The rise of functional medicine and integrative care is transforming how we look at health, for both individuals and healthcare practitioners alike. We are moving away from the traditional focus on symptom suppression and disease management and toward seeking and addressing the root causes of illness to cultivate lasting health and wellness. The way the practices, such as the services provided by im nutrition at Austin FMC, showcase that tailored treatments can work as complimentary to your conventional medical plan and still promote wellness.
So, what is functional medicine about? It’s about figuring out why and how people get sick in the first place. Convention medicine uses a reductionist, pattern-based system where one of many predetermined treatment options can be utilized in response to symptoms or to identify a diagnosed disease, which is a good thing when you’re having a medical emergency, but some chronic illnesses or issues go unnoticed within this conventional framework of treatment options. Issues like inflammation, hormonal imbalances, a patient’s lifestyle and their environment or nutrition status might be missed. Functional medicine utilizes the holistic approach, and it views the body as an integrated system, not as a compilation of isolated organs.
A huge advantage of functional medicine: its tailored approach. No two treatment plans for any given diagnosis will ever be the same with a functional medicine provider. Advanced diagnostic testing and comprehensive patient histories are taken into consideration; lifestyle factors are factored in. Treatment plans include tailored interventions like diet, supplementation, or medications to optimize each patient’s health. The goal isn’t just to manage symptoms; the ultimate aim is full restoration of your body.
The patient-practitioner relationship in functional medicine also plays a major role; practitioners do not typically employ a top-down relationship, but encourage the patient to actively engage in their own health and healing. Patients have an active role to play in their well being; when you become involved in your own health and gain understanding of your own body, your treatment plan is much more likely to be sustained and followed, leading to tangible changes.
Integrative care builds on functional medicine, as well, by incorporating therapies such as yoga, acupuncture, mind-body practices, or nutrition consultations, to augment your conventional medical care. It takes the best of both conventional medicine and holistic practices, then finds effective and reliable modalities that can be incorporated to create your treatment plan.
If you are seeking out a functional medicine provider for the first time, the initial appointment can last significantly longer than the conventional visit to your primary care physician, due to the in-depth questioning that occurs; they will ask about your lifestyle, diet, history, emotional state, current symptoms, environment, and more. Follow up visits vary, but many patients will have regularly scheduled appointments for continued optimization and to gauge effectiveness.
The path of functional medicine is not usually the quickest path; it is one that entails slow and steady improvement, which leads to long-term, sustained gains. However, as with all medical fields, quality may be questionable and you should seek out evidence-based practices.
Overall, functional and integrative care provide a more individualized, holistic path to health and medicine that gets to the root of health issues and utilizes the unique attributes of the patient along with conventional and non-conventional medical techniques to restore patient health.
