Episode 4 - Reframing Health: What Functional Medicine Actually Is
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Tess: [00:00:00] Hey there. Welcome back to Sick of Sick Care, the wellness reframe, where we kick conventional care out of its tiny box and throw out the rule book on Band-Aid medicine and talk about what it really means to feel well. I'm Tess RN, Functional Practitioner and Herbalist, and someone who got real tired of watching people slip through the cracks of a system that was never built for wellness in the first place.
And today we're tackling a big one. What is functional medicine and why is it showing up in more and more conversations? We're gonna kind of break it down a little bit 'cause you've probably heard about functional medicine, but maybe you aren't a hundred percent clear on what it really means. So what is it and how's it different from conventional care?
Is it just another wellness buzzword, or is it the approach we've actually needed all along? So let's reframe that. Again, many people have heard the [00:01:00] term, but don't really know what it means, how it works, or what it looks like in practice. And spoiler alert, it's not just supplements and smoothie bowls. Instead of stopping at your diagnosis, what functional medicine asks is why are these symptoms happening in the first place? You know, for example, you might have two people, that have the same diagnosis. Let's just take rheumatoid arthritis, for example. But for one person, the trigger for them might be gluten. And for another it may be chronic chemical exposures. You know, it's the same label, the same diagnosis, but wildly different routes.
Functional medicine customizes care based on you, not your diagnosis. So let's start with the basics. Uh, first of all, it's not new. Functional medicine has been around for a long time, but it is a different way of thinking than what [00:02:00] you're used to.
At its core, it's really about uncovering what's not working in the body , and bringing that back to balance, to homeostasis. It doesn't just treat the symptoms or treat the paper. It investigates the causal because symptoms and lab results are not the problem. You'll hear me say this, they are the result of the problem.
So here's how functional medicine, was explained, years ago when I first started dipping my toes in it. Um, and this is what one of my mentors, Andrea Nakayama had said. That this is really how medicine should be. A functional practice aims to address the underlying cause or root of a symptom or illness. We design care with the individual's Bio-individuality in mind. It becomes a therapeutic partnership between the [00:03:00] practitioner and the client.
Hmm, A partnership. That's different. That right there, that's a reframe. And what's Bio-individuality? This is the idea that no two people are the same when it comes to how their bodies function, respond, uh, and thrive even. What works for your neighbor or your sister, or your favorite influencer on Instagram or TikTok might not work for you, and that's what's wrong with this one size fits all, "healthcare in a box" approach. Bioindividuality honors your unique makeup. Your genes, your life experiences, your habits, your stress levels, your microbiome, your history.
It's what makes your [00:04:00] wellness plan yours. And you know how else it stands apart is that, um, it's not just one body part. The whole person is taken into consideration. Conventional care tends to divide you into all these parts, right? Joints, rheumatologist, hormones, endocrinologist, gut, GI doc. But what if your joint pain is linked to your gut? What if your mood issues are driven by inflammation?
Functional medicine sees the body as one integrated system because everything touches everything. And many of those specialists, many times don't even speak to one another. So how does that help the person? Functional medicine is not just chasing a diagnosis. Standard care just wants to look at everything and give a diagnosis.
Working [00:05:00] functionally is uncovering healing opportunities and identifying the obstacles that are getting in the way of that, you know, peeling back those layers. Because in the functional medicine world, again, everything touches everything.
Your gut talks to your brain, your stress impacts your hormones, your nutrition affects your inflammation and your sleep, movement, mindset, and environment, they're all part of the conversation. So working through a functional lens means respecting the innate intelligence of the body, not just any body but that individual's body because everyone functions reacts and really heals differently.
So it personalizes everything. It isn't google your condition and see what worked for Samantha. You know your genes, your diet, your history, your environment, they all shape [00:06:00] how your body works and how it breaks down. And speaking of nutrition, you know it's not about calories or macros so much, it's about nourishing your cells, your tissues, and all your systems in a way that aligns with your Bio-individual needs.
That's what Bioindividuality means: no cookie cutter care. Functional medicine may use advanced testing to uncover the full picture. Standard labs are great, but functional labs go a bit deeper. The ranges are tighter, so you know, you may have been told that your labs look normal. But in reality, if they're in like a high normal range or a low normal range, they may be out of an optimal range for you. So, it explores, you know, hormone balance, nutrient status, gut health, adrenal function, food sensitivities , [00:07:00] and so much more because your body tells a bigger story than a CBC and a quick shrug from your doctor that everything looks normal.
So the goal is long-term healing, not life long symptom management. Conventional medicine often focuses on disease control. You gotta have the diagnosis first. But functional medicine focuses on resolving the imbalances causing the symptoms and the disease processes in the first place. It's not about masking the symptoms, it's about removing obstacles to healing.
And you know, you're not a passive patient. You're a partner, as I mentioned. Functional medicine is collaborative. It starts with your story, your full health history, your symptoms, your stressors, your goals. It all counts in building, you know, clarity and so that you can get on a path to move forward together with that [00:08:00] partnership.
That plan might include nutrition shifts, nervous system support, uh, lifestyle modifications, herbal or supplement strategies. But most importantly, it's education that is at the forefront because the more you understand your body, the more empowered you are to heal.
So to wrap things up, if you've been brushed off, bandaided, or told everything looks normal when your body is clearly screaming otherwise, this may be the reframe that you've been waiting for.
Functional medicine isn't fringe, it's not fluff. It's what happens when we get curious instead of complacent. And let me be clear, functional medicine is not anti-medication. It's not anti-doctor, and it's definitely not anti-science. It's pro-person. It's pro-curiosity, it's [00:09:00] pro-collaboration and digging deeper.
So if you've been living in a sick care loop, ask yourself, are you tired of chasing symptoms? Are you done with seven minute visits and zero clarity? Do you want care that sees you and not just your chart? Then if you said yes, functional medicine might be your next best step. So if you wanna explore what this could look like in your life, I invite you to book a free 20 minute wellness strategy with me.
You know, we can talk about it and you can book that on my website or just reach out. We'll take a look at your health history, your symptoms, and see where functional care could fit and fill in those gaps. So thanks for tuning in to Sick of Sick Care, the Wellness Reframe. If this resonated with you, please share it with someone else who needs to hear it.
Leave a review or a comment. Tag me in your takeaways, and keep reframing your health one empowered step at a time. Your body isn't [00:10:00] broken. It's brilliant. Let's treat it that way. See you next time.
