Our Team
Who We Are
Bengi B. Melton, M.D.
Integrative Psychiatrist
Dr. Melton is a board-certified integrative psychiatrist specializing in the assessment and treatment of adults. A physician for 31 years, she spent three decades learning and practicing psychiatry. She has lived in Houston, Texas since 2000 beginning with her psychiatry residency training at Baylor College of Medicine. Her philosophy blends both western allopathic diagnosis and treatment models as well as eastern philosophies. "My goal is to help each person find a balance that works best for them to achieve their individual goals. I always enjoy spending extra time with my patients to get to know them as a whole person. I strive to learn about treatments which can help beyond the traditional treatments." Dr. Melton completed fellowships in Psychodynamic Psychotherapy and Integrative Psychiatry. She completed research in posttraumatic stress disorder and suicidal behaviors. Her other clinical interests include posttraumatic growth, women's mental health, working with LGBTQIA and HIV positive individuals, and reducing stigma and improving access to mental health treatment. She incorporates evidence-based psychotherapies such as dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) and in the past several years she has been expanding her knowledge and practice in ketamine treatment and other psychedelics. Dr. Melton is passionate about discovering nature, traveling, hiking, practicing, and teaching yoga and yoga-nidra meditation.
Megan Vardeman, PA-C
Clinic Director
Functional Medicine Provider
Megan is a co-founder, Clinic Director, and functional medicine specialist serving patients in Galveston Island. She attended PA school in West Texas at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, graduated with her Master's degree in 2012, and began practicing medicine in 2013. She worked in Internal Medicine, Primary Care, and Pediatric Surgery before pursuing a fellowship with the Integrative Psychiatry Institute. Megan co-founded YWP to provide more personalized, integrative, and depth-oriented care to those who seek it. "The realities I encountered during those initial years of practice led to my passion to look further and to recognize that the deep answers lie outside of traditional medicine. I believe that our mind, body, and spirituality are intimately interconnected. Our beliefs, values, and experiences impact our daily habits, decisions, and actions. I genuinely look forward to working with my patients and helping them navigate a journey to better health." Megan works with patients to provide wellness consultations, lifestyle and health coaching, functional testing and diagnosis, and IV nutritional therapy. Megan lives along the upper Texas coast with her husband, four children, and dogs. She enjoys homeschooling her kids, shelling, and fishing. She is deeply rooted in her Christian faith and loves her local church family.
Monique Baumann
MS, APRN, FNP-C
Functional Medicine Provider
Monique has over 25 years of experience in the profession of nursing, the last five of which as a fully licensed and board certified nurse practitioner in the field of family medicine. Monique’s lifelong pursuit of assessing and addressing the underlying causes of imbalance and dis-ease has led her to explore several non-traditional healing modalities in addition to nursing. She has been certified in Reiki for over 25 years, is a certified Hatha Yoga instructor and most recently became certified in Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy. Her desire to serve as a bridge between Eastern and Western healing modalities inspired her to pursue her Masters in Science degree from Texas Woman’s University. As a nurse practitioner, Monique has had the opportunity to work in primary care, internal medicine and functional medicine environments. She holds a certificate in Gerontology and specializes in dementia care supporting optimal brain functioning and improving cognitive decline. “The body is the most intelligent machine and is best supported by restoring circadian rhythms, improving intestinal flora, eliminating exposures to sources of toxins in food, products, and environment, and by aligning with health mentally and emotionally. I aim to both help individuals uncover these sources of imbalance, and to provide resources for restoring a sense of wellness.”
Wendellyn Young
MS, APRN, FNP-C
IV Nutrition and Ketamine Provider
Wendellynn graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University with her Bachelors of Science in Nursing. Working as a highly skilled bedside nurse for 20 years, she was able to balance quality patient care with building connections of trust and empathy to facilitate comfort for her patients and their families. During this time she was widely recognized and awarded for her bedside manner and patient advocacy. Her passion for her work inspired her to pursue her master's degree as a Family Nurse Practitioner. She holds a Masters of Science from the University of Texas Arlington and is board certified through the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. As a nurse practitioner, she has developed her skills in promoting health and wellness with certifications in intravenous nutrition, injectables, and aesthetics. Wendellynn provides compassionate care to her patients, enthusiastically helping them to achieve and maintain their health goals. She brings her warmth and skill to our patients receiving ketamine infusions and IV nutrition. In her spare time, Wendellynn enjoys being a great mom to three beautiful children, traveling, exploring and learning about other cultures.
Kriste Babbitt, M.D.
Medical Director
Dr. Babbitt has been treating patients in private practice since completing her residency in Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine in 2012. She completed fellowships in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy and the Integrative Psychiatry Institute's Certified Integrative Psychiatric Provider program, and has extensive training in trauma-related disorders. "Mental health, just like physical health, requires a balance between resources and demands. The biological correlate to psychological stress is inflammation, resulting from acute or chronic challenges to our natural and preferred state of being. These processes work not only in parallel, but they also interweave with each other in obvious and sometimes subtle ways. As I explored more of these connections, it became increasingly apparent to me that optimal psychic wellness cannot exist in the absence of physiologic wellness." Dr. Babbitt co-founded YWP to integrate depth-oriented approaches to functional and physical wellness with depth-oriented psychiatric and psychotherapeutic services, and she enjoys supporting her fellow YWP clinicians in this mission from behind-the-scenes.
