Many people seek out functional medicine after feeling fed up with the conventional approaches to their conditions that offer no real solution. In this post, you’ll learn how functional medicine can help you and why I believe it is the medicine of the future.

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CAN YOU ANSWER YES TO THIS QUESTION?

Do you dream of the day you wake up without pain or bloating and with so much energy and vibrance, ready to take on the day? To live your life again by doing the things that light you up because you aren’t held back by your symptoms of autoimmunity?

I did too.

And that’s why I set out to study and pursue functional medicine nutrition over 15 years ago in an effort to solve my own health struggles. To read more about my own personal health journey that motivated me to help hundreds of men and women heal leaky gut and reverse autoimmunity, you can read more here. 

Now, let’s first start with the basics.

WHAT EXACTLY IS FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE?

Functional Medicine is a system–based approach that focuses on identifying and addressing the root cause of disease that views the human body in its entirety, instead of solely looking at its parts. It respects the importance of bio-individuality and takes a preventative approach to health. Functional medicine searches for the root cause of symptoms, instead of simply masking symptoms and putting on a band-aid. That’s right, it’s time to say good-bye to the overused prescription pad and dig deeper! 

As an example, this graphic below illustrates how a single diagnosis can be the result of more than one cause. Each symptom or differential diagnosis may be one of many contributing to an individual’s illness. Leaky gut  is NOT a diagnosis, it is a result of one or more imbalances that happen over time, leading to intestinal permeability caused by many different factors, including inflammation. 

The precise manifestation of each cause depends on the individual’s genes, environment, diet, stress, and lifestyle–and only treatments that address the right cause will have lasting benefit beyond symptom suppression. Alternatively, it uses food, natural supplements, and lifestyle changes to promote health and wellness throughout the body. Functional medicine combines science and intuition to provide a comprehensive approach to prevention and healing.

This is why if you ask me, functional medicine is the way of the future!

Functional medicine combines science and intuition to provide a comprehensive approach to prevention and healing. Share on X

THE SINKING BOAT…

Think of it this way: If you were in a sinking boat, would your primary focus be to splash water out of the boat? Or do you think it would be more productive to find the leak and fix it as quickly as possible? That’s right, finding the source of the leak is your best bet for survival. 

Unfortunately, this sinking boat is an all-too-accurate depiction of how the medical world views our health. We experience symptom after symptom and visit doctor after doctor, only to find ourselves feeling worse.

Why?

We’re frantically trying to bail water out of the boat before it’s eventually fully submerged! In functional medicine, we fight to find the water leak, aka the root cause of your symptoms. As a result, we can address the cause of your illness and heal the body from the inside out. It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? Well, it is! Because at its core, functional medicine is about nothing or no one other than YOU. 

Functional medicine can help anyone and everyone. Really, it’s true. By taking a preventive approach to health, functional medicine can benefit you, even if you aren’t suffering from any noticeable symptoms. Truth be told, many of us are so used to feeling so bad that chronic symptoms start to feel normal. By working with a functional medicine practitioner, you can identify these chronic symptoms, heal your body, and feel better than ever.

However, if you’re reading this, I’m willing to bet you’re on the other end of the spectrum. That is, your symptoms cover you from head to toe and you are constantly spinning your hamster wheel, just to end up at the same place you started (or if not worse). You might even be willing to sell your left arm to feel relief, and eventually give up and settle for accepting this as your normal. Did I hit the nail on the head? Well, I have good news: functional medicine can help you, too! 

Do any of these symptoms sound familiar?

• Brain fog
• Fatigue
• Bloating and gas
• Constipation
• Diarrhea
• Skin issues
• Hormonal imbalances
• GERD or acid reflux
• Insomnia
• Frequent colds and infections

If so, there’s a high chance your body is screaming for help and trying to communicate with you. I’m here to tell you that It is NOT normal to feel these on a daily basis. By working with a functional practitioner, you can determine the broken, sick, and damaged parts of your body. And better yet, create a customized protocol and roadmap just for you.

One of the things I love about practicing functional nutrition is that it gives me the chance to individualize plans and come up with a roadmap based on the unique needs of that person. It allows me to really listen and pay attention to what is going on, and make therapeutic dietary and lifestyle decisions based on key areas that need the most attention–rather than a generic plan that is given to everyone. 

If you are thinking about giving functional medicine a chance, know that choosing a functional medicine practitioner to work with is an extremely important decision. You want to find someone that is qualified, experienced, and passionate. More importantly, you should only work with a practitioner that you trust completely.

When searching for the right practitioner for you, I suggest look for the following credentials:

• IFM Board Certified Practitioner (search the database, here)
• Licensed Naturopathic Doctor 
• Functional Medicine MD
• Functional Medicine Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) with an IFNCP credential

While the combination of becoming an RD along with IFNCP and IFM certifications has given me an amazing education to help clients, I do find the best education is true hands-on experience. I suggest finding someone through a referral who has been getting results for their clients based on real life testimonials and examples. 

Pursuing a functional approach to healing may just be the best thing you ever do. After all, what’s better than healing your body, feeling better than ever before, and improving your quality of life? In my opinion, not much.

Ask yourself this question, what is it costing you not to??