Have you ever been to a doctor and felt like you were just a number? Have you ever felt like a doctor has brushed off what you tell them, saying the symptoms are either unrelated or a figment of your own imagination? If so, you’re not alone.
Have you ever had a doctor give you medication for symptoms, only for the symptoms to return after the medication is finished? Knowing when to choose functional medicine can help end this frustrating cycle.
In modern medicine, doctors are focused on treating symptoms associated with disease, while functional medicine is focused on treating the patient. This is what makes functional medicine so incredible and effective for patients.
What is Functional Medicine?
Functional medicine is a different approach to healthcare. The functional medicine model is patient-centered, meaning that the focus is on you as an individual rather than your disease. Functional medicine practitioners take the time to get to know you and your unique health history. With the functional medicine approach, doctors look at all your symptoms and examine the body as a whole to determine what might be causing them.
A functional medicine physician would pair nutritional and lifestyle alteration, rather than prescription medications alone. They understand how the body functions as a whole.
Functional Medicine and Chronic Health Conditions
Functional medicine is a relatively new field that can help treat chronic illnesses and disorders. It has been estimated that chronic disease contributes to almost 90 percent of the national annual healthcare systems. Functional medicine focuses on reversing the chronic disease, rather than just managing or masking the symptoms it creates.
Functional medicine practitioners take a significantly more holistic approach to treatment, looking at all aspects of a person’s life and health to find the root cause of the disease. This approach is different from conventional medicine, which focuses on treating symptoms.
When to Choose Functional Medicine
Be Proactive in Your Health
Functional medicine is a good choice for people who want to take a proactive approach to their health and who want to work with a doctor to find the underlying cause of their illness or condition. It’s also a good choice for people who have chronic conditions that traditional medicine hasn’t been able to effectively treat.
Some conditions that functional medicine doctors commonly treat include:
– Autoimmune diseases
– Digestive problems
– Toxic exposure
– Hormonal imbalances
– Fatigue
– Mood disorders
– Chronic pain
Signs that you may need to see a functional medicine doctor include fatigue, digestive problems, and mood swings. Functional medicine doctors will work with you to find the root cause of your illness or condition. After uncovering the root cause, they create a treatment plan that addresses all aspects of your health.
Functional Medicine is Very Effective in Prevention
Functional medicine is also very effective in prevention. A functional medicine doctor will work with you to find imbalances in your body that could lead to illness or disease. Then they’ll create a plan to address those imbalances and prevent the onset of illness. Treatment plans typically include nutritional and lifestyle alterations, in addition to traditional or conventional medicine.
Disease Prevention is the Best Medicine
Methods of prevention in Functional Medicine include:
– Eating a healthy diet: A functional medicine doctor will work with you to create a diet tailored to your specific needs. They may recommend eating whole, nutritious foods and avoiding processed foods.
– Exercise: A functional medicine doctor will recommend an exercise routine tailored to your needs. They may recommend moderate aerobic exercise, strength training, and stretching.
– Stress reduction: A functional medicine doctor will teach you stress-reduction techniques such as meditation, deep breathing, and yoga.
– Getting adequate sleep: A functional medicine doctor will recommend ways to improve your sleep habits. They may suggest avoiding caffeine and electronics in the evening, establishing a regular bedtime routine, and creating a relaxing environment in your bedroom.
– Supplements: A functional medicine doctor may recommend supplements to correct imbalances in your body. They may also recommend vitamins, minerals, herbs, glandulars, and botanicals.
Functional Medicine is an individualized approach to healthcare. The focus is on you as an individual, not your disease. Functional medicine practitioners take the time to get to know you and your unique health history.
Does Insurance Cover Functional Medicine?
Functional medicine treatments can be expensive because many insurance plans don’t cover them. Insurance companies make their profits off of volume and a “cookie-cutter” model of treatment. Functional medicine treatments are hard to quantify and bill for. Additionally, functional medicine treatments aren’t as profitable as traditional medicine because they solve the problem at its core, rather than treating the symptoms.
Functional Medicine is an Investment in Your Health
Functional medicine is an investment in your health. It’s a long-term commitment to taking care of yourself and your body. The goal of functional medicine is to find the root cause of your illness or condition and address it, so you can live a healthier, happier life.
What Makes Functional Medicine Great?
Functional medicine is great because it’s individualized, it’s focused on prevention, and it’s an investment in your health. It is a good choice for people who want to take a proactive approach to their health and who want to work with a doctor to find the underlying cause of their illness or condition.
There are five core principles of Functional Medicine. They include:
Everyone is different. Both genetically and biochemically.
Not viewing the individual as a disease, but looking at them as a whole person with a unique set of circumstances is where functional medicine is really different from traditional medicine. From a young age, we learn that all humans are unique. Why should it be any different in health care? Each patient comes with their own unique variables, health history, and genetic makeup.
Functional Medicine is based on evidence and science.
Functional medicine is based on the latest scientific research. It’s an evidence-based approach to holistic medicine. This means that the treatments and recommendations are constantly evolving as new information is discovered. Doctors who practice functional medicine have gone through traditional training in addition to learning about holistic and alternative treatment options for their patients. Functional medicine physicians combine their knowledge of conventional medicine, holistic medicine, and modern scientific medicine to help create a treatment plan specific to their patients. The goal is to find the most effective and safe treatment for each individual.
Health is more than the absence of disease.
Functional medicine practitioners believe that true health is not just the absence of disease. It’s a state of physical, mental, and emotional well-being. To achieve this, the root cause of the illness or condition must be addressed. Knowing when to choose functional medicine can help you kick start your health journey in the right direction. Functional medicine can help patients to make lifestyle adjustments where they are happy and healthy, and their body functions properly.
The human body is self-healing.
The human body is designed to heal itself when possible. If the body is in balance, it can do an amazing job of keeping itself healthy. However, when the body is out of balance, it can lead to illness and disease. Functional medicine is designed to not only help people with whatever illness or disease they are experiencing, but also help them to create a healthy lifestyle that will prevent or mitigate future illnesses.
We each have the potential to heal diseases commonly associated with aging.
As we age, our bodies change. We may start to experience diseases and conditions that are common to our parents or grandparents. However, functional medicine physicians believe that we each have the potential to prevent, heal, or mitigate these diseases and maintain our health as we age.
If you’re ready to take charge of your health, contact us. Our team is well-versed in functional medicine and this clinic is led by functional medicine practitioner, Dr. Kelley Mulhern. Knowing when to choose functional medicine can save a lot of time and stress for you as patient.