with a free 30-minute discovery call
3,500+ Patients Helped
What Our Patients Say
“Working with Indigo was the best decision I’ve made for my health. I was quickly diagnosed and treated with targeted supplements and lifestyle changes, and my labs steadily improved to normal. Dr. Sharkar and her team are thorough, effective, and kind. I feel healthier and more energized than I have in over a decade!”
Cayce E.Indigo Patient
Is Indigo Right for You?
We Can Help If You…
If your numbers are drifting and you want a team that acts now, this is the place to start. And if it isn't the right fit, we'll tell you that on the call.
Have been told you are pre-diabetic
Or have a family history and want to stay ahead of it.
Carry weight around your middle that nothing shifts
However carefully you eat.
Crash after meals or crave sugar
And suspect your blood sugar is behind it.
Have type 2 diabetes and want more than medication
Including a plan to need less of it.
Have PCOS, fatty liver or rising blood pressure
Which so often travel with insulin resistance.
Want a long-term partner in your health
With a clinician who knows your history and a plan that changes as you do.
I founded Indigo because I saw too many patients being dismissed, told their symptoms were stress, aging, or just 'how their body is.'
Commonly Asked Questions
Your Questions Answered
If you’re living with pre-diabetes, diabetes or metabolic syndrome, these are the questions we hear most. Yours are welcome on a free discovery call.
Can pre-diabetes be reversed?
Yes, in most cases. Pre-diabetes is insulin resistance that has progressed far enough to show in blood sugar, and insulin resistance responds to changes in nutrition, movement, sleep and hormones. In a large clinical trial, intensive lifestyle change cut progression from pre-diabetes to type 2 diabetes by 58 percent (Diabetes Prevention Program, NEJM, 2002). We see A1c and fasting insulin fall back into range regularly, and we track both so you can see it too.
What is metabolic syndrome?
A cluster of findings that travel together: abdominal weight, high triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, rising blood pressure and rising blood sugar. Having three of the five is the usual definition. Insulin resistance sits underneath all of them, which is why treating it improves the whole cluster.
My fasting glucose is normal. Could I still have insulin resistance?
Yes, and it is common. Insulin rises years before glucose does, because the pancreas keeps blood sugar in range by working harder. Measuring fasting insulin alongside glucose shows that strain while there is still time to act on it.
Do you prescribe GLP-1 medications?
Where they are appropriate, yes. GLP-1 therapies can be a useful tool for some patients with type 2 diabetes or significant metabolic disease. They work best alongside a plan that addresses nutrition, muscle, sleep and hormones, and our aim is always the lowest dose for the shortest time that holds your results.
Will I have to give up carbohydrates?
No. The plan is built around lowering insulin, which usually means changing which carbohydrates you eat, when and with what, rather than removing them. A continuous glucose monitor shows how your body answers specific meals, so the changes are based on your data rather than a generic diet.
How are hormones involved in blood sugar?
Closely. Cortisol raises blood sugar, low thyroid function slows how you use it, and falling estrogen in perimenopause lowers insulin sensitivity. Treating blood sugar without looking at these is why so many plans stall. We test them together.
How soon will my numbers change?
Glucose data on a monitor changes within days of the right adjustments. Fasting insulin moves over weeks, and A1c reflects a three-month average so it follows. Lipids and liver markers take longer. Individual results vary based on health history, condition severity, and personal factors.
Do you accept insurance?
Indigo is a cash-pay practice. This allows us to spend the time your case actually requires, without insurance constraints dictating your care. For eligible services (provider visits, in-clinic blood draws, and vitamin D and B12 injections), we can provide a superbill you may submit to your insurer for possible out-of-network reimbursement. Many patients find the investment worthwhile given the depth of evaluation.
Getting Started
Your Free Discovery Call
Thirty minutes on the phone with our patient care team, so you can ask your questions and find out whether Indigo is the right fit.
- 01Book a time that suits youChoose a slot online in under a minute.
- 02Share your storyTell us what you’ve been living with, and ask us anything. We listen first.
- 03Get your path forwardLeave with clear next steps, whether or not they’re with us.
Rather talk now? Call (202) 499 - 7535
Free · 30 minutes · A clear next step
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We Can Help.
Your Health Won’t Wait. Neither Should You.
The years before a diagnosis are when metabolic change comes easiest. Book your free discovery call and take the first step.
- 30+ Years Expertise
- 4.8/5 Rating
- Licensed Healthcare Provider
Water Front Center, 1010 Wisconsin Ave, NW, Suite #660, Washington, D.C. 20007 · (202) 499 - 7535
DISCLAIMER
The information on this page is intended for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Indigo Integrative Health Clinic provides personalized, data-informed care; individual results vary based on health history, condition severity, and personal factors. Functional medicine services are intended to complement, not replace, care from your primary healthcare provider or specialist. Please consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health protocol.