What’s missing in healthcare—YOUR STORY

Scientific research is now revealing what you may have known, in your gut, all along…

You need personalized solutions to your health struggles.

Functional Nutrition is based on this premise. And some areas of medicine aim to support this mission to transform healthcare into a system that WORKS (and works for YOU).

In fact, precision medicine is a medical model that embraces the science and champions the customization of interventions, proposing all medical decisions, treatments, practices, and products should be tailored to the individual patient—right down to the needs of certain cells.

This takes into account something you and I have known all along—you are unique.

Your body is unique. The irritable bowel syndrome or Hashimoto’s or even the cancer that you might be suffering from are also unique. And scientific research is finally revealing that unique issues need unique solutions.

The question then becomes:

How do we uncover the root causes of your issues so that we can create individualized remedies and action plans that work to bring you towards resolution?

And how do we do this even when the most cutting-edge precision medicine practices don’t (yet) apply to the conditions that you suffer from?

The Power of Your Story

At least some of the answers to that question lie in your story.

Your symptoms didn’t arise in a vacuum. They didn’t appear out of nowhere, even if it feels like they did.

There is a story to how the environment of your body became the perfect storm for your particular health concerns or illness.

I can’t find that story in your genes alone. Or in a lab test. Or even in a detailed health history or intake questionnaire.

But when you tell me your story—the beginnings of your symptoms, how you felt, what else you were going through at the time they arose, who is currently in support (or not) of your healing journey, the puzzle pieces begin to come together. The places where your body (and your life) have gotten out of balance become clear, and even the root causes of your symptoms start to reveal themselves.

Mediators

One key factor that Functional Nutritionist Counselors like the practitioners on my team at the Functional Nutrition Alliance (FxNA) Clinic are looking for in your story (and that you can even begin to uncover yourself!) is what we call mediators.

Mediators are things that make your symptoms better or worse. It could be a certain food, the quality of your sleep, stress in your relationship or your job, your level of physical activity, or a multitude of other factors.

Can you see how clues to your mediators are hidden in your story?

As you recount events and feelings, connections can be made. You might realize that your most recent arthritis flare-up occurred after you had an emotional encounter with your father, or that, strangely enough, every time you have that green smoothie your svelte vegan friend swears by, you seem to have unusually rosy cheeks that burn.

It’s all in your story. Your one-of-a-kind story.

Functional Nutrition Counselors are trained specifically to help guide you in the telling of your story so as to uncover crucial information about your symptoms and your unique road to resolution. Sometimes you know these parts of your story on your own. You can make your own associations. Other times you may need a helping hand to make the connections and identify the unique interventions that will work for you, and possibly only you.

At the FxNA Clinic we can help. Learn more about how to track your Mediators and if our support is what you’ve been seeking at www.fxnutrition.com/clinic

By: Andrea Nakayama, FxNA Founder & Functional Medicine Nutritionist

Functional Nutrition Alliance provides the comprehensive online Functional Nutrition training in the Science & Art of the Functional Nutrition practice. Learn to address the roots of your clients’ suffering with client education, diet & lifestyle modifications.