No one knows you as you do. For decades, doctors have been considered the experts on our health. Doctors are experts in Medicine; you are the expert of you! This makes you an essential part of your care team. We live in a time that allows us all access to the information and testing that can give us our power back.
It is common for someone who feels their health is declining to go to the doctor and be told their labs are normal and they are fine. It isn’t that the doctors aren’t doing their jobs. Sadly, people are often offered an antidepressant prescription when doctors can’t find an explanation for how they are feeling.
The traditional western medicine model is broken. It does not serve the healthcare needs of today. It is an acute care medicine. It is not designed for health optimization or to manage chronic illness. Doctors can’t spend enough time with their patients to truly get to the drivers of disease. The tests they run are the bare minimum, and insurance companies determine treatment pathways. The model is designed to diagnose illness and treat symptoms, not to ask why illness is occurring and treat it at the root cause level.
Functional Medicine looks at the body as a whole, integrated system and is truly health care. Functional Medicine lab testing is advanced, deep-level testing. It can help determine why the body is struggling and how we can optimize true wellness and longevity.
An example of how different the testing is:
One common issue people struggle with that goes undiagnosed in western Medicine is thyroid issues. Typically, western Medicine tests only one marker for thyroid function (TSH). If that falls within what the lab considers “in range,” the patient is told their thyroid function is fine. In contrast, a typical Functional Medicine thyroid panel tests six to eight markers. It can better identify less-than-optimal thyroid function. Not only does this allow people to address their thyroid challenges sooner, but it also allows for more accurate treatment.
For years, I was one of those patients who told my doctors that I thought I had thyroid issues. After several years of telling me I was fine, they finally prescribed thyroid medication because my TSH was just out of range. I took that medication for several years, never noticing any benefit. When I learned about Functional Medicine thyroid panels, I asked my doctor to run those tests. Since I had several autoimmune diagnoses at the time, I wondered what else I could learn through Functional Medicine testing. I realized that I had been on the wrong medication for years. I found myself a fantastic Functional Medicine Doctor, and my healing journey began.
There are Functional Medicine lab panels that address almost anything in the body. We can now look deeper at what is going on through panels that address: comprehensive wellness, gut health, brain health, cardiac health, toxins, food sensitivities, and more. We can reverse illness and live longer, healthier lives through the information gained in these panels. Functional Medicine is truly Anti-Aging Medicine and Longevity Medicine.
No one should ever be told that their chronic illness diagnosis is permanent and irreversible. That is only true in the western model. With proper testing and a root cause approach, the body can heal.
It is exciting that the public can now access Functional Medicine testing, even if they don’t have a Functional Medicine Provider. This is how it should be. We all have the right, and the responsibility, to be our own healthcare advocates.
We no longer need permission to access the essential information about our health that Functional Medicine testing provides to understand what support our bodies need to thrive.
Whether you are looking to identify the drivers of chronic illness so you can reverse your symptoms and heal, or you want to uplevel your health and live younger for longer, Functional Medicine labs give you the information you need. Knowledge is power.
It is time to take your power back!